She Says: Torino North – Nutley, N.J.
Yesterday, Mark emailed me and asked me on a spontaneous date! A planned date is nice because it’s something to look forward to, but a spontaneous date is even more fun because it adds a little thrill to what would have been a regular old night. Also, when you’ve been dating for nine years, it’s nice to get asked out every once in awhile.
We decided to use a gift certificate to Torino North, an Italian Bistro, in Nutley.
We went right after I finished running, so I was pretty hungry. I greatly appreciated the bruschetta that was promptly brought to our table. Bruschetta can be bland and soggy if prepared poorly, but this was on nice crunchy Italian bread and had a perfect balance of garlic and balsamic vinegar.
We also had some wine and warm, crusty bread.
We shared Eggplant Lasagna, which was really enjoyable. The eggplant was not breaded or noticeably fried and I dont’t recall any pasta noodles in there. It was quite delicious and I rather enjoyed dunking my warm, crusty bread right into the tomato sauce. This was an appetizer, but could definitely be a meal.
For dinner, I went the soup and salad route. I chose Minestrone Soup and Tri Color Salad with Gorgonzola Vinaigrette and apples.
Although Minestrone Soup is something I can make myself, I like to try different varieties. Mark caught me and my soup!
I enjoyed the nice, fresh, crisp veggies. Mushy soup veggies are the worst, right?
The idea of the Tri Color Salad was good. The flavors worked well together and you can’t go wrong with gorgonzola and apples. I would have preferred about 50% less dressing. I was actually surprised that it was so cheesy because it was described as a vinaigrette. The salad wasn’t soggy, but it was super rich and creamy. I prefer less substantial dressings because otherwise I feel the natural tastes of the salad get lost.
Mark ordered a duck dish with raisins, polenta and broccoli rabe.
He ate the whole thing except for some of the broccoli rabe and polenta that ended up in my plate! The polenta was fantastic! It was crusty on the outside, but soft and buttery on the inside. I stole a few bits and ate it with my soup.
I was quite stuffed, but wanted something sweet and cold. Hmmmmm. What could that be?
TCBY! I had a cup of Pistachio with Rainbow JIMMIES! So pretty! We walked and talked while I enjoyed my sweet treat. Fun was had by all!
Spontaneous Dates are Yum-O!
May 9th, 2009 at 11:36 am
How sweet! You guys are a cute couple
May 9th, 2009 at 11:48 am
AWH, too cute! And eggplant lasagna looks great!
May 9th, 2009 at 11:50 am
fantastic night! you guys are quite the couple
May 9th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
What a great date! You guys are so cute!!
May 9th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Looks like fun!
May 9th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
Awww…how cute. Your yogurt is adorable.
May 9th, 2009 at 12:33 pm
what a great date night! wish my boy were here so i could do the same!!!
May 9th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
What a fun date night! You guys are adorable!!
May 9th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
How cute are you two!!
Stupid question, but what are those on the plate with the bruschetta? Olives?
May 9th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
You and Mark are so adorable! Glad you had such a fun spur-of-the-moment date night!
May 9th, 2009 at 2:17 pm
MaryBe: Yes, they are olives, which I don’t like. Mark ate them though.
May 9th, 2009 at 2:40 pm
You two look like such a cute pair, and I really like the spontaneous dates …even now that we’re an old married couple. : – )
May 9th, 2009 at 3:01 pm
looked like a fun date! you guys are a stunning couple!
May 9th, 2009 at 4:47 pm
what a delicious date! That lasagna looks amazing and you can’t go wrong with fro-yo
You make such a cute couple. I am glad you had a good time.
May 9th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
what a gorgeous date you had! cheesy aubergine/eggplant is the best.
May 9th, 2009 at 4:56 pm
You two are so cute it makes me gag. Or just smile. But I sound tougher the other way.
May 9th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
looks like a fab date!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! love hearing HP stories!
May 9th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
(i wrote H+M stories but thought that looked, um, funny)
May 9th, 2009 at 9:23 pm
Yay date night! Spontaneous dates are definitely the most fun. 10 points for Mark!
That is so crazy that the eggplant lasagna was an appetizer! It looks really good, though
And I have to tell you that almost every time I go to an Italian place near my family’s house in AZ, I always get the minestrone soup + tricolore salad combo! It’s awesome!
Love your TCBY treat! Although I don’t know who this Jimmy person is. Here in the Midwest, we call those rainbow sprinkles. And don’t you forget it, missy.
May 9th, 2009 at 9:45 pm
awwww, spontaneous date
that bruschetta does look perfect. and i love that you finished the meal with rainbow jimmies — that’s the best way.
for the 10 millionth time, you guys look so sweet together.
May 10th, 2009 at 8:03 am
How fun! Love the spontaneous date
May 10th, 2009 at 8:06 am
Awww you all are so cute! What a great night out and all the food looks amazing! And I totally get the date thing, which is why we have date nights too! After um, (quick counts on fingers) 12 years together (I think?! I so don’t keep track) dates are fun and needed.
May 10th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
Minestrone is one of my favorite soups and foods in general. do you pronounce the e at the end?
Looks like a fun night, and a very cute pic of you two!
May 10th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
This is VERY romantic and sweet, Heaths.
May 11th, 2009 at 7:55 pm
[...] work I couldn’t make dinner fast enough. I had leftover soup from Friday night, but I added kidney beans for some extra fiber, leftover corn on the cob and sweet potatoes with [...]
May 14th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Sounds like a really fun night. I always enjoy a really good minestrone soup