Mazzeo's Ristorante — Restaurant in Pittsfield

A surprising delete. Natives of the area, we now live in Newport, RI after a 30 year around the world career in the United States Navy. After helping our daughter pack up in NJ to move to Delaware with her husband, we drove up to the Berkshires to pick up my sister in law to join us for Thanksgiving holiday in Newport. We looked for a place to dine and decided on Mazzeo’s on Route 7 My wife called for a last minute Friday night reservation at 6:30 pm for 7:30 pm. No problem. Ample parking. Nice welcome upon arrival. Short wait and seated in 5 minutes. Our waiter was Jason. Ask for him. He us something special. A local native who spent several years in Chicago before returning and joining the Mazzeo staff. As the head waiter, he welcomed us. Took our drink orders which arrived in a flash. My bride had a Washington state white Merlot tasty. Fir me a perfect dirty martini with Bombay Blue Saphite over the rocks with 2 green olives. Our apps were Caprese salad and Bruchetta. Perfect to share. We added Balssmic vinegar to taste. I needed a gluten free menu which was well stocked with gluten free pasta choices and full menu. I had Veal Antonio with mushroom sauce, broccoli, cheese and prosciutto. Perfect with garlic mash potatoes. My bride had the Veal Marsala with green beans / almonds and garlic mash. Delicious. Satisfying. Pleasant to eye and taste and smell. I added a glass of Black Stone Merlot with my meal. Water glasses were filled. No hovering by wait staff. Jason was very pleasant to talk to when asked how COVID affected Mazzeo’s. They stayed open and did take out orders. You can see the public supports this place. Parking lot packed. Restaurant packed. Nice horse shoe bar. Warm fireplace. We dined near bar. Great fir people watching. Tony, the co-owner was working, walkingvaround and ensuring quality. For dessert, I had the pineapple sorbet in a scooped out pineapple shell. My bride had the chocolate raspberry mouse. I added an after dinner lemon cello and a cup of capechinno. Wow, what a treat. A NEW YORK CITY meal in the Berkshires. The cost was very reasonable for the service, atmosphere and high quality of the meal experience and liquor. I give Mazzeo’s 5 stars. Trust a Navy CAPTAIN who has literally dined around the world. Mazzeo’s is a hidden gem stuffed away on Route 7 in Pittsfield You will be glad you you dined here. My bride and I will be back Jason. You are a super star. The...

The server at table 106 bungled our orders such that, after a too long wait, our four diners Primi and Secondi orders all came out at the same time. My wife and I planned to share our Primi, as I ordered it, and we were each to have our own Secundi. My two guests ordered only Secundi. Their platters arrived at the same time as our Primi and both of our Secundi! The table was so crowded with platters that my two dishes were squeezed in, extending about 3" over the edge of the table in front of me. The server didn't see a problem with the delivery until I called it out. "What are we supposed to do with all this food at once?" I asked. He looked genuinely confused. "What do you want me to do?" he asked, completely ignorant and unprofessional. I had to tell him, "Take it all away and bring our Primi Piatti split into two servings as we asked for it. AND, I added emphatically, don't return our Secundi after just reheating and overcooking it. It should be fresh when we get it." Too long later, our Primi arrived in separate dishes, as ordered. The pasta was very overcooked and the sauce was thickened and barely edible. We had guests who graciously ate their Secundi in slow motion while we pushed the food around a little, ate a bit and hoped for the best. NO GO! Both Secondi arrived as I feared, very overcooked, obviously microwaved and awful. The chicken atop my Chicken Piccata was very dry under a gloppy coating of reheated, too reduced lemon sauce. The other dish was no better, overcooked to dry sea scallops atop reheated, mushy mess risotto. My guests nursed their very mediocre dinners long enough to last through this service disaster and then we couldn't get the check and exit soon enough. I explained all this to a woman behind the register who offered to listen. She did not identify her name or title when I asked for a "head waiter, manager or owner," but she apologized for the poor service. She made it clear that, since the bill was already paid, she couldn't make any "adjustment." I accepted that and was glad to leave the place, never to return. Bad food badly served, a truly...

Sadly I'm going to have to downgrade my original 5 star review to 3 stars. Traveled an hour and a half for a special occasion since I thought this was such a great restaurant in March but it's really gone downhill since then. Very disappointing. Had the mushrooms beignet for an appetizer which were crispy and delicious the first time, this time they were soggy and luke warm. Also tried the fried ravioli - skip them. Little taste and just not good.

The main entrees, which were different from the ones we originally had were ok, but nothing special. The highlight of the meal was the berry gelato.

Perhaps the reason for their downfall is the service. The first time we were there our waiter was visibly frustrated with the other servers. I guess we were lucky with the first server we had as everything was timed impeccably. Not so this time. The appetizers arrived 60 seconds after we ordered them - like they had been sitting there under a warming light. Our drinks arrived at different times without any bread. Strangely, the waiter brought our bread out AFTER we had eaten dinner. Needless to say, we won't be driving over an hour to go here again. Original review: The best Italian food I've had in years. Modern, but cozy, upscale atmosphere. From homemade pasta to chicken, veal, fish, there's something on the menu for everyone. Very reasonably priced for the quality and quantity of food. I highly recommend saving room for dessert and getting their Berry Gelato - to die for! The best Italian food I've had in years. Modern, but cozy, upscale atmosphere. From homemade pasta to chicken, veal, fish, there's something on the menu for everyone. Very reasonably priced for the quality and quantity of food. I highly recommend saving room for dessert and getting their Berry Gelato...