Napulé Restaurant — Restaurant in Siesta Key

Visited Napule this evening on very high recommendations from my guests as I am both a server/chef in the industry and a foodie as well. The space itself was very nice and quaint, and our experience with our server Michael started well, as he had good recommendations and was fairly attentive. I ordered a glass of Chianti, authentic Italian which was very good, my wife ordered a mixed drink, and we ordered a pizza to start. The pizza itself had great flavor but it was apparent that their wood burning oven was far too hot as the crust itself tasted burnt without being fully cooked. Now I prefer a crispy pizza but I'm no diva by any means, but I again must stress that this dough was soggy limp and undercooked. We both ordered pastas, and I substituted my pasta for gnocchi. I asked about the gnocchi beforehand whether it was homemade and light and fluffy or not to which he responded yes all pastas were house made. Here's where things got a little dicey. My son knocked over my wife's mixed drink before she was even able to taste it. Michael was attentive bringing napkins to the table, but had no interest in helping to clean it, or replacing my wife's drink wether through generosity of the restaurant or even asking if she would like to purchase another. Now as a server I understand not having time to clean a mess, you don't want to sacrifice the service to your other tables, but to have an entire mixed drink spilled and your server not even ask you if you would like another is a big miss for me.again I understand if my expectations were a little off hoping they would offer to replace but they didn't even ask if she wanted another. Once the spill happened and it was obvious just how drenched she was, I asked for the entrees we chose to be boxed to go. At that point our server obliged and disconnected from us completely. After this happened we only saw our server to drop a check, pick up said check, and drop our to-go food. Even still if you get busy, I get it. He looked like he had 5-6 tables. I've been in the industry almost 20 years now. But as we had this half-hearted experience and we're getting ready to leave, the gentleman dropped our food and walked away. He did not say thank you he did not say have a good night he did not say thanks for coming there was no ending to our experience with him because we weren't even valued enough to be said goodbye to or thanks for coming or have a good night and that and any level of service industry is inexcusable. Then once we got home, I was eager to see how our entrees were before finishing my review, which started as three stars and is now reverted to two, because the gnocchi is terrible. Gummy and dense which most failed gnocchi's are. The sauce was really good the lobster was cooked well although butchered a little bit ( an ounce or so chunk lost during the cleaning?) And my wife's amatriciana was good. Friendly hosts, attentive bus boys, and amazing valet. Overall just a shame we were not able to get the full experience of napule, but good flavors and atmosphere were not enough to carry average, uninterested service and execution to the level that I expected based off high...

I go to Napule and bring many out of towners there as the food is excellent as well as the service Is lovely. Tonight’s meal was a disaster however. I made a 5:15 reservation for 9 people and the person asked if we could come earlier. We were in the restaurant at 5:08 pm. I only eat OUTSIDE and I was very specific about that we could only eat OUTSIDE. I actually called twice as we first were 8 and then 9. Another Person in the party also called as she was concerned If there were any steps as she has a walker. She also mentioned my name and said outside also. When we arrived at the restaurant at 5:08 pm they said they only had room inside. We are older women and are still concerned about Covid and only eat OUTSIDE. However there were two tables near the opened door which we said we would be comfortable at. The manager said they were both taken by a party of 20 and had to be next to each other. The restaurant was not accommodating at all the manager would not seat us at the tables near the open doors. The table near the door that we wanted was empty until 6:15 pm and then they broke up the table for 10 into 2 tables of 4 and a table of 2. The manager said the party didn’t have the 20 people…..you mean 12 people didn’t show up. Unbelievable. We couldn’t leave and go somewhere else as it already was near 5:30pm. I sat with my mask until the food was served. The food, as always, was delicious but it was so loud you could not think, nor talk nor hear anyone nor anything. The manager said he would give us dessert on the house for their error. He put down three desserts for 9 people which is not the same as dessert for everyone. I insisted that everyone get their dessert except me as I’m diabetic. I will never eat at Napule again as they were rude, DISHONEST AND DISRESPECTFUL. Actual they lied through their teeth as the expression goes. A situation...

Sarasota is such an interesting town. It's like a suburb, yet with its own charm. Napule is a find. It's on the far southern edge of Sarasota. Driving up it's clear this is a swanky place. It was packed to the brim, and the only way to park is via valet. Inside the dining room is inviting with a fun and festive atmosphere. We had a large party and we were seated in a family style table.

Our waitstaff was friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive. Our bread basket and water glasses were always full.

As for the food, it was a mix. For appetizers we got the large meat and cheese board which featured their in-house charcuterie and cheeses. The charcuterie was out of this world. We could not get enough of the prosciutto and salame. The cheeses were good, but not very strong. We also got the sautéed octopus. It was ok. We were not impressed too much though for a $20 appetizer.

Many of us ordered the Mezze maniche allo scoglio, which is a rigatoni with a seafood mix with a tomato white wine sauce. My brother ordered the Grigliata Mista Di Carne. It included a lamb chop, sausage, and NY Strip with roasted potatoes and broccoli on a sizzling plate. The seafood pasta was ok. The sauce lacked pop...not enough white wine! It tasted like they missed the last minute seasoning in the pan with the white wine deglaze. The seafood was nice and fresh. My brother let me try his meats, and they were definitely better than my seafood! Well seasoned and perfectly grilled.

We finished off with gelato, and it was to die for. The strawberry gelato was the best I have ever had with fresh strawberries - full of flavor with an ultra smooth finish. This is in comparison to the best gelato from NYC and Seattle!

When we return I'll definitely focus on the charcuterie and a meat dish, skip the pasta, and maybe try their Neapolitan pizza. And of...