Ristorante Machiavelli — Restaurant in Edmonds

We were excited to try the newest restaurant in Edmonds. We live nearby and frequent the restaurants and bars weekly. My daughter went ahead to the restaurant at 4:55 to get a table and was told she could not be seated until our whole party arrived which happened 10 minutes later due to parking issues. The ambience for an Italian restaurant was not my liking. I expected dimmer lighting and perhaps some candlelight at each table. We ordered 2 glasses of wine, a chianti and sangeovese. Both arrived in small wine glasses filled to the brim which does not look like a 4 oz pour at $9. For appetizers we ordered the bresaola alla valtinelesse and tuna carpaccio. The bresaola was okay. The tuna carpaccio was good. For our entrées, we ordered the linguine alle vongole, fettuccine carbonara, handmade gnocchi al sugo, tortellini with bolognese sauce, and the sausage with Mama lil's chili pizza to share during our meal. The pizza was lightly brown at the edges, pale and soggy bottom and warm, not hot, served in a pasta bowl, not a plate. Our entrées were luke warm and the pasta plates were cold. The vongole description says "clams in marinara with plenty of garlic" and was told the clams in the vongole are chopped. However, what I got were very small clams and no garlic flavor or pieces in the thin tomato sauce. The sauce had no body to it and pooled at one end of the plate. The linguini was overcooked, not al dente. The carbonara was the worse tasted by our guest. The gnocchi were too soft, almost pasty and sauce was average. The bolognese sauce was salty. The serving size and price point ($19-21) were not congruent. We waited for our entrées for 45 minutes for which our server apologized for several times. With several staff helping serve our meal and drinks, we were not asked how our meal was. We were even served the wrong food at one point. Although we were still hungry and wanted dessert, we did not stay. Instead, we went to Epulo for drinks and dessert. Very disappointing experience in a community where we are used to receiving good food...

I would give the food a 10/10 I had the GF Alfredo and my partner had the carbonara. Both dishes were the highlight of our visit.

The customer service, however, was honestly a 0/10. First, we got there at 7:45 and were told it was about a 30 minute wait, no big deal! But, we were then told to “be back by 8:15” which made us feel like we couldn’t wait inside the restaurant and we needed to leave.(Their system is very antiquated and all they do is write your name on a paper.) So we walked 5 minutes down the street and got a drink and waited. We arrived back at 8:15 and were told we were second on the list of “twos” to be seated. We were also informed that since we left they just go down the list and give the table away. We would have stayed if the hostess didn’t make us feel like we had to leave and come back at the designated time. We assumed they had a better system to keep up with tables.

But fine, he said it would about 15-20 minutes. So we waited inside right in the bar area. We watched two people be sat and so at 8:30 my partner walked up and asked the hostess where we were on the list. The hostess proceeded to say he had called our name and we didn’t say anything. The place is TINY there is no chance that we didn’t hear him. So I walked up and politely said we had been sitting inside the whole time since we showed up at 8:15 so there was no way we missed being called. Then, another waitress/women walked up and said “we are not going to argue with you about this” I proceeded to try to explain to her the situation and she cut me off and said “if you continue to argue we will not serve you at all” I was appalled at how rude she was and the lack of any customer service. At that very moment a table happen to come available and they offered to seat us. If we hadn’t waited about an hour to eat, I would have walked out, because in no way were either of us rude to anyone and were treated so poorly.

I do not recommend this place because unfortunately the poor customer service outweighed the...

I can’t believe I haven’t reviewed this place yet! I just enjoy myself so much when I go that a Google review isn’t my first priority. This time I got some good pics for IG stories so I might as well write a review too. Anyway, I have been coming here since high school when my friend, who grew up on Capitol Hill, told me about it. That’s a lot of years, folks! There is always a wait, but that’s a good sign! The bar is cozy and they make a mean manhattan, which goes perfectly with the low light, red hued atmosphere of the bar area. Ideal when you’re waiting for a table on a blustery PNW night. If you don’t want to wait in the bar, there are a ton of places nearby to grab a drink or some oysters (shout out to Taylor Shellfish around the corner). There aren’t a ton of tables and the restaurant is, like the bar, cozy (but more well lit as it should be). It’s borderline cramped but doesn’t cross the line. Basically perfect for an intimate dining experience with all the other Italian food enthusiasts. Now, to point, the food is amazing. Simple, delicious and exactly what you want from an old school Italian joint. The portions aren’t huge but they are satisfying. The Caesar is the best I’ve had at any restaurant (and I have had a lot of Caesars). Don’t skip the white anchovy add on. These are not the oily salt bombs that turn non-anchovy lovers off. The lasagna is a cheesy, meaty dream. It is rich and flavorful without being unwieldy. The true Platonic ideal. The spaghetti bolognese doesn’t look like much but it is incredible. A perfect medley of al dente noodles with succulent sauce. You will be dragging your bread through any leftover sauce after you have devoured the noods, guaranteed. There is a reasonably priced wine list that goes perfectly with all the food and the service a chill and friendly. You feel like you won the lottery when you get a window table and get you enjoy observing the bustle of Pine while savoring some damn good...