Luci Ancora - Saint Paul

The restaurant atmosphere suggests classy Italian with a very cute interior, white table linens, beautiful fresh flowers on each table but the food completely misses the mark.4 of us went to check out the cute place and celebrate a birthday. We got 2 appetizers: shrimp and smoked salmon…Shrimp consisted of 4 smallish shrimps with a weird sauce and cost $15… Tasted bad, as all of us agreed and a complete rip off….Salmon was more edible and came served on about a cup of of spinach without any dressing so unless you enjoy munching on spinach leaves, you will have a few tiny pieces of mediocre salmon and that too won’t be worth it…For entrees two of us ordered fettuccine with wild mushrooms, one a ragu pasta and one ravioli.Another disappointment for each: tiny portions for one…. Overcooked, overbuttered fettucine and wild mushrooms pastas…A dish called ragu was not ragu at all… it was the same overbuttered fettuccine with a tiny single piece of beef…..ravioli had 3 1 inch square pieces of ravioli….Disappointed with our meal we got 3 desserts: home made pistachio gelato not creamy, icy, not flavourful); espresso mouse decent) and panne cotta ok)Our bill for 4 people was around $180 and we left mildly hungry and highly disappointed. For a restaurant trying to be gourmet and upscale they miss every mark on food. We won’t be back and I strongly suggest that you save your money and time and go to Esthelle’s; Broders or IE for a great classy and delicious Italian classy meal.

This is by far one of the best dining experiences all around in the Twin Cities. The wait staff is always attentive, kind and knowledgeable. The food is delicious and fresh. Phenomenal spot for any occasion. I love the Short Rib Pata dish they haveFood: 5/5

One of the best restaurants for authentic, beautifully prepared Italian food.Excellent menu, atmosphere and staff!!Food: 5/5

Great homeade pasta. All fresh ingredients. Smaller portions but very delicious. Reccomend the wild mushroom buttered noodlesVegetarian options: Gluten friendly menu. Can add meat to any of the vegetarian entrées

We were seated outside on a lovely night and while the tasting menus and drinks were delicious the service was painfully slow. There were many apologies about it. We were there for 2 1/2 hours and left immediately after finishing our main course. Didn’t have the staying power for coffee and dessert. Hopefully they can get things organized because it’s wonderful food.