Gesher Project: Rustico

Rustico Resturant
1125 Lindero Canyon Road
Westlake Village, CA 91362

http://www.tuscany-restaurant.com/rustico/
818.889.0191

Theme/Culture = Italian

CATEGORY	RATING (OUT OF 30)	COMMENTS/REVIEW	OTHER/NOTES
FOOD	29	Rustico is an Italian restaurant located in a strip mall in Westlake Village, CA with absolutely delicious food. When you first sit down at your table, your waiter brings you complimentary bruschetta on toasted bread along with a basket of a number of delicious, hot breads. I enjoyed a delicious Cesar salad to start and, being the fish fan that I am, chose to indulge in the delicious sea bass (served as a whole fish). The sea bass was served with spagetti tossed in a olive oil and garlic sauce. On another occasion where I have been to Rustico with my family members, they have enjoyed the Sandabb Fillet and the crusted Halibut. One thing to note, however, is that I presentation is not Rustico's speciality (the food makes up for that, however).
DÉCOR	23	To me, the decor at Rustico is mediocre. The restaurant almost appears out of place with its wierd location in a strip mall. And while once you are inside you do feel as if you are enjoying delicious italian food, they tables are a bit close together and its quite a tightly packed restaurant Additionally, due to the fact that the kitchen lies directly up against the dining room, it can sometimes be very noisy with the upwards of 10-15 chefs speaking to one another.
SERVICE	26	The service at Rustico is great. Your water glass is never empty, and you are always offered more bread. Being that it is a fancy restaurant, the waters are dressed in slacks, dress shirts, and ties, and serve the meals very professionally (always with a napkin on the forearm, etc). The service of the restaurant essentially ties into its Italian formality - i.e. when one orders a glass of wine, instead of bringing you the full glass, your waiter will offer you a small sample to make sure you enjoy it. There is a very large staff and you never need to worry about your needs being met.
COST	25	The cost is high, but not ridiculous or unreasonable. To be frank, it is a relatively nice restaurant and at the end of the day, nice restaurants simply charge more. Most entrees run from the mid $20 range to the low $40 range. You can get out of there, at around $50 a person. That said, however, if one ends up adding on a salad, starter, full glass of wine, and dessert, the price can easily jump to over $75 per person. The price at Rustico is essentially what you make of it.