I ordered lunch from Mauro Ristorante Italian in Carle Place, and while there is definitely potential here, a few execution errors kept it from being a great meal. As way of background, Mauro’s is in the space of an old La Bottega. I do not know why but can guess, I bunch of La Bottega restaurants have dropped their affiliation with them and gone independent. I would expect that the food would remain consistent with how they served it when it was a La Bottega affiliated restaurant but I can be wrong.
I ordered the Caroline Salad, which on the menu is listed with grilled chicken, artichoke hearts, baby arugula, fresh tomatoes, cherry peppers, and shaved parmigiano. Unfortunately, they served it with fried chicken instead of the ordered grilled chicken. While the salad itself had fresh ingredients and a great flavor profile, the swap was disappointing. When you order a dish, you expect them to follow their own ingredients.
We also ordered a Grilled Chicken Panini. The ingredients inside were incredibly fresh and tasty, but the panini itself wasn’t grilled nearly enough. It lacked that classic, hot, crispy press you expect from a great Italian panini. There is where I missed the La Bottega dishes.
The flavors are absolutely there, but a little more attention to detail in the kitchen would make a huge difference. Willing to give them another shot!
Rating: 3.5/5