Al Dente Italian Trattoria

Mixed review: It took everything in me to not get up and leave after our experience with Brenda..the manager and main waitress. I should've read through the reviews before, instead of just looking at the pictures..to see it wasn't just us that were treated this way. She was so cold and seemed annoyed that she had to serve us. No eye contact, we had to repeat our order a few times because she just pointed to her ear saying I can't hear you. Now let's get to the food..because we were satisfied with our order and experience after getting our food. I had a nice long talk with Brenda while waiting for our food btw and told her that her customer service was one of my worst experiences as a diner at a restaurant in my 40 years of living. We ordered a few items, Caesar salads, garlic knots, shrimp fettuccine and spinach farfalle. Food was 8/10, service 0/10!

Good service, nice and quiet, and friendly people ready to ask any question you have.

Super cute little Italian spot close to the convention center! The bar area is so cool; I love the underlit counter. So beautiful! Seemed like there was only one server but she was great and attentive. Couldn't order a Diet Coke because apparently Coca Cola wouldn't deliver, and while I sympathize, it was a bummer. It would have been nice to have a cab option interim but I get it. Had a handful of apps: Garlic Knots (OK, a little doughy...) Meatball, really delicious. Sauce was sweet but tasty. Bruschetta was awesome! Although the bread could have been crispier. Caprese was a little underwhelming. I ordered the tortellini and it was good. Also ordered the tiramisu to go, which was really tasty. Loved the tiramisu. I'd come again. Nice place!

It was incredible authentic italian. Great customer service, we came in during a rush and the owner apologized for the wait.

Food was ok, nothing special. The issue is our server, who is also the owner's wife, couldn't have been any unhappier to serve us. From the moment we were seated, she acted like we were a total bother to her. She didn't want to answer any questions about the menu and also didn't want to split the check to two couples. She really shouldn't be involved in the resteraunt if it is so painful for her to be involved with customers. I wouldn't recommend dining here.

Very good 2nd time here and look forward to returning surprised by overall ratings but we found the food authentic italian

The atmosphere is nice inside. The manager is nice, very quiet, and the food was good. I had the spicy Italian sausage rigatoni and it hit the spot. Thanks!

Nice little place! Visited twice hasn't changed a bit. I'd advise you bring cash or a debt/Credit card; as they don't take any other form of payment.

Honestly, the food here is good. It's not worth the rude service we receive every time I've been though. The main waitress/owner always seems put out and bothered. I could deal with it for the most part, but today I just had enough. We called in our food to be ready when we got there since sometimes it can take a while if they're busy. We arrived 5 minutes after the time we were supposed to and she promptly told us she had no microwave to warm the food. No worries, since that was on us. The issue I have is when I asked her for two pieces of to go dessert, she seemed upset and put out that I didn't want to eat it there. She grabbed our plates and made a good deal of noise putting them away in the back. She's not friendly and makes it very clear if you upset her at all. I get being short staffed or one of the only people working because it's a small business. That does not excuse rude service and giving people attitude.I like their food, but I will not be coming back, because to me customer service is everything. I can easily find plenty of other authentic Italian places to eat, where they actually want to serve people.

I came here for lunch since it was a short walk from the convention center. The service was adequate. The place is quaint. I read the previous reviews and it seemed like the lasagna was a safe choice. It was delicious. It came out piping hot and fresh. It's probably the best lasagna I've had at this caliber of restaurant. I would recommend it as well. The shrimp skewer was gross. It tasted like out of the frozen bag, pre cooked shrimp, microwaved with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. It came with a white dipping sauce that was so gross. I don't know if it was like a blue cheese horseradish dip but that's what it tasted like. The bread was a little stale.