The worst time in my 50 years of eating out ever . This is the 2nd time here on prarie ave. ever. We had a party of 40 last sunday the worst waitress i have ever seen in my life. he 1st mistake was whistleing at our party to get our attenion. Then telling us her rules. We were only allowed to order pizza because she stated she could not handle any other items. She also stated we could not go into the bar and order any drinks. And when we tried to do so she grabbed us by the arm and told us to get out of the bar.We all ordered salad not one of us received one. We also overheard her say she wasn't going to help us because she was not going to make any money off of us. Mind you this was a 1 year olds birthday party. so we asked her if she had stated this coment she said yes and i will no longer be helping any of you. Ask the guy at the counter to help you. Very said for a long time small business owner to have people like this working for them. Our family is regulars at this business for many years. to be treated this way was very bad business pratice. And to stress again this is not the 1st time for this kind of conduct at this bruno's. Will never be returning to place ever again. They should be ashamed of them selfs. They last time momma bruno  was yelling at us to get out because we had a question about our bill very rude. The worst place in town.
Review Source:dear lord.
this place takes the cake.
i have been to south bend many, many times and feel like a turd for never having been to bruno's.
this place has been in the same family for generations. Â the sicillian grandmother and her sister sit in the lobby and thank everyone. Â grandad still cooks (pushing 90 i would guess). Â sons, daughters, grandkids, cousins - they all lend a hand. Â
from the outside, this spot is easy to pass by, but walk in and you are smack dab in the middle of a scene from the godfather (the happy scenes).
all this is nice, but what a bout the food?
wow.
the pizza is tremendous. Â but careful! Â a 16 inch pizza in sicily must equal a 24 inch pizza. Â they are HUGE! Â and AWESOME.
the peperoni cheese bread is the master of appetizers.
the beer selection rocks.
and, best of all, in addition to all of the cool vintage italian decor, there are numerous fighting irishmen and ND flags:).
go irish! Â go italians!
Of all the pizzarias we've been to in the US (Chicago included!), Bruno's Pizza back in South Bend, IN has always outshone the rest. Â How I wish they could ship it out to us! Â Bruno's was started by a couple that relocated to the States from Italy. Â This mom & pop restaurant has done well for itself and expanded into several other locations in the area. Â The service is always friendly and the wait is never too long. Â The dining area is old and could use a good scrub down but it's nothing so horrible that you would never come back. Â Besides, the food alone makes it worth overlooking the slight tacky feel of the tables. Â Apparently the multitudes that flock here on Notre Dame football game days don't mind it too much either! Â Although they offer dine-in, most of our business was via takeout. Â We live too far away to visit Bruno's anymore but when we think of home, Bruno's always comes to mind!
Review Source:I was all ready to give Bruno's three stars because, really, it deserves three stars. Â But I just gave three stars to a place in my hometown (Whittier) that also deserves three stars, and Bruno's is better than that place. Â By far--er, star.
Bruno's was a last-minute replacement for Elia's for my and my friend Kathy's graduation dinner. Â It wasn't quite what I had expected, but it was also a little bit more, so that was nice. Â It feels kind of like a really old carnival. Â Not a rundown carnival, just a really old one. Â I love restaurants with atmospheres like this, so I guess I love Bruno's.
The pizza is pretty good, but it's heavy. Â I often overeat, and it's usually not a pleasant experience, but there are those times in life when I'm prepared to have that feeling because I am that hungry or because I just want to eat that much or because I'm rewarding myself in some masochistic way. Â I did this at Bruno's--loosened my belt pre-meal and everything--and the post-dinner coma was about what I expected it to be.
My experience here didn't quite cap off my time in South Bend or epitomize any one particular feeling or even provide an unforgettable memory, but it was good for what it was, and that's definitely a win in my book. Â (In case you haven't noticed, I tend to be disappointed quite regularly and hard.)
Sometimes something gets entrenched & people begin to regard it as THE place to go. Â Bruno's is an example of that. Â It has been around for a long time & has multiple locations... so it is always in the discussion for "best pizza in South Bend"
But side-by-side with the other local pizza offerings & Bruno's is average at best. Â I have given Bruno's MANY opportunities to dazzle and I just don't see what people see in this place. Â It is maybe the 4th best pizza in the area after Barnaby's, Rocco's, & (#1) Polito's (which rebuilt elsewhere after the fire but didn't lose a step).
I've visited multiple Bruno's in South Bend and their crust is consistently chewy... the cheese is an overload, especially if you get multiple toppings... which makes the crust chewy AND soggy. Â Their saving grace (and the only reason I give them 2 stars instead of just one) is their sauce is pretty good. Â
In addition to being mediocre & lacking authenticity, it is expensive for pizza.
First, let me tell you that in my reviews I try to address two things, quality of food and quality of the establishment (sanitation, health department reports, etc) Bruno's has several locations around the SB area and even one in Plymouth. I have visited and eaten in all of them. I think the great reviews are overrated. Here is why, the menu is full of carbs and fat (yes! trans fat! -pizza is very thick!) and little choices for anything healthy besides the typical lettuce + tomato+ bell pepper salad. Regarding the sanitation, bathrooms, cleanliness of personnel (yeah! washing hands, smocking, cross-contamination of food) they need some VERY SERIOUS training! All the locations need to be deeply clean (the one on Praire Av is disgusting, dust hanging from the ceiling, car anti-freezing right next to the food-do they know that is a poisonous chemical?...). Hello! there is a reason why the S. Joe health department almost close them down! Check the records, read the articles on line(rodent droppings, etc.) Â I will not rate them more than 2 stars, I don't think the entire local chain deserves it! Sorry guys but If it is too much for you to handle, hire a pest control company, hire restaurant experts that help you train your personnel and design an operational plan. Let be honest the owner and his son spend their time on the kitchen and administration not cleaning and training!
The executor!
Incredible food! Â The anitpasta salad is wonderful but the tomatoe salad is .......well....there just are enough good words to say about the tomatoe salad. Â Pizza is the best outside of New York or Chicago. Â Please understand that if Brunos was being rated on food only....it would receive 20 stars for me.
With that said...... now for the negatives. Â Charging for each soda refill is annoying. Â Â The service is VERY friendly but hit or miss in regards to attention being paid to the customer. Â The bathrooms......ah yes...the bathrooms. Â The health department should shut them down due to the bathrooms. Â Sorry....have to be honest.
So due to the bathrooms, the service and the cost of soda refills I drop them to 4 stars.
So far the best pizza place we have found in this area. Â Being new around here we have been searching for the year and half and their pizza has wonderful taste, texture and you can't complain about the size. It is a little more expensive than the fast pizza joints but it is a nice treat.
Review Source:There is no beating this pizza in the South Bend area - end of story. Â
We have tried so many places and tried to figure out what makes it for us - I think it is the sauce and the cheese they use. Â Our fav is always the pepperoni and mushroom thin crust but if you like crust, just get their original and you won't be disappointed. Â It is thick though - I prefer the thin just to get more of the topping taste than crust.
We have tried 4 of their locations and all of them are wonderful. Â We were thrilled when they opened one just down the street from us in Osceola - now our favorite is a mere 5 minutes away!
Remember - Bruno's does not take credit cards so if you are dining in or picking up carry out, be sure to bring your cash. Â And if you visit the Prairie Street location, be sure to tell Mama we said hello! Â
Another word of warning - while I LOVE Bruno's, we mostly get carry out so if you actually eat at the Prairie Street location, it is getting VERY run down and needs to be updated desperately. Â The ladies bathroom near the bar is frightening so try and use the one in the back or upstairs if you can.
A great family  italian-restaurant! Tied for 1st for most personality for an italian restaurant in South Bend. This location is somewhat hard to get to because its ...kinda...out there.... away from the city,  but totally worth the drive.
The pizza has a soft, doughy crust, but they don't forget to load it up with cheese! In fact, when you're done with the pizza, i recommend dipping your crust in olive oil to finish it off.
Great service, great decor, and not really too expensive at all. This place would make an ABSOLUTE killing if it were transplanted to Chicago or something as the Most Legit NY Style pizza west of Philly.
Bruno has done well.
The pizza here is delicious, and with the demise of Polito's on Grape (due to fire), it's by far the best pizza in South Bend.
I had to knock it down to 4 stars because they charge you for refills on fountain pop which is audacious and should be criminal.
I believe it's only this location that does so, which doesn't make sense. Â Also, the service is very hit or miss.
I'd recommend going to one of the other locations which tend to have better service and free refills.
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,611 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,972 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,318 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,915 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,987 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
