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!
We had plans to go to another nice restaurant but that didn’t go through, so it was a pretty spontaneous decision to come here (we decided to come here half a hour before). I was Yelping and this placed seemed like the perfect atmosphere that we were looking for.
I didn’t really want to sit on the patio because it seemed cold outside, but we were ensured that the patio was heated. We were seated next to a roaring fireplace which kept us warm and cozy the entire evening! Not all the seats have the fireplace, and the views are slightly better without the fireplace blocking.
Bread, free: Standard complimentary bread. The bread was nice and chewy instead, and served slightly warm with a side of butter.
Calamari, $13.50: We normally don’t get appetizers to save money and our appetite, but it was a special occasion. We were glad we ordered this because it was really good. It came with a very generous portion of calamari, with crisp and fresh batter. The calamari was seasoned with a variety of herbs which made it really good.
Alderwood grilled BC salmon, $29.50: The salmon was DELICIOUS. It flaked off nicely, and had a slightly grilled taste to it. So good. I just wanted to eat the whole thing.
New York Striploin, $42: My entree was the striploin, cooked medium rare! It was very juicy, tender, and flavourful. If I recall correctly, it usually comes with some sort of sauce or butter, but I asked for only salt and pepper with it. I’m a big believer in eating steak with good ol’ salt and pepper because I find it tastes so much better when made simply! Am I the only one who prefers steak this way?
Close up of my medium rare steak! WordPress needs to have an emoji keyboard so I can insert the drooling and heart eye ones here!
Mac and cheese, $7.00: Wow, I didn’t realize how much food we ordered until writing this post. For $7, this was a really good value and good size. The mac and cheese was baked with four types of cheese. The boyfriend said it was really comforting, with very stringy and delicious looking cheese.
I had made reservations on Open Table for an early dinner, at 6 pm. When we arrived, the parking lot was completely full! We ended up parking on the hotel side, which was still a really quick walk. The outside of the restaurant looked pretty modern and posh.
We were quickly seated, and the restaurant was pretty empty, save for a few other tables. Other parties ended up coming in as well, but it was nowhere as busy as The Keg would be. I guess this place isn’t really located in a residential neighbourhood or an entertainment district either, which explains the quieter venue!
It was an special occasion, so of course drinks were ordered!
Tuna tataki, $14.95: As an appetizer, we decided to order the tuna tataki because the boyfriend looooves tuna tataki. Unfortunately, this dish was really disappointing. The tuna was pretty hard on the outside and tasted as though it had been prepared awhile ago and left in the fridge.
Bread, complimentary: The bread was served nice and warm, with no complaints!
Filet mignon, $39.95: On to the main course! I had my heart set on the prime rib, but changed my mind last minute and ordered the filet mignon, cooked medium rare. The filet mignon came with a red wine reduction, and I chose fries as my side.
Rib eye, $37.95: Unlike how I was set with the prime rib before changing my mind last minute, the boyfriend stuck to his original decision and ordered the rib eye. When we were looking up the menu a few nights prior, he knew immediately that he wanted the rib eye!
Mini birthday dessert bite, complementary: I had called in requesting a birthday dessert for the boyfriend. After confirming with our server, they brought over the mini birthday surprise! She was nice enough to give us the option of a complementary full dessert due to her dairy mistake above, but the boyfriend was already too full at this point and I am unable to help him eat this =(
Complimentary bread: To start, we were given a nice loaf of warm bread to munch on. The bread was fluffy, soft and came out lightly toasted. No complaints here!
Wagyu beef french dip, $23: Originally, my mom and I were going to share this because it sounded amazing! However, after telling my server about my dairy restriction, she told me the wagyu beef is smothered in butter before getting cooked. Sigh.
Prime steak salad, $25: I wanted to try the steak, but I didn’t want to pay $50 for steak at lunch so I went with the prime steak salad. That way, I was still able to try their famous steak! The salad normally comes with blue and Parmesan cheese, and dressing. Obviously I wanted to have the dairy component, but due to my stupid and frustrating restriction, and risk of getting super sick I had to order without it.