I knew Valentine’s Day was going to be a chaotic mess since it was on a Saturday, so I opted for a nice Italian lunch in Downtown Austin in lieu of dinner. I had my heart set on dining at the new Osteria Pronto at the JW Marriott but upon examining the menu, only brunch items were being served and nothing had the Italian flair I was looking for. The dinner menu wouldn’t kick in until 5:00 p.m. and I wasn’t willing to wait until then. So a quick walk down Congress Ave. had us arrive at Quattro Gatti. A “go to” favorite of many Austinites, I was quite happy to finally dine with them. First rattle out of the box, we are told no pizzas could be prepared as the oven wasn’t ready. {The restaurant had just opened its doors for lunch} Then comes the specialties for the day; they were out of the risotto dish. So on to the full menu; meals selected then ordered, as well as cocktails and beverages. Oops, not so fast! They’re out of the vegan selection.  ….oh joy. We asked, “Well, what is available on the menu?”

Our food arrives and is certainly agreeable and delicious. The second round of cocktails made their way to us as well. All is coming along quite nicely, The ambiance is fun, there are people milling around on the street; all is really good. Then comes the bill. When we placed our orders, we were well aware of the price-point of our meals; steep for lunch, but not to the point of being prohibitive. Surprise! Your cocktails were $12 each. Yes, $12. I thought we had transported ourselves to Manhattan! Mind you, this was not call liquor, just simple vodka and soda. We shell out $70 for our “light lunch” then departed a bit disillusioned.

While the food was good, I’d hold out for other fare. I think Taverna is a better option and certainly in relation to price. We had an attentive server who apologized, almost comically, for the unavailable menu items.