Tombolino's Lunch Special

11.95 gets you: Eggplant Rollatini, Soup or Salad (neither is even close to skimpy, the soup is a meal on its own), dessert and coffee or espresso. Even on Saturdays. (Other entrees were 2-3 dollars more, unless you want steak which will run you around $22.) So is it good?

You bet your socks! The kind of socks that you need because you're suffering from severe blisters. So bet 'em.

First, the white bean escarole soup on display in the picture was hearty, and not overly-beany which I despise. Plus, the taste was fantastic. I wanted a whole jug of it to save for the upcoming winter months. Unfortunately, the soup by itself is $8.00 Boo. But I loved it. Adored it. Yet another reason why I need a food processor. Though, I probably don't for that type of soup. Tomatoes, onions, white beans, and escarole in a tomato-esque, chicken (I think) broth.

The eggplant rollatini portion size was small by appearance, but I was so stuffed from the soup and Addeo bread (best bread in the BX, maybe the country) that it was fine. Tasty morsel, with delicious broccoli (yes, delicious) and a giant tater tot creation that probably has a fancy French name I can't spell on the side. I took most of it home, and can't wait to eat it for lunch one of these days.

I opted for the espresso and the Italian vanilla ice cream sprinkled with almonds and topped with a maraschino cherry over the Italian cheesecake. I'm not a huge cheesecake fan in general, and the Italian version is a bit too cakey for my taste. Lovely, and the perfect topper to a great lunch.

But better than that was the company, my amazingly awesome 90 year old grandfather, who kept me entertained with stories the entire time. Lunch special was great, company was great, price was great. Can't go wrong!