Blue Parrot Restaurant

I'm from New England where family owned Italian restaurants are found in almost every corner of Italian ghettos. I went to Blue Parrot with my family expecting truly authentic Italian food but was shocked at how horrible the food was. The pasta was homemade, but was thick, undercooked and overwhelmed the dish. The sauce was tasteless, and the chicken in the parmigian was a thin burnt crisp. The restaurant was old, tired and dirty. In all honesty, I just don't understand how the business has remained open for so long, especially in Louisville. The only positive: service was polite and responsive. more

You go to The Blue Parrot if you like pasta and sauce. Their homemade spaghetti noodles are superior. Their sauce - well, if you like Ragu, this is not the place. If you like hard/dry pasta boiled in water - this is not the place for you. The Blue Parrot is known for their simplier pastas, their huge meatballs, and, best of all (and now bottled and available at Costco in Colorado) their sauce. Original and spicy. more

I will make this short. (1 star is too much) Extremely bad food, tasted like it was heated up in a microwave and looked like it too. Horrible decor unless you like bright, quiet, weird decor, it was not a cozy Italian place at all. When I tried to call on the phone and complain I was hung up on and then I called back to give the lady a chance to make this right .... she hung up on me again.... Great service!!!!!! (I was not at all offensive or angry I just wanted some of my money back, and she kept offering me gift cards ..... Are you kidding) I feel bad this is a family owned business but the family needs to make some serious changes as people who choose to take their family out to dinner and spend $60.00 or more want a great all around experience. If other restaurants offer that, then that is what people expect. Your food may have been good way back in the day but the bar has been raised with concepts such as master chefs that prepare food for ordinary restaurants. Do Not go unless changes are made. Where is chef Ramsey more

I cant believe you people! you really expect that much? I am Joanie Riggens 12 year old grandaughter and I know this restaurant. we DO NOT serve canned sauce OR canned or frozen pasta. ive been through the kitchens bout a hundred times and i can assure theres one great big pasta maker we make pasta with ourselfs. We also make the sauce. what do you expect from us, a 5 star restaurant from a simple family? You obiously dont appreciate normal italian food. have you never seen a restaurant that you have to pour your own restaurant cuz i know many! And at least we actually give you free bread! We cant make everything homemade you know! we dont have the money or room to hire so many workers to make your precious homemade ice cream, bread, salad, etc. quit complaning! And that 'weird lady' you speak of is my grandma! Also with your decor complaints. do you really need murals or metal art to eat a meal? goodness gracious you people are needy. it makes me sad that you dont appreciate our family owned buisness. AND TO TOP IT OFF, I ONLY MADE THIS ACCOUNT TO WRITE THIS REVIEW. QUIT COMPLANING PLEASE. I BET 90% OF RESTAURANTS USE FROZEN CRAP, BUT WE DONT. more

I've lived in Colorado for almost 12 years now and have heard so many stories about the Blue Parrot so I thought I'd give it a try. Mistake. First off, the waitress was very nice, but the food was low grade microwaved swill. I ordered the chicken parmigiana and my wife the ravioli. The salad that came out first was a shameful excuse for a salad, tiny just some iceberg lettuce. Next, nearly 40 minutes later with our kids going nuts the whole time our meal arrived. The pasta wasn't even cooked through, far from al dente, the chicken was a tiny thin burnt to a crisp chicken cutlet over some more uncooked pasta. We were so hungry by then we didn't even have time to complain. We ate what we could, the kids finished the rest, and we made some food when we got home. World famous? Maybe, but for famously below average food. Not a place we'd ever go back to again. more

Somewhere an Italian grandmother is turning over in her grave. How they can call that Italian - or food for that matter - is a mystery. Half way through my meal I was hoping Michael Corleone would come out of the bathroom with a .38 and finish me off. Oofah, was dreck! My chicken parm tasted like a deep fried Frisbee. Remember the scene from the Charlie Chaplin flick where he's starving and eats his shoe laces? I'm sure Charlie's laces tasted better than my spaghetti. My wife had the combo plater. Combo of crap would be more descriptive. And all this for a mere $60! Save your money or better yet donate it to a homeless guy on the corner in Boulder. He can get a much better meal at Larkburger for a fraction of the cost. more

We went there because our out of town guest wanted something close and fast and heard from the motel this is a good place to go. I will kill who ever told them to go there. The food was the worst ever. I think we will forever laugh about this place. Our guests were very upset too. Please, do not go there. The salad was crappy, pasta had no texture with unflavorful sauce. Our guests complained it looked like worms. Their ice cream is really cheap too. Pros: There is no wait Cons: Horrible food more

We were laughing as we left - not that there was anything to enjoy, but only to shake of the horrible experience ranging from a dreary decor, bland food, and a dismal wait staff. When we first moved to Louisville, we were told that you would be hard pressed to find anyone who has not eaten at the Blue Parrot, and pressed harder to find anyone who had eaten there twice. Now I get it. Pros: They had electricity Cons: most everything else more

Stumbled across this restaurant while looking for a place to eat on Main Street in Louisville. The fried zucchini was promising but the tomato sauce was terrible (flavorless). The meal went down from there. The salad was sterile (romaine, no fixings, and bottled dressings - not homemade). The renowned spaghetti sauce was flavorless and in need of seasoning. The interior is dingy with watermarks on the ceiling tiles. I wanted to like it because its family owned and because the service was friendly, but the food was horrendous and I will never eat there again. Pros: Parking, Located in Historic Downtown, Nice Staff Cons: Terrible Food (including the tomato sauce), Decor more

Worst Italian food I have ever had. If you have been to Italy you would understand. Served Chianti that had a taste like watered-down grape juice. Noodles were thick and sauce was like eating Ragu. No spice, no garlic....I like to give local restaurants business but do not waste you money. YUCK Cons: horrible more

Great food been going there for 30 years.\r I think the food was better before the place burned down.\r The salad they need to add onion and tomato's.\r You order a large you will take 1/2 of it home :). Pros: Everything Cons: Nothing more

If you want to try this great food stick with the spagetti and sauce, try the link sausage to go with it. thats what this place is all about. If you are the yuppy type and expect the fancy frills, go for the take out and eat it at home. My wife son and myself stick to the spagetti and it always is great. The sauce was better before they bottled it for stores. This restaurant has come a long way from when u had to go to the kitchen door for your take out. For those who don't care for this great spagetti and sauce, move over for those who do cause this place is ""old school"" just wish I lived close so I could have it more than a couple of times a year. Pros: Spagetti sausage Noodles more

good prices, bad food, and poor service. We would NEVER eat there again. We ate 1/4 of the food, had it boxed up, and I brought our food home and seasoned it until it tasted decent again. I had to add some sauce, garlic, and basil to make it edible. I don't get why anyone would recommend this restaurant- store bought tomato sauce and pasta would taste ten times better! Pros: parking, cost Cons: taste of food, service, ambience more

I lived in Boulder during the 70's and went there once. I took my wife there on a recent visit and she was not impressed at all. This place does have a strong local following but I can't understand why. The spaghetti sauce is okay, but not expecially great. the noodles are different than anything I have encountered anywhear else, about the shape of a # 2 pencil. You would swear the meatballs were made with sawdust and the salad is plain. The atmosphere is not the reason people come here. You either love the place or you don't. Not an authentic Italian style restaurant. Pros: Ample parking. Quick service Cons: The food is not that good and menu is not elaborate more

It is unfortunate that such a well known family owned restaurant has one of the most horrible foods I have eaten. I had eggplant Parmesan which did not seem homemade. The breading was pretty bland, not much seasoning if any and they forgot the cheese on it. Even with the cheese sprinkled over it didn't help. The pasta noodles were nice and thick however could have been cooked in salted water to add that extra flavor throughout. The noodles reminded me of something from a can or cafeteria food as mentioned. I was hoping to be proved wrong. UPSIDE my hubby said the Philly sandwich was great!! Pros: kid friendly good philly cheese steak Cons: bland noodles, expensive more

OK, I realize everyone that loves this place grew up with it, as did I, but honestly... the noodles are thick and the sauce is not just ""watered down tomato paste"" it's famous throughout the state. Go to your local supermarket- you can find in a tiny corner of the sauce aisle, a bottle of Blue Parrot's homemade sauce. It's one of the only tiny family-owned restaurants that have their sauce at supermarkets statewide. There's proof that it's good. The noodles are thick and hearty and the meatballs are delicious! People are on here whining about not being able to get a decent salad... you don't go to Blue Parrot for the SALAD, my God! You go for the hearty delicious plate of spaghetti. If you want a stupid salad or some ambiance and fanciness then go to the Macaroni Grill, a mass-produced chain. If you want local tradition and a good, homecooked plate of traditional spaghetti, go to the Blue Parrot. Don't expect it to be fancy, it's a neighborhood family-owned restaurant in a small town. Which, in my book, makes it all the more better. Pros: the food, the food, the food, the food Cons: if you take it for what it is, there arent any cons more

My husband grew up in Boulder and raved about this place, so on a recent trip back we went there. Living in nyc for twenty years, I was used to really great italian. This place was horrible !! The Spaghetti was disgusting . Hard , tastless , and cold. I've had better salads from a hospital cafateria. The service is horrible. Steer clear of this dump. more

I grew up in the Boulder area and one of our regular family rituals was to head to Louisville for Italian food. Colaccis, Blue Parrot, Luigi's, Pasquale's, all were good. Now it seems that the BP is all that's left, but it's still good. I don't live in Colorado anymore, but whenever I'm there, this is a must stop. All the negative reviewers I see here have their reasons for not liking it, but it's clear that they just don't get it. This is not authentic Italian cuisine from the old country - it doesn't pretend to be. It's not supposed to be a Boulder fern-bar experience either. It's authentic Italian-American cuisine with its roots in the kitchens of the Italian immigrant families who worked in the coal mines. Like other parts of the country with similar populations and cuisine, it's heavy on good meat and thick pasta. People had to work long and hard in those days, and this stuff kept them going. Soup or salad as a dinner? Bosh. If that's what you're looking for, there are places to find it, but this isn't one of them. If you're a real foodie (and not a food snob), you understand that a restaurant's history and context are part of the experience, and if you like the food, so much the better. You also understand the meaning of the term ""cult food,"" which is what this place is for me and so many others, occasional grumpy wait staff, simple decor, retro salads, cheap beer, and all. Remember that in many cultures, a restaurant is the extension of a family's private home; not a truly public space. You don't complain about what your friends serve you in their homes do you? Long live the Blue Parrot!! Pros: Good family restaurant with a great history Cons: Limited menu, crowded Friday nights more

Last night my boyfriend and I decided to go out for Italian. We were intending on going to Pasquini's, but to our dismay, it was no longer there. So we tried what we thought might be the next best thing; the Blue Parrot. We nearly turned around once we entered the place due to the atmosphere. It felt like we were in a retirement home cafeteria. But we had been walking up and down the street for nearly half an hour so we settled on this place. We took forever to decide on what to eat, (not a very extensive menu) and finally got fried raviolis, the chicken parm, and lasagne. ALL TERRIBLE. HONESTLY, I've had better food in a nursing home!!! The pasta was flavorless, and the sauce no better. The bread they brought out to our table was like unsweet angel food cake in a bread form, if you can imagine that. Our waiter was adequate, but kept us waiting forever after he dropped off the check. When some strange woman returned with my credit card and receipt, she left me with a broken pen to sign the check. I shouldn't have even bothered looking for one that worked and left it blank. I felt robbed after paying for food that shouldn't even be donated to a homeless shelter. STAY AWAY from this place !!! The entire experience was SO BAD, I almost stabbed my boyfriend in the neck with the broken pen. Pros: not crowded Cons: HORRIBLE food, EXPENSIVE menu, slow service, miserable wait staff, horrible atmosphere more

My boyfriend has been eating at the Blue Parrot since he was a toddler. He shared this wonderful resturant with me recently and BOY...what a find!!! The pasta is nice, thick, traditional Italian noodles, not that crappy, premade stuff you can get at any pseudo-Italian place. The red sauce is quite tasty; not too spicy, just really flavorful, and the meatballs are to die for! But my favorite dish on the menu is the chicken cacciatore. The seasonings are WONDERFUL, the meat falls off the bone and the portions are huge. Admittedly, the ambiance leaves a little to be desired, but the food is worth the lack of decor. I absolutely recommend this nice, family owned and family-friendly resturant!!!! Pros: Great, simple, filling Italian food. Wonderful ""home"" cooking!!! Cons: less than spectacular ambiance, some wait staff could be friendlier more