Sofia — Restaurant in New Orleans

We've been looking for a good Italian restaurant in New Orleans for many years now. The red sauces - everywhere - are mundane. The pizza, maybe Monet's has a nice pizza but hard to sit in there with the high ceilings and music. I must be sensitive to noise because when group of women start laughing ( a drink or two). it's just like someone hitting cymbals. I was very hopeful .

It was nice inside, I had a reservation and let a large party go in front of us who took some time to get seated. Then.. our host did not ask us if we wanted to sit outside or in.

They sat us in back of the hostess station, an odd place. The waiter came right away. He was pleasant, and he did a good job.

"lets stay a while and enjoy the evening". he said... The food was nice and it was not too loud. lucky! The food came out hot enough, but oddly though the cacio e pepe had a nice taste it had already started to coagulate on the bottom of the bowl. It was also alittle dry. I had asked how to zuccini was prepared and the waiter asked someone and returned... . 'they grill it." Great. we'll have that. But what we got was a cut up zuccini in a sauce of unknown ingredients. kinda of nuts and olives or something.... Not at all the simple grilled vegetable I was expecting. Ok, still, it all tastes pretty good.. Not New York, but good. The pizza had a very nice crust. and the red sauces was simple. I should mention that the pasta with the vodka sauce is very very spicy. 'yes we are from here". 'then it's not too much for you'. the waiter said, with absolutely no attention to the fact that we said it was kind of hot for us. . 'is it too hot for you, shall I remove it?" That was disappointing. we ordered a few dishes to sample, thinking by the look of the place and stars on the internet it was going to be good. Our table behind the hostess station might have been a good seat, out of the large echos of the big room. But it also sat us in back of the bar as well. And there is a washing machine back there that is very, very loud and it creates a low tone, a loud low buzzing. 'is that some kind of breaking speaker? What's that sound?" No. It was the dishwasher. He ran it once then he ran it two more times. So I guess they installed a mini-dishwasher for the bar glasses instead of washing them in the sink. At that point, when they ran it a second time, we said "well, this meal is over. " Very disappointed.

It's the little things that make a meal great. a smile, tone of voice. clean glasses. But the big things matter too. Noise is big. Who wants to yell at each other as they eat? It seems like no one gets that any more. How to make a restaurant for people who are not drunk and want to have a good time. Is there no where in New Orleans that serves a great dinner in a pleasant,...

This was my first time visiting this restaurant. Upon walking in, I was greeted immediately, and the restaurant had a really cool vibe. Music was a little too loud for dinner, but it is what it is. I was seated in the little outdoor area, which was actually very quiet. I was the only patron there along with maybe a couple of others. Even though it was an outdoor seating, it was very comfortable and air conditioned. Huge plus.

There is a good variety in the menu selections. I ordered a pizza and a pasta plate because I couldn’t decide which I wanted. The pizza came out and it was absolutely delicious! Perfect crisp, great flavoring, not too saucy and just overall A+. However, when the pasta dish came out, I seriously thought it was a kid’s plate. I kept wondering, where is the rest of it but, nope, that little bitty bowl (which is a child’s portion mind you), is what the entrée is. The pasta was delicious. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, maybe just a little too al dente but it was good. I’m just surprised at the kid’s size portions they served and they charge over $20 a dish for half the size of a normal entrée. That was disappointing. I ordered the pistachio cake… Well, what I thought would be a cake, was actually not. It was a pistachio bread muffin on top of I think yogurt with some strawberries. Not at all what I thought it would be. So I figured, I’ll try it, I mean, how bad could it be? Yeah, I took one bite and that was a no from me. I would recommend not listing it as a “cake” when it actually isn’t a cake. It’s a muffin on top of yogurt.

They also applied a “ kitchen appreciation” fee to your tab without telling you anything. I believe it was 4%. What the heck is a kitchen appreciation fee? I don’t know what that is, but it is not my job to pay the employees salary to accommodate their employer’s lack of accountability. So be very aware and look at your receipt for any added fees and ask the questions. So naturally, I deducted it from the tip I was going to leave. It’s one thing when I’m voluntarily tipping, it’s another thing when I’m being forced to. So that was another strike against them. But overall, I did enjoy my meal, but I would likely never...

In my opinion New Orleans is lacking in great Italian food and pizza. There are a few good old school places and a few descent brick oven places- but really nothing great. I have a Sicilian family and have reasonably high expectations. I will start with the positive. Great service, everyone was lovely and nice. Atmosphere was good, a lot of group tables and counter service if that is your vibe (I have no problem with this unless I want an intimate dinner, but great for friend groups). Beautiful, if not flashy, brick oven.

The food was fine. I liked the pizza, but it should have been cooked a bit longer to give it a crisp edge. The salad was good, the cacio pepi was decent (but small).

Now for the cons: There are no prices on the website. I do not like this trend, what do you have to hide- people want to know what they are getting in advance.

My biggest con is that it bills itself as “Italian”, it does have decent pizza and pasta, but honestly it is just very trendy Americana. As a Sicilian, that lived in Europe for a long time I am always cautious when I have to ask what multiple ingredients on a menu, (especially a pizza menu), are. This place hits all the trends in the book; crispy kale, honey on savory food, sardines in the tin, mortadella (no problem with mortadella, but why is a fancy balognia on every pizza menu suddenly). As for the pasta offerings if you are going to bill something as arabiata, please let it be arabiata; not spicy sauce with gulf shrimp and capers. Ragu should be ragu not lamb with yogurt and lemon. For God’s sake just call it what it is. It is just strange to use the incorrect title for foods. Do not use the traditional names when the dish is not even a close assimilation of the dish. Just call it something else. The menu just wreaks of pretension.

I liked my pizza, but honestly it would have been better without the honey and crispy kale (I actually substituted arugula for the kale—- does anyone really like crispy kale that much).

I just wonder what new menu will be on hand when hot honey and fennel pollen are not in fashion.

Trying too hard to be...