BRIO Tuscan Grille
| Address: | 10000 Research Blvd, Austin, TX 78759, USA |
| Phone: | +1 512-794-1234 |
| Site: | brioitalian.com |
| Rating: | 4 |
| Working: | 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–11PM 11AM–11PM 10AM–9PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 7
MI
Mike Loux
My wife and I wandered in here on a complete whim, while driving around the Aboretum (literally; we did the entire circle first). Saw the sign: "Tuscan Grille," said, "yum" and went for it. In jeans and a very tattered T-shirt, I was probably more than a little under-dressed, but the staff didnt bat an eye, so cool. Sat at the bar, like we always do, and from the moment we sat down to even after we walked out the door, we were waited on hand and foot, and absolutely pampered. The bar team, Brandon & Jordana, were attentive without being clingy, had great recommendations for food, wine pairings, even letting us sample a couple of items. And the food. My God, the food! Austin has a ton of great food; this is definitely a foodie city. But I can honestly say this was the best meal I have had since moving to Austin this past summer. Beef carpaccio that melts in your mouth. Mezza Chicken under a brick with a sweet (but not cloying) marsala sauce. Chicken Griglia with lemon and capers. And the mashed potatoes! Parmesan crisps. Bread. Creme brulee! And an upside-down cheesecake, also bruleed, that could have been made into a fantastic milkshake. And I want to say again how awesome the service was. Marc, the general manager, came over to see how everything was (so we gave him an earful about how happy we were). The bar duo recommended places for shopping here in the Arboretum after lunch, and we generally felt like we were family. We will DEFINITELY be back (its probably a 25 minute drive from our home in Pflugerville), and we will most certainly recommend it to our friends and coworkers. Oh, yes, the price. Not bad. Not bad at all. Somebody else (either here or on Yelp; cant remember) said that it was Macaroni Grill price, but the service and food was exponentially better. I agree 100%. Highly recommend it. Sit at the bar and let Brandon and Jordanna (or anyone else on the bar team) pamper you. :-)
JE
Jennifer N
Been here a few times food has always been good. Came for my birthday dinner and service was spectacular. The two servers for our group were amazing. They both did an extraordinary job on keeping drinks and bread filled for the amount of people we had. No hiccups in our order at all, food arrived in a timely order and everything was hot still. Desserts were decadent and delicious. I took my friend here for lunch one day while she was in town. It has now become one of her favorite spots so we come here much more regularly now. There is always a good selection of food for everyone. I typically get the Pasta Alla Vodka. I got the Pasta Pesto recently and it was very good, it was very light for being a pasta. I would highly recommend that if you want a pasta but dont want too much food. My friend got the Lasagna this time and oh my goodness there was way too much cheese on this dish, it is extremely decadent, almost too much cheese to even eat it. If you love cheese this could be your dish. But for us it was just too much to eat. Out other friend got the Fettuccine, its much different than what you typically see. Its not a white Alfredo sauce, its a red sauce. It was okay, but I wouldnt really recommend that dish either. We also got the Applewood Bacon & Tomato Jam and the Bruschetta Sausage, Pepperoni & Ricotta Flatbread, both were pretty good. We ordered the mini Strawberry Shortcake and I was not a fan of that what so ever. The shortcake was so over cooked and burned it was unenjoyable. The strawberries were mashed almost to the point it should have just been a puree. Not impressed with the desserts here however. The food is okay for being a chain restaurant. I feel there are a handful of good dishes and others are a hit or miss. I think they are much better Italian food restaurants, but this one is tolerable.
BR
Brian Jones
Came here for lunch, had the $14 combo of Caesar salad and Mezza Campanelle Carbonara. I expected an Italian place to have nice fresh grates of parm on the salad, but it was powdered, and less than a teaspoon of it. The salad plate was chilled which is a nice touch. The pasta dish was tiny, as in less than the size of a can of Chef Boyardee. I expected some grand pasta bowl but it was just chicken alfredo with a bit of bacon and spinach. The temperate of the dish was above room temperate but not what I would call hot. They serve a white bread with butter and also a sesame seed flatbread while you wait for your food. While nothing was bad about this place, it was average at best and the value is poor.
CA
Camille Wagner
Ive never noticed this place when Im in the Arboretum, but met a friend here for happy hour one Thursday. They have a grand inside, but an even more amazing, relaxing outdoor patio. There is even some seating with a fire pit (which is not necessary in Austin the majority of the year). Thursdays are apparently Wine Nights and they have select wines for $5 each. They also have a low-calorie/healthy menu that you can order from in case you want to stay away from the traditional, buttery and cheesy Italian fare. The waitstaff here is really nice and accommodating too. Im definitely coming back for another happy hour.
AL
Alexa White
The food was tasty, the service was fine. We were there at 3:00 in the afternoon so it was pretty slow at the time. Everything was good (though pricey). I was surprised a $20 pasta dinner did not come with a salad or soup at all. This may be a silly comment, but I found the ovesized silverware ridiculous. It felt like I was trying to eat with a pitchfork. While the food was tasty, I didnt find anything special about the experience to really make me want to go back or to another location. I can get better, freshly made pasta meals from a local, family-owned restaurant at far better prices.
ST
Staying Alive With Angel Austin
I had my 40th birthday bash here. I very carefully selected a menu and had them print it. I confirmed it all via email. When we arrived, the menu options had changed and my attendees got far less for their money than the menu promised. I was so upset that I couldnt eat my food. Ive eaten there before and the food was ok, but its not all that memorable. The Caprese Salad with heirloom tomatoes is probably the nicest thing on the menu. I can only suggest that if you do go here, come for the atmosphere and the drinks (they serve a mean mojito)...oh, and dont have a party. Have that somewhere else.
RO
robin phillips
My review is about the happy hour specifically. They have this Super HIGH Quality happy hour starting at 9pm that is probably the best kept secret in North Austin. The Spicy Shrimp and Eggplant is my personal favorite. We always get the beef Carpaccio to start, the margherita pizza is great, and dont forget to get the burger. It is high quality meat that will absolutely melt in your mouth. The best part is, all these items are priced at $4, which is a fraction of what they are priced at otherwise. Everything is so worth it. BTW, they also sell martinis for $5 during hh.
