Enzo's Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Santa Paula

Let me start by saying if I could give 2.5 stars I would, I just can't give three here. There are some positives to this place but not enough to outweigh some really big negatives.

Positives: This is a really cool location inside the Glen Tavern Inn which we stayed at and would stay again. The interior of the restaurant is place you really want to have some pasta or some other fine dining experience.

The night we went there was a piano / accordion player who was really great. Great décor and live music can really enhance a dining experience.

Next positive was the manager who was checking in with all the tables, asked a lot of questions of each and not much else but was definitely making folks feel welcome.

The not so good: Maybe it was the lighting the the red table cloths didn't look all that clean to me. I was pretty excited when I saw they had some decent wines on the menu and figured we would be in for a treat. So I proceeded to order a bottle of the Barolo. The server brought us two wine glasses and apologized that the sticker was still on them since they just got them in. I did make a joke about that but she assured me they had been washed. They did look clean but in retrospect those labels wouldn't have been as pristine as they were if they had been washed at least once. The strangest thing happened after that though when she brought the opened bottle of wine to our table. I tasted it and agreed it was a fine Nebbiolo wine but never have I ever had a bottle brought to me opened. Folks this is an $80 bottle of wine, first thing any server knows is to show that bottle to the customer and confirm like hey here's your overpriced grape juice.

The next not so good thing here is the food. Its very not good. Starting with the garlic bread that wasn't fresh, texture was way off to be. Next up was the lasagna which was barely warm and surrounded by a thick ring of very sweet meat sauce. Seriously embarrassing effort at lasagna, nonna would not be happy. The alfredo was ok.

The service here wasn't great either, server didn't know much about the menu and even less about what spirits they had at the bar which was needed to rinse our mouths of that sweet mess. Later our dishes sat there until some other person from the kitchen happened by and cleared them. Then our server brought our check and stated they were leaving...

The Pros: Food: I've never eaten a bad meal here. Salads and dinners have always been good, if pricey. Mutiple comp'd deserts disappointed our group, although I heard the Tiramisu and Spumoni were both excellent - 7/10 food and 7/10 value. Atmosphere: Lovely. I've been in a lot of old taverns and hotels all over the country and the Glen Tavern Inn lobby and Enzo's restaurant on the first floor are both genuine charmers, especially during the holidays. - 10/10 adorable!

The Cons: Twice they've really struggled to handle our large group of about 25 people. 2019: They ran out of buffet-style food, leaving two people, including me, with completely empty plates on the first pass-through. Getting the two of us a main entree to put any food on our plates took nearly 45 minutes and I was scolded and told to "go sit down" by a blond-haired male employee for going up to the buffet again to check to see if they'd brought out any food yet. I'm a middle-aged woman and have never been treated that way by any server or employee anywhere, ever. 2021: We had reservations for our group again. We ordered individually and it took two to three hours to bring us our entrees. They comp'd us wine and desert, which was a nice gesture, but the amount of staff working was clearly far too short to cover the workload placed on them.

Verdict: A pleasant dining experience for a small party of 2 to 4 people. I've really enjoyed meeting my friend for dinner there a few times over the years. For large groups, I'd consider alternatives until they improve their logistics and increase their staffing levels to accommodate them. Also, if he still works there, avoid...

My favorite hidden gem in Santa Paula. I love this place on weekday evenings because it’s not as busy. There is not a bad seat in this cozy and dimly lit restaurant. The ambiance is romantic with a hint of spooky as it resides inside a historical inn with haunting history. They have a pianist on Friday and Saturdays but reservations are highly recommended on those days. My usual is the Fettuccine Alfredo with chicken (chicken is soooo good) and broccoli and my husband gets the Beef Stroganoff. Both dishes are equally delicious and the pizza is really good too. Their house wine is perfect with any pasta dish. If you have a big appetite you’ll definitely enjoy their portions. We usually share a salad and always take home yummy leftovers. Highly recommend this place for a romantic dinner or an adults beverage in...