Vaticano Cucina — Restaurant in Edmonton

First time trying this place, possibly warrants another visit in the future. Party of 3, we had reservations, we were excited as it was all our first visit but we were just underwhelmed.

This is one of the only italian restaurants that I have ever been to that did not serve some sort of table bread or bread with their pasta. Which I found interesting…

For an appetizer we had the ricotta dish, you got plenty of dip not enough pizza bread. Portion size to price $17 was reasonable considering it was split amongst the table, if this was for yourself, keep the leftover for sure or ask to purchase more bread? We were going to keep the dip as there was plenty left over but it was at this time when we asked if the pasta would come with bread and the server told us it didn’t so the dip went to waste.

Normally I don't mind when service is slow due to a restaurant being busy, however on this particular friday evening we had a reservation before a concert and the restaurant was only a third filled. Our server only replenished our water once before I had to lock eyes with someone carrying the water pitcher.

I purchased the carbonara. It was good, not great the way others have reviewed here. Price per portion was reasonable at $25. Our server asked if we wanted fresh cracked pepper. Our server never offered parmesan unless this is the only Italian restaurant in this price range that doesn’t offer it for the pasta, which again I found interesting, not that my dish needed it as the pancetta in the carbonara was very salty anyways. My friends liked their baked tortellini, they would have appreciated some parmesan on theirs.

This is also one of the first places I have been to where they have set their debit/credit machines so that the options that pop up start at a minimum tip of 18% and above. Which again is interesting to me. I know why they’ve done it this way but it’s interesting.

Overall, this place is ok. I always have a difficult time giving low reviews after expecting more. Really my iota of a review doesn’t matter, but if you’ve read this far here we go. In this case the food wasn’t great, no table bread, no parmesan offered, service was lagging, and the whole minimum tip settings really threw me off. I think with the prices that you have set for your restaurant so much improvement needs to happen. Set better standards for your serving team, they need to seriously pick up the pace and offer water often or check in especially when it isn’t busy. I didn’t notice any change tables in the women’s bathroom either so this is not a place to bring young children or kids for that matter. I think the good from this visit is that I saw that this restaurant is wheelchair accessible, however some of your spaces need to have wider areas in order to accommodate the width of those...

When I first went to Vaticano Cucina, it was the winter of 2019. My wife and I brought a friend and we had a wonderful dinner with the best cafe' Lattes ever. It was there that I met Joseph Francese, the original owner of the restaurant. We had a great conversation over various topics and had a few good laughs when he came to check on us. The 3 of us would come several more times to enjoy a great night out for dinner and chat with Joe. It was about 7 months later we went back again and it was then that we heard of the unfortunate passing of Joe. He passed in January 2020. It was a sad evening and the 3 of us enjoyed our dinner but with a little more silence than usual. Well, since his passing, another management company has come along and has kept it going. Virtually everything Joe created had been kept the same and they've done a wonderful job which would make Joe very proud. Well, yesterday the three of us were discussing our dinner options and our friend suggested Vaticano because it was quite a while since we were there last. When we got there at 5:30 pm it gave us plenty of options on where to sit but by the time we left it was packed, which is a good sign things are still rocking at Vaticano's. My wife and friend are vegetarians and there are plenty of options for them, so we ordered the Caesar salad to start, which was a great choice. I ordered Joe's Bucatini Carbonara, my wife ordered the St. Richard pizza and our friend ordered the Santa Maria pizza. And as usual, my wife and I get the cafe' lattes because they are just that good. The Bucatini Carbonara is so flavorful. They make this delicious cream and egg shallot sauce served with smoky pancetta and crumbled Italian sausage. Not only is it quite tasty, but it's also quite filling as well. I tried my wife's St. Richard pizza and it's the one you can squeeze the roasted lemon on it which makes it stand out from other pizzas they offer. It's made with a four-cheese blend (mozzarella, Fontina, Asiago, and Parmesan) and is one of the best (in my opinion). Our friend had the Santa Maria with classic Margherita sauce, basil, and Fior di Latte cheese. Everything was outstanding and the service was very good too. We can't believe it's been almost 5 years since Joe left us but the new owners have done a fantastic job. We will definitely be back for more of their delicious menu items because when you find a gem like Vaticano Cucina, you just...

The food is great, the service is hit or miss but has been more of a miss as of late. During one visit, I waited over 40 mins for a drink that was forgotten. Once the meal arrived we were missing plates. The waitress never checked on us and told us she was new and it’s too busy. We understood and it seems to be untrained staff that are overwhelmed in the evenings. So we gave it a try to go during the day and was still met with poor service with another staff member who is new. When being sat for a reservation we were not greeted with positive energy. Which started the meal off poorly. The waitress stated we’re not allowed to bring cupcakes for a birthday for a table of 4. If we wanna eat it we must pay $7 per cupcake for a “slicing fee”. It’s completely fair for restaurants to have policies but how you convey them makes the difference. We also did not need slicing or additional dishes. It was a cupcake. We also planned on all ordering dessert which would not effect the restaurants time or money. She was not friendly in her delivery. And was very condescending and even asked if we “understand her” which was unnecessary to question our comprehension when we simply just sat in silence after her immediately tellling us what we cannot do upon entering. She then walked away and a neighbouring table ended up offering to pay our “slicing fee” and was not pleased with the service we received. Again the food is delicious and there are polices customers must abide by. We were planning on all ordering dessert and did end up just doing that. The birthday person ate the cup cake at the table. Because we agreed to pay the fee so the birthday person can have a good time. Once the meal was done there was no additional charges for cupcakes or a slicing fee. I don’t understand the servers power trip over a cupcake in which we weren’t billed for anyway. What was the point? Could’ve just kept it quiet and not spoil a positive occasion. I love the food but putting up with the staff has been a...