West 7 Bistro

My wife and I had dinner at the West 7 Bistro last Friday evening. The space is interesting, with various string instruments hung around the high brick walls, but not striking. There is a large flat-​screened tv above the bar, which, while ubiquitous these days, was still a big disappointment. Someone turned down the sound and put on good music after we were seated, but left the tv silently on, also disappointment because of the visual distraction that it causes.
The second disappointment occurred when our server walked up to our table wearing filthy clothes. He was obviously the cook, and was also working as server, food runner, and busser. I was immediately concerned that he may not have responsible habits of washing his hands between each of these actions and handling our food. I do not have an answer to that, but I am still concerned about it.
Our food was our third disappointment. The Antipasto was billed as «assorted Italian cold cuts» and came as a bland looking platter of rolled pieces of chewy, too thickly-​cut, prosciutto, nice mortadella, and provolone cheese. True to the description, but meager in its variety and imagination and lacking any other embellishments such as olives and peppers. I thought the Ravioli Bella was nicely prepared and delicious, but my wife thought something was lacking, perhaps proper seasoning. The Calamari was described as «fried calamari tossed in hot cherry peppers». It came as very nice looking fried calamari with two large whole cherry peppers on the side. I was disappointed in that it was the «tossed with» part that had appealed to me, and the reason that I had ordered it. The calamari themselves were perfectly cooked, juicy and tender. The coating however was shockingly bland, containing no seasoning whatsoever. It ruined the experience of eating it for me, even though it had a very nice crunch to it. The red sauce that accompanied it was also with any seasoning and tasted flat and watery without a hint of tomato flavor. The Arancini was to be «arborio rice stuffed with mozzarella, beef, peas, red sauce. It may have been arborio rice, but I doubt it. It seemed more like long grain rice that was overcooked and without discernable texture. The beef was okay, but nothing more than cooked ground beef, and there was one pea in it. I can’t say that I found much of a mozzarella experience to it. The red sauce was probably the same as the other one as it added nothing to benefit the dish.
To end on a slightly better note, the bread was hot and delicious. The oil with hot peppers, however, was not. It was a tasteless oil, and if it was olive oil, it was not discernible.

I’ve been back here a few times since my original review. I have to say that I have nothing negative to report about my experiences. The variety of menu items I’ve had here have all been quite good. I’m surprised to see some of the bad reviews as I’ve never experienced anything remotely similar to what it written in those reviews. Then again, a wise man once said, «a Unilocal review usually tells you more about the customer than the restaurant.» In addition to the food being really good and reasonably priced, the place has a nice atmosphere. Previously, I had been a fan or Amelia’s before the make-​over (I’ve heard it’s the same owner but I can’t personally confirm that) as it was a nice neighborhood restaurant with very good food at reasonable prices. This place fits that description as well, but with a much better atmosphere. I definitely recommend giving this place a shot.

We visited this place back in March… the restaurant was freezing. Not sure if they have heat. I asked to use the restroom… I had to go through the kitchen and use bathroom in the back!
The food is not great (we had two of their pasta dishes)…it’s not terrible but it’s certainly not very good and definitely not worth the price. Can find much better Italian elsewhere in Somerville… don’t waste your time or money on this place.

So we’ve come back here a couple times because it’s about a 45 second walk from our place, but that’s about it. Each time we’ve returned, the truth has slowly dawned on me, shaking me out of my usual super-​positive cheery see-​the-​beauty-​in-​everything reverie. This place isn’t that great.
The food is fine. Not a ton of selection, but I can’t complain about it. It’s just that this place is a MESS. Because there are rarely many customers, I guess it’s pretty hard to keep wait staff, which is why we have been waited on by the owner a few times. Unfortunately, the owner really doesn’t have any people skills. Like, genuinely, NOT PERSONABLE. Then, we get into the sketchy stuff. Like when we came in on Valentine’s Day (it was snowing, or else we would’ve gone somewhere nicer) with a Groupon and the owner tried to tell us that the Groupon was supposed to exclude Valentine’s Day, even though there were no restrictions anywhere on the actual voucher. We pointed this out, and eventually he had to take it (not before trying to tell us that he was «on the phone with Groupon right now» to tell them about this mistake).
Anyway, I have seen the light, and West 7 Bistro doesn’t look good in it.

Pasta does not taste homemade, pretty sure I could do better. Also on a Friday night they were out of gnocchi and the wine I wanted. Save your money and go elsewhere.

Better off buying frozen entrée at the supermarket. We went for dinner on a weekday, not very busy and expected our meal to be fresh and delicious. We ordered arancini for appetizer and got something that looked like 3 balls of rice that had fallen on the floor, splashed with sauce. It was horrible, in fact the waiter said the chef won’t charge us for it but that’s all they had! What a great way to start off dinner– please don’t serve horrible distasteful food, just say you don’t have it in house that day.
Olive oil and bread were ok, waiter had his fingers drenched in the olive oil when he put down the plate on our table. Lasagna tasted mealy, microwaved or frozen. Please don’t waste your money. There are other better options nearby.

The worst food I’ve had in somerville. One waitress. Everything is microwaved in the back. Calamari was cold and flavorless. Pizza was chewy and greasy. Overpriced!

A wonderfully romantic evening!
We came in when it was snowing hard, so we had the whole place to ourselves. The owner greeted us warmly, served us, and cooked for us, all with a smile. The atmosphere is welcoming, and he even turned the lights down for us for mood lighting. Very personal!
The warm bread with oil was very good, very homey. The bruschetta was fresh and traditional, the entrees were freshly made and rustic. I enjoyed the wine we had with the meal, too.
I’ve passed through Teele Square plenty of times, and not realized this place is right in the heart of the intersection. More people should know about it!
Overall, a really good meal in a great setting at reasonable prices. Definitely recommended!

Went there for the great reviews but was disappointed. The waitress was not pleasant at all. Caprese salad is mere a stack of tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. Mid way through the meal we were told that they can’t make the Risotto. Go there if ‘This bread is the last you can have’ is what you want to hear. Not recommendable at all.

Really delicious italian cuisine without the craziness of the North End. I had the lasagna and meatballs and it was great. Pizza looked awesome too and the service, ambiance was really good. Highly recommended

I would like to disclose that this is my first review on Unilocal.I look to Unilocal all the time to decide where to go but never have I ever written a review. That being said I thought this place deserved some recognition!
I came here with just my boyfriend around 9 pm tonight (a Wednesday night). It almost looked closed but the cook, Chris, was more than happy to welcome us.
First off, come hungry. The bread and oil they give you to start is delicious. Bruschetta was amazing, huge portion for two people. Not on the menu, but we asked if he could do a meatball pizza and he said he would. It turned out great and he decided to add it to the specials board and name it after us (order the Ashlyn & Dan!).
Just outstanding service and food I’m so glad we tried this place! Loved it, we’ll be back soon.

I got delivery from this restaurant and I was incredibly disappointed with the food. The food’s price does not match the quality and, after my experience, I feel completely duped for spending over $ 17 on a pasta dish.
I ordered the Arancini and the Ravioli Bella. The Arancini was OK — nothing special. The ravioli, however, came absolutely drowning in Alfredo sauce that was so over-​salted that it was inedible. I was so determined to not waste my money that I actually tried washing the sauce off of the ravioli in order to eat. I gave up after getting through two raviolis and tossed it down the disposal because it was just so unpleasant.
I called the restaurant and asked to speak to a manager. The man I spoke to was just as unpleasant as the food. When I explained the situation, he told me that cheese is salty… Clearly Parmesan cheese is salty, but I’ve had plenty of edible Alfredo sauces in my lifetime. I insisted that the sauce was just too salty and he offered to make some more up again and send it over. At that point, it was 9 pm and it was 2 hours after I originally ordered the food (it took 1.5 hours to arrive), so I was not particularly up for waiting another 1.5 hours for food. When I politely told him that I didn’t want any more food on that particular night and asked if he could give me some sort of credit for another night. I was told that he would need to see the inedible food in order to give me credit. Apparently it was a HUGE mistake to throw out oversalted mush, because when I told him it was down the drain, he yelled at me for throwing it out and went on to telling me that I wasn’t believable because I hadn’t kept the food. At that point, I’d had enough of his unpleasantness and hung up.
I will be warning everyone I know in the area to stay away from this place.

Don’t bother with this restaurant. the beer batter fish was inediblle. I love fish and have never sent a dish back to the kitchen. when I told the waitress the fish was mushy her reply was they sold some earlier in the day. HUH??? The bread was wonder read variety. the egg plant was ok but nothing specially. save your money.

Cocktail was monster strong. Had the Ravioli Primavera, great, and the steak tips, good. Service was good.

I think this place is great! The service was very friendly and it had a great atmosphere! The menu had a lot to offer. The waitress and bartender both helped me decide on a great drink, which was much appreciated, and the brushetta was delicious! I will definitely be back

Uuugh… Serious mistake. Where to begin?
Loved Amelia’s — a local «go to» on warm or cold nights.
Came to West 7 and learned «Amelia’s» had remodeled and re-​opened in October (4 months ago.) It was Valentines Day and thought I’d take my wife and adult daughter (a NYC restaurant worker) to something fun. The window advertised a $ 60 4-​course dinner for two: Salad, Gnocchi, Entrée, and dessert. Entrees were roast chicken, or NY steak with truffled potatoes, or Tilapia with cheese risotto. I ordered a fairly priced bottle of Sicilian wine and the bread and olive oil was AMAZINGLY good. That’s where the compliments end.
The salad was overly dressed, the gnocchi was cooked perfectly but was swimming in a very bland marinara (that needed salt, garlic, wine, and basil to save itself.)
After the sirloin came out without potatoes but with a rice side did the waitress apologize for not telling us that there were no potatoes tonight (the place was empty until we arrived at 7:40). My daughter was relieved to know that the rice was NOT cheesy risotto since she has lactose issues, but then, neither was my rice with the Tilapia. Yep, plain-​risotto grade rice prepared like white rice and totally tasteless. Oh, did I mention the steamed carrots and broccoli — both tasteless as well?
Apparently the steak was ok, and the Tilapia, prepared with artichoke and capers — originally a bit fishy — mellowed into something worthy swallowing.
By the time we finished our delicious tiramisu and expresso, the place had filled up. We felt guilty not warning other Valentiners. The waitress was so very sweet, but the chef needs to learn to take some chances and discover the spice rack. Is it too much to ask for garlic and oregano in an Italian bistro?