Gilardi's Ristorante

Great service, great food, cozy place - highly recommended!

I am from a state where Italian food is spectacular.  I was hesitant to visit an Italian restaurant outside of where I know them to be good.  Gilardi's was FANTASTIC.  

The smell of garlic wafted to our noses as soon as we entered.  I was already enjoying it.  I had the tossed salad --- veggies all very and crispy.  Followed by the ricotta pasta with local sausage and veggies with a light tomato sauce.  It was completely and totally delicious.  The pasta was light and fluffy.  Our waiter commented that it was among the favorite dishes of the house.  

My dining companions had the tuna special and the ravioli special -- each seemed equally happy with their selections.  We enjoyed a bottle of wine recommended by our waiter that was fantastic -- I don't remember the label, but it was a pinot noir.  

We did not have dessert as the salads and the entrees were more than enough.  

Be aware that the restaurant is tucked behind a house -- you have to go around the backside of the house to find it.  Or you can knock on the door of the wrong place.  :)  

I don't know when I'll be in Springfield again, but I would happily eat here again.

This was the best dinner I had while working in Springfield. The restaurant is in a residential area, tucked behind a house off the main street. It's an intimate restaurant with maybe 10-12 tables. Our server wasn't very attentive and quite awkward. That was the worst of our experience here. I had the house cab (liberty creek) and it was delicious. I've been looking for it in Seattle, but no luck thus far. I also had the escargot appetizer, it was in a pesto sauce that was really good. The escargot was okay, it was more chewy than I'm used to. I had one of the specials of the day, portabello ravioli with truffle oil. It was delicious! The pasta tasted very fresh, I think they make it in house. I always recommend this restaurant to any of my co-workers visiting Springfield.