Trattoria II Vesuvio

Came in after leaving another place that ignored us, so we were just hungry at this point. The place kind of takes itself a little too seriously — like it is a fine dining place without the food to back it up. We had arancini, sweet potato and leek soup, garden salad, gnocchi and the veal saltimboca. The veal was totally over-​seasoned and the gnocchi were not light as they should be. But, the soup was great, as were the arancini — we would order those again for sure.

I should have written this back in February but I am doing it now. I waited many years for the opportunity to visit this restaurant. I am telling you all now… it was definitely worth the wait. I got the chance on my birthday. From the moment I walked in I new this place was awesome. The atmosphere was so romantic and the staff was wonderful. When I tried the saltimbocca I was in heaven. Every morsel we had was delicious. I mean everything.
I can not wait till I get to go again. I grew up in the north end of Boston… the Italian section and I will tell you frankly and honestly… I would put their food ranking right up there better than the best I have ever had growing up.

Capes was excellent! Just like home. Chicken picatta was excellent as was the Pollo Francesc. Service was timely and police. We will definitely return

We have had some of our best Berkshires meals here. It’s comfortable, yet romantic; tasty, yet straightforward. I’ve had all of the shellfish pastas — shrimp, clams, and fra diavolo — and all are delicious. They also make a surprisingly good dirty martini. I can’t wait to go back this summer!

Let me get the not-​so-​great stuff out of the way. This place should lose a star for only two reasons — their décor and their salads. They are desperately in need of an interior designer, and the side salads were sad little plates of greenery with one lonely cherry tomato begging for company — and the fact that the tomato was cut into four tiny pieces wasn’t fooling anyone. However, from the moment we called for an 8:00 reservation at 6:30 on a Saturday evening, we felt very welcome. The person who greeted us at the door and the waiter were absolutely awesome! The water girl didn’t bother to say a single word as she filled our glasses which was strange, but she only appeared once anyway. A large basket of very good bread arrived and after debating for a long time (the menu options all look wonderful) I chose the Gnocchi while Hubby decided on the Osso Bucco. They had a nice wine selection as well. Our meals were both killer — I mean really, really top notch. Huge portions, fresh ingredients, super tender Veal shank with lots of marrow to be had. The waiter was very accommodating and brought me my favorite dessert (not on menu) of vanilla ice cream with espresso that was out of this world… probably the best espresso we’ve ever had. A meal to remember… curtains I wish I could forget.

I came here with my mother during our last night up in The Berkshires. My mother was craving Italian food, and I was a little skeptical that we’d find good Italian food in this part of the country, but I was very wrong. I had their penne alla arrabbiata, and it was absolutely delicious. The portion was also humongous, so at least that made feel like their price points were justified. My mother also loved her fra diavolo dish, and seeing her rave about her dish made my experience all the more pleasurable.
Décor was also interesting: the restaurant is inside this large old lodge, with very tall ceilings, replete with wooden rafters. The service was a bit on the slow side, though, but otherwise, this place is one that I would recommend visiting for some surprisingly good Italian food.

My husband and I now live in the Berkshires, dine out frequently, and this is our absolute favorite place. The veal parm is the best around and the wait staff is absolutely terrific. While they do a great job when it’s busy, if you can pop in on a slow night, it’s even better. (We agree with reviewer Tim W. on the décor haters: more veal parm for us!) We invited Italian friends that had owned an Italian restaurant in Boston and even they couldn’t get enough of this «real Italian». The secret may be out on this place, so it’s a good idea to make a reservation on weekends.

Coming from NYC, my expectations for Italian food are always pretty high but I have to say this place really nails it on all levels. Great food, great service, great atmosphere. My fiancé loved her shrimp scampi over linguini and I thought the veal saltimbocca was spot on. We weren’t even going to get dessert but the cappuccino list was too tempting and well worth it. Hope to be back here next time we are in Lenox.

Delicious food and great service! The chicken piccata was excellent and mash potatoes were to die for! Also loved the spumoni dessert special .
Of all all the Italian restaurants in the Berkshires, this is the one to try!

Excellent service and meal. Reasonable price. The veal dishes were particularly good. Other members of my party enjoyed great pasta dishes. Not pretentious and at least tonight quiet atmosphere.

This restaurant was recommended as one of the best Authentic Italian places around, which I thought no small feat with all the competition. But, I was not disappointed. The veal piccata was tender and perfecto and fried polenta was tasty as was the marinara sauce. The establishment is not big but is airy and is very family friendly. I will go back on my next visit to the Berkshires for sure!

This was wonderful! Terrific and authentic Italian menu, our waiter Kellan was an absolute delight, and he did not bat an eye at our large party of 9! He started us off with appetizers while we perused the menu (which turned out to be a good idea, more on that later) and the Arancini was fantastic — I had never had it with risotto before, and they were perfectly cooked and not at all greasy. We also ordered the Caprese salad for the table, a generous portion and nicely ripened tomatoes considering it’s early in the season. We placed our entrée orders (choice of soup or salad and protein entrees come with pasta or mashed potatoes. Our salads came, they are on the small side but the balsamic dressing was not overdone. And then … we waited … and waited. The restaurant had gotten busy between our arrival and when our order went in and obviously the kitchen had problems keeping up. A table of 9 is always a challenge., but the wait was too long. Kellan did come by twice to let us know they were in fact cooking our food, and our water glasses remained full. The entrees turned out to be worth the wait — the veal parmigian, chicken Francese, Chicken Picatta and the Veal Mancini were all cooked to perfection. My 14-​year-​old son ordered the linguine Alfredo with chicken and broccoli — perhaps the largest bowl of pasta I have ever seen — he could not finish it and that never happens. My daughter’s penne alla Vodka was also gigantic. Luckily we had just enough room for desert, the kids split the dessert special, which was a spumoni ‘bomb,’ and I had the Lemon Ripieno, an actual lemon, hollowed out and frozen solid and filled with lemon sorbet. Beautiful to look at and delicious! My husband’s cannoli was traditional and tasty. The food was worth the price, the service was great, the dining room is very pretty. It was my first time at Trattoria II Vesuvio, but it certainly won’t be my last!

Good food, but took forever. Two and a half hours of my life I will never get back. Waiter: friendly to the point of being over the top — so frenetic he kept dropping things, knocking things over, whacking people. Really badly paced meal: took forever to take our order, and the time between the really tiny salad and the entrée was almost an hour. The waiter took forever to bring the entire group food — it was ridiculous. Bus girl was clueless. Bus boy ignored us. The food was okay but really expensive for what it was. And my husband, who has a very strict list of what he can and can’t eat, ordered plain salmon — it came bathed in a heavy butter sauce. He explicitly asked for it not to. And the cappuccino was without question regular coffee with a tiny bit of foam on top. It wasn’t espresso and it wasn’t frothed milk. The check had a tip added to it already — 20%. What a crock. Won’t be returning. Already spent the time of two meals there.

We showed up at 8:20pm on a Friday and were told that they were closed. The hours are until 9:00pm… Hungry/​not cool.

Every year, my friends and I do an annual ski trip in the Berkshires, and we always stop by every year to eat Italian! Firstly, its really cozy inside, some people may have a problem with the outdated décor but I personally think its really cozy. Secondly the food is delicious. You MUST get the Risotto Balls and the Caprese Salad is my favorite, they make the mozzarella themselves, Also, there is an amazing dish on the menu that is basically chicken breast stuffed with prosciutto with this creamy sauce and it is out of this world. The portions are the perfect size, and every single time I have been here the service has always been great. I would highly recommend this restaurant after a long day of skiing. Also ! try the creamy garlic soup if its available.

Nice atmosphere, very clean and well appointed barn-​like setting, and nicely plated dishes make this a delightful place for dinner in the Berkshires. Both chicken dishes we ordered were well portioned and quite tasty. We also enjoyed the tiramisu dessert as well as a cannoli. Service was friendly, and our order arrived in about 15 minutes. Recommend for a nice relaxing night out.

Been here once before about 2 years ago and tonight I am going back for another round. loved the first time and cannot wait! We celebrated by best friends birthday last time and even with the intimate space they key it quite and full surprise with all I had planned. Food was superb and no one rushed us out :) round 2 here we come!

Bravo! This place is incredible!
Negative reviewers of this place are out of their minds. The music was very pleasant, soflty playing opera. The décor was a bit dated, but maybe thats because the 76 year old F.O.B. Italian woman who owns the place is busy in the kitchen with her sister preparing your authentic delicious meals. Décor haters — go back to Olive Garden.
This. Place. Is. Fantastic.
It was pretty empty (wednesday 7pm), but we weren’t discouraged. We went all out and ordered the lot. The arancini was maybe the best i’ve ever had. Perfectly fried while maintaing the moisture inside without being greasy. Zucchini Parm was very tasty and hearty. The mussels app was perfect as well.
I got the Bistecca Pizzaiola. I was informed that the meat would cook in the sauce for a while, so it would not really be cooked to my ordered temp. I was not hesitant and told her to prepare it however she liked. She delivered. It was cooked on the well side, but moisture retention was on point and the portion was large. Chicken Française was very tasty as well.
I love potatoes. I love mashed potatoes. The mashed potatoes that I was served at Il Vesuvio were perfection. Get them.
Dessert was the grand finale. Tiramisu, chocolate mousse, and the coconut sorbet. The chocolate mousse was far superior at Vesuvio over the other Italian spot down the road, as was the Tiramisu. The coconut sorbet was great, and even served in a halved coconut!
Mazzeo’s down the road is a great choice if you want very good Americanized Italian dishes, go there. If you’re in the mood for spot-​on authentic Italian food cooked for you by a sweet old Italian woman and her sister who haven’t missed a day of work in 10 years, you should go to Vesuvio. My highest marks. This place was amazing.

Have now eaten there twice in the last month. Both times we went it was excellent — from the authentic style Italian food and wines to the very warm and attentive service.

As other reviewers have stated, the interior is dated and the music is atrocious.
The food was oddly hit or miss. My fra diavolo was SUPER spicy (I was warned, but foolishly did not opt for mild), and my friend’s shrimp dish was yummy and plentiful. Both of these were $ 21, including soup/​salad, and we each took home ample leftovers. The only complaint we had was their soup of the day, which sounded delicious (Roasted Garlic and Fennel Soup). It was not good. Bland, too much cream, no sign of fennel, and doused in olive oil. A thoroughly unappealing color too.
If they fixed a couple things (interior, music, pared down and re-​focused menu) I think they would have more success. Sadly, when we pulled in, the parking lot was dismayingly empty :(The service was attentive and charming.