Review: Casa Mia

We hadn't been to Casa Mia since it had its latest change in name/cuisine/management. Actually, we missed out on Rouge entirely, something I regret keenly. With our Fabulous Savings coupons due to expire soon, we opted to use up the last few of our downtown coupons and stopped by for BoGo tapas. The interior hasn't changed much since the last time I was there - still the same stained cement floors and well-rennovated charm. Parking is a problem (it's downtown) so if you've got bus access, use that instead. We were seated immediately and brought table water and chips and salsa. The chip plate was really tiny (seriously) and the chips were a bit stale. The salsa was also weak and bland. No kick. Since it's a free courtesy expected of Mexican restaurants in the south, I won't complain too much, but you can get better chips and salsa at most other restaurants in town. I ordered the Latin sushi roll and my husband ordered empanadas. We also got a side of fried yuccas. The Latin sushi roll turned out to be a fried plantain stuffed with seasoned chicken. I had a bite of my husband's beef empanada , and we split the fried yucca. Portion sizes were a bit on the small side, but these were tapas and not real entrees, so that was to be expected. Still, getting a whole three yucca fries for two dollars felt a bit stingy. The meat was well seasoned, however, and everything was delicious, a far cry from the stale chips of moments before. We left a little hungry, and opted for dessert at Suno to fill up. Location: B - Downtown means parking is going to be difficult to find and probably cost money. Take a bus if you can. Atmosphere: A - Clean bathrooms are always a winner with me, and I like the heavy atmosphere of the interior. It's survived several incarnations of the restaraunt, but it was well done the first time and it shows. Food: B - Chips and salsa were stale and bland. The rest of the dishes were much tastier, but came in pretty small portions. Service: A - Quick and attentive wait staff, but then again it was a rainy Tuesday afternoon before the dinner crowd really hit. Price: B - Not the cheapest Mexican in town. Not the largest portion sizes for the price. Overall, the experience wasn't bad, but I get the impression Casa Mia doesn't know what it wants to be. Latin fusion? Gourmet? Offering cheap prices but providing stingy serving sizes in exchange is something that just rubs me the wrong way. I love yucca fritas and only giving me three of them was a tragedy. Grade: B - Eat there, but bring a coupon.

Review: Your Pie, Watkinsville

We took advantage of a 50% coupon promoting this location of Your Pie for our weekly dinner last Friday. A friend warned us that he was not happy with the service there, but we are never one to take someone's word as the final authority when it comes to a restaurant, so we went anyway.

Our first problem was parking. Holy moly. Whoever designed that shopping center's parking lot should be fired. We had to parallel park in a driveway, far away from the actual buildings, with muddy undeveloped lots on either side. The facility really needs double the parking spaces they have.

Once we got inside, the line was very long, and there was no seating. We realized that it was Friday night in a sleepy small town with nothing better to do, but like our experience at Marty's at Midday earlier in the year, not having any available seating is a definite turn off. It was too cold outside to take advantage of any outdoor seating, and we were not offered the option anyway.

So we resigned ourselves to To Go. The long line slowly moved up. After about fifteen minutes of standing there hungry, we were finally able to place our orders. Things brightened up as we selected our pies - my husband went for a standard BBQ chicken, while I opted for a veggie-laden custom chicken pizza. Your Pie gets a big gold star for having the full nutritional information of their food right there where you can order. I was able to build my own diet pie and know the Weight Watcher's points for it within a few minutes.

Once our order was placed and paid for, there was another hungry, interminable wait while they baked the pizzas. Deli style pizza sure isn't instant. Since we had no table, we had to stand by the soda fountains in everyone's way. A few "to go waiting area" chairs would have made a world of difference.

We didn't actually get to eat our pizza until we arrived home, about an hour after we left. And the pizzeria is only 10 minutes away from our Bogart home. It took 40 minutes to be able to order and then wait for the pizza to be cooked, all while we were standing up. The pizza was delicious, but I wish I could have enjoyed it sooner.

Location: C - Inadequate parking. Right on highway 53 so convenient for folks in Watkinsville proper, but those in Athens itself should probably hit the Alps location.

Atmosphere: C - Inadequate seating. No exterior lighting for outdoor seating that I could see, nor any space heaters to even make the outdoor seating an option. No seating for to-go orders. The entire place was noisy and filled with kids, and the impression I got was of a very cramped building that was trying to do more than it was capable of handling. I guess since the location is still relatively new, the novelty hasn't worn off, but I would definitely suggest avoiding them on Friday nights.

Service: A+ - Better than we had been led to believe. Everyone was friendly and make sure our orders were done exactly right. Having the nutrition information available at the ordering bar made it a definite win.

Price: A - Even without the 50% coupon, it's pretty reasonable for mid-scale deli style fast food. Well, slow food.

Food: A - I scarfed down my pizza which was still nice and hot in its to-go box.

Overall grade: B - Add more parking and double the dining room size, and I think this place can still be salvaged. Otherwise, try to aim for happy hour at 5PM to avoid the crowds and actually get a table.