Casa Di Francesca’s

They recently closed and reopened so we went and gave them a try and we were not disappointed. Everyone should come here if they want good Italian food with big portions. They currently don’t have their liquor license but will have that in a few weeks (the restaurant was kind of empty). It’s a shame people aren’t coming because of that they are missing out on out of this world food and service. The service is amazing and the ambiance of the restaurant is very intimate and romantic. They have a small menu but good things to choose from. They are running a special for April that if you get their experience meal which is for two; an appetizer to share you each get soup or salad you can each get a different entrée and each get a different dessert for $ 49 dollars instead of $ 69 what a steal! As the courses come out they get bigger and bigger I had to take more than half my meal home and the dessert. They give you bread and olive oil to start and then bring the apps out which are more than enough to share. We got the Gorgonzola onion, mushroom flat bread which was so tasty. Then the salad and soups came out on serving plates and bowls. The unstuffed pepper soup is so creamy with the right amount of spicy. Very tasty it could be a meal in itself. The pasta dishes come out and they are also on platters enough for 3 meals. The Rigatoni Supreme was packs with meat and peppers and mushrooms. They are also great with catering to the customer. One in my party wanted the chicken parm unbreaded and they did that without a problem. Too full for dessert we all took it home to enjoy later. They were always making sure we were enjoying our meal and our glasses were full. When they say you are ordering the experience they sure do make sure you get it. I will be back again soon for more great food! Definitely get your moneys worth! Keep up the great work!

Went here for dinner to celebrate two birthdays. We were the only ones there. The waitress told us their liquor license expired and couldn’t sell us a glass of wine. Who lets their liquor license expire?!? The service was awful. There was one waitress and she wasn’t even supposed to be a waitress. She went into a rant about how the restaurant was undergoing a change. She didn’t even take off the flat pop we ordered off our bill! Our food came way too late after we ordered it. I ordered the shrimp scampi, which was awful. For $ 19 it wasn’t worth the price; the sauce was all at the bottom of the bowl and was all oily; the shrimp still had all the tails on them. The restaurant was freezing cold! No music was playing in the restaurant, only in the back kitchen. The waitress didn’t check on us at all, and when the bill came it automatically gave the waitress a $ 29 tip, and if it were up to me I would tip her $ 0. I would never suggest going to this restaurant, at least not until the owners have changed over.

The food was awful, the service was slow, they added $ 35 to the bill after we left. We were the only people in there on a Saturday around 6 pm and they still messed up our orders. The waitress burned herself on our soup and then later dripped water from her gloved hand all over two different meals. Even though we were the only people there everything was slow to the table They didnt have a liquor license. This place was terrible. I CANT WAIT UNTIL THIS GARBAGE DUMP THEY CALL A RESTAURANT IS OUT OF BUSINESS

Way to pricey for food that is just ok. The workers also have very arrogant attitudes

The waitress had absolutely no knowledge of the menu when we asked questions. The salmon wasn’t stuffed at all and the risotto was crunchy. And No Salads! I have never been to an Italian restaurant where a $ 25 entrée didn’t come with a salad!!! Overpriced. Terrible decision!

We were seated given water and we didn’t see a waitress for 20min then thay were out of strip steak thay were out of 3 kinds of beer ran out of 2 liquor cordials then a bug in the water soup was cold we were there 3 and a half hours for dinner we had a lot of people and not many were happy we will never go back again

Very bad experience at this restaurant! First and definitely the last time for me. The roof was leaking. The heat is broke. The rest rooms are freezing cold. The waiter sat us down. It look him 15 mins to come back and take our order. When we asked for a kids cup for our son he said they don’t have any cups in the place. The food took forever to come out. We were in the restaurant for a total of an hour and forty five minutes. We were the only ones in the place. Another couple came in. He sat them in the rear of the restaurant. After about fifteen minutes the gentleman came up front looking for is waiter. This place is definitely not a good choice. Very bad experience!!! Food is average at best and way over priced. Never again!!!

Living in the area I drive by here often but have only been once. Our experience was not great.
We were seated in a high traffic area of the restaurant– waiting staff coming and going VERY frequently– but we’re not seen for drinks for about 20 minutes. Following that it was an additional 30 minutes before we were seen for our order.
Each of us had ordered something different yet we all shared the same opinion: salty.
Everything tastes as though salt were the 1^st 3 ingredients. So much so that not one of us finished our meals and our attempt to try again as leftovers were in vain.

I came here For dinner with my sister. We were Super happy that the home made bread (which had olives in it) they brought out was toasted and warm. the dipping oil was infused with basil and mozzarella. And the water glasses reminded us of our being at our grandma’s house. They have happy hour everyday from 3 to 7 with specials on appetizers and drinks

Did they change chefs or something? I haven’t been here in a year or so, and this place is NOT how I remember it.
I’m no cheapskate, but the cost of the food here does not at all reflect it’s quality.
Server was very strange, unprofessional and seemed like he was just making stuff up (I laughed when I visited Unilocal after dining and noticed that he was the sunglasses guy mentioned in an earlier review).
Wine selection is very poor given that it is an upscale Italian restaurant.
Unlike other reviews, there were only 3 tables and the food did come out in a reasonable amount of time.
If you’re interested, we had:
Caesar Salad (4 leaves of iceburg laid out on the plate with dressing & croutons… I hate when they do that)
Eggplant Diavolo (said it was served with pasta but just came out with two stuffed peppers & grilled eggplant topped with a lot of cheese… would be good if I was eating at the fair or something?)
Frutta Di Mare (skimpy on the seafood, poorly cooked, flavorless sauce– this is the dish I used to love!)
Filet Mingnon (great cut of meat and cooked well, but no sauces or additions make it a boring dish)
Icky. No thanks.

My boyfriend and I went to Francesca’s expecting a nice Italian fine dining experience, unfortunately we got everything but… To start, an older gentleman waiter wearing dark sunglasses came to our table to tell us the specials. He did not introduce himself and he was casually leaning on our table, which was wobbly. He rattled off some specials and I was having trouble keeping track of what he was saying. Shortly after he left, a different waiter came to our table. Turns out the second guy was really our waiter, and he told us the real specials. The first guy had just apparently «made some up» and our waiter «hates when he does this.» This was very bizarre.
Though our waiter (2^nd one) was very friendly, he was not very knowledgeable. He was unable to recommend a wine, which I think should be a given at a fine dining italian restaurant. It took a long time for our bread to come out, even though the dipping oil came out first, which was also strange.
It seemed like our waiter was waiting on most of the tables, while the older man was only waiting on two, and it seemed like he knew the customers at those tables.
Our food came out and was it was good. The food is probably the only decent thing about the evening. However, I would say our entrees were really worth $ 15, not $ 25.
I’m glad I had a groupon for the evening, so we didn’t pay full price.
To top off the evening, the older sunglasses man was talking, loudly, to the table next to us. He went on and on about his medical history, the 60s, viagara, you-​name-​it, for at least 20 minutes. The people he was talking to didn’t even seem like they wanted him there anymore. We didn’t even bother to stay for dessert or another drink.
Our waiter left us with a weird half-​apology for the food taking long, which was strange because that was the only thing about the dinner that was ok.
The whole evening was bizarre, unatmospheric, and bland. We went there because my parents had gone to dinner there a few months ago and they came home with raving reviews! I have no idea how the same restaurant can produce such great and awful experiences simultaneously.

I was really looking forward to trying the food in this place. After all, it’s pretty hard in my mind to mess up Italian food– even olive garden can fake it pretty decently. But alas, I should have just gone to olive garden.
I went there because my friend was playing in a band. The atmosphere seemed promising– cozy and warm. However, that’s when the positive end.
It seemed like the waitress and the bus boys didn’t know how to handle a dinner service. There were only 5 – 8 tables and not a very busy night as most people were at the bar getting drinks. It was 8 pm, and their hours stated they were open till 10 or 11 pm but they had ran out of most things already. The manager went table to table to check on everyone which was a nice gesture and all– but I really wished more effort was brought in my actual meal. Nice can come later when I’m fed.
I got their balsamic calamari which was recommended to me. The flavor was good but it was soggy. Soggy calamari. Need I say more? It either sat in the kitchen way too long or wad never crispy to begin with. I would have recommended that they could fix it by simply leaving the sauce on the side but the manager kept insisting it was good and normally crispy but made no effort in replacing it. Oh and the portion was rather small. $ 12 for what looked like a single medium sized squid.
It probably was a good thing that we never saw or waitress because that spared us from ordering an entrée. Oh and they messed up our check.
I’m really glad we decided to do an appetizer and drinks only. Next time, I’ll know to sit at the bar!

I really wanted to like this place, but it failed at every turn. I bought a groupon, which was a great deal… but not when every single thing you order turns out to be practically inedible.
I went on a week night to find only one other table occupied. There were two servers working this shift so we shouldn’t have had any service issues, but it took quite a while for our waitress to even come and greet us. After we ordered our salads and the spinach artichoke dip we waited FORTY minutes for the salad and appetizer to arrive at the same time.
The dip had practically no spinach or artichokes in it — and the bread that was served alongside was approximately three inches thick leaving it barely able to fit inside a mouth.
After we moved onto our salads I was disappointed to find that it was inedible because the amount of balsamic dressing that was on the salad — it was swimming in it.
I ordered the Seafood Trio — scallops, salmon and shrimp on a bed of mushroom risotto (which I was really looking forward to), and my dinner companion ordered the osso bucco. The salmon and scallops were grossly overcooked and shockingly the risotto had no mushrooms and wasn’t cooked in any kind of broth, leaving the dish to resemble a gluey, pastey, rice grossness. I wind up having just a few forkfuls before giving up.
The osso bucco tasted like canned red sauce and the meat tasted like it hadn’t been cooked in any kind of sauce or seasoning. They served this over a sad bed of overcooked angel hair pasta.
The service continued to be terrible and even though we were the servers only table, it was difficult to tear her attention away from the TV above the bar where she was enthralled with «The X Factor».
I commented to my companion, «At least the wine is good…» to which he responded, «Well, that’s because it’s the only thing that wasn’t made here.»
I will never be returning to this restaurant.

Just wanted to say I am still thinking about how great my lunch was here the other day! I am already naming my next visit for one of there amazing Panini’s :)

Francescas claims that when we were there last weekend, it was the «busiest week of the year» with Valentine’s Day and a special groupon deal running in Buffalo that has been purchased by hundreds of people. So this may be why nothing ran smoothly…
Located on the blue-​collared streets of South Buffalo, this place has been a family-​owned Italian restaurant for decades. Now called Francesca’s, it specializes in home made Italian cooking, at prices that are somewhat higher than expected for the neighborhood. The tenderloin is $ 34 and many of the entrees are above $ 20. Not that this is bad, but based on how the restaurant appears on the outside and the décor inside, this may be ambitious.
Our table wasn’t ready at the time of our reservation, so we were asked to sit at the bar. The drinks weren’t bad and they were incredibly cheap, but the bartender was on the brusque side. Maybe having a bad day? No smiles, very surly and also quite defensive when my father-​in-​law commented on the proportions of his drink. Waiting 35 minutes for our table despite having a reservation and then being on the receiving end of a not-​so-​happy employee set the stage for a less-​than-​satisfying evening.
The main dining room of Francesca’s tries hard: white twinking lights, raised ceilings, linen napkins. But for my taste, too overdone and plastic. Just not my thing, sort of bordering on tacky rather than rustic and understated as I normally prefer. However, I was starving by this point so I was looking forward to the menu.
Our waiter was completely in the weeds. I must say, however, he was very funny and efficient when we did have the opportunity to interact with him. I think the cards were stacked against him, though. The kitchen was swamped and everyone seemed in over their heads. We started with the calamari, which, I can safely say was the worst I’ve ever had. Ever. Anywhere. The batter was so hard it was like eating stale bread and the squid so chewy that you had to work hard to macerate it in your mouth to swallow. I was appalled that the kitchen served this. My father-​in-​law tried to pick it up with his fork and it was so hard that it instead flew across the room.
My eggplant diavlo dish was thankfully quite tasty, but this is where my irritation with Italian food comes in. Italian food is relatively easy to make taste «good.» You fry some eggplant, douse it with red sauce and cheese and it tastes good when you’re starving. The angel hair pasta underneath it was more telling of the preparation — totally overcooked, it dissolved into mush the second it hit my mouth. Outstanding Italian food is difficult to cook. Mediocre but certainly edible Italian food is outrageously easy to cook. My husband commented that his seafood pasta, while full of seafood, tasted like something he could easily have made at home. And the pasta was also overcooked.
I hope that our experience at Francesca’s was an anomaly because you always want small family-​owned businesses to do well. Unfortunately, our experience was one of a mediocre place with lofty aspirations.

The first time we went here we got a takeout fish fry and my hiusband went inside to pick it up. The person who took the order said it would be a few mintues and then saw him actually put the order in the computer … 15 minutes later, nothing. My husband asked about it and he said it would be a couple more minutes and barely apologized. Knowing he just placed the order when my husband got there, he left without the food. Went there once more and ate in. It has surprisingly nice décor for its location but the food was mediore. Probably won’t go here again.

There were only 9 reviews posted by Unilocalers when I checked out this location and 2 of the 6 were not good!
I would be staying a few nights in the downtown Buffalo Area on business and would be looking for a nice dinner after a long workday that would be not too far out of the way on my drive back to the Best Western in Cheektowaga.
And Living Social had offered me an incentive to spend $ 18.00 for a $ 36.00 dinner! I took the bait despite the 2 bad experiences!
And I had never been to the Cheektowaga Area before, so this entire business trip would be full of surprises!
Julie C’s updated review of 6−6−12 included words like «Seafood Pasta had so much seafood… could not finish it» and «garlic mashed potatoes were delightful». That is the kind of useful information that gets my attention when I am shopping for a place to spend my hard earned money when I am out on the road. When a Unilocaler includes words like «wonderful» to describe their dining experience, well, I become intrigued. So much so that I decided to overlook (but also to keep in mind) the poor evaluations about this place by Corinne T of Clarence, NY from 7−17−12 and by Pat B of Orchard Park, NY from 5−26−12, and give the place a try.
Result– I was very satisfied with my experience. I enjoyed their Eggplant With Stuffed Pepper Special. Excellent portion size– could not do a dessert. Even treated myself to a cocktail before dinner and the bartender prepared it expertly. And I can be hard to please!
Bottom line– I will be back. BTW– service on the weekday night in September was also excellent. Hostess was cheerful. Wait staff were helpful and attentive. But it was a weekday night, remember! Pat B might have encountered a weekend problem or maybe just a waitress with a family problem. I know the feeling!
Summary– I liked Francesca’s and hope to return for a second visit soon. The Living Social Deal and the excellent detail provided in the review by Unilocaler Julie C have netted Francesca’s a repeat customer-​me! I vote 4 stars for now! I never go 5 until I visit at least twice!

We had he best service by the the most interesting waiter I’ve ever met, Marcello, the food was good, the place was quaint and comfortable. A good time was had by ALL! Check it out!

I went there on a date, who has been to this beautiful place before. The ambiance was perfect, soft music playing in the background, pleasing décor, and great service.
Our waitress was perky and adorable, she was antastic. I had Manicitti, my companion had Shrimp and Pasta, both were delicious. I plan on bringing my dining out group here so they can enjoy this beautiful gem.

Visited again last evening. If it was at all possible I’d give it a 6 star review.
This place has evolved. It has grown up and it’s more refined, if that can be said of something that was great to start with. Still lovely as ever however the menu has changed a bit. Initially the menu was book like with options all across the board. Now it has lost it’s initial «frou frou» and is more focused on several ingredients. I had the NY strip steak extremely rare. And it was done perfectly (this is a difficult request in many restaurants). Accompanied by garlic mashed potatoes (DELIGHTFUL!!) and grilled asparagus. I started out with the carrot bisque which is also very difficult to find in this area. Last time I had a decent bowl of this underrated soup I was somewhere in South America.
Hubby had the Seafood Pasta which came laden with shrimp and mussels. He actually could not finish it because there was so much seafood. Dinner for tonight!
Wine list was good. Not super extensive and not super expensive. Sean, our waiter, was quite the character. Fun and knowledgeable about the food he served. The olive bread was wonderful as was the presentation of the olive oil, herbs, roasted garlic clove (I can eat tons of this alone) accompanied by herbs and balsamic vinegar for dipping.
Wonderful evening and a wonderful dining experience.

I was SO impressed with this place. It is so cute inside and the service was wonderful. Food was phenomenal — both taste and presentation. I posted a picture of my mom’s seared scallops that came out on the shells. Be sure to take a look! We started off with some warm crusty kalamata bread loaf with an Italian dipping oil. When the bread is that great — your expectations are high. Next we had the lobster gnocchi as an appetizer — omg — so good. I could have gotten that as my meal and been happy. For the meal, I got the seafood ravioli. It was just one large ravioli stuffed with lobster, scallops, and shrimp in a white cream sauce. Mmmm My dad got the salmon wellington and enjoyed it, my mother got those seared scallops with risotto, and my father-​n-​law went with a Panini which looked so delicious. We topped it off with an amaretto cake and a chocolate cake. Loved the amaretto cake — if you are a chocolate lover (which I am not) — then the chocolate cake would probably be amazing too. They have a dinner for 2 special for $ 79 that includes the appetizer to share, a soup or salad, any entrée, two desserts, and an after dinner drink. Great deal! And an even better deal that I hope to come back for is on Tuesday nights they have $ 5 apps and $ 10 entrees. More people need to start knowing about this place. I never hear it being mentioned and from driving by, you wouldn’t expect anything as nice as this. And their bartender was so attentive and made great drinks. Can’t complain about anything!