Cucina Biazzi

I like this restaurant for all the reasons I mentioned in my first review. I was happy to find out we could order a la carte. As much as I enjoyed all the courses before, neither Linda nor I would have been able to finish our dinners, so we shared. She had the special of the day – beef brochettes. I had the parmesan & ricotta ravioli with crispy sage & browned butter. The raviolis were delicate, tender, tasty, rich and not doughy. I had to restrain myself from not licking the plate or running my fingers along the bottom the plate to get every last drop of sauce. I’m so happy that I had this has a main course; it is another reason to return to Ashland and why they rate 5 stars!
I had made our reservation for the patio seating, like the bay area Ashland if pleasant in the fall, but it was way too cold to eat outside. We had a nice table inside in the window. The interior was small but I not feel crowded.

I’m torn. Maybe it should be 4. But really the problem is that I was expecting so much more.
They have a wonderful set up. You have to get the 4 course meal, but you get to pick what you have for the primi and segundi. Everyone gets the same antipasto, which really is quite nice. I had a lobster Ravioli with cream sauce on the Primi which was good — nice sauce, good fish — happy with this one. Segundi I had the fish of the day, which was just kinda unimpressive sadly. Oh well. The salad on the 4^th was, well, salad — not blown away.
I do love the way they do it though. And the staff is great. And it’s a cozy building, and if it’s nice out they have a great patio.

Food was excellent as always. The antipasto plate has been improved. It now has salami. For those who say that all the vegetables are jarred, we found everything was fresh. the service was good. Salmon was excellent as was the Filet Mignon. Those who had the chocolate pot of cream loved it.
Though i called in advance and was assured that they could do separate checks for each of our 4 couples, the waiter refused to do it. Amuse had no problem doing this. They did, however, include 18% tip. I was able to finally get TWO checks.

Cucina Biazzi is a classic Italian restaurant off the much-​trodden tourist track tucked into a quiet neighborhood in a converted house which offers a four-​course traditional meal that is daunting in scope, but heavenly for those of us who like to linger Euro-​style over dinner. We opted for cocktails which were juicy and refreshing on an unseasonably hot summer evening which forced us inside. The Antipasti is satisfying and simple, descriptors which suffice for all courses here. The lobster ravioli is the clear standout for the Secondi Piatti options, and my partner’s salt-​crusted salmon soared above all comers for the third course, including my creative but «meh» vegetarian option. The service is attentive and personable, and I don’t imagine it was the first time that much of the meal was boxed for take-​home. The Tuscan vanilla ice cream has some of the most incredible texture I’ve experienced, absolutely delicious. Cucina is one of the most romantic, fantastic classic Italian restaurants in the area.

Long evening for 1^st visit. Long, long for all tables-​something very wrong with kitchen. Servers did their best-​tough for them and all of us diners. Will not try again-​food was good but the pace was too hard on everyone there.

My son took me here on Friday evening before Mother’s day. It has traditionally been one of my favorite «special occasion» places to eat. I ordered breaded chicken breast with polenta, it was dry and bland. I saw another photo of this dish posted on Unilocal,it had tomatoes, basil and garlic served with it. My dish had none of those. My son ordered beef tenderloin, we were told it would be served medium rare. It arrived medium well. He returned it and waited 45 minutes for another steak to be served (although the restaurant was not busy that evening). It was also too well-​done and our server (jokingly?) said she thinks the chef may be drinking! To compensate, they gave my son a free dessert. Our table service was okay, not great. The reason for a rating of 2 stars was due to that fact that the other courses were very good.

This was my second time dining at Cucina, and I gave them four stars the first time, because it was a little spendy, and the chicken was pretty bland/​dry. But tonight I had the pork loin, and I have to say it was fantastic. It was definitely worth the money. Our server was Trevor, and he was beyond impressive. He was extremely attentive, and knowledgeable, and gave us great recommendations for dinner, which we loved. The pastas and desserts never disappoint. This place is a fantastic find, and we will definitely be back.

Great good great service from server named Trevor. I had sturgeon, I was great. My wife had chicken was a little dry but all the appetizers were great as well as sides. The most amazing part of the diner was the chocolate cake desert, unreal it was like they baked it especially for us. We could not figure out how they could make something so amazing in one portion!
Bravo

Cucina Biazzi was highly recommended to us by a good friend of Gayle’s, who raved about the yummy Italian cuisine, the attractive restaurant space, the spot on service, and large portions. In hindsight, the only thing I might have done differently would be to have ordered only 1 of the signature 4-​course meals and then shared. The food is that plentiful and such a great value for the price. So much so that by the end of the meal, we only had enough left for 1 salad between us and dessert being out of the question.
Cucina Biazzi is a bit hard to find and hiding in plain site, considering the many years that we have been staying at the nearby Peerless. It pretty much looks like a regular house with a sign in front, but wonderfully opens up into an outdoor plaza in back. There are 2 very attractive indoor dining rooms, but we opted for the lush outdoor patio, that reminded me of dining under a Sukkah. And it was a perfect warm Indian Summer evening to do so.
Our waitress was friendly, smart, and enjoyable to have around. She first wisely led us away from the house wine (which was a little sweet), towards a very reasonably priced Italian bottle and then with the assistance of another restaurant employee, helped us pick out some pretty fabulous pasta choices for the 2^nd course. Between that and the 1^st course antipasta, we probably could have stopped there. But there was the 3^rd course (Chicken for me and Eggplant for her) that had us begging for reduced portions by the time the 4^th course (the salad) rolled around.
We then waddled home, where Gayle soon fell asleep from a most happy food coma. I lasted a little longer, and only momentarily felt guilty for eating so much delicious food, considering my dietary efforts post-​minor heart attack. But heck, this was a most enjoyable vacation splurge, and all the weight came off anyway after a few days after we returned to the SF Bay Area. Yet, I can still taste that wonderful pasta dish in my mind…

Cucina Biazzi
October 14, 2014 7“15 p.m. And we were about to enter The Twilight Zone.
I have not had a dining experience this poor since the 80’s and I suppose I was naïve to think that I would be able to live the rest of my life without another one. But this came out of nowhere and my husband and I were totally blind-​sided as our experiences with restaurants in Ashland have always been excellent.
We had made reservations for 7:00 and at 6:30 called and changed them to 7:15 which they said was not a problem. Everything seemed normal enough after we arrived — the waitress seemed pleasant and asked us if we had ever dined there before and we said we hadn’t. She explained the 4-​course prix fixe menu to us. We gave her our bottle of wine to open and told her that if she would like a taste she was welcome to bring a third glass which she cheerfully did. We poured her a generous amount and continued to decide on our meal. So far, so good.
Not long after we ordered the first course, anti-​pasti, it arrived and was plentiful and quite tasty with an interesting variety of marinated vegetables, cannelinni beans, mushrooms, salami, cheese crostini as well as fresh bread, olive oil and balsamic. Within about 10 minutes the waitress appeared with our second course, pasta, and I was very surprised when she stood there and looked at our almost completely uneaten plates of food as if she expected us to make room for her to set down the pasta. (which by the way there was very little room because we were at a very small table right next to the kitchen) I was speechless so my husband very politely informed her that we are not fast diners and would like to slow down. She insisted on setting down the pasta anyway so we had virtually now very little space on our table for even the silverware so I had to really bunch things up to make the room. I know I looked very perturbed but I could not help it as this was a special evening for us. She said she would inform the chef to to hold off until we let her know when we were ready for him to fire the third course.
After that we received virtually no service from her at all as we attempted to enjoy the rest of our first and second courses. We could could not get her attention and she did not pour our wine at all. When my husband finally was able to get her attention she was abrupt and said «So…I guess you would like me to take these plates away now?» And my husband said «Yes». Bad vibes had been very present from us asking her to not rush us up to this point.
When she served our third course the food looked and smelled wonderful and my husband took two bites of the chicken from one end and then one from the other end and then cut a piece and asked me to take a bite and tell him what I thought. I tried it and I said I had never tasted chicken that had a texture or a flavor like that. He said he hadn’t either ever. It did not taste like chicken, it tasted awful and the texture was nothing I had ever consumed before. After a few minutes the waitress came back and asked me if my food was alright and I said mine was but I didn’t think my husband liked his food. She asked him what was wrong and he explained it to her and so she asked him if he would like to send it back and he said he did. She took it away and we heard her loudly tell somebody (the chef I would presume) that she was sorry. My husband and I looked at each other and I said, «Did she just apologize to the chef because you sent your chicken back?» In fact she did not even apologize to us! About 5 minutes later we heard her telling the other waitress that we were «the Problem table». (They were standing right behind a flimsy divider that was between us and the kitchen which is why we could hear everything going on in there). I liked my pork loin dish and finished it and when she came back out and asked us if we were ready for our salad I told her we were going to skip the fourth course and we would like to get our check and a bag to take our wine with us. She brought us our check and very curtly informed my husband that she had removed the charge for the chicken and for the corkage fee. So our bill came to $ 46. 70 and we put down a $ 50.00 bill. After about 10 minutes she had not come back and so we decided to just cork our wine and leave. As we walked past her and the other waitress standing in the kitchen door together just staring at us she loudly said «Oh look… I get spare change!» I did turn around at that point and looked her in the eye and «Thank you for our evening».
I know this is a long review but I want to clarify a few things. My husband and I love restaurants and fine dining as well as casual dining out. We rarely have bad experiences in restaurants because we are generally very friendly, outgoing and optimistic people in all that we do. We have both worked in restaurants and we understand a lot about why some things do not turn out right during a meal — for se

Probably my absolute favorite restaurant in Ashland. Love everything I have had on the menu!

We say we come to Ashland for the shows, but really it’s for the food! Cucina Biazzi did not disappoint. I liked the variety of dishes offered in their 4-​course menu. We shared a playful antipasto dish followed by a creamy mushroom risotto for me and a ravioli bolognese for the hubby. For the main course, I had prawns with potatoes and sautéed spinach while the hubs had a breaded chicken a la mama mia (or something like that!). Even though we were full, we found room for warm chocolate cake and vanilla bean ice cream. The ingredients were fresh and delicious, and the people at Biazzi were friendly and classy — all without being pretentious. A lovely evening in Ashland indeed.

After living in Ashland for 6 years, i finally got to experience this place and it was TO DIE FOR!
The food was fabulous! (a little pricey, but worth it) and we each ordered a glass of the house red for just $ 3.50 a glass, but ended up getting a tumbler full for just $ 16.00 (split between 3 people, isnt bad). And the wine was excellent.
But my favorite part, was the the ambiance. With beautiful vines and twinkle lights and the servers speaking in Italian, you almost forget that you\re in a little town in Oregon.
Highly recommend this place. Especially for a classy date night or anniversary :)

Mixed feelings about this place. we did the prix fixe meal set which I normally don’t do but it was an event where a bunch of different tastes was right. Some of the winners include the steak with horseradish cream and lobster ravioli with cream sauce. Disappointments included the sage and brown butter (drenched!) ravioli and the deserts (dry chocolate cake and a messy pile of spumoni
The most uneven aspect was the wait staff. one was friendly and one was helpful (though a bit awkward/​clumsy) while another was kind of pushy and nearly rude. I don’t think I’d choose it for the atmosphere or service, but there is decent food to be had.

My wife and I took a party of six last night before attending a play at Southern Oregon University. The ambiance was terrific – a rehabbed Craftsman. While a bit difficult to find, we did manage to all arrive and be seated. The four-​course menu lends itself to an engaging dining experience. Overall, I think the reviews of our group were mixed. First, we had a ‘bum’ table that was about ready to separate from its pedestal. Second, the antipasti course was delicious, but one plate for a party of six (including two starving college students)…Maybe a little skimpy.
The pasta course was also hit or miss with our gang. I think the lobster ravioli was well received, but my risotto was probably just a bit too al dente, bordering on crunchy. But the angel hair capellini was well liked by two of us. Go figure…
The protein we all selected was the breaded chicken breast, and it was pretty good. Personally, I think it was a skosh overcooked in the fryer, but the lemon wedge did bail it out. And… let’s be fair a protein selection of chicken for $ 31? Maybe a little retooling of menu-​pricing might help.
I think a few more options on the menu might be helpful. One of our group is a vegetarian, and it was a bit difficult for him as eggplant was really his only option. Finally, by the time the dessert menu was presented we really were pretty well worn out.
We were in the new addition and I do think the wait staff were a little stretched in keeping everything flowing. If you’re gonna offer a European menu, served in a European style it needs to work, and there were just a few too many ‘hitches in their giddy-​yup’ at this point in time. Can Cucina Biazzi get there? Yeah, I think so. I think we’ll probably give ‘em another chance the next time we’re in Ashland (in a few months).

Fantastic meal last night for our anniversary. As a local… this restaurant has become really superb with the promotion of John to head chef. The wait staff is great as well, and the general energy of the entire group is worth noting. Kudos…

My family and I meet up in Ashland once every year for the Shakespeare festival, and the dinners at the variety of lovely local restaurants are as highly anticipated as the plays. Unfortunately, while the service here was very good, I was underwhelmed with the food at Cucina Biazzi.
I loved the idea of the four course dinner, but here it seemed a little gimmicky as very little though was put into the antipasti or salad courses. The antipasti was as other reviewers have mentioned, all jarred items which were either bland or very salty, and the salad was basic romaine lettuce with a lot of dressing. The pasta and main courses were much better, the risotto was pretty good and the halibut on polenta was tasty, but there wasn’t anything truly memorable for us.
Again I love the idea of this place, traditional italian meals are my favorite, but I don’t know that we’ll be back next year.

This restaurant is lovely with a Turscan Farmhouse ambiance, We started off with the antipasti which was delizioso! A wonderful array of fresh grilled vegetables, marinated beets, green beans, white bean salad, asiago cheese and crostini.
The servers were sweet and friendly… the only complaint is i wished they’d brought us the a la carte menu as well as the full menu so we didn’t have to be anxious about ordering and eating a four course meal when we weren’t ready to eat that much nor pay that much $$$. We were needlessly anxious which wasn’t a pleasant way to begin the meal.
But onward and forward…
My friend Beth (a fabulous cook in her own right) said the risotto was the best she’d ever had. I ordered the Capellini Alla Casa which was light but filling. My friends ordered the tuna which they said was tender and tasty. They were happy with their selection.
Beth peaked her head into the kitchen to thank the staff for a job well done! Overall it was a wondeful dining experience. In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger (yick).We’ll Be Back.

Food was just ok, and certainly did not meet the expectations set by the relatively high price. The salad was noteworthy for having dressing so sour it hurt the roof of my mouth.
Wine list was thin but adequate. Had a $ 90 Barolo, and then a much better $ 43 Oregon wine. Staff advice on wine was weak.
Asked that check for our party be delivered to me, and was told it would be. It wasn’t!
Minor issue, but the voice message received from Cucina the day of our dinner said we would be inside. When we arrived, the table was outside. To their credit, they were able to adjust and seat all 7 of us together inside.

I discovered Cucina Biazzi the old fashioned way. It was recommended by a friend who also makes an annual pilgrimage to Ashland. They’ve been coming here for years (and she has recommended it repeatedly), so I’m kicking myself for not visiting sooner.
It wasn’t for lack of trying. Echoing Toni M’s observations, it isn’t easy to find. Ashland is usually a very easy place to navigate since there are two connected downtown dining and shopping areas. Cucina Biazzi is just enough outside the main drag, with poor signage and a Unilocal map plot that is just plain wrong, so I never found it wandering through town.
Once we finally walked in the door, it was a completely satisfying Italian meal in a comfortable environment. And make sure you bring your appetite. We couldn’t come close to finishing our meals.
It is a four course prix-​fixe with the price determined by the meat/​secondi option. You start with a colorful antipasti plate for the table to share and hearty slices of bread with oil and vinegar. For the primi/​pasta course, we both chose the risotto and it was my favorite dish that night. For the secondi course, I went with comfort food, the rosemary and garlic pork loin sliced and served over mashed potatoes. Very good, but a bit over seasoned. My mother chose the pollo alla Mamma Mia and enjoyed it as well. The meal ends with salad, which was the low point for us. The dressing was a bit bitter.
There was absolutely no room for dessert. I found the price to be very reasonable for the quantity and quality of the meal. We each ordered a glass of Chianti Classico with our meal and food/​wine was ~$ 35/​person. $ 8 for a glass of wine seems a little high until you see the very large pour. Our service was very good and most of the other diners seemed like regulars, so it was a very warm and relaxing environment. Unfortunately most of my visits to Ashland are during the early spring, so I can’t enjoy the lovely patio out back.
My friend always visits in the summer, so she’s never dined IN the restaurant. So I guess I beat her here after all.