Casa Calabria

My wife and I like to believe we are well versed with Italian cuisine. Located in the Ocean Manor Beach Resort, Casa Calabria is serving authentic meals in an intimate, yet lively atmosphere (live music when we dined on a Thursday evening). It was the perfect reminder of a home cooked meal I would enjoy with family during a traditional Sunday dinner.

Cold ice water and warm bread were brought to our table. Warm bread is served with their sauce on the side, or if preferred, the table is set with salt, pepper and olive oil. The sauce was good, strong grated cheese flavor that some may not enjoy, but my wife and I enjoyed the sauce very much.

Arancini and fried calamari were shared as appetizers. The sicilian arancini were generous in size, cooked to perfection and finished with a dusting of grated cheese. Please keep in mind I've been spoiled with rice balls/arancini all my life, so the sicilian arancini served by Casa Calabria did not take my #1 spot of all time, but were executed very well. The fried calamari were fried to a perfect tender crisp and a nice portion for two to share. I am someone who enjoys eating the tentacles, so a round of applause to show my appreciation to Casa Calabria for including in their calamari. Some could have said our calamari was a bit oversalted, but a squirt of lemon and it brings it home. I would very confidently put this calamari up against any calamari in Florida. I am still trying to convince my wife the calamari was better than the other Italian establishment we dined at earlier in the week.

My wife and I both ordered the chicken parm entree which is accompanied with penne pasta. My ricotta obsessed wife asked for some on the side and Casa Calabria did not charge an additional fee. The little things go a long way with us and it's nice knowing this establishment isn't looking to nickle and dime. Chicken Parm dinners were excellent and could feed a small village. The monsoon of a cutlet was ridiculously crispy, and the cheese was golden brown.

Dessert was a long shot after the feast we had just devoured. However, Mario would not allow us to go home without a proper ending to our meal, so he brought out his creativity and whipped us up something special. My wife and I each had our own small cannoli to enjoy, and a traditional ricotta cheesecake to share. Cannolis are filled to order, shells remained light & crispy. The ricotta cheesecake was dense and I was indifferent on the flavor profile.

Mario is an exceptional server. I appreciate the attention to detail from Mario and the other gentleman who always kept our glasses full with cold water and table cleaned. He patiently waited for us to finish our appetizers before placing the order for our entrees. There was no sense of being rushed or unwelcomed. From beginning to end, he was true to himself and had a genuine personality. My wife and I were getting a little tired of the fictitious flairs and circus antics from other establishments, so Mario's originality was refreshing. I hope Mario enjoyed our presence just as much as we enjoyed his.

Mario - thank you for the shared conversations and laughs. You've become a memorable moment and one of the best servers we've experienced in all of dining.