Luigi Vitrone’s Pastabilities Restaurant

We reserved a dinner for two on Valentine’s Day at Luigi’s for 6:30. We arrived on time and upon entering, were not greeted by anyone. Looking around the counter/​kitchen grille area we found the chef who I imagine is Luigi. I asked if we should seat ourselves and in a rather discourteous tone he said to just wait there. The only waitress asked for our names and took us through the narrow rooms that were cluttered antiques and posters of Marylyn Monroe, not really an Italian feel. We were one of four tables in the restaurant but were seated against the small bar area. Upon being seated at the table nearest the mini bar, the waitress didn’t know what their limited wine and beer list was or their mixed drink options. I got a $ 5 Italian beer (brewed by Heineken) and my wife got an $ 11 pomegranate martini. The martini took quite a while to receive as the waitress had to go and check with Luigi then wait for him to make it. My wife says it was quite delicious though. Instead of the usual bread and butter, we were pleasantly greeted with toasted bread with marinara and grilled mushrooms. We ordered our meals, a roasted porkette with pasta and ravioli with sausage. The waitress proceeded to clear off a visible table in another room. She emptied the scraps in to a 5-​gallon bucket that was between my wife and the bar then loaded the dishes in to the dishwasher and ran it (and it was the new quiet kind either). At this point, we were one of two couples there and it wasn’t busy so I don’t know why the dishes needed to be cleaned at that time. At some point, the waitress asked if we wanted the candle on our table lit (and we did). We received our meals: The pasta and ravioli was delicious and most certainly home made. The porkette came in two pieces and one was dry and the other was moist and wasn’t bad. My wife did not like the sausage flavor and I agree it was a little harsh. Then came our bill, for two meals and two alcoholic drinks, $ 58. We handed the waitress our
gift certificate and credit card and she walked away then came back said they don’t accept the certificates because
is a scam. Written on a coffee filter in a doorway between two rooms was a note that read, «No longer accept
11÷1÷13.» Thoroughly annoyed by all of the little things adding up and then the icing on the cake, we will never go back again and have been telling everyone about our terrible experience.

Mmmmm… my girlfriend surprised by taking me to her old favorite Italian spot in Wilmington. She always spoke about Luigi and how delicious the food was.
Well on our date night we came to Luigis for dinner. At first look it looks like and old house which is, but, but once you enter the place you can’t stop looking at all the cool items on the wall. You can read how Luigi was a person that had a lot of influence in the Italian community in Wilmington.
Now, the review .the inside of the restaurant is nothing like you 5 star restaurant but it does has its unique look to it. As you enter you pass by the kitchen where all the delicious food is created.
Our server Joann was cool, we hit it off right off the bat. My gf had a glass of wine and I got a delicious Irish cream kind of drink that Luigi created. Folks I wanted to lick the glass or squeeze the glass to get every drop out. My appetizer was small calamari on spicy sauce… Heavenly delicious. Ohh did I mention that I’m not much fir Italian food. I had a seafood dish which included clams, mussels, crab meat, snow crab legs and fish over home made pasta by Luigi. I wanted to finish my meal but the amount of seafood was filling which is a great thing this was complimented by a home made sauce which truly completed the dish.
My girlfriend requested a banana foster and I will summarize the taste and how wonderful it was in one word” heavenly”.
Since she had not been there in about 12 yrs Luigi came over and chatted. I was taken not only by the food but how this man loves cooking this amazing dishes. Ok, this is personal but this men felt in hard times and was in a coma for months but because of love of cooking is that he still does what he does. I found this to be truly inspiring and impressive. Luigi I salute you. And most definitely will be back for seconds.

Luigi the owner of the place is the Chef
His food I am telling you is real down home Italian food (soul food)
Over the top
Service and food both are excellent

We were running errands and were looking for a place to eat and ran in here but took out instead. As my husband and I took our first bite of pasta in unison, we immediately looked up at each other with wide eyes. The red sauce was amazing as were the meatballs. It is on the pricey side for take out but was delicious.

Had a wonderful dinner here last night. The Veal Fontina was phenomenal and the atmosphere is charming. Good service as well. Bruschetta comes with the meal and is a wonderful bonus. Like Rebecca, we’ve eaten here a number of times, taken different people, and never had a bad experience.

I’m not sure what went wrong with the other 3 reviewers experiences, but the 3 – 4 times I’ve eaten at Pastabilities it has always been amazing! I’ve gone on dates with my husband there and taken my parents and in-​laws, no complaints, all praise! The food was wonderful, wine delightful, wait staff on the ball. We all ordered a different entrée and no «whines» from anyone. The environment is very intimate and quaint.
I moved away a few years ago and I’m actually planning to celebrate my sister’s birthday and small family get-​together at Pastabilities.

I tried to put 0 stars but it wouldn’t let me.
Single worst food experience of my life. I wish I was exaggerating/​writing this for shock value/​attention, but I am not. I am dead serious. The food was extremely low quality and poorly prepared. Nearly inedible. I can’t even understand how they can serve what came out on our plates. I figured eating there was worth a shot, since there were very good reviews online (and some bad ones– but everyone gets a bad review now and again). I must say– do not be swayed by good reviews in the past. Something terrible must have happened there over the past few years. It’s such a shame– because I’m all about supporting the small business. I’m kicking my own a$$ right now for not complaining to them/​refusing to pay the bill… but I didn’t have the heart. So now I hide through the internet and issue my complaint.
I just cannot understand how something could be so bad. The only 2 single components in any of our dishes that was worth eating were as follows: fresh cantaloupe, marinated artichoke. I’ll spare you the rest of the gory details but I will leave you with two words to sum up the evening: «bad texture».
(An aside, the waiter was very nice)
ETA: one more word to sum up the evening: «disturbing»

We went to Pastabilities with high hopes. The local «restaurant critic» (who has steered us wrong in the past) gave it a glowing review, as did most other «local» reviews.
Unfortunately, the food was extremely hit-​or-​miss. The bruschetta was amazing. The salads were horrendous — the lettuce was all ribs, and some were so tough I actually had to spit them (discreetly) into my napkin; the caesar dressing was borderline flavorless. One of the appetizers — a special that was some sort of beef and cheese rolled up and baked — was very tasty. The other, the «Sauteed Buffalo» (some sort of cheese and veggie almost-​antipasto), was meh. For the entrees, the only person who enjoyed theirs was my husband. He got the «Hunters Canneloni» and it was delicious! He let me have part of his when I couldn’t eat my entrée. Speaking of which, it was the «Red Wine Fettucine». I have had better seafood at Red Lobster, and the pasta was too thick and hadn’t cooked all the way through. It was like I was eating dough. I honestly don’t remember what our friends ordered, but they weren’t thrilled with their meals either.
The other problem was the waiter. We ate at 5:30 pm — the place was *empty*. And he was nowhere to be found. He would disappear for over 10 minutes at a time, much to our frustration. Also, when I asked for my soda without ice, he failed to mention that they don’t have sodas on tap — they have warm cans. Fail. I actually really enjoyed the marinara sauce, which you can purchase by the jar. But we were so tired of waiting for *everything* that I decided not to buy a jar (though I wanted to) because it would have kept us there another 10 — 20 minutes. Again, the place was *empty*. There was no reason for such poor service.

Pastabilities was recommended to me and my friend.
We went. We ate.
As my mother used to say, ‘If you have nothing nice to say, then say nothing at all’.
I prefer Attilio’s Ristorante & Mrs. Rubino’s when in Wilmington, DE area.
My friend was adamant about me putting only 1 star, but I couldn’t .
The End.