| Food | * * |
| Service | * |
| Ambience | * |
| Value | 4.5 |
| Cost | $ $ |
| Dish | Price |
Value | Rating | |
| Veal Parmigiana Dinner | $14.95 |
* * * | * * | |
| Ravioli | 8.95 |
* * | * * 1/2 | |
| Spaghetti | 7.95 |
* * | * * |
Italiantown in San Diego pops out of nowhere; suddenly there's a (small) plethora of restaurants. Filipi's has been there for years, though outwardly it appears to be a bit of a hole-in-the-wall. The entryway is through the storefront. There are jars upon jars of pickled vegetables, oils, boxes of pasta, and cans of artichoke hearts and capers. The "Wait to Be Seated" sign is at the end of a narrow store aisle, which makes for an awkward entry when your group is large and say, other people want to get out!
The dining area is not particularly boldly decorated; in fact, the endless rows of empty Chianti bottles swinging from the ceiling are a bit on the eerie side. The menu is a bit limited, with some semblance of family meals and also a pizza menu, though one is left unclear about how much a pizza serves. Is it personal or enough for 4 plus? A couple of people opt to share a pizza, but most go with ravioli or spaghetti. I decide to splurge with the veal parmigiana meal, which includes soup, salad, garlic bread, and ravioli. The garlic bread comes first, but is more of a French bread pizza, which had more cheese and tomato sauce than actual garlic. The bleu cheese dressing on the salad was actually oil and vinegar, with a little roquefort sprinkled in. The soup was a simple minestrone, which was a bit watery. However, the important part, the veal, was delicious, and coated with a not-too-stringy mozzarella. Unfortunately, I felt like I was back at an Olive Garden chain restaurant, being inundated with tomato sauce. Lots of tomato sauce does not make you inherently Italian, hokay?
I thought that Filipi's was a little on the expensive side, but in terms of San Diego restaurant landmarks, it really hit the spot and was an enjoyable night out.