Russo’s Coal Fired Italian Kitchen

Dinner w/​friends
Requested to be seated outside: nice breezy cool weather, no wait
Free bread: ono
Appetizer: calamari
Salad: Caesar’s
Entrée: pAsta w/​chicken, shrimp & shiitake mushroom on a light marinara sauce
Dessert: tiramisu
Wine: Chianti
Ordered Merlot at first but didn’t like it they were nice enough to replace it with our 2^nd choice
Server: Shawn– provided a good service
Loved the food
Good place to have dinner
Recommended

Love the food! Tomato basil soup is really awesome
Granted there are times when the service is not pristine but I mean you have to be understanding. It’s a busy place. But of course you wouldn’t understand if you’ve never been a server.

The bread was delicious. I ordered a a calzone and it was too much bread and not enough filling. The bad part about this place was they only have wine and beer… No cocktail menu .
We also ordered a medium pizza which was 12 inches, about 8 slices and it was really good.
They also offer military discount everyday!

5 star food, but 2 star service.
Food was awesome, loved it.
But our server kept forgetting things and didn’t «even know (we) were over here» at first.
Menus were kinda gross and the patio chairs were uncomfortable to me (I have a little «junk in the trunk» and couldnt quite fit all the way in the chairs lol!)
So, if you’re coming here, know the food is good, service is subpar. Price is a little high, but not ridculous, so still kinda worth it to go.

Very average overall.
Pros: Pizza is above average
Cons: service is below average, the menus are always disgustingly covered in old food etc.
It’s expensive for what it is.
2.5 stars… I round up to 3 because it’s one of the only sit down restaurants we have in Ewa.

Service was great! Food was spot on. Couldn’t ask for to much more. The bread that they bring to the table is awesome. I do have to say it wasn’t busy at the time I went, so the servers were not pressed.

This is a good place for groups and it’s quaint enough for a date spot. However, the food is mediocre. The free bread is on point I have to say. The pizzas are definitely on the pricier side, about $ 30 for a large pizza and it’s really oily. I had to use several napkins to blot the oil out. However, service was awesome. Our waiter was super attentive and made sure we got everything we needed.

Very polite, the food was great aswell. I’ll definitely be coming back.
They really made you feel welcomed here and I love that about a resteraunt.
I had a Hawaiian Pizza and the vanilla gelato.
My mother had the meditarian pasta and she had cheesecake.
My server was Joseph. If you read this Joseph Thank you for being so polite.

The waitresses are friendly and the food is exceptional I love their complementary bread in the olive oil and vinaigrette pizzas are awesome the coal fired wings artichoke kale dip and feel Parmesan was awesome so delicious so tender this place never let you down

Russo… What do I have to say??? First of all, service wasn’t there. I felt like I always had to wave down our waitress & she checked up on us once while we were eating. Second, we waited 20 mins for their tough/​cold house bread and as well waiting until then to order our appetizer. Calamari came out pretty quick, while the wings (which had no flavor… We should’ve went next door to BWW to order wings) took 15 mins to come out. We then ordered our food, which took another 20 mins. Food wasn’t that great, I’ve had better ravioli with vodka sauce. My dad said that the Alfredo was too rich so, he didn’t finish it. Our 12 inch pizza didn’t arrive until we were almost done with our pasta and was just warm when it arrived to our table. You would think that after 30 mins of waiting for a pizza, it would be hot/​fresh outta the oven. Very disappointing.
Our server didn’t really show face until we were ready to get our leftovers boxed. She was quick to clear our table.
Maybe I’ll come back… But it won’t be for a while.

I swear I already wrote a review for them but maybe I just did it in my head. I found Russo’s because my friend was selling her Xbox and the person told her to meet them at Safeway in Ewa and she asked me to go with her. By the time we got out there from Hawaii Kai and made a deal, we were starving and a friend who lives out there told us we had to come here. I was a little weary after seeing the Unilocal reviews but figured I’d give it a shot. My friend is the type of person who orders everything that looks somewhat good to her and figures she can eat leftovers of whatever she doesn’t finish. We ordered the tomato basil soup, the minestrone, a Caesar salad, the pomodoro bruschetta, and some kind of pizza. They also give you flatbread with olive oil and vinegar when you sit down so we promptly started to fill up on that while perusing the menu.
The tomato basil soup. Oh good lord the tomato basil soup. Since this first experience my friend and I both together and separately have driven to Ewa just for this soup. It’s creamy with a dollop of fresh pesto in the middle. The crazy thing is I don’t even like tomato soup. I love this soup. On this first visit we ordered a few extra orders so we could have it the next day and my friend could bring it to her mom.
The bruschetta is also delicious and definitely worth ordering. They use the flatbread with a generous helping of tomatoes and basil and it’s just absolutely delish. Unfortunately, as expected wasn’t as good the next day so be sure to eat this one up.
The pizza and the minestrone I remember being good but by the time I took a bite I was full from the soup and bruschetta and the free flatbread. The salad I remember looking like a typical caesar and I don’t think I even tried it.
Now I have been back multiple times now and just ordered the first two things knowing that’s all I can eat. Once with my mom we ordered a salad, I believe a Mediterranean? And it was very good but I thought of it as unnecessary filler for the good stuff I drove across the island for.
Now to today. I said I’d go check out cars with my parents (my dad got one!) and run some errands with them on the westside because my mom said they were planning on going to Russo’s. Free soup? Down. After my dad got his car he just wanted to head home so my mom and I, famished after the car ordeal, went to Russo’s. I immediately ordered a bowl of tomato basil soup to share and then let my mom decide. We ordered a large pizza half a vegetable pizza and half Mulberry and the 4 Cheese Ravioli in vodka sauce. The raviolis were SO good. I definitely have to order that again. The sauce was unbelievable. I kept dipping the flatbread into it to soak it up. The vegetable pizza was also good, my mom and I split a slice to have it while it was warm but we were so full we wrapped the pizza to bring home. I personally prefer a margheritta pizza but my mom likes the veggie. I can’t comment on the Mulberry personally because I’m not eating meat but my dad and brother loved it.
The service has always been good every time i’ve come. I can’t wait to have an excuse to drive out there again soon to try some of their other pastas and pizzas (or just have my favorites again)!

Wow is all I have to say!
Tonight ALL the food was delicious! My husband ordered the stromboli, I ordered the chicken picatta.
The stromboli was full of deliciousness.
The chicken picatta was so tasty. The chicken fell apart with my fork!
The house bread tasted like tender pizza dough with herbs, and a olive oil and balsamic dipping sauce.
We also ordered the fried calamari, which can wit a delicious marinara sauce, the legs were a bit crisper than the body. But it was all seasoned well.
Our waitress was very sweet and friendly.
Had a awesome date!

We took our mom to Russo’s for her 50^th birthday dinner and our experience there was Amazing!
ENVIRONMENT: We got to sit outside in the lanai area. Although the area is right next to Fort Weaver Road. As a customer you don’t even realize it. The lighting was also very good as it wasn’t too bright or dark. Overall the environment was very welcoming and perfect for dinner. If the weather permits I’d recommend sitting outside.
FOOD: OMG! The food was seriously Delicious! Each dish that came out was moist and flavorful. We ordered one of their supreme pizzas. Normally I don’t like the pizza crust but this one was too good to toss.
SERVICE: The service was incredible. Our waitress, Candace, made sure our drinks we’re full. Each time a plate was empty she came by and took it away making room for the next dish. All the while smiling and making the experience even more memorable.
OVERALL EXPERIENCE: Overall, we are extremely pleased with our dining experience at Russo’s. The food was delicious, the environment was welcoming and the service was incredible. We’d definitely recommend Russo’s and we’ll be coming back soon.

I was super excited to finally try out this restaurant… The place is pretty nice on the inside. Was about to eat here and waited in an awkward line that people were paying for their bill but I was waiting to be seated yet no one really acknowledge me and the other party after us. They asked me if I wanted to be inside or outside so I told them I wanted to be inside because I have my child as well. Then she notifies me that there is no seats inside at the moment, just outside. Then I tell her that’s fine we will sit outside. So she looked a bit confused and then said there is a 10 minute wait to get the table ready? I just walked out and ate at another restaurant nearby. The service is slow and they seriously had no sense of urgency.
Will try again on another slow night and hopefully they will serve me then.

When they first opened, we were anxious to try their food, and so we were willing to wait over an hour to be seated. We thought their food was tasty, fresh, seasoned right and the wait time, once we ordered, was quick. Since then, each time we pass through, there always seems to be a large crowd waiting outside to be seated. So not willing to wait, we decided to do take-​out tonight.
We were pleasantly surprised at how fresh the food was, and the plating was comparable to dining in (besides the disposable containers). Specifically, our pasta dishes weren’t dry, and they were plated with ample sauce!

I really enjoy the food here, but the service is very slow. Each time I’ve gone, we arrived right at 11a.m. and it still took at least 30 – 45 minutes to get our food. I love their foccacia bread that they give you at the beginning. Their calzones are huge and I always take home leftovers. Today I had the baked ziti and added chicken into it. Very tasty and hot out of the oven. Their desserts are tasty, unfortunately I couldn’t order any today since it took so long for our food to arrive. I would recommend this place, but don’t go during your lunch break because you will be late back to work. Servers were very friendly and kept us updated, but the reason our food was late was because they had a lot of take out orders. I found that puzzling since we were the first people to arrive for lunch.
All in all, I will go back here, but not when I’m pressed for time.

I miss living in town mostly because I miss all my favorite restaurants. It’s like you cut off both of my hands and replaced them with robot parts. Sure they can functionally do the same things that my real hands used to do, but there just isn’t the same feeling, it’s awkward and it’ll never be a proper substitute.
My daughter had a gymnastics performance and we decided to celebrate by taking her out for pizza dinner. After a previous failed attempt to eat at another spot we took a gamble to visit Russo’s. After reading the reviews I came here with fairly low expectations
Free flat bread: My daughter loved the free flatbread and we both appreciated the balsamic and olive oil dip it came with. I ended up dipping everything into it!
Garlic knots: If you’re eating pizza just skip ordering this and save yourself $ 7.95. It’s definitely bigger than Bravo’s garlic knots in terms of size, but they just didn’t pack the garlic punch we were hoping for. If I had the choice I’d choose Bravo’s unlimited garlic knots because 1) they’re free and 2) have more of that pungent garlic flavor. However if they change their recipe in the future and up their garlic game, then I’d probably order this dish in the future.
Caesar Salad: Nothing spectacular but for $ 11.95 you could at least give me some croutons and a tomato?
Pizza: We ended up ordering a large margherita ($ 26.95) and a medium italian works ($ 22.95). Overall we were happy with the crust but it’s still not my favorite pizza on the island. However it’s better than everything else I’ve had on this side of the island. The large is gigantic and we had a lot of leftovers to take home.
Service: This is the #1 thing everyone complains about at Russo’s but overall our service was on point. Our server Ray did all the right things on the «be an awesome server» check list, but the hair net he wore was a bit odd. Is this part of Hawaii health regulations? Either way, he was really nice, always made sure our drinks were filled and got our bill quickly. It was a Sunday night and all our dishes came out quickly which made our night much more enjoyable.
Bathrooms: Very clean, close to immaculate. You might think I’m being ridiculous to tell you about the bathrooms but the state of a customer’s sink and toilet tell you about how clean everything else in the establishment will be. Think about this next time you’re in a bathroom that doesn’t have soap. That’s when it’s time to run folks.
This is a town 3-​stars but we’re in Ewa so it gets upgraded to 4-​stars simply because it’s open. What can I say, I have no hands so I have to accept the fact that all I’ve got are these tasteless robot parts. If you are a restauranteur, for the love of all that is holy, PLEASE, I beg of you, open something that’s going to WOW me on the West side of the island! We are literally hungry for you!!!

Besides the awesome calamari, there were some thing about this place that upset me in several ways.
I’ll start off first with the pro’s — for some reason my friend wanted to eat outside where they had tables and umbrellas that could open up. It sets off a nice ambience since we were able to catch the sunset. The calamari was the best out of all the other dishes we had.
The cons? I didn’t find our waitress to be very friendly and consistent. At first she didn’t provide to us napkins. I would think that napkins should be provided to us before our «appetizers» of which is «finger food» is brought to our table.
I had a small Caesar salad, which wasn’t al that great. I couldn’t finish it cause there wasn’t much flavor to me. The soup was a little watery to me, and I swear after consuming my food, my stomach started to get upset.
Other then that, it was alright. I expected more after reading the reviews. Maybe I should have tried something other then a pasta.

I came for lunch and enjoyed the Tuscan Chicken Salad and Spaghetti Carbonara. They we both rich in flavor and delicious. Both dishes were less than $ 15. The amount of food they give can definitely be shared between two adults.
I’m glad I tried this place again. My husband enjoyed my leftovers and is looking forward to his first visit here.

This restaurant is far from my neck of the woods so I left it up to my friend who lives like a couple minutes away to decide where to eat for lunch. It’s located in that new Shopping Area that surrounds a lot of restaurants and shopping nearby. We arrived around 1pm, it wasn’t too busy as we were able to get seated the minute we walked in. We were offered water and some seasoned flat bread and balsamic dip as we were seated. I love bread, so it was a good start to eating an Italian meal.
My friend and I shared two entrees: the Tuscan Chicken Salad that was $ 15. It was grilled chicken with romaine lettuce, tortellini pasta, feta cheese, roasted peppers and pesto sauce. It was well presented and it was different than your typical salads, so I enjoyed its flavorful ingredients that was mixed in. We also ordered the Spaghetti Carbonara for about $ 16 that wasn’t as heavy as other pastas. It had thinly sliced Italian meat mixed it with tortellini pasta, feta cheese, roasted peppers, and pesto sauce. It complimented our balanced lunch meal with the salad and the portions were more than enough for the both of us.
Service was attentive and friendly that day with courtesy check from the waitress to see if we were doing okay. The ambiance was clean and welcoming. You get what you pay for here. It’s an average amount to pay for Italian food. Our food came out in a timely manner as the salad and main entrée came out around the same time. I’d recommend this place for those who live in the area and are pasta lovers.