Saturday 8 March 2014

Papa Gino's



The other night we decided to have little dinner date on Lygon Street. Unsure of where to eat, we ended up just peeping into restaurants after restaurants after restaurants. After much deliberation we decided on Papa Gino's since S has been there before and claims that they have good risotto (and we were STARVING!).

Upon entering the venue; there were smiles all round, it felt like we had just come home from a long and tiring trip. Certainly, a very homely and welcoming atmosphere. 

Lemon Lime Bitters - $3.50
Complimentary Bread 
Bowl of Wedges with Sour Cream & Sweet Chilli - $7.00


I was a bit disappointed they bought out the Bunderburg - Lemon Lime Bitters instead of making their own. Not being picky or anything but I believe that the in-store made ones do taste a lot better than bottled ones. My second disappointment was the complimentary bread, because it was just that...plain bread. We really didn't know its point, until later on when we noticed that other tables were given butter with their bread. Certainly would have made more sense if we were given butter as well. Once the wedges came out we were pretty thrilled, they looked and smelt amazing! They were generous on the sour cream and sweet chilli, which is a big plus for us. Cooked wonderfully, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Great wedges!

Porterhouse Steak 400gms - $24.50
with sauteed mushrooms or cream brandy pepper sauce $3 extra
- L

I ordered the Porterhouse Steak with sauteed mushroom sauce. The waitress asked if I wanted the sauce to be creamy, obviously by this I thought she just wanted my preference on how I wanted my sauce made. Little did I know, it was an extra $2.50 to have my mushroom sauce creamy. But I guess it turned out alright, because the creaminess helped me finish the meal. The steak it self was a bit under-seasoned to my liking, which made it hard to eat and was a bit over cooked for me. I asked for medium rare more on the rare side but i got medium rare on the cooked side. The biggest let down was their salad, it had no dressing of any kind, I don't know if it's just me, but I don't enjoy having plain salad. Overall, an ok dish. 

Rating: 6/10

Pollo e Spinaci Risotto - $13.50 (dish size: entree)

- S

Having eaten here before, I really enjoyed their risotto. So I decided to have it again with the Pollo e Spinaci sauce, which is a combination of chicken and spinach in tomato and cream sauce.  I really loved how they've cooked the rice so perfectly; it was fluffy and melted in the mouth. However, there was too much chicken in the dish I would have preferred if there was less. The sauce though was on point; wonderfully creamy, full of flavor, not to dry and not too saucy. A very enjoyable dish overall.

Rating: 9/10


Store Location & Information
221 Lygon Street, Carlton, VIC 3053

Trading Hours: 
Monday - Saturday: 12:00PM-2:30PM & 5:00PM till Midnight
Sunday: 12:00PM-11:00PM

Contact:
Phone: 03 9347 5758
Fax: 03 9347 5757
Email: papaginos@bigpond.com

Papa Gino's on Urbanspoon

4 comments:

  1. Hi ,

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  2. i guess you didn't like it much eh? A long time ago I went for their pizzas, am still yet to revisit

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    Replies
    1. I do think their pastas are good though. But i don't think I would be going back there any time soon.

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