Pierino’s has swag, lacks taste

Tuesday, April 15, 2008 - 12:25 AM

Friendly staff and Italian atmosphere don’t make up for over-priced food

Photo by Daniel Clark/Nevada Sagebrush

Pierino’s Ristorante Italiano has nearly all the makings of a fine Italian restaurant: the crisp white tablecloths, walls covered in tapestries and oil paintings, and even a pricey menu. The one thing they don’t have is fine food to match.

The last time I came to the Keystone Avenue location, the Save Mart the restaurant sits next to was Albertson’s and Pierino’s was the old Reno favorite: The Coffee Grinder.

I remember being entranced as a kid by the trays overflowing with fog from the dry ice at The Coffee Grinder. At Pierino’s, I was entranced by the high quality service and playful melody of the Godfather soundtrack humming through the dining room. I only wish the meal was as enticing.

My friend Morgan and I strolled in for an early dinner and were promptly seated in the intimate dining room. Our server greeted us with gusto and read the specials, detailing each dish. The busboy stood idly by and waited until we put in our drink order before coming over the fill our water glasses.

The quick and thorough service made me hopeful that the rest of the evening would go as well.

When our appetizers arrived, it was clear it wouldn’t: both the prosciutto and melon of the same-named dish ($10) tasted just a day or two past their prime. The melon was slightly mushy and lacked that biting sweetness that usually offsets the salty meat.

Morgan was happy to be met with a pile of full-bodied little squid in her calamari fritti ($13). While it was nice that the dish wasn’t heavily breaded like it is at most restaurants, it wasn’t enough to make up for the rubbery and chewy squid.

After tasting the soup, I brightened up again. The minestrone was loaded with veggies and had a deep, rich flavor like it had been stewing all day.

When the bread basket came out, I was excited to see that it was filled with tasty-looking rosemary knots rather than just a hunk of white bread. Unfortunately, the excitement ended there, after the first bite. The blandness of the bread bogged down the flavor of the herbs and couldn’t be saved by even a generous smear of butter and dip in the yummy minestrone.

The pasta menu at Pierino’s is a mix and match with pastas listed to be paired with your choice of a wide variety of sauces. I chose the gnocchi ($13) and coupled it with a ragu ($2.25) while Morgan went with the entrÃ©e of linguine with clams in a white sauce ($23).

The gnocchi was perfectly cooked and paired nicely with the smooth and savory ragu. I quickly finished off my plate of foot before scooping up a forkful of Morgan’s pasta topped with a mix of shell-in and diced clams.

I twirled a heaping serving onto my fork and dove in head first, only to be disappointed as I met by a fishy-tasting sauce and big hunk of clamshell poking me in the throat. Though the shell piece may have been an unfortunate by-product of Morgan’s sloppy shelling, the event ruined the rest of the dish for me.

Thanks to the outstanding service and elegant atmosphere, I’ll be giving Pierino’s another try before writing it off. But, diner, beware: For the prices you’ll pay, there are better bets in town.