re: Is there a dish you just can't get right?

Meatball game changers for me were watching my grandmother as opposed to using her recipe.

She added chopped parsley (not in recipe)
She used food processor to chop ingredients
She carefully rolled them to make sure they were not over dense and had air pockets inside. Gave them a much lighter texture. She was extremely careful in measuring her black pepper and salt. She was adamant that beef needed to exact ratio of salt/pepper to pound of meat. She also used real parm and Romano and not the processed kind in a can.