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Sunday, 25 August 2013

Old Spaghetti Factory

Just like how my family visits COWS Ice Cream every time we're in Whistler, the Old Spaghetti Factory has become a routine of ours as well. The portions are large enough so the hunger will stay away until dinnertime and the prices are very reasonable considering the tourist-y location.

All entrees come with a starter of either minestrone soup or garden salad and end with a scoop (or maybe two) of ice cream and a choice of coffee or tea. Look for the "It's all included" sign on the menu. For $12 to $15, one can have a complete meal at a convenient location in the heart of the Whistler Village Stroll. My aunt hails this restaurant as the best value in all of Whistler, she sometimes coming for both lunch and dinner.

Fresh Loaf of Sourdough Bread

Shortly after being seated, the waiter or waitress will bring a small loaf of sourdough bread for you to nibble on as you read the menu. Warning: This bread is highly addictive and dangerous for those trying to avoid carbohydrates. It's impossible to stop stuffing this soft, warm bread into your mouth. They give free refills of this bread too! Consider sharing one plate of pasta if self control is a difficulty. Refined carb overload galore! The whipped butter is rather tasteless though. Whipped to the point of being like...air. Fresh bread tastes good enough by itself, no need to add unnecessary fats.

Garden Salad with Sesame Dressing

My parents and I ordered two pastas to share amongst the three of us. It was just the right amount of food.

Seafood Fettuccine Alfredo
The first pasta was the Seafood Fettuccine Alfredo.There were plenty of small scallops and shrimp, but that's as 'fancy' as the seafood gets. Then again, this large serving of pasta only cost $14.25. I enjoyed the thick al dente fettuccine noodles. The alfredo sauce is very traditional, not much to it rather than cream and butter. But it got a bit too heavy near the end and I saw the butter start to separate and rise to the top. Definitely save this dish for a 'cheat day'.

The second pasta we shared was the Spaghetti with Spicy Meat Sauce. The spice was different from the type of spiciness we had anticipated; it was more herb-y... Not very special but did the job. 

My brother ordered the Chicken Parmigiana and it was a really large portion for $14.95. A large breaded chicken cutlet with a portion of speghetti with tomato sauce. Two people with a smaller appetite than a growing teenage boy can share this and still be full. However, I can't speak for the taste as I didn't try this dish. 

We all ended our filling lunch off with a cup of coffee or tea and some spumoni ice cream, which is Old Spaghetti Factory's version of Neapolitan ice cream but with pistachio, chocolate, and vanilla. The pistachio doesn't have much flavour, so don't expect to get some fancy expensive gelato. Whoever scooped our ice cream this time was very generous as we got two large scoops in each cup, yay! 

We made our visit on a Sunday afternoon during lunchtime. I made a reservation in the morning before heading out to the farmer's market to ensure we'd have a table. Better safe than sorry since sometimes they're so packed there's a one hour wait list. That wasn't the case this time though, despite it being a weekend. The entire restaurant had ten or so groups when we arrived at noon. I had asked to be seated outside on the patio, which is a nice environment but it was just too hot on a sunny August day. Fruit and vegetable plants decorate the patio, but they're kind of...overgrown or dying, haha.

Old Spaghetti Factory is a family-friendly restaurant to go to when you need to fill hungry tummies and have a place to chat and relax. Food isn't five-star quality but it's acceptable and affordable. Service is kind but not always promt; it depends on how busy the restaurant is. Our server came back often to ask how we were doing at the beginning of our meal but less near the end. She did remember our requests for more bread and water when we asked for them. There isn't any major reason for my family to not come back for pasta when we're in Whistler.

I apologize for the lack of photos in this post; I thought I had past photos of the dishes I had this trip as we seem to order the same few things. But I was wrong so hopefully on my next trip (maybe next year?), I'll be able to make a second review with more photos.

The Old Spaghetti Factory Whistler on Urbanspoon

Love from Coconut Crumpet's Corner ♡

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