Francoli Gourmet

Mouthwatering pastas!!! The food was so insanely delicious. The pasta sauce has so much depth that you need to close your eyes, sit back, & enjoy every single bite. I was so impressed by the food but that isn't even the lengths of it.The service is really what made you feel like you are at a gourmet Italian restaurant. The waiters, busser, host, & chefs were all Italians. You can tell the owners put real love into this establishment. Our waiter was very passionate about the menu & knew exactly how to make recommendations.The ambiance was classy, dimly lit, happy space. While I am a 21 year old girl, the rest of the customers were all old men haha. But that was just another indicator that this was THE spot.

The good:Old Forrester Old Fashioned was a great cocktail.The wine selection (Italian) was impressive.The large charcuterie board was a lot of fun for sharing and had generous portions of various meats though the cheese selections were small.Service on a Wednesday night (6:15 reservation - promptly seated) was adequate but always cheerful. "Destiny" was our waitress and she managed okay.The bad:The entrees - Three rigatoni amatricianas and one ravioli dish. All arrived lukewarm. The portions were meager.(Charging roughly $25 for just a pasta dish is not a good value. Actually, it's a terrible value and whatever the word in Italian is for "ripoff," that's the word I would use. It's just pasta. Peasant food. There's no good reason to skimp on the portions). Verdict: Ultimately, overpriced and not worth another visit.

Second time I dined here and always loved their bolognese! I was almost gonna ask for extra meat sauce but didn't have to because this place is legit. Expect the service to be slow - both times it was but sometimes you just have to accept that good things take time. They make their food with love and I'm cool with that Servers are good. Vibe are immaculate, love the music here and it just feels like you're in someone's house Can't wait to be back!

We had a beautiful celebratory dinner date night at Francolis. I have always wanted to dine here and just never gotten around to it. I'm so glad we finally did. Fresh handmade pasta and delicious calamari.I can't wait to come back!

A very fine and pleasant experience. During my visit, it was at the time of my anniversary with my girlfriend and I wanted to make reservations for September 7th around late afternoon (3pm) as we had a couple events before and it's actually a perfect time to go since it seems night time is usually crowded. Parking can be a bit crazy but that's out of their hands and the establishment had indoor and outdoor seating with a full on bar with plenty of drink choices! But onto the entrees we ordered.FOODNeapaliton Tube PastaThis was my dish and I'll just say it was quite delicious. I don't normally finish my plate when it comes to pasta but it was the right portion with the perfect quality. Real fine ingredients that left me wanting more (if my stomach allowed haha!)Cioppino alla LivorneseMy girlfriend's dish that she absolutely enjoyed! I had a sample as she also had a bit of my food but that sample alone was just enough for me to order it the next time we visit! And again, the portion was just perfect, content was just enough and left her smiling! Bread (side-dish)It may seem like bread but there was something about it that was so different and addicting. We asked for seconds and couldn't stop eating it. I actually had to put my foot down and say "hey we should leave some room for our main dishes lol" Don't leave this one hanging, may look like just bread but there's something about it! OVERALLWe had a great visit. I wouldn't mind coming back again, just have to come by a little earlier or a little later during the rush hours as we like to take our time and enjoy our food. We had a very informative server and catered to our every needs and answered all of our questions. They were working during the times of 3:00pm and 4:00pm on September 7th, 2024. Thank you for your hospitality!

My hubby and I had a great lunch here.Big surprise for us to find such an authentic Northern Italian cuisine in the old Town Orange.ProsWine selections: 5 starsA variety of white, red, and sparkling wine selectionsFood, Service, Quality: 5 starsFriendly, high quality, delicious Ambiance, Price: 5 starsItalian antique style, not too big but very cozyI ordered Tagliatelle Ragu w lamb, white wine and my hubby got Lasagna.The pasta noodles are perfect, soft, chewy, the ragu is so flavorful. The meats are so tender.For Lasagna, great authentic flavor too.The bread was served with wheat, regular Italian bread, dipping sauce w olive oils, balsamic vinegar. Great!!!For wines, we had 4 different glasses of sauvignon blanc, Chardonnay, Cab.It was so good w foods and wines.ConsAC: not strong today. Hot day!! I sweated a lot during lunch. So hot and humid.Parking: 5 stars in the huge parking structure at Lemon and Maple. You need to walk at least 3 blocks to get there.Overall we really enjoyed our lunch.My hubby's b day is coming in Oct and we already decided to come again to celebrate the special day.I loved the Tagliatelle a lot. C'est très bon.

I found the real authentic Northern Italian cuisine in the old town Orange.I liked here old town in the past. Luckily I found a new Italian restaurant.First, they have a large selection of wines.They also have so many pasta options, chicken, seafoods.I chose lasagna, my wife got tagliatelle w ragu, lamb.We chose red and white wines per glass.The bread is served w olive oil and valsamic vinegar.I tasted my lasagna and said, ummmm.....so good. My wife loved her tagliatelle, perfect balance w tomato sauce, tender lamb.She loved her noodles, cooked perfect!She gave 5 stars for the pasta.The ambiance is classic. You can enjoy the wine and Northern Italian cuisine. Authentic!!Price, quality, service: 5 starsAmbiance: 4 starsParking: 4 stars. You need to park in the parking structure 3 blocks away. 3 hours Free!!!It's been a while since we had a great Italian lunch. Definitely come back for the other menus. You can hang out and shop at the vintage stores as well. That is big advantage why we go and hang out in the old town Orange.

Absolutely are not accommodating for reservations. We are a family who live In the Orange County area and have frequented francoli but I will say the last few times we've tried to call to make reservations for special occasions they always have a reason why they cannot take parties larger than 6-7 on a weekend. I do not understand why they would be pushing away large parties who are trying to go spend and good amount of money on bottles of wine and full course meals just so they can be sure to fit smaller parties (IF they even have smaller parties at the earlier times we'd like to dine.) pushing away parties that want to spend $600+ on a meal seems very ridiculous and a poor business decision. We are done with Francoli.

The food was not very good. We spent a lot of money and both of us really didn't like our food. The server was nice and attentive in the beginning of the meal, but then he just checked out. Didn't come back and check on us for an extremely long time. We were disappointed because we had always wanted to try this restaurant out.

Love love love!!! Fabulous food and Val is a SUPER server! She always takes great care of us! We usually have our pup with us and they are very accommodating! We usually go early to get in or make a reservation! This is one of our regular spots! Just love it!