Salvatore's — Restaurant in Independence

1st time here, drove from 2 hours away. Small place with small parking lot but obvious their reputation for fantastic food keeps them busy. Reservations are suggested. I'd eat here several times a year if I lived closer.

We live in a small country town and pick a new restaurant to try once a month; sometimes driving as far as 9 hours one way...so we splurge :) For two of us we ordered 4 appetizers because they all sounded so good. 2 entrees, 1 glass of very good chianti wine and 2 desserts. Our bill was only $128. Very reasonable especially for portion size and great taste. We'll enjoy our leftovers.

Because we've eaten at some extremely Fabulous high end resturants...my review may seem slightly snobbish...I don't mean it to. This restaurant was worth every penny. The waiter and service was fantastic. Was there for 3 hrs with each course only brought out after we'd finished what we were working on but weren't rushed at all and allowed to enjoy our meal. Since we love to try NEW places each time, it may be a long while before we make it back so I'm glad we tried so many things.

The menus I found on-line don't include everything that was on actual menu and I was pleasantly surprised prices were actually cheaper than what I saw online.

The appetizers we had were #1 Mussels in Diablo sauce..5/5 stars.. really 10/5 stars !!! mussels were scrumptious !!! best Mussel dish I've had in a long time. The Diablo sauce has a slight spicy kick but not too spicy...a fresh squeezed lemon over it elevates it and tones down the spicy. That sauce was so so amazing and out of everything I ate...I will miss and crave that sauce the most. I actually brought the leftover sauce home so I can hopefully learn how to make it myself.

#2 Seafood stuffed mushrooms in a white sauce 3/ 5 stars...sorry....not trying to be mean...but the description stated clam and shrimp stuffed mushrooms and all I could taste was a very bland and heavy bread stuffing and the white sauce had a pasty texture like too much flour...and very bland...not enough butter or salt.

#3 Melanzane Fritti...Fried Eggplant.. 5 /5 stars. Thick slices of eggplant deep fried golden brown and super crispy batter with a nice marinara sauce to dip them in. Marinara was good but I was using the Diablo Sauce from the mussels to dip everything in :)

#4 Calamari... 4/ 5 stars...In my opinion it was slightly overcooked and the batter was under seasoned. ..to most people...they would rate it 5 /5...it was really good with a light crispy batter.... but again...I have eaten at some over the top....flown in FRESH daily... seafood places like Bristol In Kansas City..tied with Papadeauxs Cajun Seafood in Westmont IL (have made the 7 hr trip 3 times JUST to eat at Papadeauxs)... and Cigar Box in Kansas City has great Calamari.

Entrees:

#1 Bistecca Michael...one of most expensive items on menu Beef tenderloin char-broiled topped with prawns, white wine lemon butter sauce, prosciutto ham and mushrooms... 3.5 /5 stars...steak was cooked to perfection but needed more seasoning. Shrimp were small. Wine sauce was overpowering...just my opinion. Served with choice of candied carrots or broccoli... was an average broccoli dish. And choice of salad, soup or pasta..salad...it was a 3.5/5 basic salad...but good.

Saltimbocca.... Veal and prosciutto in lemony wine gravy made from meat broth. 3.5/5. Something I have never seen on any Italian menu which is why I tried it and glad I did but it was a tad bit salty and the veal was very thin so the flavor was lost in the salty wine sauce. I chose clam chowder...2/ 5 stars...too pasty with too much flour ..and had very little clams or potatoes in it...mostly just a cream roux soup. I chose fettuccine alfredo over vegetables ...again.... the sauce was too pasty with a flour taste and not enough butter, salt seasonings.

The desserts: Spumoni Ice Cream...5/5 stars...yummy....and chocolate cake....5/5 stars...super rich but...

We arrived at 530p on Saturday, 12/09/17. The hostess decided to seat the 2 of us at a table for 4 in the middle of the back room. (On a busy holiday season Saturday night, why would you put 2 people at a table for 4?)

I requested not to be seated in the middle of the room and requested a table for 2 in the corner, by the window. Our waiter was Trey, a very pleasant young man. However, it seemed that he was rushing us, interrupted our conversation, and we left feeling he was "tapping his toe" waiting for us to leave...and no, we weren't lingering.

I agree with other reviews that the food is bland, (VERY) served lukewarm, bread was dried out, I kept searching for the artichokes that were to be in my sauce, to no avail, and my angel hair pasta, that I requested instead of the Fettuccine pasta, was a pile of mush...to the point of being almost inedible. (It was slimy) The house and Caesar salads were a joke, having had better from Fazolis. The presentation of the salad was dire.

The prices seemed steep for no more quality and taste that was served.

Had I taken the time to address each issue, we would have been there even longer, and I was already made to feel we had already wore out our "welcome" just by taking the time to eat.

If you like sitting elbow to elbow with others, fine, but I would like to feel that even when speaking softly that I could have a conversation without the table next to me chiming in on our conversation...it's rude. Set the tables a little further apart, as I should not have to disturb other diners to walk between their chairs. (I am an average size person, FYI.)

It's very obvious that they have their "regulars", that's always good for any business. However, in such a small intimate setting, can the host or hostess not have a little enthusiasm for a new face in the room?

Normally I would address these issues as they happened, but to be honest, it just didn't seem worth the effort, as I will not be returning.

Oh, and I will add, the food made me sick later that evening and into the next day.

And, please turn the music down...there is so much potential here, but it was just all wrong on this visit. The bathroom needs updated and cleaned also.

I don't ever recall having posted a review for any restaurant before, but this called for me to do so.

Sorry, I wanted to like it, but...

I want to start by saying my only experiences with this restaurant are with to go orders. I have not dined in, just to be clear. I dread writing a negative review but after the 3rd hugely disappointing order, I couldn't avoid it. I was so excited to find this restaurant when I started working in this town because my favorite restaurant is Garozzo's, of which I had heard this was very similar. 3 times I have ordered my favorite dishes of stuffed artichoke and chicken spiedini. 3 times I have been terribly disappointed. Twice I picked up my orders in person and once had delivered. Every time the artichoke has been in an excessive pool of butter and water, lacking flavor, and this time was even just sloppy. it was no longer even in the shape of the artichoke like it was just smashed down and toppings globbed on top. (possibly because they forgot it originally and were in a hurry to make it?)The breadcrumbs were a mushy consistency that I just can't describe. I have made this dish at home many times and never has it been over buttered ( I use evoo) , lacking flavor and as sloppily put together as the times I have gotten it here. The staff is great, although 2 out of the 3 times have messed up my order, they did try this time to at least take a few dollars off. They were accommodating enough to allow me to order a lunch size spiedini and replace the pasta with broccoli as I am on a restricted diet, however the artichoke hearts and flavor that is usually in this dish was completely missing. It was just chicken, alfredo and a side of broccoli covered in garlic in a separate container. Overall the experiences I have had so far, sadly have been extremely disappointing for the reviews that it typically gets. Maybe it's just the "to go" aspect and possibly the orders just get thrown together without care to flavor or quality? With the waiting time and price, it should still be just as yummy as any...