Sometimes, Patrick will send me a text about a restaurant he wants me to review, to which I always respond with a pliable “Sure, when I get around to it…” after tossing it in the “maybe” pile.
Just kidding, Patrick. Kind of.
Sometimes, though, you just have to do what the boss says, and this time he was more than right—because Victoria’s The Pasta Shop, 215 E. Main St., in Norman, is more than just pasta.
As my guest and I entered the restaurant, all the fragrant herbs and spices inside immediately provided a wonderful greeting, setting the stage for the one order I was ordered to place on my trembling lips: the Lasagna Rolls.
But I had to wait, promptly seated and wanting a starter, they had the usual fare of garlic bread and meatballs, Pizza Bread and Cheese Bread on board. Eventually, I decided to take a more fungal route – the Baked Mushroom Caps ($8.15), an odd choice for me, but a good one.
I typically find mushrooms a hollow victory in the appetizer game, but these tasty shrooms made me rethink this opinion, sending my tastebuds on a psychedelic trip of salivating explosions. With the caps featuring a rotating chef's choice of fillings, my batch was very cheesy and very Italian. Bellissimo!
Each bite of the baked mushrooms, with the (presumably) olive oil and mysteriously gooey white cheese, was a magnificent starter. With nearly ten caps profiled on the straining bed of fungal taste, I was in soft heaven.
In other words, I truly liked them!
Moving on to the main meal, my beloved betrothed was served the Black Pepper Linguine ($13.00). Tossed with snow crab (yes!), spinach, and lemon-garlic butter, it was a festive feast for a middle manager. Huzzah!
As the scandalous lemon butter gave a whole depth to the proceedings – and the snow crab gave the dish an heir of grandeur – it was a truly momentous occasion. Each bite melted in my mouth with a whole procession of oomph, the cast of noodles and spinach giving a very big finish.
But, alas, the dish I had waited for was finally here!
With my garlic bread at the ready, Victoria’s signature dish, the Lasagna Rolls ($13.25), were up to bat. My plate bubbled with a helping of white cheese piled atop noogle-wrapped rolls of shrimp, spinach, and cheese, served alongside both marinara and alfredo sauce.
I have to give it to my boss—he is right on the money! The lasagna rolls are reasonably interstellar, with the unusual taste of shrimp and cheese working for the right regions of full flavor, with the spinach and (especially) the alfredo sauce pulling double duty.
As my fork graced had another bite and then another, I can say this is truly breathtaking pasta, and I'm glad that Victoria’s is the true state of Oklahoma pasta in the 21st century. Cómpralo ya!
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