Massoni's Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Maryland

My first and last time eating at this establishment. The service was good, but my entree was horrible. I ordered the Shrimp Fra Diavolo. After I took my first bite, I immediately started coughing and choking. The amount of pepper flakes was so overwhelming. I told my waitress I could not eat it. I asked if I could order something else. She took my plate back to the kitchen. When she returned, she said, I'm sorry they won't exchange it for something else. They will remake the same dish with the pepper flakes on the side. I wasn't happy but agreed. I said instead of the linguine I would like angel hair pasta. Not even five minutes later my dish appears. The angel hair pasta was so overcooked when I tried to take my first bite the entire portion of pasta lifted off the plate. It was a huge gummy clump. The shrimp were mushy as well as the pasta. It was very clear they had taken the shrimp from my first entree washed them off; and replated them on my second entree. I asked the waitress if I could speak to the owner. About 10 minutes later the bartender walks over to our table, identifies herself as the manager on duty, and asks what the problem is. I explained to her I'm not happy with my meal. The first entree was way too spicy. The second was not a newly prepared dish. It was recycled from my first entree. She replied well I don't know what goes on in the kitchen. I said I would like it removed from my check. She said I'll see what I can do. The meal was $29. When I got the check, she had only given me a $9 credit. I called her back over to my table and asked her why she didn't comp my entire entree? She said she spoke to the owner, and she advised her to only give me a $9 credit because the menu specifies its spicy. I said I'm quite aware this is a spicy dish as I order it often. This was beyond spicy. I said, where is the owner? That's who I originally asked to speak with. She then told me she had called her at home. I said, do you mean to tell me every time there is an issue with a customer's food you have to call the owner and ask permission to comp their check? She said yes.

When we first arrived, we were seated at three different tables before we could order. The first table they sat us at was back by the bathroom. Every time someone walked past, they bumped into our chairs. The second table was so wobbly. They tried to level it out, but our drinks would have slid onto the floor. It was not safe for public use. The third table was fine. My friend got a small caesar salad drenched in dressing. She couldn't eat it. Their very small salads are a la carte $5.50. You would think with a $30 entree the salad would be included. The vodka and marinara sauce are bland & look & taste the same. The only highlight of our meal was our server Arianna, she was a gem. She was apologetic and very embarrassed over the situation. The atmosphere there is very loud & unprofessional. No dress code. It was hard to tell the employees from the patrons. One guy was walking back & forth from the bar to the kitchen with a shirt too small & his huge bare gut hanging down over his pants. It was disgusting.

The server said they were celebrating their 4th anniversary. I would be shocked if they made it to their 5th. Tell me your business is failing without telling me your business...

Final review: Had written the review below in their beginning but was hoping things would get better. I sure was wrong. Placed a carry out order for multiple different items and not only did did they get half of them wrong but some items were missing. Most of the food was bland and $30 “the BFF” with meatballs was not edible because the meatballs were spoiled and smelled extremely sour. Two of the dishes were supposed to be a lemon/wine creamy sauce yet somehow were dark brown. There was a woman that was smashed when I went it to pickup my food asking me questions like she was an owner however not sure. Owner or not, a drunk employee is not a good look especially after you messed up the order and the food is terrible. The drunk woman was also mouthy when I came back in with the bag of food to tell them that half of the order was incorrect like I was lying. Glad I hadn’t tasted the food yet because I would have lost my patience with her had I known the food was bad on top of the screw up.Had high hopes for a great local Italian style restaurant but this isn’t the place. Not sure how the reviews are so high because there isn’t a chance that they are accurate, must be friends and family. This will be the last time I go there.

First review: Called and someone only answered hello so I assumed I called the wrong number but after a few questions to the random woman, it turned out that Lacey was at Massoni’s answering the phone after all. Was looking to do carry out of some kind and was notified by Lacey that you could come in and place the order but not call in and place the order so whatever ok. Went there and tried to place the order which I was willing to wait for but was then told oh no you can only eat here at this time, we don’t do carry out at this hour. Was just looking for something easy and to try a new restaurant. Just the tone alone of the phone call was enough to irritate. It’s really a shame since I was hoping for a decent local Italian restaurant which maybe they could be but won’t be...

We finally got carryout from these guys, since they actually offered it tonight. It was a good thing I asked their hostess since their automated message says they don't do carryout on weekend evenings.

The chicken parm was not only dry, but didn't have anywhere near enough sauce or cheese on it. The portion size was excellent, but I won't order it again.

The Arancini balls (Greg's) were really tasty. We were all pleasantly surprised.

The Massoni Gnocchi was A+ as well (really!) strongly recommend this, the sauce is excellent and hits all of the right notes.

The Chicken Parm was 3 star, the rest was close enough to 5 star for me. Easily 4 star.

When I went to pick up the food, in person, I got an observation of the location. On the outside it looks classy, but on the inside, it's simply not. It's like they couldn't decide if they wanted to be classy or casual, so the end result is frankly janky. Country music playing, 6-7 TVs in a small space playing sports, and in the back, dimmer lights and nice seats. It's just a hot mess. I can't see myself ever voluntarily eating inside there - pandemic or not.

It's not dethroning Liberatore's for best Italian food in the area, but it's a solid runner up.

Update 1/15: tried a second time. We got an appetizer special called panzerotti. It was good. I tried their chicken Alfredo. For a second time, the pasta had nowhere near enough sauce. The noodles were cooked perfectly, the chicken was fine, and the portion size huge... but the end result was dry and lacking flavor.

Still holds at 4 star for me. I can understand folks giving this place 5 stars, nothings actually been poor, and standards among people vary.

This resteraunts main benefit, honestly, is it's much closer than Libretore's... but outside of them, this is definitely the best Italian in...