Fiorella - Durango Casino & Resort — Restaurant in Nevada

My family and I tried this restaurant on 22 Dec 2023 during our initial visit to the brand new Durango Resort and Casino. When we walked in the restaurant, I noticed that every table was occupied, which I was happy to see because it typically means the restaurant is good. But I was also annoyed because we were starving and wanted to find a place that we could eat at immediately. We ended up placing our name on the waiting list and just walked around the casino floor to see every little detail of this property. After about a 20-25 min wait, we finally got called and were escorted to our table.

The first thing I noticed was how loud the restaurant was. It's like that one concept of sitting in a quiet place and all it takes is just one person to speak louder than another; then another person from a different group will try to talk and they'll speak even louder than the first one, and so on...eventually, everyone will find themselves basically raising their voices to almost yelling, to have a simple conversation. That's what it felt like and I immediately thought that this restaurant wouldn't be an ideal place to take someone on a date night. Definitely not 100% the restaurant's fault for the high decibel atmosphere, though, it doesn't help that it's on the smaller side and that the windows open so you can hear people walk by and the casino from your table. This restaurant seems like a place for a group of friends just wanting to have some drinks and something "lighter" to eat. And speaking of the food...

We ordered the Little Gem Salad, House Made Focaccia, Crab Toast, Ricotta Gnocchi, Pappardelle, Rigatoni, and Tagliolini. Out of all those entrées, my favorite items were the Rigatoni, Salad, and Focaccia. Whereas, the items I wouldn't order again were the Crab Toast and Pappardelle. As far as the Crab Toast goes, I think I was expecting more of a crab cake type of flavor and texture. And for the Pappardelle, I felt that adding something on the lines of shrimp, would've taken that dish to another level. But hey, I'm not an executive chef by any means...just a simple customer who likes trying different foods and restaurants.

The price-to-quantity/quality ratio was extremely reasonable. I know that people may complain about the food quantity, but if you really dissect the dish with it's ingredients, coupled with the time to prepare it, plus inflation/economy, I think the quantity and value is perfect. Now, if you were to ask the 23 year old me, a long-long time ago, then I would've complained about it based on my inadequate knowledge, experience, and because I only focused on quantity. Needless to say, I felt that the portion size is perfect for the amount you pay.

The customer service was phenomenal; from the hostesses, all the way to our server (not 100% sure but I think her name was Nicole based on what was written on the receipt). I unequivocally feel that this restaurant excels, and will continue to excel in the customer service arena. Based on the menu size and proximity from my residence, I probably won't return to this restaurant anytime soon; however, if I happen to be on property and in the mood for some Italian, then I'll probably stop in again. If you haven't been to this restaurant before, you definitely need to go try it -...

Fiorella is a little restaurant tucked back beyind all of the pizza and noodle restaurants. In fact, we almost didn't see it, but it was different from the other restaurants in the food court - and mostly empty - so we decided to give it a try.

I'm so glad we did.

To be fair, everyone has their own experiences with a restaurant, but I want to stress a couple of things here - the first is that I love a good marinara sauce but it's hard to find a good one that isn't doctored up with fennel seed (the spice that gives Italian sausage it's unique flavor) or too much basil (gross) or oregano. Some places think a good sauce is all about strong spices and that is NOT what a good sauce is.

Fiorella has a good sauce. No - a GREAT sauce.

It's not often that I rave about a sauce, but Fiorella's marinara sauce is sublime. It's not overpowering, but a subtle, truly tomato masterpiece without a bunch of unnecessary ingredients in it.In fact, the entire meal - from their exquisite foccacia bread to the gelato that was literaly to die for - because I would kill for it! - was extraordinary. We didn't expect much going in, but boy, were we surprised. I had the spaghetti and meatballs and my husband had a dish that used a brown butter sauce and both were out of this world.

Back to the gelato - we had chocolate and it was like cold, creamy chocolate frosting. Holy Smokes, was it good.

This place should be packed out nightly. Do yourself a favor - GO. There are a couple of one star reviews for this place, which I completely disagree with. I'm sorry they had bad experiences, but I, in fact, did not. This restaurant is now on the top of my list as my favorite Italian restaurant, so get yourself over there. You...

If I could leave zero stars, I would. The food and service has gone done hill. We both ordered spaghetti amd meatballs. My meatball was obviously raw and uncooked inside. This wouldn't have been and issue if they just said sorry and we will fix that, but the girl claiming to be the manager( was in leggings and hoodie looked beyond unprofessional) came out and had the audacity to say that the meatball tempd correctly. As to almost argue with me. The meatball was cut in half and you could clearly see the raw meat that could've have been scooped out of the center with a spoon. We also cut my husband's meatball in half to show the difference. His was cooked. Flavorless and gross, but at least cooked. After finally getting my new meatball it was still pink inside, but at that point I let it slide and just wanted to leave. The bread wasn't even good. Had a burnt taste. Due to this poor service and food, my husband only left a $10 dollar tip. Imagine our surprise when we checked out to learn they changed it. They manipulated the bill to change the tip to $18.67. When the waitress told us to take a picture of the bill because the one at the table was her copy, she meant it. These people are also crooks. Hopefully Durango station finds better restaurants and replaces this place with a nicer and better...