The good - Valet parking - must have in LODO. Â Service was very good. Â Staff advised us of upcoming specials. Â Staff had excellent knowledge of wines. Â Fantastic food ingredients, preparation, and presentation. Â Varied menu, with selections for everyone. Â Very upscale decor. Â Fascinating, open, glass enclosed wine cellar for viewing. Â The best and largest wine selection that I have ever seen. Â They had 4 pages of red wine available by the glass. Â The red wine was also broken down by country and region. Â Very reasonably priced. Â The deserts were amazing.
The bad - We waited a long time for desert, but the place was 100% filled.  This is not  a place for a quiet date.  It is loud, but the place was 100% filled.  While it is very nice and upscale inside, it does not look like an Italian establishment.
I had not heard of this place until it popped up on Yelp during a search for Italian fare while planning a birthday outing.
Upon arriving, we were seated immediately near the windows, the interior was very dim so my eyes took a bit of time adjusting even though it was dark outside. Â For a group of three, we sat at a small table with barely enough room for all the water and wine glasses. The tables are arranged tightly so that i literally bumped my elbow into the person seated behind me while removing my coat. - FYI, i don't think they have a coat check.
For drinks our waited definitely hinted at the costliest wine by the glass or Perrier if we wanted water. Â My husband and I only wanted a glass of wine each so we ordered by the glass and daughter had iced tea.
As for an appetizer, we had a good laugh because we weren't exactly sure what it was we ordered to share between the three of us. Â I mean we knew it consisted of a portobella mushroom but not sure exactly how it was prepared or how big. Â our appetizer arrived on a long rectangular plate with the actual serving size about the slider hamburger bun. Â we all looked up half expecting the rest - no worries, all two bites were tasty.
The entrees were excellent and we left nearly nothing on our plates. Â I had a pasta dish with seafood. Â The shrimp were just a bit overcooked however. Â The sauce on all of our entrees were perfect.
We had tiramisu for dessert - yum!
Overall it was great but i would still pick Maggianos over this one.
I think this place is great. Â It helps that Venice has an amazing happy hour. Â The small plate menu that is available during happy hour is to die for. Â My hands down favorite is the butternut squash ravioli and I've been craving it all day. Â I've only had good experiences at Venice and recommend it.
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