Rizzuto's in Stamford, CT

I recently had the pleasure of trying Rizzuto's, a brand new restaurant in Stamford, CT. The Rizzuto's name has been around awhile with location sprinkled all over Connecticut, but the Stamford location just opened about a week ago. I took my good friend Katelyn there for dinner for her birthday since she lives in Stamford and I have to say, we had a truly wonderful experience there that I want to tell you about.

I made a reservation on one of my favorite websites, OpenTable, for 6:45pm and called the restaurant ahead of time to ask them to bring a slice of cake with a candle out for Katelyn after dinner. The host on the phone was SO nice and helpful, I knew our dinner was going to be great. Kate picked me up at the Stamford train station and we arrived right on time for our reservation. The host, who I assumed was the one I had spoken to on the phone, said "Rachel, Party of 2?" and then gave me a "this must be the birthday girl" wink.

We were shown to a table for 2 and I took in the fun decor of the restaurant. Cozy and inviting, I was already loving it before we even had our first bite of food. Our waiter, Mike, came over to greet us and take our drink order and he was energetic, friendly and warm. He talked to us about it being the first week that the restaurant was open and made us feel so welcome. 

Kate and I decided to share the Meatballs, Cesar salad and Eggplant Rollatini to start, then I had the Cavatelli & Sausage and Kate had the Rigatoni. We also shared a bottle of Pinot Noir. I didn't take pictures of any of the food, but everything was truly delicious. I was super impressed especially with the meatballs. I have had too many bad meatballs in my day and know how easy they are to screw up, but these were awesome.

Our waiter Mike was one of the sweetest waiters I have ever had in my life. You could tell he loved his job and we thought he was wonderful. Then I noticed him lighting Katelyn's cake behind her back and looking to me for the nod of approval to bring the cake to the table. I found this SO sweet and Katelyn was totally surprised!

Here is our adorable waiter singing Happy Birthday to Katelyn:

By the end of the meal we were completely stuffed and happy. We sat talking for over an hour after we had finished our meal and not once did they rush us out of make us feel unwelcome. The owner of the restaurant, Mr. Rizzuto himself, came over to as us how our meal was and we told him the truth. It was absolutely wonderful!

How important is good service to you in the grand scheme of your meal? Would bad service ruin a wonderful meal? Would amazing service save terrible food? Let me know!

Let's Eat!

-The Fabulous Foodie