08/22/09

THE BEST IN THE GABLES

by lizbett

MY HUSBAND AND I HAVE BEEN GOING TO CAFE VIALETTO FOR MANY YRS. EVERY TIME WE GO THE SERVICE AND THE FOOD IS EVEN BETTER THAN THE LAST. ALL DISHES R DELICIOUS. THE MANAGMENT (CHOPA & ERNIE) EXTREAMLY GOOD AND PROFESSIONAL THEY WILL MAKE FEEL AT HOME AND PAMPER YOU, AS WELL AS ALL THE WEITERS. WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND CAFE VIALETTO TO ANY ONE. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU ON THE GREAT SERVICE.

• Pros: THE BEST RISSOTTO

07/24/09

Wonderful Eatery

by Clarita01

the people were so kind and friendly willing to recommend dishes! the atmosphere was lovely. I'm from out of town but next time im in the area I will definitely go again :)

• Pros: great atmosphere, great people, delicious food, etc
• Cons: nothing

07/16/08

Good, not great.

by loge54

This is a good restaurant that serves good food at gourmet prices. Beyond that, there is no direct connection between good and gourmet except for the bill.

Previous posts have mentioned the $7 walk-in charge. Do yourself a favor and park somewhere - anywhere but in their own parking lot, for which they will charge you $7 for the pleasure of your company.

Once inside, you may be greeted warmly (we weren't, some are), handed a menu with very few listings and recited the 15-20 "specials" for the evening. Good luck with retaining even half of what you hear. Our primary waiter was aloof and lacked charm.

We asked for a "green" salad each with sesame dressing (good) and two entrees: Short Ribs (very nicely done and presented off the bone) and the Veal Roast on the menu (also very good).

A bottle of way overpriced, but very good Malbec ($48 from an insanely over-priced average wine list), accompanied the meal. Service was good and attentive.

The place filled up with the late Gables crowd of the must be seen and wanna-be seen.

Overall, a nice restaurant and meal for which we would have been happy paying a $120 bill including tip and parking. Unfortunately for us, and the prospects of us ever returning, we paid $180 + the $7 parking lot extortion.

So many other places in the Gables and the Grove serve equally good food at a better value. We'll leave Cafe Vialetto to the in-crowd, whom apparently value being seen more than they value value.

• Pros: Food quality and presentation
• Cons: Parking charge, poor value, over-priced pedestrian wine list, and too-long "specials" offered verbally.