Azzurro Italian Coastal Cuisine — Restaurant in The Woodlands

I will preface the review with a reminder that my wife and I were waiters for several years in nice restaurants as well as catering staff for a fine-dining catering company. We realize some things are out of a waiter's or even restaurant's control. However, some things are well within their control.

Azzurro Italian Coastal Cuisine presents itself as fine dining cuisine with a sort of casual expectation for its guests. My wife and I visited Azzurro's for a special occasion dinner. There were guests there wearing shorts and flip flops to more formal dress and everything in between. Overall, it was a typical Woodlands mix of upper-middle class diners.

The restaurant was busy, but we were (relatively) promptly seated with our reservation. The woman at the hostess stand had an argument with a waiter, and talked more about the issue with another staff member all before greeting us. It's not professional to complain and/or argue in front of guests. "Never let them see you sweat." It didn't bother me too much, aside from being ignored for a few awkward minutes while standing right in front of her.

Everything about the location looks professional, and clean, and modern from the layout of the tables to the staff. As some other reviewers have mentioned, the seating is tight. It is especially tight if you get a shared booth table. Being seated was fine, but getting up and out without hitting your neighbor or their table took some time and effort.

The food was good. We had the Calamari (cooked in duck fat). I would give it a solid 8 out of 10. The calamari was tender and the breading was light and crispy. The aioli dipping sauce was a little salty, especially near the end. Adding a marina option would've made my wife happier.

For an entrée, I had the spaghetti with clams. Another solid 8 out of 10. The very first clam I had wasn't the best (not terrible), but then every clam I had after it was good. The pasta was cooked properly and the sauce had a good flavor. My wife had the seafood risotto. If you like variety, this might be the dish for you. It was served with a bed of risotto topped with two large prawns, mussels, clams, calamari, and salmon. I did get to taste it, and would probably go with an 8.5 to 9 out of 10 for that dish.

My wife had a limoncello drink and I had what was basically a banana Old Fashioned. Both were good (yes, even the banana Old Fashioned).

For us, the décor, environment, and the food were the stars of the meal.

The only negative, which was minimal, was the staff. There was some confusion regarding seating, which caused waiters to have tables spread all over the restaurant, which in turn caused some delays in checking in and prompt service. (That was what the issue at hostess stand at the beginning was about). The other thing I noticed was that most of the wait staff seemed like they were trained by Texas Road House. There's nothing wrong with Texas Road House. We like it. However, it isn't the environment that Azzurro's is trying to create. They were a little too informal and shared more information than they should have (the kitchen is behind, the bar is behind, the seating it messed up). Waiters should never, but especially at a place like Azzurro's, complain about other parts of the restaurant to guests. Also, some negative comments plant seeds in guests minds. For instance, our waiter apologized for the "wait" for our entrees. Except, that our entrees hadn't really taken that long at all. If a guest asks about the time, you address it. But, you don't bring it up or you bring it up in a positive way, like "I just checked and your entrees should be out shortly." I chalked it up to the restaurant being relatively new and hasn't yet created a culture for their wait staff. But, they really should consider a follow-up training for staff etiquette. I could see this becoming an issue in the future unless they take steps to...

My recent experience Saturday night at Azzurro in The Woodlands was a mixed bag of highs and lows. We had reservations and arrived on time, only to be informed by the hostess that our table was being cleaned they have several tables empty but she guided us to half booth no too comfortable She then seated us without much warmth or a greeting. The lack of a simple "Good evening" or "How are you?" set a rather cold tone for the evening. Once seated, our server approached us promptly and asked for our drink preferences. We requested sparkling water, and she brought a large bottle to the table. We also ordered wine, appetizers(mussels ) and risotto. The food itself was delightful – well-prepared and tasty. However, the service left much to be desired. The server did not introduce herself, nor did she make any suggestions from the menu. One peculiar thing was how she poured our sparkling water to the rim without asking, something we usually prefer to do ourselves to keep the bottle fresh. Throughout the dinner, the service continued to disappoint. When we requested bread, the server assured us it was coming, but it never arrived. The appetizers were delivered by someone else without a word, and another staff member began grinding pepper over our meal without asking if we wanted any. Thankfully, the pepper grinder didn’t work, as we did not want pepper. To make matters worse, the server brought a second bottle of sparkling water without us ordering it and seemed visibly upset when we declined it. Her demeanor made it apparent that she was trying to increase our bill, which felt dishonest and off-putting. The only bright spot in the service was the busboy. He was friendly and took the time to ask how we were doing while cleaning the table. His warm demeanor stood out and made him the only staff member who truly seemed suited for the restaurant business. The restaurant itself is beautifully designed, and the food quality is commendable, but the service was far from satisfactory. The lack of smiles, basic courtesies, and the pushy attitude regarding orders we did not make significantly marred our dining experience.

I hope management addresses these issues, as a restaurant of this caliber should deliver a seamless and enjoyable dining experience, not one where guests feel pressured...

Food was good along with nice view of the lake and location. Would have liked to sit near the lake rather than corner booth. I would turn the music up a lot louder, was nice when I could hear it rather than the table talking next to us. It was my birthday and the hostess stand knew it; as I made the reservation and wanted a special table when on the phone. Specifically saying while making the reservation that it was my birthday and please put us at a good table.

Maybe 10 minutes in they brought another table right next to us in the booth area when the restaurant wasn’t busy. We could hear every word of their conversation as if we were at the same table. Do not sit in the booth area. It was the worse possible type of table to sit next to us on my birthday. It was young kids on a first date probably in their 20s. My mother thought the guy was on a job interview..haha. I told her no, that was just a horrible first date. It got to the point where I would have just left but it was my birthday with family so I had to finish out. (Booths too close or turn up the music)

The food was good. Nice to see something unique/authentic in this area as there is a lot of restaurant competition. The mussels were excellent. The clams were very small as seen in the photo. It was a disappointing entree, as it was mostly pasta with tiny clams, with some missing. The flavor profile was good but expected more/bigger clams.

The server didn’t explain anything. Had no speech or greeting about who they are and what they do. We drank multiple glasses of wine, would have been better if he recommended some bottles rather than paying by the glass. Also I would have liked some question like “is this your first time?” Or any question or comment for that matter.

For a previous birthday we went to Via Emila and they gave us the private room, that was memorable. Was expecting same level of service, since it has the same owner.

Management should be aware of special occasion reservations. Put them with their best servers at their best tables.

I’d probably go back for the white wine mussels at the bar and a...