Andiamo - Livonia, Michigan

This is spendy but delicious. During the month of July they have been running a buy one dinner get one free deal you can get from their website http://www.andiamoitalia.com/index.html. Of course I had to take advantage of that!

We decided to go big and get the top of the line stuff. I love doing that with a half off deal because it gives you a chance to eat things you normally would not order because they are too spendy. Besides I am a risotto girl and I wanted the Risotto Fruitti Di Mare. My husband had the Filetto Di Manza.

We both got soups which is common with us. A good soup will trump a salad selection every time. I had the special of the day, Mushroom aka Funghi, a delicious earthy dream. My husband had the Brodo Di Pollastra, a very light chicken broth with tiny pasta. I loved his, he liked it but said it was a bit too salty (perhaps from the two heaping spoonfuls of fresh parmesan he added). The bread that went with was perfect, crusty with a soft yet dense middle. It is served with an olive oil, herb and parmesan dip sauce that is heavenly.

Then my husband had a small plate of rigatoni with meat sauce that precedes any meat based entree. The rigatoni was nicely al dente and the sauce was quite nice indeed. If you fall in love with it I believe they sell jars of it here as they do at some of the local upscale markets. I am not a huge meat sauce fan but this was very nice and James was quite fond of it too.

My Risotto Fruitti Di Mare was filled with seafood. There were two extra large gulf shrimp, two gigantic diver scallops, three fresh mussels and a ton of calamari. It had lovely notes of basil and garlic in a marinara type style rice. It was the perfect texture, creamy and rich. The seafood was top notch as well. James ate the shrimp because there was no way I was eating all of that.

His Filetto Di Manza was lovely, a quality filet with Andiamo zip sauce. It came with obviously homemade mashed potatoes and sauteed green beans. It was not huge but was perfect after soup and pasta. The steak was the correct doneness and had a good flavorful sear to it. James quite enjoyed it, but was really into my shrimp as well.

The service was so very friendly and attentive. This is a white tablecloth, elegant place. The waiter pulls your chair and puts a napkin on your lap kind of affair. Every note of service lives up to that atmosphere. The manager stops by to check on tables and is very warm and charming. You definitely feel cared for. A dropped fork is shortly followed by a replacement, tea and water glasses are kept full.

At the end of our lovely meal, my leftovers are wrapped in a flash and we are treated to a look at the dessert tray. Tempting, so very tempting but definitely not happening after Risotto. The Cannoli looked lovely, there were several cakes, Tiramisu and the like but neither one of us could fit another bite.

I highly recommend a July trip here, a real bargain. I would come back for a special occasion but this place is way out of my league for everyday dining. A small tip: dress nicely as you will feel more comfortable in dressy casual than short or t-shirts. My husband had on nice khakis and a button up and was appropriate for the crowd, the man in a beer t-shirt and wrinkled shorts looked quite awkward for the setting.