Pizzicata - Mesa — Restaurant in Mesa

We read many positive reviews about Pizzacata and decided to make reservations for the 10a Easter brunch sitting. Not sure if this was their first attempt at a brunch service or not. There was the option of ordering off a standard menu or choosing the brunch menu. In hindsight, we probably should have ordered off the breakfast menu. The food being delivered from the kitchen looked very nice and professional. I cannot say how it tasted but it did look nice.

Now the buffet...

The Easter buffet menu advertised many food items that they would be offered. However, what was advertised for example: creme brulee, house chopped salad and whole roasted pig were not displayed in the buffet set-up. Maybe it wasn't offered for the 10a sitting? Not sure.

The restaurant was constant with both patrons and staff but not overly busy. There seemed to be a disconnect with management, servers and bussers with regards to who busses the tables. You had to ask the servers to clear the plates, for coffee, for refills etc. The manager could see what was going on since his presence was on the floor. He could have either directed his staff to clear dishes, or do it himself. Charger plates are not normally left on tables once the food service begins.

The buffet food was neither aethestically nor visually pleasing. I should have taken photos, but thought that may be rude. The pork loin was overcooked and dry and not warm. The French toast was mushy and undercooked. Pancakes offered but no butter for them. Breakfast burritos were on the buffet line, but no salsa. When we asked for salsa, one of servers replied "there isn't salsa," but then another server passed by and said, "here, take this one." When our bill was provided, we were charged for soda water and coffee. However, it was advertised that non-alcoholic beverages were included in the price of the buffet. I brought it to the attention of a server and they rectified the matter immediately. I wonder how many patrons were charged for coffee, tea, etc. Total disconnect with the staff.

I'm not writing this review to tear apart a business. I've owned a restaurant/bar. I know it can be a struggle. But the management needs to know what needs to be improved and fine-tuned. Mesa is a great city with many local and loyal residents. Good luck with your restaurant. It has so...

We had a reservation and walked in to be told we had to wait 10 minutes to be seated. Hostess was rude and clearly overwhelmed, the entrance is super crowded with nowhere to stand except directly in front of the door.

Once seated, the tables didn't appear to be all that clean, and the parmesean and peppers were sitting out on every table in little open dishes with spoons to add them to your food, which seemed odd and unhygienic.

We had supposedly booked a 4 course dinner for $59 but there was no mention made of it when we arrived. (I'm glad, I saw another couple that had one of the dishes and it looked horrific)

We ordered the calamari and shrimp $18 and recieved and absolutely tiny portion of clearly pre-frozen shrimp and calamari with what appeared to be a bottled sauce. It was bland, and chewy. We asked for a side of marinara which took almost 20 minutes to actually get. We should have just left but it was valentines day and there was no way to get into someplace nearby without prior reservations.

I tried to order a fried calzone only to be told they couldn't do a calzone because they needed to "save room in the fryer" again, we should've just left. I settled on a pizza and asked for no onions or bell peppers, and my wife ordered a pizza as well. $19 for mine $17 for hers

When they arrived, my pizza had BOTH bell peppers and onions on it, the server made an excuse that it was the "wrong pizza" (she wasn't writing down orders) and had it remade. What arrived was a floppy, soggy mess with what tasted and felt like bagged, shredded mozzerella, cheap pepperoni and generic tasting italian sausage. My wife's pizza looked like a pre-made pizza with added toppings. There was no more than 6 small pieces of chicken (super dry, and clearly the bagged grilled chicken cubes from the store, fake grill marks and all) and the jalapeños were clearly canned.

Through all of this, the service was terrible and it took forever to get anything we asked for. (Straws, silverware, side of marinara, etc.)

Overall, we spent almost 90 dollars for pizza that little Caesars wouldn't serve, and bland calamari.

(The wine wasn't bad, it's the only thing they don't claim to make in house.)

Straight up, not a...

What a trip! Owners changed .. that was clear on my visit tonight. First the wood fried oven clearly burnt about 10 pizzas bc when I walked in .. smoked filled, open patio doors, and a hostess who claimed to be the owner at the end of our evening. What a joke. Super unprofessional.. when asked why it was so Smokey condescendingly she stated bc they have a wood oven.😂😂😂 I stated that I’d been there many times and it’s never been like this. Sat me at a table with filthy windows, and a waitress who gave us dirty wine glasses with burnt bread. Then the waitress never brought any clean ones back until 30 min later. The evening was great with my gf’s. We got up to meet our husbands at the bar at the end of the night and the lady in little tennis shoes and her red little kid outfit (owner) who has zero professionalism was talking to a waitress mocking me that “something burned!” Laughing. So as I started to leave and saw her I stated that my eyes were still burning .. she once again .. condescendingly said “” oooh!!” And ow, when adults act like kids it’s so mind blowing. If you ever visit this restaurant? Do not expect cleanliness or any kind of respect to the patron with any professionalism. If you dare ask or say anything, the owner lady will be rude to you. In my humble opinion the prior owners and management would make your visit a wonderful experience .. the new owner gal is a real winner. Who acts like that !? She clearly doesn’t care if you come back or not. The utmost unprofessionalism I’ve ever encountered in Mesa. And the food …. Mediocre at best .. super bland. The waitress even had an attitude. Most likely learned it from the owner. Super sad … where can one expect good quality food and service in Mesa anymore? Please bring back the old...