DeFazios at 216 - Troy (NY)

3 /5 Katie Leyden: Rarely do I go out to eat and think “meh.” Have been a huge fan of DiFazio’s pizza for years and decided to try their new restaurant. It’s definitely beautiful inside. We had a 6:30 reservation and still had to wait about 10 minutes to be seated (though our table was empty). For a table of 5, they added a folding chair to a 4-top. Certainly not a big deal but for a nicer restaurant, you would expect a real chair. Their menu isn’t overly large but covers a lot of the basics. The pizza (Vinny) was good. Chicken parm was underwhelming for $27 and the pasta was heavily al dente. Comically bad beer pours to the point I went up to the bar to speak with the bartender about the taps and they said everything is in cans. Couldn’t tell if the beer came in a 12 or 16oz can. Should just ask for the can if you order beer. I think DeFazio’s lost their way with this restaurant concept. It does not have the niceties of an upscale Italian restaurant (free bread, nice chairs, tablecloths) while still trying to charge $25+ for entrees.

5 /5 Elizabeth Pietrangelo: Excellent in every way! We cannot wait to go back to this restaurant. Delicious delicious delicious food! Pasta definitely al dente. Do the chefs counter if youre going as a couple. We loved the holiday decor, the cocktails, and the service. Superb, and we will be back!

4 /5 Amanda Rozsavolgyi: My partner and I had a really pleasant date here on a Friday night. We walked into a beautiful and boisterous dining room -- definitely dont except to be able to have quiet conversation here, it is LOUD and you will be raising your voice to talk to your dining companions. Their drink menu, especially the wine list, is extensive. I opted for a strawberry gin cocktail which was well-balanced and delicious. We took a chance on the arugula salad, both thinking it might be too simple, but were so pleasantly surprised by how good it was. A big bunch of arugula dressed in a lemon vinaigrette with Romano and crispy garlic and shallots, we could not stop eating it, and were still talking about how much we liked it days later. Weve been fans of DeFazios pizza for a long time so we knew the pizza would be good, the roasted garlic and eggplant one we got had some really nice char and was the deliciousness we expect from a DeFazios pizza. The one entree that was bit disappointing was the Cacio e pepe. I prefer this dish with the traditional bucatini, but this one is served with linguini and it fell into the pitfall many Cacio e pepes can fall into -- it was clumpy. When done right Cacio e pepe is smooth, but the cheese broke on this one so while it had a really nice strong peppery flavor, the texture was off. Granted our waitress did forget to put this order in initially so I feel like they mightve rushed it, which might be why it was not prepared correctly. We finished our meal with a very generous serving of a silky smooth tiramisu; I did find myself looking for a bit more of a coffee flavor but it was a tasty dessert nonetheless. Overall, I really like what theyre doing here even though there are some things I wish were done a bit better and Im definitely going back for that arugula salad!

5 /5 Ian Callahan: We sat at the chefs counter and it was really nice. The food here is delicious. Cool ambiance as well. Meatballs were fantastic, pizza is top notch, and even the desserts were great. crème brûlée cheesecake was possibly the best I’ve ever had. The cannoli was a 3/5, and the espresso was a good shot! Will definitely be coming back.

5 /5 Douglas Liebig: Finally able to get a reservation and it was worth it. The staff are all great, and the food is amazing. The Caesar Salad, Beans and Greens, and pizza were all tasty. Looking forward to many returns to try more options. Updated: Tried the Chicken Parmesan, its very good. It has enough sauce, but not too much. The homemade linguine was cooked just right.