Baciare Ristorante

UPDATE 2: downgrading to 3 stars because it has been over a year since the guy claimed all this stuff was going to improve and it never happened. In fact, I think the place might have gone under (which is a real shame based on how good the food was).
UPDATE: downgrading to 4 stars. the service is consistently too slow. still, great food. but on a tuesday i don’t have time to sit around forever.
I am so impressed and very happy with this restaurant. In fact, its the best meal I have had in Whittier. And the price was very reasonable. We sat on a nice patio, which was really much bigger/​nicer than anything uptown has to offer. The one thing, as mentioned by the first review is that it is not done with its renovations, so its just okay looking. But I am not holding that against it, because I spoke with a gentleman there (I believe the owner) that explained the scale of the renovations… it is going to be very, very nice when its done in a few months. So in the meantime, go enjoy that kick butt food.
My wife had the vegetarian panini that comes with a salad, which was excellent (and only $ 9!). I had the Chicken breast with eggplant, which as I said above was the best meal I have had in the year I have moved to Whittier (phlight being a close second).
Side note: i went to Seta last night for dinner. Its good, but pretty damn expensive. Meanwhile, this place is borderline cheap for a sitdown meal, while the description of the ambiance sounds like it is going to be at Seta’s level, but with a much nicer outdoor seating area and WAY better food. And this is not talking bad on Seta, but just really emphasizing how strong this place seems.
Great to see another solid place in uptown! I will definitely go back.

Great italian place… it’s moving next week so something to keep in mind! I’ve eaten at my share of italian places. nothing really stood out for me… :(but was overall above par… wouldn’t go back nothing too special…

Baciare is our office’s second favorite restaurant for staff meetings next to Seta. I am a fan of their pizza with artichoke, tomatoes, and olives. I’ve also had their sausage pizza and sandwich with proscuitto and fresh mozzarella. They were also good. The salmon risotto is also pretty tasty. It has a nice lemony flavor. The house bread is a fan favorite in our office. The only downside is that they are super slow in delivering your food.
I would definitely recommend this restaurant if you’re looking for a new place to try in Whittier.

A must try! This place is pretty good, service was really slow (that’s the reason for the 4 stars)

I’ve now been to baciare twice with friends and have sampled the following: house bread (free) rigatoni bolognese, pasta arrabiata, pizza, ceasar salad, insalata di la casa, and lasagna.
I’ll start with the positives… the pizza and salads were edible.
On the downside, the sauces in all three pasta dishes desperately lacked flavor and were quite awful, kind of like something you might get in a hospital cafeteria. The meat in the bolognese sauce was grainy and dry and tasted a bit too acidic for a meat sauce. The sauce on the lasagna was boring… sadly, I’ve had better tasting frozen lasagna (and i hate frozen lasagna). The most disappointing of the three pastas was the arrabiata– It was spicy yet oddly extremely bland. I truly wanted to love this place (which is why I gave them a second chance) but it was a serious let down. I feel like I have tried enough items off their menu to confidently say that (1) I won’t ever return and (2) this is neither good nor authentic Italian food.

Support your local restaurants !
WE stumbled upon this place on a rainy Wednesday night… my boss recommended I try Cuban last night – told me to stop by Babaloo. Needless to say I couldn’t find Babaloo and walked into Baciare asking if Babaloo might have had a name change.
Was told that the place has been out of business for the past 4 years O_​O!!!
I was craving Cuban so much that I wasn’t even thinking about Italian, I was about to step out when a leaving party advised me to give it a shot and that I wouldn’t regret it.
ONE-​HUNDRED-​PERCENT-​CORRECT.
I don’t remember the last time I had Italian food this great (although I don’t eat Italian that much haha).
Anyways, I spent so much time on the backdrop of this review that I’m just going to bullet point the reasons you should IMMEDIATELY go here.
1. AMAZING service! Owner served us and also chatted w/​us at the end of the meal
2. Great portions (she got the pizza, I got the lasagna)
3. Great prices (Our meal was 26 bucks)
4. Soft/​warm fresh bread served with flavorful olive oil base dip
5. Last but not least, AUTHENTIC, FRESH, WORTH THE WAIT food
I desperately want to see this place succeed and plan on taking friends and family here… that’s how great the experience was.

the owner is very friendly and helpful. The prices are marked perfect fo rthe portion sizes as well. The ambience is nice too.

This place is very low key but the food is AMAZING. The owner (Fred) makes you feel welcome. Their wine selection is very yummy. If you want to eat some excellent food without paying the over price menu, then come down to this place.

My friends and I are pretty much here every Friday. Great food, great serve, and the owner makes you feel at home. Try this place and you won’t be disappointed. ;)

We always walk by this subtle and quaint little place in Whittier. We never see anyone on the patio outside eating (I don’t blame them in this SoCal heat), but we never had the courage to walk in until the other day.
We were the first customers there for lunch time and the décor was elegant, yet casual. Their chandelier near the entrance is a really one-​of-​a-​kind design. We were greeting by a nice waiter and we both ordered their lunch special for $ 9.99 which included salad, bread, main course and a drink!
Everything that came out gets an A+ from us! There is a real chef in this kitchen folks — the pasta is a little different and tastier than Olive Gardens of Bucca di Peppos. The portions also didn’t overwhelm you so that was a nice change from the norm.
Give this place a try!1

Modern and sleek Italian restaurant in Whittier. What a surprise it was to have found this place. It’s nicely and neatly decorated with a splash of brown and earth tone colors. It almost looks like an upscale restaurant.
But really, it’s a simple Italian restaurant, with good and affordable food.
Their Chicken with Eggplant and cheese with fresh vegetables was very tasty and the chicken was pretty succulent and juicy. Our meal came with warm bread, accomodated with olive oil for dipping. Very delish! Appetizers were a biteful as well, with a large platter of Fried Calamari with a flavorful dipping sauce.
SERVICE: was a bit slow, but we didn’t mind it at all. It was nice to not feel rushed with service on a quiet weekend evening.

Been here several times & the food is pretty good. So far the only disappointments on the food is that they run out of key ingredients (clams).
The biggest complaint is with the service. Waiters & waitresses keep disappearing into the back, leaving patrons by themselves for very long stretches of time. Seating, menu’s, water, bread, order’s, refill’s,
the check will take a long time becuz no one is there. All staff goes into
the back room & stays there. Last time we ended up forgoing dessert becuz after asking about the dessert menu & the waitress disappearing to check, then coming back & not sure then disappearing again, we just said nevermind & just bring the check.
Hopefully they will figure this out, becuz the food is quite good.

We had avoided the place because it looked empty, I’m very glad we tried it anyway, the food was fantastic! I love real italian food and this was it.
They started us off with warm, crusty bread served with an herb infused olive oil, no need for balsamic, though that is available also. We all had different entrees, including pastas, fish and lamb – all were superb. There is a true chef in that little kitchen.
The atmosphere would hold up to any of the boutique restaurants in LA. My only complaint was that our waiter (who, I later found out was the owner) looked like some guy who walked in off the street. He had on the ubiquitous baggy jean, polo, white tennis shoe outfit most dudes wear on the way to the mall or any place to chill. I’m not saying it’s bad, it just detracted from the charm of the place. I would have preferred he at least wear an apron to give an air of professionalism. Other than that, it was a great experience overall. I highly recommend it.

I came across this place on a Monday night when every single one of my favorite restaurants in uptown was closed at the same time I had some family visiting from out of town and they had to eat so we decided to give this place a try.
The food was bland, over-​priced, and unimaginative. The few dishes which were a little out of the ordinary seemed to have been concocted with flavor combination as an after thought. Our server was nice, but inattentive. The service and food were painfully slow, and there was only one other table in the entire restaurant! To top it off my son and husband and I all got sick. I was actually embarrassed to have taken my visiting family members here.
I wondered how this place continued to stay in business even though it was always close to empty and now I wonder how they get anyone in here at all. I hear that they have a ton of renovations to come… hopefully that will extend to their menu as well.

The only reason I am giving it 4 stars instead of 5 is because the place is not finished yet but as others have said the owner is very friendly and is planning big things.
A fireplace and lounge in the patio and the front room will be a wine bar and cocktail area and then the dinning room will be in the back of the restaurant which is very large
The service is outstanding and the food is delicious and the prices are just right and a lot cheaper than some other upscale restaurants near by
It is a nice change and addition to uptown Whittier. I can’t wait for the completion of the renovations if it comes out as good as the owner mentions this will be one great spot to go grab a drink or dinner or both!

This place was awesome! As everyone else stated, the upcoming reno’s are going to be amazing! I can not wait! We started with calamari and marinara sauce, sauce was fresh and light. I had the Fillet Mignon, so good. The mushroom sauce on the steak was great. I only wish the steak was a bit bigger. My boyfriend had the lasagna, he really enjoyed it. The appetizer bread is fresh baked and served along with garlic infused olive oil and basil. We will definitely be back!

Unfortunately I have to take back my review! Food was great! But the manager has a BAD attitude with his employees. Very RUDE! I thought the waiters were very attentive, we sat near the kitchen and can hear the mean and plain rude things the manager was saying. He has been claiming they are going to get a liqour license and nothing happens. I think they will close down. Sorry, because your cooks sure did know what they were doing.

Wow, stumbled in here for lunch on Sunday afternoon and was pleasantly surprised. Bread with oil and garlic was amazing, my entrée was fabulous (Linguine Alla Baciare) and I can’t wait to see it after they finish the wine room and outdoor patio! I love that the owner helped us himself and his sincere answer when I asked for his recommendation, «All our food is good.» It has a great atmosphere already and adding the extras they spoke about will only make this little gem a treasure. I’m definitely returning.

Nice atmosphere– great potential for the future and a pleasant place to dine as they develop. We tested the menu with staples; lasagna and pizza. The lasagna was flavorful, nicely textured, and presented well. The pizza had a thin, delicate crust– tasted like at least two types of cheese, toppings were ample, but not smothering.
It is currently a work in process, no liquor license, a bit stark, but worth watching. Grab a bottle from Vinatero up the street– no corkage fees and enjoy watching a rising star in the little Whittier dining universe. More of a wine bar feel than Zi Teresita, less cold than Datillos’ (inside).

This restaurant is on its way, especially if they complete the renovations they intend to finish in the next couple of months. It will have a sidewalk courtyard, wine bar (currently the dining room), and separate dining room. Décor is pleasing and understated but only temporary so I look forward to seeing the final design.
Now on to the food. For lunch I had the ceasar salad and penne with sausage & broccoli. The salad was fresh, crisp and dressing was light. Topped with shaved parmesan and ground pepper it did not disappoint, in fact it was prepared well enough that I looked forward to my entrée. Pasta dish was a garlic laden delight. I love garlic so it was right up my alley but beware to those who don’t appreciate it or who have wives that don’t either. Broccoli was al dente and sausage was flavorful. Good amount of oil olive and it did not saturate the dish. And as a special for $ 8.95, I recommend it. Our meals were also accompanied by fresh steaming hot bread which with olive oil could have been a meal in itself.
Friends had the penne arrabiata and rigatoni bolognese and were pleased with their meal as well. From the looks of it, I will be trying any dish with their bolognese sauce on my next visit.
Wine license is forthcoming, but not needed to try this pleasant italian eatery today.