Buon Appetito Cafe - Fort Myers

First, I want to address my service rating for this restaurant. I lowered it slightly because we were seated right away upon arrival, but the restaurant wasn’t busy at all. Shortly after we arrived, two more tables were served, and they had their drink orders taken and delivered before ours was even addressed. This is a sticking point for me and definitely affects first impressions. The couple at the adjacent table noticed the delay and even suggested that “you might have to flag them down.” It's important for restaurants to pay attention to their customers to avoid such situations. As for the meal itself, we both ordered wine and some water, and I have to say, we thoroughly enjoyed our food. We started with homemade bruschetta and a salad, both of which were excellent. For our main course, we had bolognese with different types of pasta. The sauce was flavorful, and the pasta was wonderfully tender, clearly fresh. We wrapped up our meal with a slice of cheesecake and a cannoli, both of which were delicious. However, there were some issues during checkout. Firstly, the bill did not indicate the tax amount; it only listed our dishes and a total, which I found disappointing. Secondly, we used a credit card to pay, and they added a 3% service charge without informing us beforehand. I didn't appreciate that either. There was a third issue as well, but I'm not going to delve into the details here. It did influence my overall impression of this restaurant. While the food was enjoyable, I would likely choose another Italian restaurant before returning here.

Everything is homemade, made to order, exactly how you love it. Really delicious! This food is not to be missed. I had the homemade pasta primavera. The veggies were so fresh, I think they were picked this morning. Wonderful marinara sauce. My friend had the sauce a la rosa which is a lovely combination of alfredo and marinara. It was super. The pizza is fabulous and the tiramisu is spectacular. So glad I found this little gem.

The pizza was delicious, and the pasta was great as well. However, I found the white sauce could use a bit more flavor. A sprinkle of salt and pepper did the trick, though!

I had an incredible dinner experience, and it's all thanks to our fantastic waitress, Joy. She was extremely detail-oriented and ensured that we had everything we needed throughout the meal. It truly was a delightful experience. She definitely deserves a raise!

Food is made with fresh ingredients and made to order. Service is awesome.