Cafe Al Dente of New York — Restaurant in Hilton Head Island

I hosted my husbands birthday dinner at this restaurant. Looking at some of the pictures from other diners and even their own photos, I think there must be a lack of consistency with the cooking and preparation of the food. We were a party of 10 celebrating a birthday noted on the reservation. The Caesar salad came out chopped with heavy mustard based dressing with tons of grainy mustard seeds. Odd. Tasted ok but 100% not Caesar. Several of us ordered the rigatoni in vodka sauce. Every piece of rigatoni which wasn’t many came out completely flat and several pieces broken. So the sweet kitchen staff that brought out our dishes maybe should’ve been like: I can’t serve that! Lol. Overcooked and ironically not al Dente!! Which is odd because the table next to us finishing their dish the pasta looked like it retained its shape. The risotto dish was not made out of risotto rice as expected but a beaded pasta. It was very tart but edible. Chicken parm and garlic bread was good but soggy parts sitting in the sauce. Also oddly none of the food came out hot. Like no one’s. Tip: better description of your food on your menu would be helpful. The table next to us got a little birthday cake. We got nothing as we waited awkwardly but got the bill instead. I mean we just opened presents in front of the entire restaurant. Maybe we ordered the wrong things and I was a bit embarrassed to have brought my family and guests to this restaurant for subpar food on this special occasion. The Chianti by the glass was good. Do not get the Spanish wine. It is vinegar. The person pouring that should’ve been able to smell that right away. Lighting also super bright for dinner. A bit of ambience couldn’t hurt for what the food lacked Please get some quality assurance in the kitchen! Our server was very nice but couldn’t answer some basic questions about the food when ordering. She still got...

Love this quaint lil restaurant - where Vine used to be in North Forest Beach, Coligny Plaza. First, it’s tiny and adorable. It reminded me of a French bistro. It’s light and bright - opposite its predecessor, Vine, which was dark yet intimate - a different vibe altogether. Owners have carefully designed the space to make it fresh and new. Entire staff was welcoming and friendly. The pinwheel lasagna is outstanding …it’s better than the pappardelle bolognese…which was also excellent. (My sister got the lasagna and asked for extra marinara sauce - just a lil disclaimer.) Only improvements I might suggest (hard to judge such a sweet place that’s only soft-opened)…bread was served plain sans butter or olive oil….although I’m sure we could’ve asked for it. We ordered Caesar salad - perfectly delicious with a hint of lemon - but would’ve liked fresh pepper. (Again, I’m sure I could’ve asked, but it was busy, and I didn’t want to ask for something so trivial. I think they had pepper on the table, but I’m a pepper snob and like it fresh/cracked.) Table next to us ordered Rombauer Chardonnay (not cheap) - and it was placed on table rather than in a chiller. It’s possible they were not wanting it chilled, but as a white wine lover, I’d want it chilling if I ordered a bottle. All in all, I’m stoked this restaurant is right near our home and hope to dine here for years to come. We really enjoyed it. The food was delicious, and the ambience was adorably charming/quaint. I think most of the pasta is homemade. It’s a NYC vibe in HHI. We loved it…hoping it’ll be another great...

An AMAZING dinner! My family was visiting for our annual beach vacation and happened upon this cute Italian cafe. We decided to try it as our kids were hot, tired, and hungry from our long bike ride on the beach. It was soooooo goooooood. Their vodka sauce was spot on! The fried fresh mozzarella appetizer was amazing The kids got the rigatoni vodka sauce pasta and licked their plates clean. The Lasagna Rollatini was to die for (if we lived here l'd come back just for that dish on a weekly basis!!!!. My husband got the fresh fish with a nice wine sauce over risotto and loved it. Their bread was fresh and the dark and white chocolate mouse dessert hit the spot. The service was wonderful! From the hostess to our waiter, the entire experience was soooo nice. Definitely a gem of a place! I'm definitely bookmarking this as a repeat if we vacation here again!

We actually went back the next day because it was soooooo gooood. This time we got the Homemade bread pudding was the BEST bread pudding I’ve ever had in my life! The bourbon sauce was phenomenal (and I don’t even like bourbon and I’m from Kentucky!). The outside has a beautiful crisp while the inside is warm and soft. Trust me on this one you can’t miss out or you’ll regret your life choices!!! Compliments to the magnificent chef who even came out and introduced himself after we couldn’t get enough of the delicious food at this hot spot! He was soooo nice and great to speak to. What a gem of a place! Wish we lived here just for...