PALERMO's FAMILY ITALIAN PIZZERIA & GREEK RESTAURANT CONOVER, NC — Restaurant in Conover

We walked in and the atmosphere and decor was amazing. We were seated by our host Janet, she was extremely friendly and made us feel at home the entire experience. We ordered our drinks and were deciding what to order when BAM, 10 seconds after we got our drinks they had a complimentary garlic knot ready for us. The garlic knots were a bit too crunchy for my liking but were still great and the garlic sauce was amazing and a perfect compliment to the bread. We ordered a pepperoni stromboli and the chicken parmesan with a bruschetta. The order came out so fast I think 10 minutes went by and they had it ready. The food presentation was eye catching. The stromboli was a 5 star meal, ordered the large and it was $12 for around a foot long. Great bread and pepperoni the cheese was a perfect compliment to the bread and it was perfectly toasted. The sauce could've been a bit more sweeter for dipping but still great. The chicken parm had the perfect amount of cheese and the breading to chicken ratio was good. Great pasta 🍝 and sauce was very good with the spaghetti. The bruschetta was very good, spinach wasn't bitter and the tomatoes were cooked well. I didn't have to ask a single thing from Janet she was extremely attentive to our needs without even saying anything, she refilled our cups when needed, came and checked on us on multiple occasions and just made the entire experience amazing as a whole. When she could tell we were getting close to finished with our food she brought the check out. We paid up front and the cook came up and talked with us, all very kind staff and definitely an authentic mediterranean cook. We will...

Unfortunately this visit did not live up to the expectations we had going in.

After a brief wait we were seated, it was very busy with most tables being full. We started looking at the menu and my wife and I decided to order specials, Shrimp Scampi and Chicken Spinaccolli Alfredo, about $18 each. The kids opted for cheese pizza. We also order the cheese sticks and garlic knots.

The kids liked their pizza, they're easy enough to please. I will say the pizza was really good. Unfortunately, my chicken dish w not great. The chicken was overcooked and was hard but the pasta was good and the flavor was alright but could use some more seasoning. My wife's Shrimp Scampi was strongly lemon flavored, not just a hint, like a lot, which for me made it hard to enjoy.

We should have just stopped there but decided to get dessert which was the "icing on the cake". Our waiter listed a few choices and explained they had a cabinet to choose from which I initially didn't understand but should have investigated. We chose to do the cheesecake and Baclava. When it arrived, my wife took a bite of the slice of cheesecake and had to immediately discard. The cheesecake had turned and was "sour" to taste as if fermented. The Baclava was so hard we couldn't even eat it. We explained it to the waistaff and they said they removed it from the bill but we still ended up paying over $80 for a meal that involved a dessert that could have made us sick..... The owner sitting near the register seemed uninterested in the fact that our dessert was inedible.

There is better food for less. If you eat here, beware the...

The host and server were both one in the same. He sat us very promptly, took our drink orders and returned with our drinks and a plate of bread with garlic and oil in less than five minutes. The bread was exceptional! The sweet Tea was not quite as sweet as I prefer, but it was drinkable. Considering I'm a diabetic, he probably did me a favor. He took our order for an appetizer and entree. I chose Spaghetti with Angel Hair Pasta and Meat Sauce with Meatballs. The pasta was cooked to a perfect al dente, the sauce was thick and rich, not watery at all and the flavor was spot on. After tasting it, I envisioned an older Italian lady in the kitchen, lovingly stirring her pot of homemade meat sauce with a wooden spoon, as it gently simmers on the stove. It was that good. The meatballs were excellent. I'm assuming they were a mixture of ground beef and sweet Italian sausage, seasoned perfectly to complement the authentic tasting meat sauce. The portion I received for about $12 was enormous. I don't think I was able to eat even half of my entree. Bonus for me though, because I got to enjoy it again for lunch the following day. If all of the other entrees are as well prepared as mine was, I would assume there is not a bad choice on the menu. 4 out of 5 stars ONLY because of the Sweet Iced Tea not being very sweet and the men's restroom lacked a lot to be desired. The floor in front of the toilet and urinal was covered in urine and there was no soap in the restroom, either. I certainly hope there is soap in...