il Porto

I gave Kay the night off so I'll give the report on il Porto.  My gift of gab is not quite as versed as Kay so bear with me (she'll be making edits anyway). A few days prior to our actual visit, we drove by the restaurant, as we often have, and Kay said we should try it one night. Well, after discussing several choices of dining establishments, (by "discuss" I mean "argue") I tossed out the idea of il Porto. (Insert Kay: Um, I actually think it was I who tossed out the name, just sayin') We looked up their menu online and it seemed reasonable so we figured we'd give it a shot. 

We headed to downtown Frederick on a seemingly normal Friday night. Finding a spot to park took no time, what did take time was having to wait for Kay to change her purse over. We were just going to eat then go home so I don't get the idea of changing over your purse but I digress. (Insert Kay: Ladies, I know you understand...wanted to change to an "evening purse") We entered il Porto and were instantly greeted and seated by the host. The restaurant was about 50% full and had a nice vibe. We both liked the tall ceilings and got a good seat by the window.

The waiter came over within minutes to take our drink order. Kay went with an amaretto sour (high roller!) and I went with a trusty water.  The menu was straight forward, Italian.  I had a tough time deciding between Chicken Marsala and Manicotti.  Traditional Italian fare (what I classify as any noodle with sauce) is always too small of a portion for me. I'm not a large fella but I have a large appetite. Chicken Marsala is a favorite of Kay's and I knew it would be a tough feat talking her out of ordering it.  So I went with the Chicken Marsala along with a side house salad and after a lot of quick talking (I had to offer up a few bites), Kay went with Roasted Chicken. 

Dinner came out in a timely fashion along with refills (note: without having to ask!). The Roasted Chicken was enough food for two adults and a fat baby. (Insert Kay: It was literally the size of my head!)  The Marsala was served with a side of linguine with marinara sauce. I dropped the ball here when ordering, I should have asked the waiter to put the marsala sauce on the linguine and skip the marinara.  I did make a good choice by adding the salad though as the Chicken Marsala would not have been a large enough portion for me. Kay's roasted chicken came with some potatoes, but she wished there had been some type of green veggie to accompany it. 

All in all, this was a good choice for dinner.  The wait staff was on point with refills and checking in on us. We weren't blown away with the food but for the price it was a good deal.  Our waiter was very polite and knowledgeable.  We'd give it a "Good Enough to Take Your Parents To" rating and we'll most likely go back. The only complaint was the tacky neon "open" sign on the window directly at our table. This joint is too classy for a neon sign but I understand the need as they are in a low foot traffic area.  I'd put it higher on the window out of sight for patrons.