Eccolo--CLOSED

Delicious, Delicious, The food was excellent quality and ingredients very fresh. The service was prompt and courteous. I've had a wonderful time every time I've visited. :) more

An out-of-town foodie and I ate at the sparsely populated Eccolo recently where we gushed over the restaurant's amazing house-cured salumi plate and fab dessert but were DISGUSTED by the so-called crab-lemon pasta that had obviously been coagulating and hardening for about 30 minutes (and that was after having taken the advice of our wait person on her recommendation). However, if you eat nothing else, get that salumi platter! Historically, I've found their entries to be sometimes delicious and sometimes about the worst food I've ever eaten (except for Cyrus, that is!). Note: we advised our wonderful wait person of our issues with the pasta and the charges ($18 per plate) was immediately removed from the bill. And the dessert (3 varying types of gelato) were wonderful! Pros: Great house-cured meats; lovely interior; spotless; terrific staff (except for weird hostess) Cons: Lingering over wonderful appetizers results in COLD entrees; noisy; cold when front door opens more

Eccolo has a relatively decent wine list with a focus on Italian wines. At the beginning, the waiter was quite helpful in regards to our wine selection. However as time went on and it became busier, it seemed the waiter was overworked. We had to wait almost an hour for our entree to come. For the price of the entree, the portion size and flavor was definitely lacking. We waited another 30-45 minutes for the waiter to order our dessert,which almost made up for the main dish. It had much more flavor and was almost bigger than our entrees. I would recommend Eccolo to someone looking for desserts and drinks, but not or a main course. Pros: Desserts, Ambience, Drinks/Wine Cons: Slow Service, Small Portions more

I ate at Eccolo with a party of 7 on a recent Sunday evening. When we arrived at 5:30, the restaurant was maybe 1/4 full. It took a while, but our drink and dinner orders were taken and we were served water. Our wine arrived, then nothing happened for about 40 minutes. No refills on drinks, no appetizers.. When the appetizers finally arrived one was missing. We didn't do anything about it because we were just hoping dinner would arrive soon. 30 minutes later dinner finally arrived and we were shocked at the portion size. 3 of us had ordered a seafood stew that had a good flavor but almost no seafood in it. Another in our party had ordered a beef dish that again had good flavor, but was mostly lettuce/greens. Of course we wanted dessert after that, but had to track down a different waiter to get the dessert menu. I've never left a restaurant so hungry. There was a big party that started at around 6:15pm, and it seemed like all the staff was focused on that party. I would never eat here again. Pros: Good location and ambience Cons: Service, food more

For each birthday, my family likes to get together and try a new fancy restaurant. But now that there are 2 toddlers in the family and we're new to Berkeley, I didn't know what to do. I picked Eccolo mainly because it's on 4th street, which I love. It ended up being the perfect place! The staff was very accommodating, especially regarding the toddlers. They had a separate kids menu and asked us soon after we arrived if we wanted to order something for the kids right away. The ambiance was very nice with the perfect amount of light. And the food was excellent. The proscuitto appetizer was fabulous and my butternut squash cannelloni was delicious. Whenever the little ones were restless we were able to take them outside, walk them down the street with lots to look at in the windows & not too busy with cars. more

""It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."" Cons: Overrated, overpriced, overly pompous more

I've had several lunches and dinners here by now, and it's always been excellent. Really superb food each time, as well as knowledgable, attentive service. Highly recommended!! more

We went to Eccolo's for dinner. It was good, but not stellar. We had the artichoke and persimmon appetizers. Both were innovative and delicious. The pork loin entree I ordered was very filling. I also had the vanilla panne cotta. Very light and smoothe. I thought the dining experience was alright. A little crowded with the seating and lacking a little in neatness. Service was fair. I would say that Eccolo was good, but not a stand-out. I think you could get something tastier for the same price or less. I am not sure I would agree with the 9.0 rating. It was an okay experience. Pros: Good desserts, decent location Cons: A little overpriced for food quality and service more

I had heard a lot of good things about Eccolo. So I decided to finally give it a try. I met a friend the other day for lunch, and I have to say, I had a wonderful experience. We had a tough time deciding, because there was so much to choose from. My girlfriend who is vegetarian thouroughly enjoyed the Bucatini with chanterelle mushrooms. I had the Tuna sandwich, which had capers, olives and sliced cucumber. Fresh tasting and delicious. Our server was very pleasant and attentive. He was patient with our wine questions during what seemed to be a busy day. I had a great time. I can't wait to come back for the dinner menu. more

I have hear quite a bit about this restaurant. I must say that the service was great, and the food was fantastic. more

My boyfriend and I just had dinner at Eccolo this evening and I have to say that it was wonderful. We only went on a recommendation of a friend, because some of the reviews said that the place was horrible. I'M SO GLAD WE WENT!!! I will say that the service was somewhat indifferent, but it was far from bad. I personally prefer it when the staff doesn't want to be your new best friend. We began with the crab cakes. There were two little cakes fried to perfection. We then shared a second course of orecchiete, a type of pasta with which I was not familiar but am I ever glad that I know it now! It means ""little ears"" in Italian ( I didn't know this, but the waiter explained it... ), and the chef serves it with luscious house made sausage, cams and something spicy! It was one of the most delicious things I've ever eaten. My boyfriend had the squid and he said it was ""super rico"" (his native language is Spanish). I had the fritto misto with rabbit, green tomatoes, squash blossoms and eggplant. I was singing sweet songs of summer ex post facto, with vigor! For dessert, we shared a hot chocolate cake with whipped sweet cream and caramel sauce. It looked gorgeous on the plate and tasted even better. more

My boyfriend and I visited Eccolo for lunch the other day. The food was good! We shared a corn soup, which was delicious and sweet. Then I had the Eccolo chopped salad with chicken. It was really simple but so tasty. And my boyfriend had the Spaghetti alla Norma, which we've both been wanting to try for some time. Also great! For dessert, we had a plum upside down cake and a berry gelato. Both were fresh and delicious. It seemed to me like the food at Eccolo was simple, fresh, and good. I would definitely go back. more

I am so happy my partner and I decided to try this restaurant last night. Pros: Fantastic Food more

We heard so much about the chef and how he used to work at Chez Panisse and the great food. We were sadly and extremely disappointed with REALLY bad service and terrible food. My boyfriend and I both ordered the steak, it was cold and the meat tasted really bad. They had put some butter on it, but it wasnt' even melted as the meat wasn't even warm enough! I ordered some appetizer which never made it to our table and when I mentioned it to the waiter he was not apologetic at all that he forgot to order it. The service was very, very poor. It was a slow night, so no excuses there. We ended up paying $90 for a food that went to the dogs! I could not touch the meat and neither could my boyfriend......but the dogs loved it. Pros: The only place that was open on a Monday night. Cons: Terrible food, horrible service, too expensive for nothing. more

I was at Eccolo last night. But you would have thought we were in a TGIFridays based on the level of service received. The service was the worst I have received in a very long time. The waiter was inattentive and couldn't answer any questions about the menu. Service was so slow we had to get the waiter's attention when we wanted to order. When the food finally arrived, the portions were inconsistent and cold. We had to ask for the table to be cleared and again to have the glasses removed. The waiter never asked if our food was ok, if we wanted anything else, coffee, dessert,etc. When the bill came we asked that the mandatory 18% tip be taken off because the service was so poor, they did. I will never go there again. Pros: parking Cons: food, service more

This is some of the rudest, most unfriendly service I have experienced in the East Bay. The waitress was never friendly, initially completely ignored us, then rushed us through our lunch though the restaurant was half-full. The food was poorly presented. We had to virtually beg for condiments. The manager demonstrated the same uncaring, unfriendly, obnoxiousness. I'd previously had pleasant experiences but this is a new low. Cons: Arrogant, Rude more

i lived in italy for two years, and the bollito misto sandwich is just like the one i used to have for lunch every day in florence. there's even celery in the salsa verde! i also love the spit-roasted chicken with asparagus bread salad. sure, there are a couple of service problems, but the food is totally worth it. oh, and the bittersweet chocolate cake is AMAZING! Pros: great food, terrific wine list, local ingredients Cons: just ok service more

I don't have other words, this place is just terrible! It claims to be italian but it looks like the chief never had italian food if the main course would have been 10$ it was fine but here is 30$ or more not worth even a try I don't understand how it can be rated 9.0, it is a waste of your money Pros: ambience Cons: food, service, price more

This place is horrendously overpriced for the quality of the food and service you receive. Check this out: We ordered linguine with clams. The linguine arrived, but the clams languished. When we brought this to the attention of the waiter, he took the plate back and put some steamed clams in the plate and returned it to us. I was shocked but did not make a scene. If this was the food court near UCB I would understand (although I can guarantee this does not happen there), but this is a place where an entree sells for $30. Furthermore, I think the chef forgot Alice Water's number 1 rule: fresh and good ingredients!!! If I want excellent italian food I'd go elsewhere in the bay area. If you really have to go there I suggest the Gnudi and the meat. Pros: Lighting, Decorative oranges, gnudi Cons: Service, sloppiness, price too high more

After hearing good things, I went to Eccolo for brunch, and it was packed. Our server was competent and incredibly sweet, but obviously overexteded. Curious, I asked my busy waitress how many other tables she was taking care of. The answer was ""Oh, ten or so."" Ten!! There's the problem. People will usually blame their server for bad service, but in this case fault lies with management. No restaurant that values its customers will give its waitstaff that many tables to take care of. Eccolo management has to decide if they care about their patrons enough to give them a server who is not stretched completely thin. Additionally, I was told that they have huge problems with staff turnover, and can't hold onto anyone good. All of this points to major management problems, and the obvious result is poor service for us, the customers! I won't be back. Cons: Long waits, Poor management more