Just Fabulous, Darlings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                    Ever since the two of us moved out here to Bay Ridge--coming up on a year, very soon, girls!!!!!-- we have been hearing how  Gino's, the Italian eatery on Fifth Avenue and 74th Street is the place to go!  It has been recommended to us so often!  It has been compared to going to a celebrity's place!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                     I have been trying to get my Monsieur to it for months!  But nothing seems to work out!  This time, I was off Saturday (which I had damn well better make the most of!!!!) and Monsieur had to go into the city for a class (to fulfill a late requirement!!!!) so I was on my own, and decided to partake!

                                     I walked in, near lunch time, and wasn't sure where I was.  When one enters, the first thing seen is a very high end pizza parlor, where that and a lot of take out orders are served up. I spotted, almost surreptitiously, a maitre d  podium, and went to it.  The hostess came, and we went into the back, which is the bulk of the restaurant, the size of which cannot be imagined from just looking at it from the outside.  "It seems bigger on the inside than out!"  "Everyone says that," she said, and smiled.

                                      Within several minutes, the most delicious young man approached me with a menu and water.  I wondered if he was on the menu!  I should wish!!!!!!!! I ordered something simple and standard--a glass (really two! Hey, I wasn't working!!!!) of Merlot, an order of Rigatoni Bolognese, and coffee, with Black and White Chocolate Mousse for desert.  I was filled, but not bloated.  The sauce was flavorful, and the quality was of such a high grade it was apparent things are done on premises!!!!!!!!!!

                                         This was matched by the atmosphere, with its light brown tones, and subdued lighting making for a very romantic experience--even in midday!!!!!  Something else I noticed--when I came in and sat down, I was the only one in the place!  Within fifteen minutes, patrons came in, and the place was packed!!!!!!!!!!!!  Just like that!!!!!!!!  Gino's is unquestionably a hot destination spot, the kind of place people go to regularly when they want to indulge in an Italian lunch; I bet some of the diners there do this every Saturday!!!!!  Good for them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                          And good for Gino's, which has been going strong, since back in 1964, when I REALLY was (yes, REALLY!!!!!!) still a virgin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  What a step up from Vesuvio on Third, which may have been there since 1953, but which we are still afraid to go back to, ever since I found out, in late December 2012, they had earned a grade of "C!!!!!!!!"  Of course, now they have upped it to an "A," but was it really earned, or did someone pay something to someone else????????  One can't be sure, and after my last visit there, which resulted in a bit of stomach trouble,. I bemoaned the loss of a key Italian spot in Bay Ridge!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                           But not to fear--one has been found.  Sure, it's a walk to Fifth Avenue, but for Gino's it is worth it!!!!!!!!!  Even if you don't live nearby, like us, this is a place to visit.  Cheaper than those tourist traps on Mulberry Street!!!!!!!!!!   And just as high grade!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                            Abundanza, darlings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!