Brio

So I've been eating dorm food for over a month now, and I haven't encountered too many problems with it, but sometimes you just need a good meal. My best friend and I were already planning on heading off campus, but when we realized we were hungry for Italian we made our minor excursion an impromptu dinner date. We've had our fair share of Italian meals together, and I don't know if it was because I've been deprived of good Italian food, but last night I had one of the best pastas I've yet to experience.

 Now I know my Italian food. Two summers ago my friend and our families took a trip to Italy where I ate the best meals of my life for two weeks straight. There I experienced tons of gelato flavors (Nutella and Peanut butter please and thank you), ridiculously thin traditional Italian pizzas, and overall some of the freshest and most flavorful ingredients. The weeks after the trip I became addicted to Giada De Laurentiis' show "Everyday Italian" and she remains my favorite chef on the Food Network. Italy was a huge development in my love of food and cooking and I'm always looking for food that reminds me of my time there. 

Because of the spontaneity of our decision we showed up to Brio Tuscan Grille a little underdressed and starving. Even though we were seated in a back corner near the waiter's drink station and our food took awhile, the food presented to me made up for it. I had the pasta pomodoro with chicken. It consisted of angel hair pasta, a "cilantro pesto drizzle", tomatoes, pine nuts, and grilled chicken. It was absolutely delicious and I'm slightly embarrassed to say that I ate the entire thing. The cherry tomatoes were fresh, the sauce was light and flavorful, and the chicken was cooked perfectly. Though simple, the dish was a harmony of flavors that blended together to create a masterpiece of epic proportions that was worth the endless days of dorm food. The grand finale was a mini dessert of caramel chocolate cake (Go big or go home, I'm working if off today). It would have been absolute perfection if it had been warm, but overall the meal was worth the extra few dollars. 

Sometimes you just need some good Italian, and after experiencing Italy dorm Pasta Night doesn't exactly cut it. Brio was a memorable experience and I would recommend it!