XL Food & Drink: On the side

Mandola's Italian Market

Some aspects of the self-serve dining cause misgivings

I adore the new Mandola's Italian Market. The bakery case is filled with tempting confections (love those cannoli and cookies). The deli counter offers an enticing selection of meats and cheeses. And the grocery shelves are filled with reasonably priced items that keep leaping off the shelves into my basket.

The self-serve dining portion of the market — clearly a popular destination in North Central Austin's The Triangle — leaves me with a mixed reaction.

Mark Matson
FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN

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Mandola's is part grocery store, part self-serve Italian restaurant.

Mark Matson
FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN

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Lemon tarts, bottom, gelato, left, cannoli and more stock the dessert cases.

Mark Matson
FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN

(enlarge photo)

The ravioli del giorno is filled with ricotta cheese and sauced with butter and herbs.

Mark Matson
FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN

(enlarge photo)

Mandola's is co-owned by Damian Mandola (co-founder of Carabbas' Italian Grill), right, and his son, Damian Jr.

Mandola's Italian Market.

• 4700 W. Guadalupe St., No. 12. 419-9700.
• Rating: Forks up.
• Price: Moderate.

Take the Sicilian tomato salad ($6): It brought together cherry tomatoes, oregano, sliced red onions and black olives in vinaigrette mounded over a slice of grilled bread and covered with shredded ricotta salata. It was a delicious, hearty salad, but too large to enjoy before an entrée without sharing.

That's one of my complaints about Mandola's: No half-portions or small versions of the salads are offered, which makes it expensive for one person to have salad and pasta, especially for lunch.

The ravioli del giorno ($10) delivered delightful pasta filled with ricotta cheese and sauced with butter, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. The tagliatelle Bolognese ($12), on the other hand, was average at best — a relatively small portion of overcooked noodles covered with a too-sweet meat sauce.

The margherita pizza ($12 for the large size) was a rectangular pie topped with tomato sauce, dollops of fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. It was delicious, although the crisp edges of the crust gave way to soft, chewy dough in the center (an inconsistency I didn't find in the half-size version on an earlier visit).

Ultimately, though, expense is an issue that would keep me from driving frequently across town to Mandola's. One salad, two pastas, two small desserts and two nonalcoholic drinks can top $40, making it an expensive place for a self-serve restaurant.

But that didn't seem to bother anyone else. The place was amazingly busy, with a consistent line from 7:30 p.m. when we arrived to 8:45, when we left. Clearly the crowd favors it, even if the critic has misgivings.