Il Buongustaio — Restaurant in South Carolina

This used to be my favorite spot — it’s where I went on my first date, and I had so many great memories here. I felt really fondly toward this place. Unfortunately, tonight was a completely different experience, and it ruined what should have been a special night with some very important people.

It all started with the service and the food. I ordered a Caesar salad, and what they brought out was literally just a bitter wedge of lettuce. When I politely asked if it could be switched out or removed from the bill, the waiter had the audacity to question whether I had ever had a Caesar salad before. For the record, I eat Caesar salads almost daily, so I was completely annoyed by the response.

The waitress then came over to say that the chef believed nothing was wrong with the dish and that “other people ordered it without complaint.” Yet my friend, who ordered the same thing, immediately agreed that something was very wrong with it.

Then came the bolognese lasagna, which was chewy and absolutely unbearable. I honestly cannot believe the quality — they must have a new chef, and if so, it shows in the worst way.

To the chef: with that level of food and that impolite attitude, you cannot seriously consider yourself a true Italian chef.

I tried multiple times to be reasonable tonight, but sadly, you completely failed me. Deeply disappointed. DO...

Stopped in here in a road trip and we are glad we did! They make all of their pasta by hand and it’s definitely noticeable in each dish. We got the daily special which was a branzino over hand made tortellini what is filled with a mixture of ricotta and parmesan to deliver a delicious robust flavor. The branzino was cooked to perfection! The flesh glistened and the skin was crispy. Amazing dish. Also pictured is the penne allo scoglio which was also very good. The penne is clearly also made in house and perfectly done. The amount of seafood in the dish was impressive. The only downside was the timing of the cook on the seafood, some of the muscle shells were lukewarm at best but overall the flavor delivered. I’d definitely get it again. We finished with a crème brûlée which was incredible! Not over sweet and the fame torched sugar on top was thin and very well balanced. We would 100% come back here if we are ever in the area. Also shout out to Brenton who was out server and went above and beyond in delivering a most enjoyable experience and answering all of my...

What a gem! We finally made it to IL Buongustaio last night for a double date and had an amazing experience. Our server was Chad - he was attentive and very helpful! We ordered Cesar salad for appetizer which was simple but very delicious. We tried some of the Salumi charcuterie board our friends ordered - simply delicious. Chad brought out fresh bread (just out the oven fresh) and rosemary infused olive oil before our entrees came out. We ordered the Halibut special and Spaghetti Allo Scoglio (Spaghetti sautéed with fresh seafood tomato sauce - mussels, clams, calamari, shrimp, & scallops). Everything was so fresh, packed with flavor and cooked to perfection. We ended the night with some delicious tiramisu. We’ll definitely be going back to try everything else on the menu! chefs kiss

Besides the food, we really enjoyed the ambiance and the relaxed atmosphere. Since everything is made to order, expect to wait for your food (definitely worth it). We spent about 2.5 hours but did not feel very long at all because we had great company and a nice...