Solstice

Pasta Ravello in Eugene, Oregon
Mar 17

I visited this restaurant with my girlfriend last night. I'd really been looking forward to trying it since they have a full separate vegan menu with an emphasis on local quality ingredients.

We walked in and I was impressed with the clean environment although it was a bit spartan and cold with high ceilings and almost nothing in the way of decorations or plants that could make it far more comfortable. We waited for about 5 minutes while the hostess tried to explain to the people behind us where they could park. Two other servers watched us wait from behind the bar and did nothing to help. We were finally seated with menus. After perusing the menu for a few minutes we were puzzled by the lack of vegan options so we asked and were brought the special vegan menu.

There was a good selection of dishes from pasta to ravioli to "wood fired" pizza. The wine list was short and unimpressive but we chose a Sangiovese that looked okay. When we tried to order the wine we were told that everyone had been wanting that wine all weekend but they had run out. At the restaurant I used to work at, when we ran out of something we'd go buy it at full retail price if we had to. First priority is to take care of your customers and if your poor planning leaves you without an item, it is worth making no profit on it if it means making your customers happy.

We were brought some dry bread with a plate of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and TONS of raw garlic which we tried to enjoy with the water on the table. The people seated after us had received their beverages right away but we had to remind the server about our wine after our entrees were brought out. Our glasses were scantily filled with the unremarkable $7/glass Chianti that was really the only reasonable red wine option other than the Sangiovese. Not impressive for a $40 meal.

I actually didn't mind any of this all that much and really tried to cut them some slack since they've only been open a few months.

The food finally arrived. My girlfriend had ordered a half-order of the vegan ravioli for $9. She was brought a plate of frozen ravioli that had been heated up with a little bit of basic red sauce over the top. It wasn't very hot and the presentation was, well, pasta and sauce in the middle of a plate.

I ordered the "wood fired" pizza with a artichoke/lemon/sage pesto sauce for $10. It arrived by itself on a plate. It was barely warm and the crust wasn't brown at all. The "pesto" sauce tasted like a VERY garlicky humous with overpowering, in-your-face lemon and sage. It was anything but subtle and my mouth was burning with garlic and lemon and I had to stop eating after only 1/4 of it was gone. My girlfriend observed that it looked like a store-bought crust and it sure tasted like it too.

The bottom line is that the food at this restaurant is very basic, VERY garlicky and not fresh at all. We both love garlic but it's too much when that's the only thing you can taste in your meal. I'd have been much happier dipping some pita bread into humous. I'm not much better than a hack in the kitchen but even the food I make over a campfire puts this food to shame.

I really wanted to like this restaurant and gave them every chance I could. There's only so many breaks you can give a place though. You sure have to give them lots of credit for at least trying to cater to vegans. I'll never go back though and recommend anyone to wait at least a few months and give them a chance to get their act together.

The best thing about this meal was that Pasta Ravello is only a few blocks from Sweet Life! We were still hungry after the bit of food we managed to eat so we consoled ourselves with a couple pieces of delicious vegan strawberry/chocolate cake...yum!