Wish my oven cranked out food this good

Lately, I've been making an effort to get out more, which includes checking out restaurants in the area. I feel strange going to a restaurant solo, so I haven't eaten out much in the three years I've lived in my current location. Last night, I went with a friend to The Italian Oven, an Atlanta chain with three locations. The Stockbridge location is right across the street from my grocery store of choice.

Decor is what you'd expect of all but the more expensive Italian restaurants. Points for cleanliness though. They keep it so clean it almost seems sterile. Service was top-notch; we never had to wait long for anything, and the waitress didn't check on us so often it became an annoyance either. The time between ordering and food being put on the table was impressively short. Prices on food seemed more than reasonable, and drink prices were in line with the Atlanta norm.

And now to the food. The bread was to die for. Light and fluffy and encrusted with parmesan cheese on the outside. The bread is served alongside a little dish containing a layer of quality olive oil and more parmesan cheese. The house salad was excellent. Fresh and, more importantly, not drowning in dressing. Italian Oven uses a reasonable amount, which you don't see often anymore. My entree of choice last night: spicy shrimp and tomatoes over linguine. The linguine was a bit on the soft/overcooked side for my taste, but I like my pasta a bit firmer than the norm anyway. Let's say it was perfectly acceptable. The shrimp and crushed plum tomatoes were well-prepared, and the overall dish was spiced to perfection. Enough of a spicy kick to feel it, but not so much that it overwhelmed everything else. For dessert, my friend and I split an order of spumoni. My only quibble with the spumoni is that the nuts were all concentrated toward the bottom of the glass. Otherwise, it was fantastic. Tasty balls of pistachio ice cream adrift in some fine chocolate ice cream.

Short version: an above average restaurant I would eat at again. I may even check out their lunch fare tomorrow while I'm out running errands.

So, unfortunately, I think I've been spreading myself thin, as evidenced by my failure to consistently manage two entries a week here. The second blog and all the stuff going on in my life right now doesn't help. Since I'd rather over-deliver than under-deliver, I'll just promise one entry per week, favoring this blog. I'll throw up extras when I get some spare time.