Rustica review

            Rustica introduces itself as home to “Rustic European Cuisine,” citing influences from France, Italy and Spain.  Open only for dinner and located in the Kalamazoo Mall, the small restaurant certainly displays décor relevant to these areas.  The dining area is set up to exude a sense of intimacy, with low lighting, beige walls, and candles on every table.  Quiet, instrumental music plays in the background, making it necessary to talk in hushed voices so as not to be over heard by the next couple sitting only about a foot away. 

The atmosphere is somewhat disrupted by the close quarters in which the tables are squeezed.  It could be due to the large kitchen area that takes up about half of the square-feet.  While it is enticing to be able to watch your food being prepared, it is slightly awkward to be stared at while you eat by the chefs who don’t have anything better to do.  A random bar in the back further confuses the intimate setting.

Generally, Rustica’s fourteen tables are packed, and as they do not take reservations it would be wise to participate in their call-ahead policy, or arrive promptly at 5 pm when they open.  The wait staff is helpful and knowledgeable, especially with regards to the wine list that covers the entire reverse the menu.  The clientele consists primarily of middle-aged, upper-middle class regulars, who the owner sat with in turn, chatting about business and family.  It seemed that these were guests of honor and everyone else were simply guests.  The wait staff also seemed to follow this mantra, why waste time at a table when you know you will get better tips at another?

The menu at Rustica is quite limited, with a number of appetizers but only four pasta dishes and eight main courses.  Appetizers range from about $6, for a bowl of chicken soup, to $13 for the Prince Edward Island Mussels.  The mussels were served in a large crockery dish and are numerous enough to make the price tag seem reasonable.  Each mussel was soft and the sauce that came with it was not enough to overpower the unique taste of the product itself.  Several of them even smelled like the ocean, a sign of their freshness. 

Main courses at Rustica range from $17, for one of the four vegetarian pasta dishes, to $22 for the Seared Salmon and Diver Scallop.  The salmon dish came on a large bed of cannellini beans and a tomato-based sauce.  The salmon was well executed, with a bit of a crunch on the outside and softness on the inside, but the overall flavor was not satisfying.  The whole thing tasted like salt, with no punch of sweetness in the salmon to counter balance.  The amount of beans provided made it seem more like a chili than a fish dish, and it became difficult to stomach all of the starch towards the end.  The scallop that the salmon was paired with had the texture of a big gummy candy and had very little taste, as though it was unseasoned.

One of their well-known dishes, the Grilled Duck Breast, was slightly better.  The duck itself was a bit stringy but full of flavorful fat.  The duck was paired with a helping of barley with pomegranate seeds intermingled.  The pomegranates provided both a pleasing visual contrast and also a burst of freshness to the otherwise heavy meal. 

In terms of price, the desserts are a little more manageable, the majority of them running about $6.  The red velvet cake was presented in a very charming manner, round with little dots of chocolate and vanilla icing on top.  Unfortunately, the icing turned out to be very high in oil content and the cake very low in moisture.  The only saving grace of this dessert were the warm preserved plums that, when eaten with a bite of cake, added the moisture necessary to swallow it down.  A better choice would be the Tiramisu, which had several towering layers of espresso soaked ladyfingers and Kahlua mousse.  The alcohol flavor definitely made a strong appearance, but this could perhaps be positive for those diners under 21. 

The best dessert, and possibly the best dish on the whole menu, is the Callebaut Chocolate Brownie.  Served with a scoop of the “gelato of the day,” the brownie is served warm and presumably only half cooked.  It is more of a half-pudding, half-brownie, with a sweet chocolate ganache seeping into the fresh brownie.  This is a must have dish at Rustica and not one likely to be shared once it’s tasted. 

Overall, this is not a place for college students who are looking for a good deal.  A meal for two can easily run about $80, including tip, and the quality is not enough to justify the expense.  Perhaps paired with one of Rustica’s 180 wine choices, the entrees would take on a new meaning and the experience would have greater depth, but that time is not now.  Kalamazoo College students would be better off going to Olive Garden, filling up on breadsticks and salad and talking loudly for under $20.

*There are pictures to come, I promise!*