Timothy T.
Yelp
Once again I'm frustrated with no half stars. C'mon Yelp! This is a 3 & 1/2 star rating here!
Years ago we at at Mom's Kitchen at least once a week. I gave up on Moms a few years ago. I guess I tired of the menu and just didn't care for their pizza. A staple like spaghetti and meatballs was mediocre.
I imagine some of the old "Moms" clientele are disappointed that Il Posto is not Mom's Kitchen II, but even though they may have kept a few menu items intact, this is a new restaurant and I am rating it as such.
I P has a more upscale look; it doesn't feel like a family restaurant anymore. That's OK with me. They kept the knotty pine, took down a wall or two, and made the place better visually. High tops by the bar are a nice touch. They have added a couple of taps and I'm glad to see they offer Little Dog beer which is brewed just blocks away.
We ordered a family style salad which was fresh, homemade Italian dressing I presume, and very enjoyable. One of us ordered the mussels marinara. I could have dipped a whole loaf of their excellent bread in the broth. I got the bracciole on rigatoni. It consisted of a pork rib, a meatball, a piece of sweet sausage and bracciole. In case you were wondering it's rolled flank steak, parsley, parmesan, garlic cooked in sauce like meatballs. The meatball and sausage were perfect; moist and tasty. The rib and the bracciole were good but they were on the dry side.
What kept Il Posto from attaining four stars was the fact that the only item that was hot on the plate was the bracciole. Pasta, rib, sausage, meatball were all just barely warm. If the whole plate were cool, I'd expect the dish to have been sitting on a counter waiting to be picked up; yet one item was hot. It seems to me there's a systemic problem here. It's not as though the restaurant was packed and the kitchen was backed up. Probably no more than 30 patrons. More care needs to be taken in the kitchen. My wife said her entrée could have been warmer too.
This is a tough business. Patrons are demanding. It's seemingly little things like this that can add up to disaster if not taken care of. I can see a lot of potential here; the menu, staff and atmosphere are very nice. It's up to Il Posto to step up to the challenges.
On a positive note our server and bus staff were excellent! I feel prices are commensurate with the quality of the food. It's worth another shot.