A five-course dinner…from a food truck?
Mangia Mangia, the Italian food truck, usually offers this deal Thursdays at 6.30 at 57 Degrees (1735 Hancock, near Washington Street, 619-234-5757).
It’s kinda civilized. You can eat on the streetside patio (on Hancock Street), or inside. Mangia Mangia charges $20.
Not bad for 5 courses, even though $40 would be a definite stretch for Carla and me. Because you’d add a couple of drinks on top of that.
Still, if it’s truly five courses, I’d try and stretch it. Because these guys sound interesting: they have appetizers like grilled bone marrow over saffron rice, frog legs, Italian lollipop (tempura-fried meatballs on a stick…).
Then heavier dishes like chicken parmigiana, roast turkey in fennel sauce, steak Florentine, short ribs in lasagna, on and on. Spaghetti. And for sure, at the end, tiramisu or cannoli.
I’d walk a mile for a good cannoli.
But not tonight, Josephine. (As Napoleon famously said to his lady, after a hard day at the office in Waterloo.)
I call up 57 Degrees. Turns out Mangia Mangia canceled. They have a catering event to go to. But they will be back next Thursday.
BTW: Since I’m on the line, I have to ask 57 Degrees (the lady doesn’t want me to use her name) about how Yelpers have been giving 57 Degrees a hard rap recently (about service, mostly). Like one star reviews.
“That was over the Groupon deal,” she says. “We had 3,000 people buy into that. And 450 people came on the last day -in two hours. We’re a wine bar, not a full restaurant. We have great staff, but it was too much to manage. We won’t be doing Groupon again.”
They’re not the only hell-week story I’ve heard of from eateries that have gambled on Groupon.
She does say that they “had to clean house” staff-wise after that, though.
So Mangia Mangia?
Hold the frog legs till next Thursday.
A five-course dinner…from a food truck?
Mangia Mangia, the Italian food truck, usually offers this deal Thursdays at 6.30 at 57 Degrees (1735 Hancock, near Washington Street, 619-234-5757).
It’s kinda civilized. You can eat on the streetside patio (on Hancock Street), or inside. Mangia Mangia charges $20.
Not bad for 5 courses, even though $40 would be a definite stretch for Carla and me. Because you’d add a couple of drinks on top of that.
Still, if it’s truly five courses, I’d try and stretch it. Because these guys sound interesting: they have appetizers like grilled bone marrow over saffron rice, frog legs, Italian lollipop (tempura-fried meatballs on a stick…).
Then heavier dishes like chicken parmigiana, roast turkey in fennel sauce, steak Florentine, short ribs in lasagna, on and on. Spaghetti. And for sure, at the end, tiramisu or cannoli.
I’d walk a mile for a good cannoli.
But not tonight, Josephine. (As Napoleon famously said to his lady, after a hard day at the office in Waterloo.)
I call up 57 Degrees. Turns out Mangia Mangia canceled. They have a catering event to go to. But they will be back next Thursday.
BTW: Since I’m on the line, I have to ask 57 Degrees (the lady doesn’t want me to use her name) about how Yelpers have been giving 57 Degrees a hard rap recently (about service, mostly). Like one star reviews.
“That was over the Groupon deal,” she says. “We had 3,000 people buy into that. And 450 people came on the last day -in two hours. We’re a wine bar, not a full restaurant. We have great staff, but it was too much to manage. We won’t be doing Groupon again.”
They’re not the only hell-week story I’ve heard of from eateries that have gambled on Groupon.
She does say that they “had to clean house” staff-wise after that, though.
So Mangia Mangia?
Hold the frog legs till next Thursday.