La Trattoria — Restaurant in Montgomery

After all the hype and delayed openings, we were genuinely excited to try this place but unfortunately, it didn’t live up to expectations. We first visited on a Wednesday when they had just started seating customers. My husband ordered a pizza, and I had a Caesar salad with zucchini. Both dishes were underwhelming.

Despite that, my husband suggested we give it another try on Sunday, hoping other menu items might be better. He made a reservation (which had now become a requirement), but when we arrived, a blonde woman from New York gave us a long and loud lecture about how making a reservation through Google was a mistake. Still, she agreed to seat us.

While my husband went to the restroom, I waited. When he returned and I went, no one had taken our drink order. Eventually, a server came by. My husband requested half lemonade, half sweet tea. I asked for a lemonade. My drink came, but his didn’t.

He ordered a Caesar salad, which was barely dressed, so he politely asked for more dressing and reminded the server about his missing drink. We waited as other tables around us received appetizers and entrees, yet he still hadn’t gotten his drink or the dressing. When the server finally passed by again, she said the tea was still brewing and she hadn’t gotten the dressing yet. He told her he’d just take a Coke, but at that point, it was clear the experience was going downhill fast.

His entrée spaghetti with sausage arrived, but it looked like it had come straight from a can. He decided we should leave, but first wanted to speak with a manager and at least pay for my lemonade.

The same woman from earlier stepped in, placing her hands on her hips and raising her voice. She made an odd comment about “southerners and their sweet tea” and mentioned she was from New York as if that explained the poor service. My husband tried to calmly explain the issue, but I asked him to leave with me before I had to step in. She clearly wasn’t listening, nor did she care to.

If they truly didn’t see our reservation, it would’ve been better to simply turn us away than to provide such poor service. Customer service is essential in hospitality. Between the inconsistent rules, delays, lack of a liquor license, low-quality food, and the staff’s condescending attitude, I honestly don’t see this place lasting long. But we’ll see.

Update: 4/15/25 : And even when responding in the review the subpar customer service continues. I guess it can’t be helped. This was my dining experience and from my perspective and it happened just...

First time here. First, I loved the way they decorated the place even if someone else said it looks like what people think an Italian restaurant looks likes. I’ve been to Italy a number of times and still found this place to have a great atmosphere. They clearly were going for a NYC Italian vibe. They have a lot of fun details and the chairs are comfortable.

We were the first to arrive on a Sunday for lunch. Soon after a loud obnoxious family whose kids were loudly clapping and jumping around were seated next to us. We asked to be moved. We then had another loud child seated next to us. Different music might help. They were playing some kind of Italian big band music from the side of the restaurant so it didn’t allow for much white noise of the loud kids. Perhaps the families can all be seated in one area? If you look at my past reviews this is something I don’t complain about often but it really dampened the atmosphere here

Now for the food: we shared the caprese and it was flavorful. I had the chicken Marsala over pasta and it was great. The chicken Parmesan, however, was not inviting. It looked very soupy and the chicken was overdone. The bread was also very good—they make it homemade from their pizza dough

Our waitress was really great and responsive.

They are now serving beer and wine… just waiting on their liquor license, which will also come with a large bar area

A few small tips for improvement—get rid of the plastic red bread containers for straw ones and get rid of large plastic Pepsi cups, since they run counter to the great atmosphere you...

Ordered a pizza to take out on a very busy Saturday night … lots of full tables inside, and lots of people seated outside. For a newly opening restaurant, nights like this can be overwhelming. The staff was quickly trying to juggle the phone, walk-in customers, and many parties of 6+ people. I placed my to-go order and was informed it would take about an hour, and if it was ready sooner, they would call me. I left to run some errands, and sure enough 45 minutes later, they called and my pizza was ready to go. A+! The staff was very upfront about the timing due to their popularity this night. I was sort of expecting them not to call or for it to take a bit longer than an hour, but no, they did call and it was early and hot. The pizza was very good ~ I went simple: a mushroom pizza: tasty and not drowning in cheese, which can happen in America with pizza. This was very similar to what I’ve eaten in Rome… a crispy crust, very good. Anyway, I will be back again to try more things on the menu. Remember, it is a new restaurant and they are working out timing for a busy Saturday night. The pizza was definitely worth it, and I certainly did not have to wait any longer than I would have at other pizza places in town. In fact, the pizza is much better here, more authentic, than several other places in...