Enoteca Del Fornaio

The semi-​ocean views are worth the wait for our food. Located in Del Mar, semi-​overlooking (the restaurant and ocean is separated by quite a few buildings) the gorgeous Pacific Ocean, Enoteca El Fornaio is a beautiful restaurant. Perfect for a family lunch or a romantic dinner, it holds indoor and outdoor seating. The outdoor seating is massive and also has a huge bar just for the outside and deck area.
The good was pretty good. Ordered; capellini pomodoro with grilled chicken, Chilean sea bass with mashed potatoes and roasted veggies, two kids spaghetti marinara (one with shrimp). Nothing was too spectacular, but it was fine, too.
Service, while our Italian waiter was friendly, our meals took forever– may not have been his fault, perhaps it was the kitchen or even just poor restaurant management, but 45 minutes waiting is a long time. Our bread basket was never replenished, our drinks left empty…
We did tell our waiter upon being seated it was my mom’s bday and our waiter did bring her a piece of Tiramisu cake. I did not try it, but they commented it was okay.
Bill for our lunch and comped cake was $ 94, minus tip.
I’ll be looking for another semi-​ocean view restaurant the next time I am in Del Mar.

Ordered the risotto with a glass of chianti. The risotto was flavorful and the shrimp and scallops were cooked well.

Beautiful location, great service, decent pricing for area. Perfect for people watching, having a pre dinner drink with friends!

Il Fornaio for years has been a safe and fair place to get your pasta fix.
In Orange County it’s a sure place where we dine at least twice a month.
The one in Del Mar is not an exception, however a very bad attitude from the bar (outdoor) attendant made our experience not that great.
On a not too busy hour on a request (question) the answer I got was quote:
«I’m talking to seven people at the same time and don’t have time now. I can’t understand what you said»
I just returned to my table and mentioned to our waiter who was nice to excuse the not so gentleman attitude.
I’m wondering how would he feels when rush hours hit.
Well lost 2 stars on my book.

Great customer service. Great food. Wonderful view especially at sunset. Such an awesome respectful professional waiter. Definitely coming back

Beware! we made reservations several weeks in advance for the outdoor patio for HH, then a second reservation immediately after HH, to eat dinner inside the restaurant for my bday. Then a couple days before my dinner party, they called to say they overbooked and could no longer accommodate my friends and I inside. I still had fun hanging out w my friends, but even then, the food (HH pizza) wasn’t that great

Best pasta I have had outside of Italy. Had a super long wait for our meals on a busy night, so they gave our appetizer and dessert for free. A bit pricey, but it’s a splurge place.

Still the best place to hang for a Del Mar sunset. Sunday music and good food and drinks. Homemade sangria which is perfect, not too sweet but slightly fruity topped with everything, cucumber, mint, orange and lemon, lime. The bartenders know how to make a cocktail too. Flavorful thin crust pizza, crispy calamari including the tenacles which I favor. Great tomato based dipping sauce. Great fresh salads. Umbrellas to keep the direct sun off and a nice local crew relaxing before a grinding week.

This is a fun place to meet for a drink– gotta love the outdoor seating with ocean views and a fire! We found them to have a nice selection of beer (some good local picks) wine and mixed drinks. They brought us some nice crusty bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. A nice addition to the Del Mar Plaza, which is always a fun place to hang out– especially at sunset!

My friends and I came here to enjoy their happy hour after work, and then realized that the food was not on happy hour during Del Mar race season. We sat outside and were able to enjoy the amazing ocean view from a distance! We each ordered a glass of wine, and christina pizza, calamari, and bruschetta to share. The pizza was good as I am always a fan of thin crust. The calamari was decent, but nothing too special. Bruschetta was a bit disappointing, came with 3 pieces (bread already got a bit soggy, as it started to fall apart when i took the first bite), and it was $ 9 for 3 pieces!!! quite pricey i think. Overall, the food was a bit overpriced and average-​tasting. The view was great though! i think i will probably just come back for their happy hour (off race season). So make sure to call and check!

Great outdoor bar overlooking the Ocean! Good service and the drinks are tasty!

Never been here and this evening a bunch if friends went for the soul seduction event!!! That band ROCK! Got everybody up of their chairs!!! Great great music and it was just perfect for the whole setting!!! Please please bring back that band every Sunday!!! This will be the new hang out spot if they do that!!!

Excellent spot for happy hour on a spring or summer evening due to the excellent sunset view. They have some great deals on food (a capricciosa pizza for $ 6? Yes please!) And their happy hour wines are also $ 6; the sangiovese was great. Might have been five stars if the pizza were served hotter.

We have moved on. Gorgeous patio remodel. Very nice. Still good service. Beautiful Sunday Mothers Day in our little slice of heaven. Nice sunny cool. Very busy. Affiliated with Il Fornaio Del Mar.

View is nice, patio is OK. But there’s not enough heaters, no service (you have to go to the bar) and they don’t let you sit at the edge. That’s probably not their fault, but still…
They poured a different rum than advertised on the menu, Bacardi. Yuck! And it was weak! Good thing it was happy hour and only $ 6, but that is how you piss me off. You advertise craft cocktails and then pour shitty alcohol while advertising something different? For reels?
One star for view, one star for validated garage parking (2 hours free).
Oh, by the way, happy hour does not include food any more, really dumb.
So, fix this place with servers, better drinks, better food and better management. I might come back because of the location, but I hate feeling taken just because of that. Like the great Freddy Mercury, I want it all!

Eh… The food here is definitely not that great and definitely overpriced. I had the calamari and the pollo pepperocini. The calamari was just like any other. The chicken entrée was not good!!! It tasted extremely bland and the minimal sauce they had on the plate did not complement the dish well at all. The chicken quality was poor and the sautéed spinach was too salty. My friend got the ravioli and it was very disappointing. It tasted like something I could get at Olive Garden.
Service was mediocre
The only good thing about this place is the view but you can get many other quality restaurants with a nice view of the beach/​ocean.
I definitely recommend for you to spend your money elsewhere!

I have only been to Enoteca Del Fornaio for happy hour, but I’ll definitely be back… for happy hour again! Happy hour is available on the outdoor patio next to the bar area or in the bar area. The view of the sunset is beautiful and there are several selections of drinks, appetizers, and pizzas for only $ 6 each! The best thing we ordered was the vegetarian pizza. The bruschetta was tiny though, so I’d definitely recommend the pizza over that! You have to order from the bar, but food came out pretty fast!
+1 — Vegetarian pizza for $ 6 on happy hour menu
+1 — Beautiful view of ocean
+1 — Conveniently located in Del Mar with free validated parking for 2 hours
+1 — Grab dessert afterwards at the chocolate bar on the next level down :)

Honestly, not really my type of place… seeing as it fancy AND smancy… but Enoteca might have opened me up (figuratively) to trying new things (literally).
Now, my review might be tainted (you know what I mean) because I was fresh off a bike ride and was STARVING and THIRSTY… but they accepted my wrinkled-​t-​shirt-​and-​jeans look without much ballyhoo (and this is the type of place that if a ballyhoo is in order, ballyhooed you shall be!).
The dude who took my order was very thoughtful about my query of pesto lurking in my dishes. Pesto, you see, makes-​a me-​a sick-​a. Why did I just slip into a faux Italian accent? Ask yourself why you don’t more often…
Anyway, the order taking guy thought and thought and thought about my question. He was very thoughtful, as I said. Eventually, after thinking about it for a good minute (not exaggerating) he confirmed that my food requests were indeed nut free (the way I like my food AND women).
The view was pretty spectacular… overlooking Del Mar. We also saw Steve Fisher who I booed for some reason. I then yelled out a serious question, «How long is it going to take for SDSU to go on probation for recruiting violations?» He couldn’t hear me… he’s old, so that makes it ok.
All in all, a great experience… just a little too pricey for my taste. I’m used to paying $ 3 bucks for a burrito. $ 5 if it’s pay day. $ 10 if there is crack in it.

I spent a lovely evening here last night for happy hour with some girlfriends to celebrate liberation from a horrible job. Hooray! It’s one of my favorite places to take people in North County on a nice day. The outdoor bar sits on the rooftop of the plaza in downtown Del Mar with views of the ocean. It’s a very cool, relaxing vibe.
I noticed that prices recently went up a bit but they still have a great happy hour-​$ 6 glasses of wine and $ 6 pizzas from 4 to 6pm. The margherita and veggie pizzas were both quality and delicious, especially for only $ 6 bucks. Just beware of the parking! We ended up staying and gossiping for 5 hours and even with validation it was still $ 18, yikes. Either way, I couldn’t think of a better place to celebrate new beginnings.

Happy Hour Review:
4 – 6:30pm
wow 5 bucks generously poured glasses of wine and 5 bucks appetizers, including a full pizza for 2, is it a great deal or what? Combine it with a beautiful view of the ocean and you are in heaven. Highly recommend everyone to try this place out.