$300 to eat on a plastic tablecloth on Valentine's Day, not even a candle on the table. I'm…read moreembarrassed I suggested the spot to my date. The experience felt stingy and rushed. I'm sad because I loved this spot and I'm disappointed the quality has gone down so drastically. Portions were very small and the food didn't taste special or interesting. The octopus came out room temp and had been sitting out. Entres lukewarm. The drinks were by far the best part of the meal and it took half an hour to get them. Service was all over the place but they get a pass because it's Valentine's Day. Do yourself a favor and try Rosanna's instead.

RESERVATION ONLY * WOW! What an amazing meal! Best carbonara I've ever had. Husband ate all of his…read morevodka pasta with chicken. High quality ingredients. Lovely glasses of wine. Service was great. You can tell the people working here take care of their space. Someone was always cleaning. Tiramisu was light and flavorful. What a great gem in Albany.

Last night Birthday celebration…read more As usual perfection! Great food Great pricing Superior service Fabulous atmosphere And Sienna What can we say She has been our personal server for years! She makes every visit fun and memorable!!! Want a great night Go to Grappa You cannot beat it !!!!!

My boyfriend, his family, and I arrived at Grappa '72 to celebrate my boyfriend's graduation from…read moremed school! Our hostess was just the sweetest. She had lots of recommendations for what drinks and dishes to order, and she was really attentive towards our party. When we sat at our table, we helped ourselves to the fresh table bread and tapenade while we decided what to order. I decided to get the seafood special, which was a grilled branzino served with blistered green beans and wild rice. While the dish tasted a bit too oily for my liking, there was LOTS of food that came with this dish - enough for me to pack as a lunch the next day! What was also memorable about this experience was the live music playing at front. This is a very nice Italian resto for special occasions and date nights.

The roasted cauliflower main was very disappointing, the other dishes that my group had were…read moredecent. Service was great!

Rosanna's -- A Genuine Gem That Deserves Every Star There…read moreare restaurants you visit and forget, and then there are restaurants that stay with you long after the last bite. Rosanna's is firmly in the second category -- and after an exceptional dinner that left both of us completely satisfied and already planning our return visit, I cannot recommend this place highly enough. From the moment we walked in, the ambience set the tone for the entire evening. Warm, inviting and thoughtfully designed, Rosanna's strikes that rare balance between intimate and lively -- the kind of space that feels equally suited for a romantic dinner for two or a celebratory night out with people you love. The lighting is soft without being dim, the energy is buzzing without being overwhelming, and every detail of the room communicates that this is a place that genuinely cares about the experience it creates for its guests. The service matched the atmosphere perfectly. Our server was attentive, knowledgeable and genuinely enthusiastic about the menu -- not in a rehearsed, corporate way but in the way that only happens when staff actually love where they work and believe in what they're serving. Questions were answered with confidence and warmth, dietary considerations were handled graciously and without any fuss, and the pacing of the meal felt exactly right. Not rushed, not forgotten -- just perfectly timed. It is the kind of service that makes you feel like a valued guest rather than just another table to turn over. Now the food -- where do we even begin. We started with the Shrimp Balls and they were an immediate knockout. Perfectly seasoned, beautifully presented and gone far too quickly. The arugula dip alongside them was bright and fresh -- a genuinely clever pairing that elevated what could have been a simple appetizer into something memorable. This dish alone would be worth coming back for. For mains we ordered the Wild Mushroom Risotto -- elevated with a grilled shrimp skewer addition that turned an already outstanding dish into a complete and deeply satisfying meal. The risotto was everything a great risotto should be -- creamy without being heavy, deeply savory with layers of earthy mushroom flavor, finished beautifully with truffled pecorino that added just the right amount of richness. The shrimp skewer on top was perfectly grilled, plump and fresh -- a brilliant pairing with the earthiness of the mushrooms. Our dining companion ordered the Boneless Beef Short Ribs which arrived tender, deeply flavorful and beautifully plated -- the kind of dish that makes you close your eyes on the first bite. What makes Rosanna's truly special is that everything works together -- the room, the service, the food and the overall feeling of being genuinely well taken care of. This is not a restaurant that relies on one strong element to carry the others. Every component earns its place. Whether you are celebrating something special, treating someone you love or simply in search of a great dinner in wonderful company -- Rosanna's delivers on every level. Do yourself a favor and make a reservation. You will not regret it. And the pellegrino soda was great I got the blood orange! And we took the olive oil orange cake to go yum!

Food and service were excellent. The space is noisy hard to hear people at your table on a busy…read moreSaturday night .. The bar area is open to the dining. They should have separated the bar and perhaps put up some acoustical tiles to decrease the sound volume. I would not go back on a weekend again only during the week if less crowded.

Simply outstanding! Amazing Eggplant Parmigiana. Truly wonderful chicken francese - best I ever…read morehad. Bread is fresh and warm and plentiful. The waitstaff was exceptionally attentive without being overbearing. The bartender is a master drink maker. I strongly recommend that you get a reservation as the restaurant is extremely busy - a testament to how good it is - or you not get seated. One caution- the restaurant is rather noisy and the tables are fairly close so be prepared to potentially get friendly with the guests at the next table

It's kind of a unique venue as it appears to have once been a house converted into a restaurant and…read moremaybe was a deli as well? I can describe it as organized chaos as they were busy and the staff really do hop around trying to keep up. Starting with over warm bread and a nice oil/garlic dip the menu offers some nice choices and is not overwhelming large. The bruschetta was good and the calamari fresh but somewhat over salty but the red sauce kicked that down some. The entree's were good and the plates plentiful with extra to take home. Several dessert choices as well and the cannoli fresh and over stuffed.

Last night we had a wonderful dining experience at Cafe Calabria II, located on Western Avenue…read moreabout 1 mile west of the I-87 interchange. The server was friendly and knowledgeable and the food was superb. We started with the Duck Pate special and the Poached Clams. Both dishes were outstanding. G/F had the Oriechiette with Rapini and crumbled Sausage and I had the fabulous Chicken Francaise. We finished by sharing the Lemon Cake and the Chocolate Cake. This was a fantastic dinner from beginning to end. We will definitely be returning!

I recommend Nicole's Restaurant to anyone who is looking for delicious food and great portions…read more Food: the food was tasty, well made, and the portions were great. From the flat bread to the pastas, they all were delicious. Although, the chicken parm did not really impress. It was a bit bland and ordinary. But everything else was great. Service: I give the service over all a 3/5. The only reason is because when we first came in, we waited in-front of the door for over 5 minutes with no one to greet us, give us directions to wait or sit, the both bar tenders who saw us standing there, just ignored us. And we were pretty visible, lol, it was 2 adults and 2 children. At one point we had to ask the bartender if we wait there or do we go sit, and he answered to wait. Finally someone came and asked us if we had a reservation (we didn't) and was nice enough to accommodate. The waitress was very polite and friendly 5/5 for her. Ambiance: cozy, warm, private, and great for families. I recommend Nicole's....but be prepared to be ignored at first, no worries, it is worth it in the end. Lol.

A really perfect experience. The ambiance of Nicole's is romantic, intimate but not too crowded…read more Perfect for date night or girls night out. Highly recommend starting with the short rib and burrata flatbread. The pear martini is a very refreshing sipper cocktail. For my entree I had the chicken Marsala which was prepared wonderfully, great balance of sauce and mushrooms over the chicken and pasta. Enough to bring some home without being a huge portion for no reason. Highly recommend a visit here!

We had a wonderful girls night out here. The food was good if not remarkable. It was a very tight…read morespace on a packed night. The service was the best part of the night. Our waiter made sure to take care of us and was helpful without being intrusive. When one of my friends spilled her wine he helped her clean up and replaced the wine. I had the lunch portion of pasta bolognese. It was just enough. Ground beef and pork mixed with a well balanced sauce. One of my friends had fig and prosciutto pizza. I tried a slice and it was very sweet with lots of creamy cheese flavor and a lot of arugula on top. My other companions had full portions of pasta dishes and seemed to enjoy them. We shared Arancini as an appetizer. That was my favorite bite of the night! As the waiter said they were addictive with smoked mozzarella and a good marinara to dip them in. We were served average Italian bread with olive oil pesto dip to start. The cocktail specials were very impressive . I ordered a seasonal maple bourbon drink. It was nicely bitter with touches of warm sweetness from the maple and orange slice. A nice festive experience. One of the owners/managers came over to see if we were enjoying ourselves. They aren't reinventing the wheel here but the food we had was tasty. It's not inexpensive but we had a good time.

We visited Albany NY for the first time to support a family member during a competition. We read…read moregood reviews online and decided to give them a try. We made reservations, which was mandatory. We arrived expecting it to be super crowded, being that we could not get our initial time requested of 6:00pm we arrived and the ambiance was great. We were seated within 2 minutes. Our waiter took longer than expected to great us and take our order. He was apologetic, very friendly, and quite handsome if I may add. We placed our orders and enjoyed the atmosphere while we waited. Our salads were brought out. My caesar salad was not aa fresh, however it was edible. We had higher expectations for our main Italian dishes, based on the previous reviews we read.

Came here with coworkers for a business dinner, and from the outside you'd never expect how great…read moreit is inside. The restaurant itself is smaller and broken up into different rooms, which actually makes for a really nice, more intimate dining experience. The service was top notch. The staff and our waitress were incredibly attentive very professional and always right there when you needed something without being overbearing. As for the food, everything we had was excellent. I ordered the duck, and having it prepared in different ways including as a sausage was honestly amazing. The eggplant appetizer was on another level, and the grilled octopus was cooked perfectly and full of flavor. I also had an espresso martini, which was made really well. To top it all off, the pistachio cake for dessert was the perfect finish. Overall, this place is truly top notch great food, great service, and a great experience all around. Definitely worth checking out.

Traditional Italian food in a cozy atmosphere. The ossobuco was tender and flavorful. Pasta is…read morefresh and served al dented. We shared a sumptuous pistachio cake for desert. The service was exceptional. Recommend for couples and small groups.

Nice family restaurant. Went for a family birthday dinner, service was excellent and we never felt…read morerushed. The food was wonderful.

Bravo! I was fortunate to go to a private birthday party here. The staff was phenomenal. Impeccable…read moreservice. They did not miss a beat. There was a pre-selected menu of many choices, I got the linguine Alfredo with broccoli. It was the best Alfredo. So creamy and the pasta and broccoli were cooked perfectly. I was sad I didn't get a photo. I had it for lunch today too! Mmm I need to come back here for dinner very asap. There were other dishes that I would have liked to have tried. The chicken Parm was huge and looked delicious. The shrimp pesto?? I wish I got that. There were appetizers too. The calamari was delicious and the marinara??? I want more of that! Thank you for a wonderful lunch!

When you have to wait 20 minutes on a Wednesday evening something good is happening…read more Great service and suggestions from our server and a good bar and drink menu. Appetizers were great and an added treat of dessert Zeppole as a complimentary item. Food was great no complaints on anything and portions enough for a second home treat. Great selection of background music and a lively vibe.

Get the veal! It's so amazing! I go here Everytime I visit Albany. You definitely need a…read morereservation. Servers are amazing personality wise but the service can be a little slow. Go when you want to have an amazing meal and sip some wine.