Massimo Ristorante

Great food and atmosphere; the pianist played all the jazz tunes that were familiar to me!

Very disappointing dinner before the show. Slow service, across the board, from drinks to the appetizers to dinner. It was an hour from the time we sat down until dinner was served.
The bread for the bruschetta was over done and falling apart. The sauce for the crab pasta was good, but you couldn’t taste the crab in the pasta. The chicken in the Chicken Parmesan was rubbery, as if they hurried it up by putting in a microwave.
To top things of, our waitress, who never really checked in us throughout the meal, when we asked about our dinner, telling her we had a show to get to copped an attitude and said she wished we had told her we had a show to go to and she would’ve sped things up. It made us wonder how long it would’ve been if we hadn’t said something.
Incredibly disappointing meal and not worth the price.

My wife made a reservation for mother day here. First of all they called and confirmed couple times I was thinking it’s very professional. When we got there we had our own private room staff is super nice and food was great. We had party of 12 people and their staff had no problem handling our party and they were busy. Great place for family get together. Thank you guys.

Old-​fashioned and quiet, a solid 4. Want to eat decent food and be able to talk to your friends without screaming at one another? Want to skip the crazed overcrowded Main St. scene, with its lousy parking and indifferent service?
Then come here and be surprised. Came for lunch and had a lovely, relaxing time. Cream mushroom soup was a tasty, well-​balanced version — creamy but not overly rich, good full mushroom flavor.
Hanger steak with polenta was excellent. Loved the soft polenta, had that gentle bit of texture I like, with very good flavor. A modest amount of mild cheese was melted into it, possibly Fontina. I feel a hanger steak has enough ‘beefy’ taste that a milder, less salty polenta allows the meat to star. Steak was served rare (I asked for med-​rare) but this is a chewy cut, so it was fine with me.
Penne carbonara was a poor rendition, however. This one seemed like milk had been added to create a thin sauce, and not enough cheese of a good quality to make the needed flavor impact. The waitress did offer more grated cheese on top; DH declined but should have taken advantage.
Side veggies are the give-​away that this is an old-​style restaurant. Tasty, but a very ordinary mix of carrots, broccoli crowns, and zucchini. A little broccolini, or perhaps a shredded kale budino, would have added a more creative spark to complement the pleasing but standard pairing of steak and polenta.
Desserts were both excellent! Tiramisu was very nice, a cut above average. Tuscan apple tart was the better of the two, with a thin butter crust and barely cooked apple wedges, just lightly touched with caramel sauce so it wasn’t sickeningly sweet.
Skip the coffee, which is flavorless. The double espresso is the only way to go. Service is excellent; Massimo cares about the front of the house and handles it properly.
(Note: Massimo/​WCreek is NOT associated with Massimo’s/Fremont)

Celebrated my partners birthday (almost) Sunday. Wine and the food prepared were delicious as the atmosphere with linen on tables.
Presentation great!

Went here for dinner to watch Diamond Dave perform. Our server was Danielle, who was so friendly and helpful! We got the antipasto platter, which was a nice selection. The bread that is served with dinner is from Mint 54, which I’m also a big fan of. The big surprise of the night was the lemon tartufo. It was the most amazing dessert I’ve ever had, and my new favorite Italian dessert. We found out that they have other «themed nights» and we can’t wait to come back!

This place was amazingly good. From start with the calamari to the Porcini Black Truffle Ravioli and to end the meal with a Cranberry & Vanilla Bean Crème Brûlée. Customer Service was incredible & the live piano player just made this restaurant have such a beautiful and sweet ambiance. I definitely will come again.

I tried out this restaurant with my wife for valentines day. We were searching for last minute reservations and this came in
. They have also one in Fremont but it showed closed on Sunday their website. We called them up and a lady picked up the phone. We asked her if we could make a reservation and she said they pretty booked and asked the time slot we are looking for. I said about 9pm and she said they will have a table by nine pm. She took my information and ended the call.
We arrived about 10min early she greeted us warmly and she said they will set up out table in 5 min and we can sit at the bar while they the set up the table. We sat at the bat and the bartender greeted us and handed us their drink menu. However, our table was setup fast and moved and the waitress gave us the menus.
The food was really great. They had some Valentine specials but we wanted to stick with their menu. I had their NY steak with caramelized onions and boiled potato, and som vegetables. The portion was generous and the taste was great. My wife had their salmon, she was also very happy about her order. It came fast and it was tasty. The waitress was very friendly and she checked upon was regularly. The drinks were also great, my wife had the mango tango and I had the Moscow mule.
We had also their tiramisu dessert and it was delicious. We bill was 100USD and it was worth it for this occasion.
They had extra tables setup for the valentine day i guess and by about ten pm they started folding the the tables while we are there. We were done and had out check and ready to go.
Overall we had great experience, a cozy and romantic restaurant with good food. We will definitely be back some other time.

Massimo is one of my favorite go to places as the food is always dependable and the service consistently courteous. We had the duck and its side of polenta was delicious, and their sea bass with parpadelle. The textures of both the fish and pasta was excellent, but a bit too sour in taste. Their apple tart was pleasant but the crust a little soggy. My friend had the panna cotta and it was plated very pretty. Overall, we had a good experience as their service is good. We like the ambience and thankfully it wasn’t too busy or noisy last night. I would definitely go back to Massimo’s and check out their daily specials.

Went here for dinner with reservations several months back. The place was pretty empty, maybe 6 other tables — but for some reason our server kept rushing us. At one point I was eating my shrimp cocktail and she took the glass with the cocktail sauce as soon as I picked up the shrimp. My bf and I just looked at each other and laughed it was so weird. The food was tasty — I had a delicious risotto. We had some bubbly and skipped dessert since we didn’t want to keep our waitress any longer. Won’t be back — too many other great dinning options with excellent food, and excellent service, which is why we go out.

I would give five stars for the kind of service at this place. The waitress was extremely cordial and did her job to absolute perfection. We went at closing time on a weekday and yet there were quite a few people hanging out here. We ordered risotto and ravioli for main course. To be honest the food wasn’t anything out of the world. It was good food. The crème brûlée for dessert was extraordinary though. It’s a must have at this place. The ambience is neat and classy. We also noticed that the waitress poured excess water from the glasses into potted plants. So I guess they are eco friendly too. Would definitely go here again!

After a week of crappy fake Italian food in Napa/​Sonoma, my family and I walked by this place and decided to give it a try. Idk if it was because we had low exceptions as Italians subjected to horrible interpretations of our cuisine, but this place was pretty good. The hostess and waitress were very professional (important when your dad is a fine dining waiter and notices these things), and everything that came out was good.
We started with the fritti misti and antipasto platter which tasted great and was priced well. Our main course consisted of the cannelonni and veal picatta, with again no complaints. We finished with the tiramisu and apple tart.
Thank you Massimo Ristorante for finally allowing my father to have a enjoyable meal. I don’t think we will ever be in the Northern California area again, but if we did we would def stop by this place again when in the mood for Italian.

Mike and I originally came to Massimo Ristorante for Valentine’s Day 2015 and we were very happy with the dinner. The food was delicious and the service was outstanding. While at that dinner, the waitress had us fill out cards with our birthdays on us so that they could send us a coupon for a birthday dinner. Last night, we went back to Massimo’s for Mike’s birthday dinner and again we had an outstanding experience. Mike had the half chicken and I had the boar risotto. This is now one of our favorite places in Walnut Creek and we’re looking forward to going back for my birthday in November.

Had dinner last night at Massimo and felt I needed to write this review as soon as possible. Before dinner, I checked the Unilocal reviews for this restaurant and was a little apprehensive about going given the comments made about service. I am sooo glad that we gave this restaurant a try! Lori, our server was a very charming and extremely attentive. We could not have asked for a better experience!
Our food was delicious… we had the Seared Duck Breast with Creamy Polenta and Arugula, Mushroom Risotto with Wild Boar Ragu and the most delectable Filet you could ever ask for. For dessert, we had the Crème Brulee, Chocolate Sin and Affogato… Applause, applause, applause!!!
We look forward to our next visit to Massimo and trying new items. PERK ALERT — for the month of August all of their bottles on the wine list half off! See you there!

I’ve been dying to try this place and I decided to give it a try during restaurant week. I ordered the pasta and it was ok. Not great, just ok. It seemed like they didn’t drain the pasta enough and there was a lot of water in my bowl. I had the steak and it was really sadly boring. The tiramisu was really delicious and pretty bomb. My other friends ordered pasta and they seemed to really enjoy their food. I wish they offered some pasta dishes on their restaurant week menu, like their ravioli. I heard that was delicious. I would try and go again and try the pasta next time.

I forgot about this place. Then I met a friend here for dinner. The cozy atmosphere was the only redeeming factor on this visit. My duck confit was dry and stringy. The bottom of the duck leg/​thigh had a thick black crust that was burnt and inedible.
Service was indifferent. When I finally got a server’s attention and apprised him of the problem, he shrugged and claimed that was how the dish was supposed to look like. The brush off was condescending and bad customer service. I now remember why I don’t frequent this place. I usually give restaurants the benefit of a doubt but this visit left a bad taste in my mouth, both literally and figuratively. I refuse to pay good money on an expensive, subpar meal. I won’t be back.

It was restaurant week so I decided to give this place a try after perusing through the menus online of their fellow competitors. Unfamiliar with the restaurant, I decided it was safer to make a reservation for 2 at 7p on a Saturday night. Once you walk in, you are greeted by a friendly hostess and you can hear live piano music playing in the background giving it a really great first impression. We were seated immediately and the ambiance was very relaxing.
From the $ 30 prefixed menu, I ordered the vongole for appetizer, grilled hanger steak for entrée and tiramisu for dessert. My mom ordered the vongole as well followed by the pretrale sole and the apple tart for dessert. Between the two of us we probably tried 80% of the prefixed menu.
Vongole — pretty good, however I thought it was a little too acidic because it left a slightly strong aftertaste. But overall, a decent appetizer.
Grilled hanger steak — generous amount of food, the steak was pretty generic in my opinion but not bad. My real criticism with this dish was the truffle fries… I couldn’t really taste any truffle. To give a frame of reference, I LOVE the truffle fries at Umami Burger.
Pretrale sole — the fish was lightly flavored with a smooth texture (a quality I like about fish). A great option for those who are trying to eat on the healthier side. I actually preferred this dish over the steak.
Tiramisu — very creamy and light. Although, I thought it could’ve used more rum and maybe a little more breading.
Apple tart — exactly what it sounds like
This review isn’t too specific and unfortunately it’s just because I have nothing really to say about the restaurant. The food was decent but I wouldn’t come back for it. What I would come back for is the ambiance and the friendly service.

We had our company Christmas party here in 2014 and really enjoyed the service, the food and the wine selection. Obviously, our company has had a lot of Christmas parties since I’ve been here but I haven’t had such attentive servers and waiters since we went to Fleming’s in 2011. The woman who was serving us was rapt, courteous, funny and a delight to have around. She took her job seriously but had enough of a sense of humor to last through a pretty long lunch with a bunch of crass and slightly inebriated lawyers.
Of the appetizers we were offered (the ones that I did eat anyway, since I don’t eat meat), I was especially impressed by the polenta-​stuffed mushroom caps and the bruschetta, both of which were incredibly fresh and well prepared. For the entrée, I had the porcini and black truffle ravioli which was absolutely superb. Every dish was paired with a complementary wine, and even the wine connoisseurs of our bunch couldn’t find anything to complain about.
I would definitely recommend this spot to anyone looking to have a delicious and thoughtful meal, which is exactly what we received. We’ll be back, Massimo’s!

Super convenient for dinner if you plan on watching a play later at The Lesher Center. Back in May 2013, I was in town to watch a gf perform there, so a group of us had dinner at Massimo before the show. We didn’t have reservations, so we sat at the bar and each ordered a dish and drinks.
*Seared day boat scallops ($ 12.95)
*Porcini and black truffle ravioli ($ 10.75)
*Grilled hanger steak ($ 8.95)
*Beef carpaccio ($ 11)
*Organic Roma tomato & buffalo mozzarella tower ($ 8.75)
The scallops and ravioli were my pick. The scallops were nicely cooked and super tender. I love mushrooms and truffle so I enjoyed the ravioli as well. Could have used a little more tuffle aroma and flavor, but the mushrooms were delicious!
From what I recall, the wine was moderately priced per glass. Had a couple of glasses with dinner before we headed into the show. A great place to grab dinner or apps and some drinks if you plan on seeing a show across the street!

I totally dig this place! I’ll straight up say it right now, «I can’t wait to go back here for the Duck Breast and Crispy Leg Confit! Mmm mmm GOOD!»
We decided to enjoy our evening on a cool summer’s night on the patio. For starters, we were served some bread and olive oil dip. The appetizer I chose was the Smoked Norwegian Salmon ($ 12) with a potato cake, pickled red onions, capers, mixed salad, and a crème fraiche. The potato cake was tasty and salad was good, but I didn’t really have fun with the salmon or crème dressing.
The gf ordered the Angus Filet Mignon ($ 35), rare. This was an 8 ouncer, served with asparagus, portabello mushroom, big pearl onions, and a demi glacé. NOW THIS was a winner! Super soft, cool, juicy, tender center… Uh, to die for!
As for me, I ordered the Duck Breast and Leg Confit ($ 26) with a fine tasting berry sauce, and may I say this was one of the all-​time BEST breast and leg combo I’ve ever had! It’s gotta be the berries. I’m not a brussel sprouts fan, but the sauce, berries, and duck were just perfect. I’d definitely order this again!
For dessert:
~We had the Vanilla Bean Milk Chocolate Crème Brulee ($ 8.25). This was topped with slices of caramelized bananas. It was different I must say, I didn’t really care for it, but the gf devoured it with a big smile on her face. «Fine, you can have it», I said.
~The Tiramisu ($ 7.50), wasn’t all that either. Loved the mascarpone creaminess, but I thought my piece was kinda small. The Lady Fingers within it was soaked with Kahlua and Myers Rum. I guess I wanted it more bready rather than a wet soft texture.
Seems like I didn’t like this place, right? Well, here’s what made this a 4-​star versus a 3. Regarding service, I’m upset I didn’t get the waiters name, but he did an excellent job. He made the perfect food pairing with a Petite Sirah choice in Concannon Conservancy. Refilled our water and wine glasses when necessary. The food took a bit of time to come out, but presentation made up for it. Check out my pics! I still salivate over it with a second look. The piano man that night was simply fantastic as well; He kept the mood alive! All of this combined, makes for a great second date choice. Debatable as being a good first date type of place, but no argument.
Getting here, you can park in the garage across the street. Or get lucky and park along the street; although it is metered. It’s Walnut Creek, you’re gonna pay no matter what! Live large for once, and enjoy good food!