Locanda Vini e Olii

Great dining experience. Very cozy place, food and staff were great. Would recommend. Will definitely be going back again soon…

Had a very unpleasant incident at this restaurant tonight. After we gave the waiter our credit cards to pay for a meal, we waited for a half-​hour. No explanation or apology came until we asked what was up. Turns out their computer was down.
We had to leave to let our babysitter go so we asked them to just write down our card numbers and run it later. For some reason they wouldn’t do this.
After waiting another 10 minutes, my friend went to inquire again. He calmly asked them what was happening and expressed displeasure at the fact we hadn’t been alerted to what was happening.
The owner all of a sudden freaked out on him. He told us to leave and never to return.
I had read on Unilocal that new ownership was causing issues but I certainly didn’t expect this level of disrespect.
There were so many better ways he could of handled the situation. And ultimately he shot himself in the foot causing us to not pay out bill.
When he has cooled I plan to go back to tip our server.
This restaurateur doesn’t seem cut out for this high pressure business.
I will never eat there again and I suggest you avoid it too.

Terrible service and very rude new owners, who were verbally abusive to our party. I will never go here again and I strongly recommend you avoid it too.

Really cute Italian restaurant tucked behind the façade of a converted pharmacy. Very cozy and cute. My friends and I split the asparagus and burrata and anchovies. The food is very simple in the best way, in that all the ingredients are really allowed to shine. Nothing is gussied up in a way it shouldn’t be. For mains we ordered the guitar strings, flat pasta with mushrooms, asparagus soup and sardines. Dessert was pistachio olive oil cake. Great selection of wines and cocktails. I don’t know when I’ll next be out this far in Brooklyn, but I would come back!

I went again, but wasn’t as impressed.
Ribollita: as good as usual.
Pici: simple but tasty.
Duck: it came barely warm, we sent it back, it came back burned, we left on the dish. Although the dish was sizable, this was not good. In addition, the chick peas were uninspiring and boring.
Braised short ribs: very tender meat, and very generous portion; plain and boring beans.
Chocolate cake: not even close to the old saker torte they used to have… a huge disappointment.
Pistachio cake: tasty.
House red wine: ok.
Service: very accommodating; Filippo was very understanding after realizing the problems with the duck, which were substantial. He took it off the check (we barely touched it) and comped 1 dessert. He couldn’t be more gracious.
Overall, it’s not a nearby place for me and it’s not cheap, so I can’t hide that this time I was disappointed. The first time I went I was wowed by everything they brought, but this time there were some issues with some dishes, and they totally murdered the duck.

Oh man, I really love this place. The perfect meal for 2 when you split an appetizer, pasta, and second course. Even with a bottle of wine our meal comes out to be around $ 100. We’ve spent much more for much less enjoyable dining experiences.
It’s an odd perk that they let you return unfinished house red for a refund, but I certainly appreciate it!

Romantic place with a charm. Truly reminds me of a trattoria in Italy. Wine is delicious, food has a home cooked feel. Great place for a special occasion, it’s $$$. We ordered the seared duck with chickpeas and fig jam, piche pasta with caramelized onions, white asparagus with baratta cheese. All very delicious. The house wine is pretty good and they have a funny measuring system — you pour as much as you need and they charge by measuring the amount consumed using a stick. Very unique place. Service was amazing. Everyone makes you feel at home. Also very intimate dining, we had fun convos with our neighbors.

For the price, the service was… lacking. And we eat out a fair amount. This is why we stopped going to Walters. The food was delicious, but our waiters were either overworked, cranky or just didn’t care. I’m just not lining up to go back to a place when servers make me feel like they’re judging me and irritated that they need to ask me questions like «what would you like to have for dinner tonight?»
Had the tripe (when ordering, got an «excellent» from the waiter). And then he pretty must stopped speaking to us. Did he have an opinion? I’ll never know. Well, my food was tasty and the tagliatelle was decent though basic. However, my friend’s lamb was dry and pretty bare, so even a mixed bag there. The sardine starter was good (great mix of vinegar complementing the not salty sardine) but super tiny for $ 12.
I love the ambience, but I guess that’s what I hate about Brooklyn — gorgeous places overrun by people who will gladly take my money, but who are too blasé to care.

Some friendly Brooklynite friends of ours brought us to this restaurant and thus opened our eyes to the glory of Italian cooking in Clinton Hill. I can’t tell you exactly what we ate here since the four of us actually had the chef’s tasting menu to be shared family style by the table. But I can tell you we left happy and full.
Maybe too full… Hardly a complaint I know, but we were almost stuffed after the first course. I’ll just say that pretty much everything we had was creative and rustic and wonderful. The service was great and the drinks, while maybe not the best, certainly were strong and did their job.
If we’re in the area again we’ll definitely be back…

Though the interior of the restaurant is very cool (Brooklyn’s Il Buco is an apt description) the food was just meh and the service was worse,. We were basically ignored for about 20 minutes before we were able to order. I went with the tagliatelle with beef ragu and orange zest. I found the sauce to be pretty bland and the meet dry; I really wanted parmesan cheese and crushed red pepper to spice things up and kept trying to flag down our waiter to ask for some. Unfortunately no one ever stopped by the table to see how our food was so I never had a chance to ask. With the number of great restaurants in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, this one you can skip.

Great restaurant. This is my go to place when I bring people to see what Brooklyn is all about. Unassuming storefront (old drug store), the inside still has elements of the drug store and a vintage feel.
The food is outstanding– have been here about 8 – 10 times and tried almost every dish on the menu. The duck is the standout– I highly suggest a trip here if only for that.
Happy to give this restaurant a great review-​long overdue.

Upgrading to a 5 from a 4.
I had my second experience here on Saturday night and the experience was almost uniformly positive. My one complaint was that the single glass of wine that I had at the bar tasted a bit stale, as though it had been open for a while or that it had changed temperatures a few too many times.
Everything else was great. My reservation was honored, on time, despite a packed house and the polite and efficient hostess gave me the table that I requested, Once seated, we ordered a Barbera, which was superb. I had the calamari appetizer which was delicious and very well prepared. I was told that the flounder entrée was excellent. I had the beef which came with a generous helping of arugula. The beef was incredibly tender and flavorful and there was more than I could finish in one sitting. I am already thinking about my next trip back,

We stumbled upon this place by accident and the food was simply amazing. I’m no gourmet but I know what I like and the home made pasta is out of this world. Ravioli with duck was screaming good. Pricey but well worth it.

The last time we were here was when the original owners were running the show. It was 5 star all the way: food, wine, service and seating. Tonight we left after the first and second courses: waited 30 minutes for salad and the 45 minutes for salty, mediocre pasta. The server ignored us, our neighbors had to send their food back to be reheated, and the food wasnt worth staying for the third course. The original owners would be embarrassed.
If you want a special and original meal, go to Al Di La, or Aita or Martha, where the servers are gracious, the food is consistently excellent and you can hear your partner’s voice instead of your neighbors.

Locanda Vini e Olii is my new neighborhood favorite. Recently moved to Clinton Hill and this place was on my map of restaurants to try for awhile. Four stars and not five only because service can get a little slow but the food and drinks are worth the trip to this very unique restaurant built in an old drug store. You can’t go wrong with the Sicilian old fashion or the pear fizz, for the fruity drinks fans, which is made with fresh purée and gin. Must try is the carpaccio with lobster mushroom and the marinated sardines. Also the home made pasta with mushrooms or ragu are more than yummy. Definitely a unique place for a date or a random night of drinks at the old school bar full of Italian high quality liquors.
Just make sure you have a reservation ahead of time especially on Fridays.

I just moved to Brooklyn and I had a great dinner outside, last night, with my boys. Very friendly welcome, Philipp was fabulous! Drinks, nice Italian wine, great appetizers, food (the beef was wonderful!) and desserts of course.
Service is good, friendly staff. Will be back! The décor inside is really pretty!

Located in an old drug store, Locanda delivers charm from the moment you arrive.
Seating is tight, as in most Brooklyn restaurants. Service started out slow, but it improved as the night went on. The staff was very helpful explaining the wine list and offering suggestions on food.
My dining partner and I split a salad that was recommended by the waiter. I was skeptical because, you know, greens… but it was excellent. My duck entrée was delicious and perfectly cooked.
A little pricey but well worth it for the food and the experience.

A wonderful neighborhood restaurant set in a former pharmacy. Unique dishes from the Basilicata region. The food, service and atmosphere never disappoint.
Must finish off the meal with brutti ma buoni cookies!

A wonderful neighborhood restaurant set in a former pharmacy. Unique dishes from the Basilicata region. The food, service and atmosphere never disappoint. The best!
Must finish off the meal with brutti ma buoni cookies!

Believe the hype. this place is awesome.
We made an OT reservation for a Friday evening (i think same day) and it was totally fine. Restaurant was not crowded. Great service & great food that I left grinning.
We ordered:
«PIATTINO DI PRIMIZIE» WITH YOUNG PECORINO — really good & fresh
PIATTO DI CAMPAGNA — Meat/​terrine board — i would say that the meat was good but the dressing on the meat made the dish
«PAPPA AL POMODORO» — essentially, deconstructed pizza in a bowl. it was amazing
SAGE PAPPARDELLE — i don’t think we even noticed the meat as much as we noticed the pasta

Went here with my friend, Filippo (he works here), for a late breakfast. I didnt expect to find this place here, but apparently it’s been around since 2001 (changed owners about five years ago.)
I often complain that Brooklyn has lost a lot of its great Italian eateries. This place reminded me that the problem isn’t Brooklyn, it’s my lack of knowledge of what is out there.
I thoroughly enjoyed this place:
* Excellent food, with healthy portions;
* Wonderful service from REAL Italians;
* A family type of atmosphere with a great design; and
* Outdoor seating for those so inclined.
Count me in again. Excellent for groups and definitely for a date.

Long overdue review for this place. Its my favorite/​go-​to Italian place in the city. The atmosphere/​liveliness of the place is great (although try not to get the middle table closest to the bar), the food is perfection and the wine and cocktails won’t let you down either.
I went last week again and explored their new menu (they change the menu up very subtly and always have amazing new dishes every time I return), and had a delicious chicken liver appetizer with risotto. The two unexpectedly went so well together it was mind boggling. Their fish appetizers are always great too.
Pasta is great, my favorite is the pappardelle I had a few months ago, but tagliatelle with pork and beef was good as well. Meat entrees are delish, but usually come with chickpeas (I think the cook must be obsessed with chickpeas) which can deter me from ordering them. Branzino was delicious, although the portion was small.

This restaurant is a solid 3 stars.
I am truly shocked by any 5 star rating.
The beauty and lure of Locanda is the old-​school pharmacy architecture and decorations. The food is *really* just ok. I have been here more than a dozen times and used to live around the corner. The restaurant tries to be very authentic, homemade… but the food does not deliver, unfortunately — because the ambiance is cozy, unique and very NY (in that, «I know of a secret unassuming restaurant sort-​of-​way).
The BEST part of the restaurant is their wine. My suggestion is for you to sit at the bar and have a glass of red wine. That’s it.
(The Finch is close by and is WAY better when it comes to dining).

After an unannounced two hour inspection at Emily Pizza, which would take two hours, we were forced to find another restaurant nearby for dinner. Four hungry friends searching around came across this hidden gem on Unilocal.When we walked by we had to do a double take because the façade said Drugs like an old vintage storefront. We were surprised when we walked in and everything was vintage and they kept all the old architecture and little keepsakes from what it used to be. Dining here felt like we were transported back into the 1920s when it used to be a pharmacy. We all loved the place.
My sister had the pomodoro which was really good I wish I ordered that too from tasting it.
I had the housemade fresh mint paperdelle pasta with asparagus and ricotta.
Our service was quick and our server was friendly. I would come back again here soon instead of Emily!

First of all, this place is adorable. Quite possibly the best restaurant atmosphere in the city. Second, the wine choices are delicious and impressive. Unfortunately, neither of those things make up for the fact that the food is not all that it should be.
The bread and olive oil are excellent, but they give you such a tiny rationing of olive oil that you cannot fully enjoy it. They also encourage you to «buy’ more expensive olive oil, which is kind of lame and gimmicky.
Our first course was the butternut squash soup, which was emulsified and an unsettling temperature, with some bites warm and some cold. The sage flavor was intense, but it’s spring and is sage really an appropriate flavor for the season?
The next course was pasta with duck ragout, which was the best course, but a bit destroyed with way too much salt.
Finally, we had the skirt steak, which had absolutely no flavor and was seriously disappointing.
Like some other reviewer on here said, Al Di La does a much better job.

This place is the real deal. Thoughtful management, outstanding service and phenomenal — and authentic — Tuscan cuisine.
The place is quite informal, not huge, so reserve in advance.
Let me just say that I was born and raised in Italy, particularly from the area the executive chef Michele is form, so I know well if a dish is authentic or not. These guys are right on target.
The four of us had their $ 48 tasting menu, which was nothing short of fantastic.
Apple, cabbage and cannellini beans salad: a refreshing start.
Ribollita: the star of the appetizers; perfectly balanced; a must.
Cawliflower sformato: like my mom makes.
Baccalá: very delicate, and not overpowering.
The pasta is home made:
Pici with onion n pepper: basic, but tasty nonetheless.
Wild boar tortelli: very good, but just one per person.
Pappardelle with braised rabbit: delicious; the best pasta dish of the meal.
Lamb casserole: outstanding; could have been more, for 4 people.
Branzino: not as interesting as the lamb, but very well prepared.
Cheese dish, with 4 different cheeses: very tasty, especially the sweet onion dip that came with them.
Almond cookies: very good.
Saker torte: fantastic; the best dessert by far.
Zuppa inglese: very well executed; it brought back great memories.
Overall, this place’s got it down. It runs like a well-​oiled machine, with everybody doing their thing in complete harmony. More importantly, although they could have served more food (it was enough for 3 people, not much for 4), everything was prepared with care and was very authentic.
We had a spectacular, meal, with some truly outstanding dishes. Owners Michele (chef), Rocco (sommelier) and Michael (gm) know what they’re doing. And waiters Raffaele (Napoli), Filippo (from Sicily) and Danilo are wonderful hosts.

Went to Italy a year ago and Locanda Vini made us feel like we had been transported back. The cocktail list was full of unusual liqueurs (try the saffron!) and different negronis, the bread was bland and unsalted, and the bill took forever to come. Italia!
But all jokes aside… The atmosphere is lovely and warm. The menu was inventive and exciting. We tried the tripe florentine to start, which certainly had the funkiness of tripe but was partially masked by the delicious tomato and cheese sauce. Our favorite appetizer, though, was the butternut squash sage soup. This was outstanding! It was rich and creamy and full of sage flavoring. Perfectly drizzled with a hearty olive oil, too.
For entrees, we tried the tortelli (large tortellini) stuffed with potato and pancetta and topped with wild boar, as well as the fantastic sage pappardelle with rabbit ragu. Wow wow wow. Both pastas were sublime. Nothing fancy about these dishes, but just lovely homemade food and pasta to-​die-​for. Reasonable prices, too!

Great neighborhood spot for a cozy dinner or bring a group and enjoy the chef’s dinner. It’s quite in the loud side but the night I was dining there was a couple large groups– it’s a small space, but roomy.
The cod appetizer is a must! Served with chickpeas and this wonderful sauce. All pastas are homemade too… The duck pasta was divine. Try one of their desserts with a house made limoncello before for you leave.

I went here with friends a few weeks ago and it was delicious!
It was a rainy night in NY and we didn’t have a reservation so we sat/​stood/​were in the way of waitstaff at their teeny tiny bar. Drinks were strong and good: the Limetta is what I chose which includes Mezcal, House Lime Curaçao Liqueur, Tonic.
We were seated at a small table toward the left side of the restaurant which is dimly lit and very intimate. It used to be a drug store and the décor reflects that.
We started with the Tuscan kale over Fettunta: Grilled bread, garlic, tuscan kale, cannellini beans. That was expertly prepared, with the kale exuding so much flavor our taste buds burst with delight.
For ‘primi’ we got the tagliatelle al ragu with orange zest (Braised piedmontese beef & berkshire pork), the potato gnocchi with clams, mussels, and shrimp (Basil pesto, cherry tomatoes, parsley), and a ravioli dish which I don’t see on the online menu. We didn’t have room for the traditional ‘secondi’ main entrees but everything was amazing and expertly portioned.
Rocco was our server and did an excellent job taking care of all of our dining needs. We had a leisurely evening and enjoyed the ambiance very much so.
Next time I am in the Fort Greene Clinton Hill area I will be sure and dine here again.

Excellent, authentic Italian restaurant. Be sure to make and confirm your reservation because this place gets busy! Our local foodie friends brought us here & we got the $ 45 tasting menu for 4 people.
We ordered a few cocktails. They brought out unsalted bread with olive oil for dipping. I didn’t like the drink we ordered. It was a flowery, sweet saffron based drink that seemed unbalanced. DH liked it because it tasted like chamomile tea.
We received 4 appetizers: garbanzo bean and baccalà (cod), carpaccio with cauliflower, tomato bread soup, and chicken livers with rice. I enjoyed the garbanzo and the soup was delicious. I personally don’t like the flavor of liver, but those who did enjoyed that dish.
Then, there were the pastas: pancetta ravioli topped with venison, cherry tomato topped flat pasta, rolled pasta with preserved onions and grated cheese. We didn’t care too much for that last one… texture was like extremely chewy gnocchi and the flavors were odd. I thought they put something like sa’or in it. However, the flat pasta was awesome! It was lightly seasoned with salt and freshly ground pepper, which worked well with the bright pop of the tomatoes and creamy ricotta. Ravioli was fine & it had that nice chewy fresh texture. The venison was just crumbled on top. It wasn’t gamey at all.
Of the main dishes, the most intensely flavored one was the rabbit braised with black olives with cannellini beans. Deeply savory and creamy at the same time. I imagined Italian slow-​cooking at it’s
best would be like this. The rabbit meat was nice and silky, like roasted dark meat chicken, full of fat and flavor. Some might say it was a touch over salted, but that’s from the generous amount of olives. The olives were super tasty and densely textured… totally unlike the stuff from jars or cans. Reminded me of good quality Kalamatas. They also had pits, so be careful!
I ate the rabbit dish with the sautéed spinach, which was barely salted, and it seemed to work out.
Branzino al Cartoccio was our other main dish. Basically, a parchment wrapped white fish, mildly seasoned, and served with braised fennel. Our dining companions loved this dish. The fish was cooked perfectly, nice and moist. It was fine, but nothing out of the ordinary.
For dessert, we had a blueberry pie and dense chocolate cake, both were not as sweet as American style desserts. Our friend remarked that you could actually taste the blueberries. :) They were served with a bit of whipped cream.
Overall, a nice place to experience a bit of Europe in Brooklyn. Tasting menu provides quite a bit of food. Nice atmosphere too.