Chianti Cucina — Restaurant in Novato

What an amazing restaurant and experience.

My wife and I went there for our anniversary and wanted something that was a little different than our usual family/kid-friendly style restaurant and heard great things about Chianti Cucina so we gave it a shot.

I'm glad we did.

Upon entering it has a cozy, old world and dare I say...somewhat romantic atmosphere(?). However, the floors are tile and it stays busy so it might be loud if you go in peak times. The service makes up for it in every metric though. Our server was very attentive, very knowledgeable regarding the food and wine menu and she was fast! I was actually surprised, I don't mind a dining experience that is a little slower paced when I'm on date night.

The food is so flippin' good! I had a Ravioli special with short rib and a pomodoro sauce and the flavors were just spectacular! The quality of the dish was probably the finest pasta dish i've had in Novato. The freshness of the tomatoes in the sauce, the fresh herb medley on top with a slight sprinkling of parmesan really balanced out the heavier cheese/short rib ravioli base. The whole thing had a nice blend of flavors. I topped it off with a Napa wine. My wife chose an italian wine, I was not as daring lol.

If we had more time and more space I would definitely try some dessert. Next time for sure!

I can't...

5 years ago I lived in nevado and I it used to go by this restaurant almost every night not to eat but to have some orders or glass of wine and talk to the owners who are very very nice and maybe once a week or every to wake weeks we would have dinner there. Since then and went with some Italian friends of ours and I was very excited to revisit this place used to be a favorite of mine but I was disappointed on a couple of cows and I think that this review will bring to attention a few saw a small elements that can always be corrected in a Restaurant. The salads were extremely small the pin a pasta was absolutely ordinary and fairly tasteless and of course the wine was great. Because I'm in the industry myself I know it is extremely hard to keep every night every worker and every dish perfect. It simply doesn't happen but in the finer restaurants the quality remains high 95% of the time and it's always about correcting a few things that a pointed out that makes people want to revisit in give a second chance or keep coming. I wish the best for this restaurant because the owners of very good and the servers are also very friendly and very good it was just the kitchen on this particular night that seemed to have fallen flat....

2nd visit to this restaurant and once again the food was absolutely amazing, from the calamari appetizer, to the spinach salad with Gorgonzola to the veal saltimbocca... They use fresh organic baby vegetables that are a treat. The atmosphere itself is very small and cozy... They have small tables or small intimate booths which are very comfortable as well as romantic... Great date restaurant.

However this second time the service was disappointing so I had to remove a star. The Tall Blond waitress with the ponytail was very tight-lipped and snooty... She asked us if we were ready to order without telling us what the specials were... I had to ask her what the specials were and she did not apologize for not telling us know what the specials were... We had a late lunch and chose to split the meal and her disapproval was apparent in her face... However note the portions are plenty ample to share and you won't be disappointed.... Will definitely go back for the wonderful food which is lovingly prepared and is delicious and for the wonderful Ambience and will hope that the service is...