russo's coal-fired italian kitchen & pizza

being born and raised on long island, ny, it's hard for me to find good pizza in texas since i grew up with pizza places in every shopping center. this pizza reminded me of back home and theservicewas excellent. the garlic knots were some of the best i have ever had and the ingrediants were fresh. i will definitely be going back. also, the drinks were great.

overpriced,overrated,and under appreciative. russo's ny coal-fired pizza is the definition of a snobby restaurant chain. i have tried to order from them four times and have only managed to get food only once. that particular time i had to call and cancel it because it was close to two hours late. the other three times i've called was met with no answer or i was hung up on. i figured four chances was more than enough! there are plenty of other restaurants in this area that will give you qualityserviceand food to choose from.

victim to new management. we have enjoyed going to russo's at least once a month since it opened a few years ago. their black truffle sachetti was actually one of my favorite meals at any nearby restaurant. and it has also been appealing because some members of our extended family have gluten issues, so the gluten-free pizza is great to have available.

unfortunately the last few times we have gone we have witnessed a sad decline in the quality and flavor of the food. the recipes have clearly changed in favor of lesser quality ingredients. theserviceis still generally good, but i couldn't even eat my meal the last time we went. we will probably give it one last try before giving up.

so sad - what was a monthly tradition in our house has now fallen victim to new management...

quality food &servicein 1. this rare find has amazing food- i'd put it up against famous lombardi's of nyc- and amazing service. the staff is friendly and personable and make the experience dining her great. awesome lunch deals and the calzone's are great to share on a date. definitely a place to check out!

hubby felt right at home. we were on our way to campisi's in richardson, but we had seen russo's a few times while traveling on 75, so we decided to try it out. we are so glad we did!

we arrived about an hour before closing time, and we were greeted warmly. the decor is really warm and reminded us of the upscale pizzerias in new jersey that my husband and i used to enjoy. we sat down and were presented with the regular menu and a heart healthy menu. although we didn't order from the heart healthy menu, we were impressed that they offered it. we noticed a good variety of offerings on the menu, from appetizers to pizzas to pastas.

after ordering, we received the complimentary basket of bread. the bread is deliciously flavored with italian herbs, and the tables all have flavored olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic powder, italian herbs, and parmesan cheese (along with salt and pepper). i could have been happy just eating the bread and dip. we ordered the roasted garlic and mozzarella flatbread appetizer. it was perfectly fired and the roasted garlic was perfectly done.

my husband ordered the manhattan pizza (italian sausage, peppers, onion). he loved it. it was thin and crispy, and when it came to the table, it smelled soooo good. the cheese, sauce and toppings were perfectly distributed, and the coal-firing gave it a nice ny-style taste.

i ordered the chicken penne puttanesca. most restaurants are afraid to make a true puttanesca because of the strength of all of the ingredients, but i was very happy to see that their puttanesca included everything i love about it.

theservicewas very friendly and attentive without being overdone. the owner was very active in the restaurant making sure that everything was good with all of the guests. he came by near the end of our meal and chatted with us. since we were the last ones there, we enjoyed a nice conversation with him. it was nice to hear his story, and my husband enjoyed talking to someone else from the northeast.

our check was very reasonable with what we had ordered. my dish was barely over $10, and i had enough for dinner and then lunch the next day. we will definitely drive down to richardson for more of the great food andservicethat we received at russo's.

great food, the best coffee!. we wound up in front of this restaurant by shear accident because of a wrong turn. since we were in route to another restaurant, we couldn't resist how inviting this place looked. we were not dissapointed. clientele was a mixture of family's, young, hip college students, trendy couples, etc. my husband is a lasagna fanatic and russo's delivered. although we did not order the pizza, it was certainly the most requested entree of the evening. great food, greatserviceand the best cup of coffee i have ever had - seriously! we enjoyed our evening here and add this to our list of "constants" ,

great atmosphere,serviceis ok.... they made mistakes the last few times we got food there. they kept giving me pomadoro with slice sausage instead of the spicy italian saugage that i asked for... it happened twice, but the taste of the dish was still good.

great pizza. while theserviceneeds a little work, the pizza is the best in town and they have a great pomegranate salad dressing for the house salad!