Pasta E Vino

I really love Pasta E Vino. They have the standard pasta dishes (which is probably what most people expect when they think Italian) as well as unique combinations of flavors. I have had the saffron parpadelle which was amazing as well as the campanelle funghi, both which are amazing every time. Flavorful amd unique, can't find these dishes easily! The happy hour wine is also very good, I wish their happy hour was until 7pm and included the tables as well (instead of until 6pm and just at the bar.... those bar seats are not comfortable and inconvenient to climb into). Overall the decor of Pasta E Vino is nice too, very cute and warm.

The 4 of us got the bruschetta (decent), fried calamari (solid), cacio e pepe (good), pesto & pine nuts (very good if you really like pesto, good next day too) and shrimp fra diavlo (friend really liked it). Service was quality. Pricing was reasonable enough. My 100% Italian girlfriend liked it, and she’s picky about pasta.

I’m going to reiterate other comments here. The service was below basic. Our server took our order, a runner dropped off our food, and nobody came back until we had finished. Nobody checked in for more wine or whether the food was even good. Before I proceed, I want to say that I did eat my entire meal. This was more due to my being famished than the remote amount of flavor that was included. I had the chicken parmigiana, and as you can see by my picture, the sauce was thick and pasty as if the dish and/or the pasta were sitting under a heat lamp. It also tasted like someone had accidentally knocked an entire salt shaker off the counter and into the sauce. The chicken was tough and the texture was reminiscent of something fried that was reheated in a microwave. As I sit here writing this review, our plates have been cleared by a runner, but still no waitstaff has stopped by to check in. We are now asking for our own check. I will pay the bill in full and leave with a semi-full stomach, but I certainly will not be back.

This place deserves a 5. It's not because it's the best place I've ever been to, it was great, the food was well prepared, the ambiance was excellent, the service was even better. That being said, the 5 comes from the fact that the staff was great in allowing is to have a great night. The drinks came often, we were a large party so they put is in the perfect location where we could be a little late loud and not upset the other dinners. Oh, and did I. Forget, there is a great lounge right downstairs. It opened at 10pm and by 1130 it was a packed and a great time. DJ and good crowd, this place really did catch me by surprise, I'll be going back.

My partner and I dined at Pasta E Vino on a recent Friday night in May 2018. We were sat quickly inside as the outside tables were all occupied (around 8pm). That was the extent of our positive experience. It was downhill from there. First, our server was uninspired, cool and not very attentive. It was as if she didn't want to be there. The brushchetta appetizer was fine. It's hard to mess up bread. Why you only get three small pieces for the price you pay is beyond me. My partner had the mushroom ravioli and I the orechetti special. Both were very overcooked which was distracting. If there was a robust flavor profile then we didn't sense it as we were working through chewing our food. We may have overlooked the poor quality of the food if the service had been great, but we just didn't feel welcome there. That isn't what we expect for an experience that cost $80 for two people. There are much better Italian meals to be experienced in Jersey City.