Tuscan Moon does NOT hit your eye like a big piece of pie.
And it's NOT amore.
It kinda flops against you like a limp noodle and is a-mediocray.
First of all, talk about weird. It's in Kalona in the heart of Amish country but is this kinda sophisticated, Italian date spot? *blinks* The crux of business in this area is for visitors day shopping like antiques, quilts, jams, scented candles, yarn...that usual hokey jive. It looks like a converted house (and I bet it is) all spruced up.
So a group of us went to the souped up cottage on a slightly off dining hour (2:30pm) and entered the foyer, to a hall w a host stand no one was at, to the first dining room to ask to be seated. A man and woman working seemed rather flustered by this. I found this odd since there was only one other smaller group and they were in the other dining area. Push 2 tables together, we will all be ok. After they endeavored this task we were sat. In spite of being dead the service lagged. Another thing that irks me..
While the service was snail city the manager guy sat near us and was using his laptop. I discussed this matter w a friend (who's on yelp too) and we agreed its unprofessional and off putting when staff sit by you while you dine. It's a total "that's me in the corner! That's me in the spotlight!" moment and awkward. Plus made him look wack seeing as we waited for refills and such.
Everyone ordered different things except 2 women ordered burgers and fries. I think they all liked their meals but weren't like blown away. But who care's right? I got a flatbread pizza that was pretty good. Perfect portion size, fresh toppings that played well off each other. My meal was clearly the envy of the table.
Unfortunately, Tuscan Moon is eclipsed by it's dodgy service and awkward concept for the area.
Very nice atmosphere, one of the best I have seen. Classy set up, very quiet area, nice music playing, really impressed.
The menu is very nice, has a lot of good choices.
I love the fact that it is off the beaten path, I like going to places that you can travel a lil ways and enjoy the whole experience.
We'd eaten here before (see previous review) and had a wonderful experience. Â We've recommended this place to many friends as a wonderful place to eat. Â So wonderful, in fact, that despite being sick I drug myself out of bed, got dressed up, Â and found a babysitter. Â My husband called and made a reservation and we drove 45 hours each way to go to the restaurant. Â When we arrived, we didn't see a hostess so we tried to walk into the restaurant to find one. Â We were sent back to the entryway. Â Then a waitress almost ran us over bringing dirty dishes in. Â Finally someone greeted us and asked if we had a reservation. Â I explained we were late because I used Google maps and we got turned around on the gravel roads to get there. Â We were told to go stand on the porch until they could work us in. Â Then, before we moved to the porch, someone else asked us if they could help us. Â My husband explained we had a reservation but we were 15 minutes late because we got lost, and THAT person told us it was fine and seated us. Â Then we sat there for fifteen minutes while a table of four was seated next to us. Â And took their drink order. Â Then someone came over and took our drink order. Â Before our drink order came, several staff members came over, told me to move my wallet, and cut our table in half to make a table of six next to us, without even a cursory apology. Â We got our drink order and managed to ask someone for an appetizer. Â Then the table of six was seated, and everyone there got drinks. Â Then the table of four on our other side that was seated after us got their FOOD. Â We then flagged someone down and asked if we could order. Â The waitress came over and said, "Sorry, that took longer than I expected." Â We weren't sure which of the things she'd done in the 30 minutes we'd sat there before requesting to order she was referring to. Â She took our order, then the table of six next to us got refills while we sat at our table, actually being bumped by the staff as they refilled their drinks. Â We sat there with empty drinks. Â Both of my husband's drinks were empty. Â Our server brought our salads, did not refill our drinks. Â She came back and took our empty salad plates, still not refilling our drinks. Â I tried to thank the server for taking our plates, and she ignored me while talking to the server at the next table. Â The table of four who was seated after us was finishing their multiple course meal, and we still hadn't seen any of our food, had a refill, or been acknowledged as anything other than a piece of furniture in the restaurant. Â I'd been asking my husband not to lose his temper up until this point, but I was so frustrated I got up and waited in the car. Â From what I understand, my husband explained our disgust and there was some attempt to try to make us happy, but after an hour of being ignored, we were ready to drive the 45 minutes home, still very hungry.
Review Source:Tuscan Moon is our favorite restaurant in Iowa City. Yes, we know it's not in Iowa City but it's better than anything in Iowa City and only about a 20 minute drive away. Â Whenever we want a nice meal out, we will drive to Kalona to eat here. Â And plus, Kalona is super cute!
We have eaten here several times and have always had excellent food, wonderful service, and great wine. Â Highlights on the menu are the crab cakes, lamb chops, dill salmon pasta, and the lemon cake. Oh, the lemon cake. Â They often have really great specials. Â Everything has a lovely presentation and is tasty, tasty, tasty. Â I wish my stomach was bigger when I eat here. Â And the wine list is extensive, and if you need a suggestion, the owners are very helpful.
So this place is awesome! Â Very nice, homey feeling, patio seating when the weather's nice. Â Call for reservations even if you don't think you don't need them because it can be busy even on a random Thursday night.
Note: Â Lunch rating only
Small Amish/Mennonite community off the beaten path.  Limited menu, but what's there seems quite good.  The black bean/chicken/garlic soup was excellent.  Nice wine selection.  4 stars considering the limited menu was for lunch and I don't know their dinner offerings  We will be going back to try their dinner at some point.
Read the reviews which were mixed. Rolled the dice and went. Food was excellent. Staff friendly. Yes you pay a little more but it's not olive garden. Everything was prepared by hand. Home town meats, paste, excellent wine selection. Great atmosphere. Would certainly recommend it and will be back. Chicken, steaks and pasta dishes were all excellent!
Review Source:This was a complete disappointment, especially after all of the great things we've heard about this place. Â We were sat in a booth directly by the bar--the only ones in there. Â Unfortunately it was not quiet at all thanks to the owners and waitresses who just sat there talking--and staring it felt like. Â We went in at 11am when it opened for lunch--did not get our food until 11:40 (2 chicken sandwiches). Â Sounds like they did not even have the cooking equipment turned on! Â When it finally came out (Tuscan Chicken) it was THIN, DRY & BURNT--the trifecta from hell. Â The chicken was not brined or marinaded--giving it no flavor and causing the dryness. Â Completely dissatisfied--could barely choke the sandwich down. Â If anything good came from this visit--it is that at least we found out cheaply at lunch instead of overpaying at supper.
Review Source:Everything about this place is special, starting with the owners, Warren and Paula, who are two of the warmest people you will ever meet. Â The Tuscan Moon is their labor of love and it shows. Â The restaurant is beautiful and, during the summer, the patio is even more inviting. Â The kitchen, manned by Ben and his capable staff, turns out inventive and consistently delicious food. Â Warren's wine list is impressive, carefully chosen, and attractively priced.
This is the kind of place that leaves you with a warm glow and a desire to return again and again. Â By your second or third visit, you'll be greeted as a regular. The Tuscan Moon is a treasure. Â That it thrives in little Kalona, Iowa is a miracle.
Tuscan moon is a place we've been hearing about for year and after finally making it down, it lived up to the hype. The restaurant is located in downtown Kalona inside a renovated, old hotel. The entrance is through their patio area at the back of the place, but it's worth staying on the patio if the weather permits.
We sat outside on a nice summer evening and with a light breeze, it was very pleasant. We stepped inside to take a look at the decor and it was quite impressive. Darker woods, some great, rustic furniture and mirrors as well as nice lighting set the ambiance for dinner and will impress the antiquarian in you (had to look that one up!). The bar was especially impressive and worth checking out. Upstairs were an additional small dining room and my favorite room in the entire place - the lounge. It's a waiting room with a small bar, some great tables and overall, a really unique feel to it - the sort of place you'd love to sit and enjoy a glass of neat scotch. Put a couple big leather chairs in here and I'd camp out all night!
Back to the food now. The wine selection and beer selections are both pretty extensive. The wines included both standard choices as well as a good number for  the more refined palate. The beer selection included the standard brews as well as plenty of specialty beers including the Trappiste #10 - the best beer ever ever!
The selection of entrees ranged from $10 - $26 and included a half dozen pastas and 8 or so meat options, the majority of which were steaks - score! Â Between the four of us, we had the pasta bolognese - excellent and not too heavy, the pasta w/ dill salmon - fantastic flavor with a good amount of creaminess, but not so much that you were tasting it hours later, and a rib eye - a good steak, made great by the bleu cheese. The pastas were served al dente and they definitely got it right. The roasted garlic risotto as a side was straight awesome. It was flavorful, relatively light, and a perfect amount to share. The chef here apparently was at Lincoln cafe in the past, but got sick of the drive - Tuscan Moon wins!
The five star bump here came from the atmosphere that was created with the addition of the live classical guitarist. We found out they have live music every Saturday in the summer and it really created a great feel for the place. The overall package of food, service, and ambiance made for the sort of experience we've found in many of the small town restaurants surrounding Iowa City. I'm excited to come back here in the winter when we'll get a better feel for what it's like inside.
So we returned and this place just went downhill. You would expect them to put in extra effort on NYE but that wasn't the case. This time, the food was bad (as was the service), and the prices were steep (as usual). We returned home disappointed. They blew their second chance. Not planning on going back to that place!
Review Source:
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