Gaudino's — Restaurant in Saint Clair Shores

Update below. Dropping rating from 5 stars to 3 stars

I truly enjoy this place. Hadn’t been since it opened a year ago. Went on a Sunday with my husband, followed up with a Tuesday visit with my Mom. Followed up with a Thursday visit with my friend. Yes, all in the same week. Their in house made Italian sausage is amazing. In my week long stint, I tried three different pastas, a pizza, arancini, and a chicken dish. I can say hands down, anything with their sausage is amazing and you NEED to order it. The chicken dish did not impress me, it was over cooked and not very flavorful, but the pasta is AMAZING. I tried the porcellino, carbonara, spaghetti and meatballs - all fabulous. The Gaudino’s pizza was enjoyable, arancini was nice and had great sauces, but again I wasn’t impressed with the chicken fiorentina. I would absolutely recommend dining here. The owner/daughter of the original owners, JoMarie was walking around speaking with her guests and was a true delight to visit with. The waitstaff were all incredibly friendly and very helpful. I have been telling many people about this place and encourage anyone to try it out. Nice to have such a lovely little gem so close to home.

12/2020 update: dropped to three stars from five. I have tried multiple times through the past year and a half, precovid and during covid - quality has really changed from my initial review. As you can tell by my first review, I loved their food. Porcellino was my favorite, now the pasta is over cooked, the basil has been reduced to mere slivers, the grape tomatoes no longer exist, the sauce isn’t as rich, and the amount of the amazing sausage is minuscule. The food is just “meh”. It’s nothing special, and not at all what it was when they first opened - which totally bums me out. Dining experience and staff are still wonderful, but the food is completely lacking in flavors...

March 4th - arrived early just after 4pm and was told that they were not seating for dinner yet. We stayed and sat at bar. Brooke said she would remember us and did not need to take my name, small place and figured no problem. Wrong! People starting coming in and were promptly seated. I had to go remind hostess that we were waiting, she responded Oh I forgot. Seated for 5 min. and Angie comes up to our table and says sorry we will have to move - somebody has called and wants the exact table we are sitting at (this is especially odd since they don't take reservations. Other tables around us were empty. the people who called are not there, and do not arrive for another 40 min. Lots of hugs all around when they come- must be Angies friends. Simply rude and unbelievable. After move to other table, we wait another 10 min. for waitress. She takes drink and appetizer order. She brings drinks and takes dinner order, walks away and then moves to next table from where she asks, What did we want again? I forgot. We would hear this over and over. Forgot the water, the bread basket, the cheese for our dinners, the water again. Pricey for the Entrees, nothing comes with. Bruschetta appetizer was good, but only get three pieces for $7.00. Appetizer and entree came out together. Chicken Parm. was okay at best. Ravioli was very good. Lots of staff standing around and chatting. Might try again for a lunch, but never again for dinner. Hope it is just growing pains and they can survive catering to just friends and family, like having a...

I wanted to purchase sausage. It looked old and dark. After I asked as to why some of the sausage looked dark and some didn't, I was told that it looked that way because it was a "few" days old; so, then, he corrected himself and said it's 2 to 3 days old (apparently, your butcher doesn't know the definition of the word "few" which means the same as 2-3 days). He grabbed the sausage in a manner that indicated that he was angry and threw it into the bag. Also, another employee didn't know what grated Romano picerino cheese is and/or where it was located in the store. Moreover, to top it off, an employee would not accept my 1990 $100 bill. He and another employee argued with me and said that it was a fake because it didnt have two presidents faces on it. I stated that it was older currency and was real because it had the bar on it and that the hundreds weren't printed with two faces back then. I left without buying a thing. I was insulted by the unprofessional manner in which I was treated. I think the staff needs more training, especially, about currency. I am 62 years old, and I am a business owner for more than 30 years. After my wife and I got jnto the car, I told her I guess I wasn't meant to spend money there. Lastly, I will never go back to your...