Forno Osteria & Bar Montgomery — Restaurant in Montgomery

I have to say what a major disappointment. I had heard good things and at first I thought maybe I expected too much but today when people are spending $30, $40, $50 per person for a meal you expect better, and this place was full, although it looks like a lot of bar business and maybe just wood fired pizza. Had dinner for 4 tonight and it started off with drinks and a basket of bread which included 5 slices. Butter was apparently extra. $6.00 for bread, which is a bit on the pricey side and $0.50 for butter, come on, don't make yourself look so cheap. Go ahead and change $7.00 for bread and bring 2 butters. Come on.

We had 2 specials which was a pasta dish in a meat sauce and it was very flavorful. It came with a salad for like $13.00. We added a (1) veal meat ball for an additional $4.00. Yep one small meat ball for $4.00 and they had a unique lemon flavor. Not saying they were bad, just be aware, not really for me.

Another guest had a wood fired pizza, it was an arugula topped sauce less selection that basically lacked any flavor. When asked if she liked it, after it was obvious she didn't, she didn't ask that it be taken back, and there was clearly no offer to fix it or bring something else, which would be the standard response at any reasonable restaurant, there was nothing. She asked maybe she could have a little Alfredo sauce to drizzle on it. Of course the first response was ,well yes you can but it will be an upchage. Seriously, you don't have to fix or replace an obviously tasteless dish and you want to charge for 3 tablespoons of sauce. This was the theme throughout but what took the cake was the drink order. We had 4 drinks, two of them margaritas on the rocks, one with and one without salt. When the drinks came neither had salt, not wanting any additional drama we just accepted them as they were. When the bill came, one margarita was $9.00 and the other $12.00. Not sure but the $12.00 one said "rocks". I thought maybe they charged for the salt but since we didn't get any I was going to say something but then I thought maybe they actually changed for the ice. Afraid they would realize that both drinks had ice I let it go.

Clearly can't recommend this place, even good food can't overcome total disrespect for your guests. Frankly can't believe they have no conscious or their clientele doesn't read their receipts.

We have lots of great options in our city, this just isn't...

We have been going to Forno for years and this is my first review on Google. We had a reservation for four at 7:15pm on a Saturday night at a high top in the bar area, and arrived exactly on time. Like every other time we have gone, our table was still occupied by other guests when we arrived. And if you have ever been, you know that the place is small and there is absolutely no room in the foyer to wait. After getting two emails and a text reminding me of our reservation, it is frustrating that we still had to wait 16 minutes for our table while the bartender completely ignored that we were standing right by the bar and didn't ask if we would like a drink. I had to be more assertive than I normally would to get his attention to get us some wine. When we were seated, it took a good 15 minutes before that same bartender came over to acknowledge us.

After that, the evening went smoothly. Our server Liz was great. We started with the Tonne e Fagioli. It has been on there menu for forever, and is a unique presentation of yellow fin tuna on beans. It does have a fennel note, which I love, but it is not for everyone. And I wish the beans were cooked just a teensy bit more. The artichoke soup was very good, but came to our table cold. I wanted to send it back to get heated, but my wife didn't want to complain. The house made focaccia was excellent, as were all of the bruschetta options.

For our mains, two of us ordered pizza. The Salsiccia E Cipolla (sausage, caramelized onion, mozzarella) was loved by my friend, and the Elena (black truffle, gorgonzola, mozzarella and arugula) was also liked, but we thought it needed a generous drizzle of EVOO over the top and didn't have much truffle flavor at all. The Atlantic Cod dish was wonderful, and the Pork Chop Milanese was huge and cooked perfectly. The cauliflower on top was fantastic.

If Forno could just up their service game more and pay attention to the little details (like hot soup), I would give it 5 stars for a casual...

So, we had the Tagliatelle Bolognese, cauliflower gratin, a bread basket, and crème brulee for dessert. Overall, everything was great. Presentation was awesome, and the service was terrific. There were a few minor things that mostly did not distract from the meal.

We were seated in the bar, which was fine. Actually, we were right beside the window, so we had a great view. The bartenders both waited on us. At one time one of them apologized for taking so long to get to us. We hadn't noticed.

On the other hand, the hostess took a phone call instead of seating us. The call was from the owner and the conversation was about how the dinner service had gone. She even put the call on hold and went to the kitchen to find out something he was asking about. Seems to me the owner would probably want the guests seated before the hostess had a lengthy conversation with him.

The food: The pasta was great! A good portion and it was server piping hot. It was very flavorful. My aunt would have like a little salt, but there was no salt nor pepper on any of the tables. I thought it was fine without it. The cauliflower gratin was delicious. But, you would think saucy veggies with melted cheese on top would be hot - it was only slightly warm. The bread was interesting. It was served warm (warmer than the cauliflower) and with olive oil. Some roasted garlic with the oil, and/or salt, would have brought it to the next level. The crème brulee was really good. My aunt would have liked the custard to be set up a little more, but I was fine with it. However, I would have liked a little more vanilla.

In all, it was really good. A few minor tweaks and it would have been five stars. See the picture for an example of the beautiful presentation.

I should have mentioned the cost. I didn't think the prices were bad. Sure, it is more expensive than Olive Garden. But, it is...