Michael Alberini's Restaurant — Restaurant in Ohio

We have always come back to Alberini’s because in the past it has been excellent. Tonight, not so much. In past experiences, we were asked if we were celebrating something special, and if we were, the staff would be extra attentive, and on one occasion we got a free dessert. I’m gluten intolerant, so they gave me a rich chocolate gluten free torte. The food has always been top notch, and matched the prices, which are not cheap.

Tonight, however, the service was not great. We were not impressed with the waitress. She slammed things down on the table, and treated us more like we were at Denny’s. Alberini’s is supposed to be fine-dining, not a diner, and the prices are reflected in that. As such, a waiter/waitress should behave accordingly. She was friendly enough, but had no finesse. My salad was served without the Gorgonzola, and my husband said the pasta he ordered was not good, at all, and didn’t finish it. My father in law couldn’t finish his pasta because it was so over-poweringly loaded with garlic.The waitress never asked if we were celebrating something, and she told us point blank they don’t have gluten free desserts. Funny, coz I’ve been there several times, and have always had the gf choc cake. She blamed the chef for not adding the cheese to the salad, and said, ‘it’s because he’s new.’ The wine we ordered was nowhere near a full glass, but we were definitely still charged full price; The staff at the desk slouched, and were wearing jeans. Not a good look for a fine-dining restaurant. We ordered the deep fried calamari, which didn’t compare to past visits. It was way too salty. Maybe the new chef is the problem, here. Overall, though, it was sloppy service, and I would have rather gone to Denny’s, than pay close to $300 for ‘diner’ service, which is disappointing because it was my birthday celebration. . We...

Follow up on my other review from ER:

Lack of accommodations and training:

Our server finally agreed to ask the kitchen for the spaghetti marinara “basically admitting she had lied earlier about asking the kitchen” but not more than a moment before scolding us for 3 whole minutes about how this cannot be a habit we should not do things like this and this was a onetime thing…..as if we were ever going to return to this establishment!!! But again she was clearly afraid to ask your kitchen staff for a simple request this is a failure in your management as a professional chef myself with years of restaurant management experience, I guarantee this problem is from your management more than it is from the server herself. Additionally, better training of your staff would allow them to know this was a very very simple request!! Our meal took probably two hours to make and we were told midway through our meal when our server announced “you only have 30 minutes left to eat and then you will need to leave…(The level OUTRAGE LOL I FELT LOL!! I mean ….YOU ALL TOOK 2 HOURS TO MAKE OUR MEALS!!) I would not care if the 2 hours if the food was good and the server was polite but the yet again rushing us out the door…..terrible, just awful. To be honest we spent aprox $800 at your restaurant and we feel like we were treated hastily, verbally assaulted and the food did not measure up to any manor of quality what so ever!!!!! You are lucky that we did not file charges for how hostile our 90 year old grandmother was treated…I was about to walk out right then and there but held back for the sake of the mothers at our table.

PLEASE...

I arrived at approx. 9pm. At this time, there were hardly any tables still dining, and about 10 people at the bar. It took an extremely long time just to receive water, which I didn't understand as there weren't many people there. However, as I have been employed in the service industry, I tried to be understanding as the server was probably attending to her closing duties. The appetizer I got, a Thai Shrimp Basket, was AMAAAZING! The shrimp were crispy and hot but not overly greasy and the accompanying sauce was good too. At this point I started really looking forward to my entree, as the appetizer was so tasty, I was sure my entree would be delicious. However, I was to be disappointed. I ordered the Sonoma Chicken Salad. (Yes, I am that person who orders a salad pretty much every time I go out to eat.) I received a HUGE bowl of lettuce (though a nice artisan lettuce blend) but the toppings seemed to be "missing." After digging through the lettuce I found some burnt black strips of grilled chicken that were barely palatable, a few small pieces of fruit, and some nuts. A few chunks of Gorgonzola were stuck at the bottom. All in all, I wasn't too pleased. I would rather have gotten a salad at Panera Bread. I took the lettuce home with me so as not to be wasteful and grilled my own chicken to put atop it, which I had for lunch the next day. So all was not lost.... I would possibly dine there again, maybe a girl's night out of apps and some wine. I am not sure I would order an entree there in the future as my first one gave me (literally) a bad taste...