Following an eventful and happy day of Sangria and Lager’s proposal (congrats to them!!! YAY!), we had a celebratory dinner at Carmelo’s in West Vancouver because it was near Whytecliff Park, where Lager popped the question.

It was a top secret mission and Lager entrusted me to finding a nice but reasonably priced place to eat afterwards. I relied on the likes of Yelp and Google Reviews which has not failed yet!

Since we were unsure of how long we would be at Whytecliff, Lager suggested that we make a late reservation to give us time if necessary.  At first, the restaurant told us they didn’t have any earlier times but ended up calling back to offer us a spot 1 hour earlier than our reservation time which was perfect for us.

Complimentary bread: We were given two baskets of bread among the 7 of us. There were two types: your regular baguette style bread, and another type which had different types of herbs. I enjoyed the latter because I could taste some rosemary, along with others.

It came with an unique whipped butter, which one of us guessed was infused with red pepper? We aren’t really sure but it was tasty and we cleaned it all up!
Ricotta cheese on toast: As an appetizer, Steak and Sushi both shared the ricotta cheese on toast. They said it was simple and easy to recreate at home, but they enjoyed it nonetheless. Look at how much ricotta cheese is on each piece!
Canadese pizza: One thing that the boyfriend and I disagree on is whether or not pineapples belong on pizza. I’m going to risk losing some readers by saying that I believe pineapples belong on pizza!

Anyways, since we were sharing, I suggested we get the Canadese pizza because he would like it more than a pizza with pineapples. Relationships are about compromise :). 

Anyways, the pizza was tasty. You can see their oven freshly baking the pizza to perfection. It was cheesy, and had a satisfyingly amount of toppings.
Lobster and crab ravioli: This was the daily special which Lager could not pass up! It sounded delicious and a few of us considered ordering this, but in the end, only Lager did.

He had no complaints about it. The sauce was rich and creamy, making it pretty filling.
Linguini Alle Vongole: Sangria’s linguini came with clams, garlic, white wine, and cream. It looked very delicious, and she said it was really good!

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I completely failed in taking pictures of everyone else’s food! We were all too busy having fun and it was only until I sat down to write this post, that I noticed there wasn’t a picture of the spaghetti and meatballs that we shared. =(

Carmelo’s is a very cozy, intimate and romantic restaurant (without the pretentiousness that could sometimes come along with these types of restaurants). I would like to highlight the impeccable service that night. Our server and bussers kept coming around every 5-10 minutes, filling our water, clearing plates, making sure everything was okay.

They were all super friendly and made a happy occasion even better. I was very impressed! Carmelo’s would be a great place for date night. You could also take a stroll at Ambleside Beach which is a block down afterwards.

Yay!

Last year, I went to Trattoria for my birthday and it was a good experience (see first visit here). Fast forward eight months later, Sangria suggested that we come here for their Tuesday special!

I’m glad that she made a reso because it is very busy on Trattoria Tuesdays, where all of their pastas are on sale for $13.00. We came early around 5:30, and there was already a line forming. If you’re coming on a Tuesday, making a reservation is a really good idea or you’ll have to wait.

Cheesy bread $7.50 ($5.00 happy hour): I remember that this was delicious during my first visit, so we ordered this as a starter to share. It did not disappoint as well. It was incredibly cheesy and garlicky, and served warm.

Crab & Lobster ravioli $24.95 ($13.00 on Trattoria Tuesdays): I was disappointed that they don’t have the smoked salmon & dill pasta anymore, that was so good! Since that was the original plan, I chose the crab and lobster ravioli instead. It was served in a creamy and cheesy pesto sauce.

The ravioli was not stuffed and a bit flat, but the crab and lobster was delicious nonetheless. I liked how cheesy it was and there was a good amount of herbs in there to keep the dish exciting.

Truffled spaghetti and signature meatballs, $24.95 ($13.00 on Trattoria Tuesdays): The guys both decided on ordering this dish. I had a bite of the spaghetti and it did was so good! It came with a truffle cream which made the spaghetti very aromatic.

Sometimes the food only has the truffle smell, and not the case which is disappointing. But I’m happy to say this was not the taste, you could definitely taste the truffle oil in it. I didn’t try the signature meatballs, but both of them did not have any complaints about their dish.

Short rib pappardelle $20.95 ($13.00 on Trattoria Tuesdays): Sangria has ordered this dish before and enjoyed it, so she got it again. This came with braised short rib, pine nuts, and wild mushrooms. She offered me a bite but I was quite full from my own creamy and rich ravioli so I declined. She had no complaints about it.

Tiramisu $8.95: Sangria and Lager split this the tiramisu cake for dessert! They enjoyed it a lot.

All in all, Trattoria Tuesdays is a very great value. The pasta is delicious and made with quality, so $13.00 is an absolute steal! Service wise, it was a bit hard to waive our server down but he did come by a couple times to check in on us. Make sure to book a reservation because it gets very busy on Tuesdays.

Yay!