GREAT EATS HAWAII: ROMANO'S MACARONI GRILL

ROMANO'S MACARONI GRILL

ALA MOANA SHOPPING CENTER

HONOLULU, HAWAII

We have been on an Italian food run lately. After not being able to get a table at Taormina in Waikiki because I did not make a reservation, we opted to go to Romano's Macaroni Grill the following day. I have stayed away from Romano's because the last time I was there we ate dishes loaded with cheese and creme sauces. Not a good memory. This time we ate on the lighter side and ate family style. We started with the Bib and Blue Salad that is $5 when you order any pasta dish. There was more than enough for two in the bowl. The salad includes bib lettuce, Buttermilk Dressing with Blue Cheese crumbles, thinly slice onion rings, pancetta, walnuts and pickled red onions. Not too heavy and good combination of flavors. Our second dish was Mom's Ricotta Meatballs with Spaghetti and Bolognese Sauce ($15). The small meat balls are made of Beef, Veal and Ricotta. They were moist and flavorful. The Bolognese sauce was meaty and pretty good. The spaghetti was a bit soft. I would prefer a more al dente pasta. The serving of pasta served two with a little left over. The Margherita Pizza ($13) was really "fresh". We both liked the fresh taste of the multi-colored tomatoes that cover the pizza. Added some crushed red pepper to kick this one up a notch. The Kids Meal Grilled Chicken and Pasta is a bargain at $7. My daughter finished everything on the plate plus half of the loaf of Rosemary Bread that is served with every meal. Overall this was not bad at all. Our server was pretty lame. How he got a job serving food is beyond me. The bottle of Olive Oil on the table had more personality. I won't name names but his name was Jeff.
Click links below for more posts on Romano's Macaroni Grill:
http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2014/02/romanos-macaroni-grill.html
http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2008/04/ramanos-macaroni-grill.html