November 2009 / vol. 6 issue 3
| Russo's is located at the Southeast corner of 75 and Campbell. Photo courtesy of brady spenrath |
The Menu
This month: Russo's New York Coal-Fired Italian Kitchen
Good atmosphere, quality ingredients, homemade-style pizza and pasta, a convenient location, and free delivery — what more could one want from Russo’s New York Coal-fired Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar? Well, for one, a shorter name would be great. After all, I am working with a word limit here. For college students, lower prices would be nice. But, overall, with some of the freshest flavors so close to campus, it’s a great value.
Russo’s is a small chain that, despite its name, started in Houston. Its Richardson location opened earlier this year at the southeast corner of I-75 and Campbell in my new favorite shopping center, the one with Boudreaux’s Cajun, Panera Bread, Jimmy John’s Sandwiches, and Twisted Root Burger Co.
Russo’s provides a mixed atmosphere. It’s nice, but not too fancy; casual, but not quite “come as you are”; fast, but not fast-food. If you go for lunch, someone will usually ask where you would like to sit and deliver your menus, but you order at the front counter when you’re ready, and your service is limited to drink refills and bussing.
In the evenings, they switch to waiter-style service and take your order at your table. At least, I think that’s how it works — it feels a little undecided, but it works either way, so I’m not complaining. What I can definitely tell you is that it is clean and attractive inside, with the coal oven in view and plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. You can dress as casually or as nicely as you’d like; jeans or shorts are fine, but you may feel out of place in sweats or workout clothes.
Of course, with so many Italian restaurants out there, the real measure of the restaurant is its food and its value. Russo’s does a great job with the food and decently with the value. For both, you can’t go wrong with a calzone or pasta. The calzones are huge and loaded with vegetables, meats, and mozzarella. You can order a custom one for $10.95 with two toppings of your choice, but for a dollar less, you can just go with the Stromboli Calzone which has delicious pepperoni and sausage, mushrooms, black olives, bell peppers, and mozzarella stuffed inside and marinara sauce on the side.
The pasta is tender and homemade-looking and can come as familiar or unique as you’d like it, from traditional spaghetti with meatballs to Linguini Nero (squid ink pasta with king crab meat, shrimp, calamari, and reggiano cream sauce). The Gemelli Carbonara, for example, comes with prosciutto, chicken, and onions on a bed of twisted pasta complete with a creamy romano sauce.
It’s a well-balanced combination of meat, pasta, and sauce served in a portion that’s large for $9.95 — it could easily make two meals for most appetites. It’s such a great dish that I can’t wait to go back and try more of Russo’s pastas. The other pasta dishes are a little more expensive — around $10 or $15 — but they also have soups, salads, and fire-roasted flatbread sandwiches for less.
I recommend that you go between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. for the lunch specials. Those items are either cheaper than their menu counterparts or unique specials that you can’t order any other time. Either way, you’re getting a full-sized meal for a better price, plus a generous amount of salad to start things off.
Russo’s Caesar salad has a thicker, creamier dressing than any I’ve had before (which I say as a big fan of Caesar salads) and has become one of my favorites. I’ve tried the Veal Parmesan and the Stuffed Peppers from the lunch special menu. Both were tasty, filling, and only about $10.
The veal was a quality cut served fork-tender on a bed of spaghetti and meat sauce. The stuffed peppers were unique and tasty enough on their own, stuffed with sausage and topped with tomato sauce, but also came with a side of pesto pasta.
As highly as I recommend the rest of Russo’s food, I hesitate to recommend the pizza. Don’t get me wrong — it’s some of the best-tasting pizza I’ve had in the Dal-Rich area, and Russo’s has some unusual combinations (prosciutto and egg, anyone?) with top-notch ingredients, and excellent New York or Neapolitan style crusts, all cooked to perfection in their brick oven, but it’s a little expensive for the amount.
They have both small and large pizzas (though the Neapolitan style only comes in small), which are supposed to serve 1-2 or 2-4 people, respectively. The prices depend on the toppings you get, but most of their combinations are around $16 for a small and around $20 for a large. I tried a small and easily ate it by myself. Yes, they are excellent pizzas with the finest ingredients, but there are simply better values around.
All in all, Russo’s is a perfect setting for those days you’re craving something nicer than McDonald’s but don’t want to pay ridiculous prices. I recommend the lunch specials or Happy Hour from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. for a slightly better deal.
It’s a good place for a date, with quality food for a fair price, but it also offers free delivery to a three mile radius (which includes UTD!) for any order over $10, which makes it the highest quality delivery place I’ve found around (and believe me, I’ve looked). Sure, it’s not perfect for a college budget, but with large portions, fresh ingredients, and unique recipes, it’s not unfairly expensive either. 
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