Restaurant Review: Bellisimo Ristorante

Last week, Courtney and I met her boyfriend at Westchase’s Bellisimo Ristorante (10102 Montague St Tampa, FL 33626-1856 - (813) 792-7879) for dinner. This restaurant offers mid to upscale Italian favorites are a reasonable price range averaging $15/person. While the dining area is relatively small, outside seating offers another 30 or so people a chance to enjoy the Westchase area’s upscale living.

Service was a little slow, as it appeared there was only one waitress working. She did come by to get our drink orders within about 10 minutes and she did come back every 20 minutes or so. I generally expect more refills, but I understand why she was busy, especially considering that most every table inside was full throughout the evening.

While waiting for Courtney’s beau, we ordered a double order of Garlic Knots. These were magnificent. While the bread itself was just fine, the real start here is the big chunks of fresh garlic and butter that they sit in. Unlike garlic powder or crushed garlic, these with quart inch chunks of garlic that had been roasted into the butter for an infusion that was hearty and overwhelming. I love garlic, and I could have simply drank the juicy goodness from the pan if it wasn’t bad table manners.

After the garlic knots came out, a side salad featuring raspberry vinegarette came out. It was standard fair, but the dressing was noteworhty. The sweet drizzle was pungent with fresh raspberry taste, bringing the flavor of the salad together.

Our entrees came within another 15 to 20 minutes. Here’s Courtney’s take on her dish first hand:

“I had the Chicken Francese. It was chicken that seemed to be cooked like battered fish. The chicken and chicken were cooked perfectly, but they seemed to be lacking flavor initially. The chicken is served with a slice of lemon on top. Once I covered everything with lemon, I felt the dish came together and the lemon took charge.”

I ordered the Chicken Sicilian, a combination of roasted garlic, mushrooms, artichokes and red pepper over a penne style pasta. It was flavorful and robust, especially the garlic. At this point, I was so overwhelmed with garlic from the knots earlier that it may have been too much, but I trucked on. The penne was cooked appropriately, just a bit stiff but definitely done completely. Artichokes, being a bit bitter, offset the garlic and the parmesan perfectly. It was a complimentary Italian dish, exactly as I expected. While this probably wouldn’t win any awards, I consider it a fulfilling meal for $13.

Bellisimo runs specials quite often, including $4 Spaghetti nights and beer specials. Even if you don’t like Italian food, I recommend going for the garlic knots. The only thing I can think of that would make them more perfect would be a red sauce to dip, but they were very good on their own.

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