Pontevecchio Italian Bistro

04/27/2008 Posted by laurennico

I never experienced such poor service. Upon entering Pontevecchio, my boyfriend and I were shooed out by a rude man. "This is a private party, please use the other door." We entered, were seated at a very small table and given one menu. Five minutes later a second man came to our table and asked if we needed another menu. The "yes" was obvious to us, but required a trip to the menu repository for him. We received our menu, and at minute 25 two glasses of water. At minute 40 we placed our order, and were promised bread before our meal. Our glasses empty (as they would be for the rest of the evening, re-filling water must not have been on the waiter's job description), we finally received our bread an hour in. At an hour and twenty our entrees arrived. They were well presented, but not very flavorful and quite small. The pork wrapped prosciutto had no prosciutto. When our cannoli arrived we asked for silverware, but the owner said "Its cannoli, you eat with the hands." We were given no option of using forks. We noticed the group next to us were similarly frustrated with the poor service and the fact that there was one man doing all the work. A older couple seated across from us had asked the waiter for a dessert menu and a refill of water. We noticed that their request was either ignored or forgotten because up until the moment we left, they had not received dessert menus, nor a refill. Finally, the check came. We paid the $60, included no tip, and left in a hurry, very disappointed that we had spent 2 hours in misery. Overall, the atmosphere was too loud, the food was not worth the high price, and the service was completely the worst I have ever experienced. I am shocked at how this place survives because its hard to imagine how it sees returning clients.

Pros: in Fremont (always a plus)

Cons: everything: service, food, atmosphere, price

04/05/2008 Posted by elizabet1231

What a lovely little Italian place in Freemont! Four of us went for dinner on Friday night and at first only one other table occupied but by the time we left two hours later the place was quite full. According to their answering machine Friday is Seattle Opera night but the owner said he hadn’t heard whether the singer was coming. We left at 8 and there was no singer but that was fine since we didn’t go for the music. The minute you walk in feel relaxed and the aromas comfort you. The food is wonderful but small portions. We ordered an inexpensive bottle of red ($25) to share. Our entrees were rolled pork with prosciutto, seafood with pasta, chicken with walnut sauce and gorgonzola ravioli special. The chicken and pork came with roasted potatoes but only two wedges each. The plate needed more color and food for the price, $20 each. Some green beans or asparagus would have been great. We also had a basket of fresh bread. They toast it in the Panini machine, yum! Salad came after dinner and was a nice light mixture of lettuce and tomatoes. We opted to share two pieces of tiramisu which were a delight. Very rich in coffee flavor but melted in your mouth. Each piece was $5.50. Total before tip was $120. The owners were nice and pleasant, let you enjoy your meal without being interrupted. My only unhappiness is had to ask TWICE for water refills and they never were! Our wine glasses were empty too so we had nothing to drink! Diners should never have to ask for water, someone should always be roaming filling as needed. But the fact I asked and it still wasn’t done was a disappointment. The evening was enjoyable. Won’t make it a frequent place due to price and portions but one or twice a year will be a treat!

Pros: Good food, leasiurely dining, romantic

Cons: Price, no water refills