This has been one of our favorite restaurants and we would always celebrate birthdays there. We've tried many different entrees in the past and always said we never found one we didn't like. We even ordered take out during Covid to support them. After today I don't know if we will go back. Everybody was pretty underwhelmed with our entrees but my halibut special ($$$) was absolutely awful. I could barely eat any of it. I had others try it just to make sure it wasn't just me. Halibut is a mild fish and should not taste fishy but this fish was downright nasty tasting! The waiter seemed offended when I told him how awful it was. I wanted dessert to get rid of the awful taste in my mouth but we were all so hot because our table was now in the full hot sun. So we hurried off to go home to have ice cream. The service was ok. The ambience is usually really nice but the sun made it so hot that we couldn't really enjoy our evening out. Time to find a new favorite place! read more

Very nice Italian near Rancho Santa Fe. The food is good and plentiful, on the homey side. We enjoyed the ravioli and sausage platters and some delicious wine. The lasagne is very good but quite heavy...be prepared to take a doggy bag home. read more

Great date night and sitting at the high tops is fun! The staff are like family and treat us well:). Food is so good:). read more

Firenze Trattoria - Carajillo Expresso Martini! - Italian Near Me - Encinitas, California

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Very delicious food and excellent attentivr service. My husband ordered the halibut and I ordered the Sea bass. They were both excellent! The halibut was perfectly cooked with spaghetti noodles and fresh veggies. The sea bass was crusted with mashed potatos and green beans. So delicious! Our server and manager were so attentive during dinner rush and many phone, pick up orders. The entire staff seemed to work fast and efficiently to ensure every customer was well taken care of. We enjoyed our date night and recommend. read more

Great happy hour. Wonderful service and great food. Will be back for dinner soon to try more items.

Sadly I must downgrade my review from a 5 to a 3 Tonight was not the usual great dining experience we usually have here. It took them ages to acknowledge we were here. A long time to take our order. A very long time to bring the food out. And they got the main course wrong! My mozzarella caprese salad that now costs $19 had 4 thin slices of very hard and unripe tasteless tomato. And their usually outstanding yummy delicious bread was rock hard and stale. read more

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A 4 plus stars review ! Excellent butternut squash ravioli & spinach . Ordered a chicken piccata dinner . Also a Chicken Parmesan Dinner . Delightful read more

We went on a Friday night and sat in the corner which was nice and quiet. The lights are dimmed low for a romantic setting. We had Bill as our server and he was great! The portion sizes are pretty big so you can definitely split. We ordered the meatballs for an appetizer but they lacked flavor. I think everything could have been punched up a little more in the flavor department. But overall it was a good experience. read more

The only thing I can say about this restaurant is that it is fantastic. I love the patio, the service is great and the food is to die for. I recently tried from their appetizer menu the polenta with mushrooms and the butterflied shrimp in lemon sauce. Both were fantastic. It was my birthday and they served 3 of us a huge piece of tiramisu to share, and it was fantastic. Love this place. read more

This restaurant did not meet my expectation. I ordered a d'Mari dish and I thought it would come with variety of seafood but it only head scallops and prawns... the scallops tasted imitation. The risotto with mushroom sauce was alright, not spectacular. When the waiter took our order, he/she didn't offer the bread which was placed out of site and we only noticed it was there all along. Usually bread is placed at the center of the table and dip is prepared in front of customers. For a pricey place, I expect more on service. read more

Firenze Trattoria - Waiting area, nice streaming water fall. - Italian Near Me - Encinitas, California

Yummy chocolate martini. Filet mignon was cooked perfectly. High end Italian restaurant. Great service and great ambiance and theybhave fairly large portions. read more

A lovely place for a romantic dinner. The service was excellent. All staff were attentive to guests. Sadayoshi and I were asked where we would like to sit, and graciously shown all available seats. Food was well prepared and nicely served. The insalata dell' orto was seasoned with yummy cranberry vinaigrette. And the ravioli di portobello in gorgonzola sauce was delicious. I highly recommend the restaurant. read more

Chosen for Mother's Day dinner party of three. Long-time customer since opening but hadn't been back in a while. We each ordered one of three different raviolis on the menu. We enjoyed our entrée and sampled each others, three thumbs up for all three ravioli variations with the butternut squash being a favorite as it slightly sweet. Bread was delicious too but the balsamic and oil dipping. We skipped the wine this time saving your calories for dessert. We were full from dinner but chose to order the molten lava chocolate cake with vanilla gelato & tiramisu. Both were delicious but if I had to choose between the two again the chocolate was by far the favorite. Good service very attentive and cheerful. A bit pricey but worth it for a restaurant with table linens, good service and good food. seated in a nice quiet table off on the side room against the wall. We will return again. read more

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Firenze probably has one of the best lasagnas in the business. I mean this thing is massively portioned and delicious to the last drop. The rest of the restaurant is cool too and most menu items are flavorful/delicious. The bar is a bit of a work in progress as the bartender tends to be a bit slow providing drinks to patrons. Nevertheless, Firenze is one of my favorite Italian restaurants and is sure to please regardless of the occasion. Legit- Delicious food Substantial portions Friendly waitstaff Fantastic ambiance Great location Great wine list Meh- Drinks at the bar are slow and pricey No valet? Wth read more

We dined here since 1997, yet the turnover in bartenders & servers have changed the experience greatly. Our bills were to be split between cocktails/wine and food, yet Emilio neglected to do so. He also did not apply a $10 coupon that we submitted, and have only utilized a few times. We will not go back, as the General Manager did not address the issue, just stating that we can use another "coupon" next time! I will not go back and encourage others to dine elsewhere, try Jay's Gourmet! read more

Upon entering Firenze we were not greeted with a warm welcome! Normally, when entering a restaurant, I usually expect to leave full, satisfied, and wanting to come back again and I believe that many people expect the same thing. If I am paying for a service, I expect the customer service to be somewhat of a priority, unfortunately this was not what I experienced at all. The general quality of their establishment, food, and staff's attitude to our dissatisfaction and discomfort was frankly unacceptable and effectively ruined what should have been a lovely evening. My family and I were there for the first time celebrating my mother's birthday. The staff were impolite and not helpful. When we informed them that we had an additional guest joining and would need a larger table the staff were not accommodating. They responded by letting us know that the original reservation was for less people and now seemed to be inconveniencing them. The service was very slow and pathetic. What made matters worse was that after waiting for so long the waitress forgot to bring one of the entrees we had ordered, instead brought the wrong food and had to take it back. I called the next day and spoke to Barry, the owner, to explain the horrific situation. He did not offer any type of compensation for us to return to see if we can have a better experience. Instead, he made excuses for his staff's behavior by informing me that the original host was out sick that night and the staff were stressed out. Poor food and poor customer service with overly priced food is not worth a return visit. Sadly, you can have a better experience at a place like The Cheesecake Factory, Chilis, etc. I would not recommend this place to anyone. read more

Horrible! My wife and I sat at the bar and ordered one salad and our meals. new bartender took the order and the salad arrived promptly. 45min later we inquired about our meals and was told he forgot to put the order in with the chef. Too late to eat so we decided to leave though they would have put a "rush" on the order. Made us pay for the $17.00 salad and ice tea. Never again. read more

Great food, excellent service from Shannon. Great ambience and the dinner in the patio was amazing. Prices are good for the amount of food and the quality you are getting. Will definitely come back. read more

We will not go back here. It used to be good, but the food is not good anymore. What has happened? It's a pretty place and close to home. It's a shame. read more

My family and I were so underwhelmed by the food. Completely overpriced for pasta dishes and not worth it. The meatballs were bland and needed salt among other things, sauces were bland, and the ambiance gives an air of pretentiousness for a dated setting. Have had authentic Italian nearby for almost half the price. Save yourself the disappointment. read more

Grabbed some food here as I was craving Italian & always see this place on my way to/from church. Nice atmosphere & the bartender Lisa was super nice & suggested a good wine I wouldn't normally have known to try. I had the Ravioli di Portobello, but they allowed me a Rose sauce as I don't like gargonzola cheese---it was delish! I wish I would have gotten the server's name, because he was so attentive and kind and had the best service as well. The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the bread. I'll def be back for more dishes tho! p.s. This photo of Alice with long hair is for regs Eric & Jim...told ya! Lol! read more

Firenze Trattoria - Italian Near Me - Encinitas, California

I grew up in Encinitas and my family and I ate here probably once a week, it was our go to restaurant because the atmosphere is so fun and inviting. No matter how many times we went their menu never got old! I don't live in SD anymore so when I come visit its a special treat when I eat here. My favorite dish there is their butternut squash ravioli, it is made to perfection and I can't get enough of it! The waiters are very nice when it comes to special requests and if you don't see something on the menu you can just tell the waiter what your in the mood for and the chef will make something up for you! The bar has almost any liquor you can imagine and when I went the bartender was open to making new drinks! (I was testing him lol he passed). I had an egg white whisky sour and it was pretty good! The ambiance is relaxing yet fun, on the bar side everyone is having a fun time and sometimes a little dancing happens :). Then on the other sides where the tables are its more relaxed for dinner. Its very casual and it can also be dressy-casual, whatever you want! The staff here is so nice they treat you like family here and thats why everyone loves this place. There is a chocolate jar in the front of the restaurant and i remember as a kid I would take a big handful of the chocolate and I love that after all these years they still have that chocolate jar! Brings back great memories! By far one of the best restaurants in SD and I will always come back to this place every time I visit and enjoy reliving my childhood memories read more

Firenze Trattoria - Glass of wine while we wait - Italian Near Me - Encinitas, California

Ive been to Firenzes several times over the years with my family and the food is always delicious! I got the Rigatoni alla Vodka e Fungi and it was DELICIOUS. They're vodka sauce is amazing. I would also reccomend the calamari as an appetizer. Not too heavily breaded and the quality is great. We will definitely be back. read more

Love the sea bass over pasta.. the people are nice and the beer is cold. A shot of patron and coors light before dinner seems to be the norm.. highly recommend this place. I usually eat between 4 and 5 so it's easy to get a seat and they are open 11am to 9 pm read more

I brought my wife and son here last night to celebrate my wife's birthday and had a phenomenal meal! Jeanette was our waitress and was extremely nice and helped us with explanations and recommendations. Firenze Trattoria is probably my favorite Italian restaurant in San Diego County! read more

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I have been coming to Firenze Trattoria for the last 5+ years for a monthly lunch with my grandparent's best friends. Every time we come we are greeted with warmth, and leave stuffed to the brim with delicious Italian food and tiramisu. I highly recommend their rigatoni al forno (baked rigatoni with sliced sausage in a delicious garlicky marinara and covered with mozzarella cheese, then blasted in the oven for a gorgeous melty crust), the lasagna Firenze (lovely lasagna layered with both house made béchamel and Bolognese), the melanzane rollatini (tender eggplant is sliced thinly and friend, and then rolled with different cheese and layered with marinara - then comes along with pasta in marinara and a green veggie), and the salsiccie a peperonata ( perfectly grilled sausage and peppers with the house pasta in marinara and a green vegetable). These four dishes regularly and consistently are so delicious that we often order them over and over (and considering we come every single month... that's high praise). I have also sampled several other pastas (if you're going to get Italian you might as well really GO for it, am I right?), and I have loved the raviolis, carbonara, seafood pasta, and pretty much everything I've sampled. There is always an overflowing bread basket with delicious butter or oil and vinegar to dip it in while you wait for your meal to truly commence. A must for us, every single time, is tiramisu for dessert. Creamy and just sweet enough, this is a perfect ending to our meals and always a hit. The service (on Saturdays at lunchtime, which is when we frequent the joint) is always attentive, polite, and thoroughly enjoyable. We have had particularly wonderful service from both Jeff, José, and Jeannette, who never fail to refill any drinks, bread baskets, or waters, and are always very kind to our table of guests ranging from in our 20s all the way up to 98 this year! I do think that Firenze is the perfect place to come and experience dining al fresco with friends or loved ones you look forward to catching up and enjoying a long meal with - it's not a place to get in and out in a rush while eating and staring at your phone. If you are in a rush, I suggest letting your server know, so they can help expedite your process, and I am certain they will happy to accommodate your timeline. However if you're looking for a truly European cadence to your meal, to enjoy your delicious food and beverages over a conversation, you'll love everything about your experience at Firenze. read more

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I've been checking out new places in my new hood in Carlsbad, and this Carlsbad adjacent place in Encinitas caught my eye the last time I was here. When Lucy Y and I tootled down to Carlsbad on a Friday, our hunger drew us to Firenze Trattoria. We were there quite late, 2:30, and there was nobody there by the time we left. The server told us that it gets very crowded at night, which I can imagine. It must be so pleasant to sit on the beautiful, vine-laden patio on a warm summer night and enjoy the incredible smells and flavors. (We could smell the wonderful food from the parking lot!) Our server, Julie, at first seemed a little distant, but she turned out to be a really nice and helpful person, and she also told us about some other places in the area. The assistant who served us our food was also very nice and polite, and he came back regularly to fill our glasses and cups. I know it's so American to drink coffee with a meal, but I really wanted some caffeine and they actually had really good coffee, which is unusual for an Italian restaurant. Lucy Y. and I shared a starter salad, the Grilled Gamberi (shrimp) salad. It was superb. The shrimp were cooked with such a delicious, authentically Italian flavor. There were some fresh little greens, nuts and just the right amount of goat cheese. Mmmm... Then we both had the grilled salmon. Lucy Y. had hers rare with sauteed spinach (instead of the daily veggies which were carrots and green beans), and I had mine well done with spinach and mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes? In an Italian restaurant?? Well, here's a surprise -- they were the best mashed ever!! Incredibly creamy with lots of butter and lumps. I love my mashed potatoes with little lumps, shows they're real potatoes and not from a package. The salmon was perfectly cooked, as was the spinach -- not too much oil. Lunch here is often not very crowded, according to Julie, but I want to come back for dinner and check out the crowd. It's a little pricey but soooo good, it's worth every penny! We ordered the cheesecake because I didn't feel like tiramisu, and it was a mistake. Dont' order the cheesecake. Apparently the tiramisu is homemade and wonderful so we will try that next time. They should just take the cheesecake off the menu. But -- one of my favorite places in my new hood! read more

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A special shout out to Christine who handled the 8 of us on a Thursday night with extraordinary good humor, patience and professionalism. The ambience is traditional high end. The food is very tasty and presented in old style way. Not over the top. The special starter mussels was delicious. We ordered 2 of them, + 2 salads. Then the 4 couples split 4 mains. Wow. Plenty of food. Finished with 2 tiramisu with 8 spoons. 2 corkage. $95 each couple. Excellent evening. read more

The food was ok. Our server was nice. I met someone there who had made a reservation. I arrived first, was seated and the asked to move to a smaller table because someone made a mistake. I understand that we would be a party of two and I was seated at a four top. It was 6 PM the restaurant was not full and regardless it was embarrassing. Additionally, the table I was moved to was in a doorway. At any rate....what's the point of making a reservation?? As I said, the actual server was nice and the food was, yes, just ok. read more

I wanted to give a shout-out to Matthew our server. He was great! Very informative and quick witted. He worked hard and got the order perfect. Firenze is lucky to have him!!! read more

Fabulous food and an elegant atmosphere. Fresh and quality ingredients go into these delicious dishes. Our server Bill was a gem. Phenomenal! read more

Firenze has been a North County favorite since the day they opened their doors. You can expect good food, and excellent service read more

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Excellent food and service. Quiet enough to have conversation. Nice low lighting but not dark. The oregano sea bass was great!!

An excellent Italian place in Encinitas, off the beaten path. It is hard to exactly categorize it: definitely not haute cuisine (not homestyle Italian either), ambience and service are excellent. The result more or less matches the experience of a high-end, but not Michelin-starred, restaurant in Italy with somewhat Americanized menu. The restaurant is located at the edge of a small shopping mall, parking is abundant. The area inside is large and clad in dark-colored wood, creating an intimate atmosphere. However, most of the guests prefer al fresco dining outside, where an Italian patio atmosphere is recreated quite well, with a fountain, linen on the tables, etc. The overall mood outdoors is very upbeat, on weekend afternoons there is quite a good chance of hot air balloons flying overhead. The service was efficient and prompt, the server-to-guest ration is quite reasonable. The food fits our taste way better than the typical US-Italian fare (think Il Fornaio). Pasta dishes fared better with us and are less expensive (go figure!), I suggest to try Cannelloni Fiorentina. Portions are Italian-size (i. e., quite large), definitely consider sharing. The wine list is excellent for the type of the restaurant, although the by-the-glass selection is quite limited. For the experience, the place is not expensive, expect a $70-85 bill for the full dinner (per person), can be much less with the suggested sharing. The place can be used for many purposes: a weekend dinner, a meeting with friends, a date. Well worth a 15 min drive from pretty much anywhere in the North County, if you are in a mood for Italian-ish food. Visited on Sunday evening, reservations were not needed. read more

Damn delicious. If I had more room I would of ate more but the portions are huge and so full of flavor. Ambience and crowd is a bit older but ignore and sit right down and order the Bolognese. Service was fantastic and really a nice intimate date place. read more

Firenze Trattoria - Italian Near Me - Encinitas, California

Beautiful restaurant but very crowded. I felt like there wasn't enough room between each table. The food is well seasoned, but very rich. Service was neither good nor bad; I felt like the wait was a little long for our food and drinks. I may or may not be back... read more

So, found this place on open table, lots of 4 plus star reviews, so thought we'd try for our anniversary. No recognition from anyone on the occasion. Well, this place is stuck in a way past it's prime strip mall in the middle of nowhere where if the apocalypse was happening would be the place to go. Service sucks if your not one of the regulars not up for a drive to anywhere better. Basically ignored by our waitress who felt it was her job to argue with us on wine glass sizes and what gets served how. The busboy dumped the bread and OO/B vinegar bottle on our table - no offer of Parmesan cheese or pepper for the mix to dip our bread in. The mozzarella appetizer lacked any flavor. The food was mediocre. They should pay a little more to upgrade the box pasta and Ragu spaghetti sauce. All in alll, should've driven to Little Italy or gone for steaks. read more

Here's the thing. I truly love the food and will give five stars for the food, but on my last visit there were many lapses of good service that need major attention. First of all, we were a party of six and Firenza does not allow online reservations for six people. When I called I was told either 5:30 or 7:30, not 6:30, as I had requested. Last time in I noticed a note at the hostess desk that instructed her not to accept reservations between 6 and 7 by phone, regardless of prior reservations. I accepted the 5:30 time but noted that there was absolutely lots of open tables at 6, even accounting for COVID spacing. Unforgivable was the waiter who took used silverware from appetizer plates and placed them covered with bits of food back on the table. This is unthinkable, except at the lowest-rank restaurants. Our order was botched ... some appetizers were never served and our waiter offered no apology when I mentioned the problem. Wine service (by the glass) took 15 minutes for a refill. Someone asked for a side of ice and it was served without a spoon. Classy restaurants always bring a spoon! read more

We enjoy this restaurant very much. Food and service are excellent. Ate there a couple of days ago. I ordered my usual Risotto with filet mignon. The risotto was delicious, but I got 3 or 4 tiny morsels of filet and 3 tiny shrimp. The rest was rice with way too many onions. The meat was tender enough to be filet mignon, but the pieces were so small it was otherwise impossible to tell what it was. The previous time we ate there, I ordered the same thing and the filet was in small pieces, but they were a bit more generous with the serving of meat and shrimp with the risotto. My husband had the cannelloni and enjoyed it. read more

Good bread and good wine. That is the sum of our disappointing dinner experience at Firenze. We have been going here for dinner off and on for the past 15 years. In the past we felt as though the food was consistently very good. Something has changed, unfortunately. The mixed green salad (iceberg) was drenched in what tasted like "bottled dressing". The butternut squash ravioli was swimming in a watery/butter sauce encircling a lump of spinach. The trout special was tasteless and overpriced. The service was perfunctory. Very, very mediocre restaurant now. read more