Zeppole

This is the first time a restaurant compels me to write a review. The food was bland, the drinks were tasteless, the meats and cheese board was underwhelming. The meats on the appetizer board were not good, the olives were plain, the bread sticks stale, the liver pâté tasteless. They sold me the risotto as the best thing ever. It tasted like tapioca; texture was off, the taste was way off, and even after I told them that I still had to pay $ 25 for it. When I told them about the risotto being bland their answer was to offer me salt. When a manager came and asked about the food, I repeated my complaint and they offered a dessert for it. My 13 year-​old niece asked for a lemon tart. They said the sizes were big enough to share. When the dessert came, they brought only one spoon. Waiter was very nice, but it did not make up for a very unsatisfactory and unfulfilling dinner experience.

Impressive Italian food from an extensive menu.
Heard this place makes its own pasta, so decided to check it out with the family. Every dish at our table was great!– the best were the pasta dishes. Homemade makes a difference! Huge wine list.
The décor isn’t special, but the food here is really outstanding. Have to say you won’t be disappointed. Prices higher than average is my only complaint.
Free valet (the hotel’s), just ask the waiter to validate your ticket…

My group had an incredible dining experience. We all thought our entrees were extremely flavorful. The homemade pasta was a great hit for many. Service was impeccable. It is one of the finest quality Italian restaurants. Valet parking is validated by restaurant. I’m looking forward to my next visit.

First time to dine here. The food was excellent and the service was great. Didn’t know what to expect but it was an exceptional experience and we will definitely return.
Our group of 3 had New York Strip steak, Salmon, Baked Egg Plant. The homemade pasta was very good. Also had Calimari for an appetizer.

Wow, this place is delicious! I came here last Christmas with my girlfriends, and we all had delicious meals. I had a red fish which came with a mashpotato and broccolini. I want to say it was displayed so beautifully, and tasted just the way it looked. The service is very nice and friendly. I believe this place is definitely a special occasions place.

Stayed at the Gaylord Resort and ate here for New Year’s Eve dinner (12÷31÷15). Nice atmosphere but a little pricy. Husband had the lobster risotto which he liked a lot. I tried it and it was in fact very good. It came with an 8oz steak and mashed potatoes. I ordered the pappardelle pasta. It had shrimp, zucchini and a bit of lobster. I really wanted to like it since some of the reviews on here recommended it but I was very disappointed. It was kind of bland in my opinion. We ordered the clams for our appetizer which weren’t very tasty. The tomato sauce they came in was too over powering. The waiter was friendly. I would maybe come back to try the plate my husband had but probably not because it was $ 50.don’t think it’s worth it.

Really good Italian restaurant, great location inside the Gaylord Texan. Always friendly staff, even though we’re locals we tend to eat there three or four times a year!

Let’s see… An Italian restaurant in the heart of the Gaylord Texan atrium, COOL, was my first thought. My second thought was, it has to be expensive but not that much or people will just pass on it (unless you are on company’s expense and you don’t care). Third, I will never expect low standards in a Marriott property.
Well my friends, forget about it. This place is, what is well known as a Tourist Trap.
Let’s start on the outside. Parking in this place is not free. Self parking is $ 19 and valet is $ 25 plus tip. I’ve to say you can park for lower rates at the convention center but then you’ll have to walk for 10 minutes to get to the Hotel Atrium. Anyway, on their defense, I’ve to say, this is a full service Marriott resort and I wasn’t expecting free parking though.
As I was all by myself, I decided to get a place at the bar. The gentleman working the bar, was kind of inattentive. Just the bare minimum, no explanations on the menu, no specials offered (and I saw a sign outside about the chef specials for the day). The experience throughout the meal did not improve at all, just totally the opposite. But as I always say, I pretend is his first day on the job or he is just tired or angry. I will just overlook this and move on.
I ordered a glass of Chianti and the Lobster Gnocchi. I couldn’t help to notice the bartender under poured my drink. I will say, my drink was in the range of 6oz, what I will take normal, but not when I see him puring about 8oz on the person right next to me. I will overlook this one too (although I cannot forget the detail).
The bartender offered me some bread, but for some reason, it just came after I received my meal (and no, it did not come directly from the oven, neither was not that fresh). The plate looked kind of small (and after I finished it, it proved to be) so I really suggest you get an appetizer or salad to complement your meal. Anyway, the gnocchis were well made and well cooked (I was suprised the gnocchis were not over cooked like in most places, hence an extra star) and the sauce was just ok. Honestly guys, this is not what I expect from an elaborated plate like this. I will expect it from a chain like Carraba’s or Macaroni Grill but not from a high end place.
I decided to get a dessert. Since this place is called Zappole, I ordered them. Well, well, well… let me start with this. Being Italian and growing up with an Italian grandma in the kitchen, I used to get Zeppole very often at home. Guys, if you ever went to Olive Garden, you will know they offer Zeppole too and to my suprise, they are way better than the ones I was offered in this place. Honestly these guys might need to get an Italian Mama to explain how to make and to ‘serve’ good zeppole because what I was offered was miles far from good ones.
I paid my bill, which happened to be almost $ 50 (yes, you did not see it wrong, fifty bucks plus tip!!!) and I just left.
The moral: My friends, I will have to say, just less than a mile from this place you have Ferrari’s Villa or even Farina’s Winery and Café… I think you get the point…

TL;DR — The food is excellent and atmosphere gorgeous, but HOLY MOLY is this place expensive!!!
Beautifully strung with lights all around and a big bar top with TVs here and there.
Food presentation is beautiful.
Herbed focaccia and butter to start with.
Pastas cooked to a perfect al dente.
Steak temp nailed.
I couldn’t return though because this place just costs way too much damn money. At the end of the day, it’s $ 22 for a chicken rigatoni. An absolutely delicious choice, but it’s chicken breast and tubes of pasta. I have no doubt that markup is high anywhere in this hotel just because of its role as a convention center.
Host stand is a little derp derp and doesn’t have their stuff together, but in the end you’ll still eat food. We had to wait for about 15 minutes even though we made a reservation. Make sure to make one if it’s the weekend or during a special event, like the ICE exhibit!
If you had to blow your money on an expensive meal at the Gaylord, this would be a good one.

Was better than expected. We had the garlic crostini, pappardelle pasta, and the lobster gnocchi. The crostini was delicious, though a little small, and had the perfect amount of garlic for a spicy bite. The lobster gnocchi was cooked well, though it had significantly less lobster than we were expecting. The lobster itself was cooked perfectly. The pappardelle pasta was far tastier than I expected; the pasta was perfectly al dente, zucchini and tomatoes were delicious and cooked perfectly, and the shrimp was tender and exceptionally done. There was an impressive amount of lobster, though they were disappointingly overcooked. The pappardelle pasta was a huge delicious portion while the gnocchi was slightly smaller.
Service was great, she was pleasant and attentive. I would likely go again, especially for the delicious pasta.

If you’re trapped at the Gaylord’s Resort, don’t eat here. Food was mediocre for all of my guests (two others). One guest had rare lamb (he had ordered medium), a second guest had al dente potatoes (is there such a thing) that were too hard (undercooked) and I had Salmon with under cooked brussel sprouts. Our waiter, Richard, was just too busy with other tables and because we were friendly, we were served last (always) and too late. The waiter tried to pawn off some desserts but no one took the bait. I will never go here again. I would not recommend anyone come here (find a restaurant outside of the property). This is an over-​priced restaurant with below par service.

Really nice place to grab a bite to eat! It’s located inside of hotel. It’s easy to find and full of really delicious meal choices. We were in a bit of a hurry when we came to eat, but this place was able to seat us and get our orders taken right away!
A friend and I decided to split salad and pasta so we started off with the Zeppole House Salad which was a super delicious salad… greens, pears, onions, cheese. SO ONO. The flavors were perfect! The Rigatoni Pasta Rigatoni Alla Vodka was really flavorful and filling. We both really liked it! I was so hungry that I didn’t even get any pictures of the food… It was prepared and served beautifully. I would definitely recommend this place to anyone who is staying at the Grapevine or those who live local and want a really nice place to eat!
Zeppole is really open and airy, the service is great and the food was excellent.

Took a client here for dinner along with some colleagues.
We opted for the fried calamari which was light on the calamari and had way too much zucchini, apples (??) and other items mixed in. Additionally, it was a bit greasy and not very crisp.
I opted for the Tuscan soup instead of a full entrée since the calamari was so heavy. The soup was a bit flavorless and needed a good amount of cheese and pepper to make it palatable. I also took a taste of a friend’s parpardelle which was okay, if not a bit too sweet.
The service was friendly and the wine list was extensive and quite reasonable. I just did not find the food to be very Italian.

Pleasantly surprised with Zeppole because my experiences in general with the Gaylord restaurants weren’t great.
First, if you’re in for a convention (because of course you are), make a reservation on Open Table because they get slammed with groups. We did this and were spared a long wait because most people don’t think ahead. Atmosphere is nice — they’ve strung up lights to make it feel more «Italian» and the atrium setting is certainly pleasant.
We started with Eggplant Parmigiana ($ 10) which was really good. The eggplant wasn’t greasy at all, and it was appropriately cheesy. They’ll also start you off with bread and oil — my tip is to save that bread to mop up sauce. Entrée wise, there are 8-​ish pasta choices and the same for meat/​seafood dishes. I picked a pasta dish that had fennel and Italian sausage in a creamy sauce ($ 21) and it was really flavorful and a HUGE portion.
There’s a decent wine list with plenty of options by the glass. Service for us was good — our waiter was enthusiastic and did the whole «upsell» thing but not in an obnoxious way. Prices on everything are higher than they need to be, but that’s the Gaylord for you. You’re here, you’re captive, you can definitely do worse.

Made reservations with my girlfriend the first night I was in town. We ate here last time I was here and it was excellent. This experience was even better! Our dinner began by Guillermo greeting us and giving us a quick run down of fun things to do around the area. He also made an excellent wine suggestion. Our server William also made our experience enjoyable. He was knowledgable about each menu item and was able to make a cocktail suggestion that my girlfriend loved. Being from Orlando, it was enjoyable speaking with William about different things in Florida (as he is also from the Orlando area).
Our meals were fantastic, we began with a meat and cheese board which was better than advertised. I had the Pappardelle pasta which I would certainly recommend. My other half had the ravioli ossobucco which was also very good. This was the perfect way to start off our trip! We will definitely return. I would recommend making a reservation as this is at the Gaylord Texan and there are generally a lot of people in the hotel.

I could not have been happier with our visit here. I came to the Gaylord with my wife for our first year anniversary. We decided on the River Walk Cantina for dinner and were very disappointed. After spending the next few hours wondering why we wasted our time there, we decided to swing in here for something light. We didn’t realize it was right before closing, but the staff welcomed us in. The drinks were mixed to perfection, the flatbread was probably the best I’ve ever had, the soup was fresh and robust, and the cannoli desert was very authentic! Although the staff was in the midst of closing the place after a very busy night, they were very attentive and pleasant. I would have to give both the food and staff these 5 stars!

Today during lunch — it’s an Italian restaurant that is not serving Italian food. Mexican food only. Weird. Normally it’s good. Today? Disappointed. The hostess told me it will be closed for dinner service.
Passed by around dinner time. It’s open! Too bad I already ate at the Steak House.
Leo, the manager and his staff are nice.
My advice is to always make reservations if you’re eating at the Gaylord Texan. Never know what’s going to be open.

A coworker and I had dinner here after our conference ended at the Gaylord. We had a really wonderful meal. Our waitress was attentive but not too much. I started with the house salad which was basic with lettuce, onions and nuts. It had a good vinaigrette on it. My coworker had the Caesar salad. It had lots of good bits of shaved cheese on it.
For our entrees, I had the red fish. It was white fish with crispy artichoke hearts,
new potatoes, roasted butternut squash, prosciutto, and blood orange butter sauce. It was a very tasty fish, not fishy at all. I loved the crispy artichoke hearts. My coworker had the Ravioli «Ossobuco». He really enjoyed it.
Good bread with oil and vinegar too. The pricing is a little high but the food is good. And luckily I was on an expense account. I will be back.

Having read some of the previous reviews I have to say, I’m confused. Our food was absolutely fantastic! From the starters that we order to our main courses it was all mouth watering delicious!
The chef even took the time to come out to our table to accommodate special food requests. We were all stuffed and happy after our meal.
Our server was also on his game and service was fast. ⁴⁄₅ stars because they ran out of the alcohol I was drinking so I had to switch up from my tantalizing drink to another. Other than that, alls good!

This restaurant is amazing! I had the lobster with Neil key and Red sauce. Scott had the swordfish this evening and it was very enjoyable. As far as appetizers go the mussels and clams are delicious.
They also have gluten free bread! In my eyes this restaurant is five stars.