Cafe Pro Bono, Palo Alto, California

One warm summer evening, my family was debating on which restaurant to go to for dinner. There were many tasty options which included Buca di Peppo, Pizza Antica, and Banana Leaf. Suddenly my father, who was searching on Yelp, jumped up with an "Ah ha!" and the rest of us crowded around the screen. We had never been to Cafe Pro Bono before, but we offered a try. It turned out that was a wonderful idea.

The Cafe is actually a restaurant located on Birch Street. To me it seemed cozy, but spacious- a perfect combo. The service is excellent, and the staff is kid-friendly. For an appetizer they offer fresh bread with vinegar and olive oil with a few herbs- DELICIOUS! This charming restaurant offers a variety of tempting entrees for your waiting palate. Even though we are vegetarians, there was still plenty of options to choose from.

For my 6 year old brother and me, we chose Susan's Downfall- a platter of herb ravioli served with a creamy Gorgonzola and toasted almond sauce. I am not a fan of anything too cheesy, so Susan's Downfall was not my type of dish, but it still tasted pretty decent. The cheese was a little too strong for me, and it overpowered the flavor of the other ingredients. However, it tasted traditional, not like an American version of ravioli.

My mother chose Gnocchi al pesto with sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts- a pesto gnocchi served with pine nuts and sun-dried tomatoes. After a quick taste, I decided that was the best gnocchi I have had in a long time. The potato pasta added a creamy texture to the dish, and the pesto sauce with pine nuts added an aromatic flavor. The sun dried tomatoes had a wonderful taste that enriched the goodness of the pasta.

After a lot of thought, my father selected a creamy mushroom risotto served with a variety of tender mushrooms. I am not a big fan of mushrooms either, and this dish was a little too strong for me. I would definitely have preferred something milder towards my senses. The creamy risotto was balanced with the chewy mushrooms, and altogether created an enticing combination.

It was appetizing, but we still had some room for dessert! There was a delicious variety, but we decided on a flourless chocolate cake served with raspberry sauce and topped with whipped cream. The flourless cake was mostly fudge, so you could really taste the chocolate, and the raspberry sauce added a refreshing fruity flavor. Also, we gobbled a traditional Tiramisu which left everyone yearning for more. This light,layered cream and coffee cake was brought to perfection at this restaurant. It was cold, yet not cold enough to suck out the flavor of the coffee, which added a delicious flavor to this elegant pastry. The pieces are small and perfect for a family of four.

All of the items we chose ranged from $5- $15. At the front door, there are mints and toothpicks as a sign of courtesy. As I stepped out the door, I knew that I would come here again- and soon! :)

I rate Cafe Pro Bono 4 taste buds out of 5.

** Yuk - 1 taste bud; Junk - 2 taste buds; It's OK - 3 taste buds; Yummm - 4 taste buds; Ooh-la-la - 5 taste buds.