Il Panificio

This is terrible! We use to love this place until yesterday when my daughters took me there for fathers day. My oldest daughters calazone was FILLED with MAGGOTS!!! She took a bite and noticed this. Absolutely digesting. I am reporting them to the health department. NOT FRESH IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT! EAT AT YOUR OWN RISK. Maggots… think about it. gross.

I have been getting Pizza from this place since I was a little kid but in recent years, although the pizza quality is still pretty consistent, the service and staff have certainly gone down hill. They are rude, have no concept of time (if you place an order ahead it may not be ready when asked for). I liked the place much better before the re-​model (it has more character then) and when the owners had more time and were the ones actually in the shop.

The Everything Pizza. Crust was crispy & flavorful but that’s where it ends.
Sauce was acidic, like from a can and no fresh basil, lacking in cheese (likely part skim not whole milk) and lastly is there a vegetable shortage…
This is a very weak 3 star rating. That’s mostly because there’s not anything on the pizza that tastes fresh or homemade. The value and sales cost are also out of sorts. Overpriced — Low Quality.
I can wrap this up by suggesting you buy a frozen thin and crispy Red Barons Pizza, dress it slightly up and over price it and you’ve grasped the restaurants concept and quality.

Love this place go there all the time. The drive from Bradenton is always worth it. Food is always fresh and staff if friendly, prices are great too

Must have had a bad day last time I was here. Ordered a large pizza and it was great! Will come back!

The best pizza in SRQ hands down but I wish it wasn’t. It is continually a frustrating experience to go here. The staff is obnoxious incompetent and I can only assume they are intoxicated, that’s really the only reasonable explanation for the terrible service day in day out. I bear it almost weekly for the pie and I live less than a mile.

Il Panifico’s food was excellent.
When we got there, we sat outside because it was a beautiful day out and they had multiple tables to choose from. We sat outside for about 10 minutes and realized there was no outside service.
So we went inside and sat. After a few minutes we also realized there was no inside service.
Maybe that should be mentioned somewhere?
Anyway, once you get up and order your food, and have the opportunity to sit back down to eat the food, it’s fantastic.
It’s not necessarily very clean inside or outside, but again, the food was very good.
They do offer free refills on soda, which is nice. And once you’re prepared for the lack of service, then you know what you’re getting and no surprises.
It seems like it’s probably a great place for carry out. Their pizza and sandwiches were so good, that we would go back!

Decent tasting pizza in a great location but sadly it misses the mark, disorganized counter service & pick up
Often dirty tables, floors
Nice outdoor seating area

This place SUCKS! You walk in the door and it deceives you with its authentic jersey Italian décor, but the pizza blows and the service is the worst it can possibly be. Very unorganized. Never again!

Terrible. Lived in NJ/​NY area all my life. so i don’t know what all the others are talking about. All the pizza looked hours old. Disgueted.

Great pizza but very rude service.
I felt like I was on a Seinfeld episode
and they were the pizza Nazi’s.
Won’t be back again.

This place used to be great but I think ownership has shifted hands. The pizza sits around behind the glass for God only knows how long and gets saugy. The ingredients are cheap and the people are rude! Two thumbs down!

For a great Downtown Sarasota location I expected a better lunch experience! I’m not impressed with this location!
First of all, there’s no management. Everyone was ordering a slice of pizza in mixed orders! You walk up to the counter before someone walks in and they get service first by requesting something from the pizza maker and not the counter person.
It is clearly disorganized to say the least!
I order two slices of pizza and two drinks and it cost me $ 12.35!
What are you telling me Il Panificio your pizzas made of gold? Sure it may taste better than frozen pizzas but I’m sorry, not $ 4.75 a slice plus the sodas!!!
You can certainly get the same or even better quality pizza down the street and for a full size pizza for what I paid for just two slices here!
The counter person had trouble keeping up with payments!
She took a man’s debt card and charged him for what I think another person’s order!
And btw — this is supposed to be an Italian Bakery establishment, right? Where’s the zeppole? Don’t you know it’s an Italian tradition to sell zeppole during Saint Joseph’s Day? Shame… shame Panificio!
I’m sorry but I would not step in here without change!
I don’t mean a Barack Obama change — I mean «for the better» change!

Finally a place that tastes similar to the pizza I’m used to from living in NJ. I tried the Sicilian pizza and it was delicious! The desserts were also tasty as I took home some cannolis and a tiramisu which happens to be my favorite dessert. Overall this place made me feel like I walked into a little Italian restaurant like I would have back home

I stopped at this place for a quick lunch with my family and we loved it. The staff was friendly and helpful. The pizza had a thin and crispy crust and the toppings were fresh and tasty. My sister ordered the gluten-​free option and also approved it.

Will start with the positives-​thin New York style pizza that tasted good, although a bit on the crispy side.
Customer service is non existent and I’m a New Yorker that has experienced loads of the real deal pizzerias where tony and guido treat you like family. Not here. Forgettabout it! I asked the dude what kind of calzones he had and he proceeds to rip each one open with his finger and mumble some ingredients. Really? They looked old and sad.
I asked if they had a restroom and was handed a gas station type of key and told its outside. Is this a pizza place or do I get an oil change?
The condiments on the table looked like they had seen better days. Dirty dining would have a field day here!
Was passing through and won’t be back even for decent tasting pizza.

Fantastic and consistent plus my NY and European friends feel right at home! It’s ambience is good and outside dining is great in the winter!
Whether for pizza, calzone or great sandwiches this ace is an inexpensive and satisfying choice!

Man I was so excited when we walked into this place. It just had the look of a place where you’re about to get the best slab of pizza you’ve ever had. It looked authentically Italian without being cheesy. But when I took that first bite, my only thought was… really? It was just bland and forgettable. It wasn’t the worst pizza I had, but it was no better than any chain pizza.

Good pizza, but greasy. Super thin crust was nice, and if you like your pie saturated in oils then this is the place to come! Usually I like a bit less because I feel a bit queasy after otherwise, but it was good pizza regardless. You’re looking at about $ 20 a pie here. But there pies are big, so it’s well worth it. 2 ppl will have left overs and 3 or 4 people will be comfortably full. Though it doesn’t look like they have a restroom, they do, just ask.

Decent Pizza — Rude humans.
I called to order take out and the guy was really rude. He said, «look, it’s really busy here» and mumbled some stuff then hung up on me.
I picked up three pizzas for $ 60. The plain and the meat pizza were decent, but super oily.
The Sicilian was awful — it reminded me of something you’d get in a middle school cafeteria.