Pazzo, Red Bank

Red Bank, New Jersey is a fun place to go for dinner. It's a small town with a lot of restaurants, bars and boutiques in a four square block area. On nice nights all the restaurants have open air or outdoor dining and it's a great place to walk around afterwards to digest or grab an ice cream. We go through spurts of eating in Red Bank...lately we haven't really been. So it was nice to get back there the week of Alan's birthday with Lisa & Guy. And it was even better because we tried a new place, Pazzo.

Lisa & Guy had been there a bunch of times already - it was our first time. The restaurant opened a year ago, right on West Front Street. It's got parking in the next door garage. This is important - in the middle of summer on nice nights, finding street parking in Red Bank takes a miracle.

We all get appetizers and entrees. Lisa & Guy ordered the fried calamari and carpaccio topped with olive oil, arugula and Parmesan. I didn't try the carpaccio but the calamari was very good. Lightly breaded, big pieces and a nice, fresh, somewhat sweet marinara to dip. Alan had the Caesar salad that was just okay, lacking flavor. I had the Prince Island Mussels in garlic, shallots, white wine and herbs and served with a crostini. They were great - big, clean, flavorful and the broth was excellent. I dunked both the crostini and then resorted to spooning up the broth for a few extra tastes before letting the dish go.

For entrees, Lisa & Guy shared one of the evening's specials of monkfish, scallops and clams over pasta in a white sauce. Alan and I also had pasta dishes...his was the linguine with prosciutto and reminded us of a carbonara. He liked it - eating the entire serving. But don't judge, I ordered the penne ala vodka and not only ate everything on my plate but finished it before any of them were even halfway through their entrees. The pasta was fresh and the sauce creamy without being too heavy.

This is the type of place that will appeal to everyone. Super casual, big bar, outdoor seating and a traditional Italian menu with lots of flavor. We'll go back!