Great atmosphere combined with good service and good eats. The red sauce will please some but not others. The restaurant is a little pricey.
The food is excellent and the decor is cozy and rustic. However, be aware that there are zero adjustments to make diners comfortable during covid. We visited today at 4:30 in the afternoon on an unbelievably perfect weather day and asked for outdoor seating. The stern faced hostess said without explanation that they were not seating outside in their huge outdoor patio . OK, we will eat indoors although we're disappointed as we watch other diners up and down the main strip enjoy their outdoor dining at every other restaurant. She leads us to the back area where many open tables await. Can we please have a table for four that is spaced away a tiny bit from other guests? No, she replies...the owner has said those are all reserved for all of today. Long story short we are seated at almost connecting tables to guests on either side of us with maybe 12 inches to spare. I realize we could have and should have turned around and left but didn't as it was so awkward. To be honest we will not be back because it made us very uncomfortable throughout the meal. Even if there was no covid situation we could hear the other diners conversation and they ours. When paying this much for wine and dinner for a party of four it should be more comfortable and at least two feet away from the next table, it almost felt like we were an inconvenience. The service here is just not up to par.
This adorable Italian restaurant is in downtown Michigan City, which I had NO idea existed! I'm so glad I asked a local shop owner for suggestions and this was one! It is really cute inside. Great bar area. Food is fresh made to order. I'm 100% Italian so I am very critical. Although nothing is like Mom's for a nice night out for dinner this was PERFECT! You have to pay extra for bread at the table which I found odd, but we had it and it was warm and very good! My pasta dish was ok (Fettuccine with Bolognese Sauce) the sauce tasted burnt! BUT my friends pasta dishes were excellent. We even had dessert. I do not like Blueberries - but we got the Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake and it was amazing. Average price. Our tab for 3 girls with 1 appetizer, bread, 1 glass of wine, entree and shared dessert was $110.
The warm ambience of Taverna Tonelli in Michigan City's uptown Arts District provided a truly authentic Italian dining experience and a wonderful venue for a birthday celebration. Special Thanks to Lilly, the hostess, Steven, the bartender, Erin our server, and owner, Cindy Tonelli for making our evening extra special. The strawberry infused craft cocktail was a refreshing summer beverage that complimented the perfectly seasoned shared appetizers of meatballs, Italian sausage, and Griglia Mista (shrimp, octopus, and calimari). Just when I though the food couldn't get any better, the plentiful main courses of homemade Gnocci stuffed with gorgonzola, Risotto Asiago with lobster meat, and Veal Marsala were exquisitely prepared and proved to be an absolutely fantastic and memorable meal that left us looking forward with enthusiastic anticipation to our next visit.
I came for dinner on a Saturday night. They had a pianist and she definitely was entertaining. I sat at the bar and Stephen was working his magic. It's incredible how fast the bartenders move. I had orecchiette and bruschetta and both were very good. Not elegant but very good. Large portion.
Five ladies went to dinner at tonelli‘s last night. I ordered an old fashion and asked for the house whiskey. Two others ordered southern comfort old fashions theirs was nine dollars mine was $13 we also noted the drinks had huge ice cubes so there was really very little in the glass I then ordered a glass of Chardonnay which was eight dollars on the menu and she said they were out of it so she gave me a different chardonnay of wine which I assumed would’ve been the next one that was on themenu that was nine dollars instead she charged me $12. Another lady ordered aChianti and they said they didn’t have it so they substituted and charged her $16 another lady at the table ordered a glass of wine with her meal and was told at the end of the meal they were out of it. We got no feedback at all from our waitress. It was a very poor experience and we will not go back. I believe the waitress was Jennifer.
As many ravishing reviews, I’d have to say the owner was extremely rude. While walking through town today in the rain, my friend and I who is pregnant and I, who’s utilizing a scooter for a broken ankle asked a Waitress if they had a restroom. The waitress said yes and led us to. As we left the owner came and followed us out and rudely advised we leave as we were not customers. As I understand we were not, she explained that we were not allowed in and when we proceeded to tell her we asked prior to she scolded us out. I asked her “not to be rude” as one of us was pregnant and the other technically handicapped. She could have gone about this a completely different way. I feel bad for her staff and anyone else that has to work or interact with her. Extremely rude. Also, there were no customers in the restaurant when we walked in. Zero….
Eight of us came for dinner. We had reservations which is a very good idea if you want to eat here....the place is packed. The food is excellent. I had eggplant Parmesan which I highly recommend. Everyone was very pleased with their meals. The service was EXCELLENT. We will definitely return for dinner!!
We ordered the salmon and a Budha bowl. They were both extremely good! the food was perfectly cooked and kept hot . The only negative is that the portions were small especially considering the prices. There were several people dining in and the place has a great atmosphere even with social distancing in place. I look forward to eating in.
Fantastic Italian restaurant in the heart of downtown Michigan City! We thoroughly enjoyed every morsel served by our super personable server and helped by the whole staff. We began with a shrimp, squid and calamari appetizer grilled to perfection yon a bed of fresh arugula. Next we shared the best gnocchi Gorgonzola, exquisite Mediterranean seafood linguini and Scampi Risotto. The cheesecake dessert suggested and personally created by our server capped the night. Dining out during Covid can be stressful but we felt safe and distanced and all staff respectfully wore masks. We will return again and again.