DeMarco's Italian — Restaurant in Greenville

I had high hopes for this restaurant after noticing it a few weeks ago during a Greenville Drive game. My friend chose it for her birthday dinner, and while there were a few thoughtful touches throughout the evening, the overall experience unfortunately fell short — especially considering the price point.

We had a reservation for 7:30 PM but weren’t seated until 8:00, and only after checking in twice. While we waited, the bartender was kind enough to get us drinks, and that gesture was appreciated. One of my friends let her know we’d be dining in and wanted the drinks added to our dinner bill, but she still rang them up separately and handed the check to me — not a huge deal, but a little confusing given what we had communicated.

Once seated, the manager did bring out complimentary focaccia as a gesture for the wait, which we truly appreciated. Unfortunately, things went downhill from there.

One of my friends ordered the same cocktail I had, and hers was significantly stronger to the point that she had to wait for it to dilute before drinking. I ordered the eggplant Parmesan, which I mistakenly assumed would come with pasta (my fault for not double-checking), but even so, what I received was extremely underwhelming. The eggplant was so tough in spots that I couldn’t even cut through it with my butter knife. I hadn’t eaten all day and was genuinely looking forward to my meal, so to be served a $25 plate of inedible eggplant — with no sides — was frustrating and disappointing. Considering the food cost of this dish is relatively low, the pricing felt excessive given both the portion and the quality.

My friend shared a slice of her pizza with me, which, while more filling than my dish, was burned on the crust and soggy in the middle. Drink-wise, I ordered a sweet tea that wasn’t sweet at all, so I had to ask for sweetener. I then asked for a Dr. Pepper, but it was watery and lacked flavor.

To finish off the night, my friend ordered the donuts for dessert. They looked good at first glance but were completely hollow inside — not sure if that’s the intention, but it caught all of us off guard.

I didn’t say anything at the time because I didn’t want to dampen my friend’s birthday celebration, but I left disappointed. I understand you’re paying in part for the ambiance and experience, but the quality of the food and drinks simply didn’t justify the cost. Sadly, I won’t...

It's more of a 3.6, but I don't feel like it's fully deserving of that fourth star so I'm not rounding up. Let's start with the most important obstacle...

Parking Limited spots on the first floor of the garage on the other side of the apartment complex. You do have to pay for it, and they don't validate it (not a huge deal, I think it was $3 for two hours), but it would be a nice gesture. Otherwise, good luck with street parking. This is gonna be hellacious on weekends and game days since it's directly across from Fluor Field.

Ambiance and Vibes It is noisy, we sat on the second floor and it wasn't so bad that we couldn't hear each other, but I could definitely see this being a larger issues for groups on the lower floor. It's much more casual than I thought it would be-- TVs around the bar and people had their dogs out on the patio (personal icks). Also, the decor felt a little unfinished? They had those temporary paper blinds on some of the windows upstairs.

Service We arrived at 7:51 for an 8:00 reservation and had a 16 minute wait before we were sat. The flow of the meal/service was VERY slow. It took about an hour for our entrees to arrive. Our waiter was fine. Nothing special or memorable.

Food Here's where Demarco's redeems itself. Cocktails were solid-- I opted for one of their specialty cocktails (limoncello spritz) and it didn't dissapoint. No notes for the calamari or the spicy vodka rigatoni, both were executed to near perfection. We also got the New Yorker pizza, which was just okay. It's similar in style to a couple of other spots in town and I don't think it's better. Would love to see them broaden their pasta offering and lean more into that.

In summary-- service was slow and kind of mid. Food is solid. Not bad overall, but not special either. I'll be back to give it another...

Update: our third time back and our server, Soon, was fantastic! Plus, the menu had a few new items. This is definitely our favorite Italian place in Greenville.

The scallops with asparagus risotto is absolutely delicious!

Our night started with some of the friendliest greeters at the door. The atmosphere in the place is fantastic, especially walking in and seeing the wood fired ovens right in front. We had a drink at the bar first. All the bartenders were nice and helpful. The bar is really cool with lights inside the stone. Beautiful! Then we took our table. Chris, our server, was really spectacular. We were able to taste various wines to find the ones we really wanted.

Our appetizer of calamari was good, but for my taste, it could have been cooked just a tiny bit more. It was bordering on slimy while the breading was still a bit crispy. The Caesar salad was probably one of the best I've ever had.

Everyone enjoyed their main dish. My eggplant Parmesan was absolutely delicious and was recommended by Chris. I've never had eggplant with such a dense delicious texture. It was like cutting a perfectly cooked steak! Unfortunately, it didn't come with a side of homemade pasta, but it was filling and satisfying. I got to taste their pasta from a friend's Duck Ragu. Yummy. The pork chop was HUGE and (I'm told) very spicy. I could smell the peppers from where I was sitting! The meatball was as big as a baseball and exceptionally tender. BTW, try the tiramisu martini. Perfection!

Prices were a bit high, but the quality of everything made it absolutely worth it. Food, service and atmosphere were all A++. We definitely will be back. I really want to try one of their wood...