I first tried Vespa in 2006. Perfect pasta, heavenly asparagus, lovely presentation, pleasant wait staff. By perfect pasta, I mean that the bite and flavor were perfect, the cream sauce delicate, the 4 or 5 stalks of asparagus perfectly cut and arrayed and shining with flavor, fresh peas. I was impressed and I loved it.
I tried Vespa again in 2009. Pasta was smothered. The plate looked like a heap of garbage. It appeared that the cream sauce had just started to break. My fellow diner's ravioli stuck in the teeth. The desserts (tiramisu and chocolate semifreddo) were scooped out of pans and slapped onto the plates with lakes and globs of sauces that overpowered the desserts themselves. The ladyfingers in the tiramisu were over-soaked in a tasteless coffee syrup. The filling was not grainy but lacked flavor and richness. Between 2006 and 2009 I had stopped into Vespa with friends just for dessert. We had profiteroles - they were good but the pastry cream was still frozen inside.
I had a cappuccino. I thought surely in an Italian restaurant.... Cappuccino should be 1/3 coffee, 1/3 steamed milk, and 1/3 bubbly, frothy foam. This cappuccino was lukewarm, probably 2/3 milk and there was a film of spent foam on top. Even if what I was served was a poorly made latte, the size of the cup suggested that they meant to make a cappuccino.
I feel that I can give an informed review as I have been to culinary school for baking and pastry and have worked in a top-notch coffee shop in a metropolitan city. I can't help but feel insulted by Vespa. I will not go there again. I will be going to Italy in a few weeks from now. I know that once I've been there, my 2009 experience at Vespa will appear to be all the more pathetic.
Pros: Pasta itself is good, great atmosphere
Cons: Presentation, cappuccino, desserts
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