I've been here twice and both times it's been MEH, if that's an appropriate sentiment. Most recently, I came with a few friends celebrating the completion of some Masters from the UC, partly out of proximity to the university. Anyways the staff was really nice and friendly. We got seated right away. It's just the food isn't that exceptional. Also, it is NOT gluten-free friendly. One of my friends agreed to come here because he called ahead and they said they had gluten free pasta and pizza crust. However, NONE of their other items are gluten-free (sauce, cheese, etc.). We're not sure what that means, but if they say it's not gluten-free then he won't eat it. It comes around to him ordering and the waitress tells him that his options are to probably just get gluten free pasta with olive oil and maybe a sausage. So he got that. He was also offered a salad, but the dressing wasn't olive oil based and probably wasn't gluten-free, so he didn't eat it (I did though, it was ok for me!). I felt bad for him and anticipate that he won't be coming back here again. He mentioned another local Italian joint has an entire gluten-free menu, if you have a gluten ailment. I ordered Pasta Sienna, which was $15 or so. Our meals came with salad or soup; I got the minestrone. There was also a bread basket. The food took a little longer than I would have expected from a place that was not that busy from what I could see...but maybe they had a busy banquet room. Food came out and it wasn't very much. The flavor was ok, but it felt underwhelming overall. It's the American in me. My friend ordered the tortellini and I had some. The next day both of us were hit with a slight case of stomach sickness. Not sure what was up with the tortellini but I'd never get it again. Another friend got the ravioli that was on special, but they gave him mushroom instead (they were out of the artichoke kind), and there were only 3-4 raviolis. I forgot what the price was but it was probably 13-15$. Anyway, I probably wouldn't come back here if I had the choice. read more

I got the Pasta Siena, It was pretty good dude, very flavorful, and delicious, love the sun dried tomato, and the mixture of Alfredo and curry sauce flavor. Definitely new and love the pasta curry flavor, that hit for me, the pasta and garlic flavors did well. The salad was good, surprisingly larger amount that usually which was good, the mushroom soup was thick creamy and good better than the minestro soup. The thing that was outstanding though was the bread, chewy soft, hint of garlic on top. It was hella good bros. 3 of my buddies got the specials, two got Taghatta al forno, the beef was soft and chewy but a little tasteless. Overall pretty good experience, it was kinda slow on a sunday of graduation, took while to get seats when noone was there, food took a while, and the check took awhile, but the Pasta Siena was outstanding bro, the waiter recommended it to me too, she knew wassup. read more

I've been to strings a few times and the quality is always great - tonight was no different. I took my daughter and friends for her birthday. The girls had pizza and lasanga off of the kids menu and they were pretty impressive. They were just about adult sized portions! I had the spaghetti - yeah unadventurous but delicious. Bread was great. We had desert as well - I sampled everyones selection - cheesecake was wonderful as was the lava cake. My review is missing a star because the salad has a gross dressing on it (creamy Italian?) and wierd crap (raisins?). The service was good. We'll definitely be back! read more

Food Quality: 10/10 I highly recommend the Cheese Stuffed Shells. They are always good. Alfredo only. Service Quality: 10/10 The staff here is always kind and curteous. Atmosphere: 10/10 One of the nicer places to eat in Merced. The decor is very italian and fresh. Cost Efficiency: 10/10 The food is very easily worth it. It's not overpriced or anything. Menu Variety: 10/10 Anything italian is delicious. The bread and salad are also very good appetizers. Over-all Score: 50/50 read more

Very yummy place to have dinner. It is quiet and personable. The only thing I can say is that they seated us next to the back door and it was freezing! read more

This is a nice little place. The atmosphere is great and the calzones are massive. In the nice weather u can sit outside.

This place is always clean, the food is good, some of their staff have an attitude.Some of the employees spend way too much time checking them self out in the mirrors, instead of helping the costumers. I always order pizza and salad. Most of their salad dressings are gross, too SOUR. If you order a salad make sure you ask for ranch on the side.The other salad dressings are nasty. They only have veggie soup, it's super chunky, which I hate. The bread sticks are good. They have a really nice patio with a fire place, the only problem it's always close, they want everyone to eat inside NOT outside!!! I don't get it, maybe it's to save money, not sure. read more

We've tried to give this restaurant a chance a few times. Unfortunately, the food isn't great and tastes like frozen TV dinners at best. It's hard to give your hard earned money to a restaurant when you can do much better elsewhere or even at home. read more

Very nice location and place. However the food has no flavor, just taste like pasta I make at home. Would rather go to an other place in that promenade instead. read more

I had very high expectations considering the pricing. Something of similar quality to macaroni grill at least but I was disappointed. The salad has a house dressing that tastes and smells like spoiled dairy. The only thing saving this place is the bread given with each meal. From the pasta Siena with 3 shrimps and hardly any pasta, to the watered down coffee. Not worth the visit at all. read more

Went to this Strings a while back. However I didn't like the customer service. They were pretty rude and the food took about 30 minutes to come out when there was no other people there. I had hair in my pizza and they told me it was my hair. However the hair was in between the cheese and the marinara sauce, and after I showed the waiter - they finally gave me the option to order a new pizza or to get it covered by them. I got it covered because I didn't want to wait for another one. read more

This used to be my favorite place to eat. It seems since they changed owners the food and service have gone down hill. The prices have gone up and The food is not as tasty (bland). It took forever to order (as she was waiting on all the tables around us, even picking up dirty dishes before taking our order and then took forever for our food to come out. I could see the cooks working but eating at the same time. I hope they weren't eating from our plates. My husband wanted a beer (they were out of most everything and had the cheap stuff). Sad to say I don't believe we will be back. read more

Great food! I ordered the pasta sienna the first time I came to strings and that's all I've ordered ever since. If you like curry, you'll like this. Service is always great here. I even had a small dinner event here and everything went smoothly. My only complaint, the beer glasses. They're like little water glasses. read more

Our regular meal at Strings is usually soup and salad but I tend to wander away from that because the soup is so boring. I ordered fettuccine Alfredo because I felt like eating something simple. The salad was as tasty as I expected and there was plenty of warm bread. The Alfredo sauce was terrible. To the person saying it was made "in house" should get her facts in a row. I even asked the server and he responded that the soups and sauces are made elsewhere and delivered to the individual sites. He told me that the Alfredo sauce is made with milk and cheese. Not. In conclusion, a bad sauce makes for pasta I would rather have made at home. read more

Couldn't really ask for better. The staff was awesome and friendly. Food was nice and warm bread is freakin great. We spilt the artichoke ravioli, YUM. Also, Blue Moon on tap... can't beat that. read more

We are back in Merced visiting our son at the university. My son was told this was a good place. The place was busy and they said 15 to 20 minutes. We were sat down in less than 10. The staff is very attentive and the food is great. I had Chicken and shrimp special and it was very good plus they did not skimp on the shrimp. We will be back. read more

Went for a work function and though the customer service was great and we were treated nicely by the service staff, the food was not good at all. I ordered the short rib and it was so inedible, I had to return it. I've been in the restaurant and food service industry my whole career and it takes alot for me to return my food, but since my boss was picking up the tab, I didn't want him to pay for entire dinner that I didn't eat. Others at the table seemed to enjoy their food, so maybe the it was an off night? read more

That star is just from the past times I've eaten there and it was okay. My recent experience was over priced preserved vegetable that were extremely salty. It was disappointing I had tried the zoodles there and it was fine but this time it was terrible, I do not recommend the take out. Maybe it was the cooks lack of intrest for the night that over compensated capers and olives for vegetables. Stick to the the carbs and cheese no fresh vegetables here. :( read more

Honestly I don't know if they got new kitchen staff or what but their food has been horrible lately. We've always gone and have had great service with hector and Albert. But not so much with the others. Certain things on the menu taste completely different (and worse) than they did 6 months ago. We won't be going back for quite some time. read more

What an excellent find! We took a chance on yelp and stopped in to give it a try. Awesome pleasant service a varied menu- unique offerings and quite delightful read more

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love this restaurant. the customer service and attitude of the staff is amazing, i thought i had found a little known pasta dish called Pasta Sienna. it happens to be the best seller i overhead a customer order it topped with cheese..i gave it a shot and i found it to enhance the flavor..the salads are delish 1/23/18 first off our server Albert is phenomenal..a caring man with a positive attitude and a fantastic sense of humor. as usual i had the pasta sienna..delicious as usual, i give Strings 10/'s 5/24/18 haven't been back for a while. it's awful pricey. for the three of us it's usually 60+ dollars and that's at lunch. read more

Service was great. The ambience was dark and dusty. Food was okay. I had the eggplant parmesan and the eggplant was hard and flavor less. The pasta/bread was okay but nothing extraordinary. Price was high for the quality of food. read more

Amazing food. Amazing service. Highly recommend. Great atmosphere. Great feel. Friendly and happy staff. 4 stars because the food is a little pricey. read more

I love the food. Their pasta is always cooked nicely and I rarely leave the restaurant unsatisfied. Would definitely give it five stars, but... I have two issues with this place. 1.Whenever they generated the tip percentages for me: - I calculated the tip myself (not including tax and including [i thought they were including when my calculated value was lower than what was printed]) and the numbers they generate never align (it's always in between). -I used to think that it was nice of them to do so, but now all I see is them trying to cheat me out of my money through tips. No thank you. 2. Ordering To-go: - If you tell me that my order is going to be ready in 15 minutes and arrive 30 minutes after I ordered on the phone, I expect my food to be ready. -You do not make me wait an additional 45 minutes for my food, ESPECIALLY if you only have three small tables filled out. read more

Staff is great, food not so much. Had a sister date here. Prices are okay. If you need a place where you can sit a large family this is a good place for that. If you want good food, not so much. read more

Came here for dinner with my mom. She hasn't been out for a while and the service was horrible our server had no personality and was very short with me and my mom. Food was great i had baked italian combo was delicious and mom had spaghetti and meatballs. read more

For the middle of nowhere this the best Strings I've been to so far. We unknowingly came in 45 minutes before close and they service was still friendly and courteous. I got plenty of refills and my "Italian meatloaf" was pretty juicy as meatbread goes. The Brussels sprouts were tasty and drenched in olive oil. My fiancé and her sister disliked their pasta more and more with every bite. I don't like pasta so this review is still four stars! read more

They don't really accommodate dietary restrictions. I asked the server if a specific item contained dairy and she told me it didn't. When I received it, I could clearly see the cheese inside the pasta. Even though I couldn't eat it, the food looked and smelled good. read more

The food was great, They give a free refill with their Italian sodas, the waiters and waitresses were nice, the decor was fantastic; it's really a great authentic Italian cafe. read more

Horrible service! We were the Only people in there and it took them 20 minutes to get my drink! Do not recommend this place.

I do not understand why there are so many bad reviews on the waiters/waitresses were amazing, quick, attentive. The food was great ...I shouldn't have stuffed my face with all the bread and salad before my meal but that's on me. Over all great place, great service. Y'all asking to be waited on like you're The Queen of England or some shit, this is Merced. Calm your asses. And the the table that was spewing out racial comments, it's 2020. You're going to get what's coming to to. read more

I visit Strings often. When I'm looking for something elegant yet casual, this is the place to go. Service is always friendly. The salad is always wonderful. The dressing is there own dressing, which makes it unique. My favorite appetizer is the stuffed mushrooms. That is a must try. My favorite dishes are the pasta dishes..... so yummy. I usually go for the Crab pasta dish. I don't remember what kind of of pasta it was, but they could use any pasta with that sauce and crab meat. The staff is always help full to understanding the menu. They are clean cut and there uniforms are clean and elegant. We always have a good time getting to know our server. Very accommodating for our need to relax and have a good meal. read more

I've had a couple of different dishes here, ranging from Artichoke Dip, to Calzones, to some of their pastas. Overall the food here tastes good, and I have not once left disappointed in a meal, taste-wise. The food portions are pretty big, if you eat bread, soup, and an appetizer, that may be enough right there to fill you up depending on how hungry you are, and the bread and soup are complimentary anyway. If you're trying to save money or are just on a budget (college town after all), you can probably get away with just ordering an appetizer and eating the free bread. The place has busier hours during their All You Can Eat Pasta nights, so prepare accordingly if you're going for that. The AYCE is pretty good too, and servers are usually prompt on getting you your next plate ready. Servers tend to be nice here, and there is usually at least one server who seems very enthusiastic about working there. The weakest aspect of the restaurant is easily that it can have long wait times between food and being seated if the place is busy, but that's pretty normal. If you're ordering off their regular menu, the food can definitely be pricey, but you'll at least get what you paid for. They are willing to split checks for large groups provided they aren't too busy as well, and have given free refills on Italians Sodas before on the house. Pretty good place to eat in Merced overall, if you like Italian food. read more

I was willing to wait the 2 and half hour long wait for my food. But they put me on hold. I waited 15 mins for them to take my order, but then they answered and hung up on me. Now I can't get through. Thanks a lot. I'm pregnant and craving cheesy lasagna. I'll have to find elsewhere. read more

Yesterday was my birthday,and my wife brought home takeout from Strings.My wife and I had pasta sienna,my son had lasagna pastry.It was beyond awesome,and we kept talking about it all evening.Thanks for making my birthday dinner a great event. read more

I have had nothing but good experiences here! And their house salad and bread is my absolute FAVORITE! Staff is always very nice and accommodating as well read more

I saw the waitresses take dirty napkins from one table and gave them to new family coming in to eat.. This very upsetting to see this....

When this place first opened up the service was lacking and the food not so great. But, that was years ago and I'm glad to say that they've gotten their act together and its wonderful now. I probably dine here about once every few months and love it. They have my favorite salad and the staff are friendly. I noticed that the menu recently changed and I miss the old one, but I'm told that if you describe what you are craving, the chefs will be more than accommodating to whip something up. The house chianti is always a good wine choice. I love Strings! read more

I'm amazed by the 3-star trend for this restaurant. I had dinner the other night here and thought it was great. Service is very friendly and the dining room has a cozy feel. Entrees are large portions and very tasty. There is no lack of cheese here! I got the lasagna. Bread is also very tasty. A nice place to have dinner in Merced. read more

Strings is a nice relaxing place to eat and the food is good!