Castelli's Restaurant at 255 — Restaurant in Alton

Look the restaurant up on any web site to find out about its history. It’s many-generations long in the same location. Several years ago they went through some hard times but they are back the restaurant that Pete Castelli would be proud of. The business specialized in Italian, steaks, and their locally famous “Talk-N-Chic” fried chicken.

My wife and I were in town for my 60th high school reunion and I had to go out and visit the restaurant for one dinner - after all, they have been in Alton since 1937 and I wasn’t born until 1945. I’ve been going there all my life. This night I ordered the chicken livers with a side salad and a baked potato. My wife ordered the two-piece dark meat chicken with the same sides. Our waitress was very attentive and brought our drinks and a basket of warm, fresh bread to the table within minutes of us sitting down. Within 5 minutes we had 2 dinner plate-sized salads places in front of us. My wife’s ranch dressing was, in her words, “fine”. I had asked for blue cheese but was told that they had Roquefort. This was a pleasant surprise and, when I tasted my salad, my mouth jumped for joy. The difference between a common blue and a Roquefort is amazing.

The arrival of the main course was an equally big surprise for me. My wife’s chicken leg and thigh portion were huge and, with the baked potato, covered the entire plate. She said the chicken was excellent. Moist and juicy without being greasy.

On my plate was a baked potato plus fried chicken livers piled a full 3 inches high! I literally will get three dinners out of these livers. And, they were done to perfection. Crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. Not a single one was dry or over-cooked.

Thanks to the staff at Castelli’s for not letting me down on the night of my 60th reunion. If I ever get back to Alton, this is where I will...

Castelli's, which most of us still call Moonlight, has been a staple for the area for decades. First off, the Roman dressing is always good. No other place around Alton has dressing like it and I'm pretty sure it's still made from scratch. When we dine-in, the food and service are usually both phenomenal. Chicken strips are always awesome, and my son's favorite. Spouse likes the moonlight burgers, but they're way too big for me. Prime rib, steaks, and pork chops are usually very good and almost always perfectly cooked. Appetizers are overpriced, but usually tasty if we decide to splurge. Their fettuccine Alfredo used to be really good and was one of my faves on their menu, but lately it has tasted like it has had some type of cleaner mixed into the sauce. I'm sure it's anise or some other herb that is making it taste that way. Sadly, because of that funky flavor, I'm no longer interested in ordering anything with Alfredo sauce. Fried chicken can sometimes be overcooked, but the flavor and crispiness of the breading is good. My biggest complaint is that almost every time we get the combo family meals to go, the large pan of pasta, whether mostaccioli or mac'n'cheese, is almost always cold. It tastes okay, but it just needs to be hot like everything else. Pasta tends to hold heat well in an aluminum pan with an aluminum lid, so I'm guessing they're keeping cooked pans of pasta in the walk-in cooler and then just pouring sauce over it and shoving it in the broiler for a couple minutes to melt the sprinkles of cheese they put on top. If you work there and you're reading this, please make sure your pasta is hot for...

Let me begin by saying, they give you too much food. Or in a more positive way, you definitely get your monies worth. Whenever I order a half chicken meal, I can easily get two and half meals out of it.

I'll start out by saying their house dressing, Roman is one of the best dressing I have had at a restaurant. It's so good, I wish they bottled it and sold it at the restaurant or the local grocery stores. Their dinner salad is a crisp lettuce blend, of romaine and iceberg. They are one of the many restaurants that are now using bread crumbs instead of croutons and it mixes so much better with the dressing.

Their famous fried chicken is called, Talk-N-Chic. Most restaurants serve 4 pieces in a half chicken order, Castelli's gives you six. That is why I can get multiple meals out of one order. The pieces are always huge, I've never gotten a small piece. Each piece has a crisp coating and the meat underneath is hot and juicy. It taste as good as it does hot and fresh.

Typically I choose a dinner salad and Baked Potato as my two sides, but for my most recent visit I choose, Green Beans and Mashed Potatoes with White Gravy. Choosing those two side made a true comfort meal with shades of a country Sunday dinner. These may be my go to sides from here on out.

The young ladies working the carry-out counter were courteous and friendly. They worked as a team and hustled getting the line moving quickly and sufficiently. When doing carry-out beware they charge a 5% carry-out container fee. They also, charge a 3% credit card usage. Wow, two fees and then they expect a tip, too. That is why I dropped my...