Page 4
The Blue Banner
March 21, 1996
Review
Tomato Rumba’s offers little spice
Marissa DeBlasio
Staff Writer
For students who live on campus, dining with
someone other than Marriot is considered a
treat. Unfortunately, students have to be very
careful when choosing where to take that bliss
ful meal.
Whil
food
at
the
To-
m a t o
Rumba’s
Pastaria Grill
on Tunnel
Road may be
of a slightly
higher qual
ity than the
cafe, many
other aspects
could stand
some im
provement.
To begin,
getting seated
in the place
may be the
biggest ob
stacle. To-
m a t o
Rumba’s is
trendy, so
crowds and
long waits can
be expected.
Moreover, it
is crucial to
make
sure
Tomato Rumba's combines Italian food with
your name is restuarant serves lunch and dinner,
on the waiting
list as soon as possible. Never sit on the waiting
bench and expect the host or hostess to ap
proach you for information concerning your
party. This is a sure way to waste 15 minutes
while you are completely ignored.
In addition to this initial rudeness of being
overlooked, the dining experience itself leaves
much to be desired. The restaurant’s servers
must be trained to act as if they have missed
their last dosage of medication. While some
patrons may enjoy the server’s overpowering
personalities, it can initially be a major turn-off
if you are just in search of food.
Some trips to this establishment have been
rather calm, but the majority have resulted in
headaches and indigestion from the staff and
loud music—even before the meal was served.
The best suggestion is to come with an empty
stomach but an open mind and bottle of pain
relievers.
Following the initial assualt on one’s senses,
seats are provided and the patron’s adolescent
mode has to kick in. Diners are supplied with
a large sheet of white paper which serves as the
table cloth. Located on the table are crayons of
various colors. This is supposed to serve as a
diversion while you have to wait to place an
order. Needless to say, not enough crayons or
paper are provided to occupy the long wait.
With all this time to consider the menu, it can
be fully appreciated. The food selection re
sembles that of basically all the other trendy
restaurants in Asheville or any other city with a
population of 100 or more. There are the stan
dard salads,
soups, sand
wiches and
hot dinners
available at a
reasonable
price.
Few items
really stand
out on the
menu. How
ever, the la-
sagna and
chicken
parmesan are
worth men
tioning for
their great
flavor in the
true Italian
tradition.
Another
fairly safe
choice is the
grilled
chicken sand
wich. This
old standby
has a great
full-bodied
flavor, but re
quest light
butter on the
bun. It could literally be rung out with the
amount on the toasted bun.
Something to avoid at all costs is the spaghetti.
While this is supposed to be an Italian restau
rant, this dish is flavorless and leaves much to be
desired. To keep dining safe, order anything
with chicken. They have a great handle on this
in most anything they prepare.
The best feature of the place is their birthday
dessert. While most restaurants of this class
serve up a generic hot fudge sundae, Tomato
Rumba’s takes their complimentary dessert to
the extreme. They serve the lucky individual a
splendid tiramisu in a large dessert goblet. These
layers of ladyfingers with a wonderful coffee
flavor and chocolate sauce will cure anyone’s
craving for sweets. This is a true Italian treat and
is second only to the same dessert offered at the
Olive Garden.
With decent food and questionable service.
Tomato Rumba’s offers a certain distinct atmo
sphere. Not a first choice for an intimate en
counter, the restaurant does offer a fun and
rather loud environment for groups to enjoy.
Small groups would benefit more by dining at a
quieter establishment, but Tomato Rumba’s
has the potential to offer excitement for a ram
bunctious crowd.
Photo by Jeanette Wobb
an eclectic atmosphere. The Tunnel Road
Review
Musician Dar Williams is currently touring with headliner Joan Baez to promote her new album "Mortal City." They will play the
Thomas Wolfe Auditorium on April 4.
Folk singer looks for a place to call home
Jack Walsh
Staff Writer
Often, folk music brings to
mind images of unkempt
Dylanesque bohemians, strum
ming three chords and whin
ing about the government to
coffeehouse audiences. Singer,
songwriter, and guitarist Dar
Williams, however, breaks the
mold.
On her new album. Mortal
City, she skillfully uses the
medium of folk music to ex
plore personal issues and inter
personal relationships rather
than the socio-political realm
of stereotypical folk-rockers.
While a folk purist might re
ject Mortal City's slick produc
tion and the pop appeal of many
of Williams’ songs, the album
brings a fresh style to the folk
genre. Both Williams’ musical
and lyrical skills make for a
record which is a listening plea
sure.
Most of the songs on Mortal
City are very stripped down in
their arrangements. Only four
of the 11 songs use a full band.
The majority feature Williams
on guitar and vocals with only
a solitary cello, mandolin, or
dobro for accompaniment.
Williams kicks off the album
with the first single, “As Cool
As I Am,” a quick-tempoed
farewell to a lover with a wan
dering eye. Although a great
song, “As Cool As I Am” does
not fit the feel of the album and
is a conspicuous contrast with
the remainder of Mortal City.
In comparison, although the
songs that follow are beautiful
in their simplicity, they, at
times, seem half-finished.
Whereas the quiet, slower songs
such as “February,” “This Was
Pompeii,” and “Mortal City”
spotlight Williams’ gorgeous
three-octave range, they lack
the textures and harmonies of
“As Cool As I Am” or “The
Ocean,” which features back
ing vocals by prominent folk
figure John Prine.
A particular lyrical standout,
“The Pointless, Yet Poignant,
Crisis of a Co-Ed” is a humor
ous look at trendy liberalism at
college. It examines the uncom
fortable alliance between those
who want hemp legalized for
industrial use and those who
just want to get high.
The character in the song re
calls her experiences in the
HempLliberation League; “I
knew there was a problem, ev
ery time the group would meet
everyone would light up/That
made it difficult to discuss glau
coma and human rights, not to
mention chemotherapy.”
Williams says that while many
of her lyrics come from per
sonal experiences, some grow
out of interesting stories that
people tell her. Others, such as
those in “The Poignant, Yet
Pointless, Crisis of a Co-Ed,”
are merely generated by bore
dom. “The precise circum
stances of the song are a con
struction engendered by long
drives on the highway with little
to occupy my mind,” said Wil
liams.
Review
Green frog and fuzzy bear sail the high seas
Troy Martin
Staff Writer
Hi ho everybody! Kermit the
;frog and all the Muppet-show
regulars have returned in
“Muppet Treasure Island,” a
; new film based on Robert Louis
'Stevenson’s novel. Treasure Is-
'.land.
■ The Muppet band, Sweet-
ums, Rizzo the Rat, Gonzo,
Dr. Honeydew, Beaker, and the
Swedish chef all make appear
ances. The human cast includes
Tim Curry as Long John Silver
and Kevin Bishop as Jim
Hawkins.
Like the TV show and the
other Muppet movies before it,
“Muppet Treasure Island” ap
peals to both children and
adults, the formula that has
made the Muppets a beloved
part of American culture for
some years.
For the adults, there’s plenty
of snappy oneliners (compli
ments of those two old balcony
hecklers, Waldorf and Statler),
social parody (one Muppet pre
fers to be called “visually chal
lenged” instead of “blind”), and
just plain Muppet craziness.
“Muppet Treasure Island”
shows an improvement by the
members of Jim Henson Pro
ductions to recapture the spirit
of the Muppets that seemed
lost after Jim Henson’s death.
“A Muppet Christmas Carol,”
the first movie produced after
Henson’s death, lacked one the
most important elements that
had made the Muppets so
popular and loved, Jim
Henson’s voice.
When Kermit spoke, it wasn’t
the Kermit most of us had
grown up with, but a well-
meaning impostor. Since that
time, Brian Henson has fine-
tuned his vpice. Aside from an
occasional moment or two of
“un-Kermitness,” Henson has
filled his father’s webbed
footed shoes. Luckily, Frank
Oz returns to once again give
voice to, among others, Miss
Piggy and Fozzie Bear.
Even though Kermit sounds
eerily like he did before the
elder Henson’s death, some of
the other Muppets aren’t so
lucky, particularly Dr. Honey
dew. The difference in the
voices is noticeable enough to
irritate those who remember
how the characters originally
sounded.
The final battle scene between
Kermit and Long John Silver is
poorly timed; by the end, it has
lost both its novelty and cute
ness. Also, some of the musical
numbers stretch out a bit long,
and Kevin Bishop is a horrible
singer. By the end of the film I
found myself wishing Long
John Silver would have had
young Jim Hawkins walk the
plank. Arrr.
The positives greatly outweigh
the negatives, though. Gonzo
is tortured in even more inge
nious ways than usual. The
sets are imaginative, the cos
tuming is detailed, and the dia
logue is witty.
Tim Curry is an excellent
Long John Silver, simulta
neously evil and likable. And,
despite his horrid singing voice.
Bishop is entertaining and not
nearly as annoying with his act-
ing.
“Muppet Treasure Island” is
definitely worth the cost for
those who fondly remember the
Muppets, and with the original
show being re-broadcast and a
new show just now starting,
the Muppets will surely con
tinue to thrive with a whole
new generation of viewers.
ATTENTION SENIORS:
ONE DAY LEFT!
to satisfy all your graduation requirements...
GRADUATE SALUTE CONTINUES
Thurs., March 21 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Order your caps & gowns, pay fees, win
door prizes, etc.
Highsmith Center Old Cafeteria
Also:
Josten's Ring Days Mar. 20 & 21