09/14/08

Unique for Pasadena, CA

by neoterra

My wife and I dined here last night for the first time and enjoyed Trattoria Tre Venezie very much. This is not a family restaurant, a chain restaurant or a "I am on a budget place". This is a place that sits by itself. You go here if you are a foodie and enjoy gourmet Italian. Example: Ravioli with chocolate and butter, pork, Ravioli with beets, a few beef and vegetables dishes, a lot of unique uber-gourmet twists on Italian contemporary dishes. No pizza, no meatballs. The waiter read to us about 10 specials that night (almost as many specials than there was regular food items): it took about 10 minutes to describe everything once. We travel and we were thoroughly entertained by the entire visit - it took us back to memories of being out of the country. The wine list is fantastic and beware: there are a lot of choices. The waiter will help you out but this is not a place to "guess" at. Know what you are ordering. I read the other reviews on this site before going and was concerned. Some of the reviews mention Buca, "good deals", snobby waiter staff and food / alcohol complaints. Listen, buck up and try it for yourself. We are looking forward to our next visit. If you want pasta go to cheesecake factory or somewhere else.

• Pros: Food and drink
• Cons: Parking is a little challenging

09/05/08

Excellent Italian Trattoria-DreamerLA is dead wrong!

by ThanksDylan

I have been in the luxury hotel business as a General Manager and other Executive positions my entire working career. I am also a sommelier. Exceptional food and impeccable service have been my agenda for almost 20 years. During that time I have seen a lot of guests that fit the profile of DreamerLA. The simple fact that he/she compares Green Street Tavern to Trattoria Tre Venezie is indicative of someone "grabbing for straws" and doesn't have a good argument. The tavern is a casual spot with comfort food (albeit good) and the trattoria is more formal, elegant dining experience. The pork chop and the veal chop are amazing! The desert menu is casually elegant. They take many of our old family recipes and add elegant touches. I have been going to Tre Venezie for at least 5 years and the food is consistently great and the service has never failed us. Some experiences have been better than others (by a very small margin) but none have been nearly as bad as DreamerLA claims. Perhaps DreamLA should learn more about Grappa before ordering it. Ordering "something smooth" is so vague that one should be prepared to get just about anything. The server should have asked more questions to make a better pairing and I hope that he/she learns from that experience. They have a vast selection of Grappa labels; something to please every kind of palette. "Overpriced" as DreamerLA described the menu is subjective. If you are looking for a special night out instead of going to a Tavern and watching the Monday night game on the 60? LCD, this is a special kind of place. They use high quality ingredients that are not cheap and I think most reasonable people would expect to pay for it. My wife and I enjoy this restaurant very much. We go to it on special occasions and we both believe that the food and the service are outstanding.

07/27/08

Really great food - if you know what you're eating

by aarroneous

Delicious Wagyu carpaccio! To a previous poster - if you don't like Wagyu (or don't know what it is), don't order it! Everything that we ordered last night was absolutely delicious, from the beef cheek to the almost plebian lamb ravioli. Service was impeccable.