A real hidden hideaway

Jim and Nancy do not disclose the fact that they will review a restaurant before they attend, ensuring their reviews are unbiased and uninfluenced by their position with the Sun Day.

There’s an expression that has been around forever, namely, “You can run, but you can’t hide.” For the last 20 years, Galati’s Hideaway has moved from three different locations in Cary. They ran, but they couldn’t hide from the Dining Duo!

Galati’s really is a hideaway. We headed out armed with the mini-mobile GPS, Siri, and Nancy (who doesn’t believe either one of them), and after many “discussions” and wrong turns, we finally arrived at the hideaway.

We expected to see a storefront restaurant; instead what we saw was a ginormous contemporary building. The interior is divided into three sections. Go to the door on the right and you’ll enter into a bar the size of Rookies. Go up the staircase and you’ve entered the banquet room. Head left and you will enter their dining room.

Walking into the dining area, don’t expect much glitz and glamor, but they do have a beautiful fireplace. The rest of the room resembles a big dining hall.

While we were munching on the warm loaf of bread with olive oil and cheese, Nancy came up with a novel idea for an appetizer. Instead of the usual calamari or bruschetta, she suggested we order their Chopped Salad ($9.95) to share. This was a variety of select greens, chunks of Italian meats and cheeses, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, and olives. Of course, she requested their creamy garlic dressing instead of the creamy Italian that it normally comes with. Remember, if you both have it, you both stink alike…

The waiter arrived with two overflowing plates of salad and said he split it up for us in the kitchen. We then realized this was an entree size salad, but didn’t expect it to be this large for that price. Every item in the salad was proportionately chopped to perfection.

All entrees come with either soup or salad. Since we went with the Chopped Salad for an appetizer, we decided on soup. Nancy had chicken noodle, and I had French onion and ordered it baked with cheese for a $1 up-charge. Nancy received a huge bowl of soup and I got a large crock of soup, and they both were delicious.

Jim went with something he never saw in an Italian restaurant before. He chose the Stuffed Peppers ($11.95), which was one of each, red, yellow, and green bell peppers stuffed with rice, ground beef, and baked with mozzarella, and topped with meat sauce. When it arrived, our eyes bugged out at the portion size and presentation. It not only looked good, it tasted wonderful. Jim could only eat just one pepper.

Nancy had to try the Meat Lasagna ($11.95), which was lasagna layered with beef and cheese, baked to perfection, and served with meat sauce. The waiter said it wouldn’t look like a normal piece of lasagna since it spreads out on the plate. Nancy was served a platter filled edge-to-edge with lasagna. It was awesome with all the meat sauce and cheese that snapped back at her.

Jim finally met his match, thanks to my brilliant salad idea. He didn’t have room for dessert, poor baby. He even turned down a salted caramel brownie with a pretzel crust!!!

Dining Duo “Believe it or Not”: Our bill was $42.10, mangia.

If you can find this hideaway it is definitely worth it. The service was great and the food was out of this world. The cost for an evening out and several leftover dinners later couldn’t be beat. Nancy even got a work out trying to carry the doggie bag out to our car!

Jim’s take: I can’t wait to go back to try other items on their menu. Next time nix the salad, I’m going for the brownie!

Nancy’s take: I want to go back and try their Aglio e Olio (olive oil and garlic sauce) on any one of their pasta’s since the creamy garlic dressing was so garlicy and yummy. I’m getting the salad, forget the dessert next time!!!

Have comments or restaurant suggestions for the Dining Duo? Send them an email at thediningduo@gmail.com.

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