Forno Baltimore
| Address: | 17 N Eutaw St, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA |
| Phone: | +1 443-873-9427 |
| Site: | fornobaltimore.com |
| Rating: | 4.2 |
| Working: | Closed 11:30AM–12AM 11:30AM–12AM 11:30AM–12AM 11:30AM–12AM 11:30AM–12AM 11:30AM–12AM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 6
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Joe Travis
Before you read this, know that Im not a food snob. If its edible and packs flavor, is reasonably priced and the service is happy, I head over heels become a regular. Nothing says I love you more than local support and word of mouth. In this case, Im afraid to tell people I was spotted here eating. Ambiance= Perfect. Its a happy Industrial style Tuscan retreat in the heart of down town Baltimore. Food= Head to Alewife instead. My date and I tried Forno more than once to give it its fair share of chances. The wine= Yes Please! They have it down pat. (Kinda hard to mess up a pour.) Small plates= undercooked, soggy, lacking flavor feng shui. If you are looking for something that packs the flavor of an out of this world tapa, keep walking. Dont think twice about hanging your coat here. Mains= Ordered some of the meat, it was like chewing on a rubber tire. No flavor. Supposedly braised, tender, melt in your mouth goodness, was a small pile of big disaster. Clams were also part of the meal. Completely undercooked, and tasted like Id licked an over used soggy wet dock at the sea shore...(rotting and overly fishy). Pizza= If you like Matzo with sauce and microwaved meat, head on over. They have 4-5 pizzas on the menu that are all equally a mess. The staff= friendly, well presented. Getting comfortable in their new surroundings. If they turn up their level of service on the outgoing friendly front, theyd be perfect. Price= OVERPRICED. You will be very upset at the bill for being as high as it is, especially if you try the food. Solution= Grab Happy hour here if they start offering it. Otherwise...venture elsewhere.
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Matt Metzbower
Portions are tiny and over priced ($24 for a 3-4oz portion of catfish entree). Maybe if they tasted amazing we could excuse the size to price ratio, but the food was nothing to write home about. If you are going to see a show at the Hippodrome, do yourself a favor and go to a different restaurant in one of Baltimores great neighborhoods like Little Italy, Mt. Vernon, or Federal Hill. A dining partner of mine was not satisfied with her tuna entree (dry and flavorless, definitely not high grade tuna, but most certainly a frozen filet), she politely asked to exchange it for another entree. The server was understanding and did take the tuna away. We waited almost 30 minutes, and no new entree had been brought out, so we again politely asked to not bring it out we would do without. The server again was understanding. As we were paying the check a women approached our table and introduced herself as "the owner" but did not say her name (which is strange). She very dryly apologized and asked what she could do it "make up for it." My dining partner felt too put on the spot and uncomfortable telling the owner what she should do to make up for the poor quality of the food and slow service - in her opinion (and mine) the owner should have been the one with some solutions (be hospitable!). Then the owner finished the conversation by extremely rudely saying "well I am sorry you had such a terrible experience," and immediately walked away. We will think twice before going to Forno again.
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K Gharib
Walked in on Saturday night with my husband around 9:30 pm. The hostess did not say hi, and didnt even smile. She just pointed out that they have late night menu. She walked us to our table but did not say a word like enjoy, someone would be with u shortly..... The waiter seemed to be in a hurry. We got our pizza order very fast! One margarita pizza and one Farmers pizza. But the farmers pizza was burned and had black burned marks all over the bottom of the pizza. It also tasted burned. The waiter did not ask us if the food was ok or not. He just passed us couple times to help other guests. We finally raised our hand and told him that one of the pizzas are burned. He just said that "thats how it is and the grilled oven pizzas r all like that!" We said that the other order is fine, but he was keep saying the same sentence! And at the end he said that they r doing their best! It was funny, BC after our comment, he started looking at the bottom of each pizza to see any black marks! So we were right and it was Burned. We also noticed that the waiters were all drizzling oil on each order of pizza before delivering that to the table! When we walked out the door the hostess did not thanked us or even smiled! I dont know how this place got good reviews!
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Amy Dunn
My husband and I love Forno! I just read a review of this place that was bashing the shape of the pizza -- are you joking? You are the same person that goes to an awesome resort and rates it based on how fluffy the pillows are. Not helpful. The restaurant has only been open a week or two and already they are getting into their stride. The pizzas are fresh, thin, hot and delicious, especially love the artichoke one. We love the wine selection and apps and small plates, especially the calamari, olives, cheese plate and the marinated vegetables and cauliflower. We love how healthy so many options are on top of being delicious. Loved the pork and tuna also and the homemade bread is delicious. The bartenders and the waitstaff are great people and very inviting and personable. Of course some of them are still learning, but that is to be expected. The decor of the restaurant and the food and overall ambiance of the place is going to prove to be awesome for them in the long run. And while they actually could rely on the hippodrome business alone, I have no doubt folks from all different neighborhoods will be frequenting this place! We will be! Great work to the owners, cant wait to return.
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J Dieckmann
My party had a very puzzling experience at this restaurant recently. Cocktails at the bar were lovely. When we got to our table, our server didnt know the specials and repeatedly cracked their knuckles while talking to us. Two wine glasses were brought for each member of the party as if we were all planning to drink both red *and* white. When a bottle of red wine arrived warm, not room temp. but warm, our request for a solution was deemed unprecedented. Our bottle of white wine was left on the table long enough for it to gain room temperature. One of our appetizers contained unevenly cooked vegetables, one of the root vegetables was old and almost raw. There was a very clear disconnect b/w us and our server, we spent long stretches of time without any attention. We ended up leaving-cancelling our much anticipated pizza after an extensive period waiting for it (the restaurant was not at capacity). This place had been highly recommended to us by a server from another restaurant so the hope is this was unusual.
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Pat Ranney
My family, party of 7 throughly enjoyed our dinner there last night before the 8 pm Book of Mormon performance. They accomodated us at 5:45 without reservations....as everthing was sold out more than a week ago. Our waitress was Kat, (Kathleen), a student at U Md, who treated us like family. The pizza and veggies were tasty and atmosphere great......not an empty seat. The menu is in line, price wise, with D.C. trendy. Selections are as well. I would add lobster mac and cheese....my personal favorite to prepare at home, especially for those who dont care for rabbit or fish......OH, yes and a flat screen. Congrats Forno, I think you have a hit on your hands. Thanks again, Kat for a wonderful dining experience.....you deserve a raise.
