Marcolino's Italia — Restaurant in Reno

Honestly I think this may be the first bad review I’ve ever given. Picked this place because we wanted to try somewhere new. I’m unfortunately just super disappointed in our meal which is such a bummer because we were so excited about this place. But every single thing we tried turned out pretty bad… we ordered the fried mozzarella and fried zucchini for appetizers and our meal came with garlic bread. The fried zucchini was soggy at best and the mozzarella sticks didn’t appear to be fried at all? It was kind of just like eating a cold mozzarella cheese stick. The worst part was the garlic bread which I’d actually bet money on the fact that I don’t think they ever even touched an oven of any kind? It was just raw bread and seasoning? I got the mushroom ravioli and clearly something somehow got burnt in the sauce it ended up ruining the entire dish cause the whole thing ended up tasting burnt? I also added sausage to it which it didn’t end up coming out with so that was an extra $5 wasted. My boyfriend got the fettuccini Alfredo which was ok that’s good cause it would be really hard to mess that up. But the icing on the cake, literally, of our bad order was the cannoli. I LOVE a good cannoli but after our order kind of broke our hearts my expectations for the cannoli were already really low. And then I realized I should’ve set them even lower. The cannoli was literally made with icing…. Not ricotta, not anything that would normally go in a cannoli. The fried dough was completely soggy and floppy and the inside was an overflowing mountain of overly sweet icing. I was devastated. The only good part of the entire order was the marinara? Which is crazy because marinara is not good to start with but this was actually delicious and a bit spicy it was great. Really wish that this order turned out...

Came in with my girlfriend on Friday night. Wasn’t sure what to expect, reviews looked great but had never been in before or really knew any friends that had been in. Food was fantastic. We had clams, garlic bread, and fried ravioli to start. The fried ravioli is definitely a great choice as a starter. Gives you a sample of multiple sauces and is an exciting appetizer. We had the tortellini pasta with pesto sauce, amazing, as well as the Marsala. The Marsala was really good. Could probably be slightly bigger portions of chicken for 29$, but tbh it was perfect size as an entree after eating multiple apps. We took home some cheese cake, really good as well. While it was a slight bummer that there was not a full bar, not a huge deal. Wine is honestly a better pairing with most of their menu. The wine list was just big enough to offer a solid selection in popular varietals, without overwhelming someone not super familiar with wine, like myself. One of the owners took care of us as our server, which was a real treat. Getting some backstory on the business makes a dining out experience more fun. The only thing we noted was that it did take a while, 10-15 minutes, to get some glasses of wine. Not a big deal, my girlfriend and I are 22/23 and often appear even younger than we are on top of that, so I’m sure the staff wasn’t necessarily thinking we would be looking to get drinks right off the bat anyway. Probably the only thing that wasn’t great about our dinner, not a big deal either. As a couple that’s looking to really enjoy a nice dinner when we do decide to spend the money to go out, this was the perfect setting. We don’t leave reviews that often, but just really enjoyed our time this evening. Will definitely be back...

We have eaten at many outstanding restaurants – in fact, it is one of our favorite things to do, particularly when traveling to a new area! That said, this restaurant may be the very best restaurant we have ever experienced. It is elegant but welcoming, the family takes pride in every single detail and every single dish. The food was testimony to that. The quality was off the charts. We had two appetizers – calamari and mussels – and we knew right away that this was going to be a phenomenal experience as both were the best we had ever had. We shared a salad and soup, and literally, we could eat those everyday for the rest of our lives and be happy. Even the garlic bread was a work of art with the perfect amounts of garlic, Parmesan cheese, and fresh parsley, and it was cooked perfectly. The portions were generous enough that we packed our entrées of lasagna and rigatoni to take home. We did not cheat ourselves of dessert, however, and we are very glad we indulged as the homemade cheesecake was light, perfectly balanced, with the best homemade graham cracker crust we have ever tasted and tangy raspberry compote imaginable. The bowl of spumoni was huge, and it was delicious, not surprising given that the owners have it shipped to Reno from San Francisco’s Pier 39. We did not have a reservation, and we were fortunate enough to get a table. Every time we go through Reno from now on, though, we will be sure to make a reservation and plan our trip around...