Pulcinella’s

Food was excellent and large portion sizes. Waiters are not very attentive and the place was a little messy (food crumbs all over the floor) took away from a 5 star rating!

In town on business and gave this place a try. Nice atmosphere. Started with the lobster bisque. Outstanding wish I had got the bowl. Next was the fried polenta. I would love to tell you about this but since the order was messed up and I was brought the wrong dish I can not. Well I got my lasagna. Great huge cheesy mound of meaty goodness. Worth the wait. They use a pork beef blend that is right on the money. The tomato sauce is bright and a good contrast to the heavy weight 4 inch tall stack of pasta and meat. Served with some fresh green bean this was filling. Almost no room for dessert. Had the maple crème brûlée and a 10 year old port. Very good
Highly recommend this place.

This place is easy to miss, hidden away in a little strip mall, but the food and the staff are great! I visited twice while in town on business and both meals were delicious (Day 1: special soup and Crostini ai Funghi, Day 2: special pizza).
I sat at the bar both nights, once with colleagues and once alone, and enjoyed prompt service, conversation with the staff, and fantastic recommendations for food and drinks.

The food was fantastic and priced similar to most Italian restaurants. My only complaint was that a worker was a bit snobby/​rude to a nearby customer who politely asked about the temperature of the restaurant (it was freezing!)

Everything was excellent. The prices were low yet the food was priceless. As for drinks, make sure to try the Orange Blossom and the Passion Martini. My Wedding Soup was the best ever. Pat’s Escargot was the best ever. The Pescatore was outstanding. We eat out a lot and this is now on our top ten list.

Dined here for the first time on friday night. Service was very attentive and the atmosphere was lovely. We started with the calamari. It was cooked perfectly and very tasty. The aioli that accompanied the dish had great flavor. I would have preferred it served on the side as opposed to drizzled over the top as it was a little heavy handed for my taste, never the less it was some of the better calamari I have found in the area. I had the puttanessca which was delicious. Not overly salty with olives and capers and well balanced flavor. I loved the hint of spice in the background. The pasta was cooked perfectly. My boyfriend ordered the gnocchi which he devoured. It was nice to see it served with something other than butter and sage. It had a fair amount of greens with the dish to offer some balance to the heavier dumplings. Top off the meal with a great glass of Prosecco and we have a winner.

It has been a few months since I have eaten at here, but I have never had a disappointing meal. The food is excellent and the specials are not just a featured item from the menu or something they need to get rid of. the squash ravioli was wonderful. The wine selection is good and Kyla is happy to make a recommendation based on your likes and food selection. I make sure I eat here every time I am in Burlington.

Place is tucked away in a strip mall but is worth locating! Great place for couples, friends or business people. Menus is limited but quality is fantastic! Offers little bit of everything. Snails were fantastic not your normal escargot! Wine and beer selection is good and very reasonable. Sat at the bar and ate and enjoyed watching the chef cook in the open kitchen area. When in town again I would definitely revisit.

Growing up in an area with a heavy Italian influence I have had a lot of delicious Italian food. The dinner I had was amazing good. I think the décor of the place could be improved, but I did enjoy the wine box bar!

Had dinner at Pulcinella’s on a lark this weekend, first time there. Frankly, got turned off with the «don’t do this, don’t do that» messages — no cell phones (which I agree with by the way), a charge for sharing a plate, don’t ask for alterations to their precious menu (because you might be inconveniencing the next person who may have to wait while they do something that is not precisely as listed on their menu), oh, and in spite of prohibiting special requests, your food may take a while to arrive (up to 30 minutes for pasta dishes, really?). All this on a one page menu!
The food was okay, the wine list below mediocre, the server was extremely nice, however, it should not take a diplomatic resolution of the Middle East to have onions added to a pasta dish (yes, I put their negative message to the test, and got a «no way» response back). The real question is: why all the negativity from management in their messages to customers? The accumulative effect, and actual experience we had, left a bad taste in our mouths, not from the food, but from the attitude, which while cheap, was a little too abundant. Vermont is a small state, and people are really nice and service oriented. The attitude here is very un-​Vermont. There may be only so many choices in Burlington, however, we won’t make the mistake of dining here again.

Had a terrific dinner here last night. No wait, we sat at the bar; love the open kitchen! The servings are huge, and I ordered a side of broccolini just in case… Definitely did not need it. Stay was friendly and knowledgable. Don’t worry about the prices; it’s well worth it!

Having a little time to kill, and no dinner plans, I wandered in to look at the menu with an eye for takeout… Had I read the old reviews here, I’m not sure I ever would have…
That being said, I am so glad that I did!!! I was at the start of full dinner service, and found genial welcoming staff and owners busy but calm, with everyone at least with a greeting and a smile, prompt polite service with candid and enticing recommendations…
I had a nice frosty beer while I waited, pleasant and engaged conversation with the hostess, and the pleasure of seeing all of my food prepared from my barstool. Ambience and décor was relaxed and informal, and a few early diners seemed happy to be there and well attended.
When I got home, I had the most succulent, well prepared, ample and delicious loin of grilled swordfish I’ve ever tasted. It was incredible, and enough to convince me that the chef/​owner knows his business very well! The creamy polenta was delightful, the broccoli raab that accompanied was fresh, toothy and an excellent compliment to the fish… No primi, however the insalata caprese featured fresh moist rounds of mozzarella, light and savory balsamic and fresh greens and plump tomato slices… And damned glad the hostess talked me into the fresh warm whole grain bread too!
If you’ve been swayed by a few negative reviews from the past, I urge you to reconsider; I’m glad it wasn’t a factor for me, as I will definitely be back to dine in soon!!! My compliments and thanks, Sam!

The trick with Pulcinella’s is to… wait for it… sit at the BAR. Sitting at the bar not only affords you an intimate view of the kitchen on busy sat nights but also get you waited on by Kyla– who better than the owners girlfriend to give you knowledgable, good-​humoured service?!
I lived in the Boston’s North End and spent my undergrad working in high-​end italian restaurants– the food here is among the best. It has a feel of a local neighborhood restaurant, serving sizes are more than enough and the specials are always aMAZing.
If a young, flirty, trendy spot is what you’re looking for do NOT come here. But if solid good food, good wine and warm atmosphere is what you’re up for this is your spot.
P. S. Trattoria Delia should be abolished from the face of the earth– if you disagree then don’t bother reading my review your taste is irrelevant.

This HAD been a favorite place for dinner for several years, until I took my wife there this weekend for her birthday. The food tasted great and the service was great. The problem came about later that night when my wife became ill, all night long. Not sure what part of her meal was incorrectly prepared, but we can never go back.

Authentic Style. ⁸⁄₁₀ Service. Unique Menu Items.
The menu was impressive with apps like Escargot (but the italian version) and polenta fries. We went as a huge group, 9 people, during my sister’s graduation from Saint Mike’s. The waitress was good, although she did mess up my grandfather’s martini, even after he told it to her twice, and I said it again louder for her to hear.
I tried everyone’s food. The crab ravioli was great, and the Ricotta Pillows have amazing flavor with fresh sage and truffle oil. My seafood linguini was pretty bland however, the seafood itself was perfectly cooked.
It’s worth trying out for sure.

As I look over these other reviews, I see some questionable ratings based on inconsistent experiences. You could see the waitresses pantyhose? Are you sure you were at this place? I’ve never seen the waitresses in anything but pants.
But that aside, this is perhaps the best restaurant in Burlington. The chef and his wife are friendly and totally accommodating. The food, from the garlic soaked in oil for dipping to the incredible pizzas, to the perfectly cooked pasta, is always excellent. I have yet to have a bad bite at this place, and I’ve probably been a dozen times in my life. Many menu choices, a full bar, and spacious, comfortable seating.
So I’m sorry that another reviewer was expecting chewy breadsticks (Olive Garden much?) but this place is terrific! Highly recommend.

I’m going to preface this by saying that there are very few good Italian restaurants in the Burlington area. I’ve been to just about all of them and have come up disappointed at each one. (Yes, even the beloved Trattoria Delia… I don’t know why locals like that place so much. The food is very mediocre).
I went to Pulcinella’s because I wanted to try a different Italian place, and am now regretting it. Our steak carpaccio was basically cooked, and was overseasoned with far too many capers. My boyfriend’s ravioli was extremely rubbery, and my friend’s pizza was simply not good. My pescatore was decent, but I could have achieved the same result with a can of diced tomatoes and some mussels.
I’m fairly used to mediocre food billed as «authentic Italian food» in the Burlington area, so normally I would not be so harsh as to give this place one star, but the service was atrocious.
Our waitress had a terrible personality. She was somber, borderline rude, and completely unfriendly to my table.
Overall, I would not go back here, but honestly, it’s not much worse than what else is around.

If my associates had only asked me a recommendation for dinner here in Burlington! I would have recommended Trattoria Delia — quaint Italian feel, yumm food, good vibe.
Pulcinella’s is no Trattoria Delia …
The food was decent. The ambiance lacking. The service very good. My upset tummy after — unpleasant.

Went here with my boyfriend, my mother, and her boyfriend while visiting her in VT. We usually go to Trattoria Delia, but she wanted to try this place for dinner.
We started out with an order of 4 piccolo piatto — zucchini, homemade breadsticks, grilled olives, and marinated mushrooms. Unlike another reviewer here, I expected the breadsticks to be crunchy since the menu states that they are «crisp breadsticks.» These were good. The olives were decent, pitted Kalamatas and some other bigger olive that was not pitted. The zucchini and mushrooms were my least favorite — they both tasted almost pickled, especially the zucchini. These even looked to me like thinly sliced dill pickles.
We ordered the fried risotto croquettes (Arancini con Verdure) for the table — these were pretty good, albeit a bit bland.
We had a couple of salads too for the table, but these were pretty forgetful and not worth mentioning. Not bad, but not great…
For the main course, I ordered the asparagus stuffed ravioli (Ravioli con Asparagi) which was served with WAY too much of some sort of herb/​garnish (?) on top. The menu didn’t state that it would come with that, so I was surprised to see it there. The dish was served in a sauce that was described as being a «Parmesan broth with butter. «It was a thin sauce but heavy. The ravioli itself was bland — I couldn’t place my finger on the cheese that was used to stuff it with, but a better Italian cheese could have been used because this dish was lacking something. I couldn’t finish my meal — It was pretty boring and too heavy.
My mother’s boyfriend ordered the Pizza con Patate e Tartufati which was a pizza with some pretty strange ingredients, but it sounded interesting –Yukon gold potatoes, Parmesan, caramelized onions, mascarpone, & truffles. However, he only ate two small slices and was done. He commented that it wasn’t what he was expecting and wasn’t too thrilled with it. I tried a bite and once again, something was off with the seasonings and/​or cheese.
My mother had chicken and my boyfriend had their gnocchi dish. Both of them said they enjoyed their dishes (my boyfriend ate his entire meal). I was offered a bite of the gnocchi, but my stomach was already hurting from the heaviness of my dish.
We all ordered dessert — gelato, crème brûlée, and nutella beignets. I only ate the beignets which is what I ordered. They had potential, but the breading was too heavy.
Seems like this place has some hits and misses. In my case, mostly misses. I know this place is supposed to be authentic Italian, but maybe it’s in a region of Italy that I am unfamiliar with because almost every dish I tried seemed bland or otherwise lacking something.
Unfortunately, I probably won’t be coming back. I’d much rather stick with Trattoria Delia, which I know is good. Or perhaps I suggest to my mother to consult Unilocal next time ;)

stay away from the breadsticks…
they are overpriced ($ 6) crunchy cracker breadsticks — not homemade soft goodness :(
they noted in their menu that everything was made to order but when i requested to change the noodles (not a fan of long noodles) from spaghetti to orecchiette, i was told that because of the volume (it didn’t seem that busy), the chef may not be able to accommodate. my request was fulfilled but i thought it strange — i wasn’t asking them to remove an ingredient or anything complicated. my dish, pomodorini freschi, was too tomato heavy and tomato-​tasting — the description led me to believe that it would be more of of an aglio olio with tomatoes as garnish. the pasta, however, was perfectly al dente.