Villa Bellezza Winery & Vineyards — Attraction in Pepin

Let me begin by saying I sent an email to the address listed in several other negative reviews and I have yet to receive a response. I wanted to give them a chance to reply privately. After no response there I decided to post here.

We have been waiting for two and a half years to come here! What a HUGE let down!!! This was a destination day trip for my birthday.

First, we walked into the restaurant where we greeted by... absolutely no one to greet us, guide us, nothing. Yes there was a sign, but that arrow was pointing to a wall. Several people from the kitchen area saw us standing there and yet not one person helped us. Not even the girl unpacking the wine in the walkway. This young lady was barely cordial with her information when she finally stoppedstockingwine and came over to help us. Rude to say the least!

Second, we both order a Panini which comes with a pasta salad.

A panini (/pəˈniːniː/; nowadays less commonly called panino, Italian: pa'niːno])[1[3] is a sandwich made with Italian bread (such as ciabatta and michetta), usually served warm after grilling or toasting.

Our sandwich was just that, a sandwich! It was not made on the proper bread which was more like a baguette nor was it warm OR grilled!!! The pasta salad was dry, no dressing of any sort on it. We had to use the olive oil from our appetizer in order to choke it down. Our sandwich had 3 slices of turkey meat on it. I only know this because my husband had to open his up and add a sauce to it as it was so dry. Yes, sauce from our appetizer. We each paid $14 for a sandwich that was completely wrong and dry and definitely not worth the price.

Third, let's talk about the rude young woman who delivered our food to us. This individual wouldn't speak to us when she delivered our sandwiches even after we said thank you to her. We shouldn't be too surprised seeing as how we were treated so poorly when she delivered our appetizer.

Fourth, being asked at the time of ordering to tip is beyond ridiculous! Who ever heard of that? We tipped to be treated horribly. If that isn't a kick in the pants.

Fifth, are all employees able to see what has been tipped? If so was this 18% tip the reason for poor service? We ordered the bread appetizer, two sandwiches, a Diet Coke, and a glass of wine. $60 including tip! Not to shabby for two people for lunch. We were happy to pay this as we had planned to do this earlier in the week.

We hadn't planned on being treated badly by staff, whom we tipped rem8nd you. Nor did we expect our food to be bad and inedible.

Go for the wine, not the food and definitely not...

In response to Lisa's review about my wedding party that had come in to the restaurant & restaurant itself:

I as the bride had called the resteaunt over a month prior to see if they would be able to accommodate a party of 30 and at a specified time. I was told by Jill they do not take reservations but it would be no problem and we could sit outside on the patio with tables pushed together or we could have it inside but not all my guests would be seated near each other. I chose the outdoor option as I wanted my guests seated near each other. I called one week prior to double check that things were still going to be fine with my dinner party and my phone call was not returned until 3 days prior to the event. Jill stated during the call that they werent sure if they would be able to accommodate our party now due to staffing and seating would come as first come first serve even though i called one month prior. On the day of the event some of my family showed up to the restaurant early to get seating and possibly discuss seating inside. They were told by the manager they didn't have the staffing to seat us inside and we're not allowed to wait inside for our party that they must wait in their cars despite it being less than 60º outside with a baby. When myself and my husband arrived after our wedding we were told there was a wedding and a dinner reception taking place that night and they could not accommodate us inside and we must sit outside. Im not sure how sitting outside vs inside resolves the staffing issues they claimed to have. We were also never told or offered heaters to be place on the patio. Either way im glad I did not have my wedding dinner here based off the food reviews. Not to mention the staff that claim they were accommodating were not. When asking for a manager due to lots of miscommunication I was given attitude before being told they were the manager. They did not try to rectify the situation by any means and basically said 🤷🏽‍♀️. I guess expecting seating when you're told you'll get it is asking too much. Staff we spoke with and my family spoke with were very snooty. I was warned about this prior to choosing this restaurant but chose to give them the benefit of the doubt. Won't be...

We were cruising down the Wisconsin side of the river, heading home to Minneapolis after a night stay in Osceola, Wisconsin, and around lunch time we spotted this place. Wow! what a find! It was a cold dreary day (this was the Saturday after that 80 degree Friday in mid-April) but there was a good crowd inside this modest-sized restaurant (which is attached to a winery). We opted for an artisan pizza (emphasis on the word "artisan" and meant as a huge compliment) and a glass each of their own wine.

Thee only pizza we have had that compares to the pizza here is at Pizzeria Lola in Minneapolis and, to be honest, it's a toss up which would hold the crown. Pizzas are cooked in a brick oven and you can taste the difference in the first bite! THIS is how pizza should taste. We got the "Spicy Italian" and every element of our pizza was spot on: crust, sauce, pepperoni, you name it! My white wine was superb and my wife's red (Rosso d'Amici) was so good we got a bottle to go.

Props to the main server (didn't get her name). Service was fast and professional, despite that during the hour we were there, two large (8+) parties of people arrived who had been next door at a wine tasting event. How our server kept her wits about her showed amazing professionalism. In fact, after leaving her a 20% tip on my credit card, I went back as we were leaving and gave her another $5, telling her she deserved it!

In all honesty, the food here is so good (they also serve other Italian dishes, i.e. pastas), that it's worth the trip from the Cities, IMO. I imagine that in nice weather (It looks like there is an outdoor patio) this place gets packed! Also, it hosts events and weddings as well. If you are craving a delicious brick-oven pizza, drive down either side of the river and hit this place up.

Special note: The architectural design of the buildings are right out of Tuscany....