As Nora Ephron so sagely noted, the Godfather is the sum of all wisdom. The Godfather is the answer to any question. At least for many boys.
Facci Ristorante famously hasn't offered takeout. They'll oblige once their current expansion is done. But Mrs. HowChow got takeout from Facci last month by confiding to our waiter that she was too stuffed to eat dessert at the table, but would love a cannoli to take home.
Facci makes the cream in house, and they're absolutely delicious -- although they're being caught by Facci's expanding dessert menu that included a real success of lemon gelato wrapped around a limoncello cream.
We had a delicious dinner at Facci with family. The waiter discretely delivered Mrs. HowChow's package, and she ordered us out the door and towards the fork that she knew she would find in our kitchen.
"Leave the gun," she said. "Take the cannoli."
Does Facci pay you? I really enjoy your blog & mainly agree with your observations. Except when it comes to Facci. To me, Facci is adequate at best. I have been there many times & each time walk away thinking that I must be in a different place than your reviews suggest.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you need to try their baked egg pizza then.
ReplyDeleteRegardless of where you get cannoli to take home, ask them not to put on the powdered sugar. It makes them soggy. Put on your own at home
ReplyDeleteI have to say when I first saw the picture you posted on this I said "What the H___ is that?" Probably tasted a lot better than it looked.
ReplyDelete+1 for RHfoodie's comment.
ReplyDeleteI live within walking distance, and have been to Facci a a bunch of times, primarily b/c my gf likes it. Not a single visit has been even... noteworthy, and even my gf will agree with me. I've had a few different types of pizza (including the baked egg), which were good but not great. They certainly weren't your average pizza, and while they use higher-quality ingredients, the recipes... the actual taste of the food usually lets me down.
The last time I gave up on the odd dishes and got a plate of spaghetti with clams, which was actually pretty good... but still nothing fantastic.
I'm stubborn, so I'll keep trying, especially with the expansion (the place is WAY too cramped right now), but if I really want good Italian, I'll go to Pasta Plus in Laurel... 10 minutes away.
Um.. YUM! That looks great.
ReplyDeleteI actually really liked Facci's pizza the few times I've been there. I like the topping combinations, and the fact that it's not over-loaded with spices. The crust is good. And I find the salads really fresh.
My husband and I really like Facci, especially their bolognese sauce. But I would like to see some new menu items in the Chicken and Dessert categories.
ReplyDelete+1 for RHfoodie's comment.
ReplyDelete+3 for Hoco Connect's. You really might want to reconsider that picture.
I've been to Facci a couple of times, and I've liked the food we've gotten.
ReplyDeleteI will say that the last time we went, there was a long wait (as per usual at Facci), and when we tried to go to the bar area to get drinks and wait, we were quite rudely handled by the manager who made it very clear we weren't welcome to get drinks and wait there. Apparently they seat people at the bar itself when they get busy... which I don't think we should have been expected to realize.
We were actually upset enough that we tried to file a formal complaint, but the hostess girl looked a bit scared when she told us that the woman was a manager.
Wow that is a really horrible picture. No I don't think Facci pays him. I'm convinced he lives within a mile or two of this really annoying plaza. So this is how it goes on this blog...
ReplyDelete-Facci post
-Kloby's post
-Random Chinese post
-Random Indian post
-Random Afghan post
-Facci love post
-Kloby's love post
-etc.
This is by far the most annoying plaza I have ever visited. Facci and Kloby's are just OK. One post a year is enough..unless you can walk to this plaza. Cough.
@Stephanie - agree food is decent, but that woman manager is rude and snooty. I cringe when I see her. Once we sat outside and couldn't even get water for 15 minutes while she stood right next to us chatting with her "regulars" ignoring our attempts to flag down anybody who could fill our glasses. She probably threw you out of the bar to make room for her favorites. Saw her seat a single person at a sixtop and let him sit by himself for 25 minutes waiting fir his party when the line was out the door. Again a favorite. She needs to be fired but I doubt that will happen.
ReplyDelete@Biketraveller22, yes that is exactly what happened. She pretty much kicked us out and told us they would buzz us when our table was ready.
ReplyDeleteId agree that the whole center is frustrating because of the parking situation, but unlike Facci, at least when you get inside Kloby's or La Palapa the staff is friendly and there is room to breathe.
I think I am done with Facci for now. For the same money and a much more relaxed atmosphere (albeit less trendy), I'd rather go to Luna Bella in the Hickory Ridge Shopping Center or Stella Notte in Lotte Plaza.
@Stephanie
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more. Luna Bella, while less trendy and smaller, is far less snooty and the food is comparable. And you can always find parking.
If you want Mexican you are far better off driving to Clarksville and eating at El Azteca. The food is consistently above average. While this is a much smaller parking lot than the one at Facci, it is actually much easier to park there.
There is nothing comparable to Klobys in the immediate area, but that restaurant is not consistent. Friendly...sure. Ok food...sure..most of the time.
I know it's a big-box chain, but I've always liked Carrabba's. They've got reasonably good manicotti, which is my favorite Italian food, and the bread + pesto they serve as a freebie rocks my world.
ReplyDeleteI am not a big fan of Facci. But I don't knock Howchow for recommending it. The problem with restaurant recommendations is that different people have different tastes.