Francesca's — Restaurant in Troy

I came here about a month ago, and I have many complaints. The first problem were the two hostesses, who gave judgmental looks as soon as my friend and I walked in. As soon as we were seated and looked at the menu, one thing became immediately clear: this is not an Italian restaurant. It’s very clearly a Mediterranean restaurant, that just so happens to include Italian dishes. There are several Greek dishes, a Moroccan kebab, and even “Mediterranean style” pork chops, as listed on the menu. A little bit of false advertising to start. In the appetizers, an item called “shrimp wrap” caught my eye, mostly because it’s ingredients come from the wrong continent. The shrimp is wrapped in wonton, and served in wasabi ranch… which is a baffling combination to have, especially at a Mediterranean restaurant. But I digress. I decided to order that mysterious item, a salad, and chicken alfredo, while my friend ordered fried ravioli and the same entrée. Speaking of entrées, it’s time to talk about the fake Italian at this restaurant. On DoorDash, appetizers are called “apertivo” and entrées are called “entrata.” Now, I don’t speak Italian, but from my research, this is blatantly incorrect. An “aperitivo” (missing an “I” in the original”) is a wine starter, and entrata would better be called a “primo” or “secondi.” As there is no second course, it would be a primo. But, I can overlook all of these transgressions if the food was good. It was not. Both “apertivo” were mediocre at best, the “entrata” was overcooked with a sauce that was far too thick, and the most egregious item was the salad, which consisted of ICEBERG lettuce, SIX croutons, and my choice of dressing. That was it. No other leafy vegetables to balance the watery taste of iceberg, a mix in like carrots to break the monotony of lettuce, and six croutons which gave me the bird on the way out. I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant to anyone. Not paying customers, not homeless people, not my dogs, not the roaches in the dumpster...

Are you deciding dinner after searching "restaurants in Troy"? Stop scrolling and go here immediately. Francesca's is phenomenal! I went with two of my friends, and we had Alex as our waiter. We couldn't have asked for a better one. He checked in on us often, making sure we had full drinks, a full bread basket, and food preparing exactly to our liking. Ask for Alex when you go and see a shining example of customer service!

The food was priced very well for the portion size. As you can see, I ordered the chicken alfredo. Not only was the presentation 100%, but the quality was heavenly. I don't think I've ever had an alfredo quite this good, and I've explored many an Italian eatery. This establishment quite possibly has become my favorite Italian restaurant. Pick this for dinner and go see for yourself just how great of a restaurant...

The food was ok. I got the stuffed shells and i was still hungry afterward but that was probably my own fault. What really put a bad taste in my mouth was that my husband and i both ordered a glass of wine. He had red and i had white. They both obviously had water in them. Halfway through the meal the waiter came back and said someone else had complained about the wine my husband ordered (the table next to us so we heard) and asked if he would like a new glass from a different bottle. He said yes and mentioned mine didnt taste quite right either. I declined a second glass but they did bring another for my husband which was a much smaller glass.... im guessing because there was no water in his. Were very hesitant to try this...