My first visit to Casalena was last night when we took a friend out for a "thank you" dinner. The…read morecriteria when choosing a place to eat was near where our friend lived, vegan options and nice ambiance. This place delivered on all three.
We had a 19:00 reservation, and left Long Beach in the 17:00 hour, but a freeway emergency and lane closures down the way resulted in us being late (24 minutes) to the restaurant. However, we called the hostess while we were en route to let them know, and the restaurant sent a text message when our table was ready which let us say "we are on our way," and I sent a text through Open Table to explain the situation. When we arrived, it took a minute to find parking, but we were able to get our table without issue or attitude. Hoorah!
While I am on the topic, parking can be a little tricky. Casalena does offer valet services, but we forgot to bring cashola, so elected instead to find parking on the street. It's mostly residential around the restaurant, but we were able to get a spot not too far away. We lucked out that way.
We were seated right away and our server, Corey, came by to introduce himself and asked if there were any allergies or dietary preferences at the table. I mentioned that I am vegan and he told me there are several options and that "items with one lemon next to them are vegan and items with two lemons next to them can be made vegan upon request." This was wonderful news. While I had looked at the menu before we came, sometimes the in-store menus are different or have less options for vegans. Casalena does not. I was able to find a side and an entree that sounded incredibly delicious. The non-vegans with me also found delicious options.
We ordered, and Corey answered further questions about the dinner special while keeping our order in his brain. How servers do that, I will never know. He brought a starter salad someone in our party ordered first, and the wine that was asked for.
The ambiance is nice. Each table has a light that when touched adjusts the bulb temperature. The dining room is LOUD. Everyone was having loud conversations, but we were able to talk to each other and a semi-escalated volume and communicate fine. The energy was high and positive inside.
Our food was served pretty quickly. I got the side order of home-made focaccia and the Pesto Rigatoni. Both dishes were delicious. I ate a whole side of the focaccia (we got two to share with the table,) and my pasta and felt wonderfully full, but not over-stuffed. The others in my party felt the same way. When Corey came by with a dessert menu, we chuckled and politely declined.
Now, the prices for Casalena are viewable online. This sort of establishment (for me at least) is not somewhere to go regularly, but as a celebration or occasional treat, completely reasonable to splurge on.
The dress code is reasonable, and there was a man in a booth nearby with a Miller Beer t-shirt on, so I think as long as you are not beach-bum casual, you will be okay.
The only gripe I have is that the people waiting for the valet to bring their cars up need to clear a fucking path. I'd sprinkle them with a Spatial Awareness Dust if it existed, but other that that, the night was extremely wonderful. I managed to get a few snaps of the food, but didn't want to spoil the experience by making it content. There were a lot of people taking photos and selfies, but I didn't see anyone having their dinner through their phone's lens. So, that was refreshing.
All in all, a wonderful night and I look forward to the next celebratory dinner to come back and try more of their fare!