Casa Gianna — Restaurant in Miami

Disappointing Experience — Not Worth the Hype

The atmosphere at this Miami Italian restaurant was pleasant, and based on the menu prices and the waitress’s descriptions, we were expecting a top-tier dining experience. Unfortunately, what we encountered was a pretentious and underwhelming meal that failed to deliver on multiple levels.

We started with the Fritto Misto appetizer, described as “shrimp, calamari, zucchini, marinara sauce.” I expected a light, fresh seafood dish. What arrived was a clearly pre-frozen, heavily battered, deep-fried assortment that was overly crispy and completely lacking in flavor. There was no subtlety, no seasoning—just an oily mess.

For my entrée, I ordered the Spaghetti Bolognese. It's a staple of any Italian restaurant and should have been a safe bet. Instead, the pasta was overcooked and gluey, and the Parmesan on top looked like it had been sitting under a heat lamp for far too long. The presentation? A single wilted basil leaf tossed on top like an afterthought.

Our friend’s young daughter ordered plain spaghetti—no sauce, no oil—from the kids' menu. It arrived covered in marinara sauce. When we pointed out the mistake, the waitress offered us a choice: accept it as-is or send it back. That’s not acceptable. We had already made our choices while ordering—what arrived should have reflected that.

My wife, who is vegan and gluten-intolerant, asked for a simple plate of grilled vegetables. We were told this would be no problem. Eventually, a plate arrived with broccoli rabe, carrots, raw tomato slices, and baby corn—hardly a classic Italian combination—and worse, it was topped with cheese and breadcrumbs. When we finally flagged down the waitress to send it back, she said the chef hadn’t been informed of the dietary restrictions. But that was her job.

Service throughout the evening was disorganized and inattentive. Multiple staff members emerged from the kitchen to “auction off” dishes at our table, asking, “Who ordered this?”—a clear sign of breakdowns in communication. I can only assume the kitchen staff was frustrated with plates sitting too long on the line and decided to bring them out themselves.

Overall, this was a very disappointing and frustrating experience—especially considering the high prices and the fact that it was our West Coast guest’s first night in Miami. The food quality, execution, and service fell far short of expectations. Some reviews suggest others have had better experiences, but the lack of consistency is a red flag in itself.

One last note: be aware that an automatic gratuity is added for parties of four or more, but the payment app still prompts you to leave an additional tip. Our server made no effort to clarify this, and in fact encouraged us to "leave a tip" when we were presented with that screen . . . this was clearly a dishonest attempt to get us to double-tip—despite the lackluster service.

We have no intention of returning, and we strongly suggest the management consider a trip to Italy to see what genuine, quality Italian food and hospitality...

I live downtown and I heard this new Italian restaurant just opened. I am from up north so anytime I hear of another Italian restaurant opening down here I’m quick to go. The place is beautiful, We had Mary as a server and she was Very good. So as far as the atmosphere in service I have zero complaints. Now onto the food. I am Italian, so I never want to jump out there and say it was completely bad. We ordered the octopus, and the fried zucchini and calamari & Shrimp appetizer. The octopus wasn’t grilled so it was very big and chewy and it wasn’t much flavor. You see the same piece of octopus and a lot of restaurants. I was very disappointed that the flavors weren’t there. And not being grilled it didn’t have that same taste as well. If you like It very rubbery then maybe it’s for you. As far as the calamari/shrimp/zucchini There was barely any zucchini, And the breading on the calamari and shrimp was decent at best. Then we ordered the spicy rigatoni and we added some chicken. The breaded chicken. It had to be the paper finished breaded chicken I ever had with no taste. The chicken looked gray, No moisture coming out of it and it was Beat down very very thin to try to stretch out And save money. And for $18 for an old-fashioned, It Barely had any bitters in it. I was mesmerized and in awe at the place Until they served the food. Then they added a 20% tip for me and my wife, And for $194 I definitely should’ve been much more Impressed. I don’t write reviews too often, but when another Italian opens up a restaurant here down here, And it truly doesn’t taste like an Italian owns this place. If so, I don’t know where in Italy this man learned how to cook and bread chicken at. You guys can do better and I will come back one more time to try something different on the menu. You’re literally in walking distance and the place is beautiful and you’re in a new, And up-and-coming location for downtown. And take it for what it is: There’s a reason at 6:30 PM at night on a Saturday there was only three or four tables and a gigantic spot. That’s the first thing I noticed as I was leaving, Where is everybody at on a Saturday night at a brand new restaurant? Fix the food you’ll have an amazing spot… And I told Mary I would thank her because she was the best part of the whole experience! Thank you Mary will be back in We will ask for you and let’s hope they can get this right...

We recently were made aware of Casa Gianna and were excited to find it is only a 5 minute walk from our home away from home here in Miami. I was a bit hesitant to try it based on reviews - but we decided to give it a whirl. Disappointing- at best. Let me break my rating down - as it's not all bad. The service was outstanding - Monica - our server couldn't have been better and the hostesses were wonderful and attentive. Here are the downfalls:

1.The restaurant is VERY loud. We opted to sit ouside as it was quieter, but within minutes - music was louder - then people were louder - it had a total bar/club vibe. I didn't expect it to be like a funeral home but this was uncomfortably loud for a restaurant and we had to yell to hear each other.

The food was presented beautifully- but lacked flavor. My husband's pasta was a couple notches above al dente - it was almost crunchy. My salmon was great but it was advertised as being on a carrot ginger puree - no ginger flavor.

Dogs - the final straw that made me feel compelled to do this review- a few tables over from us the patrons had two dogs sitting on chairs at the table. The dogs were ill behaved and barking. These dogs were evidently not service dogs based on their behavior. When we got up to leave - the dogs were on the table- eating from their owner's plates. I brought this to the attention of the hostess who promptly dealt with it. This is a health issue and the restaurant needs to have a pet policy in place - a health inspector would have a field day writing citations for something like that.

I want to finish by saying that Casa Gianna is a beautifully designed restaurant located in a fabulously up and coming area. The menu is perfect - the flavor just needs to be kicked up a notch and food quality kept consistent. The chefs do a beautiful job at presentation. The service is great. You have a potential winner on your hands - just need to tweak a few...