Café Chianti

We had our annual work party here last night and had a lovely time! The staff were so friendly, courteous and always around when you needed them! I had a three-​course meal, Caesar salad to start (honestly one of the best I’ve ever had), Strip loin steak for the main course, which was cooked to perfection! Then the cheesecake for dessert, which was so delicious, I wish I had gotten seconds! Beautiful location and even better staff.

We went here for a company event. When we arrived they graciously asked us for our jackets and showed us into the main dining room. We were offered alcoholic beverages and a selection of delicious hors D’oeuvres including smoked salmon, bacon wrapped scallops, toasted bread with various toppings and skewered chicken pieces. All were delicious. Eventually after a reasonable span of time allotted for conversation, we were seated and able to order. My glass — wine or water — was never left empty. My prosciutto wrapped chicken was deliciously moist and the tiramisu was the perfect light compliment to my protein heavy meal. My boyfriends steak was cooked rare and he says it was one of the best he has ever eaten (although nowhere beats the Micmac tavern!). After our meals, we were offered coffee and more alcohol if we desired. I think this is a lovely place to have a company event and I would definitely return again. My only complaint was that my appetizer (calamari) was quite soggy. Next time I will order the bruschetta like my boyfriend did, as it was delicious.

If you’re willing to spend a bunch of money, this is THE classy place to go to! Absolutely delicious with amazing service and a ton of options for meat eaters and vegetarians alike. The sorbet is also a delight!

If I could give Café Chianti zero stars, I would give Café Chianti zero stars. I have never been so offended by service, food, and presentation in my life. Café Chianti ruined my birthday dinner.
I arrived to dinner at 8 in the evening. Upon entering, there was no host to be found. I was forced to hunt through the entire restaurant for the rest of my reservation on my own. When finally I located my table, I was horrified to find that it was located at the back of the restaurant, stuffed between multiple other tables, horizontally, in a room with no windows and no ventilation.
After several minutes, our server, a lady who did not seem even remotely interested in my party at all, finally arrived. Because I was so uncomfortable in this stuffy room, crammed between several other smaller tables of two, immediately I requested our table be moved elsewhere. This request was not accommodated and as such, made dining for both our table and the tables around us very uncomfortable. We received a number of dirty looks and were made to feel deeply uncomfortable.
Unfortunately, nothing was as uncomfortable as the dinner service that proceeded. It took more than half an hour for the server to take our orders. Once they were taken, I had to beg a server (not even our OWN server) for some free bread that had been generously offered to every other table in our room of confinement. This second server delivered our bread promptly, and THANK. GOD! After waiting nearly an hour I asked my server how much longer the wait would be and was advised it would be another fifteen minutes. Finally, at 9:48, my food arrived. I almost wish that it had not.
I ordered the Funghi pizza and the Rucola pizza. They were disgusting, bordering on inedible. The veggies on the pizza were flavorless, the pizza was soggy and barely baked, and I was deeply unsatisfied. I did not eat more than a slice of each, and only took them to go because I felt bad wasting the food. Unfortunately, eventually they did meet with the garbage can. I also ordered a strawberry daiquiri which tasted like a blended ice and pineapple juice with a splash of rum (MAYBE).
Also notable was the veal ordered by another member of my party. It was dry, tasted like fried chicken, and portions of the breading were burned black. I could’t believe my eyes and was too scared to even take a bite.
Our server asked how we enjoyed our meals. I expressed how unsatisfied I was and she did not say anything, only walking away unapologetically. I almost felt as though I was in the wrong for expressing my displeasure and was made to feel very uncomfortable for being honest. The poor service affected our entire table, so much so that we even began to bicker amongst one another about how to address the atrocious service, extended wait, appalling, undercooked food, and offensive experience.
I left a 10% tip because I felt guilty leaving none, but nobody involved in the butchering of my meal and destruction of my birthday dinner deserved my 6 dollars. Out of respect for me on my birthday, all I ask from each of you is that you NEVER go to this restaurant. Tell your friends how bad it is. Spread the word. It’s not okay. DO NOT GO. Avoid at all costs.
Thank you, Café Chianti, for giving me something to laugh about.

The place filled up quite quickly and became so loud that we couldn’t hear ourselves speaking and we had to revert to texting. Service was excellent but the food was not great. It was also quite pricey at $ 120 for two meals and two desserts.

Food is delicious and staff is very friendly. It’s a little bit expensive though. But it’s one of the best Italian restaurants in Halifax for sure.

Best risotto balls and bruschetta I have had, service can’t be beat. Love going here for special occasions. Only downside is I find the nice ambience from the old location isn’t there anymore. Room is wide open with a lot of tables so no real privacy for conversations and can get quite noisy.
Love that they are an upscale restaurant yet have still had groupons to make it more affordable for people.

Delicious Italian food.
Food (³⁄₃ stars) Calamari and Bistecca (Steak). If you come to this restaurant and order these two items you will be blown away. Everything else on the menu is equally delicious. Great pastas, awesome appetizers and good portions. Chef Terry does wonders and I encourage everyone to try his food.
Atmosphere = (¹⁄₁ star) Food this delicious will make any atmosphere seem credible. However, it’s nice and quiet, good décor, lighting and nice comfortable tables and bathrooms.
Service (¹⁄₁ star) Very polite, great with recommendations. Feels like I’m at home.
Main Enjoyment: The calamari melting in my mouth. Then biting into the crisp outside of the steak to savour the delicious juices on the inside.
Main Complaint: It was a little cold in the restaurant over the winter. Don’t be cheap!

When I heard about Café Chianti I expected to be blown away but unfortunately I wasn’t. I hate to write a bad review but it definitely wasn’t worth it for the price of the food.

Went here for Valentine’s two years in a row. (this year, it was the last place where we could find reservations, but that’s okay, since I remembered liking it from last year).
Nice, dark, romantic atmosphere with a «chianti wall» (many bottles hanging all in a big bunch), Italian scenery murals painted in one area, a large fireplace, knight’s armor standing guard. When you first come in the entranceway, there is a room to the left with a capacity for maybe 60? If you go to the right, near the bar, there are a few scattered tables with a cozy feel, and down the central hallway where the washrooms are, and several waiting chairs, there’s another room in the rear that has maybe another dozen tables? Both of my visits have been on the left. Very nice washrooms I may add.
Excellent service.
For the free bread: warm, white baguette with oil & vinaigrette.
One of the best Caesar salads in the city (Baby romaine, arugula, crisp pancetta, garlicky focaccia croutons, parmigiana and a lemon and anchovy dressing. $ 10. Even without the meat, mine, it was very flavorful with a nice mixture of textures, and not dripping in dressing).
Very good Gnocchi Sorrintina (Handmade spinach and potato pasta, pomodoro,
baby spinach, smoked mozzarella. $ 21.). A bit heavy on the sauce, but a good portion and nice tasting.
My partner ordered the Penne Arrosto (Free range roasted chicken with bacon,
spinach, toasted walnuts and gorgonzola, Southern Comfort crema. $ 23), which he gave a major thumb’s up, practically licking the plate clean.
The gelato of the day was Baileys brownie, equivalent to about two scoops in a tall glass sundae dish. Very good but when full, you can’t enjoy it properly, so we were forcing that down by the end, split between us.
I had a few glasses of the Riff Terra Alpina Pinot Grigio ($ 10). Very good. Partner had a Manhattan on ice and a Negroni, both $ 9 and perfect.
Most recent (3^rd) visit on a hot, overcast Friday evening in August. Had reservations at 6:15 but they definitely weren’t necessary, as the place was half full at best. My assumption is the increased competition in the neighborhood kept it from being too busy. But regardless, it was just as good as the prior visits. Our waitor, Sonny, was very friendly. My Caesar salad on this occasion I found wasn’t quite as great as the last time, ie the croutons weren’t as crunchy as I find they should be, so maybe were a bit older. Overall it was still fine though. I tried the Quattro Formaggio pizza (White sauce, ricotta, gorgonzola, parmesan and mozzarella. $ 18.) which was very good. If I hadn’t eaten the salad, I could have finished the pizza easily. But I took three slices in a doggie bag. The slices are quite small, but perfect for one. My partner absolutely loved his Bistecca Grilled AAA strip loin of beef, Tuscan fritte, piccante aioli, veal jus. $ 33.95. The steak was about 10% more well done than he likes (had requested medium well), but nonetheless, he gave it a 4.75 out of 5. The potato wedges were very good as well (I tasted one).
I look forward to getting back here maybe for lunch one day to try one of the other salads and maybe marg pizza. :)

Amazing Italian food. Top notch and wonderful for a great night out. Right in the downtown core of the greater Halifax area.

I took my mother and sister here as a graduation dinner when my mom finished her MBA. Lovely experience. Great pasta. Service was on par with what I would expect for an upscale resto. Would definitely return.
We also hilariously observed a man/​woman on a possible first date next to us, where the man was just pompously making a show about his knowledge of wine. I’m no sommelier, but I can spot a douchbag from a few hundred leagues. I’m sure the wine was good. But the woman was even visibly annoyed at his foolishness. Flamboyantly examining the legs of the wine. Loudly proclaiming facts or opinion about its quality. I’m sure some of you have seen this before. Stopping the waiter to «ask him» very pointed, self-​affirming questions about the wine he was drinking. It was quite entertaining actually.
Whoever you are, please keep doing this in public but not ever at my table.

I have had the pleasure of eating at Café Chianti about 5 times now. The most recent was a very special occasion for my wife and I. We brought our best friends, it was their first visit. The service was absolutely exceptional. Our waiter Scott pretty much set the stage for a successful night. The food was delicious, all of the meals were great. The ambiance was perfect, they knew it was a special night and has us seated right by the fireplace.
Our friends were very impressed as well. It was a wonderful experience. Peter N.

I went with my fiancé and his parents and younger brother.
We were a bit early for our reservation (15 mins) but they seated us anyway. The lighting when we started was okay with the light from outside but once the sun was gone it became extremely dark — when we asked about the lighting after our meal they said they were having trouble finding a good setting as there was four light switches and they were unsure which ones did what. It was constant changing every five minutes or so and very annoying.
Our servers were lovely and polite and we felt doted on even with a supper crowd. We had the calamari at the waiter’s suggestion and were blown away with how yummy it was. The other started we got was the bruschetta.
For my main course I got the chicken and spinach pasta, my fiancé got a lobster stuffed ravioli. I have dreamed of pasta as yummy as that dish was. I was so pleased it. All of our food was rich and delicious.
Our water glasses were never empty which was a nice plus.
For dessert we all tried different things, I had the lemon cheesecake which was rich without being overpowering and I was really pleased with the dense creamy texture. My fiancé got the bailey’s brownie and the bailey’s cream could have been nicer, it had little water crystals which took away from the taste.
Overall I would go back and order the exact same thing in a heartbeat, it’s definitely a new favourite spot.

My first time being there, I was dressed a bit casual and by my lonesome but it was an unforgettable experience, the setting was very posh with an elegance, soft music and my waiter was highly dedicated in serving me.
here‘s what I ordered
Starter: Caesare: Grilled hearts of romaine with a lemon
anchovy and roasted garlic vinaigrette, fried capers, cheesy croûton. — This shocked my system with the flavor because I‘m so use to regular cesar salads and the sharp taste threw me off balance, It was tasty but I think I‘ll stick with my regular cesar salads
Bolognese: Spaghetti, veal meatballs, meat ragout, parmesan. Also ordered some garlic bread with it — I didn‘t eat the meat balls but when I tried a fork full of this spagetti and nibbled on the bread, I nearly cried, it was breath taking, the texture, the spike of flavor and the smell gave me warm and cold shivers and made me want more. I highly recommend trying it along with the garlic bread.
Crème Bruilee Italiano — My first tasting of Crème Bruilee, and it was sheer bliss, I mean the top layer is a bit thick of it‘s caramelized sugar and it did give me a little bit of a tooth ache but it was well worth it especially once I tried the custard underneath. it was heavenly.
All in all, I loved this place, it is pricey but it‘s well worth it and I‘ll be trying to be a monthly regular when I can

When we heard Café Chianti had a new chef and updated menu, we had to try it. We hadn’t been there in years because, well, nothing had changed for years (besides their location).
The décor is a strange dark yellow, but it works. Our server brought us the drink list on one of their nifty tablets. I’m surprised more restaurants aren’t using these yet. Their menu has greatly improved with so many tempting new items to choose from.
Our server suggested the calamari to start. Now, the only calamari I have had was at Gio, and it was to die for. Let me just say their calamari in a spicy pomodoro sauce is on par with Gio’s dish. It’s that good. For mains we had rigatoni with sausage and prosciutto-​wrapped salmon. Both were very, very good.
Dessert was tiramisu (one of the best I’ve ever had) and gelato-​filled crepes. The crepes? Were HUGE. More than large enough to share.
Our server was friendly and professional, and our food came in a timely manner. It is a pricey restaurant, but definitely worth it.

Nothing bugs me more than when I walk into a restaurant and the first person I see is standing there with his back to me, on the phone, ignoring me. Um hello, I’m a paying customer, pay attention to me. Anyway…
When we were seated down, we were given the menu along with an ipad with the drink list. This was SO cool since it told me the price, the ingredients, and food pairing for wines, cocktails, spirits, etc.
We ordered an app (salad … yummm), pasta for our main (Ravioli, another yum) and drinks and everything was pretty good. I found the service a bit slow but maybe it was because I was hungry. Prices were decent, especially for drinks, and there was a good selection for apps and mains. Overall a good experience, aside from the beginning, and I’d definitely go back!

Meh– I wasn’t overly impressed.
I know this is crazy but for the menu prices, I expected more.
For Starters, the atmosphere was beautiful… I loved the victorian living room feel.
The wine menu was on an ipad– oh ah. However, most wines you had to buy by the bottle and was super pricey.
The menu looked great– lots of choice and very creative dishes. And the food was good. It really was– but like 12 $ good, not $ 20. My husband got the goulash and said it was interesting and good, and my pasta was tasty. But again, it didn’t seem to be any higher of a quality than hole in the wall Vinnies.
All in all it was a good meal. And I would go back but not on my own suggestion.

I think Café Chianti is alright. It’s been around for a long time, which is an accomplishment in and of itself in Halifax, even surviving a devastating fire! But our experience last night was definitely nothing to get excited about. If I could have chosen a 2.5 star rating, I would have.
The service was… meh. We seemed to have 2 waiters, which was actually kind of confusing. They were nice enough, but never introduced themselves and weren’t what you’d call overly personable. They also left ALL of the glassware on the table throughout the entire meal, despite several people not drinking wine at all, and others having several different kinds of drinks. The table became an obstacle course.
The food took FOREVER. We all ordered appetizers and an entrée. The entrees were all either pizza or pasta dishes. My pasta was quite good, but my butternut squash soup was disappointing. More watery than I was expecting and not very flavourful.
One thing that was pretty cool was that their wine list is on an iPad. You can click through and even see pictures of the labels of each wine. The only downfall to this was that we thought once you made your wine selection and put it in the cart, that it may have been wirelessly sent somewhere and someone would bring the wine. So we waited a while before realizing we actually had to show it to someone. That was our own silliness.
Overall it was OK, but this restaurant always seems to come up among the lists of Halifax’s finest restaurants, and I just don’t think it measures up to some of the others, especially in terms of the service.

I can’t believe that my first time at Café Chianti was only this past week. I’ve heard good things from friends and the local Twitter community and have wanted to try as I love Italian food and had heard it was very reasonably priced, I only sealed the deal on Friday at the request of my lunch date who had been there before and wanted to go again.
Trying to find parking wasn’t ideal as it’s on Barrington but you’ll find that with most restos downtown. We eventually found something nearby on South Street. Immediately I was pleased with the décor and ambiance. Seemed like a classy place ideal for lunch and dinner but not too stuffy where you might feel under-​dressed if you showed up in jeans and a blazer (which is what I did.) We decided to sit on the bar side since we had my friend’s baby in tow and didn’t want to disturb other diners if she were to get fussy. The dining side was quite busy and was a little loud but the bar side was much quieter with very comfy chairs à la The Fireside.
Right away the hostess and the manager were very accommodating suggesting a high chair or booster seat for the baby. While I wouldn’t say this restaurant is great for small children (not much to entertain a child and limited menu options), they can seat you comfortably if you have one, and the help-​yourself plate of cookies they have at the bar came in handy in this regard as well.
We started with the Calamari Fritti at the suggestion of a Twitter follower. While I agree slightly with Jenny W. that the presentation wasn’t ideal and that it was a little soggy, having it in the tomato sauce was a new way to try it and they got us some dill dipping sauce when we said we wouldn’t like the tomato chilli dip that it’s traditionally served with. The menu shows a hot pepper next to this item but thankfully the spice was very mild. We enjoyed it.
My friend had the Quatro Fromagio pizza that looked delicious and that she loved. I was torn between the Linguine alla Marco Polo, the smoked salmon panini, and the Transylvanian Goulash that was recommended to me by a friend, but I settled on the linguine. (I love a restaurant menu that has so many good looking options that it’s hard to decide.) I was very pleased with my selection and I finished every bite.
Overall, time and money well spent. My bill was what I would traditionally pay at a place like Jack Astor’s or Montana’s and the food and environment was much better. Our waiter was kind and speedy and the hostess and manager seemed genuinely interested in our experience. I agree with Ben that I wish it was possible to give a 3.5 rating because the experience was a little beyond just A-​OK. I’ll return some day for sure and try the goulash.

I’m going to take one from the book of more particular Unilocalers and note that this is probably more like a 3.5-star rating instead of your basic three. Better than A-​OK, but not quite reaching fan-​worthy status, I had a nice long-​overdue first visit to Café Chianti’s new location.
It’s also worth pointing out in my typically long-​winded fashion, that my only other Café Chianti experience was at their pre-​fire haunt and was truly impeccable. I’m talking, like, top twenty dining memories of all time. That is, expectations were high.
Sarah L lured me in with a grossly under-​promoted Wine and Pizza Thursdays deal that basically boils down to a nine-​inch thin crust pizza and a glass of house wine for $ 15 plus tax and tip. Think about that for a minute. $ 15…full pizza meal… and wine. More people need to know about this!
The Romanesco pizza with feta, sundried tomatoes and artichoke hearts was tasty and a good balance of the ingredients although I can’t say the feta had much flavour. Still, very enjoyable and I can’t wait to eat the leftovers when I can home tonight. I think the special typically just goes for their Chianti pizza but they were happy to make the change to suit my vegetarian status.
Our server was charming, professional and attentive but not so much that he wasn’t able to keep up with our off-​colour humour and generally abrasive-​after-​a-​glass-​of-​wine personalities. A relief after the person who seated me sort of made me want to turn around and go somewhere else. No warm and fuzzies there, that’s for sure.
The major detractions for me came from the atmosphere though. When the dining room was full, we quite seriously were shouting at each other across the table and even still, I had to resort to lip-​reading for most of it. My preference for fine-​dining is a little more intimate and calm, so later reservations next time.
The big one? Ohhh the menu. Shiny, laminated, and full of photos… it just really doesn’t give off the right vibe for the quality of food and service they deliver. I know that’s SO nitpicky and lame for me to even bring up but hey… it put me off.
I’ll be back — sure. But probably just to take advantage of the same special. When I want to drop some serious coin on a nice Italian meal, it’ll be someone quieter.