VIA TRENTA OSTERIA & WINE BAR
Italian in Astoria, NY

We came here on a Saturday night around 7:00 PM and we were seated right away.  It wasn’t very crowded inside, the outside had more patrons.  The restaurant was a bit tiny and 2-person tables are situated so close to each other.  Bar was tiny as well and could sit only 5.  The restaurant was quaint, beautiful and clean.  It had an A rating from the NYC Health Department.  The service was pleasant and quick.  At one point, we weren’t sure who our waiter was because everybody seemed to have been waiting on us even when the restaurant wasn’t empty.

BREAD:

Bread – complimentary
Bread was warm and dip was great.

APPETIZER:

Grilled Fresh Calamari, on a bed of arugula, endive and radicchio salad $11
Husband said it was a bit sour and tart.  The calamari heads were a little burnt, hence bitter.

Sushi Grade Tuna Tartar with avocado, hearts of palm, fresh seaweed, lemon-oil $13
I haven’t had tuna tartare with hearts of palm before.  It did make the dish better.  However, I couldn’t taste the seaweed and it wasn’t hot or spicy at all.  It was overall a good plate and I would be coming back for more.

ENTREE:

Fettuccine with lobster $20
Husband said the entree was okay. The serving size was small.

Lamb Shank with saffron risotto $21.50
The lamb was tender and not gamey. The risotto was a little bland by itself, but when you eat it with the lamb and sauce, it was just right.

DESSERT:

Chocolate Mousse $7
It was creamy, not too sweet, but had a hint of bitterness. The whipped cream added a little sweetness.

I bought a Longchamp Le Pliage medium tote to use for travel.  It retailed for $145, but I got mine at the Longchamp factory outlet for $116.  I will review the bag as a travel tote as I intended it to be used.  But I will also review it as an everyday handbag since I see a lot of people in the subways of New York City carrying the Le Pliage like one.

Measuring 12″ (bottom length) x 12″ (height) x 7.5″ (depth), the Le Pliage could hold a lot of things.  The bag could be folded to approximately 6″ x 9.5″.  This was great for travel as a carry-on, beach bag or an extra bag for souvenirs/things you’re bringing home.  The straps dropped 9″ and it didn’t fold so it stuck out which could be a bit cumbersome.

The material was made of nylon and was pretty thick, sturdy and water-resistant.  The bag had no lining, but the interior of the bag had a rubbery texture.  Note that darker color bags have black interior and lighter color bags have white interior.  The bag had one small pocket inside and was situated right at the edge.  The location of the pocket made it a little hard to zip the bag when the pocket was full and contents also could easily fall off.

The Le Pliage medium tote was not ideal for use as an everyday handbag.  The bigger size, its lack of dividers and only one small interior pocket made it harder to organize things thus making it inconvenient to find things in the bag.  One possible solution is to buy a bag organizer.

The straps and trims were made of leather.  However, the edges weren’t sealed.  The bag seemed very well made.  But in my opinion, the bag with its minimal features, was not worth $116 or $145 retail.

Because of its price and lack of features, I am compelled to compare the Le Pliage to my free Celebrity Cruise packable tote bag.

The Celebrity Cruise tote bag was bigger measuring 11.5″ (bottom length) x 16″ (height) x 8″ (depth), but heavier by 6.4 oz.  The bag came with a separate zippered pouch where the bag is stored when folded.  The pouch measured 9.5″ x 6.5″ which was a tad bigger than the Le Pliage when folded.

The pouch doubled as a zippered inside pocket.  It had snaps that attaches to the interior of the bag.

The straps dropped 8″ and are made of faux leather.  The straps may be a little softer than the Le Pliage straps, but still not supposed to be folded.  Like the Le Pliage, the edges of the straps and trims weren’t sealed either.

The bag itself had no branding.  The only branding (“Celebrity Cruises”) could be found on the flap of the pouch.  The material was made of some sort of fabric canvas that was not as thick and water-resistant as the Le Pliage, but it had a lining.

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Overall, I rate the Longchamp Le Pliage medium tote  (3.5) stars.

Sign up for newsletters of the stores you go to or may go to and/or like them on Facebook if they have a page.  I usually recommend assigning one email address for these types of emails.  By signing up, you get notified of new sales and offers.

Apply for the Redcard at Target and you’ll get 5% off items you buy at Target, including free shipping online.  The best part of it is that you get 5% off gift cards as well.  We just ate at Chili’s using a Chili’s gift card I bought with 5% discount!

Just remember that applying for the card is like applying for a credit card.  They will check your credit and your credit score may be affected.  And if you don’t pay the full balance every month, you’re better off not applying for the card coz the APR is higher than the 5% discount.

If the price of the item you bought went down, call the store and ask for price adjustment.  It doesn’t hurt to ask.  The worst that can happen is they say no.

Some stores have a policy that allows for price adjustments within only a limited number of numbers.  But sometimes, the stores can give you a courtesy price adjustment after the price adjustment period which I have experienced before.

Ask your credit card company regarding price protection benefit.  A lot of credit cards reimburse their customers the price difference when the customers find a lower price for the same item within a certain number of days. I took advantage of this benefit for a winter coat I bought and got reimbursed the $50 price difference by my credit card company!

There are other benefits that usually come with credit cards, like purchase protection, extended warranty and return protection.  Make sure to ask for all benefits your credit card has.

I’ve been learning a lot lately about getting the most out of my money while shopping. And I thought it would be nice to share it with everyone. So I’m starting a “Shop-n-Save Tip” series on my Twitter. Follow me!

Please share your own money-saving tips by tweeting it and adding the hashtag #ShopnSave.