Switching gears, Quick Bites received a recent press release about Pastini Pastaria's new $6 lunch in the Old Mill and just had to check it out. We found a nice selection of pasta dishes and settled on a succulent and appropriately, though certainly not fully, proportioned plate of linguini noodles that came with a side of cream of mushroom soup. Add in a couple of nibbles of their complimentary bread with olive oil and balsamic, and it made for about as much lunch as you could possibly ask for at the price.
Also in the Old Mill this month, Greg's Grill and Red Robin are donating 15 percent of sales on Wed. Dec. 16 and Thurs. Dec. 17 to Healthy Beginnings, a program that works to make sure that all young children are healthy and ready to learn by the time that they enter kindergarten. If you're shopping is centered on the north end of town, Johnny Carino's is taking the same pledge.
Speaking of Johnny Carino's, the Italian chain's main competitor, Olive Garden, is putting the final touches on its Bend restaurant, located predictably within eyesight of its competitor in the so-called Golden Triangle. Word has it that the OG will be opening its doors sometime in mid-January. Time to start fasting so you can cash in on those breadsticks and all-you-can eat salad. Meantime, we can only guess that their staff has been sequestered to a secluded Italian villa to learn the secrets of Old World cuisine masters like Chef Boyardee.
