Big Daddy's Pizza

Really, what it comes down to is that my husband and I are incredibly lazy. I had these thoughts of going out to dinner tonight but my husband was feeling run down and coldy and just wanted pizza, so we ordered delivery from Big Daddy's Pizza. Their website is a bit of a mess; even though they offer delivery, one couldn't choose a delivery option online, and submitting our order online got messed up, so this time we just called to place our order, which was a better decision. My husband was in charge of ordering dinner, and he may have ordered too much.

My husband ordered two pizzas; this was the Alfredo chicken
pizza (Alfredo sauce, chicken, garlic, fresh tomato, mushroom).

This was the coronary: pepperoni, Italian sausage, ham, beef,
and breakfast bacon.

Also, we tried the ribs, which were pretty good, although
there was a bit too much sauce on them for my liking.

Strega Prima Italian Steakhouse

Tomorrow my father-in-law has a milestone birthday, and since my husband and I happen to be in town for another family celebration, we took him to Strega Prima Italian Steakhouse for dinner.

I started with clam chowder, which included pancetta and
smoked haddock. 

I ordered the dry-aged ribeye...

...and the macaroni and cheese.

And for dessert: dark chocolate cake.

Salt Lake Pizza and Pasta

My husband and I are off to Massachusetts for the weekend for a family event, and because one needs breakfast before a long day of travel, I visited the airport location of Salt Lake Pizza and Pasta for a breakfast sandwich that featured eggs, mozzarella, and bacon on focaccia with (I think) pesto aioli. It was pretty good!

Johnny Carino's

My husband has been in a persistent mood for Italian food lately, so we went to Johnny Carino's for dinner tonight before heading out to see Star Trek Beyond. The movie was good - we were glad we went - but dinner was a bit of a bust, and we decided we wouldn't go back. The food was mediocre and bland, a step down even from The Olive Garden.

We started with the calamari. 

I ordered the traditional margherita pizza.

I also ordered a side of meatballs.

Blair's Bistro

It's fitting, somehow, that the last meal we have in Ireland is at the same place in which we had our first meal: Blair's Bistro, located within the Park Inn, a perhaps five-minute walk from Shannon Airport.

I started with chicken satay, which was rather oddly served
atop what tasted like lo mein. I'm not sure if this counts as
fusion food.

I also had the spaghetti and meatballs.

Caputo's Deli

This past week I took a weeklong workshop at the University of Utah, through the Tanner Humanities Center, as part of my continuing education as a teacher. (Although I teach at the college level these days, I like to maintain my secondary teaching license.) We were given a meal card, so during the week I had some campus grub. However, with the exception of Monday (in which I ate at the) food court at the Student Union, I got my meals from Caputo's Deli, which a location at Tanner Humanities Center.)

Monday's lunch: Philly cheesesteak and curly fries from
Grill Nation.

Tuesday's lunch, part one: a small Caprese salad from
Caputo's Deli.

Tuesday's lunch, part two: a large meatball sub from
Caputo's Deli.

Wednesday's lunch: a breakfast sandwich with egg, cheese,
and bacon from Caputo's Deli.

Thursdays lunch: the Italian cold cut (without provolone) from
Caputo's Deli.

Il Brigantino Pizzaria

Today's our last day of Rome, and we'd hoped to have lunch at the trattoria down the street; however, it didn't seem to be open for lunch, so we had lunch at Il Brigantine Pizzeria instead.

We shared some prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella.

We also shared some fried pizza dough, which was surprisingly
good.

I had some bruschetta with tomatoes, mozzarlla, and anchovies.

And one of my favorites: spaghetti carbonara. 

Spaccio Pasta

My husband and I went to an evening Mass tonight - a 6 p.m. Mass, which on a Sunday is most definitely outside our normal routine, since none of our local parishes have Sunday evening Masses - but after Mass, we walked across the street and had dinner at Spaccio Pasta.

We started with Crocchette di Pollo - fried chicken nuggets.

I then had Nudo di Manzo - a beef hamburger served with
melted provoke cheese and speck ham.

And for dessert, cheesecake.

Il Nipotino del Solitario

It's a rainy, almost cold evening tonight, and my husband and I didn't care to travel far for dinner, so we walked across the street for tonight's dinner at Il Nipotino del Solitario.

appetizer: mixture of salted pork meats, cheee, and vegetables

side order of fries

caprese side salad (excellent buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes, & basil)

Fiori di Zucca
(gourd flower, anchovies, and mozzarella)

Ristorante Al Chiostro

Staying in a hotel in a foreign city on a holiday presents some challenges, mostly involving not knowing what is likely to be open, or for how long. The front desk clerk at our hotel had apparently gotten at least one fax from Al Chiostro, a local restaurant advertising a special Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas day lunch, so for a slightly later lunch today, we headed there. The restaurant had a special prix fixe menu, which made things convenient. Unfortunately, we weren't quite sure what were getting some of the time. Our dinner also came with house wine, water, and champagne. (I got through half a glass of red wine and called it a day.)

We started with a warm appetizer platter that came with,
among other things, cheese, bruschetta with a sausage spread,
and seafood fritters.

Next we had cappelletti in broth.

up next: fettucine al ragù

The  main entrée consisted of roasted potted and some very
delicious roasted chicken and lamb.

Dessert consisted of a buffet of traditional Christmas deserts;
I chose a Clementine, a slice of pannetone, a biscotti, and
two small pieces of unidentified deliciousness.

L'Antico Caffè Santa Maria

Figuring out what's open today is a bit of a hit-and-miss sort of situation, especially since we're traveling far from home and don't know the neighborhood. After a quick bite at a wonderful hole-in-the-wall kebab place (apparently they were only selling kebabs right then, which was fine by me; they were delicious), we wandered around our 'hood for a little while and came across the L'Antico Caffè Santa Maria. We picked up a few large cannoli (with a cherry on one end and chocolate chips on the other), a couple miniature cannoli, and a mini-pie with walnuts (although I don't know what the filling is yet). The large cannoli was pretty tasty, though, so I have high hopes.

Tre Scalini

My husband and I attended a Baroque Christmas concert tonight, after which we had dinner at Tre Scalini. Turned out to be a very good choice!

I started with Vellutata di zucca con fungi champignon e grana
(cream of pumpkin and mushroom soup with parmesan).

Then I moved on to Polpette all romana
(Roman veal meatballs)...

...and a side of oven-roasted potatoes.

I also got a very fancy gelato dessert:
coppa primavera - fragole, crema, vaniglia,
panna montata
(fresh strawberries, cream, and vanilla,
with whipped cream).

Scusate Il Ritardo

We had a very busy day today, and got started a bit late, but before we got down to sightseeing, we decided we needed to fortify ourselves by having lunch. We decided to start our day by visiting the Pantheon, and conveniently, Scusate Il Ritardo was a stone's throw away. We had our lunch overlooking the Pantheon, sitting in the Piazza della Rotonda. 

We started with the Insalata de mare tiepeda
(warm seafood salad).

My husband had the pizza with prosciutto. 

I had the Abbachio a scottadito con patate al forno
(grilled lab with roasted potatoes).

Ristorante Alla Rampa

Today was my husband's birthday. We're currently in Rome, Italy, and I asked one of the hotel managers for a recommendation for a good place where one might celebrate; he recommended Ristorante Alla Rampa, which is close to the Spanish Steps. Turned out to be a good choice!

We both started out with a small Caesar salad with chicken,

I had bruschetta with spicy salami - good stuff! 

Ed had an antipasto plate with salami, cheeses,
artichokes, bell peppers, prosciutto, and salami.

my entree: spaghetti with seafood

And for dessert, a chocolate ice cream truffle.
(my version of a happy meal)

Il Nipotino del Solitario

For the sake of convenience we went back to Il Nipotino del Solitario, where we'd eaten on our first night in Rome, for dinner tonight.

We started with bruschetta bianca (toasted bread with garlic
and alive oil).

We also shared some mozzarella.

I had some sliced steak with excellent mushrooms...

...and ended with chocolate mousse.