"Last weekend, my daughter and I decided to try Galleria based on positive reviews from other diners. Upon arrival, we were warmly greeted and seated at a quiet table. We quickly ordered drinks and an appetizer of fried calamari. I requested a glass of Chardonnay, which I assume was the house Chardonnay, though I'm not sure of the producer. It had a rather harsh, slightly sour taste. I didn’t bring it up to the waiter, but I struggled to finish half of the $13.50 glass during our meal.
When the waiter brought our appetizers, he also took our dinner orders. I only realized later, after hearing him with other patrons, that there was a special menu. My daughter chose the rigatoni with vodka sauce, and I went for the gnocchi with veal ragu. When our entrees arrived, my gnocchi was practically swimming in what seemed like a watered-down tomato sauce. It tasted a lot like condensed Campbell's tomato soup, lacking flavor, and the veal pieces were tough. I was quite disappointed with my dish. My daughter said her meal was okay, but it was just pasta with vodka sauce—hard to mess up.
Fifteen minutes later, the waiter checked on us and noticed that I wasn't enjoying my meal. He was very insistent that I shouldn't leave hungry and offered to replace my dish without charging for the gnocchi. After considering it, I opted for a simple chicken parmesan. When it arrived, it was decent but had a very basic tomato flavor. Overall, the meal was just average. The fried calamari was crispy and tasty, especially with a squeeze of lemon, though the marinara dipping sauce was too salty.
Having traveled throughout the Northeast, the Atlantic coast, and even Italy, I felt that this restaurant didn’t quite live up to expectations. Additionally, I was surprised to find that they didn’t serve a salad with the meals. Typically, a small salad is included in higher-end Italian restaurants, and I didn’t anticipate having to pay an extra $12 for a small salad between courses. I assumed it would be included.
In the end, I appreciated the waiter’s effort to offer me a second meal, which is why I'm giving this place three stars instead of two. However, I wouldn't recommend Galleria."
