Portofino Italian - Charlotte

I had the best Italian food in the South! Coming from New Jersey, I was thrilled to discover this restaurant. If you're in the mood for authentic New York-style pizza, this is the place to be. I can't praise this spot enough; the owners are deeply passionate about their craft and truly inventive.

I was very disappointed with my experience. The calamari was rubbery, and the bread tasted like plain flour without any seasoning. We tried several dressings, but most of them were watery and lacked flavor. The service was also lacking; no one greeted us. I do not recommend this restaurant at all.

The Italian dishes were delicious and fresh! The service was quick and attentive. The portions are quite generous, so be sure to take some leftovers home.

DO NOT ORDER ANY SEAFOOD. Me and a friend came in for lunch from out of town, thought this looked like a nice spot. Calamari was far undercooked and could not eat it. Looked like they were dropped in the fryer for one second and put it on the plate. I had already ordered the mussels for my main meal, which proved just as bad. All of the mussels were falling apart in the shell, and had a distinct fishy taste. I was only able to stomach 2 before I stopped eating.The pasta dish was fine.We both ended up sick from the seafood shortly afterwards.

Today I meet with my co workers for lunch. This is the first time since the pandemic started. The food was great and we all enjoyed it. The low score is a direct result of the lackadaisical waitress we had. She was not friendly or welcoming at all. She was the absolute worst. She served the food leaning over people. As opposed to walking down to the end of the table. When I asked her to bring my entrée to my side she told me she could not fit through the chairs. Instead of asking patron to slide their chair in. Dropped the food off and didn't follow up to check on the table. We had to ask for more water and everything ourselves Then she disappeared and another waitress finished out the service. The only reason that I didn't put her name in the review is my Mamager picked up the tab and I don't have it.