Gran Gusto

Review summary

1. B

   Barry

   Greater Boston

   32 reviews

   3.0

   32 reviews

   Dined 7 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 1

   The wait staff were acerbic, impolite and disinterested. We had to purposely stop them just to get any attention and then they seemed to resent being stopped. Furthermore, it was overwhelmingly noisy. The food was good but not enough to overcome the negatives. This is at variance with previous visits there but would make us think twice before another return.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
2. M

   Melissa

   Greater Boston

   7 reviews

   2.0

   7 reviews

   Dined on December 7, 2024

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 3

   It pains me to write this but I genuinely have no idea how this place has managed to stay in business for this long. I had high hopes for this place and made a reservation to celebrate my husband’s birthday there. I came to regret this. After being greeted by a friendly hostess, we were promptly seated. There we sat, unacknowledged, with a stack of menus for several minutes. Zero interest from the wait staff to see if anyone wanted a drink of any sort, despite several wait staff walking by or standing around just talking amongst themselves. When we flagged someone down, very possibly the owner, he was less than enthusiastic to answer our questions about the menu and even less so to help the vegan member of our party find a suitable option. In fact, he was borderline rude. A We kept having to flag him down just to get anything after placing the initial order for the table. We had to place the orders for cocktails, appetizers and meals all at once. No offer to get the drinks first to allow more time to look over the menu and certainly no offer to answer any questions about said menu. The service was so poor that it was making the entire experience awkward for everyone. There was too much effort required for very little service. The worst part, though, was how incredibly underwhelming and bland the food was. I’ve ever paid so much money to eat something on par with stale pizza from an airport Sbarros. When we were all done with our main courses, and had finally been granted the one chance to order a second drink (after initially being seated), the dessert menus were literally just tossed down onto our table. No being asked how our meals were or whether we even wanted dessert. Just menus and nothing else. If you care about things like the quality and taste of your food, level of service, and value for your money, do yourself a huge favor and go elsewhere.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
3. S

   Steve

   Greater Boston

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined on December 1, 2024

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Dinner was excellent, I would highly recommend Gran Gusto
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
4. K

   Katherine

   Greater Boston

   5 reviews

   5.0

   5 reviews

   Dined on November 27, 2024

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   One of my favorite restaurants. I love the food, the wine and the people that work there.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
5. J

   Jane

   VIP

   Greater Boston

   47 reviews

   5.0

   47 reviews

   Dined on November 20, 2024

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   We had lunch…all ladies Salads all fresh and tasty Pasta dishes perfect Al dente and flavor outstanding orecchiette and alla puttanesca Margarita pizza just like in Naples Desserts outstanding…pistachio dessert with chocolate amazing, cantucci were plentiful and delicious, ricotta pie the best ever flavors and texture, sorbetto were yummy limoncello and mandarino! Love Gran Gusto
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
6. B

   Barbara

   VIP

   Greater Boston

   7 reviews

   5.0

   7 reviews

   Dined on November 16, 2024

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 3

   Fabulous food. Wonderful service. The chocolate and pistachio cake was incredible. Multo grazie, Gran Gusto.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
7. S

   Stacey

   Greater Boston

   3 reviews

   5.0

   3 reviews

   Dined on November 16, 2024

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   A gem of delicious food, with outstanding professional service and warm hospitality. This ristorante never disappoints.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
8. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   Greater Boston

   2 reviews

   4.0

   2 reviews

   Dined on November 16, 2024

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 1

   Service was perfect. We sat in a hallway, though. The hallway is a space that is shared with a school in the same building. This is just awkward ambience walking by grade schooler art on the way to the bathroom. The food was underwhelming, too. My partner got the orecchiette (currently served with sausage and brussels sprouts) The sprouts were cut so small and one could barely find them in the dish. The plating was just kind of like what we'd do at home on a weeknight. My partner got the worst gas they've had in years. I got the pollo (chicken) and it was A LARGE AMOUNT OF CHICKEN- nice and thin indeed but incredibly salty and dry. The parts of my dish that were not chicken were halved raw grape tomatoes, shaved parmesan and fresh greens. I would have liked maybe a starch or a cooked vegetable side of some kind. Again, I can do better than that in my own kitchen. The one thing that we both really enjoyed was the meat and cheese appetizer which sounds like charcuterie but had a small nest of olives and dressed arugula in the center with a side of "fruit mustard " which tasted like maybe pear (?) In an applesauce sort of texture with spices. It was a well executed clever idea with like 4 or 5 cured meats which were tasty.
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
9. R

   Rick

   VIP

   Portland

   41 reviews

   3.0

   41 reviews

   Dined on October 6, 2024

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 3

   Everyday, reasonable, Italian. Server was pleasant with a frown
   

   Is this helpful?

   Report
10. J

    James

    Pittsburgh

    10 reviews

    5.0

    10 reviews

    Dined on October 4, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5

    Gran Gusto is one of our neighborhood favorites, as the food is consistently excellent, the wine list meets our needs, and the service is attentive. Moreover, the prices are reasonable. Keep up the good work, as we will continue to dine there frequently.
    

    Is this helpful?

    Report