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Ronette's Psychedelic Sock Hop
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Ronette’s Psychedelic Sock Hop is not a space-galaxy movie musical set in the '50s. It is, however, a colorful, dog-friendly dive bar on Leary Way complete with neon lights, checkerboard tile, occasional live music, and watermelon slushies spiked with Midori. You might expect a place like this to serve things like battered cheese curds and mushroom swiss burgers, but instead, you can order bowls of fresh pasta and miso sesame caesar salads via counter service.
Even though the pasta is pretty tasty for the most part, we like Ronette's best as somewhere for groups of friends to walk in and grab a round of drinks without a wait.
The kitchen is helmed by former Italian pop-up Mixtape Pasta, and when they're on top of their game, the food is exactly what we want with a negroni or pint glass of kolsch. We like the creste di gallo tossed in peppery arugula pesto and calabrian chile breadcrumbs, rigatoni bolognese accented with fennel seed and sauteed carrot, and their seven-layer lasagne with bubbling fontina and toasted edges. To end things, the citrus tiramisu is a clear standout—it tastes like someone is launching lemons at you with a softball pitching machine, but the creamy mascarpone, splashes of olive oil, and occasional crunch of salt flakes temper all of that acid.
photo credit: Nate Watters
However, the food at Ronette's tends to be inconsistent, as we've encountered bland sauces, dry meatballs, and gummy pasta—which is a bummer because this menu is such a refreshing change from most casual bars. We'd rather just head to our favorite dive with a reliably solid burger than get stuck with something overcooked and undersauced.
Even when the kitchen is having an off night, though, Ronette's is still an undeniably fun place. Swing by for a frozen cocktail and several orders of garlic bread on their patio lined with pink astroturf and tables covered in glitter.
Food Rundown
Garlic Bread
photo credit: Nate Watters
Miso Caesar
photo credit: Nate Watters
Seven Layer Lasagne
Rigatoni Bolognese (Meat)
Rigatoni Bolognese (Vegetarian)
photo credit: Nate Watters
Creste Di Gallo
photo credit: Nate Watters