Primi Urban Cafe

I recently went to Primi with a very large party. It was a rainy evening and I was in the mood to cancel because I didn’t want to deal with parking and hustling to get there in the crappy weather.
Primi has been thru around 5 evolutions in the past couple of years. Change of owners, change of chefs, etc… and frankly it was always hit and miss in the past (besides the original owner which I enjoyed).
I was really hesistant when my friends suggested our evening of around 12 friends to meet up there.
Boy was I in for a surprise.
We show up and the restaurant had the perfect lighting. We are greeted promptly and see the first two friends seated. We have the whole wall with a long table set up for us. Chargers on the table, nice linens, candles and more. Good ambiance — Check!
We catch up and the bartender promptly comes around from the bar to our table. I was really set on wine until she mentions some amazing cocktail concoction which was the special for the evening. Oh yes — Change of mind!
More friends arrive — more cocktails are ordered with the friendly bartender. She was a doll the whole evening and a fantastic mixologist I might add. She would come to us and ask us what types of drinks we enjoyed. People would shout out their favorites and bam, she would disappear. She would come back each and every time with great cocktails. Zero fail on her part all evening!
We start with several rounds of appetizers. From Beef Carpaccio, to the Zucchini soup of the day, to the Mac & Cheese, Mussells and more… every single bite was just spot on. To say I was surprised is an understatement. I was expecting ok at best. Instead we all enjoyed every item.
For dinner, many of us had the house specials. Mine that evening was Chilean Sea Bass and it was buttery, cooked perfectly and melted in my mouth. You know, the way it should be cooked but rarely is?!
The owner finished the evening with two complimentary desserts which we all shared with a few bites. That was extremely kind. The bartender ended the evening with a complimentary round of shots. Really wonderful!
They seriously treated us so well! At the end of the night, the owner came over and asked who was planning on dancing on the table. We were all confused until one of our friends jumped up and did a very nice impression of a matador style dance. Who knew?!
Would I go back? Absolutely. Would I recommend it? I have and I will continue to. I want to go back just to have cocktails she was so wonderful.
Things they need to work on: Possibly valet parking. Parking is an issue. I had to park down by Williams Park where all the needle heads are weaving out of dark alleys, etc. It isn’t the safest spot to park. There used to be valet a long time ago and it would be a fantastic selling point. If this is an option, I would be back a lot more often.

First visit under the new management and can’t say enough good things. Food was amazing and we just went by the staff recommendation. Speaking of the staff they were friendly helpful always available but never too much.
My son has a limited selection and their response was what will he eat– we will make it. They have redone the inside to a cool chic feel. I have driven by it at 4^th and central countless times. Glad we stopped.

My family and I went here for dinner this evening. The waitress was very pleasant and upon her introduction she notified us that she was the maitre de, waitress, and everything extrordinare. Little did we realize she was not kidding. An hour later, we were all convinced she was also the cook, janitor, dishwasher, and responsible for HR because we still had not received any food. What was even funnier (and I say that tongue and cheek), she «gave» us bread «on the house» 45 minutes after we arrived. It started to become so horribly comical that we, along with other patrons, started singing out loud to the musac that was playing in the background. It was possibly the slowest service I have ever experienced. That being said… IF you are willing to wait it out. The food is quite excellent. Just plan on it being made in Italy and shipped across the country the same evening.

This restaurant has had a revolving door of Chefs. Now under new stewardship of a great chef. We had a great dinner, the newly updated menu had interesting options with most entrees around $ 20. I really liked the veal chop with sautéed spinach. The bread is a la carte which is a bit step for a couple slices of focaccia its minor quip.

I decided to give Primi another chance, and I am happy to see a change for the better, due to a new chef. The bland «traditional» offerings have been replaced with a shorter menu of more interesting options. The veal chop my partner ordered was extremely delicious with a mildly alcoholic sauce (two thumbs up). The roast duck I had, although flavorful and cooked to the perfect temperature, was lacking the crispy skin that I like to see; if this element had been there, my meal would have been close to perfect for that price point. The garlic spinach and mashed potatoes were good, although not the best I’ve eaten. The side of mushrooms, however, was wonderful and guarantees that we will return; I could have eaten four times the portion size. The beer selection is fairly standard, but they do have some very drinkable wines. The dessert (peach cobbler) was mediocre as the crust was a little gummy, but we still gobbled it down like the little oinkers we are.
Overall? It’s a good place for date night — with a mix of hits and misses. Order the right thing during one of their quiet periods and you won’t be disappointed.

O.k., I went a little after 6pm on a Wednesday… the manager/​owner or whomever he was had just hired a new bartender and server. Instead of bringing them in on a training shift or even in the afternoon before dinner to train, he is training during the dinner hour which was awkward for them and for anyone sitting right at the bar… what a clown.
I’ve worked in hospitality… you come in for a training shift before you actually start… is he just that cheap or lazy?
Then this was the real clincher… they advertise on the website that Tues & Wed. is 20% off pasta dishes. When I asked the bartender about that, she didn’t know because I think her first day and he piped in, «we don’t do that anymore» Huh? It’s on the website and the main reason I went on a Wed. night! If he had any sense he would have said yes, that’s what the website says and honored the 20% off. I am on a budget and was using a $ 25 Cl Deal… so without the discount on the entrée, I wasn“t able to afford it. I ended up staying at the bar and ordering 2 happy hour appetizers instead… not nearly as much fun as swordfish over pasta.
Also, they still have the light switch to the ladies room outside the bathroom door. So, you go into the bathroom and you are completely in the dark… luckily, one of the servers came in and went to use the men’s room and turned the switch on for me… while I was in the bathroom, a toddler came and flipped the light switch out. No kidding! Go to Lowe’s or Home Depot and get a thing called a PROTECTED SWITCH CAP and cover the switch and keep the light on! My God, have some class… it’s a piano bar!
And speaking of that, the piano player a nice touch, but the manager guy is wound way too tight and puts off a negative vibe. Only real kudos are to the cook who sent me a complimentary bowl of shrimp bisque… at least someone there has a little sense. I won’t be in a hurry to return unless it’s a date or something and someone else is paying… lol

Nothing special. Busy night full of people with groupons. Didn’t have two dishes we wanted to order but failed to mention the second dish was unavailable and just brought out a meat lasagna when my gf ordered a veggie lasagna. Good thing my girlfriend isn’t a vegetarian.
Wouldn’t go back with a groupon… so that’s saying something.

In my opinion, this place is 3star. Since my husband loved the food, I am giving a 4 star. I thought they were just okay… nohing special about the food. To me, their meals are really heavy… especially the pastas filled with too mcuh cheese. Their service is great. The water is always filled and dirty plates are taken away promptly. I also liked the live piano play!

The first 2 times I ate at Primi’s were superb! I enjoyed the paninis. However a few weeks ago, they changed their menu. They no longer serve paninis for lunch and the price jacked up a little and the food taste diminished.

One of my go to restaurants in downtown St Pete for a couple of years now. I like it because it is unpretentious, on the small side (cozy with approx seating for 40 – 45), has good service, is priced right and some nights they have a piano player.
One of my favorite dishes the gnocchi with gorgonzola sauce fell flat last night. Instead of tasting like tiny air pillows they were dense — I am hopeful it was just an off night. The other dish we had was the cannelloni — if you love cheese and sauce this is your dish. The bread was a foccacia style and simply ok, they could have warmed it in the oven at least.
They have a varied wine list and a good selection of beers, no liquor.
Because I’ve always enjoyed it in the past I will go again and fingers crossed they are back on track that night.

When it opened a few years ago, Primi Urban Café was a wonderful little restaurant with a cool South African take on Italian cuisine. A local newspaper even called it Tampa Bay’s «best new restaurant».
Fast forward 5 years and a new owner.
Now Primi is just a standard, little Italian restaurant devoid of anything special including much flavor. The food is OK to good, but much of it is a little bland and forgettable.
The highlight of the meal was the prosciutto and mozzarella appetizer. The veal saltimbocca entrée was pleasant, except for the terribly bland mashed potato accompaniment. The lasagna entrée was surprisingly tasteless and needed a lot of salt and pepper added to create any flavor. The tiramisu dessert was, again, light on flavor.
Unfortunately, Primi doesn’t have the location or vibe necessary to make it that fun, little neighborhood Italian restaurant serving comfort food that makes you want to return again and again. Nor it is good enough to really be a destination or night-​out restaurant.

Food and service was «al dente!» We were really satisfied with everything. My 7 year old found something for him, and as anyone who has a kid knows what I am talking about. Me, the vegetarian, and my husband, not at all a vegetarian, both had pasta for dinner. Excellent flavors! At to finish it all, tiramisu. Perfect, perfect!
Our waitress was pleasant, and full of information.

Why 4 stars? Because it’s one of my favorite Italian restaurants.
— — —
Not only is it great Italian food, but it’s a rare find for me to discover a place that I like in St. Pete. I don’t know why the area is so dry with quality restaurants, but Primi Urban is an exception.
I went months ago and thoroughly enjoyed it, but I couldn’t remember my experience with enough detail to Unilocal about it. So I returned tonight and I was not let down.
During my first visit, I had a steak and my girlfriend had blue cheese gnocchi. Our bellies were both smiling up at us.
This time around, the girlfriend wasn’t hungry but I dragged her to come eat with me because I couldn’t think of a better place to conduct my 80^th review on.
I had the Penne Pasta Primavera. It AWESOME and surprisingly heavy/​filling. I would suggest 86’ing the tomato if you are anti-​tomato like myself. I assumed there would be a light dusting of tomato, not two pounds of it smothering my pasta.
Overall, Primi is a great choice for an Italian dinner, and is one of the best restaurants of any type in St. Pete.

Has a great atmosphere like a NYC restaurant. Piano player is fun. Unfortunately for the third time food was under par. First time steak overcooked. Second time had to send the dish back to have some of the sauce removed. Third time, spagetti with white clam sauce was way to salty.
Our server was nice and accommodating at the table, once he walked away he forgot everything including our Cesar salad.

Great food, service and atmosphere all rolled into one excellent dining experience.
The owner is a gracious native Italian from Sicily who brings previous restaurant ownership expertise from Rome. It doesn’t’ t get much better than Primi Urban Café. The staff appears to work very together very well. I had the baked manicotti which was the best I’ve had ever. The pasta stuffing was made with sausage and ricotta cheese. The cream sauce was a nice change from the typical tomato sauces you see in most Italian restaurants. My wife had a fish dish that was just as good.
As someone who grew-​up in New Jersey and had my share of Italian food, I found Primi Urban Café to be one the best Italian restaurants I have dined at in the Tampa Bay area in my 20 years of living here.

Very good meal! Wait staff was attentive, however, piano man was aggressive… fine if it had been not as we just sat down and didnt even know what to order as a meal or drinks before, we were told to «pick a song» «now“‘…that was not rock, classical, jazz or blues? really? Okay 1 person knew «Danny Boy», sadly it was my date:(…anyhow, back to the food. I had Veal Marsalis very good portion of food and veal tasted fresh! I guess my small complaint was it lacked some seasoning… cream sauce and mushrooms, yum! Overall, I wou
D eat here again… AND would recommend it! Appertizer was OUTSTANDING!!! Mushrooms stuffed with gorgonzola and walnuts on crostini… nom, nom… two thumbs up overall!!! Thank you!

After discovering that Buona Vita is apparently out of business (we had a gift certificate we were trying to use), my husband and I, with our heads still focused on an italian dinner, went to nearby Primi Urban Café instead.
It was a Friday night and while it looked empty from the outside, at least half if not more of the tables were full, including four tables with large groups. Despite this there was only one waiter on duty. There was a runner who was also filling waters, but when the waiter, Simon I think his name was, stopped to greet us he was visibly rushed and there were long waits between his visits. He sped through the specials, disappeared for ten minutes, returned and sped through our orders. To his credit, he did seem to be getting everyone what they needed, and since we are currently on a tight budget, we did not order drinks or appetizers so there wasn’t a whole lot to screw up in our order.
And the food was wonderful. I ordered the Pasta el Limone with fettucini and it was heavenly! Indulgently creamy and rich with parmesan flavor, cut with a nice lemon and white wine tang. Decadent was the word I thought as I was eating it and wondering how much was going to go straight to my hips. Oh but it was worth it! The pasta itself was as perfect as pasta gets. Soft and clean, with just the right firmness and clearly made either onsite or nearby. My husband ordered the Angry Pasta — which is just your choice of pasta in red sauce that is supposed to contain some chili for heat. Brian’s sauce was definitely not spicy, which is the whole reason he ordered it, but the sauce was still so yummy that he was not disappointed enough to send it back… or to stop groaning from pleasure with every bite. Truly it was some of the best pasta I have ever had. We did get the crème brule dessert to share and it was good, however cold. Including the burnt sugar on the top, which is a clear sign that they premake their desserts and keep them refrigerated. Besides that, the biggest downside was that I was hoping I would come home with some leftovers for lunch the next day, but despite the portion size I just couldn’t stop eating and pretty much cleaned my plates.
The atmosphere was very warm, with a live piano player, a heavily perfumed manager/​owner (?) standing at attention at all time ensuring good service (and honestly, we did wait a little but we really had nothing pressing to do that evening, and he was visibly rushed, but having waited tables before I can only give kudos to Simon for his cool, speed and proficiency with such a huge work load), there are several tvs above the bar which gave it a casual touch that didn’t really match the quality of the food, but being a child of the media age I didn’t mind this as much as some others might.
We will definitely be returning to this place, especially considering that I can’t get that amazing Lemon pasta out of my mind!
And please be sure to tip well your hardworking server!

Great great food in an unassuming setting. The owners are hands on and the piano man does the classic love songs (only).
Vitello Saltimbocca great
Bistecca great
Marsala great

Yum!!! We had visited the Dali museum and were looking for a cute little place to eat lunch and we couldn’t have found a better place (thanks to the Unilocal app!)
The menu was tiny, but it was still hard to pick one thing! I went on the recommendation of the server — pasta with red sauce with curry (I forget the name)…it was SO delicious. My bf had the tuscan steak sandwich that was also yummy. That plus one juice was under $ 20. The atmosphere is nice and had the weather been nicer, I would like to sit outside. The service was friendly, prices right and food delicious — definitely recommend!

The food is great, the service is good.
Tables are kinda small for four, but with 2 they are ideal.

My wife and I had a very enjoyable Saturday night dinner at Primi this past weekend. I was looking forward to trying the restaurant due to the other positive reviews on Unilocal as well as its recent inclusion on Creative Loafings Best of the Bay list as the «Best Restaurant You Might Forget About».
The restaurant is located on Fourth Street right in between 1^st Ave North and Central. So there is ample street parking available on 4^th across from Williams Park or up and down Central Ave.
We started off with the 2 piece bruschetta topped with grilled eggplant, which was also available with the more traditional chopped tomato. The two pieces of Italian peasant style bread were cut thick and crisply toasted then topped by the well grilled eggplant and paired with ample amounts of raw garlic and a thick balsamic drizzle. It was definitely a fork and knife affair and a very tasty start to the meal that had me looking forward to the rest of our food.
For an entrée my wife had the Gnocchi two sauce combination which features a plate split in half with gorgonzola cream sauce one side and a napolitana tomato on the other. The gnocchis were light and airy and it was a good idea to split the dish between both sauces as the cream/​cheese sauces was on the heavier side. Don’t get me wrong it was absolutely delicious in taste but a whole plates worth of the cream sauce together with the potato/​starchy gnocchi may be a bit to filling. Overall, it was great and a good price too at only $ 13 for a very large serving. We both love gnocchi in general and eat a lot of pre-​packaged varieties at home and the homemade ones at Primi were way better.
I had the Shrimp Recco which had very large gulf shrimp in a garlicky tomato based sauce with a strong flavor of curry and chili topped off with some freshly chopped parsley sprinkled on top. The pasta options were standard or wheat penne and linguine. I opted for the wheat penne, which the waiter said was his favorite as well with this dish as it blended well with the sauce. I think i agree as it was definitely very good. The shrimp were jumbo in size and very meaty, but the star of the dish was the curry tinged tomato sauce which had an intriguing flavor to it. It was different than what you come to expect from Italian red sauce. I akin it to an even more flavorful and spiced up arrabiata sauce.
With our dinner we had a bottle of a South African Chenin Blanc. As I had read that the owners come to St Petersburg via South African I figured they would pick a good quality wine from their home country. Indeed it was a good pick and possessed a very clean and crisp taste with notes of apple. It was a steal at only $ 22 for a bottle.
To finish off the evening the waiter recommended a Malva Pudding. He stated it was a traditional South African desert, and it sounded good from the description so we went ahead and ordered one to split. It was amazing and I am glad we ordered it. I liken it to a British bread pudding as it was a sweat bread served warm that had been soaked/​infused with a cream sauce and fruits. I couldn’t quite place the flavors we were eating at the time, besides that they were delightful, but after researching at home– Malva is sweet pudding of Dutch origin made with apricots and ginger. The desert bread has a spongy caramelized texture with a rich taste that almost tasted like a liqueur. It was very enjoyable.
Service was excellent throughout the evening as our waiter had an obvious knowledge of not only the menu but of food in general and a very pleasant demeanor. Throughout the evening I was able to catch glimpses of the husband and wife owners talking to other patrons which is a good sign that they remain actively engaged in the restaurant. On the whole I found the restaurant to be unpretentious, great food right in the middle of downtown St. Petersburg and definitely deserving to be remembered when one is in the mood for Italian. I think that Primi is a fantastic local place that I will frequent again, and it is very reasonably priced with our check only being $ 65 pre-​tip for a meal consisting of one app, two entrees, desert and wine. You could easily spend something comparable or more at a cookie cutter chain like Carabbas, Macaroni Grill, Olive Garden — but in the end someplace like Primi is much more rewarding experience.