REPUBLIC

Place: REPUBLIC @ 37 Union Sq West

Price: $7

Overall Rating: 2.5 out of 5 *****
Crispy-ness: 4 out of 5
Chewy-ness: 2 out of 5 - not chewy at all
Grease Factor: 3.5 out of 5 - lot of it
Tentacles: NO
Dipping Sauce: Sweet chili sauce - good heat

Notes: After hearing raves about the calamari @ Republic...naturally I had to try it and I was sadly disappointed! I was a huge an of Republic back in my high school days and I still pop in here and there for their Viet sandwich combo but the calamari was lackluster. IT seemed to be over fried (dare I say almost burnt) and didn't really taste like what fried calamari is supposed to taste like...nothing chewy about it, just a firm bite to the taste. it was just basically squid rings deep fried with a side of sauce... No garnishes for this calamari, just a simple plate of greasy rings...one would've thought we were eating onion rings! Batter could've used some herbs or some jazzing up... I will say I did like the sweet chili sauce as the dip, gives it a nice contrast but granted, it is an Asian restaurant... good portion for one person but sadly this might be a plate you give away to someone else...