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Mici Italian ~ regional chain : Colorado Springs, Colorado


First visit: Sep 2022 (Colorado Springs - Carefree)

I had read about Mici's recently and it looked like something I would enjoy. Going to their website, the closest location is on Union not too far west of Powers. So I finally went there, only to find a storefront similar to Domino's, Jets, Papa Johns, etc.. What? I thought it was a place to sit down and eat. And it is - but I guess it depends on the location. Their website doesn't designate any difference, which isn't very smart. Whatever the case, the other Colorado Springs location is only another 10 minutes south down Powers, so I went there instead. And yes, this is a counter serve, sit down place. Perfect. I ordered what I came for - spaghetti and meatball (note singular). The restaurant was empty when I arrived and I started to get a bad feeling about all this. But I persevered. And I'm glad I did...

The chef hand delivered the meal to my table. I was looking at a sumptuous bowl of thin spaghetti, 2 slices of Italian bread, red sauce, and a big 'ol meatball. Ah - finally - a steaming bowl of hot pasta! Yes - perfectly al dente too. In fact, it was more like 10 seconds-too-soon al dente, but that's OK with me. It continues to cook in the bowl anyway. The pasta tasted great by itself. The sauce was delicious as well. Slightly sweet - perhaps a bit too chunky - but saucy enough. And tons of it. I'm starting to subscribe to the school of thought that one cannot have too much red sauce. The bread was excellent, definitely a higher grade than usual. It was the homemade meatball I was most looking forward too. And it for certain is homemade, but interestingly enough, it was kind of bland to be honest. I keep dreaming of the meatballs of my youth. I'm beginning to wonder if I just made up the taste in my head. Oh well. Also, I would encourage them to provide fresh parm cheese. The kind that comes in the packets are no bueno - think Kraft crumbles in that weird green container. The packaged red chili pepper is fine though - that's all anyone ever serves in the jars as it is. If only they used fresh crushed chile de arbol...

So - the verdict is hooray hooray! Will have to try their pizzas and "hand rolled sausage". Could it be like Denver's Pantaleoni's? I seriously doubt it - but I can dream can't I?

Mici is a fast growing chain from Denver where they maintain 6 locations. Colorado Springs has two, Phoenix two, and DFW has one in Frisco. I've also read they plan to expand to Detroit. However, as noted above, it's not clear which of these has sit down seating or are just strictly to-go outlets.

9/4/22 (new entry)

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