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Favaloro's Big Night Bistro
Categories: Restaurants Italian Restaurants Seafood Italian, Seafood [Edit]
545 Lighthouse AvePacific Grove, CA 93950
(831) 373-8523
- Hours:
Tue-Sun 5 pm - 9:30 pm
Wed-Sat 11:30 am - 2:30 pm
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Romantic, Casual, Intimate
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
About This Business:
Passionfish offers serious food in a fun and causal atmosphere. The combination of Chef Ted Walter's uniquely flavorful culinary creations and an award… read more »
56 reviews for Favaloro's Big Night Bistro
Review Highlights
"...chicken Romano, with a tomato cream sauce and fresh arugula..."
(in 3 reviews)
"Very romantic atmosphere and the service was awesome."
(in 7 reviews)
"...delicate and delicious, the halibut special with just the..."
(in 3 reviews)
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56 reviews in English
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Review from Armando R.
Mill Valley, CA
12/31/2011
When we stay in the Bay Area over Christmas we've gone to the Mission Ranch and then to Midnight Mass at the Basilica for, at least, the last 10 years. As I am of Italian decent, my parents born in Italy, and go to Italy every year, I love Italian food. Have usually eaten on Fisherman's wharf & pasta/ seafood dishes are mediocre in my opinion and I do not think any of those touristy places have an Italian in the kitchen. Why is this important to me. We live in the SF Bay area and most of the restaurants in the North Beach/Little Italy area may have Italian owners and some Italian waiters, but most of the cooks are Latin. I do not mean to infer this in a prejudicial manner as, although I speak Italian, I'm fairly fluent in Spanish too having lived and worked in Latin America for 2 years and absolutely love Buenos Aires, maybe 40% Italian decent. Now, these Latin cooks were obviously trained by Italians but in my opinion, yup, I know I'm biased, the dishes don't come out as if they were cooked by an Italian, native born would be nice but an American Italian is fine too. On the restaurant website I read this was a family owned business and seeing some of the names I assumed they were Italian but no where did it mention it in the "About US" link. Tell the public, make it clear, the owners or their decendants are either from Italy/Sicily etc. and tell us the name(s) of their towns/villages etc. Pacific Grove is some 300-400 yards from the ocean so I believe customers would think the restaurant offered good seafood dishes. Well as Sicily is an island, I at least, think of "Specialita' di Pesce" (seafood specialties) when I'm on this beautiful island. I really would advise this restaurant to advertise that "We have an Italian cooking in the kitchen". I'm telling them that just this comment would attract more Italian tourists either from Italy or American born. There was a waiter there who was from Calabria(my father was born there) and another gentleman in the kitchen---I told him he looked like Joe Pesci...who was from near Mondello, a delightful seaside village west of Palermo. Again, I was told they were Italian in conversation but let the public know on the website. I think many prospective Italian speaking customers would like to converse in their language. Anyway, "basta" (enough already).
We read the reviews of this restaurant and most were deservingly positive. We loved the environment and the Spaghetti with Meatballs & Sausages & Linguini with Seafood both made me feel very nostalgic as these plates "Erano deliziose come facevano le mie Nonna e Mamma" (as my Grandma & Mother used to make). In Italy there is an expression "Fare la Scarpetta"(little shoe) which means to scoop up the sauce. Not only with tasty hummus appetizer, we did that with the delicious bread both on the salad dressing vinagreta & sauces from the pasta. Many in Italia consider "La Scarpetta" the best part of the meal. I remember my Mamma used to say as she kept eating and eating and we asked why & she responded "per togliermi lo sfizio". The word "sfizio" is not easy to translate but remember a potato chip company ad was that they bet you could not eat just one and like eating peanuts, it's not easy to stop. There is another Italian saying which may help to explain "lo sfizio" and it's "l'appetitio viene mangiando"-one's appetite increases eating and it was never more evident than in this wonderful "ristorante"! Although in the SF area the past 40 years, I was brought up on the East Coast and the quaint town of Pacific Grove reminds me of so many coastal towns in the East like Kennybunkport and Ogunquit in Maine, Cape Cod in Mass, Long Island in NY etc. I will gladly recommend this restaurant to all my friends who visit the Carmel/Monterey Area & will look forward to returning to Favaloro's to try many more inviting dishes. -
Review from Heather T.
Burlingame, CA
11/27/2011
Last year, over Thanksgiving weekend, my boyfriend and I stopped here for a glass of wine after dinner with the family. As I remember they were just about to close, so we were the only people in the restaurant, but we never felt rushed in any way. We enjoyed ourselves so much that we decided to come back again this year for the same thing. Both times we have had incredibly friendly and attentive servers. This year we decided to order an appetizer as well and were not disappointed one bit by the cheesy garlic bread.
The only reason I am giving it 4 stars is because I think it would be unfair to give it 5 without tasting more of the menu. However, based on the experiences we've had, I'm sure we will be coming back to do just that. Stay tuned! -
Review from rose h.
Woodland, CA
10/12/2011
just got home from dinner here, and i am sorry to say that i was a bit disappointed. while favaloro's wasnt awful, it was definitely not as great as i wanted or expected.
we had half a dozen oysters and the mussel appetizer to start, then my husband had the tortellini and i had california sea bass which was on the special board and finished with the vanilla creme brulee.
the oysters were pretty good, but one of mine had a slightly off flavor (i think it had gone bad, but i ate it anyway). the mussels were very good, cooked in a light marinara like tomato sauce (the mussels were actually on the special board as well). i really liked his tortellini, but i was disappointed with my sea bass. it came slightly battered with some curry-ish tomato (unfortunately i dont remember what the waiter called it, and the sauce was strangely blank, so i couldn't really tell what it was supposed to be) over a rice pilaf with steamed vegetables. i was fine with the vegetables, rice and sea bass, but the sauce ruined it for me. the creme brulee was alright, not the best ive had, and it was a little salty. I'm not sure if some people like it slightly salty, so it has that caramel/salt type flavor going on... for me, it was tolerable but strange.
the service was pretty good, the waiter, as well i think busboy? not sure what to call him, waiter's assistant? were both very attentive with drink refills, making sure we were doing okay, and clearing the table of the dishes. i thought it was odd that i had to ask about the specials, but it could have been that i did not give him the chance to offer them to us before i asked.
i feel like this place is kinda hit or miss... if you do come here, i recommend reading the reviews and seeing what other people ordered and getting that. my husband read in the reviews that the tortellini was good, and so it was... i thought i'd try some seafood, seeing as we're right next to the ocean, but i should've gone with something i read in a review rather than just winging it with a special. as i said at the beginning of this review, it was not awful, but for the price of everything i was definitely expecting more. -
Review from Fred W.
Pacific Grove, CA
12/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
My new go to Italian comfort food place. Sauces just like grandma from Italia used to make. So nice they let us eat even tho they were closing in 15 min. Will be back.
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Review from Sue F.
Oakland, CA
1/21/2012
Had a great dinner last week after a movie at the Lighthouse Cinemas. Small enough to be intimate, cozy but light enough to read the menu, good wine list with lots of inexpensive options. Had the mussels and house salad -- both were excellent.
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Review from Qe I.
Pacific Grove, CA
Updated - 5/13/2011 6 photos
SuperSizeMe Sea Scallops. To see is to believe. Offensively large.
Juicy. Plump. Like Butter. Executed with precision and throw on a heavy pinch of nirvana. They know what they're doing here and it shines through.
Place on a bed of rice pilaf tossed with pine nuts and mushrooms. Fresh, seasonal rustic vegetables on the side.
It's all in the details - Cesar salad, home made dressing with anchovies and the tastiest croutons you could dream up. Warm home made olive bread? Don't mind if I do.
Service with a smile: John aims to please, nothing is too much trouble it seems here.
End it sweetly with Creme Brulee and bid Ciao!!.. . it all puts me in a very content and can't wait to rip my pants off place.2 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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9/30/2010
Mamma of Mia! I just had the tenderest of MoBay fried calamari in here tonight. Like eating… Read more »
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Review from Bud B.
Pacific Grove, CA
12/16/2011 Seated via OpenTable
We are regulars at this cozy, wonderful restaurant. We were extremely happy as usual with the service (son of the owner), food, and atmosphere. The menu is extensive offering several entrees for my vegetarian wife. Don't miss their "deep fried avocado appetizer stuffed with crab salad. It is usually not on the menu and is delicious. Also, they are one of the few restaurants that offer spumoni for dessert. Go there, you'll love it
Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 12/16/2011
Thank you for the great review and for choosing Us!… More » -
Review from Carlos B.
Monterey, CA
7/20/2011
You know the muscular British guy on the Food Channel that goes into empty, failing restaurants and kicks ass? One of the things he does is to put items on the menu that the cooks can actually cook.
"What is that disgusting blob of dough falling out of that sandwich" he bellowed. The cook meekly offered that it is the sand dab sandwich and that the breading mixed with the mayo on the bread and turned into a glob and and fell out..."Throw that in the garbage" he yelled. "you cannot serve that god-awful mess. What made you think that would work? You murdered a perfectly good sand dab for nothing".
Then, presumably, he takes the poor unkempt cook out back and beats him up a little to "re-educate" him. After that, he offers the patient customer a free glass of wine for the wait and having to order something else.
The dinner reviews are good and likely the owner and head cook are there to look over things then. I'll only take two stars off cuz I think my dish was...unique and I ordered it fully knowing that it could be disappointing.Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 7/22/2011
Just wanted to let you know just for your information that… More » -
Review from Efrain g.
Updated - 2/18/2011
Terrible.
As we walked in there was a horrid stench similar to horse poop and feet;
a host seated us, left us for about 15 minutes, took our order, was not attentive, and didn't offer the nice dessert tray passed around other tables.
Food was not good, unfortunately. I've been here twice; I was being nice on the first review. I won't be coming back.1 Previous Review:
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6/8/2010
Decent food, decent service, nice, but cramped window table.
Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 2/22/2011
How disgusting and so untruthful....maybe you tracked horse… More » -
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Review from Ruthie L.
St Petersburg, FL
5/4/2011
Went here with a couple of friends the night before the Big Sur International Marathon. We sat at the bar.
Location is great. It's in downtown Pacific Grove and within walking distance of Lovers Point Park. We found parking on Lighthouse Avenue a block from the restaurant.
It's a nice restaurant - good ambiance, cozy. The hostess and our waiter were nice and the waiter was willing to answer all my questions politely.
Their offer for a free appetizer is legit. It's the chef's choice, so you don't get to choose - we got the gnocchi. I'm typically not a fan of gnocchi, but the gnocchi here was fabulous. Very light, great texture, and a delicious sauce. I got the farfalle al pollo (not sure if this is the right name - basically, pasta with chicken and sundried tomatoes and a light tomato cream sauce) - really enjoyed this. One of my friends got the lasagna, which was delicious. My other friend got pasta with shrimp, which she said was good, although she was a bit disappointed with the sauce (she was expecting a vodka sauce, not sure what it came with).
Since we were running the next day, we didn't get drinks or dessert, but the desserts did look very tasty.
I would return here in a heartbeat. Highly recommend the restaurant, we really enjoyed our meal. -
Review from Kameron K.
San Francisco, CA
1/1/2011 Seated via OpenTable
Came here with my boyfriend on a mini vacation to Monterey. We were looking for a good, local place to eat and checked yelp and saw that this place had a lot of good reviews. We also noticed there was a free appetizer if we mentioned yelp, which was a plus (but then noticed it also says it on their website, so we didn't feel as special anymore)
Why is the menu from their website a Microsoft Word document? Eww. Turn it into a pdf at least.
We made reservations via yelp and got a romantic window seat. The place wasn't too busy, but the atmosphere was really nice.
We started off with some brushetta which was really good and refreshing (and Free!)
I had the Porcini Mushroom Agnalotti which was really good. My boyfriend had the Petrale Sole which he said was pretty good.
Only downside was the table next of us of a group of older folks, complaining about San Francisco, which is where we are from.
The atmosphere was good and the neighborhood was quiet. The staff was friendly and the food was good. Highly recommend.
Better make sure you make reservations before you come. -
Review from Julie S.
Santa Cruz, CA
6/3/2011
The freshest" fish on the Island of Monterey! The Spotted Prawns are so rare " you can't get them just anywhere" There's nothing next to eating sea urchin that taste as fresh as Monterey Spotted Prawns" Marie serve's them just right! Old Country Style.One order is just a tease.
Bravo" Marie -
Review from Mike P.
San Diego, CA
4/2/2011
First, you must order the crab salad in a fried avocado appetizer. Sounds decidedly low class, right? Sure, whatever... it is delicious!!
Second, how could you not love a place that calls itself the "Big Night Bistro"?!
Avoid the ravioli: you want a steak, oysters, halibut & bubbly for your big night! -
Review from Stacey M.
Marina, CA
11/3/2010
The Favaloro's have spoiled me from eating at any other Italian style restaurant. This is a family run business, so each family member has their own forte.
I never know what to order because it's all so good, so I let them bring me whatever they suggest.
Son John recommended Panko Crusted Avacado deep fried and filled with crab salad. The best, until I got the special of the night, hand made ravioli in a creamy sauce.
The chocolate decadent lava cake was interrupted by my now fiance who proposed to me 9/3/2010 in between dinner and dessert.
I did put 3-$$$. This includes an appetizer, entree, dessert, and a bottle of wine. All this for $30 to $60 per person is fabulous.
Check it out:
http://www.favalorosbi...
.
If you want great food and don't want to spend this for dinner, GO for lunch. Just as great and also affordable. Remember, this is a very family oriented and romantic eatery. And you can be as comfy in nice jeans or a suit. The atmosphere here is serene, not pretentious.
Daughter Ariana was in on it as was the rest of the family. May I bring you a glass of Prosecco while your dessert is being prepared? Only to find an engagement ring tied to the stem. Yes, Michael got down on one knee, so old fashioned and I gasped which quieted the entire restaurant. Of course I said YES!
Hopefully "The Favaloro's" will be doing our wedding dinner.
WAIT, it gets better.
Go try a wine pairing. Always an incredible event and one that should NOT be passed up. The very low price of these events are spectacular. They spend weeks pairing local wines with every course that is to die for. Worth every sip and taste.
As Margi T said, yes it is buzzing with conversation, hey this is an Italian place, need I say more.
And Marie will accommodate any vegan, vegetarian, or carnivore to YOUR liking. Not many or any fine food restaurant will do this.Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 11/3/2010
Thank you so very much for the great review and hope we have… More » -
Review from Emily B.
Minneapolis, MN
3/23/2011
My fiance and I were on the Monterey Peninsula for about a week in February, so we ate at a lot of different restaurants. We were looking for good Italian food, and read about Favaloro's on yelp. Having visited all of the different parts of the peninsula, we decided to try Pacific Grove. Before arriving at the restaurant, we drove along Ocean View Blvd., which was absolutely beautiful. One of the best sunsets I have ever seen.
We arrived at Favaloro's and immediately felt like we were part of a community. We made a reservation through opentable, but it seemed like they would have tried to accommodate us even if we did not have a reservation. The host simply pointed to a table and we went and sat down. The place is family run and you can tell - the whole family is there working as hosts, waiters, chefs, etc. In short, it was the best meal that we had on the Peninsula. We started with the garlic bread, which was delicious but EXTREMELY heavy on the garlic. The Veal alla Fiorentina was delicious. Their menu has a lot of variety, and is full of hearty traditional Italian dishes. If you like neighborhood places with a casual atmosphere and good food, Favaloro's is the place to go.Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 3/24/2011
Thank you for the great review it was a pleasure having you… More » -
Review from Shelley G.
Pacific Grove, CA
6/7/2011
The food was mediocre. I had the bruschetta which did not taste fresh at all. The meatballs and spaghetti was bland, in fact the meat was probably what I didn't like the most about that dish which should be the best part. The seafood platter was way too expensive for just small deep fried pieces of common seafood. The bistro was cute but a little too dark inside. Finally the service was okay, not really friendly or welcoming however the food came out in a timely manner.
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Review from Eddie W.
6/6/2010 4 photos
3.5 Stars but not enough for 4 Stars
For some time now, my friend has been dying to try Favaloro's after hearing so many positive recommendations.
I ordered the:
Farfalle con Pollo: Bowtie pasta grilled chicken breast, olives, and sun dried tomato in a basil tomato cream sauce
My friend ordered the:
Tortellini Antonino:Meat filled pasta rings served in a light garlic cream sauce with tomatoes, arugula and mushrooms
My sauce had a subtle richness to it but balanced throughout. The pasta was al dente and the chicken was cooked well. A very good savory dish on a cold day. As for my friends dish, I enjoyed the lightness of the cream sauce and the boldness of flavors.
For dessert we ordered the Tiramisu and sweet cream topped with fresh fruits served in a martini glass. The Tiramisu for my friend was, "the worse Tiramisu he had ever had". I thought that it definitely lacked the usual strong flavor profiles; mild would be putting it lightly. As for the sweet cream, it was refreshing and satisfying. Each dessert cost $8 which was a huge upset.
Final Thoughts
Great sauces, decent portions, reasonable prices but skip dessert -
Review from ms j.
San Francisco, CA
9/8/2010
Warm bread & canelli bean spread to start off with-delicious. Homemade pasta. I got the butternut squash ravioli, and the bfriend got the chicken farfalla. Just a little too much salt for my taste, but not a big deal.
Dark & romantic. Fun, quirky design, kinda rococo. Service and ambiance are very good. Go for a stroll down the block after dinner, it's nice and if you want something sweet, there's an ice cream shop on the other side of the street, a couple of blocks down from Favaloro's. -
Review from Theresa T.
San Francisco, CA
12/8/2008
Keeping with our tradition of always trying a decent portion of any menu, we opted to share dishes and created our own little tasting menu.
Our ingenious plan laid our a four course meal to be shared, starting with a refreshing arugula salad. Fresh and crisp with light dressing and crumbles of blue cheese. Moving onto the primi piatti...the gnocchi Gorgonzola was almost the best I've ever had. The sauce was super cheesy and pungent (as Gorgonzola should be). Soft potato pasta, what more can I say? Our main dish was the least exciting. Although it was well presented and prepared as mentioned the sea bass (scampi style) was a bit soft for our liking.
The home-run of the night (followed closely by the gnocchi) was deff the dessert. A mascarpone custard with fresh blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries that somehow left our full tummies feeling refreshed and certainly satisfied.
The espresso, cappuccinos and wine (we drank a Sangiovese to keep with the Italian theme) add to the fantastic dining experience at Favaloro's. We will be back the next time we're in PG. -
Review from Amy L.
12/11/2008
I recently discovered this adorable litte bistro while on vacation with my parents and SO in Pacific Grove, near Monterey. We just happened to drive by and my mother commented how cute the place looked...the menu was affordable and had great offerings, so we decided to give it a try.
My dad enjoyed what was essentially Halibut Parmesian, a hefty portion that my dad said tasted very fresh...my dad is very picky about freshness of fish, so that's a big compliment out of him! My mom got a delicious veal scallopini to which she asked them to add mushrooms (and they did, in abundance!), and my partner enjoyed yummy canelloni off the specials menu. The only mild disappointment was my dish, pasta alfredo with chicken. I'll give them credit, though, this dish wasn't on the menu, I asked them to make it for me and they were nice enough to do so...so I shouldn't complain!
I would definitely go back here! In a touristy area where a lot of the restaurants are overpriced and don't really deliver much in return, this is a hidden gem, probably overlooked by the tourist population, which tends to gather more on Fisherman's Wharf and Cannery Row, rather than "downtown" Pacific Grove. It's nice to know that there is a nice place to have a good Italian dinner in the area without crowds and tackiness! -
Review from Dennis R.
Pacific Grove, CA
5/30/2011
Romatic, Italian, large wine list, - been here once but I'll be back.
Listed in: My Neighborhood
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Review from Graham G.
Long Beach, CA
4/18/2011
We chose this place based on the reviews of other Yelpers and I just wasn't that impressed. It's not bad and it's not great. Average, but for the price you can probably find better. The calamarie is great.
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Review from Rachel P.
Oakland, CA
6/4/2009
Wow, was this place disappointing.
In summary: heavy handed, bland, and way over priced.
The food was Olive Garden quality at twice the price. Our bread was stale (really), my halibut tasted heavy like it was cooked in too much oil, and the salmon fettucini was again, heavy. They say they make their own pasta, but I never would have known. My family used to make pasta and it was light and fluffy. Their pasta had the texture of well cooked Barilla from the box. It was not like any freshly made pasta I have every had. The only thing that stood out for me was the panko crusted avocado appetizer from the "specials." This is in quotes because I have seen many reviews that listed the same specials. I might be crazy, but it seems that if you offer the same thing every day its not a special and should be on the menu.
For EXACTLY the same price, go further up the street to Passionfish and have a truly memorable meal in a much nicer restaurant (food, service and atmosphere). -
Review from Raul N.
2/12/2011 1 Check-in Here
I've been on a bit of an Italian kick lately, but my go-to Italian restaurants--Joe Rombi's La Mia Cucina and La Piccola Casa--have been closed for the winter, forcing me to check out other Italian restaurants around town. It's been a blessing in disguise, as I've tried out Alberto's, Vito's and Favaloro's over the past month.
The other day, I tried Favaloro's for dinner before heading to a movie. My friend and I decided to order one of the special appetizers--an avocado halved, breaded and fried, stuffed with rock crab and served over greens and tomatoes. When it arrived, I was a little surprised that our server plated the halves individually for us. It's a nice touch, but one that was a little unnecessary. (For example, I don't care for raw tomatoes and would have skipped putting any more on my plate. And our server had a very heavy hand with the pepper grinder, churning out lots of pepper in each twist.) The avocado was pretty tasty, a novel preparation, but one that could have used a little more thought and refinement. It would have been better quartered, maybe more like avocado fries--which if you haven't had before, are delicious!--atop a proper salad. The rock crab salad on top was too salty and would have been better with Dungeness crab. Sure, it's pricier to use Dungeness crab, but I'd gladly pay the difference for more succulent crab.
I ordered one of the night's specials--the chicken Romano, with a tomato cream sauce and fresh arugula over pasta. The chicken had a nice flavor and texture. The sauce wasn't too creamy--often a risk in Italian restaurants--and the tomatoes were flavorful. I wished the tomatoes had been better mixed with the sauce--some bites were packed with tomato, others were packed with plain cream sauce. I also wished the tomatoes had been cooked consistently--some were nice and tender, others completely raw. The pasta was a letdown--it tasted like cheap linguine from the grocery store. There was a lot of it, but a pity it didn't taste very good, even with the sauce. The arugula on top was a nice idea, but it was too bitter and overly dressed in balsamic, the combination of the two killed the sweet tomato flavor of the dish.
My friend ordered the butternut squash ravioli. I tasted a bite, but sadly we were both less than impressed. The sauce totally covered up the butternut squash flavor!
The desserts came out on a tray, something that always disturbs me in restaurants. Sure, they want you to *see* the desserts as if somehow that will convince you to order one, but the wandering dessert tray has the opposite effect on me. I mean the desserts always look so sad, melting away into an unappetizing puddle. Plus, I find the practice utterly wasteful as they have to toss the spoiled desserts every night. So needless to say, we passed on dessert.
Service was an odd mix. We started out with great service from a very friendly and welcoming server who brought us our drinks. But once we were ready to order our food, another server took over for the rest of our meal. He was far less friendly and pretty rigid and no-nonsense. I was a little perplexed when he purposefully took my dirty knife off my appetizer plate and placed it on my bread plate. It's weird when servers touch silverware I've used and I'll be using again, plus, why not just bring me a clean knife? Odd.
I also thought the atmosphere inside was a little strange. We were seated in the front room, and it's strange that the host stand is right in the middle of the room, amidst diners' tables. I mean people were lined up right in front of diners--so much for a peaceful dinner. Favaloro's seems to overlook some of these little things--the bread was cold and dry, and paired with an odd hummus-like spread with no flavor; there's only small bottles of San Pellegrino, not large ones to share for the table; odd placement of host stand but seemingly no dedicated host. And I'd love to know what happened to our complimentary appetizer--there was no mention of that during our dinner. Perhaps it's a "mention Yelp" special or not valid Fri/Sat?
Honestly, Favaloro's doesn't really measure up to Joe Rombi's restaurants, but it's a worthy replacement during January when Joe closes up shop. And heck, it's not all that bad even when Joe's restaurants are open too. It does seem to be easier to snag a table here at Favaloro's than at La Mia Cucina. And the location's great, just a few doors down from Lighthouse Cinemas, if you're looking for a spot for dinner and a movie.Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 8/26/2011
so you are the new food critic for the monterey herald… More » -
Review from damon h.
Santa Clara, CA
11/21/2010
Me and wifey went here on our second night in Pacific Groove. After a wonderful first night dinner at PF I wasn't expecting the world of this place. Boy was I wrong, we had probably the single best tasting dish here out of the whole trip. It was a avocado halfed, covered in panko crumbs, flashed freid only for a minute or two and stuffed with the best crab salad I ever had served on a bed of spring greens. Oh my goodness it was sooooooo good!! I will dream of that crad salad stuffed avocado for many a days! For dinner I had the 'Big Night Spaghetti' with homemade italian sausage n meatballs and the wifey had the meat filled tortellini with porcini mushroom, arugula and roasted peppers in a magic cheese/creamy/garlic sauce! Dam it was so good I want to go back sooner than later!
Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 11/24/2010
THANK YOU for the wonderful review, hope to see you again… More » -
Review from Dawn S.
Alameda, CA
9/11/2008
Was working in the Monterey area for a month and went to Favaloro's three times. Twice just the two of us - very romantic and once with a big group. All three times we were very well taken care of by the wait staff. The place is small but extremely accommodating. Family owned, we had the same two waiters every time we went.
Every dish was great. The pasta is all homemade. My boyfriend ordered a side of meatballs and I felt like I was eating right out of a Godfather film. The "gravy" was obviously from scratch and well worth it. My entrees included the mushroom ravioli - delicate and delicious, the halibut special with just the right amount of spiciness and the vodka shrimp linguine. Yum. The salads are large so be prepared to share.
Make sure to save room for dessert as the Marscapone is literally to die for. Brimming with blueberries, raspberries and strawberries it was a beautiful, delectable treat. So rich that I only ordered it once. With the large table we shared several desserts and again, everything was wonderful.
I highly recommend checking out Favaloro's! -
Review from John B.
Monterey, CA
3/3/2011
After some rave reviews, we finally got around to trying this place and found it mediocre at best. If the pasta was home made it didn't taste so. The service was disinterested and of no help other than to bring us our food and check. Never mentioned the "specials" which were posted outside. I thought they taught this in Waiter 101. If he was family, maybe he was adopted. There must be a good Italian restaurant in the area and we'll be going elsewhere to find it.
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Review from Austin J.
Sacramento, CA
3/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
You HAVE to eat here if you are going to be near Monterey. There food is amazing! My Girlfriend and I went here for our 2 year anniversary dinner. We had been there a few months before for her parents anniversary and it has been to die for both times. The people are soo nice and are top of everything. The food is so fresh and tender when you get it. The deserts are something you have to save room for.
Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 3/29/2011
Thank you for the great review and happy to hear that you… More » -
Review from J R.
Pacific Grove, CA
5/22/2011
An excellent meal "late" on a Saturday evening. The place was pretty packed, but a nice local couple gave up their table & retired to the bar to finish their post-dinner wine. Service was top notch. The crusty, hearty bread (two varieties) was good, but not great. (The soft butter served with it was easy to spread, unlike the rock hard butter some places give you--a pet peeve of mine.) We started with a very good butternut squash soup and an eggplant parmesan-like appetizer (sans the breading & deep frying), which was excellent. (Kudos to anyone who can make eggplant taste good!) We both ordered Gemelli Puttanecsa. The pasta was perfectly cooked, with a slight "toothsomeness" to it, and the sauce was both peppery & tasty. It was served with a large (table)spoon, which was necessary to scoop up the brothy sauce with the pasta. I tend to like my puttanesca sauce bit thicker, with the ingredients a bit better incorporated (with each other and with the pasta). But ti was darn tasty & just what we needed to start our night out on the town.
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Review from Richard P.
Sacramento, CA
2/11/2011
My wife and I had dinner for our 20th anniversary at Favaloro's and we had a party of four. We were looking for a very nice place to celebrate the occasion. After much research of various reviews of restaurants in Pacific Grove and Monetery, we decided on Favoloro's and I have to say that we are so pleased with our choice. John took care of us and gave so much attention to detail. We wanted to try scallops because we have never had them, but they were not listed as an appetizer. John had the chef prepare one for each of us to try. The service was great and the food was fabulous. They treated us to our dessert and also brought out a small bottle of champagne for my us at the end of dinner. We will definitely be back and I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone who wants to go fo a special occasion or to just have a wonderfuld dinner.
Richard P.
Sacramento, CA -
Review from Margi T.
San Jose, CA
10/16/2010
My husband and I had a double date here with some friends and our fifth wheel almost-two-month-old baby. The restaurant was buzzing with conversations, and it was a little difficult to hear our own table's conversation. Fortunately, it was less obvious when our little one made any peeps.
The chef was very accommodating, making me something vegan by special request since there wasn't anything vegan on the menu. The wait staff is hysterical -- love their accents, too.
Here I had the most challenging diaper change ever, though. Of course, there's no changing station on the wall -- not that kind of place. I respect that. The single guest/co-ed bathroom is tastefully decorated and clean (thank God). So I had to change the baby's diaper on the floor. I had a changing pad in my purse to lay down on top of the area rug (for the area rug's sake), but first I had to lay down the disposable changing pad as a barrier between the rug and my all-cloth changing pad that I don't want touching public areas (such as the floor of a bathroom, carpet or not). A bit challenging to maneuver perfectly laying out two changing pads on the floor, while holding a baby on one arm and attempting to gracefully balance down to my knees. Okay, on my knees. Baby on the changing pad on the floor. The lights go out. Pitch black. Apparently there's a heat sensor or motion sensor for the lights and when I'm on my knees, it thinks the bathroom is empty. And this kept happening over and over and over while I was down on the floor. I had to keep waving my arms in the air to get the lights back on. Finally I got the baby in his clean diaper, clothes back on. Getting off the floor, washing my hands, picking up the baby, and trying to fold and stash the changing pads back into the purse was a feat in itself. All the while there's a line in the hallway with people who need to use the bathroom and my husband was starting to worry about me. We all had a good laugh about it, though.
Overall, the food was good. But the bathroom is not diaper-friendly at all. Just head's up, mommas. -
Review from j b.
Oakland, CA
1/17/2011
This was a huge disappointment--I was looking forward to trying this place based on all the positive yelp reviews, and can't understand what everyone else likes about this place.
The food was okay, but nothing special. We ordered the clams bordelaise, which was fine, a veal saltimboca which was meh, a caprese salad which was also just ok. The gorgonzola sauce on our gnocchi appetizer was the only good food. The chianti was terrible.
If the Olive Garden level food came with Olive Garden prices, I'd have given this place 3 stars. I just don't expect to pay the same bill for this so-so food as I would at Chez Panisse, or the wonderful restaurant down the street called Passion Fish.
They also charged us for what should have been a free appetizer (a highly advertised special. I guess we could have asked them about it, but at this point, we knew we'd NEVER come back, so didn't bother.
Don't bother with this place--go to Passion Fish which is just up the street and have a GREAT meal instead! -
Review from Sandra C.
Clovis, CA
9/23/2010
AH-MAZ-ING food and wine! Very romantic atmosphere and the service was awesome. We were served by the owners son and daugter and even greeted later in our dinner by the owners. I had the Lasagna (perfection) and a side of meatballs (handmade). My husband had the chicken marsala. We both agreed we haven't had such a wonderful meal in such a long time. By the time we were finished with our wine and yummy dessert, we were the last ones left. Make a reservation because this is a popular restaurant!!
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Review from Matt M.
Harvey, LA
8/12/2011
Nothing about Favarolo's is either authentic or worthwhile. After walking in, we noticed the restaurant was about 10 degrees above room temperature, and we were breaking a sweat before our water arrived. We had a total of three servers throughout the meal, none of whom were anything to write home about in terms of service; each one passed us off to another as they became preoccupied with other, larger parties. The baked oyster appetizer was a nearly inedible salt bomb with oysters that did not taste the slightest bit fresh (probably frozen). We were so turned off that we ordered Caesar salads for our entrees, thinking that they couldn't screw that up. Well, they did the unthinkable, delivering a deplorable, disgusting excuse for a salad. The lettuce was chopped romaine hearts with hardly any leafy portions included. Rather than an anchovy-infused homemade dressing, they coated the leaves in what tasted EXACTLY like Hellman's (mayo, for you internationals) and topped it with canned anchovies. Canned anchovies are just plain nasty, I don't care what anyone says. They taste like brine, salt, and spoiled seafood; if I wanted to replicate that flavor, I would sooner go down and lick the bottom of the boardwalk at the local wharf. Anyway, I can't put into words how nasty that salad was. The tiramisu was almost certainly not produced in house, although they did go to every effort to make it look so by completely delousing the cake with cocoa powder. After raking off about a half inch of pure cocoa off the top, I sighed and forced myself to enjoy the only edible part of an Italian dinner gone terribly wrong.
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Review from Larry P.
Fresno, CA
9/25/2010 1 Check-in Here
Great food and service.
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Review from Michael C.
Fresno, CA
8/8/2010
I took a party of 7 to Favaloro's Big Night Bistro last night (a Sat. night) and it was AMAZING. I was going to go with the Butternut Squash Ravioli but after hearing their extensive specials list, I went with an extremely delicious Halibut special. Also, I am like an ice tea elitist and I have to say their ice tea was amazing. It was the best tropical ice tea I've ever had at a restaurant. Their prices are VERY reasonable for the quality and flavor of their food. I sampled their Lasagna, Pollo Parmigiana con Melanzane, and the Fettuccine con Frutto di Mare. EVERYTHING was EXCELLENT. The pasta sauce was very light, nothing I tasted was too greasy, and I've read bad reviews regarding their desert so I had to try it. I went with their Tiramisù and it was very, very good. I highly recommend this for Great Italian food in the central coast and I will definitely be back for more!
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Review from Alena P.
Salinas, CA
11/12/2010
Happened to be in town at dinner time and took myself out for a treat. I almost passed it up because it looked a little fancy for a loner. I was able to sit at the "bar" and the atmosphere was lovely - dark, intimate and actually pretty casual.
I ordered oysters on the half shell - very good - and the gnocci with gorgonzola sauce off the appetizer menu which was delicious. The waiter recommended a great glass of wine to match both.
Staff was very friendly and took good care of me. A group of regulars came in with multiple bottles of wine, and took the rest of the seats at the bar - they seemed to be on very friendly terms with the staff and they all popped open bottles, tasted and discussed together. I ended up being absorbed into the boisterous group and had a wonderful time.Comment from marie f. of Favaloro's Big Night Bistro 11/16/2010
Thank you so very much for the wonderful review and I am… More » -
Review from Max G.
La Honda, CA
8/15/2010 1 photo
My girlfriend and I were spending the day in Monterey and looking for a place to have a nice Italian dinner. We found this on yelp and when we arrived there they only had room at the bar which actually didn't turn out that bad. We had a avocado that was rubbed in panko bread crumbs with a crab salad on top. It was amazing! The dinner was also very good and the dessert which we chose a nepolian was also a good one. The service was good, I think our waiter was new but she was still very polite. It was a good atmosphere and the food was also very good.
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Review from Leslie F.
Hollister, CA
4/21/2008
We had to try this place after seeing the movie "Big Night".
With our preteen, we made an awkward party of three that they shoehorned in at a table meant for two (well, it was a weekend night, although it was early, they needed to save the only larger tables for parties of four, I guess). The service seemed to become less than enthusiastic after we declined to order wine. The food is good, clearly fresh and prepared with care. But it was nothing to write home about, and certainly nothing that left me craving a return visit. We won't be trying Big Night again. -
Review from Hannah Z.
Sacramento, CA
8/29/2010
I just left this place. It was an excellent neighborhood find. This is a good excuse to get out of the tourist area of Monterey and have some tasty Italian seafood. The place is small and comfortable. A good place for a date or small group. I was alone, so I ate at the bar and the service was effecient.
