Come savor a delightful meal at Taverna Italian Restaurant. Come experience their upscale surrounding. They are open at night all week. You can get there by bicycle and public transit. They are found in an area packed with parks, restaurants and stores.
I have been eating at Taverna for 29 years. I worked as a prep cook there in school. The restaurant changed owners this fall. I was hoping it would not happen, but the restaurant's high standards have fallen off. I chose the beef torpedo and spaghetti twice in the last two weeks, hoping that last week was just an aberration, but it was not. The beef torpedo when prepared under the supervision of Wally and Roberto featured a torpedo bun toasted to the perfect crispness, tender and juicy tasty beef roast, and a dipping sauce which was perfect- flavourful and not too thick or thin. The current version consists of as limp bun, a watery dipping sauce and stringy tasteless beef. You can get this mundane fare at any greasy spoon. The meat sauce, which was a restaurant mainstain, was flavourless, cloudy, colourless and thin. Again, when Wally and Roberto were in charge, it was thick, robust, and flavourful. The spaghetti itself resembled something from a Campbell's chicken noodle soup can, being way overcooked.
I can only imagine what has happened to the more complex dishes.
I think the owner should bring Wally and Roberto back for an adjustment on the cooking methods.
The Taverna for me was like a home away from home. I now feel homeless.
