What it is is one of the most cliche lines that's going around right now. And it describes Manzella's perfectly. If you're looking for some quality Italian-American food in Champaign, I'd point you out to Manzella's. This place is sort of cool, in an old-school sort of way. It's a little dark inside. There are a few wall decorations, though nothing gaudy. They have these empty chianti bottles hanging on the walls, too, which actually is surprisingly interesting on the eyes. It's sort of cramped seating, but it's what you expect when you go into a mom and pop Italian joint.
I've been there a few times, and I've never been disappointed. You don't go into a place like this looking for fine dining. You look for a quality meal at a reasonable price. You want some nice comfort food, a basket of warm bread, and a place to catch up with friends over a good meal. You're not there to transcend the boundaries of foie gras and white truffles. You're there to enjoy a plate of rich, red sauce over layers of noodles and meat and cheese. Manzella's does not disappoint.
So here's the scoop - the bread service is good. They bring out warm, crusty bread that's really tasty. You can make a meal out of just the bread and the olive oil that they bring to the table. Again, nothing fancy - just pretty standard EVOO (for you Rachel Ray fans... both of you), some of the Parmesan out of a bottle, and black pepper not freshly ground, and good ol' table salt. But it's darned good. You don't need special olive oil, fresh Parmesan, freshly ground pepper, and magical sea salt for a good dipping sauce. Making do what you have can be really enjoyable sometimes. This is one of those times.
Every entree includes a soup or salad. Again, nothing special, though the house Italian is pretty tasty - a little sour and tangy, and sort of fun. The manicotti is always good, though every once in a while they don't sauce it quite enough and the pasta dries out slightly on the edges. The lasagna is solid and darned tasty. The spaghetti is generally just par, but then again, when was the last time you really had an experience eating just plain spaghetti? The marinara is just chunky enough so that you know that you know it's there, but not so much that you think that you're eating a tomato dish.
As always, I added on a side of meatballs and a side of Italian sausage. Manzella's passed with flying colors. The sausage order was actually 2 decent sized links, that were grilled up with just a little bit of char. It was meaty, it was juicy, and it was tasty. I don't think that they made it themselves, but it was still good enough. The meatballs were homemade, and they were really good. Meaty, with just enough of the filler in there to make it tender.
Now one thing to avoid is the pizza. We tried to make an appetizer out of it. It didn't work. The toppings were pretty ample, and the sausage on the pizza was definitely good. Unfortunately, the crust was not. Think crunchy cracker-like crust. Dense and like a saltine in taste. In my mind, a thin pizza crust should have a little crisp and a little chew. There was no give to this stuff at all. We'll just be a little smarter and just stick with the bread service, in lieu of the pizza.
We didn't even try the desserts. Two reasons - 1) we were stuffed and couldn't handle it, and 2) nothing was made in-house. I figure that I can get an Eli's cheesecake as well as anyone else, and add a few dabs of whipped cream and some sauce or other.
Again, if you go into Manzella's with a friend, looking for a nice plate or tortellini and some nice bread and a good conversation, you won't be disappointed. At least not in the food. It is what it is.
-foodgeek
Rating: 0.5 star
Manzella's Italian Patio (217) 352-7624; 115 S. First St (west side of 1st, just south of University). Champaign, IL 61820. Appetizers: $3 - $6; Pizzas: $6 - $18; Pasta: $8 - $12; Entrees: $12 - $20.
I've been there a few times, and I've never been disappointed. You don't go into a place like this looking for fine dining. You look for a quality meal at a reasonable price. You want some nice comfort food, a basket of warm bread, and a place to catch up with friends over a good meal. You're not there to transcend the boundaries of foie gras and white truffles. You're there to enjoy a plate of rich, red sauce over layers of noodles and meat and cheese. Manzella's does not disappoint.
So here's the scoop - the bread service is good. They bring out warm, crusty bread that's really tasty. You can make a meal out of just the bread and the olive oil that they bring to the table. Again, nothing fancy - just pretty standard EVOO (for you Rachel Ray fans... both of you), some of the Parmesan out of a bottle, and black pepper not freshly ground, and good ol' table salt. But it's darned good. You don't need special olive oil, fresh Parmesan, freshly ground pepper, and magical sea salt for a good dipping sauce. Making do what you have can be really enjoyable sometimes. This is one of those times.
Every entree includes a soup or salad. Again, nothing special, though the house Italian is pretty tasty - a little sour and tangy, and sort of fun. The manicotti is always good, though every once in a while they don't sauce it quite enough and the pasta dries out slightly on the edges. The lasagna is solid and darned tasty. The spaghetti is generally just par, but then again, when was the last time you really had an experience eating just plain spaghetti? The marinara is just chunky enough so that you know that you know it's there, but not so much that you think that you're eating a tomato dish.
As always, I added on a side of meatballs and a side of Italian sausage. Manzella's passed with flying colors. The sausage order was actually 2 decent sized links, that were grilled up with just a little bit of char. It was meaty, it was juicy, and it was tasty. I don't think that they made it themselves, but it was still good enough. The meatballs were homemade, and they were really good. Meaty, with just enough of the filler in there to make it tender.
Now one thing to avoid is the pizza. We tried to make an appetizer out of it. It didn't work. The toppings were pretty ample, and the sausage on the pizza was definitely good. Unfortunately, the crust was not. Think crunchy cracker-like crust. Dense and like a saltine in taste. In my mind, a thin pizza crust should have a little crisp and a little chew. There was no give to this stuff at all. We'll just be a little smarter and just stick with the bread service, in lieu of the pizza.
We didn't even try the desserts. Two reasons - 1) we were stuffed and couldn't handle it, and 2) nothing was made in-house. I figure that I can get an Eli's cheesecake as well as anyone else, and add a few dabs of whipped cream and some sauce or other.
Again, if you go into Manzella's with a friend, looking for a nice plate or tortellini and some nice bread and a good conversation, you won't be disappointed. At least not in the food. It is what it is.
-foodgeek
Rating: 0.5 star
Manzella's Italian Patio (217) 352-7624; 115 S. First St (west side of 1st, just south of University). Champaign, IL 61820. Appetizers: $3 - $6; Pizzas: $6 - $18; Pasta: $8 - $12; Entrees: $12 - $20.
