Better than I expected it to be. On a rando visit on a rando afternoon, I sat in the covered sidewalk area with the doggo and it was perfectly pleasant. Good people-watching. When I mused to the waitress that the cream sauce on the seafood pasta might make it heavier than what I was hoping for, she volunteered that they could make it with a white wine sauce base. I took her up on that and it was certainly pleasant that way. There was a good amount of shrimp, clam, and mussels and the pasta had a particularly nice texture. Just-right size portion - not ridiculously huge like you get at some midscale Italian places. The complimentary "focaccia" bread was more like a pizza crust with a bit of cheese baked on top, but it was pleasant and generous in portion. Service was relaxed and pleasant. read more

You want to talk about the perfect date? I took my beautiful girlfriend to Austin for a weekend get away. We searched Holiday Inn's computer for an Italian restaurant to have dinner at, and we decided on Taverna. When we arrived there, we got seated extremely quick, and our server's name was Dana. He was FANTASTIC. My girlfriend and I decided on the Fritto Misto and the Homemade Lasagna Rustica. The Fritto Misto was AMAZING, the sauce that came with complimented the calamari, shrimp, and fried vegetables. The sauce was so delish that my girlfriend and I devoured it extremely quick, and we had to request another side of it. Not only was the Fritto Misto amazing, it was actually a quite large plate. Anyhow, after about 10 mins of getting ourselves into the Fritto Misto, the Homemade Lasagna Rustica came out, and boy, was it filled with flavor. It was EXTREMELY delicious. The Jack Daniels was great too! Wasn't watered down or anything, just like I like it! Anyhow, this was a great place to have dinner out and my girlfriend was extremely happy about it. We had amazing food, great service, and a great experience for the books! read more

Taverna - The Fritto Misto and Jack Daniels on the rocks. - Italian Near Me - Austin, Texas

This was such a chill and fun brunch spot. Service was quick and food was amazing! Definitely recommend the Taverna Hash with vanilla french toast on the side. Oh and their awesome micheladas! read more

Taverna - Taverna Hash and eggs Benedict! - Italian Near Me - Austin, Texas

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I am nothing if not resilient. So when my favorite restaurant in Austin closed 6 days ago, I decided to fill the void. My new favorite restaurant is now Taverna. This is so much more a nature fit as Italian is my favorite food. We started with the Tagliere. Mortadella (my absolute favorite), Prosciutto, Sopressata, Parmesan, Speck & Polenta Crostini it was great, but it is sodium overload with all the meats. I had the Tagliata di Manzo for my main course. That is the 7 oz. Pan Seared Beef Tenderloin, Served Sliced with Arugula, Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Roasted Potatoes. It was very good. For Dessert the Taverna Tiramisu. I loved the chocolate chips in it. At least that's what I think they were. Whatever, it was delicious. The restaurant was cozy. They were going to have us sitting in the center, but Jess spoke up. There was no need to be up on every one else like that. The hostess mentioned that at brunch you can scarcely walk through the place. I wanted to say 'thanks for the warning'. That will make me never want to go there for brunch. I will definitely be back to sample several things on the menu that we did not try tonight. Pizza al Gorgonzola, Pera e Arugula, I have my eye on you!!! read more

I've been meaning to do this review. I work in the service industry and i had a birthday brunch back in April in the new part of taverna called Baci room. Never been and had seen mutual friends post about it. I was blown away. I had the best time. The staff and management gave us the best service. I came in with a group of around 20. Not always the easiest to handle but they did amazing. There was a dj and he was amazing and had us GOING. It was the best start of my day. So much fun. Baci room is more "bottle service" vibes but they completely serve food. They told me ahead of time that the tables were small so i recommended my group eat ahead of time and i arrange around 2. We still order appetizers. They brought us whatever we wanted. I wish i remembered the names of staff. Absolutely recommend this place if you're looking for a good time, Baci is smaller and more private which we love. Lots of places to take cute pictures as well. Highly recommend for birthdays or smaller groups of friends on a Sunday to start your day with some slight boujee class. read more

If you have brunched more than once in your life, you would know that each brunch place has SOME way to get you in. Cheap food or cheap drinks. Well, then you hit the jackpot and find the place that has both. $1 MAKE YOU HOLLA. Seriously? $1 mimosas and bellinis? Sure, I'll have 8. Oh and it gets better. We walked in at prime brunch time and they seated us immediately. I felt like a celebrity. I know you are already sold but I'll continue to tell you that I tried two different dishes with truffle oil. I can't say this enough but I LOVE.TRUFFLE.OIL. Brunches that don't have it, what are you thinking?!! Cheapest brunch drinks in town, greatest location, fantastical service and scrumptious food. sold, sold sold. read more

If you are a customer who values a competent waitstaff, a courteous manager, and a 'customer first' business please do not come here. I co-hosted a birthday Dinner here for a party of 25 people. Finding a fancy restaurant to take on such a large table without requiring a booking fee for a back room is a hassle, so kudos to them I guess for agreeing to be a restaurant that serves food to paying customers. The food I would give two stars. The Fiocchi Pear Gorgonzola was good and interesting on first bite. After three I was sick of it and decided to pack it up to take home. $15 for a portion that I could have easily finished had it been more pleasing to my palette. I also ordered a strawberry basil cooler. It was quite tasty but I believe quite virgin as well. I do not appreciate paying $11 for a five ounce strawberry lemonade garnished w a leaf of basil. Now to the bad part. The other birthday girl and I made sure to call twice ahead of the reservation to ask if they would be able to handle a large table with everyone paying separately. While they do not give separate checks, they assured us that they could work something out. Our waiter gave us the check and told us to write what everyone ordered on the back. He came back with everyone's check, which was the price of the food plus an arbitrary amount that our waiter added on as 'tax'. This number ranged between 2-4$ on top of each person's food order. The waiter then tells us there is a $42 balance on our table's check. ..what. You're the one that gave us our tabs.. It's not that we refused to pay the remaining balance of $42, its that when we inquired with the waiter to see where this charge came from (so that we knew who owed how much of this balance) he seemed confused and had no explanation for us. After being confused for five minutes he told us that he would cover it. We thanked him and then the members of our party proceeded to write their TIP amount on their individual copy. We left the restaurant and a few of us stayed out on the street right outside the restaurant to take pictures. This is when the manager and a different waiter came out to tell us we owed them $42. They proceeded to tell us that we were stealing from the restaurant. We explained that the waiter offered to eat the balance because he was not capable of telling us where the balance came from. We would have gladly paid had we known what the balance came from and why he didn't add it to our tab to begin with. It was clear from our discussion that the manager had no clue how the bill was handled or who was at fault. All she heard was 42$ and chased us down to demand payment. This is when, out of frustration, my boyfriend took out his card reluctantly and told them to charge it on there. He did it because he didn't want to waste any more time when we had other birthday festivities planned. I told him, no he wasn't going to pay for it, and took the card from them and returned it back to him. While we were still in heated discussion w the manager about who was responsible for the balance, my boyfriend gave his card back to them. Then the manager, in the middle of our sentence, told us that she had enough, ran back into the restaurant, and RAN THE CARD for $42. When they came back with the check requiring signature, I was absolutely appalled. At no restaurant would this be an acceptable gesture. Absolutely unacceptable. The only thing this restaurant manager managed to do was that she managed to successfully wasted one hour of MY time on MY birthday to tell me we owed them money. Which turned out to be, after we sat down and figured it out, (we added up the tip that everyone wrote on their tab which was supposed to go towards the balance they said we owed them), to be a whopping $11. And they charged it on my boyfriend's card. read more

This is my second 2 star review in 2 days , and I don't enjoy the feeling :( I brought my family here for my dad's "special" birthday lunch. I did call ahead and make reservations, so we were seated immediately. Our waitress took our drink order , and was very accommodative of my mom's gluten problem , and took her time to explain the menu. I was very impressed with all this. We got the mediterranean pizza , the house salad,focaccia bread (which is just pizza crust) , gluten free vegetable pasta and risotto. The pizza was rather underwhelming. The crust was overdone , it was completely devoid of taste. In contrast, the gluten free pasta was delicious. The salad was very obviously straight out of a box of salad greens with a few slices of cucumbers thrown around. I'm rating the food a 2/5. The food took a while to come out. But the focaccia i ordered for my 3 year old came out real fast , and I am grateful for that. Here comes the worst part though. Our total was $75 , and we paid up with a $100 bill. The waitress came by and asked if we wanted any change. We requested $10 back , considering a 20% tip. The waitress came back after a while and said "please take back $5, you haven't tipped me enough. I earn $2.30 an hour and deserve a 20% tip." Unfortunately for her , my husband is something of a math genius, and explained that 20% of 75 was $15, and that we had to get $10 back. It took a while for her to accept that she made a mistake - or, she wanted 30% and lied about a 2.30$ an hour wage - which I found quite disturbing. I'm uncertain about this- is the management paying a lower wage than minimum wage? Or was the waitress untrained to use a calculator? I get that the service industry is unkind to its employees at times. But instances like this ruin everything. With all of this, and the ordinary food - I'd say this is comparable to an Olive Garden. Except that it costs $13.50 for a 12" pizza. Meh indeed. read more

On a Sunday afternoon for brunch this place is slammed. 30 minute wait for a table, possibly 30 minute wait to get up to the bar to get one of the $1 mimosas or bellinis. U mad, bro? Sorry... Taverna is like so totally popular. Once we sat down, though, service was great, food came out quickly, and drinks were refilled consistently. I had the eggs benedict, and it was solid - nothing mind blowing, but I'd order it again, and there were enough appealing dishes on the menu to intrigue me into coming back, maybe either earlier, or later (we did arrive around 11:30... possibly the most popular time for brunch). 3 stars (maybe 3.5 if that were an option) because it was totally fine, but the crowd was a bit overwhelming, and there are just so many good places to do brunch 'round these parts. $1 mimosas is a pretty great deal, though. Guys, wear a tank top if you're coming here and you want to fit in. read more

I've been here twice-- both times for large-party birthday dinners. The first time went smoothly with no problems splitting the check. My second large-party experience was dreadful and is why I will no longer be a guest here. Food: The focaccia appetizer is very good. Skip the Salamino pizza, which is just an upgraded pepperoni pizza with a sprinkling of goat cheese and a few tomatoes. The Gorgaonzola & Pear pasta was a little too rich for my liking, but the Paglia e Fieno was tasty. Other pasta dishes weren't too bad--but small for the price. The atmosphere is warm, and it's always very busy. Party Size: I'd recommend not coming here if you've got a large party and plan to split checks. We had a party of twenty-ish, and I felt like the customer service aspect was extremely poor for the following reasons: -Our requests for more bread were plainly ignored by both waiters--I noticed this, but just figured they were stressed from the large party. One basket included about 5 or 6 slices, which wasn't enough for even 1 slice for each person per basket, but half an hour in, one waiter brought out a basket stacked with bread. -Splitting checks: Apparently Taverna's policy is that they don't split checks because of the hassle. If this were the case, they should not have offered to split our check "to help us out". This resulted in a poor confusion over dollar amounts paid by each person, where each person's ticket was added an arbitrary number of "tax" (that rounded to an even dollar amount), with no explanation on each individual ticket if gratuity was included or not. -Customer service on the part of the restaurant: After the meal outside the restaurant, we were incorrectly confronted with missing $42 as a result of the ticket/tax confusion. Upon the initial discussion of the incorrect amount paid, the manager and a different waiter (not the waiter responsible for calculating our checks) came out very politely to talk to us about the difference in charge. Upon the double-take in the finality of the check paid, the birthday girls began to be upset and considered this experience and request of the check deficit unacceptable, since the waiter responsible for our table had said that it was taken care of. Taverna refused to take responsiblity for the waiter that incorrectly charged each card, nor that waiter's judgement on incorrectly splitting the checks. After a heated argument that I witnessed in which the manager semi-lost her cool and walked away from the conversation back into the restaurant to change the card handed over (which is disrespectful for a public owner, even if a guest is heatedly pushing the argument), followed by a long sit-down in which each itemized item purchased was clarified, we owed $11, not $42. Overall impressions: I absolutely agree that a correct price for a dish that had been eaten should be paid for. I also absolutely think that a waiter is responsible for what he tells his customers, because he is representing the restaurant to the guests. If the waiter had calculated and split the checks correctly, I would give Tavera a 5 stars for customer service--after all, the waiter and manager were initially polite about the deficit. Ultimately, I don't like to discourage anyone from going to a particular place, but I regret to say publicly that Taverna seemed more interested in getting their $11 at the expense of the respect that their customers have for them. Many business owners value their relationship with their customers, and Taverna does not seem like a restaurant as such--which is not a restaurant that I want to support. read more

So it had been quite awhile since we've ventured into Taverna, and with both the dessert lover and I famished recently, we popped in for dinner. The well-appointed room seems to have maintained amicably, and while the second street vibe isn't going to be for everyone, we were mostly concerned about filling our bellies with something tasty. I decided on the Tagliata di Tonno, menu described as a 'pan seared tuna with roasted asparagus & balsamic demi glaze,' and it was terrific: the waiter recommended it done medium, and I was pretty jazzed about the consistency of the dish when it arrived. Service was attentive though never insistent and dinner hit the spot. In all, an offense worth repeating. read more

Sad to write this because have loved taverna in the past. We had a reservation made in advance for Saturday Brunch and showed up to no table availability. Eventually got seated in the corner at a low bar table and ottoman "chairs", making it quite difficult to eat on our laps. The staff was very nice and tried to make the best of it, especially Taylor and Dante from the cocktail room! They did all they could to accommodate us which we greatly appreciated and won't forget. The staff was delightful and apologetic. Nothing on them, just a note for the restaurant to better prepare for weekend service by having enough champagne glasses and tables available for those with reservations. I think it will take some time to ever come back here which is disappointing because I have raved about taverna to friends - but do not think I will ever come back here. Also, DANTE IS A KING He and Taylor made our experience 100x better. The manager Kaylin however, was not super pleasant and did not seem to be concerned at all with the pandemic or covid guidelines. read more

Taverna - Mimosas in water glasses. - Italian Near Me - Austin, Texas

I wasn't in *love* with the Tagliere like my dining companion was, but it was good. I probably wouldn't get it again. We started with a great Malbec and I sipped on it while I tried to decide what I wanted. The choices weren't overwhelming, but a lot of them sounded good. I ended up getting the butternut squash gnocchi. It's hard to do wrong by butternut squash. It was very tasty and the ailoi on it was tasty. Ended with the tiramisu. It had little chocolate chunks in it--what else would you need? The layers were "espresso-soaked," like they should be, but it wasn't soggy like some tiramisus are. Also finished with a decaf-Irish coffee. Of course that was very tasty. Our waiter was very friendly. He told us his favorites and also suggested against the lasagna. He said that even the chef didn't love it, that it was on the menu "because if should be." It was a very lovely dinner on a very lovely night. read more

Dropped by during the dinner rush on a Friday night and they were still able to seat us immediately on the patio. I've seen some reviews criticizing the service, but we didn't have any complaints. Food was brought out quickly and we breezed through the meal. I highly recommend the Fettuccine Frutti di Mare. I was initially hesitant when I saw the pasta had a brownish sauce instead of white (I'd been imagining it would be an alfredo), but it was incredibly tasty! First time eating scallops and they were melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Would definitely come back again. read more

The first reason I came here was because I heard of their $1 mimosas and bellinis during brunch on Saturdays and Sundays but now I go here because this is the absolutely best place to get risotto! I absolutely enjoy their mixed seafood risotto which is very creamy. If they have a special risotto for the night that is usually very delicious as well. If you're not in the mood for a creamy risotto, try the balsamic risotto with chicken, which isn't bad either. And I almost forgot but their tomato soup is delicious!!! It has tomatoes, basil, olive oil, and croutons. read more

The service was great and probably the only redeeming quality for this place. I have been to their sunday brunch a few times and dinner a few more than that. The pre-brunch focaccia was dry and the Olive Oil and Balsamic that it is served with was served in a bowl so there was no way to get any balsamic on the bread until the oil was almost gone. Mimosas and belinis were $1 which is great. One of the ladies ordered a glass of orange juice SIX DOLLARS. really? It was served in a pint glass but I think I was still SHOCKED at that price. I ordered coffee which was ok. For brunch I had the smoked salmon and bagel with cream cheese. The cream cheese had the texture of mayonnaise. gross. The bagel was cold. I enjoy the location and I like sitting outside during nice weather to chat with my companions and watch everyone stroll by. read more

Yesterday, I lured my friends to Taverna with the same sing-song I had left singing a month earlier. Mimosas. $1 single dollar mimosas. They were all pleased with their brunch meals and the mimosas and bellinis, and that's great. Our waitress was friendly and refilled our stuff efficiently. Cool. However, I am docking a star for inconsistency. I was the only person who did not order a brunch item, sticking to my previously-enjoyed dish, the fettucine frutti di mare. It was noticeably smaller. Variability is to be expected, what with chefs rotating schedules. Still, this was quite different: 2 mussels, 2 clams, 2 shrimp, a few small bits of scallop. One of my clams was clammed shut, so it was technically 1 clam. No bueno. It would have been ok had it not been for my previous experience: 4 mussels, 4 clams, 3 shrimp, and more scallops. Just makes a girl sad. **OH! And I just read my old review: the foccaccia that comes with the pasta lunch meals? Didn't get that either. Why I oughta... read more

I'm happy to report that on average Taverna has great service, which is the only thing bolstering the rating in this review. One caveat: I was here for dinner, not brunch. Brunch patrons seem to have a markedly different experience. The food was bland, sub 'Olive Garden' bland. The pesto was flat, the seafood a few days past its prime and the steak was under-seasoned. There isn't anything special about this place despite being charged a premium. Taverna reminds me of that type of person who tries way too hard to be something he/she is not. Perhaps Taverna is a kick-ass Italian brunch bistro, but likes to pretend its an upscale dinner restaurant. Whatever the case, something rang false for me and although it found the elusive competent Austin waiter, the dinner food and vibe was not enough for me to go back. read more

Soft lighting, cozy ambiance, romantic atmosphere. First impressions are important these days with so many Italian restaurants vying for position. Love, love, love the aprons all the wait staff wear because they just look authentic and set the tone. The big brass oven visible from the dining room is also really a nice touch. Casual dining that feels expensive but really isn't. Now to the food. We had the Chicken picatta, wheat spaghetti with turkey meatballs, fiocchi al gorgonzola e pera and the fettucine frutti di mare. Each meal was perfect in presentation and taste (great job chef). We had a wonderful dinner experience last night that included some great wine and we also shared 3 different dessert. Dominique our server treated us like family and made the instant connection that made us feel as home. We will be returning soon. read more

Food was amazing as always. Ive been ordering from here for years and today I decided to eat in since I had my kids with me. Despite a pretty packed restaurant, the tables seemed to have been fairly well tended to which is why I was surprised that it took 10-12 minutes for someone to come and even acknowledge that we had been seated. Luckily it gave us long enough to figure out what we wanted to eat so when the waitress said that she was bringing us water I politely (at least I believe I did) let her know that we were actually ready to order. My son asked her if they had a drink menu (he is clearly NOT 21) and she said they were on the back of the menu which is correct if you want something with alcohol. Very shortly after we received our food (which was prompt) she asked if there everything was good. I saw her twice after that. Once to bring the check, and another time after about 10 minutes of waiting for her to collect my card because I could see her and another waiter at the hostess stand. So in short food takes 4.5 stars if it could, wait staff 2.5. Still a great place regardless. read more

So last month I helped with a luncheon for the staff at my son's school. Someone else had the bright idea to call Taverna and they did an amazing job of working with our budget AND various dietary restrictions. They day of, I was responsible for picking it all up and getting it to the school. I was a little early and so sat at the bar to wait. Several of the waiters checked on me to make sure I was doing ok and one even got me a bag of ice for my water cooler, saving me an extra stop. It was pure torture getting that carload of food to its final destination. I hadn't eaten and everything smelled sooo amazing. Two weeks later my in-laws came to town and asked if they could treat me to lunch...somewhere nice. I instantly knew where we were going and what I would order. I had the risotto with asparagus and proscuitto and a seafood soup special. The risotto wasn't quite as good as I had built up in my head but I will give it another chance, at dinner. Also gone were the attentive waiters...replaced with a girl I did not recognize. I had to ask what the soup of the day was. Other specials were never mentioned. Meanwhile, I'm still hopeful and still salivate at the thought of the eggplant parmigian...it's next on my list along with the pasta filled with gorgonzola and pears. I'd easily give the to-go service four stars, but based on lunch, will have to reserve a star until I've had a chance to go back for dinner. read more

I'll start this by sharing how surprised I am that I (and my ten friends) are not permanently banned from here. We exceeded the record for the most mimosas ever served to a table (164 is now the record, if you wish to try), and man, I loved it. Oh, there were more than a few times (when my sobriety reared its ugly head) that I was absolutely mortified at the looks being given our table by other patrons, but then again, that's how we roll. The food was actually quite tasty, and I think I had something with eggs and crab but I really don't remember. I mean, 15 mimosas does that to a guy. The staff were attentive, helpful, and most of all, didn't throw us out. We'll be back. If they let us. read more

Oh, Taverna. Fool me once (with the worst corned beef hash I've ever had), shame on you. Fool me twice...shame on me. I won't come back again. Looking for a spot downtown to relax and grab a nice dinner before work, I decided to give Taverna a chance to make up for the toothsome, oversalted patty of "corned beef hash" they served me during brunch the last time around. I ordered the veal parmesan, one of my favorite Italian dishes. The cheese on top absolutely overpowered the veal; in places it was three or four times thicker than the chop. I know the meat is supposed to be thin, but I could hardly taste it through the (chewy) blanket of cheese. It wasn't the worst I've ever had, but for $16, I'd expect a little more attention to detail. The house salad I ordered as an accompaniment was good, but nothing special. Highlight of the meal was the foccacia bread, which was delicious (albeit cold) and served with olive oil and balsamic. Bartenders were friendly enough. However, I don't think I'd sit at that particular bar again because of the way it is situated within the restaurant - servers and other staff are forced to walk very close behind the bar stools pretty frequently. My tab came to $36, including the glass of prosecco I ordered. I found myself wishing I'd just grabbed a $7 panini plate at Halcyon. read more

Super impressed! This is the most popular brunch in town for a reason. Sure, parking's a bitch, the wait is daunting, and they won't seat incomplete parties but it's alllllllllll worth it in the end. Just remember that there dollar mimosas available for consumption before/during/after your meal. They have your standard egg items mixed in with some Italian fare like pizzas and paninis. I definitely recommend checking out the specials on the board; my recent visit featured this amazing butternut squash pizza with arugula and truffle oil, I shamelessly devoured the entire thing during a bout of mimosa munchies. read more

Went for brunch with some friends. The wait wasn't bad, 25 minutes. Our food came out reasonably quick and the service was good. I ordered the polenta & eggs al forno. I was super excited about the idea of garlic bread with brunch but disappointed by the actual bread it didn't have the garlic taste I would expect of an Italian place. A friend got the lox and bagel which was good. Otherwise the food was okay, nothing incredible. read more

Taverna - Italian Near Me - Austin, Texas

I can write this review quicker than we got our drink orders.. DECOR & LAYOUT: 3.5/5 cool rustic chic interior, but we were packed in like sardines. MENU: 3/5 - Menu items looked good.. TASTE: 3/5 - Decent flavors, I thought the bacon was overly salty. The food would have been much better hot. Which leads me to......... FOOD TEMP: 0/5 - FAIL. Much like us, you could tell it has been sitting around a while. PLATING CONSISTENCY: 1/5 we ordered 2 of the same and there was a large variation in serving portions. SERVICE: 2/5 - too busy, more table than the servers could handle, over crowded and frantic. NOISE LEVEL: 2/5 - extremely loud for 3pm, just sayin. COST: 1/5 - Not worth it. The value, service & food, was nothing special....did someone say "Specials"? "SPECIALS": $6.50 fruit cup: 0/5 Serious? it's fruit not gold. 2 hours later...and overall I wasn't even close to being wow'd, I have no intentions of willingly going back. Brunch should be relaxing not stressful. read more

File this under: "If it seems too good to be true, it probably is." Fellow Yelpers alerted me to this spot, which served a bottomless mimosa or bellini for $5. The first morning of our family vacation, and I'm already looking for booze. Now this was Easter Sunday (not our holiday) and we wanted to eat an early brunch without too many crowds. The restaurant itself was very attractive, with a big open kitchen. Our server was pleasant enough, but brought all the food without my bellini. I did the "customer neck crane" move for a while, but he was oblivious. So I got up to ask him about the drink, and he said he forgot to order it. Turns out it would have been just as good if it had remained forgotten. Imagine if you will a somewhat fermented peach Kool-Aid. The trick to a bottomless bargain beverage is to make it taste nasty. The food was average, we probably would have gotten the same in the hotel restaurant. My flabby, pallid waffle could have used another few minutes in the waffle iron. A two-star experience -- however, the breakfast potatoes were excellent so I'll give it three. read more

Brunch... who doesnt love brunch. Right in the middle of a gorgeous part of downtown where all the yuppies live. Yuppie town as I like to call it. I got invited to brunch at Taverna and drove like a maniac because I had been dying to try this place. Its been said many times but yes $1 Mimosas/Bellinis HOWEVER after actually dining here, I think it's just a gimmick. A sad tool to pull you in and make you spend more money than you actually wanted. It's alot like Black Friday shopping, they put the bait out, say what $500 for a giant flatscreen tv at Best Buy, why hell yes I will be there. But once you get there, they really only had ONE giant tv and the rest of the stuff is overpriced, not really on sale, just normal stuff. That's kind of how taverna is. The mimosas were yummy no doubt and for $1, its about the same cost as making it at home. The food on the other hand, was severely lacking. I ordered the omelette with asparagus and shrimp, the shrimp was pretty scarce honestly. When the omelette came out, it looked as if it was stuffed full but as I cut into it, I realized that was just AIR. It was a majority just asparagus with about 3 pieces of not-so-fresh tasting shrimp, not worth the money in my opinion. My potatoes came a little brunt, boo. I tried my friends pasta and that was actually a bit more disappointing, pretty flavorless. I've watched Hell's Kitchen many a times, and Chef Ramsey would be kicking some ass in that Taverna kitchen. Taste your damn cooking before you serve that! It's sad to see so many people get baited and then get pulled a fast one on. I think a good indication of the quality of the restaurant was the GIANT cans of premade TOMATO sauce they had throughout the kitchen. yucky. read more

Taverna - Italian Near Me - Austin, Texas

If you visit Austin, 1. Make sure you stay through the weekend and 2. Make sure to Sunday Brunch at Taverna!My friends and I are visiting Austin from Chicago, and someone we met at a bar recommended the restaurant for brunch. If nothing else, the service is great and the mimosas and bellinis are $2 each! Doesn't get much better than that. I went with bellinis which came almost like a slushy, but they were delicious. My friend ordered beignets for the table which were pretty good and everyone ordered different items off the brunch menu. You get a good amount of food for the price. I ordered the Soft Polenta and Eggs. Instead of the boar sausage, I asked for bacon. If I had known the salsa would come on the eggs I definitely would have asked for it in the side. It was pretty spicy and I found myself scraping it off. I also have wish the polenta was a little more "seasoned". I might order it again without the salsa but would probably try a new item instead. Overall it was a great spot to end our trip to Austin and I would definitely come back. read more

Taverna - Mimosa with Cranberry Juice and Bellini - Italian Near Me - Austin, Texas

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$1 Mimosas and Bellinis during brunch...need I say more? Yes, because if you don't order the last plate of brisket hash I will! We have been to this location (2nd St, Austin) twice now for brunch and both times it has been crowded so prepare to be intimately involved in your neighbors conversation but if you don't mind that sort of thing join us! No complaints, we'll be back to check out their HH sometime soon. read more

Terrible rude host person. Server was nice and friendly. Food was tasty but my omelet was with egg shell. Cheap and good $2 Mimosa. read more

Go for the drinks! This cozy restaurant/bar is has a wonderful staff, decent food with an Italian flare. They offer a wide variety of antipasti prior to the meal with delicious mustards, smoked meats, artichokes, and asparagus. They were all amazing, and when match with the ample selection of drinks offered at the bar, it was an excellent pairing. The bartenders are quite knowledgeable, offering a variety of quality scotches. They also know their whiskeys, bourbons, and wines. In fact, the whole staff is quite knowledgeable about the food and drink pairings. Our waitress was fantastic, and we really enjoyed her recommendations and explanations of the food. The restaurant consists of a large bar, a restaurant seating area, and a kitchen with a copper Italian oven that you normally cook things like pizzas on. The oven runs on gas. The meal consisted of a surf & turf with a beef cut (loin?) that was absolutely delicious and tender. It was paired with a mushroom and red wine sauce that was fantastic! The fish was a white fish that wasn't anything to write home about. It seemed overcooked. I hardly touched the fish. I found the location to be clean, and well lit. It accommodates small parties to large groups! I enjoyed the food, and would certainly return. read more

Love this place. Love the Happy Hour here. I love the happy hour here. We had a pizza which was half off.... and 4 glasses of wine each and a couple of Bellini's and our total bill for being here for 3 hours was $50 bucks! Really fun times. I have been several times... I do try to avoid brunch as it isn't easy to get a table but if you have a lax day and don't mind waiting the food is fabulous. I especially love the caprese salad and the butternut squash gnocchi. Also great rissoto dishes and pizzas. Very rustic, delicious Italian.Also, the chef does daily fresh fish specials that are to die for. This is a must if you frequent Second Street district. read more

Cool place. Nice vibe. Good service. The food was.. a mixed bag. The pan seared sea bass with clams & mussels rocked. Rocked, I tell you. Felt like a bargain paying a measly nineteen bucks. The tuna risotto special on the other hand was not good. Not good. Think macaroni and cheese. Think that casserole your friend's mom made that you fed to the dog under the table. Srsly. Not good. Felt like I'd been robbed paying a whopping nineteen bucks. I'll go back, give em another chance, but I'll steer clear of the risotto. This time though I'm taking a hell of a lot more of those little chocolate stick mint things out of that cup on the hostess stand, maybe even the whole fucking cup if no one's looking.. read more

Taverna has me wrapped around it's little finger. What a great spot! My favorite Austinite brought me here for Saturday brunch - STELLAR. We chose to sit on the adorable umbrella clad patio. Our ears started ringing the second we heard about $1 mimosas and bellinis. Seeing as I prefer less sweetened beverages, I opted for the $7 "make your own bloody mary". Yes, Taverna rocks a blood mary bar! My attentive waiter served me with a tall glass of Tito's spicy vodka and directed me inside to an array of bloody mary mixes, celery, olives, baby corn, celery salt.....you get the point. Marvelous. Once we started feeling pretty good, it was time to order from the most delectable brunch menu I've ever seen. That's when I saw the 2 ingredients that make my heart pitter patter: garlic and truffle oil... ...I knew I needed to select the truffle infused pan fried eggs on garlic bread...Heaven, people, Heaven. My friend ordered the special which was some sort of poached eggs over smoked brisket dish. She (being very petite) inhaled the generous portion of awesomness. Our waiter also recommended the rosemary parmesan foccacia bread for starters....A MUST. Clearly, I have no complaints regarding this fabulous Italian eatery. I plan on returning for lunch / dinner as their pizzas looked fab. Taverna.....you really got a hold on me. read more

Taverna is good for several reasons: 1) A weekend brunch in sunny Austin, TX whilst sitting outside 2) The parade of people and personalities roaming through 2nd St. Wearing something nice because those people are looking right back at you! 3) $1 mimosas and bellinis! (Replaced by the ubiquitous $5 bottomless mims and bells) 4) The gorgonzola e pera pizza appetizer!!!! YUM! 5) My personal favorites: Fettucine frutti di mare, shimp & asparagus omelette, and eggs benedict. (Damn I wish it was brunch again...) Taverna is not good for a few reasons: 1) The waitstaff always seems in a rush to hurry my friends and me to be on our way once the meal is over. Possibly my top pet peeve while dining out. I'd really like to chill with another mimosa or two (or three!) while I ease into my weekend morning with my Chronicle, Rare, newspaper, [insert periodical of choice here]. 2) Dinner. I simply don't like dinner here. I would recommend selecting a tasty appetizer (see reference above) and glass of vino or an Italian beer. 3) The bad taste left in my mouth after learning about an anti-gay comment left on a napkin by a waiter for a customer a year or so ago. Possibly the least of my worries, but still... Perhaps that waiter got their come-uppance since I still see rainbow brothers and sisters frequenting it for brunch as well. Regardless of the downfalls, I know how to handle a pushy waiter, and I don't mind reserving my meals at Taverna for a weekend brunch. It's given me a great start to many a Saturday and Sunday! And I intend to keep it that way. read more

Don't let the allure of $1 mimosa specials deceive you -- La Taverna does not do brunch right. Really, from top to bottom, I expected a much better experience from a place that managed to snag a piece of prime real estate in downtown Austin. Honestly, I wish we had been able to score outdoor seating because it was very clear that our waiter had not showered in several days, and he really could've used some air. Or maybe some Fabreze. I ordered the special for the day: a Crab Meat Benedict with asparagus. Why not try something the chef wanted to whip up? Boy, what a mistake. In a word, it was awful. The crab meat seemed a bit past its date and sported a distinct seafood market flavor - like what I imagine what crab would taste like if you dropped it on the floor and then picked it back up. The English muffin was stale and flavorless. It looked as though they tried to toast it, but by the time it reached the table, it was stone-cold and soggy. I suppose the hollandaise sauce was alright, but once topped on the rest of the dish, it just made everything all the more miserable. The best thing about the special was the breakfast potatoes, which was the plate's only redeeming factor (which in itself is kinda pathetic). The scrambled eggs were alright - a healthy serving of pepper did the trick to help bring some flavor to them. Lastly, the $1 mimosas we ordered tasted like they were made with watered down orange juice and a teaspoon of champagne. Yikes. Oh, and did I mention the waiter literally stunk? Oh, I did? Well, good, because he smelled awful. If you somehow for me to come again and endure the wait and the rather dingy lighting, I would probably play it safe and order an omelette. It's hard to mess those up, right? read more

Went last night for our 9 year anniversary. Sadly, everyone that bought the Groupon for this place was a procrastinator like us too so the place was extremely packed for a Monday night. We were told the wait was about 45 minutes when we arrived but it ended up being at least twice that. We started off with the Taverna Foccacia since it was highly recommended by our waitress. They originally brought us the regular foccacia but quickly fixed their mistake. We got to try both so no big deal on messing up! The Taverna Foccacia is really more like a pizza. A large round bread with mushrooms, pine nuts, arugula, pancetta, red onions, and shaved Parmesan all on top. This is super delicious and very highly recommended. I would go back just to eat this. I had a glass of the Chalone Pinot Noir and it was fantastic as well. It paired nicely with the earthy mushrooms on the bread. For entrees I had the Fiocchi al Gorgonzola e Pera which was pasta that was filled Gorgonzola and pears with a cream sauce that had walnuts and pears. It was really really good! The BF had the pan seared sea bass and it was delicious too. It came with mussels and a clam, we didn't particularly enjoy those but that is just a personal preference not any fault of the restaurant. The fish had a nice crunchy top and the sauce was tomato based with orzo pasta. Really good food and really filling. Since it was our anniversary, our waitress brought us a complimentary molten chocolate cake and it was sinfully delicious and chocolate-y. It probably wouldn't have been our choice had we chosen a dessert but we were definitely pleasantly surprised and may be inclined to order that instead of our tried and true creme brulee! I don't know if we would brave downtown to have dinner here again but we most definitely had a great meal. We may try to just go for a quick appetizer and wine though. If you are looking for a nice Italian meal that isn't ridiculously expensive then this is your place. Beware the place is pretty tiny and you will have a long wait if you go on weekends. read more

After doing some shopping at The Lofty Dog I was window shopping on 2nd St when I ran into friends who were headed to The Taverna for brunch. I was very hungry after our morning walk around the lake and I must have had the saddest puppy dog eyes when I looked down at my Pup; because, my friend immediately said "Lets see if they allow dogs on the patio?" My friend went in and asked if dogs were allowed on the patio? "Yes!" Thank You, Taverna for allowing my 4 legged friend; so, that I could enjoy a tasty meal on your patio while catching up with friends I had not seen in years! I ordered 2 fried eggs with smoked ham and breakfast potatoes and 2 mimosas for 10.00 before tip! I love to cook breakfast at home on the weekends and rarely ever order it out because I always grumble because I could have made it better at half the price. No complaints here everything was cooked and seasoned exactly the way I like it. I ordered the ham mostly for my Pup; but, it was so good I was stingy with sharing it. And, the $1 Mimosas are way cheaper than I could make at home! So, yes I will be back for excellent friendly service, tasty food and fun people watching on a 2nd st patio that allows my 4-legged best friend! read more

Taverna is like a pesky romantic possibility. They keep scratching on the door and you're reluctant; you aren't really sure why you're reluctant but that's the way it works, right? Well, dear Yelpers, Taverna finally wore me down and I'm happy to say that we're very much in like. I wandered in one night with a friend and I'm already anticipating my next visit. I ordered the butternut squash cappellacci, which ultimately was a butternut squash ravioli. It was very flavorful and I'm pretty much in love with that alone. I wish I'd left some of the focaccia bread to pair with the meal, but it's far too delicious to be long for this world. The service is pretty great. They're on top of their work but lack that robot feeling that you encounter so much when dining downtown. Taverna, you've got a second date in me. read more