Ciro's Italian Restaurant in Kings Park was warmly
decorated; dressed with white linen table clothes, the most handsome wait
staff, and best of all, all entrees were priced below twenty dollars.
As soon as we walked in the romantic ambience of the restaurant jumped out at Emma and I. A handsome, busy gentleman greeted us within 5 seconds of walking in. His second in command seated us. He gave us a choice of table, near the window or near the center of the 20 tabled room. I suppose they gave us our choice as the cozier table by the window was next to a rather large family with small children. Nevertheless, we chose the nicer table near the family, despite the slight ruckus the kids were causing.
Almost immediately the youngest of the cuties- I mean
waiters- brought us our water and menus.
They allowed us the appropriate five-minute period to glance over our
mouth-watering menu, yet I stayed true to my astrological traits and could not
make a decision. The waiter, who
actually reminded me of Cogsworth, the enchanted mantel clock in Beauty &
the Beast, read us the nightly specials, which confused my palate even
more.
Upon receiving the list of the house wines by the glass we
ordered our drinks, which took about three or four minutes to arrive. By that time, I had settled on starting with
the zesty mussels special followed by the chicken sorrentino; sautéed breast,
eggplant, prosciutto, mozzarella in a light brown sauce. Emma’s selection displayed her simpler taste
buds opting for the traditional baked ziti with a fresh mozzarella and tomato
salad to start.
Our Pinot Noir was full of body and I could just imagine the
large black grapes picked from the tight cluster of dark purple pine
cone-shaped bunches that were used to make our wine. As we sipped our wine, in
attempt to distract our rumbling tummies, the waiter waltzed out with a huge
dish of muscles steaming with spices that bit our noses as he crossed from the
kitchen towards us. Man oh man were
those muscles delicious! The taste bud
stimulating muscles had quite the kick to them, as they were prepared with
plump cherry tomatoes and jalapeño peppers and the portions were huge!
We were both impressed with the friendly service and
delicious start to our meal. Our waiter and his assistant were very attentive, offering
black pepper and fresh cheese for our appetizers. They checked in two times during the first
course, bringing us more water and bread for the Ginny dip we were so finely
demonstrating.
The entrees were by far the best part. My food had the perfect combination of
texture and flavor; slightly salty yet soft and gooey with the perfect amount
of mozzarella cheese. Emma said her
baked ziti had tantalizing flavors, and a perfectly balanced blend of sauce and
cheese that warmed you from the inside out.
The meal lasted an hour and fifteen minutes from start to
finish. The check came promptly along
with pink Limoncello frozen desert drinks compliments of the staff. Guess we
made a good impression; they made a great impression on us!
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