Il Fornaio — Restaurant in Palo Alto

This used to be a fine restaurant and a fine chain when privately owned by the founder. I made a reservation the other evening for a birthday dinner with my better half. She was excited to go there as we rarely go out to dinner. I had asked for a table out of the traffic path to the kitchen. I had been assured that would be done. We were seated right in the flight path to the kitchen. When I said I had asked for not this seat, the person said all the other two-seat tables had been committed to other reservations. The wait person (waitress) did not shown for 15 minutes. Wanted to take order right then even before explaining the “specials”. Bread did not arrive until asked for. Ordered an item that turned out to be unavailable. Should have said that initially. Calamari was tough and dried out in places. My guess it was cooked earlier and had been sitting too long. It sat on the counter for at least 10 minutes until I went and picked it up myself and brought it to the table. The pasta with the linguine was soft and mushy ( sitting in water or overcooked or both). The three prawns were hard (overcooked). The other dish (Osso Bucco) was excessively salty. The Prosecco didn’t show up until the main course had arrived. No-one came to check on the dinner as typically done. The waitress disappeared for lengths of time. The gentleman who was helping the waitress spoke little English, did his best, but was woefully overwhelmed. Dessert was a rare tasty item - no one came to take the order forever it seemed, but the tiramisu was excellent. The decaf. coffee was lukewarm. The couple next to us were given the wrong bill twice. Oy bill had an extra item added to it. When returned there was no even cursory apology.

For the level of restaurant this place holds itself out to be, the food was not well prepared, badly prepped, and poorly served. Overall, I would give this restaurant a 2 out of ten.

When we left, I mentioned to the person who was the manager, and who was helping with a large party that the waitress appeared to have too many tables, she said, I quote “ that’s your opinion “.

I worked in, and eventually ran, a five star restaurant in Scotland back in the day, and I know about what I talk. I would never go back to Il Fornaio and would suggest that if you do, you are taking your chances you’ll be disappointed for the cost of what they consider to be appropriate pricing for their food and service. Go to the other alternatives in Palo Alto. There are plenty to go around. Never...

Dear Il Fornaio Leadership Team,

I am writing to bring to your attention a distressing incident that occurred at your Palo Alto restaurant on 6/15/2023. As a customer, I was subjected to discriminatory treatment by one of your senior waitstaff members, which has left me deeply disappointed and hurt.

During my visit, I was singled out as the only person of Chinese descent in the restaurant. Despite not engaging in any disruptive behavior, I was targeted by the waiter for being "too loud" and allegedly influencing other customers negatively. It was disheartening to witness other patrons engaging in similar behavior without any repercussions, further amplifying the discriminatory nature of the incident.

What was particularly distressing was the server's threat to involve the restaurant manager and law enforcement. This action was not only excessive but also demonstrated a complete lack of understanding and respect for cultural diversity. No individual should be treated differently based on their ethnicity, and it is deeply troubling that such behavior occurred within your establishment.

I urge you to conduct a thorough investigation into this matter and take appropriate action against the employee responsible for this discriminatory behavior. Training programs should be implemented to educate staff members about cultural sensitivity, diversity, and inclusion, ensuring that such incidents are never repeated.

Furthermore, it would be greatly appreciated if you could provide a sincere apology for the distress caused. Additionally, I encourage you to reevaluate your policies and procedures to create a more inclusive environment for all customers. Taking these steps would demonstrate your commitment to addressing discrimination and fostering an atmosphere of equality within your establishment.

I sincerely hope that you will take this matter seriously and make the necessary changes to prevent similar incidents in the future. I believe that by working together, we can create an environment that respects and values the diversity of all customers.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to hearing from you regarding the actions you...

Il Fornaio ("the baker") has been a standard establishment in downtown PA. Given it is a chain, there may be some standard pricing in place but I can attest that based on the time spent during the experience, it is absurdly "cheap". Every other location of this caliber, especially in terms of atmosphere, in downtown PA is perhaps 50% more expensive. So kudos there.

Unfortunately, the food is where this Italian baker falls apart. Given the name itself is "the baker", I have to say that the fresh bread brought out with olive oil is fantastic. But that's where the goodness ends.

The carpaccio is as dry as a jerky with absolutely no soul. This may have been prepared ahead of time and left in the fridge for hours or days. The bolognese tagliatelle looked great, but lacked the depth in flavor. The tomato sauce was watery and the beat was thin. The seafood spaghetti was perhaps the most acceptable but came across bland. Just because you have all the ingredients in the recipe, if you put it together thoughtlessly without passion, this is what you get. Both pastas were salvaged to edible levels by the parmesan grated on top.

The food lacks fresh ingredients, passion and soul, and is barely above the factory created food grade. However, we still give Il Fornaio 3 stars because there really is no other place like this in downtown PA.

Stanford students can absolutely afford a date here. A family can eat out without breaking the bank. And yes, you can dress up. But just got for baked goods.

Also, we had a lady server that was quite old in age. We have nothing against age except she was walking at a step per minute. Service thus was extremely slow and spotty despite us seated in the main corridor. I'm sure this was contained to that one...