Italian Village

08/12/2008 Posted by happydowntowngirl

What I like about the Italian Village is that I can get a good meal for a good price. We often go to nicer restaurants but every once in a while we like going to a place where we know we'll get a good deal and enjoy our meal. Italian Village is my favorite place for this. No, it's not gourmet, but I always enjoy a pizza bender. They are not greasy like pizza and calzone often end up being, and I enjoy their dipping sauce. The pizza benders also are delicious the next day! Yes, their salads are iceberg lettuce, but they are huge and have a yummy thick ranch dressing. The bread is not the highest quality but I still always enjoy it. In short, if you're looking for gourmet this is not your place, but if you're looking for good food at a good price, I recommend trying this place out. The lunch specials are the best price, but the dinner specials are also good in comparison to other restaurants. It has a bit of an old, homey feel, the service is normally great, and I always leave full and happy.

Pros: Pizza benders, specials, price, service

Cons: Can't really think of anything!

06/18/2008 Posted by Jshizblom

I've been going to Italian Village for Nearly 20 years. Somethings that I love about this place is that I have had the same waitress for at least 10 of those 20 years. You know how nice it is to be able to go to a place year after year and see familiar faces. It's more like home then it is just another restaurante. My wife and I had our first date here. We have now been happily married for 5 years. I moved north when we got married and now we are several miles (about 45) away so when we get a chance to find a reason we go. In fact we just went last Friday. The Bender's are a favorite. I've tried to mimic with no prevail. The Lasagna, to die for. The Salads! the roughtfurt dressing! where can I find that stuff? The only thing I'm disappointed about is why they haven't expanded. Then again a new building and location just wouldn't be the same. Keep it up!! I once waited 2 years to have a bender and traveled over 2000 miles to get one!!!

Pros: Everything

Cons: Nothing, Sometimes the wait, but I would wait all day

04/26/2008 Posted by lismall

I think the office manager that complained sounds ignorant. Has he been held at gunpoint in his office? Does he open his doors to creepy people tugging at the door a half hour before it opens? The hours of operation are posted on the outside of their front door and should be respected as that! If he had half of a brain, he'd realize how dangerous it would have been for their employees to let him in! Get a clue!

04/26/2008 Posted by gimbo

the salad is iceberg lettuce with a lonely carrot strip on top. the garlic bread is bizarre - sliced ersatz sour dough with a schmeer of somthing oily and salty. the benders are an extremely poor utah imitation of a calzone and they actually charge for red sauce to top them. the wait staff is generally friendly & accommodating but the guy that seats you needs to get a personality. the dining room could use some major updating - the ventilation is odd plus it's loud and could use something to soften the noise of the out of control kids and their clueless parents. this restaurant is a utah classic. these folks need to catch a clue. with a few improvements [spring mix lettuce for the salads, real garlic bread, a revamping of the recipes, some facility updates] this place could be good. the only thing on the menu that's worth getting is the manicotti.

Pros: wait staff, manicotti

Cons: most everything else

04/23/2008 Posted by shayb

As an owner and manager of Italian Village I would like to respond to a review posted today. This man said he was treated very rudely by my employees and did not like the reason given by my manager. In the past year we have been robbed at gun point 3 times. We have to be cautious. This man was banging and shaking the door. When he called and my manager tried to explain this to him he didn't seem to want to hear or understand. Granted someone probably should have gone out the back door to see what he needed, and I'm not sure yet whats wrong with our web site, but no one was trying to be rude. Our hours are posted on the front of the building and we don't open them until the posted time. We use the time before we open to get everything ready for the day and sometimes it gets a little hectic. My manager did not laugh at him. We strive to make all of our customers happy and would love another chance to make a better impression, and to show why we have been in business for 40 years.

04/23/2008 Posted by mdsnhms

I wish I could tell you how the food was. I am an office manager for a small office across the street from this restaurant. We often buy lunch for the employees and we were anxious to try the Italian Village. I walked across the street to get a menu since their website was down as was their fax machine. I went over at 10:30 am, 1/2 hour before opening. I saw employees so I knocked on the door. They saw me and waved me off apparently very annoyed. I persisted and they left the area so I was no longer visible. When I called to speak to a manager about it she actually LAUGHED and said that they were very busy and I should just understand. I will NEVER purchase lunch for my office employees from the Italian Village.

03/20/2008 Posted by pinkiti33

Great food, gone there my whole life. Great for families or large parties. Pizza bender is an all time favorite of my whole family. Hole in the wall atmosphere, very unique.

Pros: Great food.

Cons: Old and kinda smells funny

03/02/2007 Posted by lemomncorolla

I went out to lunch with a friend for fun Friday, on the recommendation of a co worker we went to the Italian village to get the pizza bender. When we got there the guy that showed us to our seat acted like I had asked him to give me one of his kidneys when I told him I would prefer a booth. Don't worry it only got worse, the waitress rushed us to get our order then she must have left to run errands before she brought our drinks. It was only fifteen minuets before our drinks arrived and only another fifteen before out soggy mayo and lettuce pile showed up with our chewy salt bread. When our pizza benders came after a total wait of about forty minuets we realized that we had ordered the ten dollar hot pocket with manwich sauce. If you only take one bit of advice from this review I hope that it will be that if you like crappy hot pockets and soggy mayo brown salad then you should eat at the Italian village, but if not eat at McDonalds and save five dollars.

Pros: I got to go home when i was done and I never have to go back, knowing is half the battle

Cons: I wasted an hour and a half of my life that I will never get back and I am starting to feel sick and still have not had lunch

12/12/2006 Posted by shakeyquant

I'm fine with the local mom and pop restaurants but this place was really substandard. I had the Veal Parmesan and Pizza. My date hate veal parm. and lasagna. First the garlic bread tastes like bad store bought "garlic spread". Her salad was limp and wilty. Her soup was "so so" she said. My veal parm. was made with a ground meat patty that tasted like a Salisbury steak and even had the fake grill marks on it. My shrimp pizza smelled like the day old trash at a fish mongers shop. Her lasagna was a random pile of noodle strips with a greasy bland sauce and lots of cheese. The wine was "boxed" wine only. Our check was $28 and we had to go to another restaurant because we still hadn't eaten.

Pros: Somewhat cheaper than average

Cons: Really poor food quality

08/05/2005 Posted by marlinay

The food is just average. The sauces used are bland. All the dishes were covered with tons of cheese. The price was resonable compared to the large portions.

Pros: Cheap, Family Friendly

Cons: Bland tasting