Cucina Rustica — Restaurant in Georgia

Every time we're in Blue Ridge, people rave about Cucina Rustica, but we haven't been able to dine there until this December. I love Italian food, and my girlfriend is first-generation Italian, so we were excited to try Cucina Rustica. Unfortunately, it did not live up to the hype.

We were expecting a little more breadth to the menu. Restaurants have been hit hard with COVID, so I can't fault the proprietors for cutting back on the menu or supplier constraints forcing a more limited selection, so I NOT taking off a star for the limited menu--just helping other visitors who might expect more options set realistic expectations.

The harvest salad was okay. It was a bit sparse, the ingredients were not balanced, and it wasn't well-mixed. I chalked this up to a hasty assembly on the line, sipped some of the wine, which I ordered from a similarly limited, but impressively varied menu, and moved on to the entrees.

The meatballs were savory and exhibited each flavor evenly. The parmesan was a tad heavy for my taste, but it certainly didn't detract from the overall flavor, texture, and quality, which was great.

The Fish-of-the-Day was good, if perhaps a bit underwhelming. I have a general rule of never ordering the fish special unless it's Friday or Saturday, and broke that rule when I was assured it was fresh off the truck that day. I have no reason to doubt it was fresh, other than it was unremarkable and bland.

Fettuccine is a staple, and a reliable indicator of how well a kitchen knows its craft, so I ordered it with the Chicken Parmigiana. On a scale of 1-10, that night's dish was a 6. The pasta itself was underdone, even for al dente, but the presentation, which was far better than the salad, made up for some of that. The chicken, like the fish, was unremarkable and left me oscillating between being grateful to afford the luxury of eating out and feeling crestfallen for the restaurant which has an exceptionally polished brand, and charming ambiance, but is obviously struggling in the kitchen.

A word about that ambiance: There were tables closed for social distancing, but not obviously so. I appreciate that the subtlety of their compliance didn't distract from the rustic and warm country feel. The diversity of guests in the dining room was also a testament to Cucina Rustica's appeal to all audiences.

The service was--compared to other restaurants in the area--stellar, and left nothing to be desired. Our server was attentive and anticipated every request. She was welcoming, friendly, and knowledgeable about the menu with a quiet reassuring confidence that leaves you feeling like you always made the right decision. Her recommendation for a bottle of wine which paired equally well with the dishes we ordered was spot-on.

Unfortunately, our dinner was cut short when another party was seated directly behind me with only inches between our chairs. Feeling a bit COVID-conscious, we got the check in lieu of sampling desserts.

Even the best restaurants have "hit or miss" evenings, and I sincerely hope mine was a rare "miss." I'd be willing to try them again next time I'm in the area if I find myself without dinner plans, but I wouldn't go out of my way to plan around a...

Let me start by saying the flavor of the food was very good, and especially the pistachio cheesecake.

But here's where this restaurant falls short - as I explained to the hostess, if you're not serving Olive Garden grade food, why make its presentation feel like Olive Garden? The pitch is that it is supposed to be "fine dining" and "authentic." The prices suggest that, too. And that's where there were problems.

Paper on the table to protect the table cloth? That's fine. McCormick salt and pepper dispensers straight from the store, though? Cheap.

I ordered the veal parmigiana. Taste-wise, it was good. However, it was SWIMMING in tomato sauce, aome of which was watery. That separation suggests to me that either the chef did not reduce the sauce enough, or it had been sitting for a while (and we came in at 5:30 pm to a nearly deserted restaurant) and he or she did not bother to give it a stir before ladling on as much as there was. The menu said it came with pasta which was buried beneath the cutlet, no more than a three forkfuls, and, of course, over-sauced. My husband had the lasagne, also served with too generous a portion of sauce.

The waitress asked if either of us would like some grated cheese. I said I would and a minute later she appeared with a small silver bowl with grated cheese, the unrefrigerated kind you buy off the shelf at your local supermarket. Again, fine dining suggests the wait staff come with a hunk of parmesan and a grater.

Now, the veal was tender and the sauce was flavorful. That pistachio cheesecake was wonderful and the espresso well-made. There is also the advantage that as it requires a short drive from Blue Ridge, it was not crowded with end-of-holiday tourists whereas the places in Blue Ridge had people waiting outside for tables. But despite the hostess insisting that "everything was homemade," overall I left with the impression that someone back in the kitchen can open a can from Sysco and do a decent job, and I am guessing the cheesecake was purchased elsewhere (and no fault there, not every restaurant can have a skilled pastry chef).

Better than Olive Garden? Absolutely. But even Olive Garden will grate my cheese at the table. Flavor is not enough if you want to present yourself as fine dining; the overall experience and presentation ought to support...

Where to begin.......... On our last evening in Blue Ridge GA my family of 6 and our good friends a family of 5 stumbled across the Cucina Rustica Restaurant expecting to find an atmosphere of fine dining, good service & food that we could talk about for days to come. After reading their reviews we expected nothing less!. HUGELY MISTAKEN.

First off, the staff and menu ARE NOT children friendly. Our server was less then hospitable. Our drinks came out and it was obvious that Coke-a-Cola would pull their product if they were aware that the mix was not at a minimum standard. They must be using unfiltered well water.

Then the ever so stale bread came out that was hard. The salad that had WAY TOO MUCH dressing and the green's that were obviously sitting for a while were nice and wilted. However, prior to starting the salad course, we had to ask for new silverware since there was still hardened food stuck to the ones on the table.

Now the main course: Chicken Parm (3 orders) was below even the Olive Garden standard, with a lot of fat fried within the breading. Tortellini was average. Pork Piccata was likewise average. Children's pasta was portioned to feed a 2 year old and The Wild mushroom ravioli was over cooked and starchy & pasty.

The assistant server seemed very nice and was available for our every need however, Melinda, our server was too snooty and very condescending. Of course we made the best of a bad situation and enjoyed each others company.

Then the checks came. Remember a party of 5 and a party of 6 at two separate table since upon arrival they claimed they could not accomondate such a large party. However, our server took the liberty to fill in the tip at 18% automatically and when questioned why she did that she said, "we do that for parties of 12". Again, two separate checks, two separate tables and even if you put them together, it was only eleven (which 7 were children including two teenagers). Very sad. The ironic point is, I always tip at a minimum of 20% and better when the service deserves it.

My recommendation,.... DON"T EAT HERE, especially if you have children. Just like the hostess told us on the way out, "if you were looking for food for children there is a Pizzeria across the parking lot. Talking about adding...