As I pulled up to the Ristorante, I was kind of shocked because it is located in the middle of a strip mall. But as soon as I walked in I knew it would be much more authentic than the nearest Olive Garden. :) The restaurant is really small and quaint but it has tons of character.
Look at all that wine!
At 7 PM on a Tuesday, Tropea was pretty darn busy, which is always a great sign. The atmosphere was awesome and the servers were so helpful and attentive and both the wine list and menu's had tons of options... all these characteristics led me to believe I was about to have a great dining experience.
The only problem with so many delicious options is deciding... so I of course badgered the server about the menu and he finally persuaded me to order a Special Chicken Dish aka 'Pink Chicken.' I just loved our server so much, he has worked at Tropea for 15 years and knows pretty much everything about the menu and his personality was so refreshing, he really loves what he does. This is the type of restaurant where you can just tell you server what you want and they make it happen... just one of the many reasons I love small local restaurants. Tropea has numerous specials each day and my parents said to always order of the special menu because they have never had a bad experience. :)
We opted not to order an appetizer because I was warned the dishes are ginormous, so the bread basket and olive oil dipping would have to do and it did. It was so garlicky and delicious!
As I said earlier I ordered the 'Pink Chicken' which is a chicken breast and side of penne pasta topped with Tropea's famous aurora sauce. Aurora sauce is a blend of alfredo and spaghetti sauce... and it was delicious. I could only eat half of my dish because I was saving room for dessert because there are two full pages of options. :)
My dad ordered the 'Lobster Ravioli Special' which was very tasty. The picture below does not due the meal justice. It is a rich dish so you may want to share a couple of dishes but my dad had no trouble finishing it off. FYI huge pieces of lobster are included in this dish.
My mom ordered a special Fetttuccine dish with homemade sausage and meatballs. I have to tell you her dish was the prettiest and tastiest. The meatballs are to die for and the sausage isn't to bad either!
Since we were celebrating my mom we all decided to order our own dessert and share it. As I said above their are two pages of delicious desserts to choose from. My dad ordered a delicious pistachio parfait, I ordered the famous Cannoli, and my mom ordered something really pretty and interesting... none of us could recall it. :)
The pistachio parfait was the best dessert I have had in awhile, the cannoli filling was life-changing and my mom's mystery dessert was tasty but definitely was our third favorite.
My experience at Tropea couldn't have been any better. Please check it out and support this local business. :)
PS I just want to go on the blog record that I have the BEST parents in the world. Seriously... how cute are they? So CUTE!
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