Ge-Angelo's — Restaurant in Ames

0/10 DO NOT RECOMMEND.

I arrived at 5:30pm with my daughters and high hopes based off of what my daughter had told me from her going several times previously. We stood at the door for a few minutes without being acknowledged so I asked a near by waitress if we needed to wait to be seated. She responded with, "I'll seat you in a moment." We waited a few more minutes then I asked if there was a wait time. She said no and sat us. That should have been my sign to leave but my daughter said the food was really good and I was excited to try it. So we sat, ordered drinks and food, and chatted. An hour and a half passes, it is now 7pm, and we have been served one drink each, one diner salad, and a small order of fries. Also, in this time, we have watched 4 tables that came in a significant amount of time after us, be served with 2 of the 4 having also paid and left. At this point, we are tired, annoyed, no longer hungry, and just want to leave as we still have an hour drive home. I tell the waitress that we no longer want to wait for our food and that I would just like the check for what we had been served so we could leave. She was very sweet and apologetic and had come to the table several times over the hour and a half apologizing and had asked the kitchen several times for an update on our order. I do not blame the waitress at all. I do, however feel bad that she has to deal with the manchild masquerading as the owner. Here enters the problem. The owner, who is also the chef, could not accept that a patron dared to be dissatisfied with the wait time and the fact that they watched 4 tables that came in after them, be served large made to order pizzas before their simple chicken and pasta dishes could manage to be served. Because of this, he decided to come out of his cave and try to bully me into taking the food so that I would have to pay for it. When I did not cave to his will and told him it had been an hour and a half. I was sick of watching people that had arrived well after me, be served before me, and that I just wanted to pay for my drinks and leave. He then tried arguing with me about whether or not it had been an hour and a half and tried to accused me of yelling at his waitress. Even his waitress spoke up and said I never yelled at her. At this point I realized I was dealing with the biggest manchild I've ever encountered and decided to stand up and remove myself from the conversation. He then felt that it was in his right to raise his voice, point his finger in my face, and tell me, "You can't leave! I'm talking to you!" I ignored his audacity and continued to walk away. I went up to the bar and said, "How much do I owe for my drinks so I can leave?" and was told by the bartender that I could just go. I reiterated that I had not paid for my drinks and she said it was fine. So, after an hour and a half and the worst experience in a restaurant of my life, we left with empty bellies and a lesson in reading the reviews before picking a...

We came here after playing some golf down the street. I was craving Italian cuisine and someone on the course suggested Ge-Angelo's. I looked on the menu before we came and saw Chicken Marsala which is one of my favorite dishes! A lot of Italian restaurants choose not to serve it because people are unfamiliar with Marsala wine. But, this one does so it beat out any other restaurant suggestions.

The restaurant itself is in a strip mall. I've had some of the best Italian food in strip malls so location doesn't tell me much. There was no wait, and we were seated by the bar around 5:30pm. They were out of a lot of appetizers we wanted, like the Suppli, so I took that as a good sign. The food must be good, right? We got the breaded Beef Ravioli appetizer instead and as soon as we tasted the food it all went downhill. The ravioli app was as chewy as cardboard, just as dry, and salted beyond belief! It was served with both a marinara and an alfredo sauce which tasted like they came out of cans. My husband's seafood ravioli special was completely swimming in that same alfredo which had no flavor for a parmesan-cream sauce. I was so put-off that I did not try his food like I normally do. He said that the ravioli tasted freezer-burnt. I don't have a problem with restaurants not making their pasta from scratch, but if you're buying it from Sysco then most of the work is already done for you. Your only job is to do it justice and serve it well.

Finally, my Chicken Marsala was THE WORST I've ever had. The sauce which should be a demi-glace was so runny. It tasted like there was no Marsala wine, at all--just stock and a lot of salt. If they cooked it off then the wine flavor would have been pronounced. I opted for spaghetti with my Chicken Marsala instead of the parmesan risotto. I had no idea that they would serve the spaghetti in marinara instead of Marsala sauce. It does not state that on the menu. I will echo others' sentiments about the food either being absolutely flavorless or heavy-handed with the salt. There was no middle. And, no garnishment of anything either. We rained pepper flakes onto our food for some dimension. What happened to all the herbs and spices that Italians are known for? I'm so confused. I married into an Italian family. My husband's nonna would roll over in her grave if she knew we ate this. There is no problem with Italian food being fast, but this is not Italian. I am so sorry. It was just awful. The zia who took care of us was very nice and attentive. Otherwise, it would have just been 1 star overall. I've honestly had better Italian food from a mom & pop gas station in New Jersey. I just can't believe it. I hate that I disliked it so much and that I feel obligated to write this review, but I wish I had...

I wanted to be impressed but the food and presentation were lacking, however if I were just rating the wait staff I'd be giving ten stars. My date ordered a spicy chicken dish with a side of spaghetti, his chicken dish was brimming with grease and slopped in the dish. The spaghetti noodles were a congealed mess and the sauce had no flavor. I order the mushroom risotto and the dish presentation was horrible. It looked like someone took a big spoon and just chucked it in to the dish. The flavor was also very off putting for my taste, perhaps it would appeal to others. Our daughter got the Alfredo and said our homemade sauce from home had more flavor. That being said, if they have the tomato bisque on menu, get it, you will not be disappointed. Atmosphere is great here which made up for the food just a bit, we had a cozy table by the fire which was nice on a cold night. And out waitresses was AMAZING! She had to have been at our table at least 6 times during our meal and she has several large tables she was tending. She remembered every drink, gave my daughter special attention, joked, made recommendations, and was overall an absolute delight. I will definitely go back and try the pizza as I hear it's truly the best thing to order...