Rudolfo's Café — Restaurant in Pacific Grove

Pasta is my absolute favorite food. My go to comfort meal. And it has been since I was a kid. However, because I eat it all the time I have learned to make incredible pasta at home. In fact, it’s usually better than most restaurants I go to. Usually. But this is the type of place I get excited about. Tonight was my first time here, and I’m so sad it’s taken me this long. I have finally found a restaurant that makes getting pasta out worth it. We actually got a pizza to share as an appetizer (which was fantastic). I LOVE Nduja and it’s not often you find a place that has it so of course I had to order that. Then I got the bolognese pasta. You GUYS! Phenomenal!!! First off. Fresh pasta…you can tell by the delicious chew and color this wasn’t from a box. And it was cooked perfectly. Any pasta girly will tell you there’s nothing worse than an overcooked noodle. Next off, the sauce. THE. SAUCE. Pretty sure it had a little hint of Calabrian chili in it which I love and use in my pasta at home all the time. Not spicy, but just takes it to a different level. Not your typical run of the mill red sauce. This was pure love. This was everything that is good and right in this world. Not to mention the tender chucks of slow cooked meat. This was more of a ragu than your standard bolognese but I’m not mad at it. Clearly. And even though I was stuffed I needed to try the gelato. For scientific purposes and what not. I’ve had amazing gelato. I’ve had horrible gelato. Even in Italy it can be a real mixed bag. And even though I can’t put it in the ranks of the best gelato I had in Italy it was definitely some of the best I’ve ever got here in the U.S. A perfect way to end our dinner. I’m so happy I have leftovers to eat tomorrow. And I can’t wait to come back. Only problem is that I want to try the other pastas they make but I don’t know how I can not order the bolognese again. Anyways, just come here. Service was great as well. All the employees seemed very friendly and happy. Can’t wait to...

I first selected Rudolfo's as a lunch spot under the impression that it was a hipsterish café, which was definitely reinforced by the decor: light colors, plants, rustic wood, and a pastry counter. But upon being provided a chilled bottle of water and reading the pretentiously plaintext menu, I realized this was a much fancier place than I thought. The menu is pretty heavily weighted toward Italian fare, with an extensive pizza and pasta menu. The waiter is great, courteous and chill, efficient and kind. I ordered the cheesy garlic focaccia and the fungi pizza. The focaccia was served sliced into thin strips on a long cutting board. It was ok, but far from great. Because of how it was sliced, the cheese cooled quite quickly. The focaccia itself wasn't really focaccia, but was far too cakey in texture; this wasn't helped by how it had been baked a second time, making it even more brittle. Both the cheese and the bread just tasted a little... off. The garnish of parmigiano was tasty, but the basil was a little overpowered. But you're probably here for the pizza anyway, so let's discuss that. Initially I was apprehensive about the huge lumps of ricotta. But they tasted very fresh and did much to balance the rich savoriness of the mushrooms and spinach. In fact the whole pizza had several different flavors working quite well together, all very strong but none overpowering. Mushroom pizzas can typically suffer from being too anemic, but the fungi here were bold and juicy. Also, the crust was actually great! I was afraid after the bizarre focaccia that the pizza dough would come from the same stock but this was decently stretchy and quite flavorful. This was a really enjoyable pizza, and I only wish it was a little bigger for the price. Rudolfo's does have a lot packed in to its menu despite being on such a small sheet, so I do hope to try some of their other dishes, ...

After having fabulous takeaway experiences here, I couldn’t want to sit down for a meal. After a long day at work I brought my friend with me for lunch. Unfortunately, our experience will deter me from returning. The person who seated us immediately shared that their day had been quite terrible, which I can understand—but it set a tone that made us feel unwelcome.

Even though the restaurant wasn’t very busy, service felt slow and disconnected, and there seemed to be an underlying tension as though we were overstaying our welcome despite being seated in the middle of service. It felt like each time we were checked in on it was an afterthought.

As someone who works in the service industry, I know how hard the job can be, and I truly empathize with anyone having a rough day. That said, this was something we had been looking forward to all week and left feeling like burdens rather than welcomed guests. I honestly haven’t had a service experience this apathetic in a long, long time. Idk if we caught the staff on a bad day or if there’s another underlying issue, but either way I honestly can’t recommend sit-down service. Honestly bummed as I’ve always enjoyed grabbing coffee and...