Stefanos - Bethlehem

About ten minutes later, the waiter returned to see if we wanted to order an appetizer, which we did. We chose the portabella cheese appetizer, but it arrived lukewarm and was barely enough for one person. While my wife was eating, she found a piece of hard plastic, about 1 inch by 1.5 inches, embedded in the dish. When we called the waiter over, he casually remarked, “So I guess you don’t want the rest of the appetizer, huh?” We declined, hoping for some form of apology or compensation, but nothing else was said by him or anyone else throughout our meal. We waited several minutes for our main courses, during which our waiter seemed to take forever preparing a salad for the table next to us while our dinners sat under a heat lamp. When our meals finally arrived, they were brought out by the hostess, who we later learned is Stefano's wife. When we mentioned that we would appreciate bread and water, she fetched them but brought bread with a long strand of blonde hair on it – neither of us has long blonde hair, so it was quite off-putting. When our waiter came back to ask about dessert, we were so turned off by the meal that we declined. The check came to $52, and we left a generous tip of $60 given the circumstances. As we were leaving, I handed my business card to the hostess, asking the owner to give me a call. He did reach out the next day, and after a few more calls, we discussed our experience. I requested a refund, and he agreed. However, he then had the audacity to send me a $25 gift certificate instead. When I expressed my dissatisfaction, he said he would “take care of it,” but I ultimately returned the gift certificate. Throughout our discussions, he repeatedly used the word “dumbfounded,” claiming that such occurrences had never happened in his restaurant before. Well, Mr. Stefano, it did happen this time, and others should be aware. After three more unreturned calls to him, I felt compelled to write this review. My wife and I usually recommend great restaurants to others, who in turn share their recommendations with us. They now know about our experience, and I doubt many will choose to visit. For anyone considering dining at this establishment, there are plenty of other options for Italian cuisine in Bethlehem and the surrounding areas. Diners should think twice – then think again – before stepping through Stefano’s doors.

The review before mine could easily have been written by me. My group of eight arrived at 12:30 PM on Mother’s Day, and the back dining room wasn’t fully booked, with two empty tables available. We experienced an unreasonably long wait for our drinks, finally receiving them just before 1:00 PM. The food came out slowly, with some dishes taking almost 45 minutes to arrive after we placed our orders. I was surprised not by the prices, but rather by the small portion sizes. The mozzarella salad was particularly scant, and most of the other appetizers were similarly underwhelming. It seems that Stephanos has decided to maintain their prices while serving smaller portions. I thought about voicing my concerns, but since we were celebrating Mother’s Day, I didn’t want to create a scene, which is unlike me. So, I chose to let it slide. One guest had to request extra spaghetti sauce because the amount provided was so minimal that it felt as if it had just been sprayed on. While the food was decent, there are definitely better values out there. It seemed like they were taking advantage of Mother’s Day, assuming that only a few people would be celebrating at restaurants on this occasion. Since our group was large, they automatically added the customary gratuity, which felt presumptuous considering the mediocre service and small portions. To make matters worse, they even left a space for an additional tip! Absolutely not! I will not be coming back. Why do restaurants think they can get away with this? You would think that in today’s economy, they would want to attract customers, not drive them away. There are plenty of other places worth trying... at least once.

I studied hospitality management in New York City and have managed two five-star restaurants there under top chefs, so my expectations are high. I dined at this restaurant three weeks ago, and I'm still shocked by the experience! The food was overpriced and tasted bland. I truly felt sorry for the waitress. My daughter's spaghetti arrived with water all over the plate, and I had to drain it myself! It was a kitchen nightmare, to say the least. Where's Chef Ramsay when you need him? I reluctantly had to give it one star, but I didn't want to.

Our reservation was for 12:30 PM. We arrived on time and waited 15 minutes before being greeted and shown to our table. Once seated, we began to wait. After 30 minutes, we finally got our drinks, but didn’t see any food until 2:00 PM. In total, we ended up leaving the restaurant at 3:30 PM. Now, for the details: some aspects of the service were disappointing. First, the waters arrived, but they forgot the salad. Then, several people ordered lobster tails, which came without butter. When we asked for it, a tiny cup of melted butter was brought out—for the entire table to share! I, along with others, attempted to provide feedback to the owner before we settled the bill (we literally had cash in hand), but she responded with a raised voice, insisting there was nothing she could do at that moment. An apology or a sympathetic response would have been appreciated, but yelling at customers doesn't exactly encourage repeat visits. To make matters worse, the comment box at the entrance was out of comment cards—shouldn't that have been a warning sign? Earlier, I noticed another dissatisfied customer receiving a similarly rude response to their complaints. As for the food, it was decent, but certainly not enough to warrant a return visit.