Ristorante Romano
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Location:
12 Capel Stret
Visited:
over 2 years ago
Reviewed by:
Aoife Crowley
Rating:
Romano’s do the best lunches on Capel Street. There, I’ve said it. I can hear Soup Dragon aficionados snorting into their paper soup cups, and it does have to be said that their €3 lunch deal isn’t bad value. But how can a take-away dribble of soup and a scrape of bread possibly compare to sitting in a warm restaurant, tucking into two hot courses (plus tea or coffee), and being inexplicably surrounded by photos and news-clippings of cyclists? And all for just €9.95? It can’t, that’s the answer.
There are a four or five starters to choose from. Garlic ciabata is delicious, just the right balance of butter and garlicky goodness. The salads come with homemade dressing, rather than some industrial one-dressing-fits-all effluent. The melon can sometimes be a little on the unripe side, which is a shame seeing as how the fruit markets are just around the corner, but I suppose that even with that, it is difficult to find perfectly ripe fruit.
On to the main event, and the menu has a number of pizza or pasta options. The pizzas are the closest thing to perfect that I can imagine. Crispy, thin base, generous with the toppings but not too much cheese or tomato sauce, and without that revolting grease-slick on top. There are both vegetarian and omnivore options, but I personally really like the vegetable. The flavours are perfectly balanced, and the extra fibre fills you up all warm and cosy.
The pastas again come in generous portions, with homemade sauces. I haven’t tried them all, but I’m going to go ahead and recommend the tagliatelle alfredo. I ordered this for reasons unknown to myself, as I’m not a big fan of either mushrooms or cream-based sauces. The fact that despite this prejudice I found it incredibly moreish just goes to show how good this dish is. It’s the epitome of comfort food, and I can easily see it keeping me company through the winter afternoon blues.
The reason that Romano’s gets four stars, and not five, is the service. I’ve been a number of times, and it was only on the most recent that the service was noticeably brusque and unfriendly. The main course was served before we were finished eating the starter, napkins were flung onto the table and plates snatched away. But as this only happened once, perhaps the waitress was just having a bad day. It was raining pretty heavily after all. Despite this unpleasant occurrence, I wholeheartedly recommend Romano’s. And if you go, do ask about all the photos of cyclists. I’ve been wondering about them ever since.
