Critic's Review
Franco and Vinny's opens at 4pm, so on a day where I was running a few hours late I stopped in for a very late lunch. It was about 4:20pm, and there wasn't a soul in the restaurant.
Franco and Vinny's is one of the leftover Fort Lauderdale Establishments; a place that's been around for 43 years. Based on the decor, I'd say that it was last redecorated in the early 1980's. Mirrors galore, with a big fish tank up front. They have a small bar up front, partially separated from the dining room.
A server took my beverage order right away.
Something I haven't seen in 25 years is crushed ice; It didn't have much impact one way or the other. "Extra lemon" yielded me 1 extra wedge. No Splenda available.
Specials are on the table, so you don't have to ask or ask the prices of 5 items that sound interesting.
I almost bit on the chicken scarpariello, but the recipe didn't intrigue me. Pepperoncini is a half-assed replacement for vinegar peppers and I didn't want to take a chance. Plus they spelled it wrong (There's no such thing as Pepperoncino) which was a concern. Besides, I wanted to try something that was more mainstream Italian. I ordered the Veal Parmesan at $21.
Bread and butter is included. No olive oil at Franco and Vinny's.
The bread was fresh, as it usually is 20 minutes after opening. I didn't care for it. It was 80% crust. I'm not eating bread anyway. Entrees come with a house salad with house dressing. No choices are offered.
Memories of my childhood. Iceberg lettuce, this is the salad you got in 1980; a slice of tomato and carrots drowned in Italian dressing. Good dressing, although it's nice to get a choice.
Music is good; Mellencamp, Queen and Foreigner's "Hot Blooded" filled the air. One bonus is that the help dines between 4 and 5, so my server was eating at a nearby table.
As I was finishing the salad, the entree was delivered.
Looked like something you might get at a pizza shack. No freshly grated cheese; just table sawdust. For this price at a place like this, you should get more for $21. I didn't think the veal was very good; when you saute seasoned veal in garlic and olive oil it smells so good you can't believe it; but this just seemed boring and benign. This could have been a pork cutlet. Bland sauce, nothing sweet or garlicky going on. There was simply nothing that elevated this above basic fuel.
I ate half of it and took the rest home; maybe I'll try it with a better sauce and more cheese. Or maybe I'll toss it.
Conclusion
When you go to Franco and Vinny's, you understand why people who have lived their lives in Fort Lauderdale are so impressed with the pedestrian food served on Las Olas. Comparatively, it's much more interesting than what was available 20 years ago.
The problem with this place is that it's pizzeria quality food being served at restaurant prices. What was "good enough" 20 years ago; when people were just happy to be out of the house, isn't good enough today. File this place with Tedesco's and Lester's; where legendary, antiquated and undistinguished are synonymous.
Review 7/17/11
You'd think a place named "Pizza Shack" would be a little pizza place where you can get slices and maybe some garlic knots. And if it were priced that way, they'd have trouble finding tables for everyone. But the problem here is that when you have a place that "sounds" like a pizzeria but is priced like a fine Italian restaurant, you're going to have trouble attracting the right kind of tourists.
Franco and Vinny's has been around long enough to have a steady flow of regulars, so I'm not sure that they care too much about branding. The kind of people who come here are the kind that take 2 spots by straddling the line in a small lot; there were 3 cars taking 2 spots on my last visit. They have a small bar up front where there are always regulars eating bar pies; they don't have cute blonde bartenders here; you're likely to get Franco himself pushing his latest wine find.
I was just doing a takeout pizza, and it was just coming out of the oven when I got there.
I could tell by looking at it that I wouldn't be eating the crust on this. Also, they didn't cut it along the half-sausage line, which is kind of careless. Usually when someone orders a half item it's because one person wants it and the other doesn't; the way they cut it 5 of the slices had sausage on them.
The crust on this pie was a problem as suspected; it was too thick and chewy for me. The slices didn't fold well, NY Style. They used good sausage and cheese and there was enough of both; but the crust keeps this from being more than a 2.5 star pie.
