Reviews & Ratings for Bacaro Venetian Taverna

12/30/11

Delicious Food, Great Wine & Tasty Cocktails

by AliCatCO at Citysearch

Although Boulder has a plethora of restaurants to choose from -- and new ones seem to open every week!-- I keep returning to my favorite place, Bacaro (921 Pearl Street, Boulder).

Bacaro is a gourmet Italian -- actually, Venetian -- restaurant that has a menu that features a large menu of small plate options. Whether I'm in the mood for a pizza or pasta or seafood or risotto, I can always find something delicious and satisfying.

Plus, Bacaro has an extensive wine list and you can get just about anything you want to drink from the (full) bar. (The signature martinis are to die for!)

In the summertime, you can sit on the Pearl Street facing patio or enjoy the views of the mountains from the rooftop deck. In the wintertime, you can keep warm in the cozy dining room or bar area.

Bacaro has been a favorite of mine for 10 years...and it just keeps getting better!

08/10/11

A SURPRISING EXPERIENCE

by MRMAGOO at Citysearch

BEING FROM THE EAST COAST AND OF ITALIAN DESCENT, WE APPROACH ANY ITALIAN RESTAURANT WEST OF THE HUDSON WITH TREPIDATION. WE GAVE THIS DINING EXPERIENCE 5 STARS AS THE MENU CHOICES ARE DIVERSE AND SOMEWHAT UNUSUAL.

WE ESPECIALLY LIKED THE SMALL SERVING SIZE WHICH ALLOWED US TO EXPERIENCE AS MANY OF THE ENTRES AS POSSIBLE. THE FOOD QUALITY IS AS GOOD AS ANYTHING I HAVE HAD IN NEW YORK OR ANY WHERE ELSE. THE SEVICE WAS EXCEPTIONAL AND ALTHOUGH THEY WERE VERY BUSY WE MANAGED TO BREEZE THROUGH COCKTAILS, ORDERVES, ENTRES AND DESERT AT A PLEASANT PACE.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS RESTAURANT TO ANYONE LOOKING FOR EXCEPTIONAL FOOD QUALITY AND TASTE.

04/06/09

Not really worth it

by nelso at Citysearch

The food was okay - nothing to write home about though, and definitely not worth the price. The staff was forgetful of details. There are cozy italian restaurants right nearby.

• Pros: Location
• Cons: Stuck up atmosphere

02/17/08

Great food, great service

by Covix at Citysearch

The waitstaff at Bacaro were VERY helpful in helping us pick a wine to go with our dinner . The bread was fine, but the breadsticks were kind of odd. A little too stale to be called "crisp" but too hard to be called "fresh". The salads and entrees were suberb. and the meals were served more quickly than I would have expected, which for me, is a plus. My only complaint was that we ordered decaf coffee after the meal, and apparently we were served coffee that had been left over from an afternoon party. It was not hot, and we were only told later that the coffee was 6 hours old! Also, we asked for "cream" and were given milk. The entree prices were very reasonable, but the prices for everything else seemed a bit high. With two entrees averaging $20 each, the total bill for two was just over $100 before tip. Overall, however, I would recommend Bacaro, as the food was excellent.

• Pros: Excellent food, excellent service
• Cons: Kind of expensive for wine and desserts

01/01/08

bad experience

by ghost_healers at Citysearch

The New Year's Eve menu sounded great, but the experience wasn't. We waited an hour after our "reservation" time, I realize it's a busy night but we were dismissed and shuffled around the restaurant, even offered to take a table upstairs without chairs. Once seated, our "confused to be at work" waitress stopped by once, then disappeared for the rest of the night, wandering around the restaurant. We remained hopeful about the food, which was good, but after a four course meal we left hungry. Spending $80 per person (w/ tax and tip) and leaving a restaurant hungry is ridiculous. I'm not exaggerating that my "entree" was finished in three bites. If it were a five star meal I could understand, but the food wasn't nearly good enough to justify the tiny portions. The champagne pairing was a nice idea, but the two-ounce pour was an insult to New Year's Eve. After the "meal" we were hurried from our table, without apology, to make room for a some type of dance party. I'm surprised they didn't remove the table with us still seated there. An arrogant place, not recommended.

11/12/07

Good experience

by t23 at Citysearch

I enjoyed the friendliness and attentiveness of the waiter. He made excellent wine recommendations paired to my food and personalized to what I typically like, and had a welcoming demeanor and smile despite the restaurant being packed. Both my appetizer (arugula) and entree (salmon) were delicious and beautifull plated. The dessert didn't completely amaze me, but was still good. What I didn't appreciate was the parking situation--I was told I would find an underground garage in the back alley behind the restaurant and was given an access code, but drove through the alley 3 times without seeing it. When I tried to call to ask for help, no one answered. Then, 15 minutes after my reservation, as I was still in my car trying to park in downtown Boulder, stuck in not-moving traffic in a garage, the hostess called and asked in a snotty tone "if I was still coming"...if she would have answered the phone in the first place, I would have been on time, or it may have been helpful to give more explicit directions when I first called to get the code... My other complaint is that you have to squeeze through the packed bar area to get to the bathroom, which kind of takes away from the experience of fine dining, and the tables are so crowded together and packed it's hard to get up and walk when you need to get to the bathroom, door, or your table.

• Pros: Great service and delicious meal
• Cons: Too crowded, parking garage too hard to find

05/26/07

Inconsistent, unpredictable food and service

by weaselbaby at Citysearch

The reviews on here give you a picture of the wide range of experiences at this restaurant: it can be great, or it can be awful.

At best, the food is tasty and innovative, happy hour is cheap, ambience is charming, and service is slow but adequate.

At worst, service is abysmal, food cold or completely undistinguished, waitstaff incompetent/poorly trained, and you will receive someone else's food, or your food will show up at someone else's table.

We've eaten here 4 times over the past few years; the last visit was so bad that we will never go back. $10 for angel hair pasta with an unimaginative tomato sauce, served nearly cold; drinks that showed up 30 minutes late, and 15 minutes after we finished dinner; bread that never appeared; waitstaff standing around all over the place, but apparently unable to communicate customers' requests to each other.

Romantic restaurant with good warm-weather outdoor seating offers fresh Italian fare.

by Contributor at Citysearch

In Short
Conical lamps and large, leafy plants complement rooms bathed in warm oranges and reds, a welcoming atmosphere for couples. During warm weather, customers dine on the two outdoor patios. The menu offers traditional Italian flavors presented in fresh and imaginative ways. The free-range chicken breast is rolled with prosciutto, asparagus and fontina cheese. The ravioli de ricotta features spinach and ricotta ravioli in a sumptuous parmesan-sage sauce, topped with toasted almonds.

06/26/06

Great customer service

by tantomucho at Citysearch

I have lived in Boulder many years and tried many restaurants here, but was blown away by Bacaro's friendly staff and delicious food. Boulder is a busy restaurant town and I always find myself in a busy atmosphere than can be less than accomodating. Bacaro's atmosphere and staff made the wait for food and drink an enjoyable experience. Their patio and upstairs bar turn it up on Friday night with the accompaniment of a live band. The dinner crowd was busy and although I waited ( something I expect to do anywhere on a Friday night) my waitress came by with smiles and jokes to keep my friends and I informed and entertained. I will definitely find myself back in Bacaro for their delicious eats and lively atmosphere.

• Pros: Fun place to unwind, eat and drink. Also, they now offer parking
• Cons: not a romantic place on weekends, but very nice during the less busy week

04/01/06

Service Sucks

by jlory at Citysearch

I'm wondering if the restaurant wait staff was trained by the Soup Nazi. Even when it is not crowded. That's too bad because the upstairs outdoor staff do a good job with all the chaos.

• Pros: upstairs
• Cons: wait staff, upstairs crowd