Tofanelli's Gold Country Bistro — Restaurant in Grass Valley

Disappointed is probably the more appropriate rating on this as I have been going to Toffenellis for many years now. In the past I have had some server issues or perhaps a small issue with my meal, all which have been rectified or corrected fairly quickly in one way or another. However, on this particular instance, yesterday, I ordered the Ribeye and eggs, very rare with over medium eggs. We received our food in somewhat of a timely manner and as I began to try and get a bite, I could not get through the steak with the knife. I then started turning the plate trying to locate the side of the steak that my knife may slice through. As I attempted another area of the steak, the plate with all of it's fixings went onto my lap, as well as the floor. As the waitress came over to ask how she could assist me I gathered the food from my lap and floor and placed it back on the plate and asked if she could take that so that I may finish cleaning my surroundings. About 45 seconds later, an angry short statured woman, I think she is a manager or owner, came rushing to our table to ask what happened. At first I thought, "wow that was a very quick response", then she opened here mouth and began telling me that I should have ordered my steak well done if I had really wanted it tender. She proceeded to tell me that they would take my food and throw it back on ( the food that was on the plate and floor ) and cook it longer, basically insinuating that the whole thing was my fault and she wanted to make it clear that she would not be fixing me another one. I said no thank you ( I prefer my food without hair and dirt on it) and she then turned to my breakfast partner and asked him if she could wrap it up for him as, in her words, there is nothing wrong with it and its a beautiful Steak, needless to say he declined as well. I got up and went outside to wait for my party that was still eating inside. A few minutes later he came out and informed my that she did not take anything off of the bill even though I never even got to try the food. I have worked in or around the food industry for years and this is certainly not the way to treat people that support your business. There are other restaurants in the area and I am excited to be giving my business to someone more worthy in the future. Thank you Toffenellis for reminding me that we have a community full of local business that need my support and you will NOT be one of them.....

Tofanelli’s has been one of our standards, knowing the food and service will be good; until yesterday. A friend recently told me they had a terrible breakfast there a couple weeks ago - no one in their party of 6 enjoyed the food. BUT, I hadn’t personally had a bad experience so decided to go in on a Saturday night when I had exactly 2 hours (and only 2 hours) to have dinner and then hopefully be able to enjoy the new Mill Street Plaza. We arrived at 7:00 and put our name in for a table. We were told 15-20 minutes. After about 20-25 minutes we were told “we’re so sorry, the kitchen is backed up, it’s going to be another 15 minutes.” Okay, at this point we’re invested. We didn’t think we could leave and get in to another place within 15 minutes, so might as well wait. Another 25 minutes goes by and a very nice server (Matt, you’re awesome!) said he could seat us in the bar at a table. Great! We walked in and only 3 tables were filled, with people who I had seen seated because they had reservations - I had assumed the whole place was packed due to our “need to wait.” My daughter said she had looked on the patio and there were lots of empty tables there, too. Hmmm. We were promptly brought waters and bread with oil/vinegar dipping sauces. Then, we heard the lovely server, Matt, tell the table next to us that he was so sorry for the delay in them getting their food, he’d check with the kitchen. Now, we’ve been here an hour and we only have one hour left to eat and maybe get to walk through downtown. Matt very nicely told us that, to be transparent, it would probably be another hour until we’d get any food. I REALLY appreciated his honesty! We didn’t have that kind of time. I was hangry by this point and disappointed we had wasted so much time. We left. I’m not sure what’s going on in Tof’s kitchen- bad food for my friends, no food at all for me - but I hope they get it resolved soon!! (Oh, I’ll add, we walked down to Mill St, popped in to another place, were seated immediately, served amazing food, and were on our way in 35 minutes,...

We went here for dinner to celebrate my mother in law’s 70th birthday. Reservations were made for 6 on a Friday (8/9/24) evening at 6:30 pm. Our table was ready for us when we got there. There was live music out in the patio when we were there. We were seated indoors and wasn’t able to listen to the music however.

Our server (Gabriella) was awesome. She was super nice and very hospitable. She greeted us properly and was able to answer our questions. She gave us the space and time to decide on dinner. She tended to our needs when we needed her.

Our food arrived within 15-20 minutes upon placing our order hot from the kitchen. The dishes were beautifully presented especially the Chicken Salad and the Halibut. My Halibut turned out excellent. The fish was cooked perfectly and tasted awesome. The lemon was a tad much however and overpowered the flavor of the rice. Still it was very delicious. My wife’s Chicken Salad was also delicious. The Chicken Fettuccine was also prepared very well. The steak however fell somewhat short of expectations. I was told the cut was fattier than expected and slightly undercooked to order. It was suppose to be medium but came out redder than expected. The taste was excellent however.

Our total came out to be about $240 with tax and tip which included a glass of wine to go with our dinner. No desserts however.

So how did Tofenelli score?

Atmosphere 5/5. Service 5/5. Food 4.5/5. Value to Price Ratio 5/5. Overall Experience 4.75/5.

Our experience at Tofenelli was very good. Gabriella was a great host and provided us excellent service. Food was mostly (almost) perfect. I would caution to inquire about the steak and be more specific on how you want your steak prepared. Tofenelli is a charming place to have an enjoyable dinner.

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