The Villa

This review is for a mix of service and food. The ambiance itself was fine, with a nice, upscale mountain ambiance with outdoor, dog friendly seating. We were promptly seated, as a party of two, and given ice water (much appreciated on a warm, Summer night). We sat 15 minutes without seeing ANYONE else, except our water guy who refilled our glasses. We finally appealed to him to see if we could speak to a wait person. Meanwhile, a party of six (seated AFTER us) already had appetizers showing up before we could even place an order for anything (drinks or food). We ordered our wine and food simultaneously for fear it would be another 15+ minutes before we saw the server again. We were never offered any bread, though we have in prior visits to this restaurant. My husband ordered the chicken Parmesan dinner, with a Caesar salad, while I ordered the small plate Buffalo Mac n' cheese with chicken. We waited another 20 minutes or so for the food. I bet my husband that his salad would come the same time as the entree, but it was worse, since he NEVER got the salad. He had to tell the server it did not come and, at that point, told her to not bother with it. His meal was mediocre at best and there was never even a mention of discounting his meal for the salad that never came. My Mac'n Cheese tasted like someone poured Velveeta cheese (plus some buffalo sauce) over the macaroni with some chopped chicken (when a shredded chicken would likely have been better). Our wait staff never came to check in with us about our meal and we eventually had to ask for our check (then finally take our check to the hostess station--since the waitstaff also delayed in picking up our bill). I worked in this field through college, so I know good service and when to cut others a break. The restaurant was not busy....our waitress had only two other tables I could see (and I had full view of the dining room) and her blonde peer who had 5+ tables was hoofing it the entire time to provide what appeared to be great service to all of them. I tipped the water guy, who was literally the only one providing good, attentive service. I left our waitress zero tip, and we will not come back. I'd rather go somewhere else in TH or make the trek to Sonora, where there is enough restaurant competition to inspire better service and more consistent food quality.

First, I just want to note that most of the bad reviews were focused primarily on the service from the early days when they were first getting set up--which I feel is understandable for any new restaurant.Having said that, my wife and I have now been to The Villa three times and have enjoyed it on all three occasions. I think I will always love the flatbreads more than anything else they serve--they now offer quite a variety of choices and we've loved everything that we've tried so far. By far my favorite is the Margherita flatbread, though we also love the curry chicken flatbread and the caramelized onion and mushroom flatbread (and others that don't come to mind right now).I also really like their Lemon Chicken and the potatoes that come with it--although it has a really great flavor, I've never been able to detect anything resembling a lemon, so if you are hoping for some citrus flavor, maybe pass on this one--but do so at your own risk because the overall flavor really is great.Although I've never actually tried the minestrone soup (I've never been a fan of minestrone), my wife really likes it--and despite what one other reviewer says, she's adamant that it is definitely NOT from a can. Finally, we both thought the bread was very good--we wish they would sell it by the loaf since this town is absolutely bereft of any good bread.Oh, and the service has always been great--I don't know what some people are complaining about--though we never visited in the early days, so maybe we missed the bad period.A few negatives:I love a good Caesar salad but, to be perfectly honest, the Caesar dressing really did taste like it came out of a bottle. Maybe I'm biased because I have a really kick-ass Caesar recipe that I love but, knowing how well they make other items, I really expected more from them. Maybe I'll pass my recipe on to them....Also, their online menu could use a little help--simply listing the names of the items without descriptions means that nobody will ever order items called "The Villa Flatbread" or "The Junior" since the name gives absolutely no indication of what they are actually made from.Only other negative actually has to do with an item that I haven't even ordered: I've seen pictures of the hummus and would love to try it but I simply cannot bring myself to pay $14 for any hummus, no matter how fancy you dress it up--and that makes me sad as hell because I love a good hummus and it really does look great--there's just no way that hummus should be priced in the double digits--inflation or no inflation. And $12 french fries??? C'mon...the price of potatoes did not increase 10x.Having whined about that, however, overall, both my wife and I are extremely happy that The Villa moved in. We're locals and have been consistently disappointed by the offerings from our little ten-restaurant town (since Robert and Prospectors packed up and left town)....but The Villa has restored our faith that little towns can have great food.

I was hoping to love this newer addition to Twain Harte . The patio is beautiful and the menu looked appealing. Came in on a chilly Friday night on a holiday weekend. I was promptly , but Awkwardly greeted . There was a tense vibe amidst the younger servers and two middle aged women that I presumed to be owners /and/or managers .The inside was kinda meh . It felt kinda like a converted diner ? The fireplace was not lit , which was a disappointment ambience wise . The two presumed boss ladies were extra friendly to selective groups. As a single diner, I gathered my input just wasn't as important to them . ‍My sever was a slightly older gentleman . He was super sweet , friendly , and attentive ! I agree with other commenters on the soup tasting canned . It was the minestrone and arrived lukewarm , but tasty enough . The taste of the "Caramelized" mushroom flatbread was amazing in a comfort food kinda way . However , it felt like something I could have made as a girl dinner in my oven , or even microwave from some good Trader Joe's ingredients . It lacked that wood fired crispyness I tend to associate with flat bread and was more like sourdough or maybe naan ? But , like , more doughy . Kinda like cafeteria garlic bread consistency with swapped ingredients . But it was super yummy .Nothing made me sick . It was a decent enough dining experience . I'd give then another chance after they've had a chance to keep settling in . :) I feel like they need to find their niche and adjust their menu etc . Nice music .

Tried The Villa for lunch today... The Grilled Chicken sandwich was very tasty and the HOMEMADE Focaccia was excellent. We'll clearly return for dinner soon...For only being open for 1-week I'd have to say that they are on a good trajectory to succeed.I've attached their dinner menu which has a limited selection of very popular dishes.... Me? Well I'm going for the salmon of course.

Ambiance on a cold winter evening was great. Server Michelle was delightful. Flatbread was very tasty. Disappointed in the salmon, however. It was dry.Will probably go just for wine and appetizers, or just for dessert, in future. (We look forward to wine on the patio when the weather warms a bit.)

Worst food experience ever--save your money and your appetite!From the moment the food arrived, it was a disaster. The bread looked cheap and poorly roasted, the salmon and beef were completely flavorless, lacking even basic seasoning, and the vegetables were an afterthought--just water-cooked carrots and broccoli with no effort. The pasta? Unsalted and utterly bland.This place is an absolute joke. I'll never return and will make sure everyone I know hears about this nightmare of a dining experience. Avoid at all costs!

First time visiting this place. The table clothes look like wrinkled black bed sheets. I was thinking it was such a simple thing to avoid and make a better first impression. But I was keeping an open mind. My water glass was dirty and my wine glass was dusty. I ordered the Italian wedding soup. My soup was cold and tasteless. So I didn't eat it. I ordered the chicken parm. My pasta was cold and the chicken was like a big chicken strip with sauce on it. It was the only thing , hot on the plate. I ate the chicken and left the rest on the plate. It was unappetizing. There were 2 big parties and a party of 3 next to us. Every other group got very good service. Our server never offered to refill my husband's lemonade Same with my wine. She never checked in after we got our food. He ordered the "baked" ziti. It was served in a skillet, which should indicate that its would be piping hot. However,the cheese on top was half melted. In some areas The individual strands of cheese were visible because they were not melted l. Half of the dish was hot and the other half was lukewarm. Very disappointing experience. I will not be back.

A cute gem in Twain Harte. Super great atmosphere with a nice menu and friendly owner. The prices are reasonable and family friendly. Great sit down service.

Great small plates and also gluten free options. Nice staff and a nice clean atmosphere Would go again

It takes a lot for me to leave a bad review, especially for a mom and pop. But our meal tonight was legitimately one of the saddest meals we've had in a long time. We ordered the Lemon Chicken. It came with a side of mashed potatoes and zucchini. We opted for a side of tomato basil bisque to go with it. We also ordered The Bruschetta - flat bread fiesta. For starters, all the food was luke warm, at best, so not a great start.The Lemon Chicken did not taste like lemon. Really it lacked any flavor. Most disappointedly, it didn't appear to be fully cooked (see photo). The zucchini suffered the same fate and was still extremely crunchy and bland. The mashed potatoes were the only decent part of that plate, though it also lacked flavor.The tomato bisque was the consistency of a pasta sauce (see photo). It wouldn't be surprised if it came from a can.Lastly, The Bruschetta - "flat bread fiesta" was missing several ingredients - ones that specially make it bruschetta. No basil, no garlic, and hardly any tomatoes (see photo). Nothing about this was a fiesta.There aren't many food options in town, so having to cross this off our list is extremely disappointing.