Pazzo Ristorante Bar & Pizzeria

I was in Stratford this week, visiting my Mom, we went up town to finish off some Christmas shopping and stopped into Pazzos for lunch. At first I was impressed, it appeared quaint but because it was in a basement it was cold and a little dark inside. We stood waiting to be seated for quite some time, while some of the staff just stood behind the bar, I don't know if they just didn't see us or what. My Mom who is elderly and frail , was quite tired. They did not seem overly busy there was just a handful of others in the restaurant that I could see. Finally when we were seated, and ordered the food, the staff seemed a little abrupt, and preoccupied. We had to remind them to bring us the coffee we ordered x 3. We ordered some pizza and an appetizer, the appetizer came promptly but then we waited for some time for the pizza, and it was room temperature. My mom was so tired, she just wanted to go home so we took it to go and warmed it up later. For the price you pay you would think the food would be hot, and that the staff would be a little more courteous to a senior. This is the first review I have ever wrote, but after reading the reviews of others, I agree, the food is only fair (when warm) and the customer service is so poor. My mom was so disappointed she wouldn't even consider going into the bakery beside it.

Here is the review that I wrote for Pazzo on another site a few months ago. I'm not shocked to find that others have had this experience. I've heard good things about this restaurant in the past, but maybe the quality of staff changes from season to season? Maybe the staff is miserable because they're treated poorly? Who knows? We won't go back to find out. Here's my earlier review for those interested:

"Having heard about Pazzo's thin crust pizza, my wife and I decided to check out after a matinee at the festival. While the food was fine, the arrogance and rudeness of the staff was unbelievable. I am only half-heartened to read a few of the reviews by others who received similar treatment. It's a shame. We were really looking forward to experiencing Pazzo, but there are too many other decent restaurants in town to waste our time on offering second chances for pizza served with crappy attitudes."

I wish I had headed the advice of the previous review. So so so rude. From the moment we walked in we felt we were an inconvenience. I had grown up in Stratford, and even went to high school with Greg at Central so took it for granted it would be great. We arrived at approx. 4:30 pm trying to beat the rush knowing it was a busy time for them. The restaurant was pretty much empty when we got there. They asked us if we had a reservation we said no and got a huge sigh, but because the restaurant was empty they figured it wouldn't be a problem. Throughout our meal we were approached three times and asked if they could box up the remainder of our meal for us ... we still were chewing and most of the food was still on our plates the first time they asked. We finally asked the server to stop offering to box up our food. The table we were seated at was too small for our party size, and we were not permitted to join another table to hold all our food we had ordered. We finally boxed up our food half way through our meal and left. We were so upset. When we left it was only 5:15 pm and the restaurant was only a third full.
Greg ...You could have the potential to have an amazing thing going there if you kept your customer service a priority. For tourists visiting, if you are thinking of a quick bite before the theatre ... don't. The service ruined the atmosphere. You can get a really nice thin crust gourmet pizza more delicious, half the price with more toppings out the other end of Huron st. at Pino's and their customer service is pretty good.

My husband and I walked into the pizzeria, hoping to have a nice meal. Upon entering the pizzeria, we waited to be seated. And waited, and waited. We were just about to give up when a server approached us and asked if we had reservations. We told him we did not, but we would take a table for two if one was available. The server sighed, rolled his eyes and walked away. He was so uncommunicative and his demeanour so cold, that we were unsure if we should follow him. He quickly came back and told us he had found a table. We followed him to the table, where he threw the menus down and pulled out one chair so brusquely that it banged against the floor. He then walked away. We were both thirsty and would have loved a glass of water, but none was served. We were also looking forward to splitting a bottle of wine, but we were not given a list. Nor were we asked if we would like a drink while we browsed the menu. We were seated right next to a large party that was being served their meals by two, possibly three servers, so we were patient, thinking one of the servers might come over and at least ask us if we wanted some drinks after serving the group. None came. The person who seated us did venture into our area at least three times but did not even acknowledge us. After fifteen minutes, we left, hungry, thirsty and more than a little unimpressed.

Great flat bread pizzas. Very unique. You will enjoy your meal here for sure. Easy pick for dinner.

OMG My husband and I had the prix fixe menu on August 8 2010. It consisted of a heritage tomato salad, the smoked trout linguine and a roasted peach soup.Every selection surpassed the next. Kudos to all the preparation staff that day. It was a wonderful meal. Our waitress was an attentive young lady. She wore a lacy top with a scallopped skirt hem. Unfortunely we did not get her name.

A great place.
4 adults. We ate in the downstairs Pizzeria. Excellent atmosphere, trendy place.
Our server was really good.
We had each had appetizer salads - all very tasty.
We all had a pizza - they were great. Fresh ingredients and great crust.
It was a Friday nite so the Stratford lager and common ale were half price too.
Overall we had a really good experience here and would highly recommend the Pazzo Pizzeria.
This is definately a place we will come back to visit.

We ate in Pazzo's ristorante section for fine dining. The atmosphere was very crisp and modern. We ordered the prime rib, well done, and it was cooked to perfection. The seasonal veggies were steamed just right, the potatoes were deliciously roasted, and the caramelized onions were to die for (this latter from my husband, who is not an onion fan by any means). The bread was also incredible. We asked to see the dessert menu, but by the time it was brought out, we felt we didn't have time to order, eat it, and make our show. Our only complaint would be the long wait between receiving the menu and getting the food.

We really enjoyed this restaurant. My husband and I had our first date here before seeing a play. We returned after the play for coffee and dessert downstairs. The food was delicous and the service was very gracious. I highly recommend Pazzo.

Visited the restaurant and was put off by the service staff - they seemed put out that we were at the restuarant.

The food was good but the pizza was not hot. Service was very slow. We will be returning to Stratford in a couple of weeks but I am afraid we will find a restaurant that wants customers.