Pesto's — Restaurant in Flint Charter Township

Review of Maurice Salad.

I usually don't write reviews, but I felt the need to in this case. I've had a long experience with Maurice Salads. My family often ate at Hudson's in Oakland Mall, and the chefs were friends of my family from the days when Hudson was downtown Detroit. I still have fond memories of lunches with my mother of those hot English Popovers/Yorkshire Puddings with gravy and a Maurice Salad.

Sadly, Pesto's comes close but misses the ball. First, the salad. There should not be Italian-flavored croutons! It completely throws the taste off and does not mesh with the sweet-tangy dressing. The tomatoes are also not part of the original salad, and add too much liquidity. Also, why in the heck is there turkey? It was never in the original, and again takes the flavor down the wrong track. The ham should not be from a package of lunch meat (not at $12 to $15 for a salad!) and instead should be off-the-bone and cut into rectangles 6 inches long and 1/4 thick. Same with the Swiss cheese.

Finally a cup of pickle relish?! Are you kidding me? There should be at least a cup of sweet gherkin picks sliced. And where are the pimento olives - those are critical to enhancing the salty-tangy flavor. The egg should have been diced.

The Maurice Salad is designed to have all these elements play well together, and the add-ons you've placed in are entirely wrong. Don't reinvent a wheel which has been a classic for 50+ years, especially when you are lacking in how the 4 flavors are imbalanced.

The salad I received was far too watery (obviously the iceberg lettuce was not shaken properly to remove the water) and that made the whole thing a soggy mess.

The dressing was ... close. I''m not entirely sure why it was too mustard-y, but there should have been small diced gherkin pickles in it. Also, it may have been missing the sugar that balances out the mustard? So B- on the dressing and C- on the salad.

IN FAIRNESS: Pesto's menu is extraordinary. The soups are to die for, and the sandwiches are very good. The desserts are also awesome. But whomever is in charge of salads need to learn to SHAKE the water out of lettuce after icing it for crispness, and needs to...

One of my new favorite restaurants in the entire city. Jeff the manager provides superb customer service and recommendations on the menu. He's been here for 10 years, restaurant opened in 1995. Great location, near all the other businesses and shops but enough away to avoid high traffic. If you are visiting the mall, this is right down the road for a delicious filling lunch. Cabbage and corned beef soup (highly recommended) tastes like grandma made it at home, truly delightful with large portions in the soup, instant mood enhancer. The gumbo soup has thickness and weight to it that satisfies the tongue. Mini croissant salad sandwiches are uniquely tasty and memorable (highly recommended). Hurricane chicken (always on menu) unlike other alfredo dishes which have little flavor and too much noodles, this one is packed full of flavor, particulary a sweetness that leaves you pondering how can this dish be so layered in cheese, mushrooms, chicken, and more yet be so delightfully unexpectingly sweet (highly recommended). Normally I save alfredo dishes for dinner but Pesto's alfredo I can eat anytime of day. Ultimate spot for taking out a date! The baked ziti (specialty dish not always available) has a fine balance between pesto noodles, cheese, sausage and meat sauce. This may seem normal but that balance is often lacking at other restaurants. Free delivery within 5 miles, recommended tip for driver only.

For dessert, their carrot cake is unlike any other, you have never had carrot cake until you have this one! Moist, creamy, flavors more rich than my wallet!

Great service, no wait, large portions, unique flavored dishes that will keep you coming back.

Update: Feb 2023- food still good, but the waitress was terrible. At one point we were the only customers yet in an hour of eating she only came by twice. She also forgot parts of our order saying she had a...

This building is quick to miss, but don’t pass it up! Before getting into how incredible the food is. The seating is VERY limited. However, drinks stayed refilled reasonably and the service is top tier! The food… I had the hurricane chicken w/shrimp, bacon, and broccoli. AMAZING 100/10! I ordered an extra side of Alfredo sauce because of the three addition but I didn’t need it all. Food was steaming hot and very filling. The dish had a little bit of a sweet taste to it which was a pleasant surprise because the “hurricane” of the dish was supposed to be jerk seasoning and I was fully prepared for a spicy overload but it was evenly balanced. Cesar salad wasn’t anything special just Italian cheeses, croutons, and romaine lettuce. Cesar dressing was very thick but tasty. Cheesy garlic toast was a 0/10. It tasted like nothing. The 7” all meat pizza. It was alright. To honest it tasted better eating it cold out of the Togo container at home with a little red pepper flakes.6/10 Did the build your own pasta.. Created a loaded spaghetti. With ground beef, sausage, and blackened chicken breast. I loved the red sauce. It made the meal taste like it was supposed to be called spaghetti (lol). 10/10 I highly recommended this restaurant! Will definitely return! I’d like to try the Cajun shrimp and sausage gumbo Cleopatra Blacken chicken Ranch...