Ritorno

What to say when there are empty tables for two (more than one) but the guy in charge prefers to keep patrons standing up? Not good. That’s terrible customer service.

Unfortunately I have to give this place a crappy review. Just because my expectations were much higher based on the other Unilocalers’ reviews. Went with the family, as they live close by. I gotta say the wait staff and their service in general is great!
Very friendly and attentive.
Here are some points on the REAL experience:
1. They don’t take reservations on weekends — we were waiting at the door for Aprox 30 – 40 minutes.
2. We ordered our food and still waited another 40 minutes– which is a long time by any standards.
3. We shared all the dishes we ordered and, they were MEDIOCRE AT BEST! We got: the veal parm (had way better), eggplant parm, margarita pizza (really bad), fried calamari (best dish), gnocchi (ok), veal piccata (good) & fettuccini Alfredo.
(We were 5 adults and 2 kids lol)
I guess I’m writing this to bring down the level of excitement a couple of notches before heading to ritorno.

Wow, wow, wow. Okay let’s just get straight to the point, you need to come here for the Gnocchi alla vodka… now, seriously you’re depriving yourself if you don’t. Honestly had no clue that gnocchi could be like that. I always had associated it with being this thick sort of chewy heavy pasta. No, this gnocchi literally melts in your mouth it’s absolutely incredible.
Now that we got past that, I called for a reservation for my boyfriend’s birthday and they informed they do not do reservations for Saturday nights but they said I shouldn’t have a problem getting seated. And they were right but it was shocking because the restaurant was packed, I swear we had the last seat. The inside isn’t super fancy, and the outside looks like a chain but the food certainly proves otherwise. We were dressed up for a wedding and didn’t feel out of place, but nor would I had I been in jeans, a weird phenomenon. We luckily got a booth seat and it was pretty loud since it was a full house.
I got a Cabernet sauvignon which paired very nice with the food. The other entrée we got was the eggplant parmasean. This is not going to be like the one you’re used to in Canada and US, it is baked and not breaded, much healthier. The sauce it is in is very nice, but I felt it could have been hotter both heat and temperature. However still delicious.
We will be back for Nona’s gnocchi, oh did I not mention that it is hand made everyday by the owner’s grandmother?! Yeah.

PEI mussels in marinara were lovely. Ravioli with mushrooms and artichoke were very tasty. Good execution. Service was very good but only a few tables busy at 2pm.
I enjoyed it much more than their sister restaurant Julia’s.

Maybe it was the food, or the well mixed drinks, but this place rules. The service is great (though slow, on a friday night) but you can’t complain when you try the food. I had the calamari and veal, and HOLY MOLY WAS THAT GOOD. I will definitely be going again and again!!!

We love Ritorno. Outstanding food every time. Great atmosphere and Julia is the most wonderful hostess in Oakville.
Try the Gnocchi. Julia’s Nona still makes it by hand everyday.

Very Nice Place! Food was Awesome, had the Linguine Carbonara, pasta was cooked just right, had them add some Panceta, best I have ever had. Staff was awesome also, quick service, suggested a great wine, dinner served in 15min. All in All I would go back!

Went here for the first time tonight to celebrate our anniversary. The meal was excellent. We came away feeling very satisfied but our butts took a pounding on the worlds most uncomfortable wicker chairs. Seriously, if you are looking to spend a few hours chatting with your loved one over a glass of wine, bring your own cushion for extra padding. You will need it. All in all, the restaurant is not huge so it is a little loud, although we had no problem conversing the two of us. The table was wobbly and needed to be leveled by the hostess when we arrived. For the price they charge, one would think they would check all of the tables before they opened for dinner. The «Nonna» wall is a cool touch. The website seems up to date with the latest pics and menus so be sure to check it out. As for the food, be sure to order the Ceasar salad and gnocchi ~ they are very good. We were told everything is made fresh and in house and we believe it. We will return and refer but hope that the owners will consider buying some new chairs for their guests!

Another recommendation from my sister who is married to an Italian guy. Here the pizza looked and smelled incredible. Naples style with the thin crust and single plate size. Simple ingredients, and very flavourful. Not sure it beats the Cane Rosso in Dallas/​Deep Ellum which is my measuring stick, but it was good. I had the veal parmaghiana and it was okay. Smaller portion with average pasta. Wine selection was okay and the service was friendly and attentive. I would go back and chose something else from the menu. Perhaps more of the pizza which was ordered by a friend.

Mama Mia! I’m on this gluten reduced diet but I cannot resist tasty Italian dishes served up at Ritorno. North Oakville’s answers to good food, trattoria style!

Fantastic food. Really it is very delicious. The atmosphere is very nice as well and the staff is great.
Honestly the only downsides (that aren’t really that bad) are that it gets pretty loud during the dinner rush, they don’t take reservations, and the wait time for your main course is looooong. The appetizers tend to come out reasonably fast and are very yummy (so you won’t starve) but hopefully you’re there with someone that you can have a nice conversation with to pass the time.
A couple of things to keep in mind: You need to order an appetizer from the mozzarella bar. AMAZING! Really, really delicious. And listen to the waiter/​ress for wine suggestions. They are on the ball.
Enjoy :)

My wife and I decided to go here during Jazzfest weekend and to my surprise, it was really good. I’ve driven by it numerous times on Dundas thinking that it was a cookie cutter Italian restaurant surrounded by big box stores ala East Side Mario’s. Instead, the dishes were both unique and delicious. The service was a bit on the slow side but the food more than made up for it.
And to Fareeda S., what do you expect? This restaurant is not for 2 year olds. If I was there and heard some kid screaming while I’m trying to eat my $ 30 entrée, I would be PISSED. I can’t stand people like you who bring small children into adult restaurants and act all shocked when they start crying and the people eating there get mad about it. Next time, think about someone other than yourself and take your nephew to McDonalds.
Bottom line: this is one of Oakville’s hidden gems.

Good food. I love the «Wall of Nonnas» you see when walking in.
Very friendly staff but when they got jammed, we had to serve ourselves wine for the evening.
A little pricey for what you order, unfortunately. Pasta «starters» shouldn’t cost $ 14. My lamb shank was good but the bone represented 70% of the shank = not a lot of meat to deal with and the tomato /​basil mashed potatoes had little evidence of tomato or basil. And for $ 25?
Hmm.

Ok so the food was very good. Actually some of the best Italian food i’ve ever tasted in the GTA.
HOWEVER, their service was really crappy. The servers were not friendly and the manager was rude to say the least. Let me explain… I had my sisters family including my 2yr old nephew with us. They did not have high seats for the kids… ok so we took the stroller in. At first the staff seemed friendly. however after our order we had to wait aprox 1hr till we got anything on the table… Due to the long wait my nephew started getting upset and started crying for aprox for 2 mins. The staff there (including the manager) were clearly not happy about the kid making some noise… That’s ok too… what really made me angry is when the manager aproached my sister and told her ‘can i pack the lasagna fro you. ‘the food will taste much better at home’…
Need I say more…

Awesome experience.
Tasty ample servings. fair prices and great service.
Ambiance was better than expected. App platter was massive with interesting odd and ends.
Approx $ 80 taxes in for two with appetizer, and two drinks each.
Will definitely return to try other dishes after I stop dieting. lol!