Pazzo, Glastonbury ct
Hi, anyone been lately? I used to really like this place but feel like it's gone down hill in quality since opening the second shop in Rocky Hill. Tonight we ventured there again because we wanted to eat outside. We showed up with our bottle of wine, another thing I loved is that they were byob and there are not many to be found....so you can imagine the shock when we get there and they now have a wine list (I didn't look very closely because I was too annoyed), but I did notice that they now have a $15 corkage fee per bottle!!! Okay, is it me, or does this seem a bit outrageous! I'm used to corkage fees, I think i'm used to paying $2-5, but $15, come on...I need a reality check....I really want to keep giving them business, but they are making it harder and harder each time I go back...the place always used to be full, especally on a beautiful night, but tonight the parking lot was pretty empty, sigh....
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I was a regular of Pazzos when it first opened years ago. The food was excellent, the staff friendly and happy and the prices were reasonable. then a year or so later, they did away with their lunch pricing and upped their prices significantly. They started charging for even the most minor of changes. I finally got fed up and told the owner that they lost me as a regular. I did not go back for years and told everyone I knew to not go there.
Last year I reluctantly agreed to meet someone there for lunch figuring I would just see if anything had changed. The other person made a mistake and ordered something that they did not know or like. They asked for something and was told by the owner that they would have to pay for both items. They agreed but I swore I would never go back. To me it just showed they care more about money than customer relations.
As for their corkage fee, it is by far the highest in greater Hartford. I have a colleague who is a wine lover and goes to a number of similar places bring his own wine and he was shocked by the outragous prices there. He won't go back. I do hope that Bricco brings the competition that is needed to make the owners of Pazzos realise that the customer comes first. Jay
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re: mels
Agreed Mels. I have frequented each location many times. Although I find myself craving a Valdostana every few weeks or so, the price and service I receive at both the G-bury and Rocky Hill restaurants make it difficult for me to indulge in this great sandwich. I have not seen the slow-down in business at either place as others have suggested, but I agree that Billy Grant's new Bricco will have a major impact. BYOB used to be great at the G-bury location because you could actually just walk across Hebron Ave. to two decent wine shops for great deals. 15$ for corkage? Wow! The bar at the Rocky Hill location is actually pretty good in my opinion, but funny, the pricing seems to be getting higher each time I go in! The bar tenders make up for it though, especially one called Tania. Anyways, like many others, I can't wait for Briccos to come East of the river.
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re: JayCT
"As for their corkage fee, it is by far the highest in greater Hartford. I have a colleague who is a wine lover and goes to a number of similar places bring his own wine and he was shocked by the outragous prices there."
How on earth is $15 the highest corkage fee in greater Hartford? Firebox is $20. Peppercorn's is $20. Dish is $20. Grant's (last time I went) was $20. On20 is $25. In fact, I am at a loss to name one restaurant with a license that charges $15 or under other than Pazzo's. You can't toss reataurants without a license into the discussion, as that is not a true "corkage" fee. It is hard enough to get restaurants to allow corkage at all, let alone for $20. Stop looking a gift horse in the mouth. I dine all over the country and I can tell you that $20 is about average. I am headed down to Miami and every place I have checked is $25-$35. When someone complains about a $15 corkage fee, I have to roll my eyes. And when someone says that $15 is the highest in the Hartford area, I have to ask what they base that on. Not sure where your friend dines, but it certainly isn't at Hartford's finer restaurants. And if $15 is insulting to him, then he doesn't go out very often in other cities. Even wine-friendly San Francisco has seen a bump to $20-$30 in most places.
As for Pazzo's specifically, I am a regular despite the fact that it used to be better. It is disappointing that they deleted most of their meat entrees from the menu a couple of years ago, like the duck and the lamb. But their $18 three-course special is still a good deal, and the quality of the pasta dishes has not slipped. Was it better 5 years ago? Yes. Has it gone down hill in the past 3 years? No. I'd say it has stayed level. And given that it has the cheapest corkage fee around, when I want to get out of my kitchen and enjoy one of my cellared bottles with someone else's cooking, Pazzo doesn't break my bank. Dinner for 2 with my own bottle for under $60. Hard to match that.
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Pazzo Cafe
377 Cromwell Ave, Rocky Hill, CT 06067-
re: FoodieJim
You can't really compare Pazzos to the restaurants you mention. This is not much more than an upscale cafe while those are mostly fine dinning establishments. Pazzos offers mostly pasta, salads and sandwiches. Those places offer their own wine list so they charge high corkage fees to encourage people to purchase from their wine list instead of bringing it in. Also, you can not compare Hartford to San Francisco or other large more expensive cities. I still won't go there again. Jay
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Pazzo Cafe
377 Cromwell Ave, Rocky Hill, CT 06067-
re: JayCT
Then what exactly is your friend comparing it to? Places without wine lists? That is certainly not a fair comparison. BYO means no wine for sale. Usually there is no fee. Sometimes there is a nominal service charge. "Corkage" means bringing your own wine to a place that sells wine. Now that Pazzo has a wine list, it has to be measured against other restaurants that sell wine. It is certainly not a pizzeria like Luna's next door. It is a full restaurant. Or in true terms, a trattoria. You may not care for it, but that fact does not lower it to the level of a cafe. Regardless, I still cannot think of another restaurant that serves $18 pasta dishes and $24 fish dishes that has a corkage fee of less than $15.
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re: FoodieJim
geminigirl
Apr 14, 2010 12:10 PM
I guess we agree to disagree on the food, I really think the quality all around (and portion size) has gone down in the past 3 years. My point was that they keep making changes, and maybe one or two small changes ok, but it seems like they are trying to re-make themselves when they had a really good thing to begin with. I was also comparing the $15 to the 2 or 3 $ they used to charge and it is a big change from what they used to be. I'm pretty sure they were the only byo in town and I miss having that option. Knowing what they used to be compared to what they are now, I probably won't be going back anytime soon. I really do want them to make it and get back to basics but I don't know if that will happen. I do feel nickle and dimed and feel like they have lost sight of the customer in their growth spurt....
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re: geminigirl
Don't forget that the charge before for wine was per person. So 4 people were charged $2.50 per person, or $10.00. Now, four people sharing a brought bottle get charged a flat fee of $15.00. Not the huge difference that some seem to think. In any event, with the introduction of the prix fixe special, a cup of Tuscan Sausage Soup, a dish of Orichette with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe and a big dish of Gelato all for $18.95 is not being "nickeled and dimed". I do miss the "old days" when the menu was more extensive. But a three course meal for $18.95 is hard to complain about.
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re: FoodieJim
geminigirl
Apr 14, 2010 01:12 PM
I know but we are 2 people $5 vs $15, and we were told the $15 was per bottle not a flat fee so that needs to be clarified as it makes a huge difference. Also, I don't want to get app and dessert just because it makes my meal more economical, I want to get them because I want to get them (if that makes sense) I don't think that's a deal...the salad was pretty ho hum, the cavatapi has gone down in quality, and the biscotti are huge, but not very good...jmho...
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re: geminigirl
I think I'm with FoodieJim on this one. Their corkage is no higher than most places and I find the food about as good as always. Please don't be jaded by increasing prices- if you think Bricco will put Pazzo out of business you are sadly mistaken. Bricco in West Hartford is on my top ten list, but they are definitely more expensive than Pazzo. Pazzo in Rocky Hill is another story. I kind of feel all the money went into "ambience." Anyone else see this disparity?
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Pazzo Cafe
377 Cromwell Ave, Rocky Hill, CT 06067-
re: thos
And I agree with Geminigirl. As someone who was one of their original regulars, I feel that they have consistantly nickeled and dimed me. As for ambience, Glastonbury has none. It looks basically the same as the old Glastonbury Deli that it replaced. Heck I think they still have the same tables and display cases. I also think that when an owner of what is a pretty successful restaurant comes over to a table and goes on to a customer about why he has to charge him for something, that owner is being cheap. JMHO, Jay
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Pazzo is the perfect example of its ownership being its own worst enemy- they simply became too comfortable and dare I say it- lazy. In an age in which restaurants come and go and fierce competition, Pazzo has missed the boat. It's a shame but when Bricco @ Eric Town Square opens in the next few months I predict Pazzo will be closed soon thereafter.
