Giamano's  Ristorante

Let me preface this review by saying that the food was VERY good, solid, classic Italian food. We were impressed with the quality of the food and the ingredients.

What we were not impressed with, however was the tiny table we were originally seated at and when we asked to be moved, the hostess walked over to the manager saying LOUDLY, "they don't want to sit there." Why was it such a big deal for us to switch tables? What happened to "the customer is always right"? Her response should have been, "absolutely, let me set that up for you." Instead, we stood there like idiots while she huffed around setting up our table. Even when we first walked in, it took them five minutes to figure out who was going to seat us....kind of a mess.

Apparently, because it was a Tuesday night it gets very crowded (which it NEVER did) due to half off and jazz night. The owner completely blamed it on the fact that it was Tuesday night, and she was nice enough, but it still left a bad taste in our mouth.

If you're looking for AMAZING Italian food, go to Jimmy's in Asbury....nothing better.

I am seeing two major complaints here.....
1. It is expensive
2. The food takes forever

1. Well, Hmm...It's not BYOB which I'm sure all of us Jersey folks are used to and it serves all fresh/homemade and organic meat, cheeses, produce Etc....So yea add a $45 dollar bottle of wine to your meal and it can be one of your expensive nights. I did not find the food expensive at all. $18.50 for a chicken dish...$11 for an app seemed pretty standard. Our bill for three (no drinks) was $123.

2. They disclose on their website and on the top of their menu that the food is all cooked to order from scratch and that the entrees may take up to 1 hour. So I was prepared to wait and certainly not fault them for this. The food overall was excellent. We ordered it all at once two apps and three entrees. The apps came out in about 40 minutes then the entrees 30 or so minutes later. We arrived at 7:15 and left at 10 so this is not a quick meal people. My chicken parm was to die for. I could tell it had just been made, it was piping hot and it was not the usual beaten down chicken cutlet that was made in a big batch earlier in the week. It was a giant breast of chicken topped with their homemade sauce and homemade cheese.

The live band was Reggae and that was a blast many people were dancing.

Service- Here is where they lost one star. The bus boy was excellent we talked about trying to give him a tip directly but I'm sure that was not allowed. The server on the other hand had clearly prioritized his tables. By nights end there were three tables left, us, a large party (12 ppl) that looked to have ordered at least 10 bottles of wine and a wealthy looking couple who seemed to be regulars. It took forever to get out check and get out of there. It felt like he was giving his attention to where he thought his biggest tip would be.

Holy crap. Best veal I've ever tasted. The Veal Milanese is outstanding and I have been eating good Italian food at great, and oftentimes expensive, Italian restaurants since I was born. The breading had crisp to it, but was not overcooked and had so much flavor. The pasta was cooked to a perfect al dente texture and the garlic and oil sauce was exquisite.  Now the ricotta cheesecake...holy crap again. Best I've ever had. I swear I'm not exaggerating or an owner. It was so different from any other Italian cheesecake I've had...no weird lemon zest and not dry. It was almost like a NY style...so creamy and delicious, but with an awesome ricotta flavor. The food here has been the best I've had in the area. And I wasn't really hungry when I sat at the bar, but now I want to eat so much more. I wish I could. I really do.