The Pasta Factory — Restaurant in Columbia

Preface: I've lived in Columbia since the 70s and the restaurant landscape here has changed dramatically. Up to the mid 80s there was only a small handful of higher shelf dining options, and none of them (if you didn't count Red Lobster) have survived the test of time except The Pasta Factory. I hadn't been there in over a decade since they were at their second location downtown. It came as a surprise now that I'm back to discover they'd moved again, to a strip mall in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart, right near their original spot at crossroads. After a visit last night, I firmly believe this move symbolizes their decline and a failure to live up to their 40+ year legacy.

Parking was easy, with handicapped spots right at the door and no reservations were required (or possible} on a Saturday evening. My guest and I were seated immediately as all the tables were only perhaps 1/4th occupied. It was clean, and lit warmly without being bright. The styling was exactly as I remembered it at their previous addresses, solid finished wood chairs, tables, bar and booths with the original stained glass motiffs. They even still had the classic belt driven ceiling fan system. It all felt great and put me in a great mood tinted with nostalgia.

Then the service. And the food. And a nightmare of a restroom. The bubble had burst. Our waiter was pleasant enough, and friendly. He didn't go over the specials simply took our drink orders. Hot tea, a blue cocktail of some sort and two ice waters. The tea didn't come with a spoon and the table wasn't set with one. The cocktail was in a short, thin glass filled with ice. He took our appetizer & dinner orders, and I asked for a spoon. Later, the appetizers arrived along with the spoon, and my tea was only warm by then. We had garlic bread, toasted ravioli and a cup of cheese soup for me. The bread and ravioli was great, the soup was not. They had clearly changed the recipe at some point in the long interim of my visits. It was thin, the cheese slightly gritty and begining to separate from the rue while the spices were all over the place.

Dinner arrived perhaps 25 minutes later and we were asked if we also wanted dinner bread. We said yes, and I had to remind the waiter that my long empty tea cup needed filling. In the meantime, my guests cocktail was now easily 50% watered down from all the ice. No parmasan was offered. She had tutta mare and I had the cannelloni. Both our dishes were so laden with black pepper, it was almost unpalatable. The tutta mare had 5 tiny pieces of crab, and 4 small shrimp. The clams were nowhere to be seen. We were 3/4ths done and sick of pepper when the waiter finally arrived with bread and offered parmasan. Great. Thanks. We both have up our entrees and nibbled on the bread, which was good. Decided to skip dessert and just leave this disaster behind.

I got the check, and the prices were what I had expected walking in the door, but no where near the actual value of the meal and service we received. Then I made the mistake of visiting the men's room before leaving. I'm chucking off a star just for that. It was filthy, and not in a "the last guy made a mess" way. 6-7 Rolls of toilet paper stacked on the basin. Wads of used paper towels overflowing the garbage can, strewn on the sink counter and floors. Rust and grime all over the fixtures. And yes, the toilet and urinal both were in a very sorry state, and had been for hours at least. I've seen gas station and truck stop restrooms 10x cleaner.

Needless to say, this is not the Pasta Factory any more in my mind. It's a place I would need stern convincing to ever go...

I haven't eaten at the Pasta Factory in years so was delighted when friends suggested we meet there for dinner. I don't consider myself a food critic nor am I hard to please when it comes to dining out. I have eaten in some of the best food at hole-in-the-wall venues around the country. Needless to say, I was very disappointed in what was once a fine dining experience. It is sad seeing a somewhat upscale niche restaurant go from a lovely historic building in downtown to something lesser in their strip mall location. While they tried to make the atmosphere similar, it was just a fail in my opinion.

We had appetizers, which was a so-so dining experience. They use to have flavorful toasted ravioli paired with a robust marinara sauce rivaling toasted ravioli found on The Hill in St. Louis. What we were served competed well with the frozen boxed variety at your local grocery store! As far as the sauce was concerned, opening a can of tomato sauce and adding a few chopped tomatoes would have been just as good.

The dinner salad I was served was nothing to write home about, although I did enjoy the vinaigrette dressing. It had a slice of artichoke, thinly sliced red onion, and I believe chopped pimentos.

They do get extra bonus points for their peel and eat shrimp, which was probably some of the best cold shrimp I have eaten in years! It was precisely done, not overcooked, not watery like so many restaurants around the area serve it, the spices were bold but not overpowering. I could of made a meal on just the peel and eat shrimp appetizer and should have instead of what I ordered!

I chose to try the Chicken Artichoke dish because it sounded very appealing on the menu. When it was served, I wasn't sure what to think. It was a hearty portion of chicken and artichokes but, it was swimming in a very pale vat of a yellowish sauce. I have never seen so much sauce in my life, so much so, it was overwhelming to the chicken and artichokes. The presentation of the dish was very colorless and not very inviting, although the chicken, artichokes and, sauce blended well together in a very pale colorless way. I think a bit of parsley or ultra thin red and green peppers as a garnishment would make this dish more appealing to the eye.

I knew in the first bite I would not be finishing the Chicken Artichoke dish nor taking home any leftovers. The sauce had a peculiar bland taste with a sharp sugar aftertaste. I am not talking sweet, I am talking a decided taste of sugar like it had been sprinkled on top as an afterthought. A small side of mostaccioli with some form of white garlic sauce was served, it's presentation was much more appealing than the main dish. However, I have never tasted a white sauce, let alone one with garlic, that was sugary sweet. One of my companions had Tortellini Alfredo and he too commented on how sweet his Alfredo sauce was. We were both amazed how sweet they were. I am beginning to wonder if someone mistook the sugar shaker for the parmesan cheese when they sprinkled it on top.

We did have good service, which is about the only thing positive I can say for this relocated restaurant. Next time we decide on pasta, I think I will suggest we go through the drive-thru at Fazzoli's for just as pleasant of...

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To my dismay, I actually used to work at this establishment as a server, hostess, and dishwasher. The owner, Jenny Dubinski, is an absolute nightmare. She favors certain servers over others and allows them to get away with the same "uniform infractions" that she was constantly harping on me about such as facial piercings, shirt collars, etc. as she allowed another server to wear all of this, even allowing her to stay with an open back shirt during service once despite the girl being covered in tattoos (many more than myself). As she tried to make an example of me one day, she turned to another server only to find she was also "out of regulations".

As a mil vet, I'm pretty sure I know what counts as an actual dress code and what doesn't... The information was never posted in writing or in a handbook anywhere. It was clear she had some issue with me from the get-go, despite being recommended to her by a top bartender at her restaurant.

As far as the business goes, Jenny literally made me pick up an entire tray of bread that I had accidentally dropped after pulling it out of the oven one time and STILL HAD ME SERVE IT TO GUESTS. Enjoy.

Kyle, on the other hand, is a wonderful head chef, perhaps this restaurant's only saving grace, and I sincerely hope he quits someday. Jenny's husband, Jason, was also quite easy to work with and very even-tempered despite her rather impulsive reactions towards her employees. Never saw anything like it out of Jason. Opposites attract, I guess.

Bottom line, don't support this woman. She has no business running a restaurant, treats her staff like dirt, and does not uphold agreements in terms of shift scheduling.

She made an agreement with me to give me three serving shifts per week in exchange for me working two dish-washing shifts per week, an offer I made to her as she was unable to keep people in the dish room. After the first week, she proceeded to schedule me for the next month giving me only two shifts each. When I placed a note in the scheduling folder telling her not to schedule me for any more dish-washing shifts unless she gave me the three serving shifts as agreed upon, she posted a passive-aggressive note to the staff on the bulletin board as opposed to approaching me directly about it... Not the way you run a business. To punish me (and I'm assuming as a measure to get me to quit), she gave me the three serving shifts/wk, but started only giving me shifts that pulled low customers and tips such as first server off on Sunday nights or Mondays/Tuesdays. Beyond petty considering I was also doing her a favor by washing dishes.

I quit with no notice shortly thereafter. Completely disrespectful and shameful behavior out of a nearly sixty-year-old...