Wonderful atmosphere. Beautiful patio and view of the ocean! Service was outstanding. Food was great!

The view is great, the food is average, the prices are high.

it's being always one of my favorites restaurants, grate location , fun menu .
great wine , desserts , bread,. all fresh

We were seated next to a wait station, so every time they needed to get salt, cheese, etc. they had to reach around us. The wait station was on a window ledge directly next to the table. Dirty plates and dishes were placed next to our arms such that stretching our arms out would result in a handful of dirty plates or hitting a block of cheese with our elbows. At one point, dirty bread plates were taken from our table, and the waitress then went around us and placed them on the ledge less than a foot from our table.

It took about 30 minutes to get our appetizer and after over an hour of waiting for our main course, we left. We both ordered pasta dishes, so it should not have taken that long. No estimate of how much longer it would take was given. We were still charged for the flat bread appetizer and coke, totaling over $20. The flat bread was lukewarm and was just a few pieces of cheese, tomato, and onion thrown on a piece of bread for ~$15.

The waitress did come over often to let us know that things were taking awhile, but over an hour to get two pasta dishes is unacceptable.

We experienced an amazing sunset over the Pacific Ocean.

Food was delicious, as usual. We sat outside to enjoy the view of the Pacific Ocean.
Il Fornaio is a favorite of ours.

Chicken was bone dry, leather sole texture, tasteless
Fresh salad greens and ingredients
Gelato excellent

The food was delicious, I got a salmon, bass, and prawn dish, very flavorful, but small proportion and pricey! I am not a huge Italian food fan, so I am not sure if the value was good. They had a nice wine selection, and the servers were prompt, friendly and patient. I am an expensive eater, and I don't mind spending $100 on a meal, but this was not much food and drink for the price. I would visit this restaurant again, maybe at night because the view is fabulous, and the outdoor scene is romantic, yet relaxing.

Hi

We normally celebrate our Anniversary at this restaurant EVERY YEAR but the one in Coronado Island. We are regular customers. I had never been to the one in Del Mar. I wanted to enjoy the view for a change . My experience with the Server was HORRIBLE, bottom line he made us feel ignorant( I do not speak Italian, perhaps it's that). I always order Fettuccini Alfredo, the server did not like my selection as he made a face and SIGH . (The pasta was hard and uncooked and the chicken was hard to eat, I didn't want to complaint or return the plate because I saw my husband enjoying he's, I thought of HIM). I thought the server got mad because the plate it's not in the menu( he probably did). He never ask me if I wanted another glass of wine( which I did) . On my husband order he didn't realized the food had shrimp , so he ask for shrimp to be added. Well the server made a face and SIGHS AGAIN. We never complaint because we were too far from Coronado Location and celebrating our 5th Year Anniversary. At the end he brought the dessert , well done. Because I had previously ask in my reservation request. The boss boy was super nice and all smiles. I did look at the server reactions with other guest and he was not friendly at all( Fake Smiles most of the time), specially when a table with kids arrived ( he rolled he's eyes,( we have two little ones, FYI) . I honestly do not review much but I was waiting on this email for sure. I will still dine at Il Fornaio but NEVER at this location. I do want to point out the manager walk by but that's the norm. Everything else was good and the view amazing. I wish my experience would 've been better. As for parents it's hard to dine out , this is our case. I will NOT make this public , I do want this to be address and don't place it
unheeded.
Thanks , Fernanda☺

Service was attentive. View of the ocean very nice. Food was very mediocre, for the price. I don’t mind paying the prices on the menu, but I do mind when the end product does not reflect the price. We ordered 5 adult entrees, one child’s meal, beverages (including two cocktails), and two salads. Every single item was palatable but none were impressive. In an area with so much dining competition, I would have to say that I won’t return. Another disappointment: the “birthday” dessert brought out was charged to our tab. Seriously? If a birthday dessert is going to be at a cost, then at least ask what dessert the birthday guest would prefer.

used to love this place as i have been eating there since 1988...now it seems the service and food are just not there.

Il Fornaio locations are typically locations with good Italian food (as authentic as possible outside of Italy) and good service. The Del Mar location has a nice outside patio for cocktails and a separate patio for dining. The location has great ocean views from all outdoor seating. Usually this location is not to noisy and you can have a conversation while dining.
On our last visit, (Sat evening), the noise level was much higher than normal. Too many uncontrolled children, so much so, the waiter couldn't hear the guest at surrounding tables to take their orders. In my opinion the noise level should have been controlled by the management. To avoid the noise of children, I suggest you make a dinner reservation for after 7:00 PM.

Eat outside. Best calamari in Del Mar! Pick an interesting Italian wine. They have a good selection of affordable ones.

We had a reservation for 5 and had asked for a view table as this was for a special occasion. We got a gorgeous table and we were there just in time for the sunset. The food was delicious and the service was exceptional. I highly recommend this restaurant for the location, service and great food!

Perfect! Celebrated birthday with family!

Authentic Italian food. Great wine, antipasti, soup and pizza!

Big party outside, made it loud and crowded. It ok thoooo

When we arrived the restaurant was hosting a private party that took the patio and the part of the restaurant that has the view of the ocean. Only the few booths near the open kitchen and no view, were available to the public. A fact that Open Table did not disclose at the time of reservation. Needless to say, we did not dine there. We blame Open Table for not advising that the restaurant would not be offering its usual amenities. We recommend that people call the restaurant and by-pass Open Table whenever possible to avoid this kind of situation.

Awesome in every way. Corry was an exceptional waitress!

Food was very good. We felt very welcome by hosts and our waiter was excellent! My son has a food allergy and our waiter was very helpful in choosing the right dinner.

This was a farewell meal of relatives returning to Germany after their first visit to SoCal in 18 years. Last Friday evening at 7:15 pm. So it was a special occasion for us.

Re: Noise - Rather than energetic, I would say noisy, especially at the tables in front of the kitchen. We had difficulty hearing each other across the booth with the clatter from the kitchen and servers and expediter at the window talking back and forth.

My Yukon gold potatoes were pre-cooked and warmed up prior to service. They were shriveled, overly browned, overdone and the waiter brought a replacement upon request. The replacement was just slightly better. There was nothing special about the seafood presentation that I had and there was a lot of melted butter on the plate. It made the dish seem greasy.

I asked for 9 ozs of wine and the waiter repeated that to make sure he heard, then still brought 6 ozs. We asked for the remainder, which he then brought.

My husband's meal could have been seasoned better and his mashed potatoes were lukewarm. Based on these issues, we didn't stay for dessert or second drinks, although they were offered.

We were brought the wrong check, which we noticed, not the server. He subsequently apologized for that oversight.

Everyone spoke w an accent.

Comment from a Jap

Good food but wouldn't have booked reservation again. Went on Mother's Day and waited over an hour after placing our order before our food was brought out. At that point our kids were cranky (and so were we) so we took our food to go. Waiter was also avoiding us which made things worse instead of being apologetic for the extremely long wait. Again, food was good but don't know if we will be back anytime soon.

Sat outside with beautiful ocean view, warm sunshine, chilled chardonnay, delicious food, smiling attentive waitress. It was a great day!

The food here is fresh and good and the bread? Oh, the bread! I love coming here. I have for about 29 years. The view is fantastico, the service is wonderful. The ambiance is perfect. It's romantic, the view is gorgeous and you can choose from indoor, outdoor, or covered patio seating. Great wine list. Make sure you go.

Went for brunch. All of the dishes we ordered were delicious and service was excellent

We come to Il Fornaio for every Mother’s’ Day but today was the best service we have ever had. Alan helped us on the patio. He was super attentive and very helpful. Food was delicious as always. Perfect meal for our mom!!

What a disappointment! Our entrees were served a full hour after our appetizers! Not that we would have wanted to fill up on bread, but offering us more bread during our wait would have been the least they could have done. Instead of brown butter sauce on my butternut squash ravioli (as described on the menu), they used tomato sauce. Yuck. The swordfish one person ordered was dry and the filet was very thin. Two people ordered a simple pasta with bolognese that was very ho-hum. The waiter cheerily told us that they had a big banquet that night as if we should be understanding of the fact that our service was horrible, and explained that they always put tomato sauce on the ravioli and then drizzle it with brown butter sauce. (I f there was brown butter there it was undetectable.) On top of that, my our-of-town guest who was treating us to dinner did not receive his entree until five minutes after the rest of us at the table. Maybe that doesn't matter when dinner is an hour late anyway. At the end there was no apology, no offer of a a discount of free dessert or anything like that to make up for a terrible dining experience. I will never return to this Il Fornaio. It is an embarrassment to an otherwise consistent chain.

I took my mom for an early Mother's Day dinner on Saturday (instead of Sunday). The service was excellent, the food wonderful, and the view of the ocean lovely. As the evening wore on, it became quite noisy as more diners were seated, so we left - but it was not the fault of Il Fornaio. We lingered as long as we wished and were ready to leave.

I liked securing our reservations through Open Table and receiving a confirmation on my phone via text - perfect! The parking was easy - peasy, which can be an issue in Del Mar. Thank you for making our Mother's Day dinner very special!

Helen is a terrific bartender/server.

Patio dining was very pleasant. Beautiful ocean view

Beautiful view from outdoor area and good food and service

The meatball appetizer was decent. The pizza margherita was so awful it reminded us of Chuck E Cheese. Two of us ordered salmon which was so overcooked it was like jerky. My friend simply returned hers. I powered through but it was nearly inedible. Another of us ordered the Minestrone which was tepid and had to be sent back for reheating. I asked for a side of pasta as a substitute for potatoes and it later showed up on my bill as an $8 charge! Was hoping this restaurant would be the same standard as the Il Forniao we have in San Jose but not even in the same ballpark.

Chicken was a little dry, I felt the waiter was not very attentive, he seemed a little disinterested. Once we paid the bill my better half asked me for a $1 to go along with her tip money. All the waiter saw was the $1 he made a snide remark to the water boy and they laugh. It made me a little disgruntled but I refused to entertain ignorance. Overall the restaurant was nice atmosphere and scenery.

We enjoyed all our food options . Service was good, not exceptional but the place was very busy!!

would also recommend this restaurant for the view. Really good service.

We went on a Tuesday night and the restaurant was packed.
We had a great waiter and a delicious meal.

The noise level on the patio was quite loud, but the food and the ambience made up for it.

Great gluten feee menu too!!!

I’ve been coming for yeArs and the food is not nearly as good as it used to be. Used to love the lasagna but they don’t have it anymore. An Italian restaurant without lasagna? Go figure!

Il Fornaio is in a beautiful location with a view of the ocean. Unfortunately, the noise level in the restaurant, which on a Tuesday evening not filled to capacity, was extremely loud, so much so that we had difficulty conversing. We were out on the porch area; the interior of the restaurant was empty and we should have moved there, in hindsight.

We started with a caesar salad which sadly didn't include anchovies. Our lobster w/spaghettini followed, the special dish from Sardinia. Being Italian, I must say that this was over sauced to a high degree. Getting the lobster out of the claws while they were covered in sauce was just a mess to work through. The body of the lobster was exposed and easy to eat.

Our guest had the butternut squash ravioli...a bit on the heavy side, not the usual "pillows" that typify raviolis.

The white wine from Sardinia was excellent; the service was very good. Crusty Italian bread was delicious as well, dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.