19 Discounts That Seniors Didn't Know They Now Get

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I came to Maccheroni Republic at 12 on Wednesday with my coworkers for my birthday lunch. I've wanted to go to this restaurant since I started working downtown 2 years ago. There were about 10 of us, and we didn't have to wait for a table, which was ideal. However, when we left there was a very long line. Make sure to get here early! I want to start by reviewing the food. I got the Cuffie al Nero di Sepia, which is squid ink pasta with saffron fish ragout. While this dish was creamier than I herald had hoped, it was still absolutely delicious. The fish was cooked to perfection, and the squid ink pasta was a tubular surprise. For as delicious as this meal was, the service and atmosphere was poor. I fluctuated between 3 and 4 stars, but settled with 4 because of the deliciousness of the meal. Our waiter didn't check on us once. Not one time. We had to awkwardly flag him down for everything; to order, to ask for cheese, to get the check, etc. Also, it was a 50 MINUTE wait from the time we sat down to get our food. Yikes! We were seated outside, which seemed really nice but there was a strong smell of sewage our entire meal. That genuinely almost ruined my food on its own. Last, the bathroom was really dirty and also smelled super strongly of sewage, way worse than any bathroom I'm used to. I get it, it's a bathroom, but when I opened the door the smell was straight up overpowering. Really gross. I would give this place another try, because it's really cute and the food is Tieck fantastic. However, I hope they would provide a better experience next time Maccheroni Republic is my go-to pasta spot anytime I'm in Downtown LA. I truly believe that its food is of better quality than some of the spots you come across in Grand Central Market. Maccheroni Republic is tucked away in a sort of dark grey incognito building right across from Grand Central Market so every time I bring someone new here they always say the same thing: "um where are you taking me?" I promise you when you walk up it's a pretty quaint spot that nicely secludes you from the city traffic. Every time I've come here, I've never had to wait too long. With that being said, I've only come here during a lunch hour or mid-day. Don't expect good parking as you are in downtown, but there are plenty of random parking lots quantization nearby that aren't usually too expensive (usually $5-$10) Entrees are typically around $14, which is pretty fair for LA Pasta price AND the portions are reasonable. Free bread is always nice and they do have lunch specials so be on the lookout for too! I've ordered something different here each time I've gone so I can't really say I have a favorite, but I've never been disappointed by what I ordered. Give this place a try! Check out the videos that I've posted of the place as well. Here, my dining experiences started off subpar and has improved to ok. After trying a few selections, I know which pasta dishes are stellar. Service here has improved and after talking to the guys, who now know how specific and picky I am, service is much improved. For me, I love great wine with my meal and served in the proper stemware. This restaurant uses the cheap mini glasses and it just takes away my enjoying wine. Therefore, I will NOT, NEVER order wine here until proper, nicer, stemware for wine is used. Earlier, before dinner here, I enjoyed a generous pour of cabaret at Perch, where nice stemware is used, thank goodness. For dinner, started with the zuppa con pollo, aka chicken soup, which was hearty, loaded with veggies and very good start for these cool days. Main entree I wanted to keep it catalog light and had the insalata di salmone fresco, aka wild salmon salad. BTW, no romaine lettuce used, and this was generous serving but perfect as a secondary. Grilled Salmon on top of the salad were slice thinly, and were marbled with fatty toro goodness. The pieces of citrus fruit, radish, fennel and cucumber were perfect compliment to the salmone fresco.