Dining review: Pomodoros Greek and Italian Café still pleases in East Asheville
Maybe it was nostalgia kicking in, but here I sat, a handful of years since I'd had saganaki, once again watching a flaming block of cheese and wondering if it was the best thing I could have ordered.
The last time I ordered the dish was at Pomodoro’s South. Now, sitting in Pomodoro’s East, I realized Pomodoros loves to recommend this stuff. Prepared tableside with a squeeze of lemon and a few dashes of brandy, the block of cheese lights up and the server urges you to yell, “Opa!”
It’s festive for a few seconds and then you’re left with a hot plate of aggressively browned cheese. It’s good, though I remember the portion being larger last time. I also recommend you eat this quick, since cold saganaki is not nearly as enjoyable as it is when it's hot enough to char your tongue.
At Pomodoro’s East, the menu is slightly different than Pomodoro's in South Asheville, which makes sense — the restaurants now have two different owners. But here's what you need to know: there are more pastas and Italian dishes in East Asheville. You’ll still find Greek plates, but if it’s Greek you’re after you may want to focus your car’s GPS to South Asheville.
The Papoutsakia: an easy win
Nonetheless, I was determined to at least have one Greek plate. Sure, there was saganaki and spanakopita, but choices were just as few for entrées. They included a salmon dish, a pasta offering that essentially just included Greek ingredients like kalamata olives, feta. There was also the Melitzanes Papoutsakia, an easy win.
The plate was not short on ingredients, all piled high with the erraticism of a plate of nachos. At the base was sliced, breaded and fried eggplant. The eggplant was done well, sliced relatively thin, ensuring it was cooked evenly. Sliced artichokes, slivers of sundried tomatoes, cooked mushrooms, sliced kalamatas, feta and sliced fried leeks all came on top. It was a search and rescue mission just to reach the eggplant.
On one side of the plate was a slightly sweet pomodoro sauce and on the other what appeared to be an accidental spill of balsamic reduction across the plate. The eager drizzle and the “bam” of chopped parsley on top and along the rim gave the plate '90s flair. It may have been a kitchen sink sort of situation, but the flavor was good. In a miraculous feat, the eggplant remained crisp and the pomodoro provided just enough sauce. I had no complaints about the taste.
And on the Italian side
Among the Italian selections, we saw several pasta dishes, a ravioli menu that included both a choice of ravioli and a choice of sauce, and the familiar Parmigiana, marsala and cacciatore. My wife decided on chicken piccata, which you can also order with shrimp or veal.
The plate looked like an Alaskan winter landscape: all white as far as you could see. Typically with piccata, the meat is dredged in flour before adding it to the fat in the pan. This gives the protein slight color and crispness. Sadly, neither the color nor crispness was evident. It sat so pale on the plate it looked raw, a mental obstacle to taking that first bite.
Piccata chicken is usually butterflied and pounded thin so it cooks evenly. This chicken was thick and uneven, as if it had been just taken out of the butcher’s paper. Plus, it was slightly overcooked. The sauce, usually a thin lemon butter affair, was viscous and also pale. The angel hair pasta on the side with garlic and olive oil was nondescript but drew no objections.
My kid, the one who constantly consumes octopus, frog legs and whatever else you throw at her, somehow decided this time she was not only going to order off the kids’ menu, she was going to order the chicken fingers. It was a shock to us all — almost as much as the fact that her chicken was better than the piccata. It was crisp, hand-breaded and not overcooked. Truth be told, we cut some up and put it in the piccata’s sauce. How’s that for a pro tip? Child or not, if ordering the piccata, get kid’s chicken fingers and make a chicken swap.
Matthew DeRobertis is a chef, writer and father to a kid who loves food more than her dog. Contact him at matt@chefdero.com.
IF YOU GO
The restaurant: Pomodoros, 828-299-3032, www.pomodorositalian.com, 1070 Tunnel Road.
Hours: Tuesday-Thursday 11 a.m.-9:30p.m., Friday-Saturday 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
Atmosphere: Casual.
What to try: Italian might outweigh the Greek on this menu, but the mammoth portion of the Melitzanes Papoutsakia will not only fill you up, You’ll enjoy the journey.
Beverage notes: Beer, wine, cocktails.
Prices: $5-25.
Service: Friendly.
Health Department score: 95.5
The bottom line: If you live in the neighborhood, the size of this menu, with items from pizza to lasagna to Greek, will be can appreciated asset and convenient weeknight stop. Though some items weren’t up to par, there is enough right to make for a return visit.