Paolo Ristorante — Restaurant in Woodbridge

First let me say the food was delicious. After that though, things go down hill. We decided at the last minute to go on Valentine's evening for dinner and were fortunate to get a table after a 25 min wait which we were told would be five minutes. Once seated in very packed and cramped quarters we were given menus, mine was the correct Valentine's day menu but my husband got the regular menu causing some confusion. The server told us they ran out of inserts. They really needed to plan for the holiday crowd and, it was clear from their reservation sheet, they knew at a minimum how many guests to expect. Not sure if our server was inexperienced, tired or flustered at how the kitchen was way behind and running out of food, but we never saw one smile and, when i asked for butter for the bread, he returned with one foil wrapped piece that he set on the edge of the table. I think the chef should make the effort to put butter in small ramekins or at least present a few pats on a small plate. All around us servers were apologizing to guests about the wait for their meals and then ours returned to let us know that the appetizer and salad order "never printed" so it was just going in now. As i said at the beginning, the food was delicious. When our main courses arrived, my pan seared salmon with asparagus and mashed potatoes arrived without the potatoes or an explanation from our server. As I rethought whether the potatoes had actually been part of my dish, he returned with a bowl of steak fries saying the chef made these because he ran out of mashed potatoes, "hope that's ok". Weird side dish with my salmon but tasty. Two tables away the guests were not as happy and i overheard them telling the waiter to take back the steak fries since no choices were actually offered to them and they did not want those. They requested bowls of pasta instead. Because I didn't say anything, we were not given complimentary prosecco as were they and the table next to us. Also, although the salmon arrived hot, the asparagus was only warm and everything turned cool very quickly because my dinner plate was ice cold. This was our second visit since this became Paolo's and the food was definitely better than the first time, but they were not equipped to handle that size crowd. They also need to train their waiters on how to place food on the table and how to engage their customers. We will try again when it...

From the ambience to the food there is no better restaurant experience than Paolo’s. Upon reviewing the menu online prior to my visit I knew I was in for authentic Italian cuisine to indulge my senses in. We were greeted by the most sincere and genuine woman. You can tell she puts her heart into the restaurant and wants to ensure that you have a great experience. We couldn’t choose between the appetizers and ended up ordering 6 of them. I’ve never seen something so artfully crafted on a plate before. The caprese was delicious and the stuffed figs made my heart melt. For my main course I ordered the gnocchi bolognese. The rich flavors and added vegetables provided different textures that made me craving another bite. We were all loosening our belts trying to fit more into our already full stomachs when Paolo himself came over and talked to us for a good 20 minutes. He shared his story and dreams with us which was the perfect ending to an already perfect meal. Thank you for sharing your craft with us and introducing us to a new song with our last name. I will definitely be back and make sure that everyone knows of Paolo and his...

Great menu, personal attentive service. Will be a while before we can eat our way through this great little restaurant. I had a distinctively flavored pasta fagiole, spinach salad with granny apple slices and candied walnuts, a wonderfully flavored and tender broiled octapus, and finished with chocolate dipped canola and a capucino. My octopus was a tapas serving and I was more than satiated. Other dishes at our table osso bucco, lobster ravioli, pollo picatta, fried calamari, and figs stuffed with goat cheese and accented with a balsamic reduction. Each of these received acclamation from multiple tasters. A decent wine list compliments this distinctive Italian menu. Hey google them and check out the menu in advance of your visit. You won't be disappointed at their execution...