We had eaten at Lovino’s in Ruston before and enjoyed the food, but not since it sold and became Macaluso’s Italian Restaurant. It’s been on our list to try for some time. We were in a little time crunch. Peg had to pack her clothes and tools of art for a trip the next morning with two friends to Port Townsend. We decided since the Ruston restaurant is only about a mile away from us and it opened at five, it would be a great place to dine, relax, and prepare for the trip the next morning.
For appetizers Peg ordered the broccolini and I ordered a bowl of beef stew. Somehow my stew disappeared before I could take a photograph. Lots of flavor. It went well with the focaccia bread as well. Much of the broccolini came home with us and ended up as part of Peg’s breakfast the next day. The focaccia was much lighter than any version I’ve eaten elsewhere. I would go back just for that bread.
Unfortunately for dinner, I ordered the Tagliatelle Pesto. I didn’t read the fine print about the heavy cream. I love pesto just by itself. Mixed with the cream it loses much of the pesto punch and becomes just a little too rich. The prawns were perfect. I wish I had ordered the Papperdelle Bolognese, however. I love those wide noodles.
For her main course, Peg ordered the Costolette Di Agnello. The rack of lamb chops and rosemary potatoes (fantastic) were excellent. She gave me one chop and she ate one. For breakfast she had a second chop and the last one I put in a sandwich bag as a surprise snack for her trip. The lamb was rare enough to be perfect. We wish Macaluso’s had mint jelly to accompany the lamb, like the English do . . . but not overcooked like the British.
For dessert I had the sea salt caramel gelato, while Peg had the beautiful limoncello cake. My gelato, was excellent with the little nubbins of chocolate and just a hint of saltiness, but Peg’s cake was gorgeous and tasted even better.
Next time we’ll plan our visit better so Peg can have some wine and we can relax and enjoy the evening and the food. In case you don’t know where Ruston is, make believe you are on your way to Vashon Island from Tacoma and head towards Point Defiance on North Pearl. The last stop light on North Pearl is the only stop light in Ruston. Look across the street and a smidgen to your right. Macaluso’s is right on the corner and directly across the street from the Antique Sandwich Company . . . which is a good place to be.
Don, I wish that you would list prices or at least a scale (1-5 or a range of dollar amounts?) on how expensive a restaurant is. Since this particular restaurant does publish their prices on their website it would be helpful to your ‘readers’. Thanks.
Coraline,
Thanks for you comments.
Prices change . . . and I often repost articles. For our Denny’s review I mentioned the $7.99 price because their slams usually stay around for quite a while and they haven’t raised prices much. I mentioned total prices for El Sabor because they were remarkable. Super Pho I think I just remark they have really good prices for really good food. All of my reviews eventually end up on eating-out-tacoma.com where I have a section on fine dining, family dining, and others. But fine dining in Tacoma usually means Pacific Grill and the Lobster Shop. Macaluso’s is right in-between. They area about the same as Joeseppi’s on many items, but they also have some offerings, like Osso Bucco at $37, which is bumping into Pacific Grill territory. Usually we try to sample a bit and so end up over-ordering and taking home. The bill at Macaluso’s was just under a hundred plus tip. If I had mentioned that figure it might have turned people off and they wouldn’t have the opportunity to try their food. We try to include web addresses, but for some reason many restaurants are turning to social media sites, like Facebook where they can create a site for free, which is usually what it’s worth. But good restaurants are on the web where they can post their hours, their days for operation, and their menus with prices. This doesn’t always work either. Peg and I drove to Olympia for a play a few weeks ago and I checked out a restaurant about three blocks from the theatre. I looked over their menu, their prices, their hours and their days of operation. With Olympia’s one way streets we had to circle the block, find a place to park and then walked to the closed restaurant. The next day they posted the latest information. I’ll never try there again.
Any way, I worry about prices, but I would hate to post the price today and then when I want to repost the article the price is way off. I don’t want to scare people away. The old restaurant reviews in The News Tribune gave prices, but each article they provided was one and done. I need my articles to last for some time. Once my reviews are published in The Suburban Times, I repost to various FB pages all around Pierce County sometimes doubling the readership. Often I see comments about reviews that were from a month or two before.
I don’t know if this helps, but at least you can see my rationale . . . maybe . . . kinda? Anyway thanks again for writing and posing the question. I really appreciate it. I’ll chew on it, sleep on it, and think about it . . . perhaps I can come up with something else that would work.
I figured the prices were pretty high, most restaurants (not all) who do not post their prices on their websites are usually pretty pricey. I do understand your reasons for not listing them but it would also save some time for people who love good food but cannot afford to spend $37 for ‘Osso Buco’.
Coraline,
Strange isn’t it that poor man’s food, Osso Buco, designed to tenderize and pull the flavors out of marrow is the high cost ticket? The second highest, the lamb, is something most people would not order. Most of the dinner items were much like you would expect at Pomodoro’s and other many other local restaurants outside of Knapps, Harvester, and the Pine Cone. Even the fine dining places like The Lobster Shop and the Pacific Grill had very affordable offerings . . . and if you go to Pacific Grill for their all day happy hour, you can score some excellent food for a fraction of the normal cost. Good food . . . really good food.
Thanks for sharing.
Don
Oops, I meant DOESN’T publish their prices!
Coraline,
I hate it when restaurants can’t be bothered to share information with potential customers. It just makes you wonder.
Don
The wonderful photos add much to your descriptions. It’s also nice to read why you chose certain items over others (ie personal favorites, pricing, quantity, carbohydrate considerations etc. …
John,
Thanks for commenting. I like to explain, so people get an idea of what’s available to them. I like servers that will take the time and effort to get you what you want and make sure you’re happy. Macaluso’s is one of those. Perhaps, and article about friendly and welcoming service might do well.
Thanks for sharing,
Don
I was there last year and ordered the Alfredo which is dish I never have ordered before. It was so rich that didn’t need need to chill in the refrigerator to stand in a block. Too rich for my taste. But the service and friendliness and general ambiance not to mention the rest of the menu is worth going back for another visit.
Joan,
Just like in Godfather, Alfredo goes a long way . . . and usually comes up short. The Adriatic Grill used to have a linguini and pesto (without cream) to accompany a nice fillet of Steelhead. Peg and I would stop in for lunch as often as we could. The price was decent and the taste was fantastic. I like simple . . . the Osso Bucco is simple, but takes along time to cook/prepare, but well worth it. Regardless, we will be going back for another dinner . . . probably soon.
I haven’t heard from you in quite some time. Thanks for commenting.
Don