Trattoria Stella Restaurant

Don't try just ordering a mimosa. I went to Trattoria Stella this morning with my sister to have a mimosa. We were seated outside and told by our waiter that if we wanted to sit outside that we needed to order food as well as a mimosa. He was quite unfriendly. We finished our drinks quickly and asked for the bill. As we paid our bill he told us that there was a legal issue with only ordering drinks... we were not aware that it is illegal to only order drinks at a bar. We will not go back to this place.…

Excellent Homemade Cuisine and Cozy Atmosphere. I have been to Stella's numerous times and had great experiences every time. We usually sit in the bar side (R Bar) and the servers are always extremely friendly and knowledgeable. The dressings here are all homemade and so tasty! I was hesitant to try the Orange Fennel dressing, but it was probably the best dressing I have ever had.

My favorite dish is the 32nd Street Pasta. The combination of flavors is AMAZING - sweet, salty and a tiny bit spicy. My boyfriend ordered the Chicken Fettucine Alfredo and he really enjoyed it as well - it had big roasted garlic pieces and bacon, which was a unique twist.

I highly recommend this place to anyone. They make all their pasta fresh on Tuesdays and change up their menu with unique combinations. Great neighborhood place!…

Now Stella's. Not as good as Cafe Star or the old Stella's. I was a big fan of Cafe Star and went there the other night only to find that the restaurant had changed to mirror Stella's Trattoria, run by the same people. I always thought of Cafe Star to be a step up from Stella's (which I still love) and was disappointed by the change. And even with the same menu as Stella's,the food is not as good as the original, located in the Highlands. I hear the brunch menu is still the same as Cafe Star's old menu, but if the chefs have changed, I'm a little wary.…

Cafe Star Has Lost Its Luster. Like Mizuna, Rioja and Barolo Grill, Cafe Star was an old reliable on our fine dining list. However, ever since Chef Rebecca moved to NYC in the fall of 2007, the food has really gone down hill. The steak was undercooked and over-sauced; the jus covered the entire plate and that's just not necessary. The shrimp appetizer wasn't noteworthy, just boring and bland. The salad with hot bacon dressing came cold and too early (right after we got the shrimp app); no, the dressing was not cold b/c we had to wait to eat it, it was cold on arrival. The salad came with mozzarella cheese, which was much too bland for the spinach and bacon dressing; would have been better with a strong blue or goat. And pickled onions on a spinach/bacon salad? No, raw red would have been fine. The whole combination just didn't work.

Besides not presenting the wine, the server filled our proper wine glasses so much that the wine couldn't breath. Not that we care about presentation that much, it was just a sign of how the experience quality has lessened. Unless we hear the food has improved, we won't be going back again. But that's okay, b/c we look at it as an opportunity to try other great places in the city. We were going there so often that we never tried other great places in Denver. (originally written 1/21/08 and posted in Westword.)…