Calzolaio Pasta Co — Restaurant in Wilton

UPDATED 7/7/2018: Having had many good experiences here before, my wife and I took our entire family (8 in total - four of them children visiting from out of State) here on the evening of July 7, 2018. We have been here and hosted large gatherings in the past and never had any problems nor needed a reservation. The lady that was the host on this specific night asked if we had a reservation and I said we did not. She then immediately began to raise her voice and yelling that we cannot just walk in there and think we can get a table... and nothing would be made available for us. Much taken back by this extremely unproportioned reaction to us asking for a table I said we had never needed one in the past, even for larger parties than this, so we never thought to make a reservation. She again erupted in anger frightening the children we had with us. I then calmly instructed everyone in our party to leave the restaurant and I tried to talk with this lady and asked why that was necessary in front of our family/guest and the children… what had I said or done to cause such a hostile reaction? To which she snapped back that she was not mad, she was acting perfectly fine and we needed to leave… and I did promptly never to return again. I know people have bad days, and I hope that was all this was, but allowing this extreme hostile behavior to erupt in such a situation is not acceptable under any circumstances, ever, doubly so in front of young children that were truly shaken by the experience, not to mention our adult family guest. We will not be back, nor will we continue to recommend this restaurant to our guests in Maine again (we accounted for by my estimation 250 – 300 meals here a year that will be lost). I would encourage anyone reading this to do the same. Please also see other July reviews, we were not the only people who had a similar experience here!

ORIGINAL: My wife and myself have dined here a number of times over a number of years and we have hosted small dinner parties here as well. The staff has always been friendly, and the food has been quite good. We have enjoyed, weather permitting, eating on the deck above Wilson Stream. They are very willing to help with special dietary needs of us and our guests. Several times at peak times, we have had to wait briefly for a table (but not in a while - only because the food is that good). Great for carb lovers, but they do have some non-carb options (love the Baked Lobster & Artichoke Dip). Worth a stop if you are...

I had a very poor experience with the staff here yesterday.

Perhaps something about my look or appearance was off putting to both the hostess and the waitress as I was ignored twice by both, however one may not always look their most presentable when grieving the loss of a loved one.

My mother in law had just passed away yesterday morning; my parents called in a mid-sized take out order and paid in advance so that my wife, father in law, and myself could have some food to last a couple of days while we grieve and process our loss.

I walk into the restaurant and patiently and quietly wait to be addressed by the hostess at the waiting area in the entrance. I was not greeted, though she saw me. After she seated the people ahead of me, she proceeded to ignore me until a father and son walked in behind me, who were promptly offered a table outside. Once she took care of them I finally politely said "excuse me, ma'am..." and without looking at me she said "one minute" and walks away. When she returned, another group of 3 walk in and she smiles politely, says she'll be right with them, and steps away.

Meanwhile, a bar tender comes out from the back, sees me and the three behind me; she proceeds to ask them if they're being helped and they say yes. She does not ask me anything before turning away to go back to where she came from.

At this point, I finally say "excuse me" again and walk up to the bar and state my purpose. No smile, no hello from the bartender. As she leaves out of sight to retrieve my order, the hostess comes back, ignores me standing by myself and addresses the group of 3 again.

The food was fine and the outdoor patio looked inviting enough that I would have loved to dine-in another time with my family, but the consistent lack of consideration was so offensive and off-putting that I will never again return or recommend this establishment. I will never forget this experience.

Class is not measured by how people treat you but by how you treat others. In my singular experience, I found class to be lacking in the front, customer facing aspect of this...

Love Calzolaio Italian Restaurant in Wilton, Maine. They also have wonderful waitstaff, and bartenders like Lexi who served us tonight. Their specials are amazing, they have staples like their dessert rhubarb pie which is out of this world, and their sauces for their pastas are tasty and fresh. We always come when we are in town and enjoy being there.

August 2025 update: we have had dinner several times this summer At Calzolaio’s and it’s still terrific. Pro tip: make a reservation because they get busy. You can sit at the bar and eat dinner though, if there’s a spot open. Service is great! Portions are large and you can easily take some home. The new rhubarb martini is delish!!! Give it a try. They also had a blueberry pie special because of the Blueberry Festival and blueberry ice cream that is amazing!! This is a must visit place!

July 2023 Update: Went back, still excellent. I tried the pork dish and the pork was cooked perfectly, the sauce was sweet, the squash with sun dried tomatoes and bits of bacon was a great surprise and a light side which worked really well. I also chose the risotto as a side and it was HUGE, it had thinly sliced Parmesan cheese on top and it was so rich and so good I took most of it home. It’s a whole meal for later! They had a mixed berry pie for dessert which has a lemony crust that was to DIE for, and it was so full of black and blueberries I would reeaaally recommend that as a finishing touch to any meal there.

Morgan was our server and she was terrific! We will be back again of course!

Update June 2023: We went back again and had Richard as our server, he is fabulous, you can ask for him. We also had the seafood sautée which was soooo delish and the eggplant fries for an appetizer which were a little salty but very tasty. I had a nice cocktail called the basil rathbone which was interesting and STRONG, and my husband had the pickle Rick which he enjoyed...