Last night, Kathryn and I had a late dinner at Battista’s Hole in the Wall, a long-standing Las Vegas institution located a block away from the Strip. We had walked by the place many times in the past, but this was the first time we ventured inside.
We made a reservation for 8:30 pm, and checked in around 8:20. Like many restaurants in Las Vegas right now, Battista’s is asking guests to wait outside for their tables. There’s a convenience store next door where some diners decided to get pre-dinner beers, giving the patio area a bit of a party atmosphere. We were seated promptly at 8:30.
Once inside, Battista’s gave off a vibe of yesteryear, with its dim lighting and wall covered in memorabilia. We were seated in a red leather booth in a quiet corner of a back room of the restaurant. I couldn’t help but think how a simple candle on the table would have brought the ambiance up a notch.
The menu consists of the usual Italian-American classics. I mention this because at least a few online reviewers seem to have been expecting a menu that would befit a six-table restaurant in a small Tuscan village. One of the peculiarities of the menu at Battista’s is that it’s all-inclusive. Each dinner includes soup or salad, garlic bread, a dessert coffee, and incredibly all-you-can-drink house wine. Kathryn ordered chicken alfredo. I ordered veal piccante, which apparently in misspelled veal piccata. We both ordered the house red wine.
The wine arrived right away in a glass carafe. It tasted like wine. It was neither memorable nor offensive, which is sort of what one expects in a house wine.
The salads arrived shortly thereafter. The two salads were identical twins, right down to the numbers of cherry tomatoes and black olives. At this point, my mind immediately thought of the old Hilltop Steak House in Saugus, Massachusetts. Hilltop served so many diners in a given day that its house salads were reportedly produced offsite. I wondered if the same was true at Battista’s.
About a half-hour after ordering, our main course arrived. The portions were generous, but like the wine, the food was good without being memorable. My veal may have been slightly overcooked, but it was certainly edible. I arrived quite hungry and finished my plate. Half of Kathryn’s chicken alfredo is still in our hotel room fridge.
Perhaps the most underwhelming part of the meal was the so-called cappuccino. If there was coffee in it, I couldn’t taste it. Kathryn had two words to describe it: Swiss Miss. That about sums it up.
We visited Battista’s Hole in the Wall with modest expectations, and they were met. The value given for the price was correct. I would recommend a visit for the ambiance and for the experience of a place that is a part of Las Vegas lore. If you want Italian-American classics at a place that’s more about the food, there are better choices not much farther from the Strip.
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