Made a reservation for my family for Monday night. Reservation is strongly suggested. And if they offer you the table next to the check in desk outside, you do not have to take it. Still not sure why there is a table right next to the check in desk right at the entrance stairs. If you like a greeter role that table is perfect :) The server was very nice and informative. The decor inside is very cozy the comforting. The menu is full of great options abc best part is many options including lasagna do not have pork. All home made Pasta. So delightful. The lasagna special tomatoes sauce. Everything was excellent. Tortellini squid ink spaghetti with shrimp diavolo was insane. Reasonable size dishes for the price. This is a must as far as Italian food. Every dish perfected. Service excellent. Timing of food service is perfect. We plan to visit every time we are in town. read more

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This is the best place to eat . Food is amazing. Server Chris was absoultatly amazing and so kind and always checked on us great guy and great place to eat ! read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

Update: Thank you, Marc, for reaching out. We can't wait to return in 2026! Disappointed with our annual visit. During our time there, we felt a bit neglected by our server. He didn't check on us much and was a bit cold in his approach. No chatting, no friendliness, no recommendations - just here's your check and gone. We also felt extremely rushed by the gentleman cleaning tables. We were obviously still eating - with lots of food still on our plates - when he approached our table asking if he could take our plates. The food didn't taste as good as usual. My pasta tasted weird and my husband didn't like what he was somewhat pushed into ordering. We held our small wedding reception at Cafe Gabbiano several years ago. Since then, we have returned to SKB and Cafe Gabbiano to celebrate our special day. Every year I make a note in our reservations that we are celebrating our wedding anniversary. This year, no one mentioned anything - but a big fuss was made over a table near us that was celebrating a birthday. We left feeling quite disappointed. read more

Favorite restaurant we went to during a trip this past weekend. Still dreaming of the bread and wishing I could grab some right now. I got the veal piccata, mussels and calamari. Completed the meal with a large portion of tiramisu. So good!! The restaurant is cozy and does have a romantic vibe to it. Staff was engaging, warm and friendly. Would 100 percent recommend and ready to come back as soon as we make another trip. Don't sleep on this restaurant. read more

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If you're looking for really good Italian or seafood on the island this is the spot ! We went with a huge party and had great service. A few of us ordered the chef special which is always great and packed full of flavor and usually a little interesting and more upscale. The prices fit the location and the quality and elaborate food served. The restaurant is like rustic Italian vibes and feels very upscale but also cozy. Would totally go back again. I think it's such a nice date night spot too! read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Bruschetta di Ischia Bruschetta di Ischia Blue Cheese Prosciutto - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

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Not a typical Italian restaurant! Pricy, but excellent 5-star Italian restaurant for foodies! The dining experience was stellar - food, wines, rich desserts, and attentive service. They offer multiple veal preparations but their Costolette di Vitello - 14 ounce bone-in Veal Chop with sautéed mushrooms, cream and brandy was spectacular! All desserts went over well but favorite one was Limoncello Tartufo - best Limoncello dessert I ever had. read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Dinner at Cafe Gabbiano - 5 star Italian for foodies - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

Food repeatedly disappointing for years. Ambiance is cute. Servers and chef quite accomodating

The restaurant is very cute. You feel like you're in Italy. The service was excellent. Someone stopped at the table many times and we waited for nothing. The food is excellent. I'm 1/2 Italian with grandparents from Italy and food was very impressive!!! Due to have a limited menu for Christmas the 3 of us chicken parm and homemade rigatoni. Excellent!!!! Thank you!! read more

We wanted to share some feedback regarding our recent dining experience. Our party of six joined Cafe Gabbiano for dinner this evening, and while we have enjoyed many wonderful meals here in years past, unfortunately this visit fell short of expectations. We were seated in a small area of the restaurant next to a large party of 8-10 guests who were extremely loud throughout the evening. As a result, it became difficult for us to carry on a conversation without raising our voices. Our waiter did his best under the circumstances, but it was nearly impossible to hear him or fully enjoy the experience. Despite our group ranging in age from 24 to 60 and typically having no issues with hearing, we struggled to communicate with one another for most of the evening. While the food and service were consistent with what we've come to expect, the noise level and seating arrangement made it difficult to enjoy our appetizers, drinks, entrées, and dessert. The entire meal took close to 2 hours, and rather than enjoying the evening as we usually do, we left with many leftovers and a strong desire to leave the restaurant as quickly as possible. We understand that busy nights happen and large parties can bring energy to a space, but we do feel that the table arrangements could have been handled more thoughtfully to balance the experience for all guests in the dining area. We expected a more enjoyable evening as we chose Cafe Gabbiano and not a sports bar for our dinner. We are sharing this feedback in the hope that it can be helpful for future seating arrangements. read more

Located in the heart of the village but tucked in a shopping center, this hidden gem had polite service, delicious handmade pastas and a lovely selection of wines. The choice of proteins was impressive as well. We had the calamari to start. I had the short rib ravoli and it was delicious. Highly recommend. read more

Absolutely amazing. Been here about 10 times now. Service, food, wine list... all wonderful! Came here with a few kids and our server went out of his way to make sure they got fruit while waiting for food, kids food out first, and bubbles to play with outside. All while still ensuring the adults enjoyed the evening. The customizable meal options with sides were perfect for picky eaters. Food came out fast and delicious. Couldn't recommend this place enough. read more

Wonderful service. Excellent burrata appetizer. We asked for more balsamic vinegar, though - quickly delivered. Chicken Parm was very good. Chicken was crisp and pasta was firm. Sauce was great - Could have used a bit more...perhaps on the side? Chicken Mamma Lucia was great as well. Excellent parmigiana risotto (option instead of potato). read more

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This place was great! Truffle ravioli was a unique thing to have on the menu and I love truffle so I decided to give it a try. It was amazing with just the right amount of truffle flavor! My mom had the lasagna and it was really good as well. Our server, Kris, was super attentive and had good recommendations. Highly recommend this place for a nice dinner! read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Truffle Ravioli - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

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We came by this place in the heart of siesta key for a good Italian meal. We got exactly that. Our waitress was a bit flaky but overall we enjoyed our meal here. The wine menu is in tiny print so you might need a magnifying glass but we got a perfectly good Sauvignon Blanc at a reasonable price point. As for dishes, I got the Veal Scallopini Mama Lucia which is a specialty of theirs. Yet the veal was a bit chewy and I found the dish just slightly forgettable a day later. My dining companion enjoyed theirs more FWIW. But the pasta with seafood was quite good with tons of fresh seafood in the red sauce. Overall, a solid Italian place in a great location. read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Veal Scaloppine Mamma Lucia - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

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Great Italian ambiance while still keeping the 'beachy' feel. We were sat in the porch area and served by the wonderful Marren. She was an excellent server. Everyone greatly enjoyed the entries, I got the special honey truffle salmon and it might be the best salmon I have ever had. Will be coming back next time we are at the keys! read more

Ambiance: 5/5 Food: 5/5 Drinks: 4/5 Service: 4/5 First off, I love this location on Siesta key. Plenty of parking and close to many hotels, rentals, the beach, etc. Ambiance: so pretty with the Christmas lights and displays of wine bottles. Typical Italian restaurant interior. Food: OMG! Amazing! The sautéed calamari was so delicious! The red sauce was so flavorful. I got the Ossobuco ravioli and the portion didn't look big but the raviolis were huge and I ended up being very satisfied! It is deceiving. The bolognese sauce was rich with meat and very tender. Sauce was excellent. Highly recommend dish! My boyfriend got the veal parm which was huge and it was pretty good as well but my dish was a lot better. Drinks: limoncello martini was very good but also very strong. Red sangria was just okay for me. It wasn't my favorite place to get it. Service: so the reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because I signed in on Yelp and showed 2 women the free bubbly drink upon check in and no one came out with my drink! I asked a few times and finally I assumed they weren't going to do that promotion anymore. Upsetting! Please take down the check in promo then if you aren't going to honor it! Food came a lot faster than I expected especially the appetizers. read more

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Sat at the bar last night for HH and Savor Sarasota dinner. We had to ask for the Savor Sarasota menu plus the daily special menu. The Smoked Old Fashioned was decent, has scotch. Ordered the lobster ravioli and did not taste any lobster. The pollo manna Lucia was flavorless with minimal sauce. The majority of the time the bartender was missing in action. Asked him about it and his response was that he had business to do. He also was running food to other tables which is not his fault, but affects the service. We got our check, and said we would pay after we receive our desserts. Food very bland and service mostly non existent. The cannoli and key lime pie were incredible. Will not be back. read more

Great meal, great service! Went for my wife's BD! Food was wonderful, we always get great food and love the atmosphere! Go to SK for fine Italian dining, Cafe Gabbiano! read more

Best veal chops around. Yummmm. Service is excellent. Selection of cheeses you'll love.

Service was amazing, the chef special for the gnocchi was incredible along with the Mama's veal plate. We started with calamari, was the best I've had in a while. Their bread came out shortly after, could tell it was fresh. And we had a glass of their wine to tie it all together. Highly recommend for a nicer evening out. read more

Where do I begin? I've lived in Sarasota for several years and am a big time foodie. We eat out several times a week. For what ever reason Cafe Gabbiano hadn't made our radar, untill now. Glad to finally have this experience. So this review is gonna start with Jessica, the most incredible server. Talk about sweet, efficient and professional. She really made our evening. The food was outstanding. Authentic, flavorful, beautifully plated and super warm. The way my belly likes it. We started with a fried mozzarella appetizer. Which Jessica suggested. Wow, mouth watering. We enjoyed a Lasagne Bolognese and the Pollo Parmigiana entrée. The portions were excellent and the flavors where outstanding . This is definitely our new go to. What a wonderful experience. We celebrated a birthday and glad we choose Cafe Gabbiano. Thank you for your attention to details and all the care that comes through in your food. Pure Perfection!!!! read more

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Everything at Cafe Gabbiano was amazing!! The service was impressive, they truly made my boyfriends birthday a very special night. The food was hot and delicious, the plating was gorgeous. I was so impressed! We started with the calamari and the bread with the delish oil dipping sauce. The calamari was crispy and perfectly coated. I had the chicken special which had Brie cheese and mushrooms. Amazing! My boyfriend at the Chicken Parm, so crispy and perfect. The dessert trio was so good, my fav was the key lime pie! Highly highly recommend. read more

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Came here as a fancier treat during our trip and it wasn't the experience we hoped it would be. The biggest issue we had was the service - there were so many people coming to our table, but instead of it feeling like we were EXTRA taken care of, instead it felt like we slipped through the cracks of everyone thinking someone else was taking care of things when they were not. We asked no less than 5 people for bread. Our 2 waiters, the manager that came over to see how things were and two different bussers. Each person said they were on it, but we only got our bread after we were halfway through our meal at which point it defeated the purpose. We also never received the special olive both a waiter and the manager promised. Regarding the food itself, it didn't blow us out of the water. Nothing was bad, but the flavor wasn't anything outstanding. The lobster ravioli had NO flavor whatsoever. The cheese platter we ordered was underwhelming and again, no bread. The scallopine mama lucia was the best of all the things I tried but it was unfortunately so much else took away from it. The last thing that tainted our experience and rounded it off in a bad note was that we got home to realize we had left our card behind. Obviously this was our fault, but what was frustrating about the situation is that they had my name and phone number from the reservation we made that matched the name on the card. Calling us to let us know it was there, even if they also needed to say we couldn't come back and get it until they opened the next day, would have eliminated a full day of frustration and concern that we didn't know where it was and couldn't get in contact with anyone until they opened. Simple measures like that go a long way. Also editing to add that I completely forgot about until just now - when I called to make the reservation, I let them know we were celebrating a few birthdays, with one falling during our trip. When I arrived, I also let the hostess know when she asked if we were celebrating something. When we ordered dessert, we told one person to please bring a candle. When dessert arrived, no candle. Someone else came over and noticed that nothing had happened and the waiter came over and said I wish someone had told me (to us) that there was a celebration. Like, come on, the only thing we didn't do was scream it in front of the birthday girl's face to make sure you heard - 3 other people there all knew why we were there and yet again, much like the bread, the ball got completely dropped and then we receive a comment as if it was on our end.... read more

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Our first time here. A very cute place with a unique and inviting decor inside. Our server was very pleasant and good at pacing the meal so that we were not rush (it was early and the kitchen was not yet busy). The food was very good. We both opted for pasta (lasagna and tortellini) and salad. My only complaint was that when the staff delivered our meals, they did not offer cheese. Instead someone came around nearly 10 minutes later to offer it, but by then we had already eaten a lot of our entrees. That seems a huge blunder in an Italian restaurant. We would definitely return as the menu is large and there are many things I would like to try. read more

What a nice place! The inside is dark and mysterious with premium furniture and decor. The girls at the front desk originally told us no tables for us to just chill and have a cappuccino, but after we told them the bar was full, they set us up nicely with an outdoor table on the front. Our server was friendly but super busy/slow. My cappuccino was made perfectly, with excellent espresso flavor and crema. We had to wait over 15 minutes for our bill (after we asked) and I finally gave up and went to the front counter and asked to pay. read more

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The food was great. Everything we ordered was delicious & prepared perfectly. The service professional & friendly. The ambiance is like being in a comfortable wine cellar. Definitely recommend this restaurant. read more

In town for an art show with friends from Italy and found this place. Glad we did. The food was amazing. Start to finish. My branzino was EXCELLENT. Shout out to our server / bartender extraordinaire Chris. Great guy. Great service. We will definitely be back next time we're in Sarasota. read more

Great wine Selection, better food. Wonderful service. Chris, our waiter, is a rock star.

Amazing experience, food, and drinks! They accommodated our group of 16 last minute on a busy Friday night with no problem. The homemade pasta was outstanding--especially the truffle ravioli, which was rich and flavorful. The calamari was perfectly crisp and fresh. Great food, great service!! We'll definitely be back! read more

Incredible restaurant! Located in the main hub of Siesta Key dining and activity, so the only drawback you may find here is paid-only parking. Otherwise, the food is out of this world and the service is fast and friendly. The outdoor patio was comfortable and casual while still being fit for a special occasion. Came for a birthday dinner and we were even surprised with a complimentary dessert! read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Pollo Parmigiana, Lobster Ravioli, Aperol Spritz - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

Four of us went for a special birthday celebration. we sat at a nice table our server was pleasant as well as knowledgeable about the menu our apps, meals, coffees & desserts were appropriately spaced and were delivered to the four of us in a timely fashion the only thing that was not cool is that no one acknowledged our friends birthday. the birthday was mentioned when the reservation was made as well as when we arrived her husband had also mentioned it to the women at the front desk, We will go back, however will go elsewhere when celebrating a special occasion. read more

My wife and I have frequented Cafe Gabbiano numerous times and, previous to this evening, was always impressed. This evening, however, our dining experience left us somewhat disappointed. The food simply wasn't up to par compared to our previous visits and the service was just okay. My wife and I shared the mussels appetizer, which was served almost immediately after ordering. There was very little sauce and several of the mussels never opened. Not a good sign. Flavor was so so. We waited for what seemed like forever for our main courses. For my main course, I ordered a house specialty; Mama Lucia Veal. The veal was tough...making the dish anything but enjoyable. The Risotto seemed more like sticky rice. Not impressed. My wife had the Bronzino. She asked for mashed potatoes instead of Risotto, but was told "they have no potatoes tonight." Hard to imagine. Thank goodness she didn't order the $52 filet mignon...which is so demanding of mashed potatoes. Vegetables were perfectly cooked. String beans were nice and crisp. 4 stars for the ambiance. 2 stars for the food. 2.5 stars for service. 3 stars overall. Sorry to say it will be sometime before we go back, if ever. read more

This is our first time visiting Siesta Key and went on yelp to find a spot for dinner. We stumbled upon Cafe Gabbiano and decided to give it a try. And I'm so glad we did!!! We had reservations and were seated right away once we arrived. All of the staff and servers were so incredibly kind. They chatted with us, shared the specials, and quickly took our drink and appetizer orders. We ordered the fried calamari at their recommendation for the table. It was pretty good but the entrees it was sets this little restaurant apart. I ordered the truffle stacchetini and it's easily one of the better truffle pastas I've ever had. Not too overwhelming in truffle flavor, but enough to know it's actually in the dish. It's served in this amazing sage butter sauce that will leave you scraping the plate clean. The rest of the table got lobster ravioli, branzino, and the veal plate of the day. Everyone loved their dishes as much as I did. Great service, great food, what more could you ask for? Highly recommend this spot if you're in the area! read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Veal - meat dish of the day - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

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Came for my birthday with a party of seven and the food, service, ambiance did NOT disappoint. We are Italian and lived in Italy growing up, and also traveled Italy extensively so finding great authentic Italian food here in the US can be a challenge. The food was really excellent and authentic. Everyone was friendly and attentive. They even replaced a calamari order that tipped over and spilled on the floor as it was being passed. This restaurant is apparently a local secret. I searched through a local FB foodie group and it didn't come recommended as often as other restaurants but i searched every recommendation, reads tons of reviews and ultimately kept coming back to Cafe Gabbiano and super glad I did. We will definitely be back. Might even go back this week. We were pleasantly surprised with how generous the portions as well. read more

Cafe Gabbiano is an amazing spot to head to for dinner, but be warned that it is extremely popular. I would definitely recommend making a reservation. The service here is stellar and the ambiance is top-notch. The food is definitely a solid contender. I heard someone in my dining party remark that the ambiance of Cafe Gabbiano was a bit dated, but I had to disagree. I found it warm and inviting, a perfect compliment to both the food and the service. The branzino was definitely good and something you should check out. I know this fish has become extremely trendy, but it became trendy for a reason (it is simply delicious). I would definitely recommend a visit here, but again, please make a reservation. read more

Great food, romantic atmosphere and we got a friendly/nice waitress! We got the truffle fries, ravioli obusco, plus lasagna and the Argentinian wine suggested by our waitress was so fantastic. I wish I remembered what it was. There was a bit of a wait due to the holiday crowd but worth the wait as we got to chat a bit with Peter T. who was such a nice guy! And of course, the lava cake was amazingly great! My husband and daughter loved it so much as well. We will be back for sure! read more

Cafe Gabbiano - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

Chris server was great, garlic bread hardly had any garlic, then the music was so uncomfortable loud. Other than that was ok.

Cafe Gabbiano had amazing food and the best cocktails! Our server was so great with our large group!

from start to end ...terrible. We had 4pm reservations on Christmas Eve. We were seated and the hostess rudely informed us we needed to be outa there by 6:15. Great welcoming start. Husband ordered veal, looked gray and boiled. He requested another and it came out like soup. I ordered the lobster ravioli, pasta was thick and chewy, lobster was of a rubber band consistency. we are locals and have not been to Gabbiano in over 20 years and now I remember why. Go to Olive Garden or another Italian chain and save your money. this place is horrible. Thanks for an incredibly crappy Christmas Eve dinner. read more

Mother's Day dinner picked by the boss. Executive Summary: A home run & great choice!! A few suggestions, but the entree and all the sides were fantastic and well executed! Details: Our first visit here. Had reservations and had a mild delay but the place was jumpin' so no problem. (hate the parking situation and of course the $11 cost - not the merchant's issue of course BUT be prepared. May 8, 2022 & off season at 7 pm still took 10 minutes of circling and .2 miles away when I snagged a spot according to Garmin (frown)) "Felicia M" was gregarious, friendly, helpful and efficient. Truly world class service through the entire experience. Non-alcoholic beer was a perfect cold temperature St. Pauli N.A. (thank goodness anything but O'Drool!!!) my wife had a lemon drop martini she remarked was terrific. We toasted her 1/4 century plus of motherhood and our fantastic 3 kids (now all adults) We split the poached pear arugula cherry tomatoes, w/ walnuts and goat cheese (wife took my half of it - yeck) it was a simple but flavorful collage of greenery and textures. We had a side of a hard sourdough homemade bread that was good. It came with a seasoned butter and also a dish of oil and balsamic vinegar with some spices and leaves. I found the balsamic to be very acidic and thin and oil was also not very good quality. Suggest an upgrade to aged balsamic, simple garlic and spices, and a better quality virgin or 'eating' oil. We knew the portions would be ample (reading other reviews and it being Italian restaurant) so we decided to add on a few sides (also to test out the kitchen - side and vegetables is where even the BEST fall down) and then we would split a large main entree. The branzino fish came cooked and then fileted table-side a la Felica's capable hands!!! She did a very impressive job with only one 'error' noted on my plate!!! But we were unmerciful telling stories of my having a flounder bone stabbed into the roof of my mouth when I was 6 at a place called Zaberers in Wildwood NJ in the 1960s. SO I consider this trial by fire and she did well!!!!! (side note to the chef et al: please teach all staff/servers to filet WITH the skin-on if requested!!! My wife's preferred delivery and its a delectable part of the fish to many!! ) The entree came with risotto which was (you would expect it to be but not assured?) and it was very very well prepared, cooked, and served hot. The 'mixed' vegetables is a side where SO many other restaurants FAIL and have dumped the boiled bag of soggy veggies usually so dripping with a high sodium pond of liquid its simple a joke) BUT NOT at Cafe Gabbiano!!! Likely these veggies were 'primo vegetablino' (okay made that up) and were 'first cooked' vegetables. They were not only eatable, but enjoyable. ( I am whole food plant based eater - l love nice vegetables.) The other two sides we ordered were the saute mushrooms which were awesome, flavorful, and hearty!!! GREAT product. The saute spinach was also not a garden hosed soaked gloppy oily mess, but rather nice firm leaves not overcooked, but el dente and conservatively 'lubed' with just enough oil to cook and spread the spice and flavors. Well done. I could have had a triple and called it an entree....maybe still with the mushrooms. We finished (instead of walking past the many ice cream and gelato joints there nearby and there were about 5 from the Cafe to my parking spot that felt like it was in Brandenton (smile) ) we went with the vanilla gelato and whipped cream. Okay it is an Italian restaurant but this was not even a mediocre gelato. It was ok. The whipped cream was also thin and of course canned. (in fairness my wife loves gelato and makes it herself and we have a restaurant CO2 whipped creme dispenser or some heavy cream and the mini Hobart or KitchenAid and you can spin it right up. It was okay/average. Okay I blabbed on and on. In review - AWSOME. (and if you look at my reviews over the last decade here on Yelp, I am the German judge) however Cafe Gabbiano has earned my top score with the likes of PerCe in NY (sister to French Laundry), the defunct LeBecFin & vegan Vedge both in Philly, Bouchon in Vegas La Bernadine and just a VERY few others. Service, Food, Beverages, Preparation, Decor/Ambiance all 10s/"A" for great Italian cuisine!!! Parking - "F" (that goes to the town - they earned it, thank goodness we did not get a $80 ticket as departing gift?? ---- I HOPE?) There WILL be a next time. So until then - le bonne manger!! read more

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