Bice Naples

My wife and I set out for a romantic dining experience on Naples Fifth Avenue. We decided to try Bice which boasts to be “Naples Best Italian.” I don’t think so. Our waiter (who was also seating people) was aloof and inattentive. The various courses of our meal were brought to us by other food runners. We ordered calamari which was salty…average at best. The salads were good but our main courses were very disappointing. My wife had the Sea Bass which was tasteless. Have had many better Sea Basses in Naples before. I ordered Veal Scaloppini. Its main flavor was salt. I literally drank three glasses of water while eating half of it. Having had enough we put down our forks. Some minutes later the waiter who seated us and took our order (whom had not stopped by since than) asked if he should take our plates. We readily complied. Baffled that no one had asked us “how is/was your dinner” I took the initiative to tell him that the food was very salty. His response, “well if you had told me earlier I could have done something about it.” I felt incredulous, but resisted to retort that if he had come by since taking the order or if any one else would have asked I would have told them. We redeemed the evening by going to the grocery store for a pint of Haagen-Dazs Carmel Cone ice cream. That and a half gallon of water throughout the night did the trick. At Bice we will not go twice!

Upon arrival, my date and I were warmly greeted by the host, Antonio, and promptly seated on the patio. The seats were comfortable and the table arrangements simple, yet thoughtful. Being a novice in the wine department, Antonio was kind enough to help with the selection. He was informative, and though he seemed keen on always suggesting the most expensive bottles on the list, he wasn 't pushy and understood we weren 't there to break our bank, and directed us towards tasteful yet reasonable wines. Bread service was quick. The small basket of fresh bread came with the traditional olive oil and balsamic. Speaking of bread, one detraction however, were the packaged bread sticks found on all the tables. It seemed cheesy in comparison to the simple elegance of this restaurant. We started with the fried calamari with a marinara sauce. The calamari was perfectly cooked, however, it tasted as if the oil it was cooked in, needed to be changed....not to the point where I was turned off from eating it, but rather the dish could have been improved with fresh oil. Fortunately the marinara sauce more than made up for the oil. It was well reduced, excellent consistency, and had just enough spice to compliment the subtle tang of the tomato flavor. We continued our dining experience with some pasta. I was dying to try their pasta since the majority of it is made fresh daily on the premises. We were nothing short of thrilled by the Parpedelle in a rose sauce. It was executed to perfection. The pasta was cooked properly, the sauce was phenomenal, basically it was some of the best pasta I 've had. It was so good that before we were even finished our dishes, we were talking about returning for lunch the next day to have more pasta. Next we had the Grilled Veal, served with roasted potatoes and sauteed vegetables. The Veal was excellent, both in terms of the quality of the meat and how it was cooked. The potatoes were also tasty, nice and crisp on the outside, and tender on the inside. The vegetables, though firm (not hard) and warm, were enjoyable but didn 't stand out in any way. Unfortunately that was all our stomachs would allow us to enjoy. We initially had intentions to try one dish from each section, and split them, however, our ambitions exceeded our ability. Overall we really enjoyed ourselves. The service was friendly, warm, and professional. The food was outstanding and definitely better than anything we 've had in Naples, FL. so far. Price wise they can get a bit expensive. However, they have enough selection that you can go on the cheap for a nice moderately priced meal. Pasta 's were around $20, and apps and salads around $10.

Excellent food, service and external food was great!” Can't wait to go back.

My wife and I enjoyed a wonderful culinary experience. Excellent service in a beautiful environment for an excellent Italian dinner.

We haven't been to Naples Bice yet, although we were at Chicago restaurant decades ago. The ambience and service combined with the view of the architecture on the street (including the French flag in the French restaurant) give the feeling of eating in Nice or Monte Carlo. The appetizers were very good, the wine was cheap and the main dishes were excellent, although the Vongole had a bit more salt in the sauce. All in all a great experience.