Il Piccolo

Given its proximity to my place of employment, you really can’t beat Il Piccolo. The wait staff is fantastic — always friendly and knowledgeable, and seems to remember each one of its regular patrons.
The location itself is on the small side, but I’ve never had difficulty coming in for lunch. Parking is a bit tough, too, but certainly worth it. The food is delicous, and the specials are always unique. Portions are a good size, and are certainly not monstrous, but then again that’s probably a good thing!

Absolute dining disaster! Being from Johnston, I heard so many great things about this restaurant, however we dined here this evening, and our experience was nothing short of a huge disappointment. Upon being seated, we were told by the waitress that we could use two promotional coupons. Five minutes later, the female owner came to our table and bluntly stated that we could use only one coupon. Our waitress explained that the restaurant’s ownership had changed, and they were working hard to build their clientele. Well, unfortunately if the owners were truly interested in retaining customers, they should have honored both promotions and put client service over the desire to maximize revenue per table. We will not return for that reason alone… We found it odd that we were the only patrons in the restaurant. We were also told that the restaurant was out of steak and caesar salad. Two main staples for any restaurant… The service was deplorable as there were long pauses between various phases of the meal. My salad came out without dressing, and I did not receive the dressing for another ten minutes. We waited about 15 minutes for the bread which was clearly frozen and heated in a microwave. The waitress boasted about the quality of the food when there was nothing very special about it. The pasta dishes were comparable to a mainstream chain such as olive garden or carrabas. Throughout our stay, there was an ongoing argument amongst the owners which was clearly audible from the dining room. It created a very uncomfortable atmosphere, and the tension permeated the establishment. Our waitress and the other staff were clearly more interested in their disagreements than serving and providing a good dining experience to their customers. That alone is the sign of significant problems… At the end of the meal, we were not even asked to peruse a dessert menu. Either they had run out of dessert, or the owners wanted us out, so they could continue their argument. I think It was the latter. The poor quality and service just didn’t justify the price. The ownership really has to take a hard look at their business model, get past their differences and shape up, or this restaurant’s days are numbered…

Service was very slow and disjointed, especially for being 1 of 2 tables in restaurant. Appetizer, stuffed squash flowers, batter was extremely eggy and tasted like I was eating an omelet, not the light airy batter a squash flower should have. Entrees were OK. My Pollo Allegro was decent topped with an abundance of mushrooms and a friends eggplant parm was good, but my fiancé was disappointed with her veggie ravioli. To top it all off, they turned the lights out on us not even 5 minutes after paying the bill. Its not like we were lingering for a while, I still had wine in my glass from the single bottle shared between 3 people!

Tried this for the first time a few weeks ago and the food was fantastic. Would definitely recommend. I would consider it a hidden gem that I only found out about because of Groupon.
We also had no issues with the groupon and were provided with a full menu. The food was fantastic and the owner even came and talked to us at our table.
No complaints and will go back in the future!

Over the past 5 years i’ve eaten at Il Piccolo at least 6 – 8 times. The first 3 times were absolutely phenomenal. The food was just delicious and at that time we had top-​notch servers.
About a year or so ago I went twice over a period of about two or three months. Both times I had quite sub-​par experiences. They forgot to add the lobster and shrimp to the lobster and shrimp special, it took over an hour for entrees, and the overall experience was lacking and not how I remembered it.
Cut to two weeks ago – the food was back to how I remembered, simply amazing.
We were never asked about promotional items when we were seated. As I got the bill, I put the groupon inside and added a credit card. The owner proceeded to come over to the table and not-​very-​kindly lecture us about not mentioning the groupon when we made the reservation (we just showed up for dinner). Apparently specials were not included in the groupon, which one of our entrees happened to be. I am an understanding person and obliged her concerns by simply putting the whole bill on my card.
IMO, restaurants should not do groupon unless the whole menu is available. OR, what they should do is a $ 5 – 10 groupon so they aren’t out so much money. I get it – they’re only making $ 20 – 25 on that $ 50 groupon. You should do the math before you sign up for things like this. It’s simple math and if you’re running any business it should not be rocket science to figure this stuff out! You should also not lecture your customers who have spent money and enjoyed your food. It’s a turn off. If the food wasn’t good, I would not be coming back.
4 stars on food (borderline 5 stars depending on the dish). 2 stars on a wacky owner who has no customer service skills.

3.5 stars if I could. Service was great although they seemed to be running around a bit and switching tables. That being said, I didn’t have to wait for anything and they were super friendly. Our main server Mark was on the ball.
My bread plate was dirty and so was one of our forks. Not a biggie, just asked for another. I ordered the blue cheese tortellini in a blue cheese vodka sauce. It was ok, not very blue cheesy (the tortellini or the sauce). My dining partner ordered the eggplant rollatini sp? which was delicious. Overall it was 3 star food with an extra half for the service. The ambiance is kinda cheesy with the drop ceiling and strip mall location but I think they did the best they could. I’d give this place another shot. Prices were reasonable.

Ended up here last Saturday night after purchasing the Groupon a few weeks back. We had seen them on the Providence Restaurant Week list a couple of months ago and came very close to going then, so we welcomed the opportunity to try it through Groupon (which ended up being a much better deal than Restaurant Week).
The décor is what I would describe as «cozy.» Small, but decorated in a way that made it feel very homey and inviting. Our waitress was extremely sweet, attentive, and knowledgeable. The wine list is a good size, and not unreasonably priced. There were several bottles to choose from in the $ 20 – 30 range, as well as some half bottles in the sub-​$ 20 range. We ordered a Pinot Noir (can’t remember the name… I think it started with «E»), which I found very enjoyable.
We ordered the calamari as an appetizer, which I thoroughly enjoyed! It was all ring shaped pieces, and none of the creepy baby octopus ones that I can’t bring myself to eat. It came with a marinara and a hot pepper sauce for dipping. I went straight for the hot pepper sauce, personally. The pieces were bigger than I’m used to, giving them a higher meat-​to-​batter ratio and making them seem a little more rubbery in consistency, but it tasted great!
For the main event, I ordered the gnocchi in vodka sauce and Boyfriend ordered the pumpkin ravioli in pesto sauce. Both dishes were oh-​my-​god-​so-​good! The gnocchi was a lot bigger than I’m used to (I’m a bit of a gnocchi addict, for those who haven’t noticed a pattern in my reviews), so I had to cut it up into smaller pieces to slow myself down, else I could have inhaled the entire plate in about 5 minutes. Some might consider the portion sizes to be small, since many Italian restaurants will give you gigantic family-​sized portions of pasta, but I’d consider their portion sizes to be pretty fair for the gnocchi and ravioli, since you’re getting a very high quality, filling, homemade pasta. Don’t get me wrong, if there is one type of food on this Earth that I would literally eat until I exploded, it’s gnocchi… but I’m grateful that Il Piccolo was looking out for my well-​being and made a portion size that left me satisfied yet still capable of splitting a dessert without bursting! Speaking of dessert, the peanut butter chocolate pie was to die for!!!
The only negative observation I feel required to point out is that the music they chose for ambiance needs to go. While we were there, they were simply playing a radio station (complete with commercials). Il Piccolo, if you read this, please for the love of God hook up iTunes to your sound system! 80s Light Rock is not what people want to listen to while sipping on a glass of wine and enjoying fine Italian cuisine. The radio has got to go!

Sub-​par food and service.
My husband and I went to this place as we had bought a groupon based on Unilocal reviews. The moment we were seated. we were asked if we were using any promotions — we said yes. That should have tipped us off… but silly us, we hoped for better. Here are my problems with the restaurant:
— We were given a tiny menu — 2 appetizers, around 5 pasta items and around 5 entrees. The real menu was about 5 times bigger. We were not given a drinks menu, and had to ask for it. (That’s how we took a peek at the original menu.) This, in my opinion, was completely unethical of the business. The groupon does not mention anything about a different menu. If it did, I would not have bought it.
— The server did not introduce himself, or make the mandatory polite conversation. I saw him chatting with a couple of other customers, though. Another waitress was perfectly friendly to us, so its probably just this guy with unreliable service.
— It took the waiter 20 mins to bring us bread. When asked, he said it was «in the oven». What he did not mention that it was yesterday’s bread from the microwave oven (it seemed like it!!!). I’ve had better bread in Olive Garden.
— We had wine and it was very good.
— The calamari appetizer had marinara sauce, and store-​bought tabasco sauce with it! eeeeks!!!
— The food was below average, mine needed some salt, but the quantity was less. I’ve never, ever finished an entrée in a restaurant, and this one I finished it completely. My husband’s was average. (The shrimp still had its shell!!)
— Our bill came with 20% tip added… for a party of two! Again, this was not mentioned in the groupon.
Overall, I had a terrible experience here. If the whole idea of the restaurant hooking up with Groupon is to get new customers, I’m sorry, they lost me!
Maybe for non-​groupon customers — they hire a different cook and different waiters? I can’t see how else they can provide a good experience.
(If you want an authentic Italian experience, try GranGusto in Cambridge)

This place is a gem, tucked away in an unlikely looking strip mall… It is the real deal, authentic Italian food and the serving staff are always attentive and professional. Well priced. I look forward to going here whenever I am in the area. In my mind, it is the best dining experience in this area, and I go here on my way to Connecticut or to meet friends who live in western RI…

Nice atmosphere, bar area and attentive waitstaff. Very cozy (small) The food had a hint of Tuscany, which means heavy on the rosemary (which i feel is overpowering). Would go back to sit at the bar. Awesome homemade peasant bread.

I would like to add a note on their Sunday morning brunch. It is the only morning they are open for breakfast and it is a delicious breakfast indeed. First of all, their specials were amazing. I tried both the «orange cranberry pancakes» and the «carrot cake pancakes.» the cc pancakes were very sweet and the cranberry pancakes were tart and refreshing. They had «Portuguese sweet bread French toast» that made my mouth water, and their eggs benedict had perfect hollandaise sauce. My wife made her own omelette with goat cheese, sun dried tomatos and onions. Overall, this is one of the best breakfasts you’ll find in RI. Too bad. They’re only open on Sundays.

DISCLAIMER: We are really picky about food and eat out A LOT.
We got takeout. The food was really fresh and the kitchen smelled amazing.
Summary: Recommended.
Really Good, Really Fresh, On the expensive side for Johnston, but good food is usually more money.
We ordered:
Mr. Plow: Fettuccine Pollo e timo, Turkey Soup
Mike: Vegetali Sandwich, Pasta Fagioilo
Spit: italian Grilled Sausage Sandwich, Fried Mozzarella
Teeeeeek: Pennette Alla Brace, Insalata della Casa
Garlic bread
Teeeeeek: 4.5 stars — i bet its even better if you eat there
Spit: over all i say 4 on sandwich, 3.5 on mozz sticks
Mr. Plow: i think if i liked chicken marsala, i may have liked this, Soup OK
Mike: Very fresh, Pasta e Fagioli was cooked pretty perfectly, Bread on the sandwich was almost a little too thick but had some nice spices.
Go on a weeknight and you’ll have the place to yourself.

Bottom Line: first class Italian, and prices less than Providence.
Rediscovered this place recently, and were just delighted. Started the meal with homemade mozzarella with tomatoes. We then had filet mignon with an astonishing green peppercorn sauce and a sirloin with a lovely roasted garlic sauce. Very friendly service, broad range of wine selections. In the past their more traditional Italian dishes were wonderful, and I look forward to checking them out again.
They are now having a sunday morning brunch.
They are on route 5 (Atwood Ave) between route 6 and 6A, not far from 295. Easy to get there if you use the highways.