They were very busy, but we were sat within 20 minutes. The food was delicious, and the staff was fast and friendly! Everything was great!
They were very busy, but we were sat within 20 minutes. The food was delicious, and the staff was fast and friendly! Everything was great!
I really can’t say enough wonderful things about Ciao... from the friendly and attentive owner (Luca), to the wonderful servers and, of course, to the excellent food! It was our first time in Amelia Island and we chose to eat dinner twice at Ciao during...our 4 day stay. It was cold at night while we were there so sitting outside was difficult for dinner (we were able to do so the first night at España restaurant and tapas- which was excellent as well- but then it got too cold the following evening)- but we felt very safe in the front part of Ciao (near front windows) which was not crowded and the tables are well spread out. As for the food... all I can say is WOW!! The first night we ordered the traditional bruschetta as appetizers and they were excellent! Only wish the plate was a bit larger (only 4 pieces so we each got only one). For entrees my husband ordered the Pappardelle Bolognese the first night and wow was it tasty.. I had a few bites of his and loved it also! Our two teen daughters thought Ciao was a hit also! Our older daughter ordered the Farfelle con Pollo and she raved about it. Our younger daughter ordered the Gnocchi Aurora (spinach and ricotta gnocchi in a pink sauce). We ordered a meatball for her to add to it and it was a great combo! She said it rivaled the gnocchi she ate in Italy a few years on our trip! As for my plate, I ordered the salmon with Polenta and steamed vegetables. I was truly blown away! The salmon had the most amazing crispy crust (wish I could do that at home!) yet was perfectly cooked on the inside and not dry at all. And the polenta was amazing! It was so addicting! Italians know food, for sure. It put any American mashed potatoes to shame!! Lol. Finally, our waitress said the vegetables would be mixed but the plate came with thick cut carrots is some crazy good seasoning. I am not a huge fan of carrots usually and I could not stop eating them- I was shocked!! They were definitely the best carrots I have ever eaten. When I asked about the switch in vegetables, the waitress apologized and quickly brought out mixed veggies (zucchini and broccoli) but I have to be honest and say that the carrots were actually much better. I usually dislike carrots so this says a lot! Then on to our return visit another night. First we ordered the calamari with marinara sauce and everyone loved it! Large sized, tender fried calamari with plenty of marinara for everyone. Then we decided three of us would share two of their pizzas so we initially ordered the prosciutto with arugula. I should mention that their pizzas are crispy but paper thin- so if you like pizzas with substantive crusts or with even hand-tossed thickness, these might not be for you. But wow are they tasty! For our second pizza we thought we had ordered the goat cheese and caramelized onions pizza, but the waiter misunderstood and brought another white pizza with a similar name but which had Gorgonzola and ricotta. That one was really BAD... just way too pungent and inedible... I was confused because Yelpers raved about the goat cheese and onion pizza. Our waiter was wonderful and returned the pizza and brought us another prosciutto and arugula pizza at no additional charge. Later on we were speaking with the wonderful owner (Luca) who came to talk to us at the table, and he figured out what had occurred and explained the white pizzas have similar names and they had brought us the wrong one. But they were so nice and apologetic- and the prosciutto one was so good- that it was a mere blip for our overall experience. Our younger daughter ordered the lobster ravioli that second night and loved it!! Finally, we did order desserts that second time (which we had skipped the first night), and Boy were they memorable. I am not usually a cake person (prefer pies usually) and I am totally in love with their limoncello cake. It was the lightest and most wonderful cake I had ever tried without chocolate. Just excellent- try it.. you won’t be disappointed. I shared it with my husband but almost ordered a second one- took a lot of willpower not to! Our girls split a Nutella chocolate mousse and it was very good as well. Normally desserts with chocolate are always my favorite - and this one was very good (yes, of course I tried theirs!) ... but it is hard to beat that limoncello cake at Ciao’s. I can’t stop thinking about it, actually. And that has never happened to me with a cake! Moral of the story is that Ciao is a must-visit restaurant when you are in Amelia Island. I am hoping to return soon so I can actually try the goat cheese and caramelized onions pizza that Yelpers love so much! Hope this review helps if you are in the area and looking for a great restaurant.More
Was a slow night here which I appreciated. I am mixed on the quality of food. The burrata salad was good but that is because it's burrata! The pasta dish was good, but honestly the tomato sauce way too salty. However, I find this to...be the case in many restaurants. The server was super pleasant though and overall all the staff had good service skills. It is decent here, and a nice ambiance for date night, but food quality is average.More
Friendly and attentive staff (very conscientious about cleaning areas and spacing of tables). The menu is wonderful... it's hard to decide when it all looks and smells soooooo good! We had the veal piccata. It was delicious. The bread is out of this world. (No...room for dessert!). Wish we had more than one night in town - I would definitely go back!More
While in Amelia island last year we found this incredible italian food restaurant on the 'main drag' in old town Amelia Island, which by the way is a beautiful spot! We started with pizza as an appetizer and it had the thinnest crust we had...ever had, almost cracker crunchy. It was a very good choice. As you can probably tell from my past reviews, pizza is a passion-i have a wood fired pizza over at home. We moved onto entrees from there and they were delicious! My wife had the fish and I the gnocchi, another passion of mine and they are not easy to make. While these were not made in house they were flown in weekly from NJ and whoever is making them has got it right! Fluffy pillows of deliciousness. This is a family owned and operated restaurant, italian family, and they have the recipes, authentic and well executed! Will we be back, absolutely!More
My sister, my mom, and I are on a girls trip in Amelia Island for the week and we tried Ciao last night. We were greeted by the friendly owner and our waiter was fantastic. He was polite and attentive throughout our whole dinner experience....Both the owner and our waiter would talk with us and really cared about our dinning experience. The food? It was amazing. All three of our dishes were to die for. We all mentioned that it was the best pasta that we’ve had in a long time-if ever!! If you go on a Monday, get the special (Camellioni). We couldn’t recommended this restaurant more!More
Had a great time at Ciao with my significant other at the bar! We split some amazing bruschetta, and enjoyed a great thin crust, goat cheese pizza with some fancy cocktails. We still walked away very full! The menu is full of exceptional dishes and...I can’t wait to come back to taste more of Italy! Luca & the staff were very welcoming and made me feel at home! Definitely try the limoncello cake, it’s God sent.More
During the last three months my wife and I have dined at Ciao on four occasions and each time the food and service was outstanding. I read many of the reviews below and cannot agree with the reviewers who had a bad experience - but...that happens. I will go back and will not hesitate to give a bad review if the restaurant deserves it. But for now and unless something changes, to me Ciao was worth the five stars I rated it.More
Unfortunetly being from out of town we were not privy to the many bad reviews. The evening started off just fine we were greeted by the owner and thought we were in for a good time. Our food arrived and my wife's and my eggplant...was very "crispy" our dinner companions meal seemed ok. Upon eating my wife found several hard items in her meal which the owner sloffed off as hard celery in the sauce. After that it was uneatably for her. The owner was told this but did nothing to adjust my bill. Shortly after leaving my friend who accoumpnied us came down with a very bad case of food poisioning and spent the dayin his hotel room throwing up. The next day my wife and my friends wife went around town and got nothing but bad vibes from everyone we spoke to when telling various shop owners where we went to dinner the night before. Will never go to Ciao again on our next trip to Amelia Island.More
Whenever we are on Amelia Island we frequent this restaurant, and you should too! It is exceptional. My mother, sister and I enjoyed our Valentine's dinner there this past weekend, and Mom and sister are still talking about it. My sister stopped to speak with...the owner on the way out and lo and behold, he's from the North End - same place we are from and if anyone knows good Italian food it's the North End. Exceptional food, atmosphere and service. My mother said the trip was worth her dinner that night. Can't get much better than that. Again, don't miss this restaurant .. you will thank me.More