armando's cucina italiana & pizzeria

good atmosphere, service and food!. we were a bit skeptical due to some reviews posted, but we visited on 01/08/2014 for the first time on a recommendation by our son and it was a pleasant surprise.
beautiful, cozy homelike restaurant (it was too chilly for outdoor dining). great warm lighting and nice wood tones of the tables compliment the white walls.
started with wine/beer/drinks as it was happy hour. waiter had knowledge of wine (awesome) but also kept on top of the happy hour specials which is a sign of a good server. ordered the fried calamari which was awesome. would get again for sure. plenty for four people. the pizzas were awesome (there were four of us and 2 people split one pizza and one salad, hubby ordered the pizza that had sausage, chicken, ham, etc. could not finish and raved about the flavor. salad was arugula (cannot remember the name; sorry) but it was very good. i ordered the pumpkin filled pasta. when it came i was thinking it was such a small serving. not. it was so rich and filling that i had no chance of finishing.
i think it needs to be said that our service was awesome. a parade had just run through the area and all of the restaurants were a bit off schedule, but armando's did not miss a beat.
we felt relaxed, unrushed, and frankly, well served. try it.

we had my boyfriends birthday party here last night (25 people) and it was awesome! we originally planned on being in the garden but the weather didn't permit. they set us up in the wine room and it was beautiful! they were so attentive and professional! food was excellent! our servers rochelle and ryan worked really hard to make the night special. thank you armandos for a great memory! highly recommend!

very disappointing- service was terrible (wrong entree, yelled across a table to make sure he got order right, didn't bring bread until we asked about it) we went on a busy night but food was average at best and my $16 veal included no sides, vegetables , or even pasta. it's back to brio for nearby option that has much better, well, everything

bad service ruined our experience at this charming restaurant. delicious calamari got cold while servers chatted, bread service never arrived, and the restaurant was crowded with employees running around with no aim. only one bad dish-a too-salty saltimboca panini-but when we mentioned it to the server, i was told "it's prosciutto, of course it's salty." the waitress removed the dish from the table, but not the bill. a lower-than average tip resulted in the waitress running outside and sarcastically shouting "thank you!" as we got in the car. delicious pizza, but not worth a trip back.

chef's ego needs to go. if you like bad food and be told its fine and still have still pay for poorly cooked food go! if you want great good go anywhere else you will be happier! chef you are not puck or flay! wake up! listen to the customer who are the ones paying! hell......ooooooo!

well known food critic's choice. i see a few mixed reviews, our experience with the service has always been excellent, and the food amazing.
i've only eaten here for dinner so i can't speak about lunch experience. but the few times i have dined here have been fantastic. scott joseph, a well known and respected restaurant and food critic, dines here as one of his regular choices, look for his review.

location.
when armando owned 'bobbo's' in college park, i dined there regularly and was never disappointed. now he has evolved to this amazing location, (hannibal square, near park avenue), where the dining experience can further be enjoyed in a much larger, beautiful building. the open feeling of the dinning area comes alive when the weather is pleasant and they open it up. the live music was lovely and did not intrude on our conversations.

food. this is an italian cucina (kitchen), not a 'pizza joint', but pizzas are excellent, stretched...never rolled, hand crafted and brought to life in the wood fired pizza oven. i have not had the calzone, but i've seen it delivered to other tables and it is huge, like tortoise shell huge. i prefer sampling the full menu when i come here, great pizza is everywhere.

having spent some time in florence, chianti region of italy i've come to appreciate the simply elegant ingredients of true italian cuisine. armando brings that to us here. dining here on a busy friday evening i thought could be a gamble, as with some places, but drinks flowed and food arrived without a skip amid the clanging of silverware and the chatter of other guest's tables of the full restaurant.
we were a party of five, we each sampled the others dinner choices, some were simple but acceptable, other dishes made you close your eyes and savor heaven for a moment. we haven't had a bad experience with service, armando seems to be ever present behind one of them at any given moment, making sure they are putting forth best efforts.
i know, as with any place, service may vary a bit depending on which day and time you go there. i hope your experience will be as terrific as ours always have been!

went there on 2/11/13. the location was nice and the weather was fantastic. sat outside(street side). the menu was not so much where one doesnt want to read it. ordered the calmari fritti as a starter. they were great, not over cooked and chewy like most places, but real tender. also split a pizza prosciutto di san daniele. my only gripe about that was that the prosciutto was sliced a little thick, otherwise great flavor. date ordered the pasta carbornara. it was pretty good but traditional carbonara has no cream in which this one did. but again it was pretty darn good. we were not able to finish so we wanted to take the remaining pizza home with us. this is where i think they fall short. the service sucked. we had a server with a long pony tail that started out attentive but as soon as the food was delivered, never saw him again. not even his face from across the patio. if that is the worst thing than i know ask for a different server next time. at the end of it all, i would return. i enjoyed entire experience, almost.

the ambiance was nice. but the food was dreadful.

the food was great. our server dave was great too. they did not have the wine we wanted, but offered a similar more expensive wine for the same price. the back secret garden area is very chic and relaxing. great place to eat.

easily one of the best dining experiences i ever had. food was perfect and wonderfully seasoned with fresh ingredients. after so many times going out to eat and finally exceptional customer service. dave matthews was one of the best servers ever and made my night. my wife and i will be bringing all of our family and friends next week to experience armando's world class cuisine and service.

the service is terrible! i visited on small business saturday with my family. the server got the drink order wrong, left menus on the table, and forgot my 4 year old's order! we left feeling guilty that our 4 year old watched us eat, saying he was hungry and never got what he ordered. and, when the waiter realized the serious oversight, he debated with us and the kitchen staff on what they could offer our child. unacceptable! this is our second time at the restaurant and received poor service both times. we are locals and will never visit again. my wife had even planned a girls night out there on december 6 and she is finding another location.

good food but....... the service here is horrible, even for to-go orders. placed an order for a pizza to-go and showed up 45 min later and the staff said they were backed up and nobody was even in the restaurant. there is clearly no management. great food though......

armando's in winter park was the best italian experience being far from italy, food excellent service friendly and attentive we will be back very soon and we highly raccomand this restaurant


-----26 nov, 2011-----

great place love it the food was very good

great service. salads and antiposto amazing. good pizza and pasta and wine bar.

worst service. told owner and he didn't care. good food but experience completely overshadowed by service. took 30 min to be acknowledged and downhill from there. a shame, but will not be back.