Gratzi

My dining experience this evening was not the best. Sat us next to the kitchen door. Traffic was non stop. Messed up the meal order. Slow with the the desserts that were comped by the restaurant. I cannot recommend Gratzi’s and will not be returning. Worst birthday meal ever.

This is our «go to» restaurant in Ann Arbor. Ask the wait staff for recommendations. Food is wonderful. My husband and I usually go there for romantic dinners.
Homemade limoncello.

Love, love, love cheese and prosciutto boards! There’s so much to choose from that I sometimes take it all and that’s my meal. But today I shared, and had the Caprino, it’s the goat cheese ravioli, skipped the chicken broth and had their fresh tomato basil sauce. This isn’t your typical cheesy ravioli, they put a twist on everything which makes it easier to keep coming back. Also had the prime beef meatballs atop with the tomato basil sauce, can’t forget the fried goat cheese ravioli but with basil pesto and peppers and the final dish to share, Melanzane Parmigiana, its fried eggplant with that divine sauce once again and angel hair pasta. Need to get that tomato basil sauce recipe and it’s made from scratch because I’ve sat near the kitchen before watching what they do in there. Service was great as usual but I did knock a star off due to it needs a lot of updating within the restaurant.

We went to Gratzi last night for a date. Their kitchen was open till 11, so we were able to finish everything we needed to before going out and still get food at a gorgeous restaurant.
We were greeted by friendly staff who found us a table quickly. Our waiter was so nice and not too friendly — I don’t like when I am obviously on a date wanting to spend time with my significant other but have to spend time chatting with the waiter. He was really sweet and accommodated out request to change tables after we had started on our drinks. So, service is a +++
Good was great too — we had fried ravioli stuffed with goat cheese for starters with pesto, a gin based cocktail and for main course we had another dish with ravioli and shrimp. Since my partner is vegetarian, we were very pleased that they were able to put the shrimp on the side and it was all super delicious.
To finish off, we ordered a tiramisu and an espresso. Their coffee machine was having issues to our waiter went next door and got it for us — how super super sweet!
And, of course, the music was soothing
I’ll definitely be back there again! Can’t wait!

Came here for my birthday after finding out we would get an approximate free entrée and a free dessert. We usually go to Real Seafood for birthdays as they have a similar birthday deal, but I was up for a change.
I read the menu before going there, as I usually do to make sure I’m going to be able to eat something on the menu. I’m vegetarian, but for special occasions I make an exception for Maine lobster. I decided I would get the lobster spaghetti, especially knowing I wouldn’t have to pay full price.
The restaurant was more fancy inside than I was expecting, but I still felt comfortable in street clothes. We were seated by a window so we could people watch on Main St, which was nice. The warm bread and olive oil before our entrees came was good, but not «so good you can’t stop eating it» bread. The food came in a timely manner and I have no complaints about the service.
My lobster spaghetti was ok. I’m glad we didn’t pay full price for it. I felt like I needed a spoon with the spaghetti, isn’t that how spaghetti is usually served? I feel like the lobster was more chewy than a fresh Maine lobster, but I guess I should have expected that. The sauce on the spaghetti was good. It was enough food that I had a substantial amount leftover.
For dessert I was looking forward to ordering the chocolate hazelnut torte, but the waitress said, «for birthday dessert we do Tiramisu, is that ok?» I was compelled to say yes, and was a little disappointed I wouldn’t be getting chocolate hazelnut. The Tiramisu was good though.
It was a good birthday dinner but I don’t think I have to go back.

Went once for a business dinner with a small group (around 6 people) and was thoroughly unimpressed. Not an actively bad experience per se, I think the service was fine, the food acceptable though very uncreative/​bland/​not-​so-​fresh-​looking, but, man, for the prices and where else you can go in Ann Arbor I don’t know why I would ever go there again. Old fashioned atmosphere also (not in the good way).

Very unimpressed. The ambiance and look of the restaurant seemed very promising. But, my parents were running late because they are from Brazil and don’t know the are for parking. When they arrived the our server Molly commented «Oh, I was wondering where they were.» We ordered bottle water service that took about ten minutes to arrive. My dad ordered the egg plant he enjoyed it very much. My mother and I ordered the Three courses for restaurant week. The appetizers where great. I had the meatballs. Tatsed like they were home made sauce and all. Then our dinners came out promptly after. My husband ordered the lamb chops medium with mashed potato instead of cauliflower. The chops came out raw. We sent them back the server seemed not even to care. They came back 15 minutes later and were the same ones I had sent back toss in the smashed cauliflower. Sent it back to be replated and they brought it back with the mashed potato but it still had the cauliflower on them and were cold now. I noticed after a couple bites my salmon was undercooked as well. Now we were getting an attitude from the server when there kitchen had messed up. Not a fine ding experience of any sort should have just gone across the street to the more reliable steakhouse. Will not be returning.

The menu is stale and service is always off. Last time we went they tried to serve the entrées two minutes after our appetizers arrived. Fifteen minutes later they brought the same entrées back that had been sitting under a heat lamp the whole time. At this point food was dry and unappetizing looking. No service in sight for another 10 minutes. It’s a sorry place that has inexperienced staff and a disconnected kitchen with unacceptable food service policies. Too bad. The food had good flavor.

My husband and I absolutely love gratzi! We chose it to be the restaurant we spent our anniversary at this year since we live quite a ways from Ann Arbor. Their calamari is the best we have ever had no sauce needed. I had «Caprino» the goat cheese pasta, I could eat it for days! My husband had gnocchi that he absolutely loved. I was disappointed our second visit we did not get the olives were given on the first visit (I think they’ve been added to the menu). We look forward to our return, we have already recommended it to our family!

Been here many times, but this last time inspired me to write a review. Their recent renovation and new menu made for a perfect birthday dinner for our party of four. The atmosphere, service, and food were top notch. My son and I are vegetarian and we had plenty of dishes to choose from. Can’t wait to go back with a friend next week!

Set in the heart of old Ann Arbor, in what once was an Orpheum Theatre, this beautiful restaurant lives up to each of these great reviews. Wow! Heaven on a plate. We started with a plate of four cheeses. When asked to choose, we said, «You do it for us. Bring those with the most robust flavors.» We were not disappointed. We both chose the grilled romaine salad. It was very lightly grilled and the dressing was among the best Caesar we’ve ever tasted. We were not disappointed. My entrée was a healthy «Yes, thank you» fillet of grilled Atlantic salmon, beautifully presented in a garlic cream sauce with spinach, gnocchi, and cherry tomatoes. I was not disappointed. We shared a tiramisu snatched right off the cover of Bön Appétit. Again, we were not disappointed.

A good place to eat, friendly staff and acceptable selection of wines. The food is also good.
Recommended!

Not bad. Was good food.

Recently re-​opened after the remodel and the floors look great. Though if the wallpaper is new, they need to sue for how poorly it was hung. The new menu is smaller though still a good selection. No cheese selection during lunch. If you are adverse to tomatoes, your options are severely limited. Even the soup of the day was tomato based and the house soup is tomato stock. I am not complaining — that’s just how it is. Gratzi is still a nice fine dining restaurant; all white linen and good service. Perfect for a business or nice meal. Our visit was with a reservation, before the homecoming game. They did great for how busy it was and how unprepared they were for the crowd. We waited a few extra minutes for our table, which was a favored booth. I had a Sangria during the wait. For $ 7 is was okay. I know how to make Sangria and cut down cheap house red with juice at $ 7 is annoying. A little on the sour side — which I thought was odd. I didn’t have a second. The appetizers were mostly seafood based — which left my husband out of most choices. It cost $ 11 to «kick your bread up a notch», that seems pretty pricey to me as a bread accompaniment. Didn’t seem worth it but was only option to share with hubs.
Gratzi still does the best salmon. Hands down. Salmon gnocchi with spinach in a cream sauce. I forgot to ask for mushrooms instead of the tomato chunks but with a bit of red pepper flake, it was still fantastic as always. Perfectly cooked through, crisp top, golden and flavorful. The salmon is what keeps me coming back.

I went with a party of eight for dinner this evening. Atmosphere is inviting and intimate, even at a large table on the main floor. Everyone seemed pleased with their meals, though no one raved.
I got the special, which was trout (farm raised, which may have been the problem) with fingerling potatoes and sauteed spinach. Service was excellent, presentation was lovely, the flavors and seasoning were nice, but the trout and potatoes were dry and mealy. That said, it was a good experience, overall… Is that enough? Meh. I wasn’t paying, but if I had been, I may have felt a little underserved at that price point.
Also, the roasted cauliflower side — to. die. for. Rolled in breadcrumbs and somehow infused with fontina cheese? Omg.
The wine list is extensive. I would like to explore it further, sometime. :)

Nice atmosphere and friendly and very attentive service. Menu offers some very interesting options as well as unique variations on some classics. Also a nice selection of wines by the glass; got one of my favorites a Valpolicella Ripaso which I never see by the glass and often not even by the bottle.
Started with selection of charcuterie which was excellent and moved to the Kale Salad, again excellent, although a little heavy on the dressing. All the dishes had appealing presentation. Everything that went by looked tasty. For the main had the Veal Scallopine which was very unique and in an excellent sauce served over tender ravioli. My son had their adaptation of a chicken cacciatore which was also delicious.

Great ambiance– a violinist was playing for the majority of my experience. Had the Salmon w/​Gnocchi and it was good, but I prefer my salmon a bit on the medium rare side so it was slightly overdone for my liking.
Gaelen the bartender is a nice conversationalist and kind– helped suggest other places to go post-​dinner when I asked where else I should check out.

Interesting…
$ 12 bread broke my friends tooth.
Nacho pasta was decent
Nice and super friendly, but somewhat inexperienced staff, although it outdoor seating is a plus.
Great opportunity to see funny cars near campus.
Looking forward to finishing wine and grabbing a pizza next door.
Overpriced for quality/​quantity.
And Roll Tide.

Without a doubt the worst food I’ve had. If we weren’t there for a party the food would have gone back immediately.
So this is what I had and critique per item.
Cheeseboard actually quite good.
The Roast Garlic nice touch but the concept is to be spread on bread no it wasn’t cooked enough.
Calamari if there would have been some taste or seasoning it would have been great. It was cooked to perfection.
Caesar Salad the concept was very good (served stalk style) however, the leafy tops were decomposed.
The Pollo Marsala was the WORST, inedible. There wasn’t a hint of Marsala wine. The porcini mushrooms and pancetta were cooked into a slurry mess. As a matter of fact I scraped the entire mess off to get to the chicken (which was cooked rather well). The mashed potatoes were TERRIBLE ! (How does one ruin mashed potatoes ?)
Some other issues of disregard for hospitality.
One of the other guest requested pasta and meatballs.
Reply. «we don’t have that, this is Northern Italian food.
Possible Resolve: they had meatballs on the menu and they had pasta. It would have been so easy to say Yes rather than the answer they gave the guest.
The guest who the dinner was in honor of requested chicken on her penne.
Reply. It’s not on the menu… sorry
Possible Resolve: they did have chicken breasts. Would it have been such a big problem to fire one up and place it on the pasta !
The prices are not cheap. My Pollo Marsala was $ 26.00 and wasn’t worth $ 5.00. The chicken breasts were worth something !

Came back here for lunch with my wife. My son ordered a cheese pizza with a real nice crispy thin crust. My wife ordered a shrimp dish cooked in a red pepper purée absolutely to die for, we used the bread they provided to soak up the sauce it was that good. I ordered the gnocchi with spicy Italian sausage in a tomato basil sauce. This was wonderful as well, and I love how they grate the Parmesan cheese from a fresh block of Parmesan real yummy.