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The Original Prego’s Trattoria
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Disappointed, heard the food was fantastic. Their lack of organization managed to overlook our family twice for a table. People who arrived 30 minutes…
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The Original Prego’s Trattoria
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Fawning service, upscale dcor, bland entres. Pregos Trattoria ended up in my GPS after it snagged a mention in the July, 2010 edition of Our State - t…
TonyPolito
The Original Prego’s Trattoria
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The Original Prego's Trattoria serves Italian. Incorrect or missing information? Make a report, or claim the restaurant if you own it!Details
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9 Reviews on “The Original Prego’s Trattoria”
Fawning service, upscale dcor, bland entres. Pregos Trattoria ended up in my GPS after it snagged a mention in the July, 2010 edition of Our State – the leading glossy magazine dedicated to reflecting the beauty of North Carolina – and it typically bulges with content regarding interesting dining nooks and crannies from one end of the state to the other.The venue, a former Boston Market, is cozy and neatly appointed, though it relies a bit too much upon Christmas icicle and colorful LED-strip lighting to create its ambiance. Theres a small bar at back right intended for waiting guests to idle and imbibe. I was intrigued at the restaurants practice of covering each white tablecloth with a fresh strip of butcher paper. Why have tablecloths that are almost invisible to guests? Which is it, fine dining experience – or quick-and-dirty table turns? Even the use of clear plexiglass would appear more elegant.Arrival was at peak, 8pm on a Friday night (2013-02-15), without reservations; the 10 to 15 minute wait actually clocked in at around 23 minutes. Fair enough, given the place was packed and stacked. The guests dress and conversation strongly suggest that Pregos is considered THE independent fine dining option by many upscale Burlingtonians. This night, guests were being presented with a paper Valentines Day Special Menu. This is not an authentic New York Italian joint transplant, nor close to it. Rather it is owned by Ecudorians who racked up a lot of kitchen hours in such joints, putting a semi-neo spin on the cuisine. Which is why I was unable to find standards on the menu. Caesar salad? Baked ziti with hot sausage? Spaghetti and meatballs? Chicken carbonera? Meat ravioli? No, no, no, no and no. I suppose such items can be had off-menu, or off the usual menu, but the place is running a special menu so why intrude? So starters, at 10. each, are beets with goat cheese and walnuts and spring mix salad topped with avocado and two shrimp with sweet and spicy chili dressing (which actually appeared at the table as run-of-the-mill Thousand Island dressing). The entrees were items such as blackened salmon with asparagus and spinach risotto, flat iron steak marsala and lobster tail (30.) and bone-in chicken thigh, wine and rosemary, on linguine. To be fair, the special menu did cough up osso buco (21.), veal scaloppini and a bowl of penne pasta sauted in a vodka sauce with peas, onions, prosciutto, mushrooms and topped with fresh scallops. FRESH scallops, would you want or expect any other kind? Yet another restaurant embellishing its menu with empty and pretentious verbiage. How about a menu a guest can actually READ? I do so enjoy osso buco but, wanting to dine light and craving pasta, I opted into the penne (15.). Brought to testify was indeed a bowl of penne resting under about eight large (and presumed fresh) scallops. There were also a few peas and mushrooms present in the courtroom. The evidence for prosciutto, however, was circumstantial at best. Hence my intention of actually receiving meat with my dinner was entirely plea bargained away. The red sauce was absolutely bland, far too sweet and saturated with enough cheese to bring it to an bright orange hue. Ive had frozen TV dinners with sauce not too much different. And I was not the only diner present to employ the adjective bland regarding the meal. The bread, which looked nothing like Italian bread, was doughy, crispy toasted and tasty.I will give you this, service is indeed fawning. There were a large number of wait staff, all male and aproned, dancing back and forth across the floor, and they did not hesitate to table-touch outside their sections. Indeed, the owner was doing much the same thing, almost constantly. There was no want for Pinot or Parmesan. And there were no service errors of which to speak. I read the problem here as the owner trying to semi-mimic haute-couture Manhattan dining here in little ol Burlington … and those Burlingtonians needing somewhere to be pretentious and snobby are buying into that game. Which explains the tons of raves over at Yelp and Google for what was obviously pretty mediocre and overpriced fare. What would really be more braggable is for the town to actually have some authentic, red-peppery, garlic-reeking New York Italian eats on tap. The food is nothing special at all, obviously blanded so as to make it palatable to less-discerning, Olive Garden-loving palates. And it is quite overpriced for what it is. Wish I could shout-out Mangia! But I cant.Happy Motoring !
Wonderful food, friendly service. Owner/manager personally stops by table every visit to ensure your meal was satisfactory.
What a surprise to find this gem in Burlington! House made raviolis and pastas and desserts! Eat here if you appreciate good authentic Italian food and service.
Best Italian food in Burlington, NC. Hands down Great owner and wait staff. Thanks much for being here
Pretty Good Food and Service Here. Ultimately, a restaurant, of what ever ilk, must be about the food. Still, it doesn’t hurt to have excellent, consciencious service, recognizable value, and pleasing surroundings – throw in an involved, committed owner/chef who works ever table in the house, and the probability of a nice dining experience increases dramatically – and the food brings its own value to the culinary equatition.That value, while substantial, is the lesser of these elements at this nice restaurant – doesn’t mean the food is not very good, just means it ain’t great. The Oysters Rockefeller were only ok, the oysters lacked the briney freshness so paramount to really great oyster dishes. The Linguine with White Clam Sauce was, again, ok but was short on clams, and lacked the heat of red pepper flakes so much a part of this classic dish.The Lasagna Bolognese was very light on the noodles – and this is a layered noodle dish – without the layers of noodles(usually 3), the meat sauce can overpowers the dish, as it did here. The consistency of the bolognese sauce was a little off, as well, a little to fine.This is a good restaurant, serving nice Italian dishes, with excellent team service, in a pleasant atomsphere, and we’ll come back – there are some nice veal dishes on the menu
Best Italian in Burlington. Excellent food and the dinner portions are very large. You can easily share a meal. Daily specials always great to try for something new. Very nice place. Only negative is that it is not real kid friendly, but great for a date night.
Absolutely the best Italian cuisine to be had in the area. Will definitely go back and try more from the awesome menu. All this AND affordable!