Viva La Pasta!: Kitchen of Italy — Restaurant in Simi Valley

We have been coming here for years and has been a go to spot when friends come from out of the area to visit. On a Saturday evevening we came in as a party of four and were seated. It was seven o'clock so not very busy. Twenty minutes passed and we had to wave down a waitress for service. She apologized and took a drink order for a bottle of wine. She returned for our dinner order without the wine. We placed our order and sat waiting for something to appear. Out came a lone dinner salad ,no wine, no other salads. We asked about the other items and were told the y were out of the wine we ordered and salads were coming. Then the entrees showed up still no salad or wine so we asked her to bring the salads first before the entrees noting that one of the orders was incorrect and asked to correct it. The salads came and then a different bottle of wine was set on the table unopened. A second server came over to open the wine and then set the bottle on the table. Our guess was they are both underage and can't serve alcohol. DIY service. The dinners were then served and cold because they just set them under heat lamps while the salads were eaten and they still brought back the wrong entree. We asked for the "manager" and explained what was happening. No apology he took the cold food back and when returned it was the same food again now just put under a broiler. The WORST service I have had in a resteraunt in years . No management or supervision of what was happening in the dining room. The servers were not to blame as they both seemed very young and inexperienced. At no time did the person identified as the manager apologize or inquire about the meal or offer any compensation for the disaster. We were embarrassed to have brought guests here and will never come back. This is a local restaurant that depends on regular customers and I would advise those who frequent it that something has changed and your best bet would be ordering food to go. We will make sure to tell our friends...

I've been eating at this restaurant for over 15 years. When their Moorpark restaurant opened, I only went to the Moorpark location because it was closer, the management/owner/chef actually became our friends as we ate there about twice a week. While it was the same menu, I thought the food was a bit better in Moorpark. Unfortunately the landlord of their restaurant raised their rent so high, they decided to close. This was sad to us, but we did return to the Simi location. Our favorite waiter was "Colie". He was a European with class and a superb wit as well. We saw him handle the orders of a full house of diners himself with one busboy and it was remarkable. Then something happened. Colie was gone the next time we went there, and it truly was not the same. We still went for lunch or dinner, but less frequently. Then IT Happened..We went to lunch with my son and we quickly found out there was no butter in the restaurant for their wonderful sourdough bread. No butter? Go to the market and get some! Then came our lunch. My wife and I had their fabulous chicken pesto sandwich on focaccia bread. We've ordered this many times. The bread was burnt black and inedible and there was no pesto on the chicken! My son order the Italian flag pasta which is pasta with three different sauces. The pasta was almost absent of any of the sauces. We asked for our check and paid. We told our waiter who didn't seem to care and we attempted to tell the owner Tino, but he was too busy eating his lunch to talk to us. Never again will we go there. ...

We held a 50th anniversary party for 76 guests at Viva la Pasta last Sunday afternoon. We were delighted every step of the way. We sat down with owners Tino and Maria about 9 months in advance to explore our options and reserve the date for the outdoor covered patio. We agreed on a fixed price per person and determined that we'd bring our own wine and pay a small corkage fee. We kept in touch to hold the date, and met again about 6 weeks before it to decide on 4 entree choices (meat lasagna, chicken picatta, 5-herb salmon, and pasta primavera) and 2 dessert options (tiramisu and cannoli). Tufi called me a couple weeks before to confirm the menu and arrangements.

The morning of the party, Tufi and the staff helped us set up. The atmosphere was perfect-- friendly and casual, with a mix of large and small tables. The setting is beautiful, with a garden backdrop and small trees in the patio. Our guests raved about the quality and quantity of the food and service. All in all, it was a wonderful experience. Viva la Pasta was professional and easy to work with, making excellent recommendations and accommodating what we and our...