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Contributor

Joined 10 years ago

It may be a hotel restaurant and chain, but it has expanded into one of Silicon Valley's premier Italian eateries.. The Scene
Il Fornaio wisely chose its locations on the Peninsula, its restaurants ensconced in the vintage Sainte Claire Hotel in downtown San Jose and in the tony Garden Court at the center of Palo Alto. And despite the double stigma of being both a hotel restaurant and a chain, Silicon Valley movers and shakers still stop in to conduct business over a little omelette ai formaggi at breakfast, wood-fired pizzas at lunch, or golden-skinned roast chicken at dinner.

The Food
Bruschettas, designer pizzas, tricked-out pastas and virtually anything emanating from the wood-fired oven are reliable bets. The bread basket always holds a lot of Italian temptations, and the wine list has lots of appropriate Italian varietals from Italy and California to get a meal rolling. Il Fornaio's bakery roots show at dessert--biscotti and other Italian cookies are peerless.

Doesn't Recommend

djbrown67

Joined 10 years ago

And We Waited .... Terrible ... My family and I tried to have breakfast there on New Years Day. We couldn't ... they didn't want to seat us ... due to the limited waiter staff.... the restaurant had maybe 15 customers. How long do you have to wait to be seated an empty restaruant ? We gave them 15 minutes ...then left!

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Uberchelle

Joined 11 years ago

Overpriced. I'd say this restaurant is more trendy than anything. The food is above-average and the portions are small to regular, but when you factor in the cost of the food & valet parking (hard to find parking Fri/Sat nights), its not that great a deal. Its the kind of place that you let the company pay to take you to.

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r2hearts

Joined 11 years ago

Great Restaurant. This is one Pasta Chain that works. Always serving great food and reasonable prices. They are catering my wedding at the Hyatt.

Doesn't Recommend

qtt

Joined 11 years ago

Disappointing!!!. Heard positive things about this restaurant from friends and got their bread from TJ's. Seemed pretty impressive at the time... We finally decided to give it a try... . First bad thing - cosmos had a HUGE aftertaste. YUCK! When we placed our order, the waiter asked "Soup or salad?". Under the impression it was INCLUDED with the meal, we selected soup or salad. Later found out we were charged for it. Finally, as far as the food... crab pasta was VERY fishy... (was it fish i ordered? thot it was crab). I had to ask for wedges of lemon and it didn't help! My husband ordered the duck - DRY as a a brick. Dessert was the only positive thing. We definitely won't go back.

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spieke

Joined 11 years ago

Tryly the Best. Always great. Any problems are quickly rectified. Highly recommended for work or pleasure. Watch out though for massive construction in downtown SJ!

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Bluebird888

Joined 11 years ago

When I think Italy, I go to Il Fornaio. Excellent authentic Italian cuisine.

I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone interested in enjoying fabulous Italian food.

Great bar and happy hour too!

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ser2k2k

Joined 11 years ago

the best. I had a great experiance, dinning at Il fornaio

I was defanily impress with the taste, presentation of the meal and the value.

I will absoluty tell my friends about it

Recommends

casakerry

Joined 11 years ago

Yummy!. Il Fornaio has outstanding authentic Italian food and to top it off, they also have the best customer service. I have eaten at 3 different Il Fornaio's in the bay area, and am very impressed by all!

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cmfera

Joined 11 years ago

Multo Bene. Love this restaurant! Great for a romantic or business dinner but also very kid friendly. Food is great; service staff is very professional and knowledgeable about the menu.