EVERETT – For six weeks, I looked like an old television commercial: nose pressed to the window, fingers tapping against the glass, muttering, “Open. Open. Open.” Then, somehow, Amante Pizza and Pasta opened without me noticing, so I arrived 10 days later.
The Everett eatery is one of seven Amante restaurants in the Puget Sound area. My introduction to Amante was about four years ago at the Lynnwood location. There, I had excellent service and was surrounded by parents enjoying great food while their children chowed down on pizza.
When my friend and I visited the Everett restaurant for dinner, the attentive service started just inside the door and continued throughout our visit. Our experienced server was invisible when we didn’t need her and right there when I asked her to pop my order into the microwave for a few seconds.
I ordered the rosemary chicken ravioli ($10.95) and it wasn’t piping hot. Yet, my friend’s chicken parmesan ($12.95) was so steaming he had to wait for it to cool. We speculated that the kitchen was experiencing some “newly opened” glitches.
There were a few more during our meal. There wasn’t a large wine selection because the restaurant got its liquor license the day of our dinner. That didn’t affect us because I ordered the house chianti and my friend had a glass of rose.
The third hiccup was over dessert. My friend and I ordered mud pie. Our server discovered it was gone, substituted a slice of triple chocolate cake and apologized three or four times for being out of our first choice. Then, the manager, Peter Raikov, slipped into an empty spot in our booth, apologized again and told us dessert was on him.
These little things didn’t detract from our meal because everything we ordered was delicious. Our salads were cool and crisp. I ordered the house dressing, which is made with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and my friend had the house Italian. Both were excellent choices.
My friend described his main dish as “above average,” and my ravioli in marinara sauce with a sprinkling of freshly chopped basil was as tasty as I expected it to be.
Our main dishes were two of 17 pasta selections ($8.25 to $12.95). The menu also has 12 salads ($8.25 to $9.95), eight sandwiches and 10 hot grinders ($5.75 to $8.45). For pizza lovers, there are 24 choices ($8.20 to $12.75) with more than two dozen toppings and nine kinds of cheese.
By the time you visit, I predict more kinks will be gone, and you’ll be just as happy as I am that this restaurant opened.
Herald restaurant reviewers accept no invitations to review, but readers’ suggestions are always welcome. Reviewers arrive unannounced, and The Herald pays their tabs.
Contact Anna Poole at features@heraldnet.com.
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