Fritanga Latin Grill

FRITANGA LATIN GRILL

1702 W University Ave
Suite A2
Gainesville, FL 32603
352.371.4454

I was first turned onto Fritanga by my friends Andre and Jorge. Both are Cuban-American and both swore by Fritanga's food, which was a good enough recommendation for me. When you walk in, you are greeted by a wondeful aroma and colorful trinkets from Spanish-speaking countries all over the walls. The menu is on the wall, and after you order and pay at the register, you are given a number to take with you to your table and the food comes out within ten minutes, which is fast considering how fresh everything is.

Fritanga serves breakfast most days, but I haven't had that yet. Due to the nature of their menu, which includes a lot of sides, I have tried many different things there. My early favorite was the 10 oz. charbroiled churrasco skirt steak (pictured), which at $12.50 is far and away the most expensive thing on the menu, but is well worth it. Their ropa vieja sandwich is out of this world, and at $6.45 it's a steal. It's shredded beef cooked in a tomato sauce, pressed with provolone cheese on cuban bread. Though I've never had it, everyone I've been with who has gotten the Miami chicken sandwich ($6.35) has raved about it - it's chicken, pesto, tomato and provolone cheese. I also once had the vaca frita ($7.89), which is fried beef with green peppers and onions. It was tasty, but a little dry for my liking. Sandwiches can have very tasty fries added to them for 99 cents. Entrees come with two sides. My favorite is the yuca frita, 3 sticks of fried yuca which taste kind of like big french fries. Their Cuban toast - buttered and then pressed - is also delicious. (Both of these sides are in the photo above, along with the churrasco steak). The menu also has a section of "small bites" which includes empenadas ($1.60), croquettas ($1.60), Jamaican beef patties ($2.35), and arepas ($2.75). Ordering a few things from this section is another way to get a lot of different food from their menu for cheap (though everything is pretty cheap and very filling). I also once had a bite of their flan ($2.75), which was very good.

Food quality: 9/10 (27)
Service: 9/10 (22.5)
Ambiance: 9/10 (18)
Pricing: 10/10 (15)
Menu selection: 10/10 (10)

Composite score: 92.5

Alessandro Ristorante

ALESSANDRO RISTORANTE
4212 NW 16TH Blvd.
Gainesville, FL 32605
352.367.4510

I went to Alessandro on a Thursday night with my friends Kristen and Tara. The restaurant, located next to D'Lites on 43rd and 16th, was dimly-lit and set a nice atmosphere, probably better for a date or old friends catching up than a couple friends who just wanted some Italian food. There wasn't much if anything on the walls in the restaurant and at times it really felt like it was too dark. There were not many people in there, probably a function of the night and the time (almost 8 PM). Our hostess doubled as our waitress and immediately brought us water and a plate with olive oil and spices and told us our bread would be right out. A few minutes later, she brought out two loaves of fresh baked, crunchy bread, told us the specials, and took our order. Within 3 minutes our salads came out. It was a good-sized salad with an interesting, darker vinaigrette dressing. Our water glasses were never empty; as soon as they would get low, our waitress refilled them. It's also worth noting that the family at the table next to us, who had gotten a bottle of wine, also never had an empty glass, as the waitress would go over and refill their glasses.

Our food came within 20 minutes of our ordering. I ordered chicken parmigiana ($14.95); Kristen got ravioli al forno ($13.95) and Tara got penne alla vodka ($13.95). The portions were a good size, and we all finished everything but were comfortably full. My chicken was flavorful and juicy, and the breading was not too well done or crunchy but not too soft or mushy. The plate also wasn't overflowing with sauce; most places generally make this the case and I hate it as the sauce overpowers the taste of everything else. My only complaint was that despite the large amount of chicken, there was no side that came with the dish; I added a side of penne and marinara for $2 and it was satisfying; the penne was large and the sauce was delicious.

Food quality: 10/10 (30)
Service: 10/10 (25)
Ambiance: 9/10 (18)
Pricing: 8/10 (12)
Menu selection: 10/10 (10)

Composite score: 95

visit: http://www.alessandroristorante.us/