Roma's Italian Bistro — Restaurant in Dallas

Visiting family in the area from San Antonio. I was so excited to introduce my sister, nephew, his young son and my friend to Roma's on Saturday, Dec 16th 12:30ish. They drove from Euless to join us. I had dined here once before with a couple who live in the area & it was beyond an excellent experience both service, attentiveness of the staff & the owner and the above average food. We went on their recommendation and it did not disappoint.

Well, it wasn't to be this time.

The server (female) couldn't have cared any less that we were there. There were only 3 tables total that afternoon. Us party of 5, a 6 top and a 2 top. The server (owner: check your timeclock that day & time to see who I am referring to) was annoyed, curt and disinterested in being there or serving customers. What job did she think she applied for? Owner is already taken. So we ignored her apathy and annoyance and thought she's having a bad day or something. So my response was. Fake it then. She never brought my tea. Had to ask twice. So then she forgets our lemons, twice, then brings these sad looking brown clearly old lemons. Then we asked for extra Mariana (we are aware we might have to pay for it) & got another annoyed sigh. Just bring the damn sauce.

So the food arrived. We start to eat and my chicken parmigiana is tough and the pasta & sauce was just blah and just thrown on the plate it looked like. Everyone else was like it's ok to good after I raved about it; but not inedible, just not what I was expecting after my first excellent experience/visit. The cheese sticks are on point as was the calamari. The complimentary garlic rolls are top shelf.

So my traveling partner is nearing the end of his chicken picatta stops eating and spits out two pieces of glass. I'm like what the what! So we go through what's left on the plate and there were two other small to medium dot size pieces as well. So 4 in total that we know of. Not wanting to make a scene, and we all agreed he go to a manager and NOT THE SERVER; whatever the guys position was (heavy set man) we do not know, tells my friend to bring the plate to him. Really? No sense of urgency or concern just bring the plate to him. So my friend comes back to the table and says they will take it off the ticket like he was doing us some huge favor. At no time did anyone in charge come to the table and apologize (we understand that these things happen, but it was glass not some strand of hair or a sub par food compliant but GLASS) or offer any mi culpa or this is not normal and we will address it with the kitchen staff.

Mind you there is me..15 years in the restaurant business in every role, my nephew currently a food server and manager of food and bar establishments sitting at the table.

Then the server brings the tab and she has added a gratuity for a table of 5 and was only about 12.00 (they did not included the comp'd dish with the added pieces of glass to the total of the tip) when we were willing to overlook her poor service & the incident with the glass and tip her 25.00 cash for encouragement to do better. I thought you know what you are not getting 25.00 because you didn't deserve it or even attempted to make us feel welcomed. Out of the reason for the season we left an additional 10.00 dollars cash.

I/We will probably return but I hope it is nothing like what we experienced and will just chalk it up to a bad day at Roma's and hopefully not get the same server ever again.

To the owner. If you reach out to me & my family with a proper apology I will consider removing this post. Let's say dinner for 5 on the house for...

Regarding my online Order #971E85D9 on Mar 7, 2025:

I placed an order online for delivery of 3 items (Calamari, Garlic Bread with Cheese, and Rigatoni Vodka Pasta with an order of Chicken). I provided special instructions online and requested that my Calamari NOT be fried hard.

PROBLEMS: THE CALAMARI WAS HORRIBLE & NOT EDIBLE. It WAS fried hard, not fresh (rubbery/VERY chewy texture), extremely salty (heavily seasoned), and placed on a bed of WET LETTUCE with visible signs of spoilage (WILTED & TURNING BROWN).

Based on this, I didn't believe the Calamari was safe for me or my grandkids to eat. So, I threw it in the garbage.

I have experience in catering and event planning. So, I know that the texture of well-prepared fried calamari should be a crispy, golden-brown exterior with a tender, slightly chewy interior.

Questions: 1) Was the Calamari pre-cooked and placed under a very hot warmer for an extended period of time before delivery? That would explain it's RUBBERY TEXTURE and the WET/WILTED/SPOILED LETTUCE. 2) Do you read the special instructions for orders placed online?

I prefer NOT to speculate regarding what went wrong with my order. But, in any case, I know that serving a dish like this is NOT acceptable and is extremely unprofessional.

By the way, I'm a NEW VIP customer and would appreciate a FULL REFUND (NOT a 10% off coupon) for my Calamari. This was my first order with Roma's. I love Italian food and believe in second chances. So, I look forward to hearing...

This is a great family-run restaurant in close proximity to Bishop Arts. Everything I’ve had here has been delicious, fresh, and filling. Light meal with the Chicken Caesar salad, or filling pizza or calzone. The fried calamari is good, the mozzarella sticks gooey and amazing and the bruschetta is delicious. (If you’re ordering to go, they package it so nothing gets soggy.) The chicken caesar salad is a great light lunch. The stuffed mushrooms have seafood and they are very tasty. Complimentary bread is fresh, buttery with a hint of garlic. The portion of spaghetti with mushrooms is pretty generous 🍝 (although I ask for extra mushrooms). I have tried most of the pastas plus the chicken and eggplant parmigiana and all have been tasty and made fresh. All the toppings on the pizzas have been fresh and there’s plenty of them. The owner and the rest of the staff is friendly and welcoming, with a bright and inviting atmosphere. Big windows let in light, the TV is never too loud, and the music is eclectic. Plus the new mural on the west side of the building makes it insta-worthy. Free parking all around the building. There’s only one thing missing: If they sold coffee I might be here...