IL FORNAIO 

3790 Las Vegas Boulevard South, New York-NewYork Hotel and Casino, Breakfast 7:30 - 10:30, Sunday- Thursday Lunch/Dinner 11:30-11:00, Friday-Saturday Lunch/Dinner 11:30 -12:00am, (702) 740-6403  

Located in New York New York hotel and casino, Il Fornalo is a great place for a fresh pasta dinner.  We discovered it after visiting another restaurant here and decided to try it.  It was awesome!

We ordered a nice Chianti to start 

This was followed by a nice order of calamari fritti 

My wife had the Cannelloni al Forno filled with rotisserie chicken, sun dried tomatoes, ricotta, pecorino, smoked mozzarella, and topped with organic spinach, bechamel, marinara and mushrooms - they were unreal

I had the ravioli with squash and walnuts Cappellacci Di Zucca- it was heavenly - the pasta was obviously house made and the brown butter sage sauce and tomato sauce with crispy sage was very tasty!  We found the portions satisfying and the prices very reasonable here!!!

My wife finished with a nice Cappuccino 

I had a double long espresso and it was great

We thoroughly enjoyed our meal here and will definitely return when visiting Vegas.  We highly recommend you try it when you visit Vegas!!



http://www.ilfornaio.com/lasvegas

FOUR BROTHERS 

5283 Ferry Street, Niagara Falls On., (905) 358-6951 Open for Lunch and Dinner

After checking out some restaurants in Niagara Falls, we decided to try Four Brothers on a Wednesday night in late July.  We read reviews and checked the website before we went.  The website describes it as a family run restaurant that has been here since 1964.  When we saw the exterior we thought it looked kind of weathered, but when we went inside it was like a time warp.  The furniture was old, the tables were worn, there was a musty smell - we had entered 1964!!  It looked like the owners had not spent a dime on the interior since 1964.

We began by ordering a standard wine (Masi) found in most Italian restaurants.

An order of dry bread arrived with butter, not olive oil.

We perused the menu.

I decided to have the minestrone soup.  It was basically vegetable soup with a few beans - not very appetizing.

We decided to share an appetizer of fried calamari - they were served with a store bought seafood dipping sauce, normally used with shrimp!

My wife ordered the homemade gnocchi in tomato sauce.  She found them good, but they had an unusual shape for gnocchi.

I ordered the Filetto di  Pesce (basa fillet) seasoned in a white wine and tomato sauce.  The sauce was basically tomatoes floating in oil and was very heavy.  The basa was tender and easy to eat.  The accompanying pasta was dull and too al dente.

It became obvious during our meal that this restaurant was stuck in the past and content with producing the same menu day in and day out, resulting in not only a mediocre product but also a horrible old environment in need of serious renovation.  The service was good, but we will not be returning to this establishment and will simply describe it as another Niagara Falls tourist trap, despite what others may say!!
http://www.fourbrothersniagara.com/

EAST SIDE MARIOS 

119 Osler Drive, Dundas Ontario, Dundas On., L9H 6X4 

Went to East Side Marios in Dundas University Plaza.  It is a gigantic place with a number of rooms with tables and a large bar area.  It also has an outside patio facing the parking lot.  This restaurant is not typical of most other East Side Marios because of its size and ability to seat many patrons.  It is not sophisticated but reasonably priced and family oriented comfort food.

We began with the typical Marios dinner - a salad and garlic bread.  It was good and appetizing.  We ordered a bottle of Valpolicella to go with our meal.

We began by ordering a bottle of Valpolicella wine, which seems to always be our first step.  Then the bread and salad arrived.

We ordered fried calamari for an appetizer.

I decided to order chicken piccata with capers and mushrooms and a side of spaghetti with herbs.  It was yummy and filling, especially after the salad and bread.

 My sister in law Kathy had the chicken Roma which was a breaded piece of chicken on top of pasta.  It was also quite good.

Our meals where quite filling and substantial, they hit the spot along with the wine we had.  It was reasonably priced meal in a nice environment.  Our waitress was distracted by some friends but somehow served us fairly well.


http://www.eastsidemarios.com/

JACK ASTOR'S BAR and GRILL 

133 John Street, Entertainment District, Toronto On., (416) 595-9100, Open 7 days for lunch and dinner, Fri. and Sat. Late night.

We decided to go to Jack Astor's on John Street in Toronto.  It is a very large and active restaurant in the summer season with a very large and busy patio.  It is quieter in the winter.  When we arrived we were given a table in the middle of the hallway to the kitchen just inside the front door.  It was a virtual freeway (poor restaurant design).

One of us had the Bouillabaisse soup that looked rather watery but was good.

We weren't that hungry so we decided to order appetizers and salads.  One of us ordered the pulled pork poutine.

We shared two orders of fried calamari.

Two of us shared lettuce wraps that were very substantial, some of it had to be taken home.

Two of us had chicken grilled caesars salads.  They were quite filling.

One of us had a regular caesar salad.

We shared a bottle of Berringer California cab sav - always a good choice.  We found the menu has been much the same for years.  It is substantial and filling, but could use more imagination.  Our waiter was very efficient and friendly.  One thing we noticed at the end of our meal - a large group of people were patiently waiting to get seated, while a group of hostesses were chatting.  There were many empty tables and these people could have been seated much quicker.  

http://www.jackastors.com/

MARINELLA 
360 College Street West, Toronto (416) 348-9200 
Decided to try a new restaurant on College Street in Little Italy, it was called Marinella.  We checked the menu on the board outside and it seemed to have some dishes we wanted to try.  We began with the usual request for a bottle of wine, Chianti and it was good ($40).  The meal began with a plate of homemade bread that was still warm, and definitely homemade.  The bread was accompanied with olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping.  Had to ask for another plate of it, it was melt in your mouth good.  We ordered calamari fritti and an olive bowl as appetizers to share, they were a reasonable price and very good.  The calamari were large and covered in a nice panko like coating and an accompanying tomato sauce which was not acidic.  My wife ordered gnocchi in tomato sauce (she has tried many gnocchi dishes in many restaurants) and she said it was very good.  I ordered the veal parmigiana with the standard spaghetti accompaniment.  I found the veal thin and delicious.  I cut it with the butter knife. The accompanying spaghetti tasted homemade (usually it is a filler to accompany the veal parmigiana), but this was different, it was definitely homemade and scrumptious.  We completed the meal with a cappuccino and shared a tiramisu that was homemade.  

When we first arrived the waiter told us that tonight's cooks in the kitchen were the owners mother and brother and that everything was homemade.  Well I had to agree, our meal  was delicious and tasted homemade.
    
I do not take well to acidic tomato sauces, but this was not definitely not an acidic tomato sauce (try Kit Kat's sauce and you will see what I mean).

In summary, this was a great meal.  The waiter was very efficient and deserved the larger tip.  The only drawback was that the restaurant owner had turned away at least a dozen people, saying they were booked for the night, yet when we left an hour later it was still mostly empty.  He lost possible return customers - I am not a fan of reservations!!

nice Chianti

fresh house made bread, olive oil and balsamic

large calamari with nice crust and tomato sauce

olive bowl appetizer

house made gnocchi

veal parmigiana and house made spaghetti

house made tiramisu

http://www.marinellasrestaurant.com

PIZZA RUSTICA  

We have been coming here on and off for years and recently decided to check in on Pizza Rustica.  It hasn't changed a bit in years.  We shared a cajun calamari fritti (lightly dusted, fried and served with lemon roasted garlic aoli and franks hot sauce for dipping) they were yummy.  We then shared a California Pizza (vegetarian) covered with three cheese creme sauce, roasted garlic, mozzarella, broccoli, sliced roma tomatoes, red onions, mushrooms, fresh peppers and pitted black olives.  We find their pizzas extremely light on the stomach very tasty and easily shared.

We had a half litre of Valpolicella wine and completed the meal with a capuccino.  There is a wonderful covered patio that overlooks Blue Jay Way and the Soho hotel for people watching.  The interior is comfortable though a little small.  It is located just down the street from the Rogers Centre and is great before or after a game or after shopping on Queen Street.

cajun calamari fritti  

California Pizza

nice patio for people watching

http://www.pizzarustica.ca/