09/18/09

Great place....but

by mgroethe

I have never been treated better in person. Mom made me the best eggplant ever and my date the best broccolli rabe she ever had. Every time has been perfect. But today (18 September 2009) I called, as I do often, to have pizza delivered and they wouldn't honor the online offer of 18" 3 topping pizza for $16.90 (2 for $29.00) that they advertised on their own website. The guy saud he talked to the owner and it was no good. Please Villa Romano - update your website so it is accurate. I had to call Milano for tonight instead.

• Pros: Great place to visit in person
• Cons: Don't honor their website offers

02/24/09

Great Little Trattoria

by natalias

I love little mom and pop restaurants, and this little gem is in that category of the few still out there in the city.

From the cute waiters, to the old-world decor, and ofcourse the delicious food, this little Trattoria is still run by the "Family". The owner is back there tossing Pizzas, and the wife is in the kitchen creating homestyle southern Italian cooking at its best. Meanwhile, the son is running the dining room with his very good looking and charming wait staff. I love this place!

• Pros: Great food and service
• Cons: ---

01/18/09

Discriminating and Rude Owner

by vge

I reserved their banquet room over two months in advance for a very special occasion. After going over the terms of our agreement, he assured me that we would get the banquet room to ourselves given the size of our party and the intimacy we were looking for. The owner assured us that our menu selection would include any dessert on the menu. The morning of our occasion, he had the audacity to call and ask me if I could do him a favor and allow him to put a party of 7 into the banquet room with us because they were "special" guest from Italy. I voiced my objections and reminded him that the agreement was for an intimate, private setting for my family and friends, approximately 25-30 people. He insisted by saying, "so your not willing to help me out here." I reminded him that it is not the customer that is here to service and provide favors, that we had already agreed to the terms over two months ago, and that attempting to alter that contract the morning off was unprofessional. I could not believe his response when he communicated his disappointment in agreeing to reserve the room for me because I would not accommodate his "special" guest and I wasn't going to be spending that much money anyway because I had selected the cheaper of his banquet menu selections. Apparently, he didn't feel we were worthy of this room because we were not "special" and as he presumed, were not going to spend money. To his surprise, and definitely not intentionally, we spent right below $1,000 that night, only because it was a very special occasion which merited celebrating over some bottles of wine and Champaign. To top it off, they tried to skip out on the dessert they contracted to and brought out biscotti instead of cheesecake. I forewarn anyone looking into this restaurant to get any arrangements in writing if you dare go in. The food is NOT worth the unprofessional, discriminating, and dishonest character of the owner.

11/25/08

The best pizza and pasta ever!

by Denisesf

This is the first time I have written a review for Villa Romana. It's the best pizza and pasta ever! My friends took me there for my birthday Sunday, and as usual I was thrilled with the food and the service. one of my friends and I ordered a vegetarian pizza that was cooked perfectly, with all fresh ingredients and the crust was to die for. My other friend ordered the shrimp pasta with pesto sauce and really enjoyed it. She'll be back for more of it, I'm sure! Also, our waiter Nick went above and beyond to make sure we were enjoying ourselves. Too bad there aren't more waiters like Nick. He's the best!

Pros: Everything

Cons: Parking

• Pros: Everything about Villa Romana is excellent
• Cons: Parking is difficult

Editorial Review

by Contributor

Inner Sunset Italian restaurant draws local crowds, and plenty of large parties, with "meter-sized" pizza plus traditional pasta and meat dishes.

05/18/08

Great Experience!

by Natandgoshas

My husband and I really enjoyed our Wedding Rehearsal Dinner at Villa Romana.

Tony, the Manager was a class-act and really ensured that his staff impressed all of our guests with some of the best Southern Italian food and wine that I have ever tasted. The Banquet Room is very elegant as well. Thanks Tony!

• Pros: Tony, food, wine, service
• Cons: parking

03/17/08

Bad for large groups

by 6ina

We had a banquet here in their private room recently and paid $15/person. Unfortunately, we were served a mediocre salad, a thin slice of chicken parmesan, and 1/3 of a broken piece of biscotti. No pasta, no bread, and no feeling of being full. Many from our party of 60 headed over to Pluto's and Pasquale's to get a proper meal.

Pros: Plenty of fruity wine and good chicken parm. Our server Adam was nice.

Cons: Everyone was still hungry. The tackiness of getting a broken piece of biscotti for dessert. It was embarrassing to hold a banquet at this establishment.

09/06/07

La Pizza e buona!

by heidivaneck

The pizza for my family and I, is the best in the S f Bay area.

The owner and chef makes the best pizza and just loves to work and serve his customers.

grazie!

• Pros: owner

09/03/07

Great Italian family restaurant

by bruce_duncans

The father and son do a magnificent job running this 52 year old family run italian restaurant. Papa handles the kitchen, and the son manages the front of house. Their intensity and pride is something else to witness. It is something out of a movie.

• Pros: father and son

08/23/07

downhill after 30 years

by sjkramer

We have been loyal customers for 30 years, but someting has changed for the worse. The waiters were distracted. The menu has been reduced. The food quality has decreased dramatically. I wonder if management of this 50+ year old gem has changed. We hope they fix this favorite. We will go again in a few months before writing the obituary.