Santangelo's Restaurant — Restaurant in Town of Salina

We visited Santangelo's Restaurant just as they were opening at 4:00 p.m. on a Sunday, arriving without a reservation. Although they were nearly totally booked, they kindly accommodated us. We were grateful they did because we had a great experience (but see updates below). With a choice of soup or salad, I chose a salad and my wife chose their homemade chicken noodle soup. I got to taste the soup and found it delicious, containing tender chicken with carrots and noodles that were not overcooked. My salad was dressed with a tasty Italian vinaigrette and was a great way to start a meal. For my main course, I ordered chicken riggies. The server asked whether I wanted it mild, medium, hot, or blazing hot. I chose hot, hoping that my taste buds would still be able to detect the nuanced flavors of the creamy tomato sauce. As with the soup, all components of the dish were flavorful and perfectly cooked. During the past 30 years, I have ordered this regional dish at many Italian restaurants, including in Rome and Utica NY, its place of origin. Santangelo's chicken riggies ranks with the best I've had. It was just outstanding. Also, the service and ambience were excellent. One minor disappointment was that the bread was served at refrigerator temperature instead of being warmed. UPDATE-1: Consistency may be a problem at this restaurant. I ordered the Chicken Riggies again, but this time the pasta and vegetables were overcooked and in contrast to sweet tender breast-meat chicken, this time the dish had mostly dark meat that was somewhat gamey tasting. I left most of the chicken in the bowl. Also, we were disappointed in the garlic pizza bread. The bread had too little garlic and was very dry. It would have benefited from some butter being spread on the slices before topping with cheese and garlic. I'd recommend you just stick with the complimentary cold bread they serve with all meals. My wife ordered the Chicken Abruzzi again and loved it. Two grilled chicken breasts sandwiched a large portobello mushroom cap placed on a bed of lettuce with some sliced tomatoes and mozzarella. This must be one of the lower calorie dishes on the restaurant's menu. UPDATE-2: Another disappointing meal. We returned here to meet friends who invited us to join them at the restaurant. I ordered the rigatoni pasta with traditional sauce and mild Italian sausage, and for a $3 up charge, had it topped with mozzarella and baked. It came with a side salad which for an $8.95 up charge could be replaced by an individual antipasto salad. The salad was great. However, when my main was delivered, I pointed out that the two round lumps under the cheese looked like meatballs but my waitress assured me that it was sausage. A few minutes later when I tried a bite, I found it to be a meatball. I moved both of them on to my bread plate and caught the attention of our waitress. She did deliver one 3" link of sausage after I had mostly finished my pasta. The traditional sauce was pretty bland and the pasta had not been properly drained, so there was water at the bottom of the bowl preventing sauce from sticking to the pasta. I did enjoy sharing a pistachio cannoli with my wife...

Out of all the reviews that I've ever done including some of those inside my town of North Syracuse I'd have to say that this one is more close to my heart than any... Santangelo's restaurant nestled in the heart of the Liverpool about 30 feet above lake level transports you to Tuscany where the only thing that warms you up like the sun is the people who live there.

You are welcomed by an open parking area that stretches behind the building. From first site you are drawn in by the beauty of the building which is complemented by the meticulous Landscaping and cleanliness.

As you walk through the double doors you're greeted by the hostess who joyfully welcomes you and goes to work making the proper accommodations for your party whether you're dining-in or on the Terrace or perhaps there to unwind with a few cocktails at their beautiful bar. The inside is spacious and the ambience matches the whole Style of the Restaurants menu as well as the visual Aesthetics.

When I sat at the bar I was able to enjoy my drink and Nosh on a few chips as I watched a game on one of the TVs that were on. Karen the bartender who delightfully took my order was able put my order in and time it where I was able to drink a few rounds before it was ready. I was able to meet Tina whom like Karen is one of the resident mixologists who's gorgeous eyes and pleasant disposition could help you forget about the days mundane events.

Now as this was my father's first experience with Santangelo's I opted to order for him and chose the chicken parm which I have to say is the absolute best I've I've ever had in my life and still is to this day. The rest of their menu offers everything from traditional dishes to seafood.

The staff that I had the opportunity to encountered where friendly and polite. The patrons I encountered while waiting for my order were cheerful and respectable. This is not the downtown crowd nor is it a place where everyone is so engaged in their phones that they forget to look up and enjoy the moment.

The restrooms were spotlessly clean and well maintained.

If only I had that special woman in my life I'd bring her here for a romantic dinner while absorbing the comforting Ambiance as she chose a wine from their well stocked wine list.

It also seems like a great place to hold baby showers, anniversaries, retirement and birthday parties.

If you get the opportunity put this on your list to check out when you come to Syracuse or before you leave town.... I guarantee you that you'll hold every restaurant you encounter to the standards that Santangelo's places on themselves which is why they are so successful in gaining new patrons as well as retaining those they've had...

On Saturday May 23rd at approximately 7:15pm my husband, his parents and grandmother had reservations for dinner. We were seated close to a room with a party of 30 people roughly. We put our orders in and were given 1 basket of bread for the table. We enjoyed our appetizers and ate all but 3 slices of the bread. We conversed for awhile and our waitress came over and asked if we needed anything while we were waiting. Meanwhile, everytime the kitchen door opened I kept looking to see if our food was ready because of the large party that was going on it seemed like we were waiting longer than we should have. So I asked our waitress for more bread. She looked at me and wotha little bit of attitude, said we still had bread in our basket. I just looked back at her, nodded and said yes but can we please have more. I figured we'd finish the existing slices before we would receive our meal. And besides, I'm Italian, I like bread with my meal. So my mother in law and I emptied the basket and handed it back to her. Shortly after, she returned with more bread. Finally or meals come out. Mine was fine but my husband got the Cosmo Platter. The chicken parm hardly had any cheese on it and the Alfredo sauce with pasta was very doughy with the sauce having a very pasty consistency. My mother in law's dish was supposed to have an herb sauce but instead it was all lemon flavored which was very overpowering. My father in law was not impressed with his pasta special eother. When the waitress came over to ask how everything was she was at the opposite end from my mother in law and I happened to say mine was good. She smiled and walked away. At the end of our meal our waitress was clearing the table and asked my mother in law if she wanted a box for her 1/2 eaten meal. She told her no she didn't care for it. Our waitress asked her why and my mother in law told her about the lemon taste. Our waitress then scolded her and asked hey why she didn't say anything. My mother in law was taken by surprise and told her she was at the other end of the table. Our waitress scolded her a second time and said she should have gotten her attention, then stormed away with a bad attitude. I'm sorry but there was no reason for that attitude and almost picking a fight with a customer. Our waitress could have handled that much better. She returned with the check for our table and said she took my mother in law's meal off the bill. I can't speak for my in law's but I think it's a safe bet that we will not be returning to...