Trattoria Ponte Vecchio

SCREW THIS PLACE. Like seriously screw. This. Place. I’ve never had such a horrible experience at ANY place let alone an Italian restaurant that pretends to be a high end restaurant. I’m not just being bitter, check out my other reviews, I pretty much only write good reviews, but this place was so bad that I just had to. So hooray for my first one star review.
WORST SERVICE EVER– and the food/​atmosphere was nothing special and not worth the wait. And I generally go to Asian and Mexican hole in the walls where the people just bark at you, but at least I get my food quickly so I’m satisfied. This restaurant did NOTHING right. We made reservations at 8 on June 24 for my best friend’s bachelorette party. We were CLEARLY there for a special event. The bachelorette wore white and the other nine girls wore black. I also noticed that we were the youngest people there so I’m not sure if that was a factor, but it shouldn’t be. We all ordered a three course meal and when we tried to order our drinks, our rude rude rude server with an earring in his left ear put his hand up to stopped us and just said later because I guess he couldn’t handle taking the entrees and the drink orders at the same time. I’m sorry, you’re a server at a nice Italian restaurant I expect a better response than just ‚“later.” Mind you they weren’t busy at all. The reservation we made was completely unnecessary.
We then Slowly get our appetizers. Emphasis on slow — because a few of the girls got their appetizers at 9:30 and we got there at 8! My friend ordered a crab salad and she was one of the people who got it at 9:30. Like its a freaking salad! Most of it int cooked! Not a SINGLE person came up to us to reassure us that the food was coming. Absolutely NO follow up. I get it, sometimes food takes awhile, but at least follow up instead of walking around us avoiding eye contact.
When did we get our entrees? 10:15! And of course, the servers knew we were upset and they all still just walked around us. We literally only had contact with two people. Our rude waiter and this other guy who was much nicer, but I don’t know if he was a server or if he could take our orders. Absolutely insane that we stayed at this damn place for 3 freaking hours and not a single part of it was enjoyable.
So then we asked the bachelorette what she wanted to do the rest of the night, and she just said ‚” well now I, really tired from just sitting here so I just want to go back and go to bed.” This LITERALLY ruined our night. It took up most of our night and it was the crappiest experience. The maid of honor was fuming so she went up to our server and listed off our horrible experience and they still weren’t accommodating. It wasn’t until she said, «let me talk to the owner or manager» when they said oh crap let’s give them 20% off.
But I’m still pissed, screw the 20% off, you guys ruined our first night of an amazing weekend and I can’t get my three hours back. The food wasn’t bad but honestly nothing memorable at all, I would never crave any of the food. I tried the lobster ravioli and the seafood linguine and it was literally the same as other Italian restaurants I’ve been to. I also got calamari which I can just get at Yard house or BJs and its just as good. It’s an Italian restaurant– we all know that it’s hard for an Italian restaurant to stand out food wise and this restaurant was not one of them. Plus there’s a lot of great Italian restaurants in San Diego county– I would much rather go to a restaurant like Dominic’s or little Italy where the Italian food and service is much better.
Congratulations Trattoria Ponte Vecchio, you lost 10 customers. Because I assure you NONE of us are coming back.

Fantastic food and service! The pollo dishes and seafood are incredibly delicious. The zucchini soup and avocado salad are also great starters. I highly recommend this restaurant.

We had to search a bit to find the restaurant as it’s tucked away. Look for the patio umbrellas.
The dining room is small, but nicely appointed. We noticed multiple Zagat and Trip Advisor awards on the wall.
We ordered the gnocchi with porcini mushroom sauce and the lobster ravioli with shrimp and saffron sauce. Both meals were fantastically delicious. We noticed that as the evening went on, the restaurant became very busy. The wait staff were working hard to keep up but we didn’t feel neglected considering how busy they were.
We then ordered a piece of dark chocolate and caramel cake, which also was fantastic.
This was a great dinner, and if we return to Del Mar, we will make it a point to return.

Alright i been to this place several times and like the food a lot. It reminds me of Italy and never had a bad meal here. The issue is the service last Friday was beyond snail slow. i think it took over 2 hr for dinner for service and it was a very small party. This is bad for the restaurant as well as they can’t serve as many people so loose money.
I asked for a dessert menu and after 15 min of waiting we gave up. You lost 2 stars for the poor service. I come back again but if serves is that that again. I doubt I will return.

Haven’t been there in awhile but really like the place it’s a little small though. It has very nice views of the lagoon and the food is good.

What a disappointment… I don’t ever like to give 1 star because restaurants work so hard. They were severely understaffed when we visited. The food was above average but when you don’t get the pasta, you wait, the order is wrong, you are overcharged, and everyone around you is having the same experience, it’s just not a good combination. I wish them luck in straightening this out. If you go, stay with the mainstream dishes and go off-​peak hours.

I came here for a work lunch yesterday and ordered the pumpkin ravioli. It tasted flavorless and frozen. They could do better. Also, the shrimp I ordered for the top was also flavorless, and poor quality. The tiramisu was a welcomed surprise of freshness and flavor to end the meal. I would go back for dessert, but would skip the entres here.

Went there yesterday afternoon about 2. Because it was off hours we were the only ones at the restaurant.
There is a very pleasant view of the lagoon from the window tables.
I had a salad with gorgonzola — excellent although I asked to the dressing on the side and it came «drenched with dressing». The bread was slightly above average but was not warmed.
By buddy had salmon and was pleased.
I finished with a cappuccino — It hit the spot to enable me to take the jammed «5» home.
FYI for those bathroom affectionados, it was clean and spacious.
Net net good experience 3 stars

Never mind dining as you lazily gaze at that most unique of natural views of all San Diego County from a restaurant. And face the north-​facing cliffs of Torrey Pines cliffs. Who really cares about gazing at an impossibly stunning salt water marsh cradling mallards and cranes and seagulls and more as you savor the most satisfying of Italian masterpieces! Right? And that Greco white wine preparing your palate for carefully prepared Italian mana.
This is definitely not an understatement. I dare you to prove me wrong by dining there in a lazy, San Diego weekday mid afternoon. And try that Avocado, butter lettuce, fresh real crab salad followed by that awesome fish soup — aka, cioppino. And that incredible super Tuscan blend Cabernet delightful wine.
Make sure that you enjoy the home made fruit tart after…
Drive up North on 5, away from India Street, and treat yourself to authentic, artfully created Italian fare for those of you craving the real thing.
They serve a side of fresh cut garlic in olive oil and parsley…
PS
Nothing wrong with the service I enjoyed…

I’ve eaten here once before and the food was just ok. I came here for the second time tonight and the service was so rude we left before even ordering. We came in and were informed it was busy and it would be a while. That was fine. So we sat down for a while and I asked an employee if I could see a menu. He never brought one so I asked another employee for a menu. She came back and told me she wouldn’t bring me a menu just yet but would bring one in five minutes. I was confused by this withholding of the menu and I asked «can’t I just see a menu?» She replied as if I was out of line to ask such a question «um… no…» Still confused I asked «why cant I just see a menu?» She snootily replied «um… I don’t know…» (All the while acting as though I was crazy to ask why I couldn’t see a menu. I’m not making this up.) I then gave up this futile discussion and a while later someone actually bestowed these coveted menus upon us but we were over the attitude and didn’t want to eat at a place that treated us with such disdain and arrogance.
I think they were trying to space the timing of our ordering out but their initial explanation that there would be a bit of a wait was sufficient to do that. Denying us to see a menu and giving us attitude for questioning their bizarre practices was just strange to me.
We ended up eating at an Italian restaurant in the del mar highlands town center where the food and service was excellent.

Cute little place with very nice glass enclosed dog friendly patio. Fabulous bread, medium priced, excellent value, nicest attentive waiters, fresh homemade tasting food ! Exceptional value ! If you haven’t noticed, we highly recommend it !

I went to the Trattoria for lunch with some family and was wonderfully surprised at this hidden gem of Del Mar. Everything from the intimate atmosphere to the wonderful service and the delicious food was amazing. I’m a local and I will definitely be coming here again.

We absolutely love this place. Food is authentic Italian and the service is excellent! The Avocado salad with crab is a must.
We highly recommend!

My experience was not as good as other reviewers seemed to have. The back parking lot had no area lighting, so parking/​finding a spot was difficult. There was a sign for a rear entrance, but it was not marked once you got inside, so we asked the kitchen staff where to go and they lead us through a storage hallway. It’s not the waiter’s fault that he was the only one there, but we were sitting for 20 minutes before he took our order, and it was another 30 min before we were served. We ordered an appetizer that was never delivered. I ordered the Fettuccine Alfredo with shrimp, which was ok but they didn’t clean the poop out of the shrimp which grosses me out. Two people ordered the ‘stuffed rigatoni with sausage and eggplant’ which ended up being regular rigatoni with some chunks of eggplant thrown in. They couldn’t tell if there was sausage or not. One person ordered the lasagna, which she loved.
My next issue is with the Unilocal Check-​in coupon… it doesn’t say anywhere that the 15% check in incentive has restrictions, but when I presented the coupon to the waiter, he said it was only good for lunch and on Sundays…
Otherwise, it was pretty stuffy inside the restaurant because they have no air conditioning but apparently the weather has been unusually hot for this time of year so that might not be an issue for you.
I don’t live in the area, but I doubt I’d go back.

I enjoyed the ambiance. It’s a nice place for a quaint somewhat intimate experience depending on how crowded it is. Our servers were warm, polite and courteous. I expect more quality when tossing $ 135 for a dining experience. We made a request for white sauce and got red. The food was average in taste and presentation relative to the prices. In my opinion, it’s a bit over priced. Be prepared to dish out $ 10 for a glass of wine. Perhaps it’s the location or a method to keep lower end crowds out lmao. Perhaps it just gouging. Ive had similar quality Italian in the area for $ 50 less.

Great Sunday dinner. They offer 15% off on food items on Sundays… happy bonus!
Excellent stuffed calamari appetizer. My rockfish, clams and mussels special was well seasoned. Glass of house Pinot Noir complemented the meal perfectly. Very attentive and knowledgeable service, too.
Solid 4+ star review for the food, service and ambiance. The only thing holding this place back from a 5 star are the smallish portions — raise the prices a couple bucks and present a bit more vittles.
Will definitely be back.

Great food. Beautiful View.
I was in town for work and with my boss, so ambience wasn’t the first on my list. We sat outside, was cute if not small.
The only thing that could be improved was waiting time for stuff. It was clear that the three people working were always moving and doing things, it just took them a bit to get to you (for seating, for wine, for bread etc).
I’ll likely not be in the area again, but I’d go again.

We’ve been going there since it opened. It is consistently great on anything we have ever ordered. We have taken many guests there and no one has ever been disappointed. It’s the only Italian food we feel is as good as actually dining in Italy!
They have a large menu and always have several nightly specials in addition.

The BF scooped me up for a Friday night date and picked this place nearby our house-​we had never been. 28 Zagat stars for food 2014 although the décor is a bit dated, it’s still charming and hidden and feels like a locals only joint.
The bread and olive oil/​vinegar was delicious-​and when the simply beginning to a meal is quality and toasty goodness: You know you’re in for a treat overall.
The Bf started with the Beef Carpaccio. He found it a bit too heavy on the vinegar, but the shaved Parmesan was lovely with a squeeze of lemon on top. For my appetizer I ordered the special– A melon and prosciutto with a pickled salad of veggies and really enjoyed it.
Main dish for me was Gnocci with a pink Vodka sauce, plenty of fresh pepper and parm. It was a nice sized portion in a deep bowl and I’m craving it again even as I write this. BF had the Spaghetti Alla Bolognese and it had an amazing touch of fresh basil in the sauce that the spices somehow didn’t overpower.
Skipped dessert and had a glass of wine with dinner. They have GF pasta on the menu FYI and parking is some in back but limited in general. Romantic patio.
Service was decent-​a bit of a language barrier for a moment or two but in the end? Happy campers over all and we’ll go again for sure.

I feel like I stumbled upon a hidden gem.
I have never heard about this place before and after looking at Unilocal reviews I didn’t set my expectations too high.
This cute little bistro style restaurant has a beautiful view to marshes in Del Mar. It was just so peaceful to sit at at table by the window and enjoy the view.
Everybody here seems to be complaining about the service, but it was just fine. They were busy, but everybody working there was very pleasant. Maybe it’s more of a European style when people are not too fakey nice, but I don’t mind that.
The bread they brought had a little bit of caramelized onions and looked like little buns. It was different that many other places, but very delicious.
For my entrée I picked Portobello Chicken and it was so yummy. There were actually two huge chicken breasts! The more the merrier! The sauce was a balsamic reduction done really well. I used some of their bread buns to sponge up the deliciousness from the plate. My date had one of their seafood pasta dishes and he said he really enjoyed his as well.
They have a really extensive wine menu. Everything from really expensive bottles to a little more affordable. I enjoyed a really great glass of Cab from their wines by the glass. It was only $ 8 or $ 9 and it went so well with my entrée.
No room for dessert this time. but maybe next time? I would be really delighted to come here on a date again.