Service was excellent. Waitress was attentive and helpful. Food was good and more than ample in serving size. Didn't realize there was going to be music. Not a fan of music in the background while I'm trying to have a conversation with someone. read more

We had a party of seven. I don't normally comment too much on service, but our server was the best that I have seen in years. I'm sorry I forgot her name. I tasted my brother 's. Spaghetti and meatballs and was impressed. I had the lamb pasta dish. It was not the traditional tangy red sauce, but I liked trying something different. I think I had the leftovers for breakfast. Always a good sign. Excited to go again. read more

Very nice Italian restaurant in the heart/ plaza of Aracata, NorCal. Very chic and nice ambiance with a great bar and food selection. Prices very reasonable and the service was on point! read more

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Utterly disappointing soggy, bloated raw spaghetti and bland meatballs. The bread was good though. The service was also good but the pasta was such a let down. read more

The affogato for dessert was chef's kiss!! My pasta dinner came without the chicken, but they made it right by preparing an entire new plate. Delicious. read more

Went during Happy Hour and it was amazing. Not crowded and staff was kind and attentive. Great food, drinks, and awesome server! We both got pasta- I got the pesto with added chicken, and spouse got the butternut squash one! read more

We were looking for Mazotti's after being recommended it at Humboldt Mercantile, and discovered that it is now Venicia! We happened to be there during their soft opening, and the team did amazingly for presumably being new staff and a new menu. We didn't have any hiccups. It's not cheap -- an entree, non-alcoholic drink, and tip will run you about $50pp, but we liked everything we got. The hibiscus ginger iced tea was AMAZING and the special butter that came with the complimentary bread was really good too. We got the chicken parmesan and chicken piccata. My friend had a hard time cutting the chicken for the piccata, but didn't have any complaints when eating it. She only wished that it had been plated with the chicken next to the pasta instead of on top, but that's a super easy thing to change on your own. The portions were perfect, to me -- not so much I felt uncomfortable, but it didn't leave me wanting more. If I could do anything differently, I would probably box up some of my main course so I could order dessert. I overheard the manager, who was making her rounds to all of the tables, say that there were two flavors of ice cream and an espresso crême brulée, which sounded amazing. They have a great selection of drinks, too, with a full bar in addition to an espresso machine. The bar area is really nice and would be perfect for hanging out and just getting drinks. They had two big screen TVs on the walls by the bar and what looked like a fireplace, but they weren't on. read more

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The food was very good! The service was quick and very friendly. We got the gnocchi butternut squash.

Service seems to be good and the waitress has a great personality and is on it. The bread they brought out was warm and VERY tasty. Food came out in a timely manner but the fettuccine Alfredo was sup par. 31 bucks for this meal and 2 bucks for the bread. the out the door price for lunch....43.00 with tip. Oh, and that's for one person. They never came back and checked to see how I was doing, give me refills, or to bring me my check. I had to find them. Bummer! Service 3 Bread 5 Food 2.5 Price value 1 Will try it again to see if this was a fluke. For 43 dollars it better be much better next time around. You would think that they would've seen Hamza's failed by having overpriced lunch and dinners. People in Humboldt can't afford this on a weekly basis (including myself!). read more

i went there a few months and the food was pretty good and pretty good service too so I would recommend it and it's a pretty nice place to go with family and there is always a lot of people there and the employees are very nice and give you what you want and the food comes pretty quick also read more

Traveling through town and Google led us here. We enjoyed the food (scallop pasta and chicken parm) and eating in a historic building felt special. Our drinks from the bar were good too. My only complaint is that the food was a tad salty. Would return if in town again. read more

The food was pretty good but not as good as I can make at home. Except the calamari which was superior--even better than at the late lamented Plaza Grill! The main dishes were all drastically undersalted. The lamb "al forno" was especially disappointing, a meaningless stew. There was hardly any lamb and the dish was way overloaded with rosemary. The menu needs work, more pasta dishes. No clam sauce? That's classic and should be there. The servers were very friendly and certainly improved the experience. I'd only give 2 stars, but I hope they will improve so an extra star for hoping. The very amateur music was nice enough but I wish ALL dinner music was more quiet. As for ambience, I don't much care but there's plenty of space on the walls waiting for art work. I'll only go again if I hear that the menu is revamped. read more

Ambiance was very hip and classy, the waitstaff was efficient. However, the food was subpar, very bland and on the smaller portion size and pricey. The bread was the only saving grace yet the flavored butter was just okay. I know I shouldn't compare to the former Mozzatti's but they did create a business of the same type in the same venue so here it goes. My chicken parm at Venicia was small and tasteless unlike its former flavorful counterpart with a huge serving size for less the price. I used to be able to choose what pasta I wanted but at V I couldn't, it came with angel hair pasta with a bland marina sauce. I used to get a choice of soup or salad not with V, I only got some tasteless vegetables that were very hard. We ordered a salad for $8 it was big enough to share, I have to say the salad was very good. Since it was my birthday, we had cupcakes. In the past, Mozzatti's would take our cake or whatever to their refrigerator and then after dinner present with fresh plates and clean forks. Not at Venicia. No, we were charged $2 each for having "outside" food but no clean plates were brought to our table, we used our bread plates and our dinner forks. Will we go back? No, probably not! read more

Service was amazing and food was even better! Large group for us and we had a great time! read more

Venicia - Italian Near Me - Arcata, California

Service was poor at best. The food was disappointing for the price. Disappointing doesn't begin to describe the experience.

Spectacular Food and Service! We've been twice to one of Arcata's newest restaurants, and both visits met or were above our expectations. I don't have pictures, and am basing my review on happy dining memories. We made reservations, and were warmly greeted by the hostess and immediately seated on both our visits. The bar menu is somewhat standard but varied enough, and inviting. Our first visit we started with the Fried Calamari which was perfectly prepared and delicious. Happily for me, traditional Cocktail Sauce accompanied it! I ordered a green salad that was large and easily sharable. We highly recommend the Fettucine Alfredo and either of the "Parmesans." I had chicken parm, my friend had it with eggplant. Both were tasty! Loads of vegetables were served on the side, along with a bit of pasta. (I wanted to ask if I could have Alfredo on the side, or pasta some other sauce besides the parm-marinara, but I didn't. I imagine your wish is their command, for a price.) The steak entree was perfectly prepared as requested, and was huge! Two of us had the soup of the day which was a mildly spicy broccoli potato that was surprising and scrumptious. The desserts are epic and artfully presented. (The soft, fresh bread was also impressive, though I prefer mine with EVOO and balsamic and will endeavor to ask for that next time) The prices match the creativity, high quality, portions, and service. This is our new fine dining in Arcata go-to. Thank you for (so far) two lovely dining experiences! read more

Service great and food excellant soft music in was nice as well. They were getting ready to close but served us anyway.

Went for my daughter's graduation. Had a nice dinner until my daughter's, who both ordered the chicken, got food poisoning. Talk to the manager who could have cared less. You know when you get food poisoning and not the flue. Be forewarned! read more

We had the stuffed peppers and the Humboldt fog goat cheese with crostini and persimmon jam, both appetizers and both so good! Service and ambiance were good too! read more

Venicia - Dessert! The orange rind with this chocolate dessert was so good. - Italian Near Me - Arcata, California

The marinera sauce tasted like pure tomato paste. Too much marjoram / basil as well. They would be better off buying some RAOs marinera sauce at the grocery store and using that. TheChicken parm was burnt, over cooked and dry. The Cesar salad was good. The service was ok. The music on music night was good. Im hoping they will read this and improve. read more

Expensive. The chicken cacciatore was mostly tasteless. Music was too loud; we couldn't talk to each other.

Great food, great vibes, great service... I enjoyed the wedge salad specifically. I also had the bartender surprise me with a mocktail of his/her choice and that was great as well. I'll definitely go back. read more

My family was in town for a day and we were excited to try the place out. Granted, the majority of our food was good and our waitress was awesome. They were late delivering a dish for one of us and we did not receive it until everyone else was done eating. They comped that dish which was appreciated. We had yet to finish our dessert and had just paid the bill when the main hostest, the curly haired strawberry blonde one, our table and told us with a bit of annoyance that we had 2 minutes to finish and then we had to leave so they can give away our table. At this point we had only been seated for about an hour and 20 mins. I have never experienced this kind of treatment at a restaurant and it was a very disappointing experience. ​ read more

Went there for lunch on a Sunday for lunch. First we thought the place was closed because all the places around it were full and Venicia was completely empty. We ordered a couple pizzas, which were okay. Our server never offered us any dessert. The food is okay, but for the quality offered it is overpriced. We will check again the dinner service. read more

Food was super bland , like no salt at all. The butternut squash gnocchi was crazy. It's a half of a squash they plop on a plate with gnocchi that tastes watery and is expensive. :( we also had the chicken Caesar salad which was drenched in dressing so the opposite problem. read more

We loved Venicia so much that we ate there two out of our 3 nights in Humboldt County! The staff is warm and friendly, we loved our waitress Angela! Everyone was so tickled that we came back a second time. The food was delicious - one of the best eggplant parmigiana dishes I have ever had! The pasta was delicious, the asparagus done just right, and Angela helped me choose a wine that was the perfect complement. The atmosphere is warm and inviting, a murmur of conversation but not loud, live music, modern decor. It's right on the square in Arcata, a charming town. Highly recommended! read more

paying $30 for this little of food is a little crazy lol i didn't take a single bite of this. i know things are expensive for restaurants, but it sucks that we have to take the brunt of that. just posting to warn people about serving size, not trying to to be a jerk. just wasn't expecting that for my birthday dinner. read more

Venicia - risotto - Italian Near Me - Arcata, California

We had their fried calamari appetizer - lightly breaded, hot and crispy, with 2 dipping sauces--delicious! I had the happy hour Margarita (basil infused) on the rocks with salt and I highly recommend it! The service was great and ambience very friendly. The homemade bread with special spread was indeed special. We'll be back. read more

The one star goes to the location and the decor. Aside from that, this restaurant misses the mark when it comes to the food and service. Our server was so inattentive we had to request that the server of the table next to us remind her that we existed. Our food came out essentially cold, and when we sent it back to the kitchen it was returned to us luke-warm. Based on the menu and flavor its hard to believe there is an experienced chef in the kitchen. At this rate, I cant imagine this restaurant being open for much longer. read more

Went there for dinner. Had hopes we'd have the same delicious food as last time. Found out it was a new owner and completely different menu. Very disappointed in menu options. Ordered the Chicken Parm. It was so tough it was hard to even cut with a knife and tasteless. Also ordered eggplant parm, as it was being eaten we heard a crunch and found pieces of GLASS in the food. Told the waitress and she said "we don't have any glass in the food prep areas" and acted as if we put it in the food. REALLY!! We were not asking for anything only wanted to let them know there was glass in the food. Good luck if you decide to go here. We certainly will never spend our money here again. Not worth the health risks. read more

Excellent food. Bar is also very good. Nice atmosphere. Service is friendly and attentive but still working out a few kinks. Overall, it's pricey for this area but worth it. read more

The food and service are truly amazing!!! It's our new favorite restaurant! So very glad they opened! Cocktails are great, as is ambience. Always a wonderful experience!!! I recommend it to all my friends! I've gone at least 6 times and never ben disappointed! read more

BE CAREFULEATING HERE!. I decided to take my daughter out after I came up to visit her at college one Tuesday night. There were 4 of us and a small child and were sat right away. It soon became apparent that the restaurant was to busy for the amout of staff scheduled. I saw 4 employees for the whole place. 1 bartender and 3 servers. I never saw anyone who looked like a Manager at any point during the night. Many thing went wrong that night from the wrong food being delivered or food that was ordered never making it to the table. The entrees were bland and the pastas overcooked dry and tasteless. After our night I called the next day to talk to someone. The first girl I talked to was very pleasant and took my info to give to the GM. I called a total of 5 times leaving both voicemail and personal messages to be called back. I never received a call. When I did get ahold of a Manager ( not the GM) she was dismissive and condescending offering only excuses, staring that they had been in a soft opening phase for 5 months and the menu was completely different now that they are working out the kinks. Then I was placed on hold which ended in the call dropping with no call back. It's obvious to me that Management does not care about customer service, so if you do decide to eat here be prepared to be a guinea pig while they figure it out. I would say you have a 50/50 chance of a good night. There is no email or alternate phone number so no way to get ahold of someone when they don't call you back. Maybe this yelp gets the attention Ownership and I will get some sort of acknowledgment but if not at least I can warn others. read more