My wife and I and another middle-aged couple from New Orleans recently decided to dine at Biaggi's Ristorante Italiano. This is Bloomington's great eastside Italian Restaurant at the corner of GE Road and Veterans Parkway. What a remarkable evening! Although we didn't have reservations, we arrived at seven on a Friday night. The hostess cheerfully informed us of a 15-20 minute wait and gave us our beeper. There were lots of people waiting, but we were able to find a seat for the ladies at the large bar at the front of the restaurant.

The interior of the restaurant is well designed and although it gets noisy at times, the mix of tables and booths is just right. After a round of cocktails, we were informed by our vibrating beeper that our table was ready. I like the beeper idea, there's no PA announcing the names of people to hinder the atmosphere. And Biaggi's has a great atmosphere. It's probably not the place to go for a quiet, intimate dinner. But hey this is Italian! There is richly appointed woods, golden hues on the wall and ceilings, wood blinds, and a massive fireplace that divides the main dining room in half. There is also a separate dining room to the left of the main entrance that can seat quite a few people on a busy night.

We were seated in a booth in the main dining room appointed with cloth napkins and a tablecloth with white paper on top. The waiter assistant arrived with water and the breadbasket immediately after we had slid into our leather booth. Our waiter, a young college aged type, followed behind. He saw we had brought along our drinks so he began to show us how to mix up the Biaggi's butter for the basket of assorted Italian breads. A virgin olive oil is mixed with Parmesan cheese and a few cranks of black pepper on a bread plate. It is perfect for dipping the assortment of delicious breads into. He asked about appetizers and we went for the calamari (squid) and steamed clams. They arrived shortly thereafter piping hot and were delectable. Next we ordered the famous Chopped Chicken Salad. The salad contains three different kinds of lettuce, red onions, chopped chicken and a wonderful sweet sour dressing. The salad was enough for the four of us and was served family style. We ordered a good bottle of Italian red wine from the impressive wine list and settled on entrees of veal parmigiana, seafood alfredo, fresh mahi-mahi, and one of the nightly pasta specials. We asked our waiter to serve it family style. This is a great way to sample all of the dishes without having to scoop a taste from your plate to your wife or friends. The food arrived shortly after we had finished our salad. My, what a feast! Every portion was served on a huge platter with big spoons for serving. We dug in and found every dish to be scrumptious. Fresh ingredients, excellently cooked pasta, impressive flavors and textures, all perfectly prepared and presented. As we passed around each dish again our waiter returned to check on us and answered questions about ingredients of our entrees and explained how the chef prepares such delightful food. He was well informed, courteous, friendly, efficient and helpful. He also used a crumb scraper to clean up after we finished our dinner. Next was dessert! My wife and I love crème Brule and our friends love chocolate. Not to fear, Biaggi's has both and they were scrumptious and served with a delicious cup of Italian coffee, an espresso and two cappuccinos. Out total bill was $102 and that included a $28.00 bottle of wine. Our friends from New Orleans were impressed and gave Biaggi's 5 beans!

If you're searching for freshly prepared authentic Italian cuisine, with excellent service in a great atmosphere head for Biaggi's.