Piatto

Piatto is an Italian restaurant in Carlisle that has a cute outdoor setting, neat view (depending on where you sit) and apparently some history to it –not that I know it (though we did ask).
Anyway, I am fussy about Italian. A lot of places pile up the pasta and call it a dish. Often they are bland, lacking flavor and requiring heavy salting. I also tend to avoid red sauces for the same reason. That scrutiny in mind, Piatto won me over with their: Trofie al Pesto. It was a refreshing alternative to spaghetti and alfredo. My friends’ entrees were also pretty good, honing distinct flavors when compared. It was a little disheartening however, that warm bread costs extra and the free substitute are packaged bread sticks.
While nothing flashes as outstanding, I have to give a thumbs up to the fact that they aren’t another one of those restaurants that boils pasta and tries to pass it off as fancy cuisine (*ahem, Macaroni Grill). I think Piatto is best described as an intermediary between places like Carrabba’s and Olive Garden to the fancier Maggiano’s and Visaggio’s. All in all they’re worth a visit.

We hosted a rehearsal dinner at Piatto on October 23^rd and were super pleased with the service, menu, and quality of the food and drink. I had spoken to Matt, the manager before hand regarding arrangements and he made very helpful suggestions on how to deal with drinks (recommending carafes of house wine) that worked very well with the crowd. The wine was just right. They had the 28 of us in our own room and it felt intimate and the right amount of atmosphere. We all ordered from the regular menu and I had all positive comments from the crowd.

Since our daughter goes to college in Carlisle, we have eaten there at least a dozen times, and have always been very satisfied, and therefore we returned. My issue in the review is not with the food, but rather the service. We were there on Friday night on parents weekend, and we have been there on parents weekend before, so we know restaurants are busy. We found space at the bar, actually, we were the only ones there, but without going into a lot of detail, to say that the bartender was unwelcoming, unfriendly, and borderline rude, would be an understatement. I think we have recognized him before, and maybe he was just having a bad night, but regardless, we are customers. We were so uncomfortable, that my wife asked if we could put a few small tables together for dinner. We were allowed to do that, but the poor service continued, even after the restaurant emptied out. I have never in my life given less than a 15% tip, but at the end of the evening, we skipped dessert, coffee, and just wanted to leave. I left 10%, and probably should not have done that. I’m sorry, but I strongly believe that when you plan on spending a few hundred dollars for drinks, appetizers, dinners, and desserts, attentive and welcoming service should be a prerequisite. Very bad experience. I don’t think we will go there again.

Chose this because of proximity to hotel and couldn’t have been more pleasantly surprised. Excellent menu, preparation, and service by Jessica was a dream.

Phone mobile review
Great food. Correct portions. Wait staff was fantastic. We will return.

Amazing calamari, lobster ravioli, and spaghetti con vongole. Sat inside in the side room with brick walls. Pretty atmosphere but wasn’t crazy about the outdoor patio tables being used in there. But besides that, the food was great and service was good

I think this place has potential. I’m giving it four stars simply because of that. I would be very interested in visiting again, and being seated outside with the ambience and the glass of wine. As it stands, I was here for a work dinner which catered to around 10 guests. Unfortunately, I had a big meeting the next morning and our service was really on the slow side. The hostess, the waitress, everything about the place was nice and decent including the wine. But unfortunately, we had almost gone through all of our wine before our food even came. And this is where I feel little let down. I haven’t had a red snapper in years and was really excited for it. When it came it had some type of sauce on it which I and my companions quickly decided did not need to be on the fish. It was so much better without the sauce. I’m not sure what the triangle was that came with, though I think it could have been some type of polenta. The real letdown for me here was the vegetable side. Almost all of them were cold, not even room temperature but really cold. And as a recent reviewer mentioned, the potatoes were not really cooked. My colleagues all enjoyed salmon, and I feel that the portion sizes on that for a little small though my fish was great. I will comment however that I did have a house salad which came with greens, tomatoes, and a balsamic vinegar. While I enjoyed it and felt it was not too strong as a previous reviewer commented, I don’t think that I would pay six dollars for it again. A bright spot, was the calamari and their sauce. We also enjoyed the caprese salad, and what appeared to be a melon and prosciutto dish, so the apps were great. But their bread should be free. Really. $ 50 bottles of wine require not paying $ 2 a loaf for bread. Overall, this place has potential. But I just wish the entrée was better and faster.

Very good food, but inattentive service from the waiter dropped this place a star. We are accustomed to restaurants in DC moving the service along briskly to turn over tables, but this restaurant allowed us to enjoy a leisurely pace — about 90 minutes from arriving to leaving. However, the waiter rarely checked in to fill water or see how things were going. The hostess did check in, filled water, and followed up on our meal. We had the salmon and the hand-​rolled pasta with basil sauce. Both were very good, and the portion size was fine — just the right amount for dinner. The house red was a bargain at $ 6 for a decent wine and we had the warm olive appetizer. Our table was over a vent, which was definitely chilly when the air kicked on. Lots of guests ate outside and seemed to be comfortable except one table by the sidewalk which had to endure a smoker seated on a bench, on the sidewalk, but very near the table. All in all, a good meal. I would definitely go back, but would ask to be seated away from a vent or outdoor smoking area and establish up front with the waiter that I prefer to have more regular contact.

Tiny portions. Very pricey for the Lilliputian serving of pasta. Had to force my salad down, the vinegar was that strong and abundant. My son’s soda was served in a tiny wine glass. Waitress disappeared for long stretches even though the restaurant was empty and you could hear her having a good time chatting somewhere. They could not produce Penne alla Vodka for us, which Unilocal reviews raved about. The pasta we did order was okay. But again, the smallest $ 18 plate of tomato sauce pasta I’ve ever seen. I wouldn’t go back.

Amazing how the right waiter can make or break your full experience. Mine made me want to leave and never turn back, nevertheless, the waiter next to me made everything on the menu sound like a heavenly experience. I had the salmon dish. The portion was kind of small and my potato slices weren’t fully cooked but the salmon was tasty. I came here for the outdoor atmosphere and that’s what earned it 4 stars.

I came here one night during my stay in town for work. We passed a woman walking her dog earlier in the day and asked her for recommendations for places to have drinks. She mentioned this place and we decided to try it.
We sat out on the beautiful outside patio under the lights and had drinks. The ambiance was great, the drinks were good, and our waiter was fabulous! He spent time talking to us about the town and things to do.
If I ever find myself in Carlisle again, I will definitely go back. I would love to try the food as well. The menu looked wonderful!

Food was delicious. But that’s the end of it. They advertise an «apertitivo» but apparently they never researched what that means in actual Italian culture. Everything was way overpriced, and not just for Carlisle. Service was lackluster.

Recently visited this establishment for our anniversary dinner. We splurged and we were rather disappointed. When you decide to splurge you really want it to be special.
We were disappointed in everything except the wine. I had the Cannelloni which was bland and the pasta wrapping tasted raw, like it had never been cooked. We also had the calamari which was overcooked and not very well seasoned with a relatively bland sauce. The broccoli was served just out of a steamer, no additional flavor was added. And the pears in the salad were definitely canned. All in all, not much of a celebration.

The food was great! However, the service is TERRIBLE. I would recommend this place on a slow night because the second they get busy your server disappears for 20 minutes each time. We sat down around 8pm and didn’t leave until almost 10pm. Our waiter came back to our table 3 different times before he even took our drink order! He just refilled our waters… Oh and it took us 30 minutes to get our check. Also, just a heads up the women’s room is actually IN the bartender area, really awkward.

The penne alla vodka was possibly the best I’ve ever had! OMG it was good! Don’t think about ordering anything else!!! Only thing that holds the review from 5 stars is that the service was kinda bad. Maybe it was just this certain waiter I had but the dude was SLOW! However that won’t hold me back from going back in there.

I’ve been to Piatto twice during a business trip, and I think it’s such a great find in a small town! The ambiance is very elegant and cozy and the service is very friendly and welcoming.
My favorite dish that I’ve ordered is the lobster ravioli and their calamari is perfectly cooked and seasoned. The portion sizes are not overwhelmingly large, and in my opinion, are just right (but a lot smaller than what you would get at Olive Garden).
If you ever find yourself in Carlisle, I would say skip the diners and the grills, and give Piatto a try.

While I’m not sure Piatto is deserving of its «Simply the Best» title for Italian food, it did offer a very nice dining experience. The décor is simple but classy, the wine list is extensive, and our server was very attentive without ever being in the way.
I had the salmon, which was perfectly cooked, and complemented well by the pesto topping. The saffron risotto was wonderful. My husband had the lobster ravioli, which was very good, but was a bit small for a main dish. Order a salad or other app to go along with it if that’s your choice.
Desserts were delicious! We enjoyed the bonet (warm chocolate custardy goodness) and the tiramisu. I would certainly visit here again, and I would highly recommend it.

Food was good, not great. Service was poor. Nice place other then that.

this was a great stopover on our drive to indianapolis. a glass or three of wine after getting outta philly rush hour was welcomed. darling ambiance — loved the old windows. really excruciatingly friendly service. entertaining old people as table neighbors who ordered proper old folk cocktails which i need to learn about sometime in the next 10 years.
quattro formaggio pizza — a lil oily for my taste, but we really did appreciate the rare multi-​cheese pizza that includes sauce. eggplant parm — decent; mine’s better. :) salad: should have been served on a giant white plate, not a shoney’s-style clear mini-​plate with floral designs and scalloped edges. you know the plate. i know i’m being picky there — but when the ambiance is so nice, a tiny cheap plate overflowing with salad stands out.
last, paying for bread is tacky. wanna charge for bread? pre-​butter it, add garlic, and call it garlic bread. that’s fine. i’d rather you make up for that $ 2 in the average entrée prices, and let me have my free bread. i get annoyed when traveling to other countries and having to pay for water — but this is ‘MERKA.

My favorite restaurant in Carlisle… the food is excellent. the chef has a nack at putting together cominations that you wouldn’t think of… but end up tasting awesome!
Always uses local fresh products… OUSTANDING.