My wife and I met with a couple friends from Manhattan (we're both from Oregon, but with a combined 60+ years In the food and beverage industry) and found the fare excellent from beginning to end. Evelyn, our server and part owner, made the evening one of our finest experiences in many years. She understood her menu and shared their ability to accommodate our individual requests for subtle menu variations. There was nothing but an honest effort to guide us to great menu selections. She was neither too perky or scripted. It's hard to explain our experience here other than to say Evelyn made us feel as though we were home. I felt as though I'd been coming here for years and was one of her favorite regulars..a hard task to accomplish on a first meeting! Kudos from Colin and Angie Call and my Sister in law Marcia and husband Bennie read more

Excellent food while visiting Florida. Authentic flavors with a eclectic environment. Loved it. Wish we lived closer to visit more often.

The food and service are amazing. Cute and quaint atmosphere. The food is authentic Italian and so full of flavor. The Eggplant Parmesan and Tiramisu and excellent. read more

Food, service, atmosphere= AWESOME. Had the seafood pasta, with shrimp, clams, fish, and mussels, in a lobster cream sauce. It was great. Loaded with seafood and the sauce was to die for. My mum got the lobster ravioli which she thought was also very good. She thought there could have been more lobster and less filling but was still delicious nonetheless. The bread and oil mixture served was great, however have never seen extra bread as being charged more. Oh well, still yummy. Server was awesome, can't remember her name and the atmosphere/decor was great. Will 100% be back. read more

This is a little hidden gem, try it you wont be disappointed with such great Italian food. It's intimate and cozy great for conversation or a romantic athmosphere. The owners and staff are attentive and friendly, they are happy to give recommendations on the food or ask how the meal is going. I ordered a special they had that night, gnocci with a white sauce and clams and it was so delicious. I ate every bit along with extremely good sangria. A great spot, walked back to the appartment very satisfied with our meal. read more

A small and intimate little italian place. Food is good and the decor is cute. The staff is very friendly and attentive. Wine is good. I would come back. read more

My boyfriend & I started out with the Fiocchi which is absolutely mind blowing & the customer service by Donia was absolutely amazing. She is a treasure to that establishment for sure. The only problem I had was the sauce was way too spicy & I like spicy. The decor is warm & fun. Would definitely come back especially with such a great waitress! read more

This is a great Italian restaurant in the neighborhood that is great for the locals as well as the visitors. The atmosphere is awesome, the service excellent, and the food is always great. We are locals and have never been disappointed and have taken many visitors here for dinner. I highly recons if you are looking for a great dinner experience. read more

Disappointed. Interior remains small, nicely decorated, but very small tables are perhaps too closely spaced. Background music was nice, but was too loud for such a small area. Our table was up against a wall, and on that wall was a wine cork decoration (which by itself was nice), but unfortunately it had business card advertisements pinned to it. Very tacky for an "upscale" restaurant. Service was indifferent - not at all friendly. I had the Fruiti di Mare. The lobster cream sauce was great, and the seafood (what there was of it) was perfectly cooked - but unfortunately there was less than half the amount as compared to similarly priced dishes at area restaurants. The Ceaser salad had fresh romaine and a generous amount of parmesan, but essentially had no dressing. My biggest disappointment though was that there is now an upcharge for bread and extra red sauce. The patron saint of Italian restaurants just rolled over in his/her grave. I could understand an upcharge for the lobster cream sauce, which requires extra prep time - but red sauce does not. Sheer greed. Won't be back. read more

After eating in this so called Italian restaurant for the past year, I went in tonight after making reservations to sit outside. once seated we were ignored for 10 to 12 min then the waiter came over and took the order for 3 of us. I asked for a substitute for one of the items i did not like and the waiter recommended this creole dish. so i just ordered soup for myself. the other two orders were veal and chicken parm. The waiter left and came back within minutes to bring a 6 inch piece of bread for all 3 of us with 3 small pieces of butter. we immediately asked for more bread and butter. We waited for about an hour for the meal, my soup and drinks, still not bread and butter. I finally went inside to complain. The owner said oh you only waited 45 min...STILL ???? she told me she would take care of the meal for us and when I received the check it was for $51.00. i told the waiter i was not paying for this bill and to send the owner out. she argued with me saying they did nothing wrong and if i continue she would call the police. i told her to do it because it was a crime on how we were treated. The owner also stated we complain too much according to our waiter. I paid $45.00 left no tip and walked out. I WILL NEVER GO BACK AND I WILL NEVER RECCOMEND THEM TO ANYONE EVEN IF IT WAS FREE. read more

Fabulous food! Nothing in this restaurant matches and it's very artsy as everything is for sale. The grouper marinara and brussels sprouts are unbelievable good! The wine is also amazing, all organic. read more

Had our second visit . This time brought friends. Some expected delights and some small disappointments. The good. I had twin filet mignon cuts that were topped with perfectly ripe (plum? ) tomatoes pieces and drizzled with a blue cheese sauce (don't think the typical boiler plate type). I usually don't order filet because I don't feel it is one of the tastier cuts. But based on my last meal here I was willing to gamble and it paid off in spades. The steak was absolutely delicious and the sauce was "to die for".Our guest both ordered basic items (spaghetti etc) and they said they were very good. Now the "not so good" My wife ordered the scallops which she had and loved on our previous visit. This time they were not bad, but simply not as good as the first time.I don't think they were seared as well as the first time. Also her asparagus was a little overcooked and heavier than need be on butter.No critical issues, and still better than most places but a little disappointing after our first experience. We are not giving up yet and will give it another try soon read more

In my opinion any restaurant that takes advantage of people who must eat gluten-free for their health by charging six dollars extra for the pasta is not a place where I intend to eat. It definitely shows a lack of concern for the health of possible patrons. read more

We have come to IRB for a week each year for the last 4 years, and this is our favorite restaurant in Pinellas Co. We took a flyer on this place on our first visit, immediately booked a second visit before we left, and two visits a week is now a tradition. Evelyn is a charming, welcoming host and Stefan (while also charming) is an outstanding chef. Go-to dishes are the Seafood Stefan Fra Diavolo, scallop skewer over key lime linguine in butter sauce, lobster ravioli, an excellent gluten-free brownie with salted caramel ice cream, and the limoncello layer cake dessert is a culinary mic drop. The ambience here is fabulous--cozy, eclectic, homey, with a dining room playlist to match (and all of it curated by Evelyn). If we lived here we'd eat here every week. read more

Very disappointing evening. Food was just ok. Extra charges for everything. Would not recommend.

Over the last 2 years my partner and I have consistently visited Stefano's for the best Italian food around and they have never disappointed. Evelyn is wonderful and Dania is the very best when it comes to customer and friendly service. Hope to see Merv back too....she's a great, funny server!! We have been excited to bring our family members and friends over the years and they too have become fans. Love the homey/warm atmosphere, great homemade sangria and my favorite dish, Michaelangleo! read more

Excellent, fresh Italian food. I had a salad with spring greens, fruit, blue cheese, and the house dressing which had a citrus flavor. Tasty, healthy and filling. I got the appetizer eggplant Parmesan. Perfect and more than I could finish. Jen ordered Bruschetta and a salad. The Bruschetta had mozzarella and perfect summer chopped tomatoes. Again more than we could finish. I give the food and service a 5 but wasn't crazy about the eclectic decor. Will go back! read more

Anyone who writes a good review for this restaurant has to be a relative! Do you watch Ramseys nightmares??? The plastic flowers should be the first clue - It is filled with plastic grapes, flowers, junk! We made a reservation for a party of 10 and we were told we would be in the front because of a party of 15 in the main restaurant- I said - Is there something wrong with the front? Is it cold? (temps were in the 40's here at the time). I was told it would not be an issue... So we get there and we are RIGHT AT THE DOOR! Everyone coming in and out blasted us with cold - so I said that I specifically asked about this when I called and I was told it was warmer than the other room because the other room had no heat! We ordered dinner and as we went through the order process each we found that there were soups and salad with the entrée - a regular salad or a Caesar which was an up charge - house soup or soup with a up charge. Entrees were anywhere from $16 to $30. We had to ask for bread and received 5 slices and dipping oil. There was so little dipping oil - we did not know it was there!.. when dinner arrived we asked for additional bread and we were told it wasn't offered because there was a charge for bread. Bread for 10 people that evening was an additional $12.00 - $12.00 for bread! To be fair -I can tell you that several of the meals were good, Lobster ravioli was good, seafood pasta was average, salmon was OK, scampi was OK. However - and there is always a however - the service was TERRIBLE - waited a long time for everything - no water refilled and dishes were not cleaned from the table! And lastly - let me mention to son - or customer or whoever that wander in and out at least 5 times with an IPOD and headset! All in all - why would you go to this place - it is like eating dinner in the insane asylum! I would say - DON'T GO! read more

My husband and I are residents of Indian Rocks Beach and Stefano's is not only our favorite neighborhood restaurant, we consider it one of the best Italian restaurants in the entire Tampa Bay area. It's hard to choose a favorite dish because we have yet to be disappointed with anything we've had there. The fiocchi is unique and delectable; the house salad with citrus vinaigrette is always fresh and light; the grilled scallops are among the best we've ever had; and the lobster mac and cheese is well worth the calories. Wines are reasonably priced and the service is always excellent. The décor is no doubt eclectic and unique; but at Stefano's you'll feel like you're eating excellent food in the intimacy of someone's home, versus mediocre food in the loud, impersonal and institutional ambiance of a large chain restaurant. read more

Friendly staff. Very quaint. Good quality food. This will be a place I go to again and recommend the IRB community continue to support.

We had dinner tonight and it was a good experience. Service is friendly. Gnocchi were light and I enjoyed the spicy tomato sauce. I had hogfish with rice and a kale/ Brussel sprout mixture. The vegetables were good. The hogfish was dry and a little over cooked but the preparation was still tasty. The bread served with dinner is really good. read more

Disappointed and not welcome. We absolutely love our favorite family-owned Italian restaurant in St. Pete Beach, but we also love to try places closer to our home. Based on that and Yelp reviews, we decided to try Stefano's. We arrived approximately 15 minutes after opening on a Saturday. Instead of being welcomed, we were immediately and tersely asked by the hostess (?) if we had a reservation. No we did not, but let's start by saying, that yes, they have limited seating, but not a single customer was in the restaurant when we arrived. We were welcomed nicely by a gentleman we saw near the kitchen donning an apron. However, we were informed by the hostess that we could sit at the bar or at one of the small tables just outside of the kitchen. I felt that the information could have been conveyed in a more courteous manner. At that point, I did not want to be there, but my son wanted to stay, so I asked to sit at one of the tables outside, to which we were unceremoniously escorted. I still wanted to leave and asked my son several times. While we dined, another couple was brought outside by a different staff member who was in the process of explaining and apologizing for the small dining space, who their waitress would be, etc. The same person who "greeted" us when we arrived remained our server. When our salads were brought to the table, she had to go and retrieve silverware. When our fellow diners were brought their salads, their server, Sophia, also brought salt, pepper, and cheese. We never received those. At the point in the meal when the server usually asks how everything is, our server did not approach our table, but rather stood at the door from the main restaurant to the al fresco dining area and asked from there. Wow. Onto the food. The citrus vinaigrette was amazing, but my salad had a few wilted leaves and a small amount of green lettuce "over-ripe" slime. My spaghetti was perfectly al dente, but was thinnish spaghetti, not the thicker (#8-type) spaghetti I expect to see at an authentic family-owned establishment. The sauce and my son's lasagna was ok, but not great. I should mention that a spaghetti dish is my test of any Italian restaurant. If you can't do spaghetti right, I am not interested in trying other menu items. Again, pasta was cooked correctly, but sauce lacked distinction. Based on the fairly good food, but over-the-top unwelcome experience we had, we won't be back. Back to St. Pete Beach... read more

If I could have given a big fat ZERO stars I would have. I'm not one to give bad reviews or complain, but I just got off the phone with Stefano himself and felt the need to let others know what our experience has been. We are long time patrons of Stefanos, since the IRB days. Last night my husband ordered the chicken parm, came home and doubled over in pain and vomited all night had to get antivomiting meds. this am still in pain. Called Stefano, let him know. He tried to tell me that he has Public health training that informs him food poisoning from chicken takes 3 days to kick in. I told him I disagree, he insisted. I then had to let him know that I am a medical professional, I work in the hospital and that information is not true at all. Instead of apologizing and asking what he could do, he tried to give me the science behind food poisoning. I told him, strike one was when we ordered for takeout during the shutdown and my husband was still hungry after his chicken parm only had 5 ziti with it. Strike 2 was last nights food poisoning. Strike 3 was his response to my call today, especially since I told him I was calling so no-one else would get this sick. DO NOT GO HERE. THEY DO NOT CARE AND THEY HAVE CHANGED FOR THE WORSE. read more

Great find! This is one of our favorite places to eat! It's small but so very quaint. One of the first things you notice is the decor which is very eclectic. Every chair, tablecloth, glass, etc. is different! The service is outstanding and everyone is welcoming and friendly. But what brings us back time after time is the delicious food! From the fresh baked bread and crispy greens salad to the amazing entrees, everything is so, so good and prices are very reasonable. Definitely leave room for dessert!! read more

This place is so odd and sooo good. The interior is kitschy and romantic. Not at all stuffy and certainly not fancy..more understated and warm. They seem to focus on good food. We went on a whim and I was only disappointed that we'd never tried it before... The food was TO DIE FOR. We had fried zucchini to start with- then I got the lobster mac and cheese bake. Holy cow, I don't remember much else from the night because I was high off the mac and cheese. It was that good. I really can't wait to go back. I've added some photos to the storefront info. Unfortunately, I failed to get pictures of the lobster mac and zucchini before I ate it up. I guess that is a good sign :) read more

See all

Went here ion vendor take out got three dishes and it was like $70. The house dressing was so much lemon that we could eat it. Lasagna was good not great and for the price I would have expected to have a larger piece. Overall again price performance Was not there. read more

First time visit with my family. SUCH a homey feel inside. Food was delicious ..marsala sauce tasted a bit like it had soy sauce in it though. Everything else was perfect! read more

The food is best in the beach by far! Best Italian food ever! We made reservations through their voicemail. We had Fiochhi pasta purses with sweet pears and cheese with a light cream sauce. Their citrus vinaigrette is on point! The Lemoncello cake had homemade sweet cream on top. They had a great beer and wine list, too! My husband had pasta carbonara which was so good! I would recommend this restaurant to all spring breakers who are sick of fried beach food!! read more

My husband and I went to this local, recently reopened Italian restaurant to celebrate a happy occasion. Our first time here and we were excited to try it as it is local and we are looking for a place with good food, good atmosphere and good service to make it our favorite place as we finally moved down here full time. As it turns out, we will have to continue looking. We went early on a mid-week day and were asked if we had a reservation, which we did not. We were told they could fit us in (half the tables were empty) so I thought it was their humor, until they told us they had a large party scheduled for 7pm. (We were done by 730, and no large party had shown by then.) This is a small restaurant, with approximately 12 tables, with some pretty close to each other. The atmosphere is eclectic, different tablecloths, mismatched water glasses, hanging decor from the ceiling, light fixtures made from colanders and assorted cooking utensils, wooden spoons, forks etc.. Little jokes placed in a cork on the table... I liked it, my husband wasn't a fan. Every entree comes with a choice of salads, we had the Caesar salad, it was tasty, with nice thin slivers of parmesan cheese but we initially questioned if they forgot to put the dressing on, as there was so little, many pieces of the salad had none on it. The eggplant parmigiana was a little chewy, not tender and the coating fell off, the amount of cheese and tomato sauce that covered it was very light. They do include a small portion of pasta on the plate, but no choice of the type of pasta was offered. Sides were available for an extra charge I was very surprised when I realized they had not served bread with our meal, so once we started our meal we had to order bread -very unusual for an Italian restaurant.We requested the bread, which came with an oil and herb mix on the side. It was two dollars for the smallest sliced rolls. Please reconsider this practice, or have your servers inform the customer when ordering the meal. Dessert consisted of 4 choices, pretty standard items and nothing to be raved about. They were done nicely. The wine selection was decent and we did enjoy the bottle we ordered. Dinner for two, without an appetizer, but including a bottle of wine was close to 100.00. The server was very nice, made good recommendations and appeared to know the menu well. She checked on us often, and didn't let the dirty plates sit on the table. She was one of the best parts of this experience. We will have to continue our search. read more

Great find on the beach. Superb Italian food. Everything fresh from the market in the morning. Had Stefano's Seafood over linguine and the hog nose snapper special. Both prepared exquisitely. Restaurant had nice and cozy feel and charm. Definite go to again! and Again! read more

Best Italian on the Gulf!!! We live in Little italy in our city, and have travelled to Italy plenty of times. This place is a gem. If you want tasty, well prepared food, all homemade - well, go to Stefanos!! what are you waiting for, go now!!! read more

Great food and good atmosphere. Not recommended for young children.

This is a wonderful little place reminiscent of Italian neighborhood restaurants in Baltimore's Little Italy, Manhattan's Upper West Side, or Boston's North End. It is a must check out place if you are looking for that eclectic experience: every table, china dish, table cloth are tasteful and different. From the ceiling hang all sorts of Italian cooking hardware reminding me of my great grandmother's kitchen in Baltimore's Little Italy where I learn to make and eat ravioli. The proprietors, Stefan and Evelyn, are a husband-wife team that delight in doing it the way you would like -- spicy red sauce or a cream pasta dish -- no problem. The lobster ravioli is the best I have ever tasted; the mussels are great! Everything is fresh. Call and make reservations for one of the alcove tables and be prepared to eat well and visit a different time and place. read more

Had dinner here tonight with my husband and daughter while on vacation. We sat outside to enjoy the lovely weather and revel in the fact we couldn't do this home in Cleveland this time of year. The food was absolutely fantastic. The bread was warm with a crisp crust and soft center. I had the fiocchi a delicious pasta filled with pears and cheese in a cream sauce. My husband had the grouper which was cooked to perfection; light, flaky and moist. His linguine was served with a red diablo sauce which had a great flavor and nice spice/heat but not overpowering. The brussels sprouts were also very flavorful. We finished the evening with a warm brownie topped with salted caramel ice cream and whipped cream (my daughter's favorite part of the meal). All in all one of the best meals we have had in a while at a great local one-and-only restaurant. We also spent time speaking with what we assume were the owners. They were very friendly and personable and I could tell they take real pride in their food. I highly recommend this restaurant. read more

Outstanding! Those that wold rate this place poorly due to the decor simply don't know good Italian food. The fiocchi is outstanding! We had the special scallops with key-lime infused pasta and a couple of the other 'standard' dishes - food, wine and service was 5-star. I've eaten at some of the finest Italian restaurants throughout Italy and Stefano's is on par - with very fresh, home-made dishes - authentic flavor and great atmosphere. I'll be back! read more

Fresh Grouper marinara with Brussel sprouts was beyond the best thing I have ever had on the beach! This is a very private restaurant with some of the greatest food decor I have ever seen! Soo much fun and such down to earth people. I will, with out a doubt, be back here to eat the grouper and enjoy the wonderful ambiance with my guests! Thank you Stephanos A+++ read more

Happened to stop in while vacationing in Redington Shores last week. Had the pear & ricotta fiocchi and my daughter had the lobster ravioli. Both were delicious as well as the house dressing on the salad. I wish I had room for dessert. Pastas were homemade, service was great, place gave the feel of a true homey italian restaurant with mismatched everything. Highly recommended. Worth the ride from the crowded nonsense of clearwater. read more

We recently bought a place in Indian Rocks Beach, wanted to try this restaurant. My husbands daughter was visiting from Las Vegas so we have her input too. I had the Fiocchi, my husband the Spaghetti Carbonara and his daughter Zak's shrimp over linguine. We also had mussels as an appetizer: they were good not great. The salad were all very good, the house dressing was the best. My Fiocchi was fabulous. Melissa's shrimp were very good but the Carbonara was just awful! They had a fried egg on top which was odd to begin with but the whole dish had no flavor. Very little sauce and tasted very blah. He left most of it. I would be very careful ordering at this restaurant! read more

I JUST left Stefano's with a take-out container of the pasta carbonara and I have to say, it's probably the BEST carbonara I've ever had (sorry mom). I'm traveling alone, so I wasn't sure I'd find a place that I'd be comfortable in, but Stefano's was perfect. I sat at the bar, chatted with the owner over a glass of Italian wine, and left with a smile and an amazing dinner. If you're considering Stefano's, you've made the right choice. Get there now and get one of his mouth-watering specials while they last, or treat yourself to the carbonara (gluten-free option available). Enjoy! read more

I have visited a lot of the restaurants in the area, and I always return to Stefano's. The restaurant decor is very eclectic, the service very friendly and helpful, and the food delicious. I'm a big fan of the Margarita Pizza, Eggplant Parm and a tasty little appetizer of pasta purses filled with pear and ricotta cheese. The salad is always fresh and the citrus italian dressing is wonderful. I love the hog snapper when it's available with a nice mango, pineapple salsa. Simply delightful. read more