Terra Fugeddaboudit

Written by David DiCrescenzo on . Posted in Dining Out

The other evening, I attended a meeting with several friends and when it was done, a few of us decided to grab a quick bite to eat at a local outdoor mall, so we drove to the new Delray Marketplace in Delray, FL.  

If you haven’t been down the Marketplace since it opened last spring…ya gots to.  Everything about it is very eye appealing and inviting, and I can’t wait to check it out around the Holidays.

Anyway, we all parked and looked around at the various offerings.  Burgers, Pizza, Asian Fusion; decisions, decisions.  While I’ll readily admit that I do have some favorites; pizza, burgers, and bacon being among them, ask any of my friends and they’ll tell you that I like pretty much anything and am usually satisfied just hanging out and relaxing over a beer or a glass of wine with friends.

Anyway, we decided that Terra Fiamma looked worthy of our time and money.  It offered warm and welcoming open flame lanterns, a humongous protecting umbrella, and there was ample seating available.

Mind you, we arrived around the 8:30 time period and the day was winding down for them, i.e., they weren’t real busy.  In fact, we were among the 20 or so patrons in the entire place that I could see.

We got seated immediately, and drink orders were taken.  And somehow, that’s when our waiter, 'Jimmy’ according to my receipt, must have just gotten oh so tired from the day.  We all ordered soft drinks which no waiter ever has to get from the bar…which means they should have arrived at the table in a Nano-second; instead, I almost broke out my calendar.  I figured to myself, “what the heck, the guy is probably new or something.”  

Anyway, we all ordered some basic stuff; three of my friends ordered the 'Wood Roasted Wings’ which did sound and look very good when they arrived, however, no one was saying anything like "ooooh or ahhhh.”  

In fact, no one said anything at all, which is unusual for this group; usually, they make some sort of comment.  Another ordered the 'Stuffed Baby Clams Oreganate,’ which is a very aggrandizing term for what looked like something one might get in the freezer section at Publix or even Walmart.  She also got the Mussels, which again was not cause for yells of "yumbo” or anything like that.  As for me, being a Pizza guy, I opted for the "Midtown Meatballs” pizza, which, while it wasn’t downright awful, could have used some real Meatballs, (the things that were on there were slices of something that might have resembled meatballs) and some flavor.  

Had 'Jimmy’ bothered to stop by within a couple of minutes of serving the selections, I would have asked for crushed red pepper, hot sauce, or even tomato sauce to help this very bland pizza; however, by the time he got around to come by to ask how everything was, I had already eaten most of it.  

What can I say, I’m a guy; when I’m hungry, unless it really sucks, I don’t ask questions, I eat!  Also, they seem to have a policy against leaving a pitcher of water on the table…since I asked twice.  And apparently, from what I've seen on other reviews, I'm not the only one that found water refills a very slow effort by the staff.

By the way, one of the best parts of the meal was the Garlic Rolls.  They took forever, and they were not great, but they were better than the pizza, and while none of my friends really complained because we were all really just glad to be together, none of them came away from here thinking, "wow, can’t wait to come back here again.”

Anyway, moment of truth time.  Terra Fiamma has a great location, and they have the potential to be a great place to gather and relax, however, the quality of the very bland food needs serious and immediate review, and the staff, especially 'Jimmy’ is going to have to stick a cattle prod up his butt if they want to impress me, because while I don't want a server pestering me, I expect at least a modicum of attention.  

I do plan on returning for a follow up at some point; however, if needed changes aren’t made very soon, I will be stunned to see them still in business after the Holidays.  Only because of their location and potential, The Patriots Press gives them two of our five stars.

You’ll find Terra Fiamma at 9169 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray, FL