La Bella Tavola Italian Grill & Pizza — Restaurant in Gonzales

My friend and I had lunch today at La Bella Tavola for the first time. We'd heard good things about it and read positive reviews on Google. We should have followed our first instinct and gone to the Come and Take It Grill where we're very familiar with the food and service. We could not have been more disappointed. He ordered the Pasta Combo, I ordered the Pasta Sampler. The Combo supposedly has tortellini, lasagna, cannelloni and manicotti. The Sampler supposedly has lasagna, cannelloni and manicotti. The food in the Combo was thrown in together and covered with so much sauce & cheese, there was no telling what was what. No separation at all of any of the pastas. And no difference in how anything tasted. Same with the Sampler. It was swimming in sauce and cheese that was so hot it cooked the already cooked pastas down to nothing. The fillings in the pastas mixed in with the sauce and cheese and made everything a greasy mess. The rolls that were brought out were tasteless. No garlic or salt on top. They were frozen rolls that had been put into the oven. The waitress we had didn't even bother to come and ask if we needed anything or refill our drinks. I still left a good tip....but it wasn't earned. This was truly a disappointing experience and I wish it hadn't been. Next time, we'll just go across the street to the Come and Take It Grill where we know the food is good and the...

La Bella Tavola is still my family's favorite place in Gonzales! For the price and the quality, it's hard to find anything better in town. It's just off the town square, so it's a perfect spot for people watching during CATI.

They give massive portions of everything, so we always have food to take home. We have two people in our family with gluten sensitivity, so having Italian gluten free options in Gonzales, Texas has spoiled us.

Do your best to not overstuff on the homemade rolls. I've had the lobster ravioli, shrimp scampi and the veggie strambolli. Our family has split pizzas many times. Everything has always been amazing. I am not gluten free, but when I'm with a family member who is, I will split the gluten free pizza with them, and it is JUST as wonderful as the regular pizza (and large enough for two people, and possibly leftovers, depending on how hungry you are).

The wait staff is kind and attentive. The restaurant, itself, is lovely. I have yet to try desserts. I think it might be time to...

First of all, we arrive at dinner time, 6:30 pm. We walked in and the heat slaps you in the face. It was very hot, at least 80 degrees inside. We should have turned around and walked out. There were only 3 other tables occupied. The rolls came out hard as a rock. Our entrees came out very quickly and were barely edible. Shrimp Scampi had 5 shrimp on top of pasta swimming in sauce. The shrimp had no seasoning and was very dry and rubbery, like it had been microwaved. The sauce had a weird bland taste to it and something was just "off" with it. I ate 2-1/2 of the shrimp and maybe 4 bites of the pasta. My husband's lasagna tasted and even smelled like "Chef Boyardee". I told the waitress about the disappointment of the meal and the issues. She gave us a 25% discount on the scampi. As soon as we got back to our hotel, I was immediately nauseous with stomach pain and felt like I was going to vomit. The next morning I woke up with severe stomach pain. Don't waste your time or money...