Taverna

10/18/10

I had a good time - parking downtown is BAD

by MarkCV67 at Citysearch

I liked my tenderloin ( I dont think it was worth the price ) and Sweetie loved her pasta. Service was excellent and atmosphere was well worth it. The thing that is bad is the parking, plan on spending an extra $10 just to park. I would go if there was other reasons to be downtown and down there. Would I come back just to have dinner or lunch? Probably not,

08/18/10

HORRIBLE Service But GREAT Food

by cakeballs at Citysearch

I have to agree 110% with lamew on this one. My family and I also had a run-in with Anthony. He waved his fingers in our faces and was extremely rude. My sister was definitely on the verge of tears until I interjected for him to stop waving his fingers around. Probably the worst I have ever been treated.

It was extremely embarrassing and the lady that sat us whispered, I'm so sorry. The actions of this man are definitely worth firing. I hope to one day walk in there and not see him. I have been there 7 times. I remember the exact number because I have 5 bad stories out of the 7. I keep going back definitely because of the food. But if you are willing to endure about an hour or 2 of mediocare to horrible service I recommend this place. I love the food, but I just wish the service was better.

And by the reviews I have read I am not the only one that feels like the service is horrible. I hope something is done because I would hate to see it go under.

07/01/10

Taverna is great - so is Anthony!

by Gizmo123 at Citysearch

I just have to chime in and say that I don't agree with the previous reviewer's scathing review of Anthony. He has been nothing but professional, friendly and extremely nice every time I've been in there. (And I've been there a lot.) He is part of the reason I go there, and I will patronize any restaurant he works at in the future. The service is always top-notch with some of the friendliest, most accommodating servers and bartenders you will find. Food ain't half bad either. I recommend this place to anyone looking for a great dining experience. And say hi to Anthony - he is a real sweetheart.

• Pros: Great service, friendly staff
• Cons: none

04/18/10

Run away from La Taverna

by lamew at Citysearch

Save yourself the trouble and run away from La Taverna. I experienced one of my worst dining experiences ever here. Service and their attitude towards customers is absolutely appalling. To shorten the story, we went here to have a lite lunch before attending a function. We were seated at 12:45pm, it took six minutes before a waiter acknowledged us. We ordered lunch (a pizza) and I ordered a mimosa ($1) and we asked for water. My wife still had a drink from waiting at the bar. Another six minutes go by and no water or drinks. I go to the host station and speak to the manager, Anthony Caruso, telling him that we have been waiting for 12 minutes with no water or drink. He says he will get on it. Four more minutes go by and our waiter comes with our water and mimosa, informing us that they are very busy and the kitchen is backed up so our food will be a while. We tell him to forget it as we do not have the time to wait, knowing that service will only get worse. We leave. I look around the restaurant for said manager and do not see him. As we are waiting to cross the street, he runs out yelling that we walked the tab. I explained that the service was horrible, we were told our food would take a while - which means it has not been started, and we told the waiter to forget it. He is yelling at me that I walked a tab because I ordered food and did not pay for it. I again explain that our waiter said it was going to be a while so we told the waiter to forget it. He again yells that I walked the check and I at least owed the $1 for the mimosa - the bad waiter (he never gave his name) is standing there waiting for his $1. Anthony also yells that I did not look hard enough for him in the restaurant. As I follow him into the restaurant to get the name of his manager, he continues to yell at me, will not discuss with me and and said he is too busy to talk to me - of which he has yet to talk and continue to yell at me. On top of this, he yells at me in front of guests that I am banned from his restaurant. After my event I contacted his manager, Robert Clayton, the GM of Lombardi's Restaurants, to discuss with him. He admitted this was handled poorly. He asked what could be done to satisfy me and the response was, and still is, to terminate Anthony Caruso. As this will not happen, I will never eat at a Lombardi's Restaurant, and will never eat at a restaurant in which Anthony Caruso is an employee. He obviously has no customer service skills and, does not care about customers, and this culture is obvious based upon the poor service. While Robert says that I am welcome in the restaurant and that Anthony is supposed to apologize (I doubt that will happen), my recommendation is to stay away until Anthony Caruso is gone and the culture is changed.

• Pros: One of the few places open for lunch in the 2nd St District
• Cons: Poor Service/Management

02/16/10

Great brunch!

by Anisel at Citysearch

I think this is one of the best brunch places in downtown Austin. It gets filled up quick, so get there early or make a reservation! They offer $1 mimosas for brunch on weekends and their food is not as bad as some of the other reviews claim. Granted, they don't have the best food ever, but my husband and I have been coming here for over a year now and plan on returning soon! Our servers were always nice and polite, so no complaints there. This place is definitely a must try!

• Pros: $1 mimosas
• Cons: food is good, not the best