10/19/09

Perfect Date Spot

by Clare

Panzano

As far as fine dining in Denver is concerned, Panzano is the best italian restaurant I have tried thus far. When dining at Panzano I request to sit at the Chef’s Counter, this is where the magic happens. Several cooks accompanied by the head chef prepare all of the food directly in front of you and if you are lucky, they just may give you a taste of a new menu item. The atmosphere is quiet, quaint, and romantic making it the perfect place for a date. The tables are all set up to create a somewhat secluded experience. In the several times I have dined at Panzano the service has been great at the Chef’s Counter yet not as well in the dining room. I would not suggest going during a busy time or during brunch if you expect excellent service. It seems as though the staff does not ever remember you are there. Food prepared at Panzano is phenomenal. Of all the items from the menu that I have tried, the grilled caesar salad and the scallops are the tastiest. I can honestly say that I have not tried something that I did not like. I would suggest this restaurant during the slower shifts during the week for the best experience possible.

• Pros: Great Grilled Caesar, Calamari, and Scallops
• Cons: Service is Hit or Miss

03/13/09

Good place- bad service

by CAMPIZI

We went for brunch a while back. It was not busy so it could have been the B team or the less experienced crew getting their feet wet on the floor. If that is the case, it is unfortunate that they had to practice on us because it left us with a negative experience to remember.

The menu was good- they had your typical brunch menu with an Italian twist. I think my eggs Benedict would have been delightful if they would have been hot (we saw our order sitting on the hot plate for quite some time). The bottomless mimosas would have been a great idea if the service was prompt enough to get more than one.

Having our poor waiter in the weeds was one thing but to see other staff – manager included- standing around and not picking up the slack was quite disappointing. It said to us that they did not care about their customers (all three tables).

I love the atmosphere and believe the food has great potential. I would try it again but if I get bad service one more time there (had poor service years ago for dinner once as well), I would have to say it is just not worth it.

• Pros: Atmosphere and menu
• Cons: poor management and service

08/21/08

Great relaxing evening!

by nbeeg

Awesome. We got a cozy booth in the corner next to the window. We were in no hurry and told the waitress that. She was not concerned and paced all the service accordingly. She suggested an excellant wine which shows that the resuatrant must train staff well. She also reccommended great meals. The antipasta plate was great. The olives were fresh and had great flavor. The manager stopped by to see how everything was. We really got the feelng that they are a professionally run restaurant that treats the staff well and it shows!

• Pros: Great Service, Wine Selection
• Cons: None

05/30/08

Excellent dish, very good wait staff, everything was very good.

by pgco

Let me preface this by saying Panzano may have gotten 5 stars from me, had it not been for the dinner I ate at Barolo Grill. This was very good in all regards. The mixed greens salad was very bland, with no dressing to speak of. The main course was a salmon and shrimp ravioli in a lobster bisque sauce. The sauce was amazing, although I must admit, lobster bisque is among my favorite things in the world, when done right. The ravioli was well cooked, as was the mixture of salmon and shrimp. The wait staff was fine, but read my other reviews if you want good (and bad) waitstaff. So overall, for the money, it was a solid 4 stars.

• Pros: Food
• Cons: Price, Parking

04/05/08

Terrible service, mediocre food.

by schultzy

This was the worst dining experience I have ever had. My boyfriend and I have been waiting tables for over 10 years, and we dine out all the time. I have never had such bad service in my life. The waiter didn't seem to care that we were there. It took 2 and half hours to complete our meal and we saw the server three times, and that was just to tell us that someone was on the way with what we were waiting for. The manager brought our water, wine, and other people brought our food. A busser cleared our table everytime and even chatted with us about dessert. We tipped the busser. I would not recommend this place to anyone - food was not good enough to make up for service. The calamari was heavily breaded and greasy. The grilled caeser salad, however was amazing. We had the carbonara and the bistecca. The carbonara was ok, but I personally don't like cream in my carbonara. The steak was cooked perfectly, but all the flavors on the plate did not seem to go together. The gnocchi was way too floury, tasted like eating biscuit dough. Overall, I definitely would not recommend this place. There are too many good places in Denver to settle for mediocre, especially for the price. Try Venice if you are downtown.

04/02/08

Award Winner- The best Casar Salad in Denver!

by FoodandDrinker

Uniquely prepared Casar Salad was a delight!

They halve a head of romaine Lettuce and flash grill it for a subtle smoky accent.

Fresh dressing and even lil' anchovies on the side if you want.

It was fast, fresh and filling!

We will be going back. Lunch with my wife was a delight at Panano.

• Pros: Staff treats you like royalty, Great and unique italian food, Caesar Salad unparalleled
• Cons: No street parking available, hourly lots nearby. Crowds on Friday

03/13/08

Too pretentious

by spainer

We went to Panzano's last year for restaurant week after reading a bunch of rave reviews. Needless to say, we were disappointed. Small portions and the food wasn't even that good. Too bad.

03/02/08

Always enjoyable....

by colojess

I have eaten at Panzanno's twice and never had italian! However, the two meals I did have stand out as absolutely fantastic. While staying at the Hotel Monaco I had their Ricotta Pancakes - sounds a bit odd - but they are rich and satisfying. Truly a wonderful twist on a classic! I have also eaten there for lunch and the Hamburger on a Rosemary Bun with Gorganzola - simple and delicious! Service was great, good location and always tasty :)

05/27/07

MY FAVORITE DENVER RESTAURANT

by sethleblond2007

My girlfriend and I first visited Panzano during Denver's restaurant week back in Feburary. Immediately, the menu caught our attention, boasting three cheese and mushroom crepes for appetizers, lobster and shrimp risoto, grilled caeser salads, and something they called the chocolate trio for dessert. Usually, when a menu like that gets me excited, the place turns out to be too good to be true. Guess what? It wasn't! Panzano absolutely delivers on all its promises to delight!

I went to this restaurant again last night, and was even more delighted than before by a scalop dish in which the scalops were perfectly seared on the outside and incredibly tender and moist on the insides. The risoto in the dish was perfectly cooked, and the sauce was amazingly creamy and dilectible. The service on both occasions was beyond exemplary, the drinks were summery and tasty, and the dessert was, once again, decadent.

I'm pretty good at finding faults with restaurants, but, at Panzano, there are no faults. I would go back there in a New York minute, and I urge you to do the same if you happen to be in the mood to eat an Italian dinner that you will never forget.

02/28/07

Best meal I've had in Denver!

by arwen3791

This Restaurant was out of this world!

The calamari, is some of the best I've had anywhere. I also loved the shrimp and lobster risoto.

• Pros: great food