Ciao by Villaggio

This was some of the best Italian food we’ve had in the Indy area. We don’t hang out in Zionsville typically, but we had an appointment around dinner time and ended up walking around the very cute and quaint downtown looking for a place to eat. We walked in on a Thursday night and were seated immediately. Our server was attentive and friendly, not snobby about our drink selections (like at some Italian restaurants), and helpful in suggesting specials. The ambience is nice for a date night or special occasion – low lighting, private booths, low noise level.
And the food! YUM. I ordered the nightly special pasta, which was fettuccine with artichokes, scallops, and shrimp, and my husband ordered the frutti de mare. They were both delicious. The seafood was perfectly cooked and the sauces were light and just a touch spicy. I had more than enough left for lunch the next day. Go here!

There are some decent Italian restaurants around Indy, but this is our favorite. Love their marinara sauce. Hard to go wrong here.
Also feels good to support a restaurant that isn’t part of a chain.

I can’t explain my absence for well over a year. Perhaps it was the change from its former name, simply Villagio, or never hearing much about it… or, it just never seemed to crowded driving by, always a good indicator.
Our last dinner, 4/​16, turned out to be outrageously splendid in food, service and environment.
Appetizer was beef carpaccio in a unique roll but delishious, a classic house made caesar, Frutti de Mare (shrimp, scallops, clams, mussels and mushrooms in a spicy pescatore sauce, tossed with linguini), chocolate mousse cake and espresso.
Everything was perfect. We’ll be back and I hope soon.

Second time to NW Indy this year. Ciao is the place to go! Less than 15 mins from I465. Located on a quaint cobblestone street in Zionsville. Menu and portions are plentiful. Reminds me of Italy. Fresh bread and olive oil (infused with crushed sun-​dried tomato). The rigatoni is my dish! Lasagna looks yummy. This is a must-​visit restaurant!!!

I would recommend reservations which I had done. I was seated at a table for 4 even though it was just me for the night. The service is spot on and courteous. The food is excellent. I managed to pull off a 4 course meal. Even though I’m mostly a meat type of guy, their salads are some of the best I’ve had ! The Carpaccio was fantastic. The Spiritosa salad was great. And the Veal just melted in your mouth. I finished the meal off with Chocolate crêpe for dessert.

Haven’t had dinner here for years and was pleasantly amazed. Great service, atmosphere and wide variety of foods. Started off with the calamari and the arancini (risotto balls). Kids and wife loved the seafood pasta special and I had the pollo all a cacciatore. Will definitely make this place one of our first dinner options in downtown Zionsville for now on.

Love this place. There are always excellent entrée selections and the risotto apetizer is awesome! Great service in a nice cozy atmosphere, can’t wait to go back!

Very impressed with this place. The lasagna was the best I can remember having in a long time. The service was top notch. We will definitely be back.

Really good Italian is hard to find, but can be found very much alive and kicking at Ciao.
The food: 5 stars, no question. The bread is no less than perfect — soft and airy on the inside, crusty on the outside, and the herbed olive oil is so good I considered licking the plate (I resisted. Barely). Entrees: the Manicotti alla Fiorentina was everything I hoped it would be: thick, toothy pasta, creamy, salty ricotta, full-​bodied marinara — heaven on a plate. My husband, who is generally vegan, ordered a variation of the Pasta Gabriele, substituting mushrooms for pancetta, and raved about the result.
The service: 3 stars. Several weeks prior, when making the reservation my husband was asked if there was a special occasion for our dinner. We were, indeed, celebrating my birthday, but on the day of our visit no one acknowledged this. Not that I generally expect special treatment on my birthday, but if a restaurant takes the time to ask whether there is a special occasion, it makes sense that they would use the information requested. Despite having a reservation, we had to wait for a table, even though the restaurant was not more than half full. Our server was very gracious and accommodating, but a little shady when we asked for a little more bread. She said she’d have to check whether there was any, then came back with bread for the neighboring table, but none for ours.
Overall I would absolutely go back, for the food, which I am quite sure I will be daydreaming about for at least several weeks. The service could use some polish.

This was our third time to Ciao in the past few months. I’ve officially found my favorite dish: Pasta Carbonara! The MOST amazing Italian dish I’ve EVER had! Don’t ever order Pasta Carbonara any where else than Ciao!!! Also, the risotto appetizer is out of this world! SO delicious! Can’t visit Ciao without ordering it!

We had a good experience here, only 3 small complaints: the salad was weak and they forgot my croutons, my pasta dish was swimming in a small puddle of olive oil, and, although we had reservations and arrived on time, we had to wait about 15 minutes for our table.
Other than that, all 4 of us liked our food. My friend got lasagna, my husband got veal, and our other friend got a seafood pasta dish. The bread was delicious, and the service was excellent!

Very pleased. I had salmon with capers and a light roasted pepper sauce. My husband had a very moist chicken cacciatore. Service was excellent. We will be back

I had some of the best mussels I’ve ever eaten here. Fantastic food and service. We’ll be back again!

I visited Ciao while on a business trip and loved it. The Caprese was fresh, sweet and delicious. I also had the soup of the day which was an excellent roasted tomato bisque type of fare. Enjoyed it a lot. For the main course, I loved their Frutti di Mare, which is a combination of shrimp, scallops, clams, etc. and mushrooms in a delicious spicy sauce. The sauce was a touch thick, covering a mountain of pasta, and it was really hard to convince my stomach to stop eating even when I was way more than full.
The wait staff was polite and attentive. Décor is classy and quiet.
This was the first time I visited Zionsville and the town is beautiful and quaint. Reminded me of a scene from Groundhog Day. I can’t wait to go back.

My parents and I came to this restaurant for the first time a couple weeks ago. The atmosphere was very chill. The service was good, but the best part of the evening was the food! I had the manicotti and it was incredible. We shared the White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake for dessert and it was amazing! The restaurant was slightly empty, but that must have been because it was the Saturday before St. Patrick’s day and this was not a place to go and drink. Ciao was very classy and relaxing. I will definitely return and recommend this restaurant to people. Fabulous!

Went here today with a few friends and had a great experience. First of all the ambience was nice and inviting. Our server had wonderful recommendations for us to try. Oh the foccacia and oil was great!!!
I order a seafood pasta with clams and shrimp and it was good and flavorful. he informed me the sauce was spicy but had it toned down for me.
I will definity return. we didn’t try desserts but hopefully next time.

I went to Ciao with my family for Christmas Eve dinner. The food and service was wonderful. The waitress was very helpful and patient when we asked questions about the menu.
I had the seafood pasta special, I don’t remember the name. The waitress told me it was always one of their favorite entrees when they offer it as a special. It had lots of shrimps and scallops and had a nice spicy creamy sauce over fettuccine.
My mother and sister had the manicotti. My goodness it is delicious! And so rich. It was nice to have a bite or two, but I didn’t need more than that to be satisfied.
My father, who frequents Ciao’s often, swears by the lasagna. It’s the perfect amount of creamy and saucy. It’s not too big either, like most of the other entrees. Always a great entrée choice!

A wonderful work gathering tonight. We had a group of 12 with no reservation and ciao was able to accommodate. We were warmly greeted and Lori was an excellent server. She suggested delicious wines and provided excellent recommendations and service. Ending the night with lovely desserts. Thank you for the hospitality.

What a wonderful experience and friendly service (even in the face of adversity a.k.a. tired whiny kids on Friday night).
The service really framed the experience, starting with description of specials to actually checking with the parents before bringing refills of sugary drinks to the kids to maintain our last shreds of dignity and control.
Wine special (red California blend appropriately at room, not cellar temperature) complemented Osso Bucco wonderfully. Mussel appetizer was doused in tomato sauce with just the right degree of spiciness. No kid menu, but open to making half a portion. Coffee fresh and strong and Fragole Florentina (pastry filled with white chocolate mousse and fresh strawberries) — quite irresistible.
The only discomforting thought during the dinner: «Are they busy enough on Friday night…» The place started filling up as the Early Diners With Kids filed out. Hope to keep the good thing going (just beware that the pricing point is on the upscale side, although worthy of it).

This place was my go to «nice» itialian dining spot for a long time. The family and staff that run the place were welcoming and kind.
Only recently was I ablr to check out this new «Ciao» incarnation of Villagio.
a party of 6 of us went in o a Wednesday evening during the summer and sat up on the deck overlooking Lincoln park for their Summer Concert series.
The deck is great and I highly suggest it. The food on the other hand has seemed to slip just a bit.
For a appetizer/​pasta course we shared the Pasta Garielle and the Gnochi. They were both good and I would re-​order. They are great for sharing. we had the Gnochi with 3 sauces (Red/Alfredo/Pesto)…Its not o the menu this way but I suggest asking for it this way.
For my main course, a bunch of us at the table ordered off the menu and asked for simple Veal Picatta (which used to be o the menu). They agreed and stated it would nnot be a problem. When it arrived we got 4 orders of Veal Parmesean, not picatta. It was OK… but not what we ordered. Noticing they were begining to get a little busy and not wanting to wait we all just dug into the veal paresean. It was ggood but a little heavy for a hot summer evening.
Overall I will go back here if I have a larger group, especially if I can sit on the deck but not so much for the food.