Italian Grille

A good friend suggested we go here for dinner on a cold Saturday night. Wasn’t sure what to expect in an old shopping center but we were greater promptly and seated. This resturant uses old dining room furniture repurposed in a commercial setting. Also many other older residential furnishings and the dining areas are broken up. Walls, ceilings and mix of seating areas make it work. Different but pleasant. The menu wasn’t extensive but a really good selection. While I’d prefer a wider selection of wines, it was good. Let me say our server was excellent. She was prompt, not intrusive and very helpful. When I asked for her recommendations she immediately had a go to fettuccine dish and recommended shrimp with it. It was exceptional. Good garlic bread, done just right was a definite add. Salad was a smaller size but very good, all fresh. Some in our group got the buffet which was well stocked though I think as we were later in the evening they said it probably would have been better an hour earlier. Overall an excellent Italian restaurant worth the drive. But for a slightly wobbly table and older chairs at my spot which weren’t well cushioned, they would be 5 stars. Great service and food will definitely cause me to go back.

I would eat here for the atmosphere alone just because it is so different and unique. The section passed the first room is a spectacle to be seen with the small rooms each dedicated to a different era or subject. 50's, 60's, 70's, Hollywood. Americana etc. Love it. What I would love even more though is if the marinara was consistent. It can be great or it can be sour. Last time was so sour it was tasting like a sweet-tart without the sweet and was reflux city. The marinara is the cornerstone of any italian restaurant. I would give 5 stars for consistent and good marinara.

This just wasn’t good Italian good. We decided to do the buffet. The pizza was the best thing and it was average. The breadsticks were thin, cold, and hard to chew. The bread knots were also cold and hard to chew. The Mediterranean pasta was over cooked and hard. The spaghetti had very little sauce and it wasn’t good sauce. The lasagna was just multiple layers of pasta with mushed beef and bad tasting sauce… that was it. I eat a lot of Italian and have been to a lot of Italian restaurants. This one was the worst. Food just doesn’t taste good here.

We have eaten at the Italian Grille a number of times and been satisfied with both the food and the service. HOWEVER, we had a reservation for 8 for Fathers Day at 6:00 made several days in advance assuring us they’d be open. We arrived only to find they had closed at 5:00. I had provided my phone number when I made the reservation but received no notification. Family members had traveled some distance to attend and it was very disappointing and frustrating to be faced with a locked door.

We spent $50 on pizza. It was not even cooked. It was the worst pizza we have ever had. The person I talked to told me the only thing they could have done was for us to drive 20 minutes back to give them the pizza and they would remake it. We had already waited for 45 min for the first order and drove 20 min. We were not driving another 20 min and waiting another 45 minutes.