Portland restaurants have a habit of being much bigger inside than you expect, and Ribollita is no exception. I was surprised to see a second little dining room tucked around the corner from the hostess stand and kitchen. The decor is a little sparce, but the small spaces and low light create an intimate, cozy feel.
I started with the Heart of Romaine salad ($6.95), which is, as you can see, a heart of Romaine lettuce, topped with Gorgonzola, walnuts, diced bacon, and apple slices. It was dressed with a faint vinaigrette, which was fine, since the salad ingredients had so much punch on their own.
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My entree was hard to choose, because there are so many great sounding items on the menu. I was tempted by the Eggplant Rollatini and the Chicken Saltimbocca, but settled on the Roast Chicken Puttanesca ($13.95). I can always be swayed by Kalamata olives and capers.
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I also wanted to try this dish because of the homemade pappardelle noodles. I mean, you've got to order the homemade pasta in an Italian joint, right? And I really enjoyed them. They are thick, not overcooked, and help carry lots of sauce. The chicken in this dish seemed a little unnecessary; there was a lot of it and it seemed out of place. The portion was huge, making it a great bargain- I had more than half left over to take home.
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We all shared the tiramisu for dessert. Again, another Italian classic that had to be tried. I liked that they use chocolate mascarpone cheese and that it wasn't too sweet. The ladyfingers were nice and moist, thoroughly soaked with espresso.
So yeah, I liked Ribollita! I didn't loooooove Ribollita, but that certianly wasn't due to any failings on their part. I am glad to know where I can go to get solid and relatively inexpensive Italian food in town. But it doesn't make my 'hurry back to' list (man, I sound hard to please!).
![Ribollita on Urbanspoon](http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/logo/1181994/minilogo.gif)