10/03/09

Go somewhere else unless you have hours to waste

by JohnDHouston

Food is OK at best, but the real problem here is service: we had to wait almost an hour for our orders, despite telling the waitress that we had show tickets in a little over an hour and ordering off of their so-called "thiry minutes or less" menu (and her assuring us that we'd have our orders in plenty of time). An hour later we left on empty stomachs. You just can't trust this place, unless you have hours to kill and don't mind waiting for food that really isn't worth it. And even if it were, it doesn't matter how good the food might be, if you never get it in the first place, does it?

• Pros: Location
• Cons: Service

02/02/09

Not even close to good and overpriced

by mshpossum

This restaurant is highly overpriced and the food didn't even come close to being good. Got some sort of chicken with goat cheese. There was less than a one spoonful of cheese and the chicken breast was bland and tiny. I should have stayed home and made my own. I would NEVER return to this place nor would i recommend it.

I really have half a notion to call the manager/owner and let them know that they basically stole $65 from me for a crummy cesar (lettuce was wilted), a bland, tiny portion of chicken ($26, yes for chicken breast) and two beers and a glass of wine. My wife and i split both the salad and entre. We were hungry 1 hour later.

Carrabba's is not as expensive and 100 times better than this rip off, wannabe, waste of time restaurant.

MINGALONE, I HOPE YOUR DOORS CLOSE SO NO ONE HAS TO EXPERIENCE WHAT I DID LAST WEEK!!!

• Pros: Close to Verizon Theatre (only pro i have)
• Cons: Too expensive for nothing food.

01/20/09

Waste of Money

by Goodfood15

Read review from waiter at this restaurant and had to respond. Claims you should come and visit durning a non peak time. We did. We were 1 or 5 or 6 tables in the whole restaurant. Calamari, rubbery and bland. Food came out and was cold and unimpressive. Do not waste your time or your money when there are significantly better restaurants a couple blocks away. The extra walk is more than worth it.

• Pros: Good Location
• Cons: Price, Food

12/27/08

Fair to Say...

by RiccardoPalazzoGiorgio

In response to the waiters remarks, I too used to work for Mr. Mingalone, back when his restaurant was called Montesano on Beverly Hill. Since his relocation to the theatre disctict, I have tried the restaurant once. Unfortunately, we did not stay through the entire meal. The restaurant was not busy at all. We were seated and then forgotten. There was no water service, no bread service and no waiter. We waited for several minutes, then stood up and left the restaurant. No one approached us on the way out to ask what happened. Mr. Mingalone was at the bar chatting with some women. The whole episode confirmed to me that the name may have changed from one location to the next, but everything else remained the same. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone.

• Pros: Location to the Theatre District
• Cons: Food, Service

08/26/08

I will be back

by mizter

Last night I took a few of my business assosiates to dine after work and I must say the food is excellent. I was pleased with the waitstaff and thier promptness. I don't know about those losers and the low ratings but it just isn't so. If you want to split checks go to Luby's. Have a shot at this place and try the fettuccine montesano. I t has alot of flavor and if you would like to treat yourself the wine list is divine. I will be back many more times.

• Pros: Service and food
• Cons: no criminals here

07/19/08

Never again!!!

by FoodieChick444

After the food we were served at Mingalone last night, we won't be back--and this is a restaurant that we have enjoyed on past visits.

The service was good, but the food was--you can't even call it overpriced, because even at reasonable prices, this food would have been considered slop.

We were served cold, stale bread and a decent Chianti. The bruschetta we ordered was acceptable, at best. The straw that broke the camel's back for us was the entree. We decided to split the stuffed eggplant. What we got was a lukewarm, soggy, flavorless mess. We literally would have done better to have stayed home and eaten a halfway-cooked Lean Cuisine--it was that bad. I have never been so disappointed with a meal at any of Houston's Italian restaurants. If we hadn't been on our way to a show, we would have sent the entree back and gone elsewhere.

To the server who wrote a review defending Mingalone--saying that they are packed with theater-goers on the weekends, I say: Mingalone is downtown. Most of your business will be from theater-goers, and most of it will be on the weekends. That is to be expected, if not welcomed. Without the theater-goers, you would have no business. If this is the best you can do as far as food (what we were presented with last night) and service (what others have experienced during their visits), I expect to see Mingalone go the way of its late neighbor, Vin, very quickly. We don't want excuses; we would like a good meal. There are many, many better choices for Italian cuisine in this city.

• Pros: Memories of food that USED to be good...
• Cons: The food isn't so good now!

07/13/08

Question for Citysearch?

by cards2b

What type of scam is citysearch running? How does a restaurant with more 1s then 5s have a 4.5 star rating when people view it. Crooks.

This restaurant is baaaad. I have tried it 3-4 x over the past 10 years each time forgetting, how annoyed and frustrated each experience is. This time I had to go cuz the Sushi restaurant had no AC. Bad, slow service, uniinspiring food, terrible BAr. No more time to waste on this, just frustrated I got fooled by trusting the 4.5 star rating and not reading the reviews until after I got home. AVOID.

• Pros: Looks nice
• Cons: EVERYTHING ELSE

02/18/08

A Taste of Italy ... here?

by mommyceo

Oh wow ... it was as if we were back in Italy!! The food was delicious, the service was divine, the atmosphere was great & the cappuccino reminded me of our evenings in Italy w/ our favorite server!! He made the BEST cappuccino ... well ONE of the best now!!! AND, you've GOT to try the Frangelica cake too ... with a shot of Frangelica in your cappuccino to go with it!!

Whether it's for a full meal before the show or just cappuccino and dessert after ... we WILL be back!!!

• Pros: Beautiful atmosphere, nearby parking, lots to do in the area
• Cons: Just a little pricey

01/27/08

Check and information

by Marmee1345

On Thurs. Jan. 24, 2008 a group of 14 visited Mingalone's. They would not give us separate checks. In this day and age of computers this is a stupid policy. It would have been just as easy for the waiter to give each couple a check. Also the evening special of veal was verbally given. I asked about the price and the waiter said about $30 which is only $4 more than the menu veal. I said OK. When the bill came it was $37. That is quite a bit more the $26 which was on the menu. This kind of handling is not acceptable. There are way to many choices of restaurants. We'll never go back.

01/13/08

The food does not warrant the price

by messycovers

I ordered the mussels and my husband ordered penne with sausage. He said he could have made just as good out of a can and my mussels were unbelievably salty. I had mussels in Chicago just last week and was hoping for the same yummy experience. No such luck. Why do they charge so much for such boring food? We will not be back.