Tulio Ristorante

07/07/2008 Posted by utcleopatra

We were celebrating my mom's 55th birthday and a belated Father's day since my parents live overseas and were finally here for a visit. This was the last day of their trip and was meant to be a very special occassion. The staff knew of the celebration (thru Open Table reservation + the waiter actually confirmed what we were celebrating!) yet, did nothing special for us. Why indicate you want to know about a special event if you do nothing about it? The gnocchi and my mom's main course (the salmon Ravioli) were wonderful. But my husband's Tagliatelle was almost tasteless and my veal chop was overcooked. The veal was supposedly stuffed with mozarella, but we didn't see much cheese. For the most expensive item on the menu and a Chef's speciality, we were very disappointed. The waiter didn't seem to notice (or care?) that more than half of my dish remained uneaten after him making such a big deal about what a great dish it was. Being that half the food we received was sub-par, I doubt we will be returning. It's a shame too because the rest of the restaurant was quite nice - cute place, not too noisy, fairly gracious staff. But none of that matters if you don't enjoy the food you are spending your hard-earned money on. Much less the embarrasment that this was the "nice" restaurant I took my parents to. It's not like we could do a "do-over" and go somewhere different later in the week since it was their last night in town. I shouldn't have to apologize to my guests for the restaurant's shortcomings.

02/10/2008 Posted by jacigarringer

The food is phenominal. Every bite I take is like magic in my mouth. When I want to try something new I do it here. I know it will cooked the best. The prices are very reasonable for dinner. Have a drink in the bar, it is memorable.

Pros: Food, prices

Cons: I live too far away!

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11/28/2007 Posted by mr_billwilliam

I have been a loving patron of Tulio since the days of when Seattle was a beginning culinary powerhouse as well as the grunge capital. In the many years I have dined there I have never had a less than perfect experience , and that is saying a lot. In my opinion, Tulio is the Italian version of Canlis. Creative menu options, and many homemade pastas show the chefs commitment to quality, A lamb filet and pork shank that both border on perfection, and management and wait staff that show genuine pride in the job they do. My only gripe would be that the last time my wife and I dined there she fell in love with my George Clooney stunt double waiter. Oh well, at least I ate well that night.

Pros: Yes

Cons: No

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

11/09/2007 Posted by limonata

I've never had a less-than-perfect experience at Tulio. The service is always impeccable, the food is perfect, the wine list excellent, the desserts top-notch. This sounds a little over-enthusiastic, but Tulio is really one of those rare places that I always know exactly what to expect and it always delivers. Birthdays, important dinners and quiet nights at the bar have all been happily spent here. And great stop for downtown lunch!

Pros: Great service, tasty pizza

Cons: Can be hard to park

06/07/2007 Posted by hungrybusybody

This place is exactly what you think of when you think of great Italian fine dining. The dishes and flavors are familiar, but exceptional, and there is the occasional unique twist. My favorite part (other than the sweet potato gnocchi -- to DIE for) is that it FEELS like an Italian restaurant. They didn't spend a million dollars on custom pendant lighting and glowing wall features like everywhere else in this city. It's perfect.

Pros: Feels like a great Italian restaurant, and delivers

Cons: Not perfectly consistent (but always good)

03/25/2007 Posted by jh2007

I agree with exhusky, I've been going to Tulio ever since Tulio himself used to be there, and food and service are always solid. And agreed, 14 years is a long time to keep consistant in the ever changing Seattle restaurant scene. A final thought, if you list free bread as a pro for a restaurant, you probably don't belong at Tulio.

03/24/2007 Posted by exhusky

I have had the pleasure of dining at Tulio since they opened which is proably coming up on at least 14 years now, and I can say with absolute honesty that this restaurant has remained consistant the entire time. Food and service have always been great, and that's a long time to retain that track record. That being said, and as a disclosure, my daughter used to work at a "25 for 25" restaurant, you will never be able to experience the restuarant when having the 25 menu.The kitchen is mainly focused on keeping up, the servers don't like what this promotion brings, and they're service for the most part reflects the way they are being treated. Don't believe me? Ask a server in a 25 restaurant. And finally, if you review 8 restaurants in the promotion, and dislike every one, maybe you should STOP going to the 25 for 25 restaurants. I think most would give up after 3, but perhaps you enjoy the agony.

03/19/2007 Posted by tedwin

After hearing so much praise from the secret diner on the lavender pork, I had to try Tulio to see if the hype is consistent. I used the 25 for $25 special and ordered the asparagus soup, lavender pork and the chocolate cake. I paid extra for the calamari because a reviewer said it was wonderful. The asparagus soup was wonderful but the goat cheese dollop could have been more pronounced because it gave the soup a zing. The calamari should have been labeled garbanzo beans with a side of calamari. You only get a few grilled pieces and a whole lot of beans. The lavender pork was prepared medium well due to ignorant customer complaints who don't know how pork should be served. Thank you chef for compromising your culinary values. These people probably go to Ruth Chris and put A1 steak sauce on their steak. Please trust in your chef, they were professionally trained to ideally serve perfectly prepared meats. Do you go to a sushi place and ask the chef to cook your sashimi? I returned the pork and ordered the bland linguine with clams. Whoever mentioned that Tulio serves homemade pasta don't know what fresh pasta tastes like because the linguine tasted like it came from Barilla. I received two closed clams which was a major faux pas. The best part of the meal was the chocolate cake. Thank god the pastry chef didn't compromise his talents and overcook it. The service was mediocre at best. The waitress never did serve me my plates therefore what was she doing in the mean time? Who knows..because my empty plates sat there staring at me for quite a while. It took a long time to receive my bill, I wonder what the waitress is doing? Overall, a so-called famed Italian restaurant compromised their culinary talents to produce a lackluster menu special. Please don't participate in the special if you are not going to give it your best. I guess Campagne and Tulio had a meeting because the experience was similar.

Pros: Free Foccacia Bread

Cons: Overcooked Lavender Pork, Bland Store Bought Linguine, Mediocre Service

03/17/2007 Posted by 911he1pme

We went to Tulio's and right from the start were disappointed by having to pay $13.00 to park our car to eat dinner. Wait staff was non interested in getting to our table even though he looked over at us but went on to do other things that seem unimportant. He did not make suggestions and took our order without offering any salad's or starters. Our meal we had Duck was good but side dishes that were served were not very tasty. There are to many other good restaurant's in Seattle for us to go back, we were disappointed.

Pros: on main street

Cons: high cost to park your car while dining

11/14/2006 Posted by ccavette

I tried Tulio for the first time tonight and I can't wait to go back. We were out on a business dinner and several of us enjoyed the 25 for $25 prix fixe meal while others ordered off the regular menu. The chicken with carmelized garlic was delicious as was the cherry tomatoes and mozarella starter. Though the restaurant was small and got completely full as the night wore on, the initmacy was not lost. The dim lights and dark leather reminded me why I enjoy fine dining so much and I'm happy to find a restaurant that isn't uncomfortably modern like many other Seattle dining establishments.

Pros: Good food, intimate atmosphere

Cons: Lack of parking