At 1st glance upon entering, it appears dark and dingy with tightly packed tables and a few seats at a “bar” which overlooks the kitchen, (kinda Carrabba-esque) with no interaction from the staff or a free munch of stuff as it’s prepared. It’s cool, I didn’t expect it either. It was inviting but at the same time just “meh”. I was seated at the bar I guess because I was a single and they want to save tables for larger parties. I get it, but I wasn’t given the option even though there was an empty 2 top available right in the middle of the dining area.The wait for a server was minimal. Food was served rather quickly. The refills of my beverage were timely as well. BUT…I ordered the chicken Marsala, which comes with garlic knots, and I added a side of Caesar salad for 4 bucks more. Of course the salad and knots come out 1st. The 3 tiny garlic knots almost made me laugh, they were pretty good though. The tiny salad almost made me cry. It was incredibly small and consisted of small bits of wilted romaine, mostly the white parts, a dash of dressing, out of the bag stale croutons, some parm shavings and a few capers. I asked for more dressing and it came quickly, while I should have asked, “where’s the rest of my salad?” Probably wilted because my guess is they prep a batch for service and “almost” fill a plate when needed. As for the chicken Marsala? It’s served atop nice al dente linguine, with perfectly cooked chicken cutlets, mushrooms and the Marsala wine sauce. The sauce here was like a soup. It didn’t have enough time to reduce. Plus it had a sweet note to it. Must have been semi-secco or dolce, which are sweet for desserts or pairing with cheeses or fruits. The secco is the drier Marsala cousin to the ones just noted. Marsala in its driest form still has some notes of sweetness but, the two sweeter cousins are not a good fit for this recipe. That’s enough about the food, 3 out of 5 stars for the food. 4 out of 5 for service (zero follow up)As I got up I attempted to slide my chair in as to not block the aisle the chair seemed heavy as it was actually almost sticking to the floor. There was a weird left over something, something on the floor. Almost like they pulled up carpet and the backing was partially left behind. The floor had that movie theater stickiness to it. Kinda gross.Like any visit I make to a restaurant I always use the restroom, I’m getting up in years, and a chance to a pee not taken could be a mistake. Lol. I wish I had passed on this one unfortunately. It wreaked like a truck stop toilet. Seriously! The sticky floor was even more evident in there too. I was appalled.This place has lots of opportunities to make things better. And it wouldn’t take too much time, effort or money to do so. Just get the boss to have someone from the outside be honest with them and kick it up a notch.I’d personally come back and try other menu items. The place seems very popular. Maybe I just caught them on a bad night.One more thing as I was sitting watching the cooks I did notice the hand washing needs to be improved. I saw food prepared and touched with no gloves and hand washing times under 20 seconds, didn’t notice if they used warm water, but there wasn’t enough time for the water to get warm. (I’m a previous ServSafe manager). Please keep your customers safe.
Got their lunch special pizza that came with a drink. Complimentary garlic knots delivered to the table before the pizza was a nice surprise. Great pizza and great service. Will definitely return!
Best overall Italian food in Sanford. Great staff and a step higher quality food then everyone around them. They put a bit extra in both attention to detail and quality and it shows.
Such a nice large private dining room for a group! Generous portions of tasty food and professional service at good value. Highly recommend for groups and suspect the main restaurant excels too.
Had lunch this afternoon with my aunt. Middle of the day on a Thursday where we had planned to meet. I have wanted to try this place for so long but just never made it in. The food was top notch & it was super fresh. We had a very nice waiter, I really wish I caught his name. He was tall and so attentive to us both, and we really appreciated his service.Will definitely be returning!
I’m a regular customer of Chianti’s but this last delivery order was half the portion of what I usually get. Very very disappointed! $26 for penne ala vodka with chicken!!! Then to get half the size portion I usually get. If it’s like this now you lost a regular. Sorry but that’s a rip off.
The staff here is so friendly and we have to come here at least once a month just to enjoy being served by Matthew. Best corner pizza and Italian place around.
Excellent food and great service. Try the calamari arrabiata and the tiramisu. My wife and I went here for date night and fell in love with this place. Really great evening and awesome place.
Stopped in for lunch and had a great experience. The staff was friendly, the environment was great and the food was amazing. If your looking for Italian food or great pizza check out Chianti's. I'll definitely be back again.
Great food and great service