Paolo’s

Interesting tidbit I recently found out! Paolo’s is closing their doors soon after Easter! I’ve been coming here on and off over the years for happy hours and was happy overall with the prompt service, food– i ordered over that course of time to include: Panko covered risotto balls in marina sauce, pesto and cheese pizzas, lightly fried calamari, prosciutto wrapped asparagus spears… Great HH prices on food and drinks… Now the mystery is are the just closing to remodel and open with a new food concept line, will it be new owners, or will it be another clothing store or coffee shop… Stay tuned

Katie was a great bartender. She know the menu very well. Also she charged my phone that really helped me get a ride home! If your looking for good service Katie is your girl here! And also the pizza her is on point!

Amazing drinks, great happy hour pizzas. Paolos has really good deals for happy hours including ones on food, which is really tasty. The place gets crowded around 5:30 with young professionals which is fun.
Great DJ on Fridays and Saturdays with a good music mix.

Superb happy hour. $ 3 beers, cheap mixed drinks, $ 5 personal pan pizzas (buy a white one), goes until 9PM! Only negative goes to service, which was slow-​ish. Heard this place may be closing soon???

Paolo’s is consistent and good. I ordered the steak salad, medium and it was a great lunch. The bread they bring you in the beginning is also yummy.

I made a reservation for a Monday night. My date and I were seated quickly and our server was over soon after to get our drinks and appetizer. The food was tasty and hot — an easy plus, the wine was decent and the atmosphere was almost exactly what I was looking for. I liked seeing some appropriate holiday decorations in place.
I will say the meal was not inexpensive. Perhaps a little overpriced but granted, the restaurant is located in Reston Town Center. I also would’ve liked it if our server stopped by at a higher frequency. He could have been busy and I was busy conversing with my date so it’s all water under the bridge.
The dining experience could differ vastly on a busy weekend night but for a hot, Italian meal with the accompanying NOVA flair, this restaurant isn’t too bad on a week night.

Full disclosure, I’ve only ever ordered one thing here. But that thing is just so good, I don’t dare try something different. The cayenne and espresso steak salad. It’s the best steak salad I’ve had. The rub is so delicious, tangy flavors, not really spicy. The dressing is a nice sweet vinaigrette, and is just complemented really well by the gorgonzola cheese. Definitely worth trying!

Came here for dinner before catching a movie on a weekend and there was no one there, so I didn’t need my reservation. The inside looks nice but most of the people dining there were dressed casual. I was wearing a nice dress (date night) and from the pictures on their website I thought this would be the dress of most people there but nope just me looking like an idiot (but that’s my fault-​oh well). I’m Italian and love spaghetti and meatballs so I had to try it and it was pretty good. My boyfriend got the Italian sausage rigatoni and he liked his as well. The server was in training but he was really nice. I’d go back… wearing not a dress and wedges of course. 3.5 stars.

I had a decent lunch at Paolo’s. The service was great (my server was training another server so maybe I got an uncharacteristically good experience), the food was tasty and filling, and those complimentary bread sticks are very generous and delicious! There is also a lot of seating, both inside and outside. If it’s a nice day out, I’d recommend you sit outside to get a nice view of the lovely fountain in Reston Town Center.
I ordered the Avocado Salad and truly enjoyed it! It was an amazing blend of flavors. The salad consisted of: avocado, garden tomato mélange, red onion, truffle ricotta (so amazing!!), balsamic vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil. Such an awesome blend of flavors and the truffle ricotta made it incredible. It was certainly filling enough and filling enough.
I truly recommend Paolo’s if you want to dine in the Reston Town Center.

Went for happy hour and the location was great for our large group. I did not have any drinks but I did sample a lot of the happy hour menu:
Flash Fried Fresh Mozzarella — fantastic, my favorite of everything
Nonina’s Italian Meatballs — everyone said these were a must-​try, and they were good but not as good as the mozzarella
classic pizza — also good
Would I go back? If I was in the area, but I wouldn’t drive out to Reston just to eat here.

I came here on a Friday to find it completely empty except a bunch of 40 and 50 somethings at the bar being loud and rowdy. My husband and I split a marg pizza and steak salad. Both were alright. Nothing to write home about. But not terrible.
The service wasn’t great, we were forced to order immediately followed up with no one refilling my water for the whole time I was there. I had to reach behind me and refill my own water… awkward. My husband and I were seated next to two huge groups: one was a bunch of drunk middle aged people and the other was a huge group with young children. Double awkward.
All in all, it wasn’t a bad experience, but I don’t know if I’d ever get a hankering to come back there for either dish I had.

Best happy hour specials in all of Reston. Happy hour is until 9pm on weekdays, and they even have happy hour specials on weekends. Pizza for $ 5, drinks for $ 3 or $ 4, and other tapas style plates are $ 3 or so. You can definitely fill up and have a few drinks for $ 15 or $ 20 — not easy to do in most of town center.
Outside of happy hour though, I have found Paolos to be a bit pricey. I’ve had mixed experiences with the food — sometimes have loved what I got, othertimes it was a bit lackluster. Service is usually pretty good though.

Tried Paolo’s again after ten years. Terrible. Décor the same… Worn and faded… Food tasteless…
I watched an older couple complain about the spaghetti. The chef lumbered out of the kitchen to pronounce that «other people like it…,» before apologizing sullenly and returning to the grill…
On a positive side, our server Aidan was friendly and attentive. I really wonder how this place survives…

First time i came here several years ago I was quite impressed — came back recently and was not impressed at all — not sure if it has gone downhill or other places in Reston have surpassed it. As Ray Parlour might have said recently — it’s 50% that I don’t like it, and 50% that i like other places better, or maybe it’s the other way round.
The starters we pretty good — but how can you go wrong w/​bruschetta, calamari and they do an eggplant /​mozzarella thing which is excellent.
However the mains were pretty drab, and the cocktail list is a sad relic from the 1980s full of fruity sweet vodka based crap and designed for people who do not actually like the taste of alcohol.

I’ve never sat down and had a meal here, and I probably won’t unless its at a cocktail table because I really just come for the Bartenders. Paolo’s is definitely my home base when I go out friday and saturday nights at the Town Center, and I’m 25, a man, and live just outside the TC so it happens a lot, haha.
They have AMAZING drink and food specials until pretty late (9pm), and the atmosphere will explode if they are hosting a DJ, but what really sells the place is service. The bar men that always seem to be there whenever I go are Carlos and Ramone, and those guys rock! I’ve never experienced a crazy wait for drinks here, and when I do have to wait, its clear the guys are slammed and busting their butts. Paolo’s can be slow throughout the week, but I’ll still stop in just to grab a drink and chat with these guys.
Overall I would definitely recommend checking this place out! Its a staple of the TC bar scene.

Came here with a few other people who I was attending a conference with so we were looking for a place to get to know each other as well as eat yummy food.
Good:
— Quick seating
— Fun bar area — looks like they have trivia night on Mondays
— Nice plating
Not-​so-​good:
— Don’t order the risotto — parts were still crunchy (not like purposely crunchy — like it wasn’t cooked appropriately and some parts were undercooked)
— Slow service
Sorry, wouldn’t go back here or recommend.

They are known for their pizza, loved for their pasta, and enjoyed for their pizzaz. This is traditional Italian with California infused cuisine made with fresh local ingredients. They have a spectacular open kitchen indoors, but, the three of us opted to have lunch outside on this beautiful summer day.
Paolo’s Reston, is in the heart of the Reston Town Center (RTC). They opened in 1989 and quickly became known as the place to wine and dine for lunch.
The girls ordered two Grey Goose martini’s for $ 12.50 each. I had my usual margarita for $ 8. I ordered the carbonara for $ 9.50. The girls ordered the ½ seafood salad for $ 11 and the white pizza for $ 13. We all enjoyed our meals including the above average service. After a bottle of Placido Chianti and a Guinness draft we left with a bill of $ 111 less gratuities.
Matthew our server took well care of our table including a complimentary birthday tiramisu for my daughter.
I will return.

This review is for the bar only.
They have happy hour between 4 and 9. But don’t bother going here if you’re into good beer. The beers on the hh menu is a joke. The only ale tastes like dark lager.
We actually left the glasses half full, leaving after just 10 minutes.
No, this must be the worst place in town for beer!
Giving two stars might be a bit harsh since I haven’t tried the food, but a thrre is way too generous for my visit!

I don’t know where Mr. Paolo get’s off on charging $ 18 for about 5 ounces of Lasagna but let me tell you this guy has some &#$%ing balls. It wasn’t that good. It wasn’t $ 14 dollars good. it was maybe $ 10 good. A delicately constructed box of layered pasta, some tomato sauce, and some cheese and suddenly this guy is Wolfgang Puck.
My water glass was empty maybe 50% of the time I was at the table.
My cousin got a salad and requested steak on the side since she’s a vegetarian and I’m a total vulture. That steak was so cold I swear they had to have chilled it before serving.
The calamari appetizer was good. But if you can’t take some squid, toss it in batter, and dump it in hot oil than you can’t even work at Long John Silvers.

2 Stars=“Meh. I’ve experienced better.” is accurate for Paolo’s, sad to say…
We were looking to go to a restaurant in Reston Town Center that we had yet to try. I came up with 3 possibilities and had my husband look at all the menus for his input. He said he wanted to try Paolo’s.
We got here at 5 p.m. on a Saturday night. There was only one other seated table at the time. After we were given menus, a waiter showed up and told us that he wasn’t our waiter but that ours was in a meeting. He told us that he would put in our drink orders. I ordered a Caramel Apple Martini while my husband ordered a glass of the more expensive of the 2 Malbecs on the menu.
A short while later, our waiter showed up and apologized for being in a meeting. No problem, we said. By then, we had a chance to look over the menu and knew what we wanted to order.
I told him that for an appetizer, we were going to start with the Calamari. He said «okay» and wrote it down. Then I ordered my main course, Chicken Saltimbocca. My husband then ordered his main course, Spaghetti and Meatballs. The waiter said he would get our drinks from the bar.
We got the drinks, in addition to the breadsticks and an olive tapenade. My drink was decent and was a generous pour. My husband found his Malbec to be drier than others he had tried plus it seemed to be too acidic.
The breadsticks — dare I say — were probably the best part of the meal. They were soft and flavorful. The tapenade was decent if a bit overpowering when put on the breadsticks.
After a while, we saw the waiter approach our table with 2 plates. Uh oh! This isn’t good, I thought — and I was right. He was bringing us our main courses. I said, «What happened to the Calamari?» To which he said, «Oh! Uhhh… Sorry. I’ll talk to the manager about this».
He came back and said that the manager would comp our drinks. Okay. Fine.
The Chicken Saltimbocca consisted of a half of a boneless, skinless chicken breast. It was crusty and overdone, thus dried out. The mashed potatoes that came with it were bland. The broccolini was well cooked — not wilted at all. However, it had red pepper flakes on it in over abundance. According to the menu, there was supposed to be prosciutto di parma plus the broccolini was supposed to have sage/​lemon sauce. Plus the thin gravy was supposed to be aglio olio. No prosciutto, sage, lemon or aglio olio was to be found in this dish. Overall impression=Meh.
My husband was underwhelmed by his Spaghetti and Meatballs. The pasta was cooked al dente which is to be expected. The sauce primarily tasted of cheese — it was difficult to taste the tomato in it. Our favorite local Italian restaurant is Esposito’s. For comparison’s sake, I asked him how Paolo’s rated to Esposito’s. He said Esposito’s was far, far better. Overall — you guessed it — Meh.
While it was good that the manager comped the drinks, what was not good was that he didn’t stop by our table to personally apologize. If the restaurant was extremely busy, I could understand that. When things are slow, this isn’t good.
Native Bostonians that we are, we grew up taking top notch red sauce Italian restaurant meals for granted — until we moved to the DMV. Since then, we tend to approach Italian restaurants here with reduced expectations. In other words, we don’t expect to be wowed. We expect, however, decent enough food and service. Paolo’s, for us anyway, didn’t reach the bar.