Amarone Kitchen & Wine

This is a rare find in Los Angeles in that you feel like you are at a quaint New York restaurant. The food is also delicious! The staff is very friendly and make you feel so welcome. This is definitely a new favorite of mine. If you're looking for good authentic Italian, this is the spot! more

Some very good dishes but some terrible ones -- Branzino for sure -- and unprofessional, unfriendly service. Much better Italian food and service elsewhere on the Westside. more

Some very good dishes but some terrible ones -- Branzino for sure -- and unprofessional, unfriendly service. Much better Italian food and service elsewhere on the Westside. more

i would give this restaurant NEGATIVE stars if i could. judging by others comments about the owner Alessandro, i can concur that he should NOT be in a service-oriented business. his demeanor is so FAKE that his pompousness and pushiness cannot be hidden. first when he came by i asked for water and told him my friend and i would start with the swordfish carpaccio. he clearly didn't hear me the first time which is fine but what i wasn't fine with was his attitude (the "i-am-never-wrong" kind). second, he comes by and asks my friend how her soup is - she looks up and says its fine but he stands there appalled that she is not proclaiming how delicious and wonderful it is. you could sense he didn't want to leave until he got the reaction he wanted. thirdly i order one of the "specials", lobster spaghetti. this is a pretty standard entree at any italian restaurant and although the texture of the noodle seemed homemade, the bad taste of the lobster was so over overpowering that it ruined the whole dish. it tasted extremely fishy and not fresh. when he came by the first time to ask how it was i didn't want to be rude so i said fine. but after eating some more of it i couldn't get over the fishiness of it. i ate half and asked for the rest to be boxed up for my bf who eats everything (didn't want to let good money go to waste). i asked for the check and AGAIN, he is appalled that we don't want to order dessert. i also decided i had to comment on the dish as any good restaurant would take feedback to heart. i told him the lobster TASTED fishy and not fresh but he retorts that that is impossible as he himself bought it fresh this morning. then he curtly says the words "i appreciate your comment" but with MAJOR attitude (again, the fakeness) and walks off in a huff like a child who didn't get his way. he didn't offer to make it up in any way (say, perhaps with dessert? haha) which was fine because i wasn't asking for anything. he must have sent the chef out because next thing i know the chef is at my table asking me about the dish. i simply repeated the same thing and again he repeated the same thing the owner said - how impossible it was for it to have tasted that way, blah blah blah. my main point here is, i don't care if the thing is fresh, frozen, raw, or canned. the important thing is how the thing TASTES, no???? That is the MOST IMPORTANT THING!!!! i re-iterated to the chef that i said it TASTES like it was frozen and the owner barks from across the room, "you said it was frozen!!" it was my turn to be appalled. what a petty petty CHILD. WAH WAH WAH. how this 3-table restaurant manages to stay open with this kind of restaurant owner and mediocre food is beyond me. biggest waste of money. take your time & money elsewhere - like Giorgio Baldi, E. Baldi, Angelini Osteria, Osteria La Buca/Mamma, Via Veneto, Amici, Toscana, etc.--anywhere but here!!!!! more

nice food more

nice food more

wondeful experience more

wondeful experience more

For a long time I said that Amarone was my favorite Italian joint in LA (I originally gave it a 5 star review based on 2 previous dinners here), but that's no longer the case because of the horrible customer service I experienced last night. This updated review is not due to the food, but due to the owner and manager of this place, who treated me and my party like garbage before we even had the opportunity to sit down and spend a lot of cash at his place. I eat out a lot, and love good food, but bad service always trumps food, and I refuse to go back to a restaurant that treats its customers with disdain. My friend, the birthday girl, had made arrangements two weeks prior to the date for our party of 16. Its a small place so she was in communication with the resto every few days, making sure the upstairs was set up correctly and putting together a special menu. But when we arrived, at first we were told to wait. Then we were told that our table had been given away because we were late! Thats ridiculous! I've never experienced losing a table, especially for a huge group, like this. If I was five minutes late, its because I had to wait in line to park at the lot that Amarone directs its customers to use, and then wait while the inefficient attendants park your car and then bring you your keys. Anyways, the manager/owner immediately took a hostile tone with us, started making accusations that changed every time he talked to us (because he knew that he was in the wrong), and refused to admit that he was wrong. How dumb can you be to piss off a group of people who were there because they are fans of your restaurant and were going to drop at least a grand and a half over the course of an evening? He then kept us waiting for 20 minutes, asking us what we wanted to do, while making it clear that he just wanted us to leave, even though he was saying it would only be 20 minutes for us to sit. Really? In 20 minutes, the crowded upstairs, that is fully seated because you had just given away all our seats, is going to disappear?Thanks a lot you jerk. We were all really pissed, and had some choice words for the guy. But our resourceful crew wasn't going to let some jerk ruin our night, so we called BLT Steak down the street, who was more than happy to accommodate our group, even though it was 9pm on Saturday. They are smart business people though, who want to please their customers and help build good word of mouth for their great restaurant. We were happy to spend our money at BLT, whose management and staff were friendly and extremely accommodating, and had delicious food and boozy drinks. Kudos to BLT Steak! Boodos to Amarone. I'll never go back there. Pros: good food Cons: bad service more

It is shocking that a restaurant as bad as Amarone exists outside of a season finale episode of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. That a man as smarmy and aggressive and rude as Alessandro (the owner) fancies himself as front-of-the-house material can only be accounted for by psychotic delusion. This place doesn't even deserve a single star - a Surgeon General's warning of increased risk of acute hypertension would be much more appropriate. Pros: bathroom proximity Cons: Price, food, attitude of owner, smell, wait more

TERRIBLE!!! For such a small, overpriced Italian restaurant in Los Angeles, it's shocking to be received by such lies. My best friend had planned her 30th birthday at Amarone for a group of 16 friends. One would think that our table would be waiting for us...\r \r We arrived promptly at 8:45pm when we were expected. (Like another Yelp reviewer recounted) We were handed cheap Prosecco as we crammed by the stairwell near the bathrooms and kitchen to wait to be seated. The owner, who was probably nervous since 16 of us were waiting for our table, tried to claim that we were late. Nope, not late. Then he explained that he had sat a party of four at our table and that we'd have to wait about 20 minutes before we could be seated. I thought he was being facetious but nope, he was totally serious. WIth utter shock, we tried to digest what was happening to our party of 16 and our beyond upset birthday gal. \r To think that we'd spend almost $2,000 that evening on mediocre food after we'd been treated with such ""service"" was unthinkable. What restaurant and restaurant owner pre-books an event, WITH a contract, a prix fixed menu, wine selections and a couple of weeks of correspondence and preparation and then handles the night of with such a lack of class and ill-mannered behavior? After 50 minutes, we left and were welcomed at BLT as they wanted to accommodate us at 9:45pm on a Saturday night (very sweet and smart restauranteurs). (Their popovers are also quite welcoming!)\r \r The owner could not have been more unprofessional and rude as his co-owner/chef frantically tried to smooth over the mess. I went upstairs to survey the four top that was seated at our table and the upstairs was packed full with diners--no room in sight for a table ready for our large party.\r \r Don't waste your time and money on this place as well as supporting such awful service and bad business practice. I hope Amarone's karma catches up to them. They do not deserve to be in business. Cons: Unprepared for our party and rude service. more

It is shocking that a restaurant as bad as Amarone exists outside of a season finale episode of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. That a man as smarmy and aggressive and rude as Alessandro (the owner) fancies himself as front-of-the-house material can only be accounted for by psychotic delusion. This place doesn't even deserve a single star - a Surgeon General's warning of increased risk of acute hypertension would be much more appropriate. Pros: bathroom proximity Cons: Price, food, attitude of owner, smell, wait more

TERRIBLE!!! For such a small, overpriced Italian restaurant in Los Angeles, it's shocking to be received by such lies. My best friend had planned her 30th birthday at Amarone for a group of 16 friends. One would think that our table would be waiting for us... We arrived promptly at 8:45pm when we were expected. (Like another Yelp reviewer recounted) We were handed cheap Prosecco as we crammed by the stairwell near the bathrooms and kitchen to wait to be seated. The owner, who was probably nervous since 16 of us were waiting for our table, tried to claim that we were late. Nope, not late. Then he explained that he had sat a party of four at our table and that we'd have to wait about 20 minutes before we could be seated. I thought he was being facetious but nope, he was totally serious. WIth utter shock, we tried to digest what was happening to our party of 16 and our beyond upset birthday gal. To think that we'd spend almost $2,000 that evening on mediocre food after we'd been treated with such "service" was unthinkable. What restaurant and restaurant owner pre-books an event, WITH a contract, a prix fixed menu, wine selections and a couple of weeks of correspondence and preparation and then handles the night of with such a lack of class and ill-mannered behavior? After 50 minutes, we left and were welcomed at BLT as they wanted to accommodate us at 9:45pm on a Saturday night (very sweet and smart restauranteurs). (Their popovers are also quite welcoming!) The owner could not have been more unprofessional and rude as his co-owner/chef frantically tried to smooth over the mess. I went upstairs to survey the four top that was seated at our table and the upstairs was packed full with diners--no room in sight for a table ready for our large party. Don't waste your time and money on this place as well as supporting such awful service and bad business practice. I hope Amarone's karma catches up to them. They do not deserve to be in business. Cons: Unprepared for our party and rude service. more

has excellent food. a little pricey but well worth it. the food is always fresh and delicious. if you want excellent food this is the place.... more

We were seated upstairs and given a table by the window. (I am glad we were not along the banquette, where the two-tops are cheek-by-jowl). A large party with kids made it hard to hear each other. I was a little concerned about the prospects, given the mixed reviews here, but have to say I was very pleased with the food and attentive (but not obtrusive) service..\r \r An Amuse Bouche of raw tuna was competent. The bread was fresh and oil tasty. My broiled calamari was excellent with just the right degree of coooking and crunch. The special orchiette (sp?) pasta with rappini and sausage was especially delicious. I would have those two courses again in a heartbeat. \r \r I am not much of a dessert person, but my companion ordered the Tiramisu, which was moist and delicate. \r As other diners have reported, the wine selection is quite good, including those by the glass.\r \r The only negative is the noise. They need to install more sound absorbing materials upstairs and perhaps think about removing one of the tables along the upstairs banquette. Because of the noise, I am not sure I agree with others that this is a great place for a date. It IS a great place for food, however, and I will be going back again soon. Pros: Excellent Italian food Cons: Noise more

We were seated upstairs and given a table by the window. (I am glad we were not along the banquette, where the two-tops are cheek-by-jowl). A large party with kids made it hard to hear each other. I was a little concerned about the prospects, given the mixed reviews here, but have to say I was very pleased with the food and attentive (but not obtrusive) service.. An Amuse Bouche of raw tuna was competent. The bread was fresh and oil tasty. My broiled calamari was excellent with just the right degree of coooking and crunch. The special orchiette (sp?) pasta with rappini and sausage was especially delicious. I would have those two courses again in a heartbeat. I am not much of a dessert person, but my companion ordered the Tiramisu, which was moist and delicate. As other diners have reported, the wine selection is quite good, including those by the glass. The only negative is the noise. They need to install more sound absorbing materials upstairs and perhaps think about removing one of the tables along the upstairs banquette. Because of the noise, I am not sure I agree with others that this is a great place for a date. It IS a great place for food, however, and I will be going back again soon. Pros: Excellent Italian food Cons: Noise more

All these 5 star ratings surprise me and leave me somewhat suspicious. A friend and I took another friend out for dinner and had a far less favorable opinion. We were seated upstairs. Beginning on a positive note, the wine the host suggested was wonderful. The appetizers were fair but acceptable. And now is when the trouble began. My two friends ordered lamb. I ordered a fish dish the taste of which makes me forget the name. It was tasteless and dry. I complained to the waiter and told him I wished to return it . He descended the stairs with the dish. The host (was he the owner?) marched upstairs and proceded to berate me with great anger adding that my tastebuds were at fault. It ended badly. Would I recommend this place? I'd rather be incarcerated in Gitmo. more

All these 5 star ratings surprise me and leave me somewhat suspicious. A friend and I took another friend out for dinner and had a far less favorable opinion. We were seated upstairs. Beginning on a positive note, the wine the host suggested was wonderful. The appetizers were fair but acceptable. And now is when the trouble began. My two friends ordered lamb. I ordered a fish dish the taste of which makes me forget the name. It was tasteless and dry. I complained to the waiter and told him I wished to return it . He descended the stairs with the dish. The host (was he the owner?) marched upstairs and proceded to berate me with great anger adding that my tastebuds were at fault. It ended badly. Would I recommend this place? I'd rather be incarcerated in Gitmo. more

I'm a bit of a food snob and was in town for a conference from New York City...was going to go to Ago, but it wasn't as close to my hotel as Amarone and it seemed a bit too obvious of a choice...anyway, ended up walking over to Amarone. This place is perfection. I can't say enough. I was a single female dining solo and was completely comfortable and content the entire meal- actually that doesn't do Amarone justice....the truth is, they charmed my socks off the moment I walked in, and I've never left a restaurant more satisfied. Seriously, I have no complaints- and I'm from New York! I had the tuna tartar for an appetizer with a glass of pinot grigio- delicious. Then had the tagliatelle with ragu for my entree with pinot noir- again, perfect. For dessert had the panna cotta and a coffee...I could have died there. This place is a treasure, they truly give you the ""star treatment"".... I only wish I could take Amarone back to the east coast with me. Pros: service leaves nothing to be desired- food is as wonderful as the rest of the experience Cons: truly- I have none. maybe, if I had to find one, that they didn't have black linens for my black pants... more

I'm a bit of a food snob and was in town for a conference from New York City...was going to go to Ago, but it wasn't as close to my hotel as Amarone and it seemed a bit too obvious of a choice...anyway, ended up walking over to Amarone. This place is perfection. I can't say enough. I was a single female dining solo and was completely comfortable and content the entire meal- actually that doesn't do Amarone justice....the truth is, they charmed my socks off the moment I walked in, and I've never left a restaurant more satisfied. Seriously, I have no complaints- and I'm from New York! I had the tuna tartar for an appetizer with a glass of pinot grigio- delicious. Then had the tagliatelle with ragu for my entree with pinot noir- again, perfect. For dessert had the panna cotta and a coffee...I could have died there. This place is a treasure, they truly give you the "star treatment".... I only wish I could take Amarone back to the east coast with me. Pros: service leaves nothing to be desired- food is as wonderful as the rest of the experience Cons: truly- I have none. maybe, if I had to find one, that they didn't have black linens for my black pants... more