Amore Ristorante Italiano — Restaurant in Alabama

My wife and I were staying in B-ham overnight. We decided that we wanted to go someplace "nice" or "romantic" for dinner since it would be a make-up for a missed anniversary dinner. The restaurant is very unassuming on the outside. I mean, it's kind of in this business strip that is a step above your average strip mall. Once inside however, the atmosphere took us by surprise. Low-level lights, lit candles at each table and in wall sconces, and a well-polished bar top. We were seated at an intimate table, not on top of anyone else. Which in these COVID-19 times, is great. I want to take a moment to address some of the other reviews on this topic. Before we visited Amore, I did read a few reviews that ripped the restaurant for not providing adequate space. I am here to tell you to ignore those reviews. That was not an issue for me or anyone else there. All of the staff were also wearing masks and gloves. No complaints from us on that score. Anyway... Steven was our waiter and was he fantastic. Dude is top-notch. Very polite, professional and had a great attitude. He was able to recite the day's specials in a detailed manner that communicated a real interest in the food that was being prepared. My wife ordered the eggplant parmigiana and I ordered one of the day's specials with the grouper (can't remember the exact name, sorry). Steven was able to recommend some wines to pair with our dishes and we took him up on those. And I'm glad we did! Excellent choices, Steven, thank you. Both dishes and accompanying salads were excellent. The garlic knots served with a dish of olive oil and seasonings were superb. I could go on at length about the food, but this review is already getting too long. Just trust me; it was outstanding. One last thing I would like to add. At one point while talking to Steven, it came up that our anniversary had passed recently. I did not think much of it at the time, but after our dishes had been taken away, Steven appeared with a plate with a dish of Vanilla Crème Brûlée with "Happy Anniversary" written on it. So unexpected and kind! I've included a picture of it here. Anyway, if you have made it this far through the review, all I have left to say is: If you are looking for a nice, romantic dinner with your significant other that provides a great atmosphere, top-notch service, and excellent food, you need to try this place. Get a...

Went here for hubby’s birthday. He had eaten here, I had not. He was very excited to go and had had positive experiences when he went. That was not the case on our recent visit. We arrived early, we’re seated promptly and listened to the daily specials. We made our selections for appetizers and entrees. Bread was brought to the table with olive oil for dipping. The bread was very good. We split an order of meatballs for an appetizer. And they came out quickly. There were three and they were quite large and very tasty. Italian salads came with our entrees and they were delicious. A word of caution on the Italian dressing, it’s quite thick so it’s very easy to pour too much and the flavor becomes a little overwhelming. Then the experience started to go downhill. We patiently waited for our entrees to come out. We waited and we waited. Our server (don’t remember his name) passed our table multiple times and it was quite obvious we were done with salads and ready for the main course. He happily brought drinks to other tables, recited the specials to others and seemed oblivious to the amount of time that had passed. We were there for an hour waiting. He never gave us an update when our entrees would be ready, apologized for the delay or even check with us to see if we needed anything. By that time we were done. When my husband ask for the check, he never ask if there was a problem or seemed the least be concerned. After inspecting the ticket he realized we were being charged for the entrees we never received. At that point hubby informed him there was a problem with the ticket. The waiter seemed puzzled and confused. Mind you he was the only waiter we had serve us and was aware we hadn’t received the entrees. I guess he was hoping we were stupid. Upon telling him we hadn’t received entrees, he informed us they were coming right out. He disappeared and was back in five minutes with the entrees. To say we were completely out of the mood to eat was an understatement. We were both extremely annoyed. We took a few bites had them boxed up paid the $125 ticket and left. Needless to say, we will not be going back there. Our waiters total disregard and oblivious demeanor broke the camels back. He was lucky he got a $20 tip. I will say the leftovers were quite good. The restaurant experience,...

We had no idea what we were getting into when we stepped through the door, we were just being adventurous. Despite this, the staff was very polite and seated us right away. (But come with a reservation! We got lucky!) The food was amazing, as was the music. Everything is candlelit and delightful. We will DEFINITELY be returning.

UPDATE:

As of originally posting this review, we've been back and still loved this place. The first time we stepped in, we were just two overwhelmed college kids looking to be adventurous on a date. Our waiter was super cool and when we went back for our reception dinner (our wedding was rather small) we saw him again and he remembered us. I hadn't ever really experienced that and it was really cool.

The menu is pricey but everything is delicious. There's a stew that takes a whole day to prepare and they only serve I think three bowls. So come early if you want to try it. I personally cannot recommend the cheese ravioli enough and it has remained my favorite. After my very first visit, I've been careful to take dairy pills with me so I don't end up sick later. Totally a me unable to process dairy problem and not at all a restaurant problem. Other lactose intolerant people beware and come armed with lactose pills! Not just for the ravioli but also in general because there's a lot of dairy on the menu.

You cannot get better service anywhere and this is, hands down, THE best service I've ever had in the entire world. And that's saying something considering I grew up in Japan and have been to Korea, China, and Australia. This place has the best food I've ever had and even after moving away, I make an effort to come every time I'm...