Mercato Ristorante & Bar — Restaurant in West Chester

My family went into the restaurant to treat ourselves to a mid-day meal. It was immediately explained (and explained again later) to us by our waitress that this time of day (3ish) is "transition time" and based on her abrupt manner, it was clear that whatever this entailed - which included not knowing what the soup of the day was - coming into the restaurant at this time of day was an annoyance. I wish they would simply close during this time if they don't want to be bothered. In fact, I wish they had closed. The waitress brought over our drink order and proceeded to pour a bottle of beer into a glass the way she had poured the water (more of a dump than a pour really) causing the expected reaction of an overflow onto the table. At $6 a beer, that is an expensive mess. No apology or offer to make up for what was now all over the table was made. Accidents happen, but her complete disregard for what she had done, coupled with her lame attempt to wipe it up only made it worse. We made no complaint and pressed on placing our order (3 of us) of very basic Italian dishes. After waiting more than 20 minutes (again, not voicing any complaint) and listening to an apology for the delay (there were only a couple of tables with customers), a plate with a clearly burned piece of chicken (it was black) partially covered with cheese and sauce was placed in front of me. The waitress, who had to have seen this, quickly disappeared yet again so I signaled someone else who was nearby and discreetly showed her the piece of charcoal that was being passed off as chicken. She took the plate, apologized and said they would make another. The manager came over, apologized for the "well-done chicken" and left. Ten minutes or so later, I was given my entree. Then the "transition" (a.k.a. change in waitresses) that we had been warned about took place and the replacement introduced herself saying she would now be taking care of us. Since this level of care involved nothing more than handing us the bill, it seemed like much ado about not much. Anyway, the minute I signed the credit card slip, waitress #2 was back scooping it up. (Note to her: Normally waiting until the customers leave is the way to do that.) Overall, due to the lack of courtesy, professionalism and skill from everyone it was a very disappointing experience which we won't be in a...

When I think of going to a place for pasta in West Chester I think of Mercato. This restaurant is one of the more pricier Italian restaurants in the area but I will always recommend people come here. Mercato is a pretty romantic restaurant but also great for families. There is a bar and plenty of outdoor seating.

During this dining experience however, we did have a few hiccups.

The menus were just printed sheets of paper with stains from previous usage. It just was honestly gross to think about.

Our waiter was very formal and well versed. I appreciated how thorough he was. The runners kept our table clean and cleared throughout every dish.

We were given table bread and a side of marinara sauce. The sauce, while very tasty, was pretty cold. The bread was delicious!

We ordered a caesar salad and the short rib ragu for appetizer. The salad was delicious! The dressing ratio has a little more anchovy than preferred but nonetheless still really good! On the other hand the short rib was MOUTH WATERING! Cooked to perfection it melted in your mouth and the ragu was perfectly seasoned. I could have gone without the hard block of gorgonzola polenta. The edges were rock hard and the inside was soggy. I have no idea what the white topping was on the short rib but it did not melt into the meal. I could have gone without that as well.

The entrees saved the night! We ordered the fettuccini mercato and the penne vodka. They are our typical go-tos and I absolutely recommend people give it a try! I found myself stealing bites of the penne vodka. The tomatoes in the fettuccini mercato dish were not soggy and the peas added that pop of freshness to the dish. The best part about their penne vodka is that they add prosciutto and who does not love that?! The portions are pretty big so prepare to take some home. Thankfully the pasta always heats up well next day just mildly greasy is all.

I will say though, that the to-go boxes they give will not hold up well in the fridge. Be sure to switch your leftovers into some Tupperware. I am very happy they are being considerate about the environment by cutting down on plastic to go bowls.

I am hopeful that our next visit will be...

We took at an outside table by request, sat for 15 minutes. I had to get another waiter to check. Apparently, the waiter for our table didn't come in.. weird, but we got another waiter assigned.

The waiter was good at first.

Two of our party ordered the steak special, which was a New york strip. I have to add that I haven't been to Mercato in 2 years, but back then, their NY strip was the best you could get at the price point, about $40 back then.

Both were ordered medium/rare.

Both came out very rare, large cold center. And they CUT the steak into large strips... and I guess decided it was right.

It wasn't. So they took them back on the grill, which works fine for a steak that wasn't cut into pieces.... what came out was medium/well.

In addition, that was no NY strip. The meat had zero taste, zero fat, was mealy when chewing it. This was the same for both steaks.

I only took one bite and told the waiter that the steaks were unacceptable and we would not eat them. Didn't eat the sides either.

The waiter just says "sorry you guys didn't like the food" after I pointed out the problems. Took them and left.

Comes out 10 minutes later with the check. WITH 2 STEAKS AT $65 EACH. I can go to a real steakhouse for that, and it was garbage, and we didn't eat them.

We had to ask for the manager, which the waiter should automatically have done.

After a long wait, he came out. I explained again what the problems were. He offered another dish, which we declined. We were just done.

The manager finally took off the steaks.

My wife's pasta dish was dry with very thin and dry "blackened chicken," edible but just bad. She ate half because she was hungry.

Overall, it is easily the worst food I've had in years. Then, the attempt to charge for it.

Mercato has lost its way completely and will not...