Sabatino’s

This place always has a crowd, so I don’t know what I’m not seeing, but I’d give it a medium. I’ve eaten here a few times, and although I live in Wakefield, it’s never at the top of my list of local places to go. It does a big bar business — good for them — but as a diner, the noise level doesn’t always allow for conversation. Food is ok, nothing special. I would have given them a third star if it weren’t for the décor, which makes me think take out. Feels more like a burger joint than a restaurant I want to go and drop $ 50 in.

Sabatino’s is a great place to throw back a few glasses of wine and eat some steak tips. I get picky with Italian food, so I’ve typically stayed with a fish dish or steak/​lamb tips. I’ve tried bites of other dishes and have always enjoyed them, so I would definitely consider branching out next time. Steak tips are really f’n good though, just saying.
Oh, and some chicken matrigliana (?) whatever, that’s really good too. My husband gets it and I always eat like half.
The service has always been great. Super friendly and consistent. I think that is what makes this place what it is, you always know what you’re gonna get every time. These days, you can really appreciate that in a restaurant!

From the first moment we started dealing with pure breeders, they were very professional. Everything they said would happen did. Every time we called with questions they were very helpful. My pure bred dachshund arrived on Friday and she is perfect. Took her for her Vet check and she is very healthy. Thank you for making this experience very positive.

Best at lunch time. Dinner and later can get very loud! The best shrimp cocktail around. Fresh!!! Love the lighter side with salad and grilled steak tips. The tips are fantastic. Have never had a bad entrée.

I visited Sabatinos for the first time this past week, we were a party of 7 and I was very impressed with the quality of the food as well as service. As a group we ordered a hot and a cold antipasto and they were loaded with goodies from sauté mushrooms to roasted peppers, artichokes and soprasata. I got the salmon with broccoli, it’s on the menu as grilled or baked but I asked for pan seared and they gladly accommodated my request, the portion was plentiful and very tasty. Others ordered veal and eggplant parm over pasta, tripe, chicken broccoli and ziti. Everything was amazing, the staff was great and was there when we needed them. I’ll be back to this hidden 4 ½ star gem in Wakefield ctr soon and you all won’t be disappointed if you do the same. Thanks for reading and Bön Appétit.

First time checking this place out. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt that it was busy, but in reality it wasn’t all that bad! We were seated immediately, but after that it didn’t go well. Took quite a while for someone to come over to take our order. After that we had three different servers stop by our table asking if we needed drinks or whatnot so we weren’t sure who was our server the whole night. Once we got our order in it took 45 min to get our food. When it was brought out it was the wrong order! So we wait again. Let me mention we had a 3 month old with us… Can you imagine my stress of him waking at any moment and having a freak out? We were so lucky he slept pretty much the whole time, but it wasn’t what we imagined when we planned to grab dinner. They finally brought our correct order and it was the last we saw of a server until we flagged someone down for a glass of wine (I needed it!). The food was so good! But the service was awful. I was hoping for some kind of comp, maybe our appetizer or something, for the excessive wait and wrong order, but nothing. I’m not one to request such a thing, just hoping they would recognize the inconvenience. I enjoyed the ambiance of the place, very small and personal, but also very loud. I don’t think we will be returning here. Too many options in the area to deal with such poor service.

I was here yesterday (¹²⁄₁₁) with my boyfriend for dinner and we sat at the bar. I immediately noticed the young guy bartender (Chris) was such a slop! He greeted us while chewing his gum. We ordered our for and he asked if we want bread. sure, why not! but he forgot to give us plate and knife! So we have to asked him for it… Alright, our food arrived. He don’t even intended to move the bread basket and handed our food… He just slide it to us on the side.
Foods looks great! The whole time I was eating, Chris just walk by us back and forth as he was talking to other customers. I noticed Chris would not stand still as customer was talking to him, and continuously chewing his gum. Okay… The lady next to me complained to a female staff that her chicken dishes was awful and tough to chew. Oh boy! I thought my good was fine til the point I’m done eating… things went wrong! I immediately have stomach pain and end up in bathroom!!!
The price is outrages! If you want to get a nice perfect eggplant parm, go to farmland!!! They have the best eggplant parm!!!
No wonder this restaurant had only 3 ½ stars!!!

I have eaten here a handful of times and always had good food. A few months ago my husband and I went and sat at the bar. We had some of the worst service ever and haven’t been back since. We were in the mood for Italian tonight so we decided to order out from here. The woman who took our order over the phone was so unbelievable rude to my husband that I couldn’t even bare to give them our service. We cancelled our order and I will never be returning. Food is good but other than that I’m all set. There is no lack of Italian places around to be treated like that.

Love the food and reasonably priced (especially the alcoholic beverages)

Only 1 star for the hostess whom was great. I guess you have to be a regular to get any service at the bar! No acknowledgement from the bartender when we sat at the bar. Had to wait for him to serve martini’s to people who sat after us. Then waited again when someone joined them. Can’t review the food never got a chance because we left! Too bad it looked delish. I guess if there is a next time I’ll get a table.

Love this place! An old friend was in town for the weekend and suggested me and some friends meet up here since it’s halfway between Boston and Northern MA, where we were all coming from. My fiancée is usually quite particular about Italian restaurants (since his family owns one), but after looking at the menu and scarfing down our delicious meals, this will definitely be a place to return to! The food was fresh and hot and the servers were very attentive and friendly. Downtown Wakefield can be hard to find parking sometimes, but there are lots of lots around the venue where you can park. Please check this place out if you’re in the area. It’s a nice city and these folks provide great food in a comfortable, home-​y environment: D

went there for the first time last Friday night for a celebratory birthday dinner. Wow… was I impressed with both the food and the entire staff. The bartenders were fantastic. friendly, knowledgable and first-​rate in every way. The food was top quality, delicious and reasonably priced. Can’t wait to go back. This is a gem and will now become one of our go-​to restaurants.

The food is absolutely delicious! I had a fusilli dish called Toscana and the fusilli was perfectly fines. The shrimp was also cooked well. A side of sautéed spinach complemented this dish nicely. Prices are a little higher than I would expect for such a loud place-​everyone is having fun but it not for not for anyone who wants quiet. We would have stayed for dessert but we did not allow enough time-​the food did not come fast but that is probably why it is so good!

First time and my husband and I are hooked homemade pasta was amazing as well as our server Kim she’s our new fav!

Excellent meal tonight. Veal and Eggplant Parm with Pasta Just outstanding is all that needs to be said.
They don’t take gift cards. Waitress said their computer software can’t. ??? Get this fixed please.

We just recently moved to Wakefield, and so far I’ve gotten takeout twice, and dined in once. We’ve had the gnocchi and the chicken matrigiana (sp*?), and both are sooo delicious. Two entrees and two glasses of wine ran us about $ 60, which isn’t too steep, especially considering portions are massive and you get about two meals off of leftovers! Felix, the bartender is also hilarious and very knowledgeable. We really like this place :)

Nope. Hoped this food was going to be good, but it’s not. It’s an older, large, wealthy crowd that gets loud and drunk. A fun hang out perhaps but not quality cuisine. When trying Italian joints, first time around, I always do linguine w/​clams, white sauce, if it’s on the menu… Awful. No shells? Translation: canned clams. Disgusting. And Wife’s lasagna’s secret ingredient? Philadelphia cream cheese, I would guess. Very bland. My daughters chicken parm was ok, but for the high price, not good enough. Next time? Date night beers and wine. Skip the food.

Pretty pointless to dine here unless you’re a regular customer. You’ll see friends of the manager getting seated before you even though they just walked in, the bartenders chit chatting with their bar regulars while you wait 15 minutes for a new drink, and idiotic, drunk patrons making a scene — probably because they’re getting served three times as much as you are.
Certainly NOT a place for a quiet, romantic evening out. NOT even a place to get good Italian. But please, come here if you want to uselessly wait in a sea of drunk townies to receive average, overpriced food.

Went out with my husband Friday night. When we walked in, there was a large very loud crowed all gathered around the bar. There were 3 tables available, a small 2 person table right next to the bar, a 6 person table further away from the bar, and a table for 4 back in the corner away from the bar. I asked the hostess if we could get the (4 person) table farthest away from the loud bar crowd and she told me «the whole restaurant is loud» & no, she was expecting a large party coming shortly, but we could have the small table next to the bar. Not wanting to wait, my husband wanted to eat, so I said ok.
The food was pretty good. They served bread (that wasn’t very soft) you could use dipping oil that was placed on every table. I didn’t care for the oil, I’ve had much better oil in different restaurants, so I asked our waitress if we could have butter. It’s sad when plain butter is better than italian dipping oil.
My husband can’t have dairy, so when we ordered his dish, I asked if there was any cheese on his dish, she said no, & we said «ok good». But when they brought his complimentary salad, it had a bunch of cheese on it, instead of sending it back, he didn’t eat it.
Other than that, what we ordered was pretty good. Good food for reasonable prices.
What was extremely disappointing was the hostess. We ate, paid and left, and during that time no big party ever arrived. In fact 2 more tables (far away from the bar) had left. So when we left there were 4 empty tables (away from the bar), yet we were forced to sit there next to the very loud, irritating, noisy, swearing drunk people all screaming, laughing & joking around. NOT what I had hoped for on a night out. You’d think she could have approached us and asked if we’d like to move to a quieter table.
Good food, but still pissed at the rude hostess. Terrible customer service skills.

Wasn’t sure where to park– but circled around and finally found parking in front of what looked to be a library– across the street from the restaurant. Some of the reviewers described the restaurant as loud. That’s true. It’s appears to be a townie place where friends and family come to catch up. It’s good for families– not necessarily good for a first date or a special occasion. I ordered the fuselli with sausage and broccoli. $ 18.99. The menu said it would be sautéed in garlic and oil. To my surprise, the chef poured all of that oil into my dish so my wonderful meal was sitting in a pool of yuckiness. The lady next to me at the bar got steak tips and they looked very good. Might have to go back and try them. Bartenders and servers are all super nice.
Update– went back and tried the steak tips. $ 17.99 for the steak and one side. I chose the broccoli and it was cooked perfectly. The portion was appropriate for me, and I did eat most of my dinner, but the gentleman I was with needed more to his meal. I think the more appealing price point to the customer would be 19.99 and throw in a baked potato. My steak tips were good. If I were in the area, I might stop in again.

With the glut of Italian restaurants in Wakefield, it’s tough to differentiate. In my humble opinion, Sabatino’s is número uno. My wife and I always request a high top overlooking Wakefield Center. With the bar to the other side and televisions providing sports news. The spot is perfecto.
Start with the antipasti. The salumi and warm vegetables are deliziosi. There is more than enough for three or four and it’s quite a bargain.
Try the steak or lamb tips. Your mouth and taste buds will thank you. So perfectly prepared with a side a hot peppers (request extra peppers). The combination of heat from the peppers and fantastic flavor of the tips will knock you out.
Drinks are mixed perfectly and are quite generoso. If you dine Wednesdays or Fridays, request Marie, she’s super friendly and a great server.
You will not be disappointed. Buon appetito.