Ristorante Farfalla

Was totally blown away by the whole package
Service was top notch
Atmosphere was great
Food was outstanding!
Will definitely become a regular here! !!!

I visited this restaurant on January 4, 2016 to have a nice dinner with my son. We ordered a bottle of cabernet wine to start off which was decent. We ordered a calamari to start off which was delicious. For main course my son ordered Penne alla Vodka with griiled chicken, which he really enjoyed and I ordered the Chef’s special which was black and white linguine or fettucine pasta in a white wine garlic sauce with clams, shrimp, scallops and lobster which cost us $ 38.00. My som and I both tasted the lobster and it was either old and/​or frozen NOT fresh and/​or overcooked as it was mushy and had a bad taste to it. I complained to my server Doug about this and he just shrugged it off. Additionally, my son asked our server Doug what happens to the texture and/​or taste of lobster when you overcook it or if it is old and/​or frozen. His response to us was that he doesn’t know as he is not the chef. Never once did Doug pour our wine for us and the bread was not brought out until we received our appetizer. He was extremely unattentive, had a very bad attitude, seemed like he had a broken leg, and appeared to not like his job or if we were a bother. We spent $ 100.00 on a dinner which was not worth it. The owner/​chef Salah Abdelfattah who likes to be called an alias of Michael Fattah because he does not want his customers to look up his criminal and civil records in Lee County Clerk of Courts. If I went back I would just order anything other than seafood such as lobster. The owner/​chef did not even offer to buy us dessert and coffee or take the lobster meal off the check. Fyi, a server by the name of Ruth told me not to order the regular or decaf american coffee because itvis NOT fresh as they use the same coffee for two or three days, meaning if there is leftover coffee one night, they save it and they just reheat it the next day and serve the guests that old reheated coffee the next day which is disgusting and a health code violation. I believe that I will be reporting them to the appropriate authorities.

I know there are mixed reviews at this place, and you know me, I’ve read them all, so I was prepared. I prepared for good food, but terribly slow service and rude wait staff.
We made sure to get a reservation. When we arrived, we were seated immediately. This place is cute and quaint and nicely decorated. –and romantic :)
Our server was nothing but kind and gracious. He let us know the specials and asked if we needed any information. I asked for a glass of moscato, and he looked at me like he was confused… I thought they would have it since it is a very popular wine now, and it is only made in Italy– and this is an authentic restaurant. He said he never heard of it and instead offered me a glass of Chardonnay. I was sad, but agreed to that– not nearly as tasty as Moscato. Please Ristorante Farfalla, get some Moscato!!! :)
I ordered the Chicken breasts pounded thin and cooked in herbs. It came with amazing potatoes and a veggie medley. Oh. So. Delicious!!! I was actually excited knowing I was going to take home some for lunch the next day! They do not give you a heaping plate of food, but enough to feel full. I honestly don’t like it when restaurants nowadays give you so much food– not only does it not help the growing obesity in the US, but I think it’s trying to compensate for sub par food. This was excellent and cooked to perfection!!! My husband ordered a veal dish which he said was perfect. Our friends said their meals were also delightful.
Our server was very attentive throughout the dinner and made sure our glasses were full and that we were happy with our food.
We ordered the crème brûlée for dessert– creamy perfection!
The bill for me and my husband was just under $ 100– worth every penny.
I know people say they had long waits, and I can’t really say how it would be on a normal weekend, as we were here on a weeknight close to closing, so there was only a few other people here, but even if we had to wait an hour or more for our dinner, it would have been worth it.
Thank you for a wonderful dinner!

Good food, but overpriced with very small portions. My husband & I don’t like spending close to $ 150.00 and still feel hungry when we leave. $ 25.00 for a bowl of pasta with 4 shrimp is ridicules! We will not return.

Went out for pizza and stumbled into this gem. It was a very low «pre-​season» night but the service was top notch.
The menu had a wide range to select from. Everything is homemade and cooked fresh so be prepared to wait, it is worth the wait.
My wife had the crab ravioli, I had the iron pan Filet Minion. We had the mussels for our appetizer. My only complaint was the after dinner coffee could have been better.

After hearing good things about this restaurant, we decided to have dinner there last week. I wish I had read the reviews online before wasting money. I now understand why they needed to put up a sign outside the restaurant telling people it was open.
The room is nice and the waiter was attentive and pleasant. He explained to us that 4 parties came in within 10 minutes of each other and that was going to slow things down. We understood and had no problem with that. What we didn’t know was HOW SLOWLY meals would come out of the kitchen especially as there were only about 20 people in the restaurant. Several tables were not filled. What would happen if every table had diners?
We were served our drinks right away. We waited for 4 tiny pieces of bread to be delivered. Our salads came shortly after the bread. Then we waited and waited and waited. The waiter repeatedly updated us and apologized. Two parties who came in after us were served before us. It took 1 hour after our order was placed for our meals to be served. It wouldn’t be fair to judge the food; by the time we got served, we couldn’t enjoy the food.
It looked like there was only 1 person in the kitchen — the owner/​chef. I thought this was an off-​season issue. After seeing several reviews stating the same complaint no matter the time of year, this is clearly an ongoing issue. Apparently, the owner doesn’t care about what people say because he doesn’t fix the problem; he needs to take some business classes. You can’t stay in business by serving 1 table every 15 minutes no matter how good the food might be. Here’s 1 patron who will not return.

This is clearly a four-​star restaurant. Why not a five? They are understaffed. Our waiter, was the only one present except for two busboys who, he said, were new. It seemed to me, however, that they tried pretty hard. This is off-​season, but still…
It was interesting that when One of us requested a substitution of pasta for the vegetables he said this was not possible but he could sell her the pasta. It seems that the substitution should’ve been automatic. Note that this is not an inexpensive restaurant.
The food, however, is what makes a restaurant great. The food here is fresh and prepared to order. Two appetizers, one of clams and one soup special were both good. Two of us had the sole, Outstanding. The other two had a pasta dish and the shrimp, both of which received raves. I finished with a good coconut sorbet.
Worth a visit.

Authentic Italian food. Owner/​chief. Takes all the necessary steps to cook dishes from the heart. Absolutely great Italian food. I Had the seafood fraDiavlo Last night with fresh pasta. Was Ausome. Find this place you’ll be impressed. ITS NOT a Meatball and spaghetti place. Can’t wait to go back and try the veal dishes. I Know Italian food New York City born and raised

We have driven past this place 100 times since we live about 2 miles from the restaurant and every time we have tried to go, the restaurant was closed. We were hoping this time, the experience would be special. I knew we were in trouble when we first walked in, only a few tables were filled, and the waiter/​host said «you don’t have a reservation?». When we were seated, it felt as if we were a burden to be there. We ordered a glass of Chardonnay, the only selection by the glass, and when we received it, it literally tasted terrible… like vinegar. When we asked the waiter about the wine, he said «well you ordered the cheapest one» as if to say «you’re cheap». We explained that we ordered the wine by the glass as far as we knew. Shouldn’t any wine they serve be acceptable to drink even if it’s not the most expensive? The food was «mediocre». The pasta fagioli soup was underdone and under-​flavored. The meal was not worth $ 123 considering my wife had badly done soup and a salad for dinner. The $ 9.00 Tiramisu was the size of two dominoes stacked together. The chef’s 17 years of experience that has bragging rights in this place definitely exudes through the décor and screams «stuck in the 80’s» and he and his staff should come off their high horses and be real people instead of something they’re not. We won’t be back and won’t recommend this to our colleagues and friends. Nino’s just down the road offers great family style food, wonderful servers who know you by name, and treat you with dignity and respect and a big smile, and that’s worth everything!

The food was good. The service good as well. However there were about five or six too many tables jammed into the dining area. Tables and chairs were so close to others that the waiters kept banging into people trying to serve them. Not a good environment.

Couldn’t get past 3 hostesses.
Recently attempted to return to what we had thought was a great place to eat. Made 6 PM reservation for 2 on Valentine’s Day. Got there 5 minutes early knowing there was no indoor gathering area or bar to wait if crowded.
Noted people standing outside in 50 degree weather in normally warmer Florida late afternoon.(few prepared with coats or even sweaters).
Indoors few waiters serving large number of guests, but 3 hostesses standing in front, taking names and saying sorry, but not really helping with busing tables, serving or in some other way expediting.
No real attempt to improve comfort or inform waiting customers of how much longer wait would be.
Having seen some periodically miserable reviews, understand now that management places a good food product out there, but they are unable to manage their diners experience in a repeatable and reliable fashion.
Very unlikely that we will ever return. Too many great alternatives.

We tried this restaurant two times now. Food was good but Valentines Day was not the best. I like to dine on this holiday and have a special dessert and coffee. NOT possible here tonight unless you want s takeout. It bummed me out. I saw the table next to me get drink dessert but I guess we weren’t important. Our money is as good as the anyone’s. We’re done

My fiancé and I decided to try this place on Friday, we both left disappointed.
Considering the price of our meal I would expect exceptional service… no luck. The food did not disappoint but our waiter was was slow and not engaged in our dining experience.
Food: ⁸⁄₁₀ Great food, but overpriced with small portions.
Service: ⁵⁄₁₀ Server never introduced himself, no hint of the specials for the night, had to wave him down for drink refills, no offer of wine. It took about an hour after we ordered for our entrée to arrive.
Décor: ⁵⁄₁₀ In need of a major update update all the way down to plate and silverware.
All things considered, I would go back if the service improved.

We were excited to go there, my husband made reservations through the chef/​owner. This was the worst dining experience we have had in a long time. Started off with calamari that was way under cooked and rubbery, we didn’t complain. My friend ordered fish that was prepared in a parchment paper, she asked for them to hold garlic & onions-​she had a medical condition and can’t eat spicy food. She started eating the fish it had so much pepper on it she almost choked. When she called the waiter over and said it was too peppery or something he was not very happy and commented that they held the garlic & onions so why should she complain. He finally offered her another entrée. She then asked for some pasta with a little butter. The pasta came and it wasn’t cooked enough. My pasta w/​bolonese was pasta & meat, no sauce. (I didn’t complain) the waiter at this point was very mad. He brought our leftovers– my husbands and mine, and a third one which we thought was the under cooked pasta — but he had brought back out her fish that she couldn’t eat in the first place. We asked to talk to the chef/​owner but he wouldn’t come out. The waiter then said a Nasty «Good Night» and we left. Never got a sincere apology about anything. They even tried to charge us for the fish that she couldn’t eat. We had to ask for it to be taken off the bill. Left no tip, which we NEVER do-​but the waiter was so nasty and rude. We will never be back. Would give it NO stars!

Great dinner at Farfalla. Service (Mike, I think) was terrific as was dinner. Tuna appetizer, lobster bisque, Caesar salad and veal picata. As good as it gets. Lobster bisque was made with a lobster stock. It was different than the heavy creamy lobster bisque I’m accustomed. This soup at Farfalla is a real find, but if I recall, it was a special.

Nice ambience, friendly, knowledgable waitstaff. The ingredients are fresh and the portions are generous. The owner is very gregarious and, if time allows, will come to your table. The carpaccio is delicious.

While I can say the food is pretty good I find the waiters a bit pretentious. They pretend like it’s a five-​star dining restaurant. Every night they have a medley of vegetables as a side and if you ask for say spinach instead, the waiters will nearly refuse to ask «Chef» as they refer to the pope of this establishment. I refuse to go there any more because i was forced to choose between a side of horrible mixed vegetables which is not made to order or to «buy» a side of spinach. «Chef» food alone does not make a restaurant. Customer service is 50%! Had you simply given me my request you’d have a customer for life but I won’t rest until you get this message loud and clear. Please explain why you can’t provide such an easy substitution. Educate me and the public with your response.

Lots of great food here. It is in a strip mall. Many restaurants seem to be! Fresh, crusty, light, warm italian bread. Olive oil, balsamic vinegar & butter brought to your table right away. Friendly staff. Fantastic prince island mussel appetizer with delicious broth. Hated to not finish sopping up with their crusty bread! One dinner was veal Picatta. Tender & delicious. Great scalloped potatoes & sautéed vegetables alongside. Second dinner linguine Genovese. A bit too much pesto. But still delicious. Wine suggestion excellent, a good pour as well. Nicely done Crème brûlée finished meal. 3 glasses of wine, 1 appetizer, 2 entrees, dessert & 2 coffees. $ 100.

I have eaten here several times over the last few years. The quality of cuisine is outstanding – ingredients are top-​quality, preparations are authentic, and presentation is very nice. This is not your «old school» spaghetti-​and-​meatballs, tomato-​everything food, but more like what I’ve had in trattorias in Milan, Bologna, and around Tuscany. For instance, on a recent trip, lamb chops in a rosemary-​wine reduction was some of the best lamb I have ever had.
Service is often good, but inconsistent. Once, our waiter was so attentive and enthusiastic that it seemed as if he never stopped talking. Yet, most recently, our waiter was inattentive – we were kept waiting far too long to place our orders. Other times, service was flawless. More consistently trained floor-​staff would be appreciated!

2 ½ STARS
We ate here a couple of months ago and I waited to submit this update. I wanted to see if the dining experience improved at all in my memory. It hasn’t.
I ordered a steak that night. I like it a little pink in the middle and believe that to be somewhere between medium rare and medium. Experience has taught me to order medium, because medium rare often comes quite red in the center. So I ordered it medium.
The steak came completely rare. Without question. Very, very red (i.e., uncooked) throughout. The three others agreed, so I returned it to be further cooked. It took forever, but when it came back it was still very rare. I gave up, kept it and took it home with me to be properly cooked. Not good.
By the way, the other three meals that were ordered were just fine.
The service was terrible. The waiter tried to sell us a bottle of wine for starters, and when only one of us (me!) wanted any wine and ordered a glass, he virtually ignored us for the rest of the evening. We had to summon another waiter to come to our table.
I believe the owner/​chef to be a nice guy and excellent cook normally, but perhaps success and an increase in business has made it difficult for him to maintain a high level of service & consistency.
Location — 4 STARS
Ambiance — 5 STARS
Service — 2 STARS
Food (mine): — 1 STAR
Food (the others three): — 4 STARS