Sal Rosas has owned Mangola’s Fine Italian Restaurant (11786 S. Wilcrest, 281-498-6790) since 1998, although the restaurant goes back to 1987. He recently reopened the place after a fire gutted it more than two years ago. The family restaurant serves folks from the Missouri City and the Sugar Land areas. “It took us a long time to rebuild and to comply with all the city requirements,” says Rosas.
But he’s back in business. “We have a very romantic place with piano entertainment and a singer on weekends,” he says. “We serve pasta and pizzas, steaks and seafood, veal, chicken and our special, osso buco.” Sal has turned the place into a sort of Italian wine bar, or enoteca, as he calls it. “It’s a wine library, where we serve wines from all over. We have over 200 different kinds.”
When Dish visited one weeknight, we found an extensive menu that covers the gamut of classic Italian dishes. We enjoyed a plate of rigatoni rustica, or Italian sausage sautéed with cannellini beans and served over the large pasta pieces. The grilled tuna salad, a slightly lighter fare, was seared to perfection. Unfortunately, the chef had not prepared any tiramisu that evening, but Sal guarantees that it’s excellent.
Got the latest info on restaurant openings, closings, special events and gossip? E-mail us at dish@houstonpress.com.
This article appears in Aug 20-26, 2009.