Johnny Carino

I had registered at Carino's for some reason or other. Well I got a e-mail seven days before my birthday saying I could get a few dessert with an entree for my birthday. It would expire on the 8th of October. So I went to lunch that day and they honored it. I do not care for a lot of things at this venue but I must say their bread has improve a 1000 fold since they first came here. I entree I have always loved was the Jalapeno Tilapia. Lots of people eat tilapia because it has no fishy flavor and just as many avoid it because they consider it bland. I will get if the flavoring ingredient intrigue me. I consider it a blank canvass that should be painted with bold flavor. The pan sauteed fillet possesses a nice coating and the jalapeno cream bathes it in flavor. Hell I even like the tomato garnish and spinach that comes with it. The key here is the spicy cream sauce. It adds flavor to all. I am also not a big pasta person. The angel hair pasta is perfect. Light and not overbearing.

Below is the dessert. Mascarpone Bread Pudding Custard-soaked Tuscan bread with creamy mascarpone cheese and rich caramel, oven baked and topped with vanilla ice cream. It cost almost as much as the lunch entree. I have been eying this for awhile. I did not care much for the ice cream because I do not care for ice cream on my dessert. It has a hole in the center that they loaded with caramel and mascarpone. That I can get behind. It had good flavor. Based on the amount of time it took to get to the table I suspect they bake it fresh. They probably have bunt like molds full of the bread and custard. It would take only about 10 to 15 minutes to bake that size. It added a certain freshness to it but to tell you the truth the caramel made it for me.