Renzo's St Pete — Restaurant in Saint Petersburg

Bottom Line Up Front: Maybe try another restaurant. (& I apologize in advance for the lengthy review) I usually don't write reviews, but I woke up this morning with this still heavy on my mind. Last night, we received the worst service at Renzo's that I've ever had anywhere. To be fair, when we walked in, the hostess was great... very pleasant and accommodating, as we didn't have a reservation. The server started off okay and provided water right away, but then we really only saw him at the beginning and the end of our dining experience. There was a good 40 minutes where we were pretty much ignored, although we could clearly see him serving food, water, and drinks to tables on the other end of the sidewalk. (We dined outside.) He never came close enough to get his attention and somehow also never managed to even glance in our direction so that we could flag him down. Everyone else in my party believes it has something to do with us being the only people of color at the establishment (both inside and outside), but I can't say that for certain being a first time visitor to both the restaurant and the area. Our food was brought out by someone other than our server who informed us that she would return with knives for our steaks, but she never did. Eventually, I just walked over to the mini server station and grabbed knives, myself. The soft drinks we ordered never arrived, although they were on the bill at the end. We never even got water glass refills, although glasses were clearly empty when both the drink and food orders were placed. Refills on water didn't come until we were close to wrapping up our meals, and it really felt like the server was just trying to gauge when to bring the bill. After not coming to our table for such an extended amount of time, he walked up and poured water without ever saying a single word to us, not even to ask how we were doing or if everything was okay. When it came time to pay, the handheld payment device was quickly pulled away from the payer before she could even finish signing her name, let alone adjust the auto-populated tip amount. Lesson learned. As for the food, it was mediocre, at best, which just made the experience that much worse. The appetizer empanadas were tasty; the spinach one was the best. If you're looking for a good steak, maybe spend the extra few dollars and visit Ruth's Chris up the street. Better yet, go check out Zach at the Birchwood Canopy rooftop bar. They don't have steak, but the atmosphere and food were great, and the service...

Absolutely loved everything about my dining experience at Renzo's tonight! From the to-die-for Tannat wine I began with to the Chaja Cake ending I couldn't have imagined a better meal. The server inquired I to what type of wine I liked and suggested two then was so accommodating when I couldn't die ice she bought me a tad of both to try. They were both amazing but I went with the Bodega Garzon Tannat from Uruguay. I enjoyed it so much I'm calling today to see if Claudio will sell me a case to take home to Michigan. We ordered a couple of appetizers to share. The spinach ricotta empanada was served with a pink sauce. I planned to just eat a bite but enjoyed it so much I couldn't stop... The owner came to the table and recommended the Proveleta and I'm so glad he did! It came out melted in an adorable little cast iron skillet and was served with little slices of bread and these tiny puff pastries. The cheese spread on the bread was delectable but then I tried it with a puff pastry and it was over the top! So delicious in fact that I asked our server Jen for a few more. As my main course I selected the churrasco skirt steak with the yucca fries as my side. Upon arrival I took a bite of a yucca fry and I was hooked! I don't think I'll ever eat a potato fry again. They brought out a garlic sauce and more of the pink sauce for dipping. So yummy! Cutting into my steak I found it perfect. I don't know how they seasoned it but it was fabulous and so tender. It was a huge cut and I devoured the whole thing. My friend let me try her sauteed carrots/string beans - perfect! My daughter shared her sauteed spinach with me and it was also delicious. The server suggested dessert and I selected the Chaja Cake. I'm not sure how to describe it but it has a light crispy shell with a nutty caramelly center. It was wonderful! My friend let me taste her chocolate torte. Rich, sweet and dark chocolate - yum!!! From the time we entered until we walked out I found the staff friendly, accommodating and very knowledgeable. The owner Claudia is so cute and so engaging. I will be back next...

Was very excited tonight to try this restaurant as my son and daughter-in-law raved about it. Sadly it was mostly disappointing. We were a party of 5 sat at 2 tables pushed together, one of which wobbled so badly we had to keep moving the drinks to the other table so they wouldn’t tip. The service was friendly but not very knowledgeable, every dish questioned described as “amazing”. The 3 adults at the table ordered a pitcher of sangria and 1 appetizer was ordered before the server whisked away for some reason without asking if the 2 teens would like something to drink besides water. When the server returned (with only waters) we were able to order another 2 appetizers before she then rushed off again to return with the sangria. The first appetizer came out before I was finally able to get the server to take our teens drink order. The appetizers were just ok, nothing wowed us. We had 2 entrees arrive at the table then a 3rd a few minutes later. The 2 last entrees didn’t arrive for quite a while so the 3 delivered previously weren’t hot by the time we all had our meals. The ribeye was a bit tough and chewy, as were the steak sandwich and the steak burger but the filet was perfectly cooked and delicious. The accompaniments of rice and beans were of the best I’ve ever tasted however the fries served with the sandwiches were completely drenched with oil (starving teenagers ate them anyway). The pace of the meal was very off from the start and we were interrupted multiple times at in opportune moments throughout the meal. We ended with crème brûlée (passable) and a decadent layered dessert with dulce de leche and nuts that really saved the meal. Altogether the meal lacked the value of the check. Since everyone can have an off day sometimes I will most likely try it again in the future and...