Monzú Italian Oven + Bar — Restaurant in Spring Valley

We were sat at the bar area—I'm assuming because we had no reservation. The host staff got us started with some sparkling water, and it was quite fizzy. Our server was also a bartender. Our server was polite and friendly. He was very talkative and laid out a brief history of the restaurant as well as making recommendations. There were managers walking the floor checking in on everyone and that was appreciated.

Let me say this now; Our server was really good, but since he was also a bartender, he was hard to get ahold of at times. He was working very hard the entire time. I saw him making several drinks and then tending to us as soon as he was done. However, this model of service really leaves a lot to be desired. At the end of the meal, we wanted to try desserts but the restaurant was busier and we didn't really want to further wait for everyone in the restaurant to get their drinks before we were allowed to order.

The bread and ricotta/olive oil spread was divine. I'm not usually a fan of ricotta, but this was whipped creamy and fresh.

Upon the servers recommendation, we started with the squash blossoms. This was delicious and a perfect start to the meal. After that we decided to try an order of meatballs and the Rucola salad. I rather enjoyed the meatballs, but the tomato sauce that accompanied them tasted old and overcooked. I can just imagine that the same container of tomato sauce had been reheated and reused several times. The salad was good, but the croutons were really mushy and weird.

Look, at this point, I would have still considered five stars. I was mostly happy and at this point, we were still receiving good enough service because the restaurant had not filled up yet.

The entrees were both disappointing. They were not bad. They were just both very underwhelming. I ordered the Crespelle al forno because our server highly recommended it. It was very very mushy. The texture was almost pudding-like, the meat in the Bolognese was very scarce and it had what seemed like the same sauce as the meatballs. Overall, again, it wasn't 'bad' but I really did not enjoy eating it. I ate half and took the rest home and I do not forsee attempting a reheat on it.

My partner got the Carbonara. The problem with this dish is that we could tell is was well prepared, but the sauce was almost nonexistent. We really had to dig to find sauce and what we found was delicious, but we basically had a huge plate of naked pasta. The pasta was well cooked, al dente. It was really a shame. More sauce or less pasta could have made this great. The meat on the dish was delicious and we ate all of it. However, we left a pretty big plate of pasta behind.

This place advertises traditional Sicilian style food. So, perhaps it is my own regional ignorance that contributed to my disappointment. I can only say what I do and don't like.

Overall, I would recommend trying Monzu.

There are many good qualities here. My rating is based on several factors. Service was one factor, but I do not blame our server. The service started off great but declined as the night moved forward and more people ordered drinks. It's really a shame that we wanted dessert(especially since we did not enjoy our entrees) and felt that our ability to order was the last priority to everyone else's drink orders. The food was a 50/50 loved it/ didn't love it affair.

I would come back here before I would even consider going back to many other Italian restaurants in the...

I booked an event here for a party of 21 people this past Friday based on a recommendation from their sister company who was unable to accommodate the date and time I was requesting to host a private dinner. I’d never dined here before, but based on the yelp reviews and images I saw of the restaurant, I thought it’d be a great place to host.

I worked with their events manager, Carrieann, to setup the event, arrange the custom menu, etc. All communication leading up to the event was fine and she did a good job at capturing what I wanted.

Unfortunately, the event itself did not go off without a hitch. We were served by Lee, and I believe he was overwhelmed from the very beginning. Some of my guests waited nearly or over an hour for drinks, second round drink requests were no different with the exception of him spilling a drink on one of my guests as he served them.

The time it took to bring out one dish to the next was excessive. I was mortified as I wanted the evening to go well and my guests to enjoy their time. I worked with Carrieann while onsite to regain control of the experience my guests and I were having, and let her know Lee needed some assistance. I was unable to enjoy the evening and be present with my guests as I spent a great deal of time trying to salvage the evening by communicating with members on the team. I let her know, I was not looking for any concessions - I just wanted my guests to have a good time as they’d become frustrated themselves.

When the food arrived, we were initially being underserved - we were not getting enough dishes served to us per headcount. I brought this to her attention and she fixed it in the next few rounds of entrees being delivered and brought out additional entrees that were missed.

My guests had the Ultra Chefs Board - it was good. They had a salad that was also good. For entrees, they had the Spaghetti and Meatballs (I would not recommend), the Tagliatelle (which was a big hit and would recommend), the Classic Combo pizza (I would not recommend), the Mary’s chicken (great choice) as well as the Lombatello steak (I would also recommend). The dessert tray was not a big hit amongst the table.

Overall, I would not plan to come back here for a large event. The ambiance was great, the team did what they could to recover from the experience we had (even offered my guests some complimentary shots), however, I pride myself on ensuring my guests have a great time when dining out to celebrate special occasions and this was not a great experience. I will not be coming back nor recommending this restaurant to friends...

We went here last weekend and had a truly amazing meal. The location is off strip, but not so far off that you are feeling like you are lost - just head West on Flamingo and you are there in no time.

Decor is super trendy and feels casual yet elegant at the same time. When we learned that the staff did the entire place by themselves - from tile work to decorating - we were very impressed!

Service was very good - especially considering they only opened 2 weeks ago. Most places struggle with finding good help and suffer for the first few months - not here - they were on their game and made us feel welcome.

Cocktails - oh man - they have some amazing house cocktails - there was no way we could settle with just one. Lovely aromatic garnishes too!

Appetizers - had to have the daily bread with the butter brought in from Vermont. I am a bread lover and this was soooo good. Bacon wrapped dates - super good, maybe would have liked some kind of balsamic reduction sauce with it, but they were great as they were. Perfect portion for sharing. Several other choices that were hard to turn down.

Pizza - here is the show stopper - it's not thin crust, but is crunchy, the perfect amount of crunchy - it's not thick crust but has a wonderful soft bubbled edge on it. We split one and we each could pick what we wanted on our half. I really felt like it was the best pizza I have ever had. The crust is fermented for like, 12 days and it is heavenly....and the toppings are fresh. Kitchen is busy and the chef is overseeing quality - the way it should be. Loved that there is a tip included for the kitchen staff only!

Located in kind of a strip mall - and waiting for the permanent signs, it may be a bit hard to see at night - just go, you will not regret it in the least! Save your hard earned cash and eat off strip - support true artisans in the kitchen and get a...