Tutto A Modo Mio — Restaurant in Ridgefield

Here’s the scoop on Tutto A Modo Mio. First of all, all of those negative reviews are 100% accurate and should be taken seriously. My first and last time at the “Italian” (cringe) restaurant was yesterday, Sunday September 26 for a small intimate party of 3 for my mother’s husband’s birthday. Before looking at the reviews, I went to their website where they encourage making reservations since they are a small space. Mom got on the phone right away to make 5/5:30pm reservations. No problem. I read the reviews so I was aware of the issues (especially with the check). When we arrived there was no hostess. The waiters were quietly standing together so Mom told one that we were there for a reservation for 3; he asked if we would like to be seated inside or outside. We chose inside unknowingly (BIG MISTAKE). Aside from us, the only other people there were at a long table against the wall for a party. Loud doesn’t even begin to address their behavior. They were SCREAMING at the top of their lungs over each other and repeating what they said 2-3x. You think MTV’s Jersey Shore made Italians look bad? No, these people were obnoxiously loud for no reason and represented every poor and negative stereotype Italians have. They were extremely boisterous without a care in the world. I was led to believe they were related to Larry since he was not only condoning the actions but partaking in them as well! Any competent owner would not have encouraged such behavior. It was very selfish. Then, who I assume to be Larry’s wife, came over to our table laughing and said “They’re from Long Island!” Ok………and? Is that supposed to be an excuse or something? Considering their other patrons, indoors should have been closed off for a private party but still allowing outdoor seating. I guess, anything for a buck. Now onto the food. Very Basic Italian-American small overprice portions that you can find at any diner for the fraction of the price. The waiters didn’t offer anything like grated cheese, pepper, red pepper flakes, etc. I had to ask for them all to give this food some flavor. Don’t let the last name Collins fool you, my Mother is Italian. Let’s go to the Encore! Around 7pm ( you can check the cameras, Larry) this loud obnoxious cheesy version of Happy Birthday blasted from the speakers not once, not twice, but three times in a row! Now came all the yelling, screaming, WOOOOS, etc that would’ve put a Hoboken Sports Bar to shame on a Football Sunday. That bad!! But it doesn’t stop there! Then came the stereotypical Tarantella. SMH. I felt like I was at Chuck E. Cheese. But Hold On! One person missed out on the music so these GAVONES yelled and demanded to do it again to which they did! Only this time after the 3 repetitions of Happy Birthday in Italian came the uncensored version of 50 cents “Go shorty, it’s your birthday……” This was a nightmare. Larry had not one ounce of care for his other patrons. They acted like “wannabe” Italians that you see on those Housewives shows. It was just plain shameful and completely ruined our dinner. It was comparable to eating in a fraternity in the middle of a party. How could anyone sit back and relax? This is not how one conducts business and has the nerve to charge outrageous prices on frozen foods. At the end of the night, leaving the parking lot, my Mother said “I wonder what Tutto A Modo Mio means”. Without any hesitation her husband rightfully said “ It means we’re NOT COMING BACK.” This was my first, only, and last time dining here. Hey Larry and your fellow Long Islanders, thanks for being so selfish enough to put a damper on someone, other than your’s BIRTHDAY. Completely disgusted by this experience. Keep our $170.00. You won’t be seeing another penny from us. You lost 3 new customers without a care in the world. I refuse to support such an establishment like that. The food is nowhere...

My experience at this establishment was quite pleasant as my peers were satisfied as well. This was my first time here and it happens to be in a convenient location for me, surprised I did not know of this place beforehand. The service here was VERY attentive in fact perhaps a bit too much, but I will get into that later. I ordered the chicken Parm which came with pasta. The chicken parm was delicious and so was the spaghetti on the side. One thing I will point out is that the pasta came with marinara sauce on it. This is fine as it was still good, but given the choice I would choose to have no sauce and just add some cheese. I guess that is my fault for not clarifying how I wanted my side pasta. The portions were pretty good, and I was definitely satisfied at the end of my meal. Their fried Zucchini appetizer was also really good, and I usually do not care for vegetables. I am not too experienced when it comes to wine nor am I sure what kind we got, but the red wine for our table was quite flavorful as well. I tried some of the gelato, and one of their other desserts which came with berries; I do not know what it was, but it tasted like a custard and was delicious. This place really did not disappoint when it comes to food quality. My only complaint would be the excessive table hovering by the staff. I very much appreciate attentive servers, but our conversations were interrupted a few times for some unnecessary reasons. I was asked if I was done with my food a few times which I wasn’t, I was just taking my time and enjoying the company of my peers. We were also asked if everything was okay a few times-both times a few minutes apart. A lot of the time they were also offering to refill water, but based on the look of the table there was no need for refills a few of the times they asked. This is not a huge deal, but just something to point out. It is good to have that balance of an attentive server, who is not constantly trying to take my plate away and interrupting conversation. I much rather have the server who is more attentive than the one who forgets I exist, so this is not the biggest problem to have. Another suggestion I would have is to add a few pizzas to the menu even if they are just personal, I usually prefer to order pizza at Italian restaurants, but that chicken parm did meet...

Four of us went to try this place based on hearing some good things about it. I also am in the quest of finding a great BYOB place. upon entering, we had given the waiter two bottles and he informed us that they had recently gotten a liquor license and proceeded to show me a wine list. I prefer my wine which you had no problem, but informed us that there would be a corkage charge and we were like OK. We had multiple waiters coming in one of the guys who took our drink water. I just could not understand his Spanish, so another waiter came by to assist .

I opted for the homemade pappardelle, braised beef short ribs in Ragu sauce. A nice portion it looked good, nice presentation however it just came up really flat really, pasta was cooked just fine, but it was the watered down Ragu,, was utterly devoid of taste and a sauce didn’t even stick to the pasta" lacking in the short rib. A really big disappointment here

Main course I had a veal francese, which was either the hardest piece of Veal or terribly overcooked. The roasted potatoes looked like they were just breakfast home fries. The broccoli rabe was adequate and cook just fine. A table mate had linguine & clam sauce, asked for specifically Al dente, it did not come out that way. Another order was chicken parmigiana again nothing great here very average. I always go in with an open mind and expect the best but this is quite disappointing. I don’t think if they improve 100% I would even go back. The most annoying thing someone had a birthday and they put on this techno birthday music which was very loud incredibly annoying & topped off a bad night.

I will say the waiters were very good & to please. They did their best but seemed uncoordinated. I really didn’t know who my waiter was cause several guys approached the table . Considering that they had just gotten a liquor license, I didn’t mind paying one corkage fee, I thought they should’ve not charge me for both, since none of the four of us knew that they had gotten a liquor license.

OVERALL, THE FOOD WAS JUST POOR. TASTELESS I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND VERY...