Bella Notte Ristorante

Easy to become a regular!

Mike the owner of Bella Notte has done a fabulous job on making such a quiant atmosphere. He has pictures on the walls of him and the generations before him and this is Italian history at its finest. I really enjoy supporting the local businesses in my neighbourhood and this one is very easy to become a regular at. The food is amazing and is a great substitute for downtown Toronto dining. Bella Notte provides fresh food with unique flavors, it has a great wine selection, and always friendly service. You will need to expect however that on the weekends especially, it will be veryyyyy busy and the service may be slower than usual (standard for any restaurant really), so my advice to you is to purchase a great bottle of wine and enjoy the night with your loved ones. This establishment really gives you the time to enjoy your meal, wine and conversation which is not something done at your run of the mill franchises. For a great dining experience and a taste of Italy, I highly recommend it!

In Whitby? WOW!

I'm not one to go on sites like this and review restaurants but I just had to after finding "a diamond in the ruff". Whitby has mostly chain restaurants and it is hard to find good small independently owned ones(with an exception of a few that are in the area). Bella Notte was recommended to us by a friend who raves about this place and has every right to. We felt relaxed and at home as soon as we stepped in the door, with a friendly greeting that didn't seem scripted. We had reviewed the menu online before arriving so we knew exactly what we were going to order but that changed when the waiter told us about the "Chef's features". That was a game changer and didn't know what to oder now, the features sounded amazing and they were. We decided to order from the features, we shared a golden beet salad with arugula, almonds, fresh berries and goat cheese and a warm crostini with porchetta and braised fennel our entree's were pasta with beef tenderloin tip, roasted red peppers and mushrooms in a rose type sauce and we couldn't resist but to order the rack of lamb. Both of our meals were amazing, flavours that I thaught I would never find this side of the city. I can't speak for our friends but they looked just as good and judging by thier plates and reaction they relly enjoyed their meals also. The wine selection was more than what I expected with a great selection of wines by the glass and a great selection of wines mainly from Italy but other new and old world wines. I found the service to be flawless and we seemed to get the right amount of service at the right time. We had everything we needed when we needed it from ice water to another basket of fresh bread(and the place was packed). The wait staff are very professional, curtious, warm and friendly. Overall this restaurants moves to the top of our list of favorites, you can tell they try to everything just perfect and take pride in what they do. I had a chance to speak to the manger or could have been the owner who seemed to really enjoy what he does and it shows in the staff and the food. The only thing I can complain about is that we didn't find this place sooner. Can't wait to go back!

“Will Never Return…EVER”

Myself, husband, and lovely daughter went to Belle Notte on Valentine’s Day. We were pleased to see that they could squeeze us in last minute given the day and time, but soon found out why this seemingly quaint little restaurant had availability on one of the busiest restaurant nights of the year… We arrived to our reservation on time and were seated by a male hostess who immediately informed me that they could do small portions of pasta for the little one- which I appreciated. We waited approximately 10-15 minutes for our waiter to take our drink order which was very strange given that we were seated with a small child. While waiting for our drinks, we noticed that all of the other tables had bread except ours, but continued to wait thinking that perhaps the waiter would bring it back with our drink order…needless to say she did not. We ordered appetizers first- The Mussels Bella Notte ($12), and the Caprese Salad ($9). Regarding the Salad we asked if they could add capers as the Caprese Salads we have had in the past at other Italian restaurants included this as one of their ingredients and we enjoy saltiness they bring to this dish- Our waiter said it wouldn’t be a problem. Regarding the Mussels we asked if it was really hot considering one of the ingredients on the menu for this item included jalapenos -Our waiter responded by saying, “no no…it’s very mild.” We waited approx. 25-30min minutes for our appetizers. The Salad was brought without the capers that we asked for, and when the our waiter realized she quickly brought them over saying, “Well there is someone else in the restaurant with tons of capers on their salad cause I saw them make it.” So much for making it seem like everything is running smoothly!? The mussels came with a mound of jalapenos on top, which I immediately tossed, and more than enough in the tomato and sambuca liqueur the mussels were swimming in. In my opinion the sauce was much too sweet and garnished with enough parsley for 3-4 dishes. I was the ONLY one who could handle this dish with some bread to tame the heat- which I had been waiting for since arriving. For our mains we ordered the Sea Bass (Valentine’s Day Special) ($34), the Seafood Pasta Belle Notte ($26), and asked the waiter to if we could do a small portion of spaghetti in an alfredo sauce for my daughter. In addition this we asked if they could throw a few pieces of chicken and asparagus. After walking back and forth from the kitchen to the dining room our waiter informed us that she was just going to order us something similar to the Angle hair Pasta ($17) off the menu for the little one because it would cost us more to order the half-order of pasta we originally ordered for her and then add chicken and veggies (Made no sense to me). I agreed thinking that there was no way they would charge us $17 dollars for child’s order of pasta – and would do something similar menu item she mentioned in a half size. In addition to this we requested that her dish come out as soon as possible – well before our own. The Sea Bass- as my husband described- needed to be seasoned, but was not bad once you incorporated what looked like a dark paste of some sorts on the top. The potatoes that accompanied the dish tasted like the soil they were just picked from and cooked unwashed. The Seafood Pasta left much to be desired as well. I will order Seafood Pasta wherever I go if it’s on the menu. Presentation was beautiful- the shrimp and scallops large and appetizing- but looks was all this dish had. The pasta which was supposed to be a maffaldini pasta had several piece of other different pasta throughout, the scallops were extremely underdone (basically raw), and the entire bowl of pasta was not only covered in olives, but was made with enough olive oil to fill the plate to its brim- it just tasted like olives. My daughters order turned the night from bad to worse. Fist the dish came out maybe 5 minutes before our mains did, when we specific

A lovely night!

this is the 2nd time I spend my birthday there and It was lovely like the first one! romantic, classy, and elegant without being overpriced... I've tried very expensive restaurants in TO and so far the quality of food and service comes very close... I'm looking forward to comeback again...

Corking Fee Fiasco

Myself, and a group of 8 others had made reservations to go to Bella Notte in Whitby for my lovely girlfriend's father's birthday party. Traditional Italian family with a flare for food, reservations had been made and we had shown up on time and seated promptly. After hearing their specials from one of the waiters the owner came out to question us about a bottle of wine my girlfriend's brother had bought for the occasion. The owner informed us the corking fee for this bottle of wine was $35 CAD which we said we were fine with. Dinner was had, and although there was a few problems (calamari was very undercooked and rubbery, other elements of dinner were not al dente or soggy) we didn't really complain and continued on. As the rather large bill for 9 guests came to the table, the brother (whom was paying for the meal) noticed the owner had silently increased the corking fee to $50 CAD. We decided to question him about this, which began this restaurants downfall. The owner quickly danced around the question of the increase in price and decided to take us on a business lesson of his margins, and how if we had purchased this "rather generic" bottle of wine at his restaurant he would've made more money - and thus, should punish us for bringing it by increasing the corking fee, even though he had simply stated earlier it was $35 as he picked the bottle up. The owner began to tell us the bottle was larger than he expected, and this was the reason for the increase. I can assume the owner who had quite a good wine selection on the other side of the restaurant had seen a bottle of this size before, and upon grabbing it could tell it was larger and thus inform us of the increase, but he decided to sneak it onto our bill. After a few exchanges, excuses, and rude comments in regards to giving us a measly $15 refund, he came back with a $15 gift card and threw it on the table. At this point, he might as well have given us a blank piece of paper as we weren't coming back to this restaurant ever. As a small business owner myself, there's a larger lesson here - if you make a mistake and tell a customer something, suck it up and make it right. $15 is nothing in this transaction where he probably had made hundreds of dollars in profit on us that night, and to satisfy a customer (and have a repeat visit), as well as accept you made a mistake it would've been no problem for him. We had left upset, and angry at the fact the owner would not accept he made a mistake, and charged us for it. I would seriously consider not visiting Bella Notte any time soon if you are interested in going. If the owner is not willing to bend a bit for customer satisfaction, it shows a much larger problem trickling down from top, to your plate.

Disappointed

We've gone to Bella Notte quite a few times since moving to the neighbourhood, and the food and service USED TO BE fantastic. However our last two visits have been quite disappointing. At the beginning of summer the menu was the same as in the past - amazing. But the service wasn't what it used to be; having to sit around about 10 minutes after your dinner, because your waiter forgot about your table, didn't make for a pleasant ending. This time - we waited at the beginning for our appetizer, which never arrived. And when our mains did, and we asked what happened to the appetizer the response we got from the servers and waitress was did you want to bring it now? Thank you but no, I prefer my appetizer before my meal, not after. A few menu items seem to have changed as well. The seafood pasta was quite bland and disappointing. The type of pasta used was not complimentary to the seafood. Couple of the mussel shells were empty (The old seafood/pasta dish was one of the best). The steak special was good, perfectly done, but definitely over priced for what you got. The only saving grace was the phenomenal dessert! Should've passed on the whole dinner and just had dessert.

Best Italian in Durham!

Since moving to Durham, we have been more disappointed than not trying to find a quality restaurant. Our friends had been mentioning Bella Notte for some time, and we finally had the opportunity to try it and we are glad we did. The restaurant has a cozy, family style feel to it. Very unpretentious and lots of family photos covering the walls. They have two rooms and one seemed to be in use for a private party. The restaurant owner was quietly friendly and gracious, helping out the wait staff when necessary and keeping things flowing. Our meal was exceptional. We started with a rustic anti-pasto platter, beautiful veal carpaccio and grilled calamari. Truly authentic Italian flavours in each dish. My wife had the rack of lamb with herb crust, one of our friends had the signature veal dish with shrimps and boccancini, another had the pasta special, while I had the salmon with a side of spaghettini pomadorro. The portions were expertly done, and despite the large portion sizes, all our plates were cleaned completely. We shared two desserts as there was little room left and the homemade tiramisu and white chocolate semi fredo were a fine ending to a really great meal. Our waiter was very professional, enthusiastic and knowledgeable and recommended two wines for us, a Sauvignon Blanc and a reasonably priced Super Tuscan. Although the restaurant became very busy, service was attentive throughout and the owner hovered in a helpful way all night. We look forward to our next trip back already.

"Now that's Italian"

This wasn't our first and won't be our last. Each time we come here there is always something different that intrigues us. The night we went it was very busy, there was a small wedding going on in the private room and the main dining room was bustling. There was an old world feel to the place, how I would imagine a quant restaurant in Tuscany would be like. There was a sense of a "real family" run restaurant with wait staff and management(probably the owner)talking to customers, joking around and making people fell at home. We enjoyed a variety of appetizers (gotta have the mussels, WOW!) the antipasto platter for 2 comes on a rustic wooden board with the Italian essential meats and cheeses, olives and grilled vegetables. Our mains were outstanding from the traditional fettucini in a meat sauce, mushroom risotto, veal marsala and the amazing pork loin special with peaches. Portions are always substantial, we all had enough for lunch the next day. No room for dessert but who can resist homemade tiramisu, topped the meal off. This place is our favorite restaurant in Durham. We seem to go around to other places and always compare them to Bella Notte, a tough act to follow. Keep it up! Can't wait to go back.

Dinner-good and bad

We arrived at 5pm before the crowds. we ordered Shrimp Bella Note( very good ) as a starter. The main entres were seafood liguine and a pan-fried halibut. The seafood liguine was very good. Portions were good and taste was very good. My wife was very disappointed in the halibut. Basically a dry piece of fish. The wine we ordered-2009 cab sauv from Argentina was very nice. It was $100 for the 2 of us with 1 appetizer, 2 main courses, 1 bottle of wine and no dessert( I was too full)no coffee. Probably would have felt better about the money if my wife had enjoyed the meal. She had been here 1 month previous and had to wait a very , very long time for her meal.

Excellent Italian

This is an excellent Italian eatery. Friendly service, excellent food and nice decor. When the worst part of a restaurant is the fact that it is in a strip mall you know you've found a gem. I found the veal with apricot and almonds tasty and interesting.

Simply delicious

Simply delicious. Dine-in or take-out. Love the angel-hair pasta dish! Perfect for a get together with friends or a romantic evening out.

An excellent evening! This was not our first time dinning here but unfortunately it's been a while. We were a larger group and everyone really enjoyed the food, atmosphere and service. The last time we dined here, which was a few months ago it was very busy and it seemed they didn't have enough servers, but this time there were a few more servers and service was very efficient and very knowledgeable. The food was amazing, we shared a variety of appetizers mussels, calamari, shrimp and maria salad. Our entrees were also amazing, we had a variety of dishes, seafood risotto, veal Bella Notte, seafood linguni, a pasta special stuffed with smoked chicken in a rose sauce and there were others that all looked great and tasted amazing also. Overall our dining experience was fantastic we all felt so comfortable and felt at home. Planning our next event here already, can't wait.

This was my first dining experience here, and I was really looking forward to it as I'd only heard good things about Bella Notte. We were a party of approximately 27 people celebrating a Christmas function. We all arrived right on the dot and the entire room was at our disposal, which was great. The main room seemed busy but functioning. We were given a set menu which included our choice of soup or salad, three different entrees, and two different desserts. Drink orders were taken quickly and for the most part efficiently. The appetizers took about 45 minutes to arrive, not sure why. Bread arrived on the table and replenished as needed, which was often while we waited for our first course. Half our table sent their entrees back due to the meals either being cold (plates are NOT warmed !) or the steaks being undercooked. Two people with steaks sent them back not once but twice due to undercooking. Both steaks were ordered medium and both steaks were delivered on the rare side of medium rare. Neither person could eat their steaks. I noticed other guests in our group at the other tables sending their meals back as well - the overall problem was their meals were cold, or the steaks undercooked. We had two servers attending to us and I really truly didn't understand why they wouldn't have mentioned something to the chef or the manager, as they were bringing these platefuls of food back to the kitchen. They kept apologizing, but it kept happening. I don't understand why there was no initiative on their part. It was like they didn't know what to do. They just kept saying 'sorry' and the worst part was it was not their fault. I finally asked for the manager to come out and he did, and really didn't apologize for the situation at all, he said he couldn't understand why it was happening. Well buddy if you don't understand what is happening in your restaurant I guess I know why the servers don't know what to do about it. One person at our table who sent her steak back twice just asked for her dessert. I had to send my meal back because it was cold. I also specifically asked for no starch with my meal, I don't eat potatoes. When it came back, it was on a new plate with a bunch of potatoes on it. The entire dinner service took about 3 hours, and most of that time was spent waiting for our food. And then when it was served, we waited for it to be reheated or recooked. For the guests at my table who were affected, they did comp the alcohol, which was a nice touch. But a meaningful apology to the entire group by a manager who demonstrated some type of leadership qualities would have been much more effective and appreciated. The tiramisu was outstanding, but I will not be returning.

"Wow" what else can I say. This place seems to get it, great food, great service and a great wine selection. We loved it, our server was friendly and very accomidating as was the chef allowing us to modify one of the meals "thanks chef", the food was very tasty and had rich athentic flavours. The place was very busy but it didn't affect our service. Everyone in the group can't wait to go back. Keep it up guys, your our new favorite place to dine this side of the city.

We had a new year's eve dinner here a couple of...

We had a new year's eve dinner here a couple of years back (sorry for the delay). We were surprised the place wasn't packed and started to worry. However, our food was very good, as was the service. We'd go back (and this time I'll write a review sooner!)

Always an excellent dining experience. Mike makes...

Always an excellent dining experience. Mike makes you feel as one of the family(checkout the pictures that adorn the walls). Chef Enzo and his team always prepare an excellent dinner. This is our first choice when dining out in Whitby.

This was a great diing experience and I highly...

This was a great diing experience and I highly recommend it, as does the rest of our party! Service as great and the food was melt in your mouth good! Can't wait to go back. Staff was was attentive to us and made us feel very welcome. Everyone was really friendly and accommodating. We were supposed to dine eleswhere, but they fowled up our reservation and Bella Notte was quick to take care of us. I'm really glad that the mistake was made because otherwise I might not tried this place, and in my opinion Bella Notte was a much better dining experience. I highly recommend it to anyone that enjoys good food!

Bella Notte accommodated us at the last minute so...

Bella Notte accommodated us at the last minute so we were really pleased. We were celebrating a job promotion within our group. The decor is sort of rustic Italian. Very appealing. Quaint and romantic. We ate a variety of dishes, starting from appetizers, pasta's and meat courses. Some in our group are Italians and they said the food was very authentic. It was delicious to say the least. Service was exceptional. Would definitely return for more of the same!

My wife and I celebrated her bday at Bella Notte...

My wife and I celebrated her bday at Bella Notte. The service was really good and friendly. Staff was attentive. We were served in a timely fashion. We sat at a cozy table for two and enjoyed the Italian atmosphere. We aren't big drinkers but we enjoyed wine with dinner and it complimented our meals nicely. Food portions were huge! We took some home! Friends had recommened this restaurant to us. They are frequent partrons and had mentioned that the only thing they didn't enjoy was this one particular waiter who seemed quite arrogant to them. They were since told that the offending waiter was released and they've had no negative experiences since. We will definately go back as the food was really good. Prices were reasonable for what you got. We really enjoyed the open kitchen concept. We were able to see the chef's at work. If you want a downtown experience right at your doorstep, Bella Notte is the place to go!

We've had the pleasure of eating at this...

We've had the pleasure of eating at this restaurant on several occassions. Each time the food did not disappoint. My personal favorite is the veal! It was so tender and delicious! The portions are very generous. We've also been in their party room for people who want to host private affairs, such as birthdays and confirmations etc. The service was friendly and attentive and we now count this as one of our favortie places to go!