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The night before Pere and I left for St. Louis, we had a strong craving for Italian. Normally, we would satisfy this at Va Bene, but Pere really wanted something other than risotto, which she wouldn't be able to stop herself from ordering if we went to Va Bene. Remembering that we still hadn't tried Tomasso's over at Casa Paloma, we decided to give it a go. I had eaten at what I assume was their sister restaurant on Queen Creek Road before it closed a year or so ago. I had lunch there and thought my pasta dish was pretty good. I was looking forward to something similar this time around.

I never realized how large Tomasso's was. From the outside, it looks like any other strip mall restaurant in Arizona. Once inside, however, I realized that the place was large to the point of being cavernous. The interior reminded me of your standard hotel restaurant. There was a semi-open kitchen in the rear which we were seated next to. The service counter was about 20 feet long, and a buffet table stacked with plates and other table service pieces sat beneath. It looked as though this setup belonged in a buffet style restaurant, and seemed out of place.

After looking over the menu, we decided to split an order of calamari as an appetizer. Pere ordered the cannelloni and I ordered the lobster and shrimp stuffed ravioli. The calamari arrived promptly. It was an instant disappointment. There was nothing to the presentation of the calamari. The fried rings and tentacles were plopped in a medium sized bowl with no arrangement or garnish and accompanied by a gravy boat of red sauce on a separate plate. The calamari were on the soggy and chewy side. At this point, I was hoping that this wasn't a sign of things to come, especially since the entrees were on the pricey side. My disappointment was further heightened when the waiter came to take away our appetizer plates and asked us to hold on to our forks. When the average entree price is $25-$30, I expect my used flatware to be replaced between courses. To me, it's a sign of good service.

When our meals finally arrived, again, the presentation was bland. If it weren't for the fact that my ravioli were made of dark colored pasta, the entire dish would have blended into the white plate. The pasta ended up being tough. I understand al dente, but in this case, the pasta tasted like cardboard. The filling was ok, but was completely overpowered by the saltiness of the cheese in the cream sauce it was sitting in. Pere's meal was no better. Although her pasta was cooked correctly, the dish was also way too salty. It was ok, but absolutely unremarkable in every aspect.

At this point, all we wanted to do was get out of there and put an end to a disappointing meal. We kindly declined desert after looking over the menu. Even if we had wanted something, the choices were completely predictable and boring. Creme brulee, tiramisu, etc. Needless to say, I won't be recommending Tomasso's to my friends anytime soon. Next time we get a craving for Italian, we're going to stick to old standards like Va Bene or Amano Pizza.