Le Colonne

Good food but will not go back because of the service… first, when the server came over, he was rudely interrupted by his friend, notnot asking once, but twice during ordering, asking to charge his phone. Then I was charged for a drink I didmt order… Then after asking for a new bill, paid with 2 visa gift cards and a credit card. Informed the server about the gift cards, he returned, told me that he gift cards didn’t work (which I checked, both had the value I told the server) and charged my credit card the full amount without informing me. I am in the Food Service industry and you should never charge the customer without telling them first.

We walked around St. Armands Circle and decided this was where we wanted to eat. We were promptly greeted and seated by the same gentleman who provided our table service, Stef. The wait staff was prompt and attentive, the pasta made fresh in-​house. I had the lasagna, which was good but not the best I’ve had. Overall, I’d give it a solid 3.5 stars.

Our waiter Simone was extremely unprofessional. A member of my party was extremely disappointed with his meal and our waiter could care less. He was too busy hanging out in the bar area then paying attention to his tables. On top of his lack of attention to his job, he charged my table of 5 a gratuity of 21% when the menu specifically stated it was to be added to a party of 6 or more. After our dissatisfied service, we requested to speak to the manager and our waiter sarcastically stated that he was also the manager. Obviously that was not the truth. I am extremely unsatisfied and would not recommend this restaurant just solely on the service. It’s a shame.

Delicious gourmet Italian food, fantastic service, and family friendly. Wow!!!
Veal was fantastic, best ravioli I’ve had in years, and perfectly cooked fish.

Our first-​ever visit to Le Colonne was late on a Sunday afternoon before the dinner crowd. Service was very attentive. Food was delicious. I can’t imagine anything here that is not a home run.

Great homemade pasta and gnocchi. My wife ordered the fillet and it was wonderful. The kids ordered pizzas they were delicious

Chianti Riserva and homemade cannelloni — melt in your mouth goodness! We sat at the bar and Marco took very good care of us, making it easy to share generous portions. The Caesar salad was crisp and lightly dressed, great flavor without being overdone. But the cannelloni was the star — crêpe-​like pasta wrapped around ground veal and topped with tomato sauce. Delicious! And with three large pieces, enough to share.

Should have looked at the Unilocal review before eating here– Opps I see we are not the only ones who had a bad dining experience here. The menu looked great when we sat down and our waitress was very friendly when she took our order. The issue was that we never saw her again. We needed another drink and she was nowhere to be found. We asked another server that we had not seen our waitress and they got our drink for us but did not look concerned. Food runners delivered our food but still no waitress. My husband wanted another glass of wine and had to ask two people and still no waitress. For an upscale restaurant should have had more attentive service. This seemed normal for the restaurant– They work as a team I believe, helping each other out. In many establishments, this system works but you need to have more staff layered in to check on tables needs so they don’t feel stranded and neglected like we did. The food was very good but the service was so bad that it was disruptive to enjoying the meal. There are too many other good Italian restaurants in the area. Will never be back.

Yum!
We found le colonne by accident, meaning, we parked where we could find a spot near St. Armand’s Circle and ta da! a scrumptious looking Italian place with people actually speaking Italian. It had to be good… and we weren’t disappointed.
Our waiter, while not one of the Italian family members who clearly owned the place, was super friendly and helpful. We sat outside at a table with an umbrella with a view of the bustling circle. We had nice soft bread while we waited for my tortellini alla boscaiola and grandma’s veggie pizza. I was so excited to see the tortellini on the menu because it is a dish I have seldom been able to find outside of Italy. It didn’t end up being exactly as I expected as this version had a red cream sauce instead of the barely-​there white sauce I remembered from Rome but it was still very good even if the tortellini was a little mushy. The serving was also a big heaping plate which I can always appreciate. Grandma loved her pizza even though the serving was much larger than she expected.
If we go back, I’d be curious to try their tiramisu!
Also, speaking to the character of the staff, when the elderly couple dining a few tables from us got up to leave, the woman fell, cutting her leg on the sidewalk. I went to help and when the staff realized what was going on, several of them rushed over as well. I moved out of the way so one of the male wait staff (who could lift her up better) could help her into their vehicle while another went to get a cloth to put on her leg. It’s always uplifting to see people willing to help beyond the confines of their job.

Not the least bit impressed. Would not return. Both of our meals lacked seasoning resulting in both meals (which were totally different) tasting relatively alike. The one pleasantly of the evening was the waitstaff.

a trio of ravioli was served in what would be considered a fine Italian restaurant. It was their chef feature for the night. The host, from Italy, was sure of himself and a tad arrogant. I expected amazing food.
The ravioli was drowned in over seasoned sauces, too much salt and the dough, chewy. I tasted the Risotto a friend had and almost choked. It was some kind of rice with frozen seafood. The «owners» were there, from Rome, and they never greeted people. The bartender, also from Rome, was ok, not friendly. At times we had to wave him down to serve us. and it was a slow night. Disappointing.

Horrible experience and the food was anything but good.
We walked in to this promising restaurant and the greater or closest waiter was on his phone rather than paying attention to the customers. After a lady barked at him in Italian he merely looked up at us and a young waitress came to service. She was great to us considering. We had a great advisor of the wines but then the food.
I ordered veal as did my wife. The veal I ordered was breaded in a tasteless egg basted breading. The dish had spaghetti bolognese as a side which tasted like it came out of a chef boy R D can. I give it a 1 star based on it was bland and the worst I had ever had. My wife’s was in a lemon sauce and came to the table not even warm. She sent it back and after 10 minutes it was steaming and rubbery as we believe they had microwaved it. We did not eat our meals, paid for the wine and ate elsewhere.

Had dinner here last night and while the atmosphere was very nice, the food was a little underwhelming. Due to being on St. Armand’s I was expecting higher prices, but I felt as if the food was lacking in flavor.
I ordered the Salmon Piccata which was alright at best. My salmon was a little on the dry side and my penne side pasta was a bit undercooked. The tomato sauce is «homemade» but could be more flavorful.
My boyfriend ordered the Gnocchi in a four-​cheese sauce. This dish was extremely bland without any substantial flavor at all. He had to add a bunch of pepper to it in order to make it appetizing.
The restaurant itself was very well decorated with a nice dimly lit intimate vibe. The service was very upbeat and friendly, but I have to deduct stars for the food. For the price point I was expecting exceptional food, but what I received was pretty average at best.

Nice spot for a date night. Food is good — not unbelievable, but good. Prices are inflated but it’s St. Armand’s, so get used to it. Lasagna is great. Pizza is good, enough for two people but not if you’re starving.

Why 4 stars? Because margherita pizza isn’t even my thing, but I liked it here.
— — —
My girlfriend’s mom apparently loves this place more than she loves her own daughter, so while her dad was making a rare visit, we ventured down to Sarasota and introduced him to Le Colonne.
It’s like many other Italian eateries in Florida: it can be a bit romantic, while shorts and flip flops are also acceptable. It’s too hot here to go full-​on candlelight dinner and suit jackets.
I don’t understand how Le Colonne can only be rated 3 stars overall, but I also think the gf’s mom is over-​hyping the place pretty drastically.
My opinion fits right in the middle. A solid restaurant… nothing amazing, but nothing awful. The service was nice and prompt, and I liked my margherita pie, even though I would probably never order it under normal circumstances.

Had dinner here last night with my girlfriend since we are around the area on vacation. By looking through Unilocal it looked like this is the area for some good date night food.
This is a nice upscale area where you are paying for the location so be ready to spend a little more for your food. Also it looked like all the other restaurants had a long wait and we were very hungry.
Some of the food was good and other food was not so good. I got the shrimp cocktail for an appetizer with their very own creamy cocktail sauce. Shrimp was not that great for being close to the ocean and the sauce tasted like nothing but mayo. For entrée I had the homemade lasagna and the girlfriend had the spaghetti. Both were very good and had good flavor.
I would eat here again but wouldn’t travel out of my way for it.

The outside seating was lovely and the staff was very attentive to our table. I ordered the salad with prosciutto and artichokes which was delicious.
The reason for the drop in star is because of the pizza. I was expecting real italian pizza with thin crust cooked at very high temperatures because I had read reviews about how authentic it was. The pizza wasn’t like the thin authentic italian pizza one would order in Italy.
I would go back, but I wouldn’t order the pizza.

Nice restaurant spot with outdoor seating, but way to expensive with cold food. We were walking around and almost every place was packed. This place wasn’t. They had nice tables outside so we decided to try it for lunch. There was no lunch menu. Everything was $ 20 and up. They had pizza’s for about $ 19 each. We asked the waiter if he thought we could split one. He said there were personal size and to small. They were big. Way more then one person would eat and I am a pretty big guy. I got the feeling they were trying to inflate the bill. I can get over that if it was good food. I hate reading reviews were people go into a nice restaurant and order a burger and say it wasn’t good. I don’t think I am doing that here. It was just crappy, cold, and had a fancy name for the topping (or lack of one).
Try some place else. If you doubt what I say read my other reviews. I am usually very easy with the stars.

I enjoyed a fine Italian dining experience here, sitting in the raised outdoor balcony beneath tiny white lights. I ordered the cheapest pasta dish on the menu at $ 17.95, penne alla sargento. I was told the flour is imported and different from what we are used to, all made daily in house. I found the noodle very «chewy» perhaps thicker and chewier than I am accustomed with store-​bought noodles.
It arrived hot in a sauce of tomato, olives, eggplant cubes and mozzarella bits. It was well-​seasoned and a great meal. A sommelier came to ask if he could help pair a wine with my dish. I’d already decided on an Argentinian Sangiovese. Most glasses of wine on St. Armand’s are $ 9 or $ 10 a glass, a tough pill to swallow. The roll was also homemade and delicious.
I had a difficult time keeping a waitress coming to me at the right times. Long wait to order, long wait for meal to arrive, no one to refill water glass, where the heck is my check, etc. So the «4» is generous for an elegant dish.

Ate here on Christmas night, one of the few good restaurants open in Sarasota on Christmas. Ate here in a party of 9, and service was excellent, as was the food. I had pasta in tomato/​egglplant/​olive sauce (excellent), two of us had eggplant parmesan, one had gnocchi in cream/​cheese sauce, one had ravioli in marinara sauce, one had grouper. All food was excellent. Good wine selection, we had a Dolcetto d’Alba which was great with the food.
I gave this a 4 rather than a 5 because I didn’t find the food to be highly imaginative, just very tasty and delicious.
I see the comment from Albert P using words such as silly, pretentious, dungeon, expensive, so-​so, indelicately prepared, overcooked. I simply disagree with these observations/​opinions. My family has been dining here for years and has never been disappointed. I would say that the place is slightly expensive for the food quality. The food quality, however, is quite good.