Restaurant Review: Trattoria Flippin Sweet

15 Mar, 2013

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Written by Jamie Frerichs

Located on the northern edge of Downtown Kearney, nestled in across from the Museum of Nebraska Art, you will find a quaint cottage complete with trickling fountains. If the charming exterior of this restaurant doesn’t lure you in, the sweet smell of freshly baked bread will likely do the trick.  Serving up a genuine taste of Italy, Trattoria Flippin Sweet has made its home on “The Bricks” and I think I speak for many when I say, “Grazie!”

Flippin Sweet makes their pasta dough fresh on a daily basis, which is hand rolled and cut to order.  As stated on their artisan pasta menu, “We take great pride in what we serve, and it can’t be rushed. There are no short cuts for quality.  Served with patience and fresh baked bread.”

With pizza names like Cry Baby and F-Bomb, chalkboards on every wall, a giant fork and spoon placed on the mantels above each fireplace,

and a cardboard animal head gazing over the room, you’ll quickly see the menu and décor harbors a keen sense of humor, but that’s the only thing you’ll do quickly.  Whoa, whoa, whoa.  Slow down there, Debbie Drive-thru – this is not a complaint. Like they mention on their pasta menu, “…it can’t be rushed.”

It’s important to be aware that you might be spending a lot of quality time with your family, friends, and Flippin Sweet server. This way you can relax, pull up a chair, order some Pane Aglio Vivace – which must mean “glorious Italian bread bites sent from heaven” – and rev up a friendly game of hangman on the nearest chalkboard, because this culinary experience is worth the wait.

What has everybody talking (and drooling)? 

• The Specialty Artisan Pizza. The Original Chicken Ranch and Goodfella pizzas are most favored, but I hope you’re ready to make a tough decision because the pizza selection is substantial.  If you have an adventurous palette like me, might I suggest you go in alphabetical order? This time I visited the tasty Big Island, next stop? Boticelli.

• The Giant Calzones.  Actually, they’re called “Specialty Mostro Calzones.” The translation for mostro is monster or freak – and this would be an accurate description of the calzones I witnessed making their way into the dining room. The menu warns you of its sheer size, stating the calzones are built for two or more.  This is not a joke, but for some reason every time a server placed a colossal calzone on the recipients’ table, they all had a good laugh.

• The Fresh Pasta.They feature a daily pasta special and menu. I’ve been lucky enough to try their Chicken Alfredo (with house alfredo sauce), Bolognese (with hearty meat sauce), and Argentinian Red Shrimp Florentine (with a creamy pesto sauce). My suggestion? Be saucy!  Make your pasta selection based on your sauce preference and I’m fairly certain you won’t be disappointed.

If you’re crunched for time, they encourage you to call ahead to gauge the wait time to be seated, consider ordering from the take out menu, or swing by and grab one of their Monster Slices for lunch.  Check out their Facebook page and you’ll discover their daily Monster Slice special and various other specials.  Flippin Sweet offers a variety of exciting dishes and flavor combinations, their prices are reasonable ($10-$30), the portions are overly generous, and you can’t help but be delighted by the general atmosphere.

If I could change anything, only one word comes to mind, and that’s…wine.  They do not serve alcohol, which would be the one drawback for me. Who doesn’t enjoy sipping on Pinot Grigio while you wait for your feast to arrive? Plus, a little bit of wine could make your hangman game a lot more interesting.

If I haven’t made it clear yet, I believe this trattoria is a treasure. Do yourself a favor and visit this special restaurant. You’ll soon find out how Flippin Sweet it is!

Visit their webpage here or their Facebook page here.

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