Bella Milano Edwardsville — Restaurant in Edwardsville

mpressive. I will go out on a limb and say, Bella Milano is equal if not better to the Italian restaurants on, The Hill in St. Louis. Yes, it was that good. They nailed it on the food, service and ambiance. I was totally impressed.

I was dining alone, so I didn't mind being seated in the bar area at a high top table. My evening started with a Tito's Dirty Martini. I like it when they bring you the shaker with more booze in it. It always makes me feel like I am getting more bang for my cocktail money.

While reading the menu, I was pleased to see they offered a half order of their Toasted Ravioli. Being a single diner, a full order would be a meal and I wanted to enjoy a pasta entree as well. They were delicious and I'd say they are my favorite toasted ravioli, now.

After my ravioli, I ordered a small Milanos Salad. I was curious to see one of their topping, Crispy Prosciutto Ham. Wow, what a unique item to mix in with a special cheese blend, green onion and topped with a house made dressing. The bartender, who was also my server asked if I wanted bread with my salad. Normally, I would have said no, but being in an Italian restaurant and knowing it came with a small plate of oil for dipping, I could not resist. It took a lot of self control, because I did want to eat the entire basket.

For my entree, I selected, Creamy Garlic Angel Hair with Shrimp. It was delicious, but I couldn't finish it and had to take a portion home for the next days lunch. The angel hair was tossed in a rosemary cream sauce with baby shrimp, spinach and shallots and topped with three jumbo sautéed shrimp.

The only downside of my meal, was the fact that I was too full to enjoy a dessert. My favorite dessert is Creme Brûlée and I wanted it so bad. I saw several orders being delivered to tables near by and that made me want it even more. Oh, well. At least that gives me a reason to come back and...

We stopped here for dinner after a day of baseball games. The atmosphere is incredible. Whoever designed the restaurant paid attention to all the little details. You can dress casual, dress up for date night or dinner with the family.

We didn’t have to wait long for a table for 2. We were seated on the patio where the luscious greenery and water feature made you feel like you weren’t right next to a road.

Our server Claire did a fantastic job taking care of us. I highly recommend her if you are able to request a server.

We had the red sangria which was delightful and started with the toasted ravioli. The toasted ravioli was cooked to perfection with a crisp edge and flavorful center. The red sauce served with the ravioli was one of the best I’ve ever had.

Next we had the Milano salad with house dressing which was a sweet Italian dressing. The salad has crisp prosciutto in it which was a nice addition. The bread was also served with a whipped butter which is nice considering most places give you cold butter you can’t even spread. Not only was it served with the perfect butter but also oil, herbs and parmesan.

We chose the chicken parmigiana and lasagna for our entrees. Both were also fantastic.

The chicken parmigiana was paired with the side of fettuccine Alfredo. It’s not very often a restaurant has a great red sauce AND a wonderful, creamy alfredo sauce but Milano’s has both.

The lasagna is incredible but it’s definitely very rich. I know the restaurant is in Illinois but the lasagna is a perfect example of what St. Louis area lasagna should taste like with the provel cheese.

The portions are very good for the price. I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone for any event.

My only recommendation is that I think the servers could benefit from a “step-n-pull” door opener from the patio. I think it would help when carrying dishes...

I came in from out of town for a family dinner. What didn't go wrong.? The venue had poor access for elderly or handicapped...the entry could have been in front but was moved to 50 yards away from the one (1) handicapped space which had a ramp. Elderly relatives had to hike through the rain and wind to get to the entry. Parking almost non-existent. Once inside, we were a party of 12 seated at (4) 48" round tables shoved together in a row. It was 16' from one end to the other!!! The "room" consisted of a plastic tent enclosure blowing around wildly in the wind, and heated with radiant tube heaters hanging from the rafters. Zero ambiance. Food presentation was bland...I've seen better at Applebee's. Two people didn't get served until 5-10 minutes after the 1st delivery. I feel sorry for the people of Edwardsville if this is what you consider 4-1/2 stars. City Planning and Zoning needs to get involved and move that entrance back to the front, increase the number of handicapped spaces and create a proper entrance and drop off area for a venue that seats this many people. The "tent" needs to be closed from Labor Day to Memorial Day; it's not usable dining space in November. The venue manager needs to be fired and replaced with someone who can direct a staff to properly seat a party of 12 and serve them all at the same time. I'd give it 0...