Reviews for Il Bacio

07/21/2015 - Gregor Ian
SOON TO BE RENAMED "NORA'S" PLACE. Apparently Antonino moved back to Siciily and sold the business to a man who bought it for his son who apparently has worked in a bunch of resort restaurants (think ski resort etc). Having eaten here somewhere just south of 30 times, this place hands down used to have the best veal bolognese in the entire city and everything on this menu was consistent. Part of the charm of this dimly lit romantic hideaway from all things Mayfield Road was its obvious decor (yes there was actually a dolce and gabbana ad in the bathroom and the entranceway was adorned by ye olde Gustav Klimpt's The Kiss).

I went a few days back and it was honestly the worst dinner I've had in Cleveland or anywhere for that matter. I'm an avid cook of italian, french, and japanese cuisine and while i'm by no means a savant, I do truly consider myself a student of the culinary world and I like to think I do my best to give a good honest assessment.

The first course was a horrid "calamari special". Calamari special amounted to few lightly breaded tasteless squid pieces standing with their mouths agape next to a hilarious attempt at food art (someone was trying to be cute with what I assume was supposed to be an "aoli wave" that the calamari bits were surfing atop. This was not aoili, it tasted like sysco brand mayonaisse sprinkled with a few parsely sprigs (READ: the rot blackened root end of a carrot borne out of the unsold produce catacombs that lie beneath the sewer system of the West Side Market). It was simply put, disgusting.

My companion ordered Costate Di Agnello Al Rosmarino which is supposed to be lamb chops sauteed in olive oil white wine, lemon & rosemary. The lamb chops were served completely overcooked (well done and dry to the bone) with the same garbage "aoli" spread over the top. No olive oil, no white wine, no lemon, no rosemary (they used the same parsely sprigs). My other companion ordered the same dish and the plate was served with ZERO sauce, ZERO seasoning, no Sysco Brand Mayo. They basically took it out of the pan and slapped it on a plate. When we told the waiter he actually tried to make up an excuse instead of immediately grabbing the plate and apologizing.

When the manager asked me how dinner was I told him that this was our favorite restaurant for many years and everything was awful. He never offered to take anything off the bill. He smugly told me that they were going to be reopening soon. The new owners have ruined a special place for myself and countless others who knew better than to eat on Mayfield road or waste their money over at Washington Place. Do not eat here. Go to La Campagna in Westlake or Osteria di Valerio on St. Clair downtown cleveland (get the osso bucco). Shame on these people for disgracing the good name of Il Bacio.

05/31/2014 - Scott Hennie
We have dined at IlBacio many times and have always had an excellant experience. The restaurant is a quant, boutique style restaurant. The menu is original and authentic. Risotto is phenominal! Antonio is a gracious host and his accent always puts a smile on my wife's face!

03/02/2014 - Judy
Our party of six went to this quaint little restaurant
hoping to have a delightful Italian cuisine experience. We were sadly disappointed. Two of us ordered one of the specials, Cioppino. Nothing but the bowl of Cioppino was included with the price of this dish. We found the calamari was very rubbery. When we received our Bill, we were all shocked to see that the Cioppino was $40!
We would not have been so shocked if there were comparable prices on the menu or if it would have been an entire meal, salad, entree, etc. When we paid our bill, we were again surprised to see that the tip added by our waiter! The service was not welcoming as most restaurants in Little Italy. We were very disappointed and will not return or recommend to anyone.