Grano Emporio

Such a shame this was their last night of being open. Would definitely have gone again.

Unfortunately, this Hampden neighborhood gem will be closing for good at the end of business tomorrow night, June 30, 2018. Grano Emporio is truly, authentically Italian with a Tuscan/Roman influence. Gino Troia's other smaller Italian pasta bar in Hampden called Grano Pasta Bar will remain open. He also has a Grano Pasta Bar in Federal Hill neither of which I have experienced yet. I plan to do so in the future. The food offerings at Grano Emporio are prepared with care and attentively served. The menu is very appealing and well thought out making it difficult to zero in on one selection or another. The establishment is impeccably clean and well run. It is obvious that the staff are dedicated and attentive to their duties and the diners. One gets the feeling that they genuinely like one another, work well together, and consider themselves part of the Troia family. Grano Emporio will be missed. Thank you Gino, Chris, Melody, and other staff members for making me feel like I'm having dinner in a good friend's Italian kitchen and home. Wish you wouldn't go!

Gonna miss this place. Thank goodness the pasta bar of staying in town for

I've dined at Grano over the years since it opened. I regret to read it is closing. I came to visit one last time. The food and service did not disappoint. I had one of my favorites: pasta with white clam sauce. Gino stopped by the table several times to greet us. That was special. The only downside to dining at Grano is the difficulty finding parking in Hamden.

We went to Grano because it is closing at the end of the month. We were disappointed that the menu had been considerably cut down. Still they had some good wines. I will miss this restaurant because they had excellent Italian food and we knew the owner and one of the former chefs.

Gino you are great we will miss you great food ALWAYS

Sad to see this place go because it has become a staple in the Hampden neighborhood over the last several years. Service and food were always on point and the compared with other places, this was very reasonably priced in my opinion. Will have to check out Grano pasta bar but will miss Emporio

Intimate table for 8, great waitress, delicious food, quiet so you don't have to shout.

We've been to this place several times a while ago and it was always good, but this evening everything was disappointing. Not sure why.

Excellent pasta! Our whole table was pleased, and I would definitely go back for more.

Awesome! Great food. Very pleasant wine. Delightful service.

Food was not good. Meatballs were so grisly and tasting like they were premade/frozen. The penne Norma pasta was dry and hard.. like the pasta was old or had been sitting out. The place was empty which should’ve been a sign when we walked in. The chef walked through the dining room with a beer. Will not go back.

We hadn't been to Grano E in a few years and had a very nice meal here on a Friday night. We liked the varied wine list and menu options and will definitely return. We started with a buffalo mozz, despite tomatoes out of season, because I was worried the bruschetta would be too garlicky. Our server was A DEAR to bring us a piece to try in the event we might want to order it the next time. Very thoughtful. My husband liked the Zuppa di Pesce and the lasagna bolognese was very good although texture was extremely soft (perhaps that's the way it always is - I don't remember the last time I ordered lasagna...). We skipped dessert only because we were on our way to meet friends. Atmosphere is sweet - drippy candles in the fireplace, nice warm colors on the walls, music in the background ... we look forward to trying it again!

Great home cooked food. Excellent service.

We really enjoyed or food, the service was excellent, and the experience with the kids was easy... wish they had a kids menu, but aside from that, no complaints whatsoever - only kudos!!

Outstanding ambience, food, service, parking accessibility, and a million other things. Highly recommended!

I had heard of this restaurant through a friend who frequents the owners smaller pasta bar on the "Avenue" in Hampden. The Emporio has an unusual wine list and a delightful short menu.

All the dishes, meat (lamb), fish (perch), pasta dishes (mushroom ravioli), and seafood (Cozze/mussels) were really excellent (and we are a picky, foodie, bunch).

As to the wines, I knew very few, if any, of the selections and the server and I decided on a "light red" that could go with the various meal choices. She recommended a Petit Pissarres from Priorat (a light french grenache she said...) Well for $ 27.00 we had a wonderful BIG chewy inky SPANISH Penedes. Granacha and Samos blend. A wonderful find. Luckily we still had some "bubbles" for the perch client !
Deserts were also right on, the chocolate creme brulee is worth a try.
A lovely night for all. JWZ

Neighborhood Gem - Authentic Italian

Grano is one of our favorite go-to restaurants for casual or special occasions. The food is fresh , authentic, and outstanding. Service always very personal, and as a bonus - Grano is one of the few restaurants in Baltimore where you can actually have a conversation without being blasted with music. We strongly recommend Grano.

Went there for a birthday, party of 5, we had our own private dining room. We were able to take our time, never felt rushed or neglected. Our waiter gave us honest helpful tips on what to order, and he was right on. The food was delicious. I would highly recommend Grano for any special occasion.

Excellent Friday night dinner with friends. Good pasta choices on restaurant week menu. Fabulous chocolate dessert

This was our 2nd time dining here and it was just as good as the first time. Food and service was excellent.

We love this restaurant and frequent it as much as we can. The owner is from Italy. Most of the ingredients are shipped in from suppliers in Italy or from select local suppliers. It gives us comfort knowing that our meals are prepared using quality ingredients. The venue is small and cozy. Our waitress, Stephanie, does a great job always making our dining experiences pleasurable.

Wonderful evening in celebration of family and the holidays.

Fabulous knowledgeable service, locally sourced fresh ingredients, great flavors. Lentil spinach soup was artfully seasoned and satisfying. Wild mushroom ravioli was earthy while not too heavy, lasagne benefited from fabulous tomatoes and pasta.

The food was excellent-- we ordered an app and two entrees and couldn't get enough of all. The service was a bit spotty at first (apparently a big party left right before us?) but the food more than made up for it. The upstairs could use some music for ambiance but overall was great and will come back to this restaurant for sure!

We had a great time with dinner before going to see Christmas lights! Service is excellent and the entire staff very attentive!

Service was great and good was delicious . Atmosphere was very nice.

Excellent fresh tasting food and our server was fantastic. Would definitely go back soon!

No homemade pasta that night. Service slow and spotty. Wine list by glass needs to be improved!!

More pasta menu options would be nice. Went we went the selection was limited and we struggled to find something we really wanted to order. Food quality was great.

We love Grano’s. Food and ambiance are superb, and the staff is warmly welcoming. As soon as we leave, we begin planning for our next visit.

Really enjoyed the visit to the restaurant so much so that we went back the next night too.

The quality of service and food was outstanding on both evenings.

Was nice to see that the specials changed every day and that the quality was maintained!

Highly recommend if you visit Johns Hopkins University!

Our first time at Grano Emporio was spectacular! We took advantage of a warm fall evening to sit out on the front patio, which was very romantic. The staff was so accommodating, bringing us delicious bread, complementing our wine choice, and offering to split the appetizer and salad we wanted to share. We thoroughly enjoyed some tiramisu and espresso after dinner and felt at ease to enjoy and take our time -- a true Italian dinner with a nice, slow pace. I'd also like to add, our entrees, the lasagna bolognese and zuppa de pesce were phenomenal! Such great flavors, perfectly cooked noodles and fish -- we savored each bite. Thanks for serving us such amazing food!

Have been here 3 times now and it has been absolutely awesome every time. Service & food quality have always been top notch, absolutely worth the money. Nice atmosphere on the patio, and the inside feels warm & inviting; more like a house than a restaurant. Not at all stuffy, just a very relaxed setting. Will continue to come here, have not found anywhere in Baltimore with Italian food as good as this, let alone at such a good price.

The food was excellent and the service good-- the four of us enjoyed our visit but we had to wait quite a while to get on the porch--- which was important to us. Although the wine selection was rather small, we were fine with our choices and had a really delightful evening.

We had a lovely experience at Grano Emporio. Very good meal, including a to-die-for pistachio gelato. Don't be scared away from this Italian restaurant if you're watching gluten intake -- they serve gluten-free pasta options for everything except lasagna. Also, they have parking behind the restaurant, which is good to know if it's a Friday or Saturday night in Hampden, when street parking is typically scarce. Enjoy!

We received a warm welcome by the host (might have been the owner). Great service from Stephanie. Food was delicious. Will definitely return.

Friends from Santa Fe who are restaurateurs came to visit and we picked Gran Emporio. They were very impressed with the service and quality of food--nice wine options that week. In all, a very lovely experience.

Very good food. Excellent service. Cute restaurant

Great meal as always.