Napoli Kirkwood — Restaurant in Kirkwood

After looking for a last-minute Easter Day brunch reservation for two friends and me, I found Napoli Kirkwood on OpenTable. Though I’ve long loved Café Napoli in Clayton—a fan for more than 25 years—I’d never been to this location. Now I can’t wait to return.

From start to finish, it was a phenomenal meal.

We began with salads and oysters—I had the house Napoli Salad (mixed greens, hearts of palm, artichokes, onion and Parmigiano), while my friends went for the Chopped Salad with salami, mozzarella, chickpeas, cucumbers, tomatoes, pepperoncini and olives. All were fresh, vibrant and generously portioned. The oysters were equally delicious.

For the main course, I chose the double-bone pork chop served over mashed potatoes and Brussels sprouts—tender, moist, and deeply flavorful. I even ate the meat off the bone (and I wasn’t alone: a woman at the next table said she followed my lead and was glad she did!).

One friend had the 8oz prime filet with au poivre, and the other ordered the linguine with shrimp and scallops. Both entrées disappeared almost instantly—each of us fully enjoying every bite.

At one point, I even considered ordering cacio e pepe off-menu. Our wonderful server, Alison, immediately checked with the chef, who kindly offered to make it and let me choose my noodles. But I’m so glad I stuck with the pork chop—it was everything I didn’t know I needed.

For dessert, my friends shared a slice of creamy cheesecake with a fun, decadent crust, and I had a small scoop of strawberry sorbet that was so good I wished I had ordered more.

And when it came time to pack up my leftovers, I asked if they could include just a little more of that incredible sauce. Not only did they do that, but they also added extra mashed potatoes and Brussels sprouts—an unexpected and generous gesture.

Flawless food, fantastic service and a welcoming atmosphere. A time was had. I’ll absolutely be back.

It’s wonderful to see such a longstanding family-run establishment not only continue to thrive but also expand in ways that keep their legacy of excellence alive and well.

It was all so good—the food, the conversation, the ambience—that I completely forgot to take photos. That’s my only regret. But maybe that’s just another...

After a four month break (and we had bad experience at the first time), we decided to give Napoli kirkwood another try. Unfortunately, I'm disappointed again. I had such wonderful experience every single time at other Napoli locations, and here in Kirkwood, my oen very neighbor felt like l was at the wrong place as soon as l walked in. The reception remains to be under-dressed, young women with occasional help from a manager or more professional being. l mean come on, we are not dining at H&M...dress code should be striker than this for a nice restaurant like Napoli, and just to prove that l wasn't being unfair, the girls were wearing spaghetti stripes above the knee sun dresses. I'm not old school l just think if you are serving nice steak and wine, your server/employee should at least dress appropriately as the manner standard. Then we ordered a 16 oz prime ribeye which was over seared on the outside and under cooked on the inside- we asked for medium and it was completely red. The server saw when l cut it open and brought it back to the kitchen. After a while, as we were thinking oh they must have cooked a new piece for us, no it was the one we returned but it took as long as it takes to make a new one. That was it. No apologies, no accommodations. They didn't even try to turn the experience around. Our server was not a bad person, l mean he was trying to make small talks but ended up making some inappropriate comments, like things it would be fitting to hear from a server at Applebee's but not here. I don't think l would go back. At least for a while. So disappointing and felt like it's hurting the reputation of...

After driving 45 minutes, I came to a function and was denied water and a straw. Once I came to the table, The server, Wade asked me what was I drinking. I replied "water". I was given a blank stare and he walked off. Noticing when he returned 5 minutes later, no water, I proceeded to just grab a water that had already been on the table, I then politely said Excuse me Wade, Can I just have a straw... No answer, I said very calmly, Wade, his name 2 more times, he ignored me! Asking who invited me there, can you please retrieve me a straw, she asks, He looks at another guest and says, What will you be eating? In return she asks the table did everyone notice what was going on? I immediately asked for a manager, explained the situation and was hit with" It's just a straw, you'll get a straw"... Well, I hadn't even gotten my drink, but, hey... I'll get a straw. I asked the manager to stop being so loud and rude to me but he continued to scream and cause a scene. I went to gather my belongings and left. I've never been more embarrassed and humiliated in my life. I was denied water and a straw, but in reality we all know, it's because the waiter wasn't making a beverage sale so My drink wasn't important to him, especially since he did not give me THE water, nor a straw for the old water. I have a pacemaker and was tired from the long walk from the parking lot to the establishment. To be the one who actually was the birthday Girls mom, VERY...