Chicago's in Pleasanton - just "meh".
Some menus are inspired. Some are rote. Some are just a wild-assed guess. Chicago's restaurant, in Pleasanton, CA, might just be a guess (at worst) or (at best) a rote recitation of ingredients believed to represent Chicago food.
Chicago's was unlucky to begin with. Yelp had guided me to the restaurant next door, which promised to deliver unbelievable Italian food. Unfortunately, my deposition went through lunch. Wait, let's talk about that.
I eat. You might say I live to eat. Work, is necessary, but I don't like it to interfere with my eating. I also am a bit hypoglycemic, so when I don't eat, I can get dizzy and/or crazy. I am very protective of my mealtimes.
So, back to the story. I was in Pleasanton for a deposition and opposing counsel was asking stupid questions and taking a stupid amount of time. Finally, at noon, I asked if we should take a lunch break. He said he had a half hour left of questions. At 12:45, I said it had been more than half an hour. He said he wanted to make a 3:00 flight (which was already impossible by then). So, the deposition gets done at about 1:40, and I have to BS with my expert for a few minutes before I can leave for lunch. I get to the restaurant at about 2:00 only to find that IT CLOSES FOR LUNCH AT 2:00 PM! I hate it when people mess up my lunch. Or my breakfast. Or my dinner. As Homer Simpson might say (though he was talking about his intials) - each meal is as important as the last, if not more important!
So, I was pissed that I had to settle for Chicago's. However, I was optimistic. I was still buzzing from the memory of a Rosati's sandwich, with the hot giardinera and brown gravy. Surely Chicago's has such spectacular fare. I ordered a sandwich of Italian beef, peppers with fries. It came and looked really good. I tried it and it was ok at best. Compared with the Rosati's sandwich, which was dripping with undeniable zest and flavor, this one was simply a disappointment. It was ok, better than Arby's, for example, but had no zing.
The fries, however, were great. They were crispy. They were flavorful. They popped!
But I didn't come for the fries, and I was dissapointed.
Chicago's was unlucky to begin with. Yelp had guided me to the restaurant next door, which promised to deliver unbelievable Italian food. Unfortunately, my deposition went through lunch. Wait, let's talk about that.
I eat. You might say I live to eat. Work, is necessary, but I don't like it to interfere with my eating. I also am a bit hypoglycemic, so when I don't eat, I can get dizzy and/or crazy. I am very protective of my mealtimes.
So, back to the story. I was in Pleasanton for a deposition and opposing counsel was asking stupid questions and taking a stupid amount of time. Finally, at noon, I asked if we should take a lunch break. He said he had a half hour left of questions. At 12:45, I said it had been more than half an hour. He said he wanted to make a 3:00 flight (which was already impossible by then). So, the deposition gets done at about 1:40, and I have to BS with my expert for a few minutes before I can leave for lunch. I get to the restaurant at about 2:00 only to find that IT CLOSES FOR LUNCH AT 2:00 PM! I hate it when people mess up my lunch. Or my breakfast. Or my dinner. As Homer Simpson might say (though he was talking about his intials) - each meal is as important as the last, if not more important!
So, I was pissed that I had to settle for Chicago's. However, I was optimistic. I was still buzzing from the memory of a Rosati's sandwich, with the hot giardinera and brown gravy. Surely Chicago's has such spectacular fare. I ordered a sandwich of Italian beef, peppers with fries. It came and looked really good. I tried it and it was ok at best. Compared with the Rosati's sandwich, which was dripping with undeniable zest and flavor, this one was simply a disappointment. It was ok, better than Arby's, for example, but had no zing.
But I didn't come for the fries, and I was dissapointed.
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