Why I Really Don't Like Parisi

I know this opinion is probably unpopular.

Last night, after our failed attempt to eat pizza at Gemelli's, we ended up at Parisi. I have this idea that Parisi has good food. We don't go there very often because my husband has a pretty negative view of the place. I think I've finally come around to his point of view. Don't get me wrong, I still think the food is good. However, I do think that the portions tend to be small for the price you pay. Maybe the portions are sized according to what I should be eating, but this is not a discussion of my diet. The fact is, last night, like pretty much every other time I've eaten there, I left hungry.

The real kicker is: I think this place is very child unfriendly. Sure, it meets one of my first criteria for being a child-friendly restaurant: it is loud. But the child-friendliness ends there in my opinion. The place works along the same lines as Noodles & Company. You wait in line, order your food, sit down with a number and then someone brings you your food. For some reason, I like this set up at Noodles. I think it because Noodles has more of a fast food identity. Once they bring you your food, they are done with you. The staff at Parisi brings you your food and then sort of waits on you. The tables don't turn fast enough. So the line gets backed up. Kids in line get antsy...start getting the wiggles....start invading the space of the folks in line near you, etc. etc. Get out of line and wait elsewhere with the kids, you might suggest. Nope. There is really nowhere to wait. The whole place just feels crowded.

Two last rants about this place:
1) You pay when you order (ala Noodles & Company), but since they give you a little extra table service here, I feel like I should tip. I paid with a credit card. It feels yucky to be asked for a tip before you are even waited on (plus I was in a bad mood from dealing with kids in line). I did have some cash last night and thought, I'll just leave the tip at the end. I almost forgot.

2) The tables are pretty packed in. This is ok sometimes. I live in a small house. I am used to cozy. But these tables have legs at all 4 corners. The result, you have to lift your legs over the chair to sit down. Try that with an antsy 4 year old in your arms!

Now, about the food. We got the quattro formaggio pizza without the gorgonzola (my husband is not a fan of the blue cheeses), so I guess it was a tre formaggio. We also got a couple of side salads and the Syrah to drink. The pizza was good. I like the thin crust, the sauce is good, and I liked the 3 cheeses. Definitely a good pizza. The salads came with mixed baby greens, a mixture of sliced olives and tomatoes with a balsamic viniagrette. This was also quite good. I wasn't a huge fan of the Syrah--I thought it tasted a little watery. My husband liked it though.

Maybe I'll head back to Parisi sometime without kids, but probably not because there are so many other places to go with no kids!