When people ask me if I ever eat at home, the truth is, I do. But eating at home in Waterloo doesn’t always mean I’m cooking. The quickest way to solve my dinner problems on a busy weekday night is usually retrieving a small-boxed container from the freezer. C’mon…Michelina’s cannelloni and lasagna? Quick and dirty. As always, the heat quickly dissipates and I’m left with cold pasta.
Some nights, microwaveable pasta just won’t do. On a recent Sunday night, I decided to drive to Ennio’s Pasta House, a little bit past McDonald’s on King Street North. Started by Chef Ennio and his family in 1994, the restaurant serves not only pasta, but a variety of traditional Italian favourites to the KW region. The interior of the restaurant is very European influenced and traditional. At the same time, it feels very homey. There is a fireplace and separate rooms for individual parties. The décor reminds me of restaurants I’ve been to in Germany.
Upon arrival, I was served complimentary fresh bread with olive oil and basil as a dip. The basil adds a nice touch to the flavoring of the oil dip. Jumping right into the menu, I noticed it had two pages dedicated to a variety of different pasta dishes. Each pasta dish was very reasonably priced, considering it comes with a salad. I chose the Italian vinaigrette as opposed to the Caesar. I did not enjoy the dressing very much. It was overdressed and the dressing was very acidic in taste.
However my entrée was quite exciting. I went for the Bettola, a penne dish with vodka infused sauce. The portion was very reasonable. It was presented as a simple and minimalistic pasta dish, as it does not come with veggies like many of the other pastas on the menu. Asking for a sprinkle of black pepper might have been a mistake. The sauce was well seasoned and carries a blush of spice (just like what the description promised). It was not like most spicy pasta dishes I have had in the past. When my friends asked me how I liked my pasta, I told them they needed to try the sauce. I wasn’t lying (or trying to be stingy) because it was the sauce that was truly addicting and I found myself enjoying the sauce more than the pasta. This was simply a dish that was worth another serving.
The restaurant in a nutshell as summarized by the TOOL:
Price: 3.5 out of 5
Selection: 4.5 out of 5
Environment: 4 out of 5
Service: 4.5 out of 5
Suitable for: Small and large groups, casual, dinner dates
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