Buona Tavola

"For the price, I just can't give this place a good review. With tip, about $150 for two. The service and atmosphere are great, but at this price, it is all about the food. $12.50 per glass for a house white? Meal came with bread. Had to request butter which came in a few standard wrapped pats Really, you can't put some presentation into the butter? Warm the bread? My wife liked the bread; I found it cold, meally, and crumbly. My wife ordered eggplant Parmigiano and that is exactly what she got - One reasonable size serving of eggplant with no garnish or vegatable side dish? I ordered veal with mushrooms. It was 3 nice size pieces of veal with great eye appeal, but little taste. A few pieces of squash rough cut. The best item on the plate were the creamy mashed potatoes, but I thought the serving portion was a little small. Jammed packed both times we came by (only ate once since we had no reservation as the first night as their phone was not working.) I would like to call it a "tourist trap", but it seemed to be equally full of locals and tourists. (It was "first date night" next to us with a sweet local couple. We were packed pretty elbow to elbow as I followed their entire conversation.) I just don't get it. The pricing of the dishes was higher than the quality of the meal. YMMV."

"On a Tuesday evening, my partner and I spontaneously decided to visit Buona Tavola without a reservation, and to our surprise, the restaurant was bustling with patrons. The staff kindly set up a heat lamp on the patio for us and served a delightful Pinot Noir. As we perused the menu, we couldn't resist trying the spicy clams and mussels, a half order of the mushroom bruschetta, and the scallop and prawn salad – all of which were truly exceptional. Initially, we thought we might stop there, but the flavors were so outstanding that we couldn't resist ordering some pasta. The parpadelle pasta turned out to be the best I've ever tasted, perfectly al dente, and each bite surpassed the last. I wished I had a second stomach to savor it all that night! The delightful company of my loved one made the experience even better. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for an indoor reservation next time; the food was genuinely remarkable."

"Dined here for lunch twice. What a treat! I don't understand how anyone could give a bad review. The food was incredible. Soups. Salads. Pasta dishes. All had the freshest ingredients and did not skimp on anything! Was totally blown away with every dish. At each sitting, they present you with fresh bread and their homemade olivata, made with black olives, mustard seed, infused organic herbs, imported Italian olive oil and balsamic vinegar. You can buy a jar to take home. I'll be dreaming about this restaurant!"

"This little gem of a restaurant was delightful! We were walk-ins and seated quickly. We were lucky enough to come in on a Wednesday where it was half priced wines $100 or less. We had the James Tobin Cab and it was great! The bread and olive tapenade was delicious and I’m thinking I may need to go back and pick up a jar to bring home. We then shared the Caesar salad (good, not great) and I had the Pappardelle with shrimp and my husband had the tortellini with veal, spinach and proscuitto in a mushroom tomato sauce. Both were outstanding!!! We ended the meal with the apple pie tart (good) and the Paso port. We would absolutely come here again if we are lucky enough to get back to Paso!"

"We arrived at Buona Tavola just as they were opening and were seated at a patio table, as was requested in the reservation booking. The place was full from the time we got there (17:30) until we left and about 19:30. Very nice meal with an awesome server, Patricia. A bottle of California rose to cleanse the palette followed by an awesome Bruschetta. The bread was served with an olive tapenade that was so good it could have been my main course. The mains were a shrimp pappardelle and pumpkin stuffed tortellini - both very tasty and rich. The valpolicello was a great accompaniment. Service was very good, not over bearing and attentive enough that we didn’t feel ignored. It was pricey and worth it. We will go back next we’re in Poso Robles."