Osteria Tavi — Restaurant in Encinitas

I usually don’t go out out my way to review, this one is for the consumer.

When I went to pay my bill (because bill was taking forever), I went to the front and was helped by our waitress Anna. (I believe was her name) She told me what my bill was and was not provided the itemized bill (I took her word for it because she was so nice). I proceeded to pay, and then noticed that the tipping was only allowing me to put 1%, 3%, and5%. I told her “no way, let me change this to 20%, how does it only let me tip you this amount?” She then said that she didn’t know how to change the presets….

Come to find out, I was AUTOMATICALLY providing gratuity to her. So not only did she already tip herself, she let me think that she wasn’t getting tipped and I tipped even more on the bill.

My other friends who were part of the table also didn’t realize they were tipping on top. Some even $20 on top.

VERY UNCOOL. Especially because I mentioned if to the girl and she could have easily provided me a statement or correct me that the tip...

What a delight! If you want authentic Italian dishes in family/sharable sized portions, this is the place! Service was relaxed, but so worth the wait for the food!

We ordered the Heirloom Tomato Burrata Caprese for starters and everything from the vinaigrette to the foccaccia was delicious! The Carciofi salad had a light citrus vinaigrette and so refreshing.

Calabrese pizzette had plentiful gooey cheese on crispy yet foldable crust.

The house-made pastas were perfectly al dente and plenty for the 4 of us to share. The Bolognese pasticciati was a hearty, meaty dish on tagliatelle while the Aglio olio peperoncino on tagliatelle was light and bright.

The Al limone with chicken (with seasonal vegetables) was the star of the meal for us. Wonderfully light and bright sauce with a tender and juicy chicken breast. The seasonal vegetables (for December) were crispy-tender Heirloom carrots and asparagus - divine!

We sat outside with a heater and enjoyed peach blossom hot tea in addition to...

You know those ‘let’s get the fam out for unplanned celebratory dinner’ only to have it fail and you’re scrambling for plan B moments? Osteria wasn’t what we thought we’d eat Friday night but it will never be forgotten as the night impeccable service, unforgettably satisfying dishes, and an ambience that felt as relaxed as your backyard but really really special not only salvaged our special occassion but set a bar both in food and service that we keep talking about. Jackson, our server, set the tone and invitation that got our fam out of their funk and smiling with garlic foccacia. My wife has not been able to eat pasta or pizza for years due to gluten sensitivities and had NO issues with any of their bread dishes. She swooned over the scallops. Even my teenager was shocked into sarcasticlessness by what she admitted was the best tiramisu of her life. Osteria Tavi is the quiet masterpiece of a meal and experience we didn’t know...