How to eat Italian in the Metro East…

I must have been in an Italian mood last week (or maybe I always am).  I went with my Italian fiancé to my favorite Italian restaurant, Mungo’s, on Tuesday.  Later that week, on Saturday night, I went with friends to Joe Boccardi’s because we heard good things.

I will NEVER return to Joe Boccardi’s!  This restaurant recently opened on North Belt East in Swansea.  I ordered the Chicken Raffaelle which is supposed to be LIGHTLY breaded chicken in a light wine sauce with bacon and shrimp.  What I was served was 2 large golden fried McDonald’s-esq chicken nuggets with frozen mini shrimp and a pound of bacon (I recognize that a pound of bacon might actually make this sound good) with virtually no sauce.  It was more fried than Kentucky Fried Chicken!  Not to mention it tasted like a frozen pre-fried Tyson’s chicken breast you get at the grocery store!  The baked potato was good.  Overall, an incredibly frustrating meal!!!

I understand that you likely get what you pay for – I think my meal only cost around $15 but I would have rather ordered McDonalds and paid far less ad enjoyed the fried-goodness.  I had about 3 bites of my terrible meal and sent the rest home with a friend to her boyfriend who loves bacon.  Maybe he enjoyed it (doubtful)!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mungo’s in Fairview Heights!  It is more costly, but it is definitely worth it!  We enjoyed a Shrimp de Jonghe appetizer with non-frozen, jumbo shrimp in a tangy lemon butter garlic sauce – amazing.  I then ordered my favorite chicken dish – the Chicken Stasilli which is fresh chicken, LIGHTLY breaded in a white wine lemon butter sauce with mushrooms, broccoli, and red pepper.  Oh, and you have to top it all off with Bananas Foster for dessert!  It was perfect – highly recommended!

They have a great atmosphere, amazing service, and incredible food!  They have really high quality meat and seafood, and pasta (who could forget that) – all are great options.  They are located on Lincoln Highway in Fairview near Schnucks – definitely a hidden treasure that everyone in Belleville knows about – and now you do too!  The only bummer is they don’t have a website 🙁  but you can check out their menu here.

What is your favorite Mungo’s dish?  If you have never been, check it out and let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: I worked at Mungo’s during undergrad and grad school – but I still love the food 5 years later!

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Melissa DeCicco

Melissa is a wiz at crazy facial expressions, golfs at every chance possible, and loves super uncomfortable shoes. A dedicated Dolly Parton fan, she purchased Dollywood season passes several years in a row (it’s 500 miles away) and finally met her in 2004 – she ROCKS!

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