Pazzo Restaurant & Fine Dining

Recommends

Southern54

Joined 2 years ago

Gourmet food at moderate prices. This has become my favorite Chapel Hill restaurant over the past few months. The food is of a style, taste, and quality that meets or exceeds the cuisine of many high-end, $$$$ restaurants in the Triangle area without the high-end price.

The pate fois gras is a perpetual favorite of my wife ... she orders it every week. The golden beet and goat cheese salad has a beautiful presentation and wonderfully balanced taste. The menu varies by season and takes advantage of local purveyors where possible. The Italian meatballs and meat sauces are made with three different meats and are some of the best I have ever tasted. There is a vegetarian rissotto that can come as appetizer or entree that I highly recommend. The wine list has good balance in quality and range and is moderately priced.

Overall, in my opinion, this is the best upscale food for the money in the Triangle area. I think the prices could be higher if the owner was not also making good money next door with his EXCELLENT pizza and calzones. I recommend you eat here whenever you can.

Recommends

bkeyworth

Joined 5 years ago

excellent food, quiet & cozy> My favorite. this is our favorite place to take visitors. Atmosphere is great for actually being able to talk & hear everyone. Bar is cozy, usu. nice artwork. Food is always good. My favorite is the rainbow trout stuffed with kalamata olives and something else, I've had it several times & it's always good. Appetizers are well worth it (I like the caesar's salad).

We alternate between tiramisu & creme brulee, love both

You can sit outdoors for dining in warm weather, can walk to the outdoor movie in summer or music, also to Lumina movie theatre across the street

Recommends

FeedMe014

Joined 5 years ago

Awesome Italiano - worth the trip. The chef/owner has been trained in some of the best restaurants in the country. Every dish I've had at Pazzo has been fantastic. Pastas, meats, seafood, etc., always creative, stylish and delicious; and I've been there a lot. Seth, the owner and chef, cares more about his customers than any business owner you'll ever meet. Make the trip to Pazzo! Parking in Southern Village is easy, much easier than Franklin Street, and the short drive is convenient to anyone in the Triangle looking for great food in a lovely atmosphere. I used to live in the neighborhood, which was really convenient, but even now that I've moved across town, I still make the trip on a regular basis. The locals crowd at the bar makes for great conversation, but sit at a table if you prefer privacy. I love this place, and want everyone to know about it.

Doesn't Recommend

mlhong2004

Joined 8 years ago

chef/owner/manager AWESOME, hostess--she STINKS!. I am not sure if it was because we came in close to closing time, but the initial interaction between my party & the hostess was not pleasant. She seemed very inconvenienced that we arrived close to closing time & was very reluctant to seat my party & I. After she spoke to several other employees, the chef/owner/manager quickly came over & told us that they would be happy to seat us and take care of us for the evening, as soon as a table cleared up. Fair enough, we will be happy to wait and order drinks. While waiting, I felt that the hostess was glaring at us from the hostess booth?maybe she was waiting for us to place an order for drinks. So we ordered beverages, (in hopes that she would stop staring) and she brought me a glass of wine that was not even a 1/5 full and brought another member of my party, a beer in a wine glass?! Who serves beer in a wine glass? Does a wine glass even hold 22 ounces of beer? Then the hostess proceeds to say (in a very condescending manner), ?we?re still working on clearing off your table, ONLY if you are still interested in dining with us tonight.? Ummm?duh, I would not have ordered drinks to WAIT on a table, if I had not planned on eating at the table. There were other issues with the hostess regarding her mannerisms and overall attitude that turned us completely off to wanting to even dine with this restaurant. If you could have seen the way she looked at us, or heard the tone in her voice while speaking to us, or listened to the way she pronounced ?cabernet sauvignon? while what I ordered was a cab/merlot blend (it seemed like she was trying to correct me b/c I referred to it as a ?cab? as if I couldn?t say cabernet sauvignon), you too would have been disgusted w/ the way we were treated. Enough is enough & we left before we were even seated. If I were to EVER returned, it would only be because the chef/owner/manager was unbelievably nice. He seemed sincere, genuine, & concerned w/ the well being of all paying customers.

Doesn't Recommend

bnicotra

Joined 6 years ago

They couldn't care less if you were satisfied !. The waiter took food off of the table withot asking if we were finished. My food was cold, soggy, and bland.

I was only offered a look at the menue for something else. No apology, Nothing but the bill.

I would not recommend this retaurant unless you enjoy being treated like you are not valued!

Recommends

spazurekwa1

Joined 6 years ago

Best Italian in CH or Durham. After a string of disappointments including 411 West, we've finally found Italian food that rivals what we were accustomed to in Seattle. Our meal included the antipasto appetizer (salami, prosciutto, various olives , fresh mozzarella and a lovely, spicy stuffed pepper), penne with tomato vodka sauce and big chunks of bacon, and homemade gnocci that were pan-seared and served in a creamy sauce with fresh asparagus, cauliflower, corn (from the cob) and toasted pine nuts (a vegetarian entree, you'll note). It was all really flavorful, just delicious; contrary to the experiences reported here, the vegetarian gnocci was probably the best of the lot. And the service was efficient yet very personal (we went quite early, so I can't say how they operate when busy). All-in-all, probably the best meal I've had in NC.

Doesn't Recommend

xenobia

Joined 6 years ago

They've never heard of vegetarians. Okay, actually, there's one vegeterian entree on the menu -- the most expensive one, and it doesn't sound terribly appealing. Even the appetizers and antipasti are fish shrimp bacon more fish. The final stroke was the assistant waiter who couldn't shut up about a veal special even though my friend and I were obviously cringing. What kind of monster still eats veal? Probably the same creeps who see nothing wrong with wearing fur. I finished my overpriced drink quickly and we left in disgust.

I'm used to eating in restaurants that serve meat and seafood, but I'm not used to this level of insensitivity.

Recommends

higglypiggly

Joined 7 years ago

really dissappointing food. I have looked forward to trying Pazzo. Town HAll grill has been good several times and I hear they are connected somehow. I went after a movie and got pizza. It was reheated, dry, lacking in sauce and cheese and was over priced. Two slices, no special additions and no meat, reheated and a bottle of water, $7.44 . I read in this reveiw that pizza was from a wood oven, I saw it go in and come out of a standard pizza oven.

Next time I'll head up the road to Cole park.

Recommends

talexdiner9

Joined 7 years ago

Great Food!. Chef Seth is the man but the service seems to be an afterthought. The food is worth any drive you may have to get there.

Recommends

porktaco

Joined 7 years ago

Great Hangout. Pazzo seems to acheive exactly what it sets out to do. Be a friendly place with honest, tasty food. My wife and I enjoyed a generous tuna tartare with celery leaves and radish with a bracingly fresh and tart lemon vin. The caesar salad was solid but could have used a touch more dressing and I prefer my parm grated finer. The entrees were excellent. A perfectly roasted porkloin with delicious sweet potato gratin and rapini and salmon filet with lovely gnocchi, creamed corn, and spinach. We were too full for dessert, so we passed. All in all, a great place to let your hair down and enjoy a pleasant time.