Laudisio Restaurant

06/25/09

Awful service, will never go back

by seeeker at Citysearch

I had been to Laudisio a couple times and it was decent. Nice Italian wine, satisfying, good meal. Tonight however I went by myself for dinner and the service was so bad, it ruined the whole experience, and I will never go back. Ever. It's a long list: Sat down, took the waiter 5 minutes to come by. He finally shows up and says water and bread are on the way, I order a beer. Water comes, still no bread. I had to ask for the bread. Order meal, appetizer and entree eventually come. Waiter never asks how everything is, if I need anything else. I had ordered the "touristico" set menu which included a dessert. I am not much of a dessert person, so I kindly asked if they could substitute the cheap house wine I had ordered ($4.50) for the dessert (this was not my original plan, but occurred to me during the meal). He acted like it was an outrageous request and firmly said "No." So I asked for sorbet instead of the heavy dessert, that was fine, and the check. He brings the check, and had charged me for the dessert, and over-charged on the wine. At this point I'm laughing and angry at how the experience had completely deteriorated. I had my credit card out and he said "if you trust me I'll just take your card and correct the bill." I said "no, I don't trust you". And he said "Oooohh" and rolled his eyes. Yet another big mistake. What planet are these people from? He then brings the bill, I look at it and give him my card, he processes it, comes back and puts it down on the table and says nothing and walks away. YOU CALL THIS SERVICE? UNBELIEVABLY RUDE. It's just low class to personalize the situation against me, when ALL the mistakes were on his part. I gave him a 9% tip - which was generous - and will never go back. Ever. The low tip was not for my request about the dessert, it was about the overall consistently amateur, poor, service, from start to finish. I though about giving a big fat ZERO tip, but I'm too nice. Awful service, will NEVER go back.

• Pros: Good Italian wine list
• Cons: Consistently bad service

06/19/09

Three Strikes, You're Out!

by denvershopper at Citysearch

This is the second review I've ever written. We've eaten at this restaurant three times since it opened. Each time it has gotten worse. It could be a really great restaurant given the location and interior, but it's not. The wait staff has obviously never been trained (at least not the wait staff that helped us the past three times). The hostess was nice but it was all down hill after that. If I was in a dive I might expect to have the wait staff put soiled knives and forks back on the table after the appetizer and/or salad, etc. but not at a higher priced restaurant. Letting the salad plate, bread plate, etc. sit around until dessert is ridiculous. Again, third time this has happened. Didn't ask if we wanted anything to drink when we arrived. Constantly having to ask for utensils ("steak knife please", "can I have a spoon for my coffee," etc. etc.). Then comes the food. I actually liked the heirloom tomato appetizer(4 out of 5 stars) but then arrived the super, super salty entrees. I love salt, but this was ridiculous. (Up all night dreaming about a glass of water.) Then we get to the dessert. I was dreaming about their key lime pie because I sort of remembered it being good. After one bite I remembered that this was not the place where I liked the key lime pie. It tasted chemical-like.....sort of like the kind a restaurant buys in bulk and thaws a few 100 at a time. It has a strange lime liquid across the plate. Not appetizing at all. Bottom line: Give the hostess a raise. Train the darn wait people. Tell the chef (cook) that less is more. And start making your desserts from scratch (and if you are, then get a new key lime pie recipe). (FYI...My first review was about Louisville's best kept secret....Empire Restaurant on Main St....off-the-charts good....Boulder County's best kept secret).

• Pros: Cool interior, great location, nice hostess
• Cons: Food and Service - 1 star for service and 2 stars for food

01/03/09

La-lousy-o

by AdamHinkle at Citysearch

This by far is the worst dinning experience in many years. My wife and I were out to celebrate a special occasion and had heard good things about this restaurant. We had been deceived. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone. The food was awful and over priced. If you are looking for a nice atmosphere with food that is not appetizing, this is your restaurant.

• Pros: Atmosphere
• Cons: Food

09/29/08

Awesome Brunch!!

by karen545 at Citysearch

Wow this brunch was awesome! Boulder has plenty of brunch spots, but they all start yo blend together, so I'm always seeking something new. Brunch at Laudisio is what I've been looking for! Plenty of different options will keep me from being bored for a long time! The benedict di mare, which has blue crab meat and avocado, was the best Benedict in town! Plus $4 Bloody Marys! Awesome! Awesome!

• Pros: Crab Benedict, Value, Location.
• Cons: Had to wait for a patio seat.

07/19/08

Good Quality Food

by LizWhite2 at Citysearch

I enjoyed the food at this restaurant, particularly their nice thin crust pizzas and side salads. It is a pretty pricey venue but nice for a special occassion! The service can be scattered at times, but generally good. I would recommend coming past 8o'clock on weekend nights or getting a reservation.

• Pros: Pizza

07/13/08

excellent everything!

by boulderguy1 at Citysearch

I actually have never posted a review about a restaurant before but felt it necessary to comment, especially after reading somebody's previous poor food experience. I've been 5 times since moving here two months ago and, with no exaggeration, found Laudisio's to have some of the best food around!. It was authentic Italian at it's finest. Most recently, I tried the chicken saltimbocca; which featured two moist chicken breasts wrapped in prosciutto served with organic greens and potato puree. It was so good I didn't want to get full because then i'd have to stop eating it! My wife tried the risotto, which was well worth the 25 minutes it takes them to cook from scratch. Our meal from beginning to end was perfect.

I read over some of the reviews of Laudisio and can't believe that there were such poor reviews (though most were superb).

On other notes, my server was very attentive and their strictly italian wine list was the broadest i've ever seen. Oh, I did have to go on a wait when i came in on a saturday night without a reservation; should i complain about that?? Never!

mille grazie Laudisio! I will be back soon

• Pros: food, service, wine list
• Cons: 29th street mall!

07/03/08

Good for a bar, just don't eat anything.

by Giggles13 at Citysearch

For such an upscale environment the food is horrendous. While I enjoy I moderately sized meal, the portions are about two bites too small. The food is WAY too salty, and the waitstaff seems to be undertrained and inattentive. The deserts have far too much butter/fat in them in a desperate effort to make them taste "rich," instead it makes it taste like butter/fat. I went back to give them a second chance and regretted it. Skip dinner at this place.

I know its almost impossible to find good italian food in Colorado, but this takes the cake!

On the positive side, they do have an excellent selection of wines. Go for the wine, go somewhere else for food.

• Pros: Nice Ambience, Great Wine
• Cons: Bad service, deplorable italian food

05/20/08

Great Food

by foodnow1 at Citysearch

Laudisio is one of my favorite restaurants in Boulder. The food is always great. It is a good place to go with the kids for a pizza and pasta, or just with my wife for a more upscale meal.

The patio is nice in the warmer months.

It is also nice that there is easy parking underground (for the Mall), so I do not have to worry about finding a pakring space (like downtown).

• Pros: Food, Patio, Parking
• Cons: Mall

04/28/08

Best Italian Ever!

by cooper815 at Citysearch

I have frequented Lausidio's for years, both at their old location and the new. I have always been impressed with the menu, the ambience, the wine list, and the caliber of service. I read the other reviews on this site. I am sorry a few people had a bad experience, but I am sure whatever glitches that occurred have been worked out. This restaurant operates with precision and managers and waitstaff always make sure their customers are taken care of. The food here is to die for, their wine list is one of the most extensive in Boulder, and it is the attention to fine details that always keep me coming back. If you don't go, you'll be missing out. I am a regular at this restaurant and always bring my clients to dine. As for the young woman who recently wrote on this site, you should do your research before slandering the names of people in the community. The Laudisio family is continually giving (often anonymously) to several philanthropies around town as well as in other countries. They also frequently donate their time, services, and food to charitable organizations. And as for hard work, you will see their family working at the Boulder Farmer's Market on Wednesdays and Saturdays. If you needed more TP, I am sure a simple trip to the hostess stand would have resolved the issue.

• Pros: Has a swanky bar for pre and post dinner cocktails; they do catering for private parties too!
• Cons: Free parking!

04/18/08

Save some change for McDonalds on the way home....

by ArielBertaganolli at Citysearch

While we entered the evening without many expectations (after reading all the ill reviews in the camera, we wanted to see for ourselves), it seems the place lived up to it's notorious reputation. With an owner known to most of Boulder for being stingy and cheap, I couldn't help but chuckle when I was caught pants down in the ladies room, with both TP dispensers ripped clean. Luckily, I didn't have to go that badly, since I had been light on the drinking all night (super expensive beverages, bring your own flask for the long wait before the prepare your table admist the empty patio!) For management who makes the cooks weigh each condiment and garnish with a gram scale, who could expect the portions to be sizeable? At the age of 24, maybe we've not yet blossomed into new age hip, maybe we're just natives who no longer belong in our own element, maybe I'm just to darn cheap to be caught dining downtown, all posibilities, I won't deny! Luckily, we planned ahead and saved 2 bucks from our 70.00 tab for two Spicy McChicken Sandwiches... and they were fabulous.

• Pros: Friday night with empty tables, No Reso's needed?
• Cons: At least 4 better Italian places in town, why settle for this joint?