Amici Grill and Pizzeria — Restaurant in Valparaiso

If it wasn’t for the good food i don’t think i would come back to try again. I’m an avid restaurant reviewer and besides food customer service is half the battle. Mind you we did mention that this was our first time dining in. Our waitress kyrstyn (might have spelled wrong) had a very “get in and get out” kinda of attitude. From taking orders in a rush, down to only visiting our table 3 times. The other 2 times was to tell her she’s sorry she forgot our salad and would remove it if we would like. Which we agreed to, yet she came out with the salad anyways. Politely declined it, received an attitude about what she heard over what we said. The last time was to drop off the bill to my wife instead of me. Might be an old school thing but the bill is always given to the man or at least asked whom would receive the bill… The bill was dropped off with no instruction as to if we pay at the table or up front. Matter of fact not even a word was said. Like a UPS delivery except I’m paying. Not once were we asked how our food was, when we sat we received no silverware or plates for our appetizer as well. All around not a good experience with her, come to find out she was a manager.. Not what i would have liked to hear. I also heard they had one person call off, i totally get that as i also work in customer service but just because you are busy and overwhelmed you cannot treat someone poorly. The nice young woman that delivered our receipt back to us after paying was very nice and actually took better care of us and it wasn’t even her responsibility.

BUT

I will say the food here was delicious! My wife ordered the Penne Vodka pasta and i had a calzone with pep,mushrooms,tomatos. My wife’s pasta was DELICIOUS and my calzone was also very tasty and the cheese was of high quality. However because of the large amount of grease i did ask for a second plate to transfer to, and my waitress did not ever return with it. And again never asked how our food was or if we needed anything. We also voiced how we were going to get desert and before we could order again she delivered 2 boxes and the bill and took off again. I get it you’re busy on a Saturday with slightly shorter staff but you guys only have about 10 tables. And I’m sure everyone that was dealing with her could wait an extra 30 seconds to have received better service.

All in all i will return once more to try other menu items BUT i will request that she is not our...

We went for the first time on a Friday night. When we first arrived it was a little busy and then it cleared out right away. We ordered tomato bread. We got garlic knots. After we called the waitress back to let her know the appetizer was wrong. She apologized and said she switched with another waitress and grabbed the wrong one but ours will be up in three minutes. Then we heard the other waitress offer the only other table in there the "extra order" of garlic knots that were given to us. We then ordered a veggie pizza adding chicken and spinach. A 33 dollar pizza. When our pizza arrived it only had chicken and spinach. We told our waitress that our pizza was also wrong. She disappeared to the back, came back and said they were making another one. We declined because that was a huge waste of food and we would just like our bill so we could leave. She insisted we take the wrong pizza with us and we said sure we will take it. Then we got the bill. The pizza was taken off but on the ticket itself garlic knots were on the ticket. They were comped and tomato bread was added on the bottom. So even after getting the wrong appetizer and then the wrong pizza they still charged us for the tomato bread. I paid for our two drinks and the tomato bread, still tipped the waitress and then asked for a manager. I said this is our first time coming in and it's disappointing that even after all the mess ups that we would still be charged for tomato bread. But we ate it, so I paid for it. He apologized and said he would give us a free pizza for next time but the whole experience was unpleasant. They asked us for our name but we declined saying we wouldn't be back. I've worked in the industry. I know stuff happens. But there was only one other table. Charging someone for 7 dollar tomato bread after it was clearly rung in as garlic knots then readded after messing up their entire dinner seems ridiculous. Our waitress was nice. He did try to rectify the situation but we were...

Spectacular. From the first bite, you can tell they use quality ingredients, not just what a distributor pushes their way.

The building is well remodeled with a red brick veneer wall, nice furnishings, great lighting, and an outdoor seating area.

The staff was very courteous and attentive, even when the Friday rush arrived as we were finishing our meal. Our server was well versed on the meals, their ingredients, prep, and provided helpful recommendations.

Our appetizer was the meatballs. Made on site, the meat was flavorful but lean. The sauce made my wife go "wow," and the cheese was fresh and delicious. The appetizer arrived well before the meal, so we could enjoy it without being rushed.

My wife ordered a Detroit pizza while I ordered the Johnny Boy sandwich. The waitress immediately asked and recommended ricotta cheese for the pizza, an excellent recommendation. The pizza arrived, well more than 1 person could eat, with a perfect buttery deep pan crust, a great sause, and again cheeses that were definately not from a distributor as they were fresh and with a complex flavor profile not found in something from a restaurant distributor.

My Johnny Boy sandwich had thinly sliced meats cooked perfectly. The peppers were also cooked perfectly with a fully cooked flavor in a pepper slice that still was firm without being crunchy. The bread was so distinctive I shared a tear off with my wife, again something deliberately chosen by the chef for its quality. The fries were comparable to those from 5 Guys without being excessively oily.

The waitress said the restaurant has been in this location for 4 years, unfortunately we just found it today. A fantastic addition to the...