Palio Grand Rapids

“This was one of my favorite restaurants ive been too, in a long time. I think my favorite other than the food was the dessert. I honestly loved the lemonchello dessert. Everything they have there is made in house Everything. Its truly incredible im not a cryer but that was made with love to where i wanted to cry. The food doesnt make you feel horrible after. I honestly truly love these types of restaurants. Truly love it. Highly recommend 10/10”

“The whole vibe is absolutely astonishing! This was a great sit-down restaurant for families. I hope i get to go back here someday as I loved it here so much! There is limited seating at some points in time but if you get there at a good time then you get right in!”

“Celebrated my brother's birthday here. Was a great time. They accomodsated two little ones so that I was great. They also hooked up dessert for the birthday boy and the food was delicious all around. High quality, recommend the gnocchi.”

“The meatball appetizer was superb, they were so tender they fell apart.I ordered the chicken parmesan.The spaghetti was flavorless and there wasn't any sauce to speak of, just a bunch of diced stewed tomatoes.. very plain, no flavor at all. The breading on my chicken was very hard so I had to break the pieces off the edges & set aside- because I'm not trying to break my teeth! The chicken and breading was also TOTALLY FLAVORLESS. I wouldn't order that again. My husband had the fettuccine presented with the tableside parmesan wheel, his dinner was excellent I loved the vibe, the service was excellent, I would definitely dine there again but would try something different next time!!”

“Palio has a super cool atmosphere, and unfortunately that’s where it stopped being good. Despite having a reservation, we waited several minutes without being greeted before deciding to sit at the bar instead. That somehow went even worse another five minutes passed with staff and even the manager walking past us before anyone finally brought waters over without an introduction. Menus were then tossed on the bar. We were seated in front of the pizza oven, which was genuinely one of the coolest parts of the restaurant. We started with soup, which was decent, though it would have been nice if we were asked whether we wanted it split between two people since we were clearly sharing everything. Instead, before we had even finished it, the bowl was taken away while our ravioli was being brought out. The fried ravioli had a nice crispy exterior, though the filling was minimal. We did appreciate receiving four pieces instead of three since splitting odd numbered appetizers is always awkward. The pesto was completely broken and tasteless, with oil separating all over the plate. The tomato sauce was much better and ended up carrying the dish. Then came one of the strangest moments of the night. Before our entrées arrived our server parading a bowl of what we ended up finding out with carbonara and a large mason jar. With no explanation, our server dumped the plated carbonara into the mason jar violently shaking then proceeding to dump the contents back onto the plate. We were honestly too confused to even react at first because there was no explanation. The lasagna was actually pretty good a generous portion for the price. Unfortunately, this restaurant doesn't offer splits, so serving became difficult in an otherwise nearly empty restaurant. We also ordered a pizza to go, and this is where things became even more confusing. Since we were sitting directly in front of the pizza oven, watching our pizza being made was genuinely fun. But once it came out of the oven, instead of boxing it up and handing it directly to us over the counter, which would have been a really cool experience. The pizza disappeared into the back kitchen for several minutes until a server eventually realized and brought it out. We constantly found ourselves wondering where our server had gone, why the bill was taking so long, and later waiting forever for the complimentary limoncello that had been forgotten about entirely. A few smaller details also stood out. From our seats by the oven we could partially see into the kitchen, where staff members were on their phones, which in a normal setting is okay, but when you're already struggling it is not a good moment. At one point someone cut themselves on a cheese grater, threw it across the kitchen, and started yelling. I honestly can’t even make a clean conclusion to this review because the entire experience felt chaotic and all over the place. Palio has amazing potential, but with the current standards and level of service.”