Nico & Vali, Plymouth

At work last week our team decided to order out at this little Italian Eatery in Plymouth. No one had been there before, but it looked enticing and you can't beat their prices. The menu is interesting and delicious; from the artichoke salad to an array of grilled paninis, to traditional pastas, and homemade pan pizzas. 


I decided to go with their Marinated Chicken Breast Panini with roasted red pepper, provolone cheese, and an aioli spread (a sauce made traditionally of garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, and egg) on ciabatta bread. I paired my half sandwich with Pasta E Fagioli soup, which is similar to a minestrone. By the way, the soup and 1/2 panini is only $5.95! Wendy on the other hand went with one of their vegetarian options: the Portabella Mushroom Panini with arugula, shaved parmesean, Italian dressing on ciabata bread paired with homemade chips for $6.95. For dessert...but of course...a canoli each! 


My panini was great, the flavors were amazing, the sauce was wonderful. My only complaint was that the bread was very hard and there wasn't enough of the sauce to soften the bread. Soup=YUM! 


Wendy's panini was amazing. She didn't have the same issues with the bread as I did; with the juices from the portabella and the Italian dressing it was just enough to give her the perfect bite each time. Chips, she noted, were a little less than the desired texture and crispiness. 


We both agreed that the canolis were not very fresh tasting or crispy... unfortunately dessert fell flat for us at Nico & Vali. 

Overall, this is an excellent little Italian Eatery and a great place to catch up with a friend for a tasty and affordable lunch in a delightful atmosphere! 

 Mangiare Felice!

And so it begins...

My friend Wendy and I have always found our commonality in food, dubbing ourselves food soul mates we have made it a point to eat, well, together. On a trip to Las Vegas a few years back, we revolved our entire trip around, not gambling, but dining…from Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill to a little café in the Wynn Hotel which we will always remember as the café that served us one of the best meals of our lives.

Wendy and I work together at a chiropractic office, which gives us many opportunities to talk about our favorite subject…food! Recently Wendy proposed an idea to me: what if we, once or twice a month, try a restaurant we have never tried before and write about our experience. Sort of like freelance food critics, which honestly was the calling we both never sought.

We are lucky enough to live in the metro Detroit area, abundant with some of the most incredible and unique restaurants in the country. We will be trying it all from 5 star restaurants like Iridescence in Detroit’s Motor City Casino to dives, diners, and of course Coney Islands. Ah, I couldn’t imagine my life without Coney dogs... If you haven’t had one, come to Michigan, you won’t be disappointed.

Terrace Point Cafe, Las Vegas

One of the [best] perks of our jobs is that our bosses, who enjoy fine dining, get the staff together and take them out to build the team, so to speak. We actually have one scheduled for this weekend at sophisticated pizza joint called Mani Osteria in Ann Arbor.

We'll let you know what we thought!

Happy eating!
 -g