Finding good Italian food can be tricky, but when it comes to Carrabba’s Italian Grill, you know you’re in for a treat every time.
The minute you walk into a Carrabba’s location you know you’ve made the right decision. It’s all about that smell emanating from the kitchen as you pass through the front door—it hits you—the smell that takes you back to Nonna’s house on a lazy Sunday in the fall.
The food at Carrabba’s has got that classic feel to it and if you didn’t grow up in an Italian household, you can get a glimpse of what it was like when you walk in…maybe even a glimpse of being in a good Italian restaurant in Italy itself…even though you perhaps just walked in off the street in America.
What are some of the best dishes to try at Carrabba’s Italian grill?
If the place feels authentic that’s because it is. It was founded by John Charles “Johnny” Carrabba III and his uncle Damian Mandola back in 1986. That was in Houston, Texas of all places and since then the restaurant has grown to have 217 locations as per Wikipedia.
But enough with the history lesson. Let’s get to the food items, shall we?
7. Chicken Parmesan Italian Sandwich Combo
This one comes off of their lunch menu and not only do you get a sandwich, but you get a choice of side. The penne pomodoro, which means penne in a tomato sauce, is certainly a way to go, and I know what you’re thinking: A sandwich and pasta?
Hey, I grew up eating that for lunch. Nothing like sautéed leftover pasta next to a delicious fried egg sandwich, believe me.
But here you get the wonder that is chicken parm and a really great side of delicious pasta. You can’t go wrong.
6. Meatball and Ricotta Small Plate Trio
Also from their lunch menu, but you can get it as an appetizer as well and you won’t regret it dear readers. It’s pretty self-explanatory, but to sum up all of the wondrous things going on here, you’ve got meatballs and they’re not only simmered in their delicious tomato sauce, but you’ve got Ricotta cheese and an assortment of other Italian cheeses for good measure. Enough said.
5. Four-Cheese and Sausage stuffed mushrooms
And still with the cheeses…these ones here are worth the money…. First off, mushrooms are pretty meaty in their own right, but if you’re stuffing them with cheese and even sausage, you’re only adding to the greatness of an already epic vegetable.
4. Linguine Positano
If you go to this restaurant you cannot leave without trying the pasta. That’s the knowledge I’d love to impart on you my dearest readers. You won’t regret it, as it’s prepared the way it should be…and these linguine are one of those pasta items not to miss.
This dish comes with either chicken or shrimp. If you want to reach that level of greatness where your taste buds are exploding like fireworks from the multiple components coming at you all at once as you chew, go for the shrimp, but both options are good.
3. Rigatoni Campagnolo
Here you have a tomato sauce, bell pepper and sausage sauté served with rigatoni; thick tube pasta that won’t have you missing out in the carb department. It’s definitely a satisfying dish to go with.
2. Cod Wulfe
To my estimation Cod fish is the greatest catch of the sea. A very thick and meaty fish that packs quite the bite. For me, it’s better than steak, and here it’s prepared to perfection.
It’s breaded and baked, not fried, and it’s topped with artichokes and sun dried tomatoes of all things, but the two ingredients blend well together and offer a side of Italian cuisine that isn’t always shown. The piece de résistance is the sauce…basil, lemon and butter. Yum! There are indeed many ways to go with cod fish…
1. Sausage and Lentil Soup
A soup at the number one spot?! You must be joking! I can understand your surprise, but trust me when I tell you that this is heartier than even your heartiest chili. Lentils are a meaty legume and pack loads of protein…add fennel Italian sausage to the mix and you’ve got yourself something special.
My mom makes this one and she adds tiny noodles so it’s a one stop shop so to speak, and with a salad beside it; perhaps some sliced assortment of cheeses and dried sausage, this meal can beat any main course any day of the week, twice on Sundays.
I must admit 7 was very hard to stop at…they’ve got a lot of great desserts, a great drinks list and some of their other menu items blow a lot of restaurants out of the water, really.
What are some of your favorite menu items to try when going to Carrabba’s, dear readers?