Haven't updated my review from two years ago because nothing really has changed. Excellent wait staff, cool atmosphere and dependably good food at reasonable prices. A Hartford institution! read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - Wonderful bread basket. - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

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When you step into First &Last on Maple avenue, you enter a restaurant filled with ambiance - the smell, the brick walls covered with old photos of dignitaries, the stone floor, the veggie bins in front of the pizza oven. You are back in the 40's. Parking - there is a small lot in back of the building and on street parking. We usually use the lot across the street at night. Seated in a comfy booth, we put our order in and await the bread basket. Focaccia that you cannot stop eating (even though you know you should stop to save room for your meal), a raisin bread that my husband proclaimed "delicious ", and Italian bread. I think all breads are available for sale too. Service was friendly & welcoming. I had an expresso martini (with Baileys ) and we shared a harvest salad (apples, cheddar, dried cranberries). We easily could have been satisfied with the bread basket & salad, however, we had to order pizzas. A small eggplant pizza for me - plenty of leftovers; and a medium Hamburg/olive pizza for my husband. Crust was crispy and there are plenty of toppings. So delicious. So try the original Hartford location - for the whole experience of food & ambiance. read more

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Charming tavern. Bread basket is delicious! I opted for a pizza. What I love about their brick oven is that the pizza is actually cooked in the center. Nothing makes me sadder than pizza that is soggy in the center. Overall nice experience. read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - First & Last Tavern. - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

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Went for happy hour and deals were ok. $8 apps portions were decent but def small if you're looking for more of an entree. Drink deals also just ok. Happy hour items seemed a bit random but tasted good. Service was quick/ friendly. Outside seating seemed nice , inside at the bar is a little cramped but still comfortable. Noise levels normal for a bar. Would go back to try other food. read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - #31 Penne ala Vodka (happy hour) - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

"And the first one now will later be last 'Cause the times, they are a-changin'" (Bob Dylan) We've had lunch or dinner at the First and Last in Glastonbury, Plainville, Avon (now closed), and now, finally Hartford - the F&L OG. The Hartford location goes way back to 1936, and you have to admit -that's pretty impressive. Being in a downtown setting, this First and Last is a little different from the others. It has a driveway and parking lot on the left which leads you to a front door, and a driveway and parking lot on the right which leads you to a back door. When you walk in from the left lot, you'll be greeted by a hostess stand and see a dining room and bar to your left and a dining room to your right. When you walk in from the right parking lot, you'll have to walk all the way through a dining room to get to the hostess stand. So things can be a little disorienting to a first-time visitor. We were in a booth in the dining room without the bar. It wasn't a particularly large dining room and there were just two servers on duty today. Our server, Siobhan, was pleasant and professional and did the best she could with a full dining room lunch crowd. We started off with a complimentary breadbasket that was very nostalgic for us. It contained Italian bread, raisin bread and focaccia. I say nostalgic because when we first moved to Connecticut in 1987 these three breads were always in the breadbasket at our First and Last in Avon. But over the years, that basket evolved into just focaccia (which is stellar). The other two varieties disappeared, so it was wonderful to see them again. Their raisin bread is great. For lunch we ordered a cup of Rock Island Chowder ($8.25), an Antipasto Salad ($13.25), and a Chicken Parmesan ($16.50). We also ordered a small cheese pizza with ground beef to go ($12.75). A club soda was $3.25. My chowder was excellent. It was served very hot and was loaded with shrimp, fish, mussels, and big potato chunks in a cream-based broth. It was a welcome start to our meal on such a cold windy day. My wife's chicken parm looked great -a big portion of chicken with a big portion of ziti and plenty of F&L's famous marinara sauce. In all honesty, I was a bit disappointed in my Antipasto. Although it contained the same ingredients of the identical dish I had at the Glastonbury F&L just three weeks ago, it was a decisively smaller portion by a big margin. Anyway, it was fun to complete our dance card by now visiting all of the First & Last locations in the state. Their food is terrific, as is the depth of their menu. read more

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Love everything about this restaurant! The staff always makes us feel at home. The pizza tastes like we flew to Italy. The bread basket with the addictive focaccia the perfect complement to any one of the main dishes. My Italian husband loves the sausage & peppers It's become our home away from home. read more

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stopped by for their pizza & yooooo this did not disappoint. My kids wanted the ice cream puff as well- that puts them over and I'd bring my family back if we're ever up in the area again. Quaint and unexpected tbh. I got my money's worth. Also their team was ultra patient with me, we couldnt decide on which pizza & settled with the chicken pesto and sausage/pep/bacon/caramelized onion with extra mozz. SCRUMPTIOUS! read more

We noticed this place while heading elsewhere for dinner and decided to stop in. An excellent choice! We were seated in the dining room, where we were impressed with the decor. The walls are covered with framed vintage photographs of baseball greats - Joe DiMaggio, Babe Ruth, even Marilyn Monroe! Traditional Italian dishes on the menu but we were looking for pizza - and this was the place! In our opinion, probably one of the best pies we've had. Delicious crust, flavorful toppings and wonderfully aromatic. If we lived closer, this would be our go-to place. read more

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Great food (as always). Absolute best eggplant parmeasean pizza I have tried (and I travel a lot). Grew up on this place. Looking forward to my next visit. read more

This was is my first time visiting Hartford and I wanted to try a happy hour in the area. What a great find! I sat at the bar and ordered some bites from the happy hour menu. Matt the bartender was awesome! He was friendly and very attentive. He even gave me and another patron a sample of an expresso martini shot. Everyone at the bar were super nice as well. It's a lovely being good bar with delicious Italian food. The homemade bread was delicious and complimentary. I ordered the grilled artichoke and eggplant fingers. I especially loved the artichoke. They had a great garlic lemon sauce. So tasty! The house chianti wine was also nice. I highly recommend this bar/restsurant. It was my first time but it will not be my last. lol read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - happy hour menu - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

Absolutely amazing pie. I will be back. The crust was perfect, the sauce was delectable. I was extremely pleased. The evoo drizzle added a rich element that brought the pizza full circle read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - Tomato Pie - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

My wife and I are traveling north & stopped in at First & Last based on a recommendation from someone at the Mark Twain House & Museum. We were both famished after driving all day from Baltimore. Walking in, we were greeted with the wonderful aromas of an authentic Italian restaurant. Our hostess set up a both for us in the main dining room, which was promptly co-opted by some locals. We were then seated at a booth in the bar area, which was much noisier & less homey. My wife attempted to order the lobster bisque from the specials menu, which confused our waitperson. She left for a few minutes, and returned to inform us that we had received the old specials menu. After crumpling that up, she gave us the current specials menu, which no longer had the bisque on it. She ended up ordering the meatballs appetizer, which consisted of two golf ball sized meatballs. It was covered in an overly-generous portion of beefy tomato sauce and some melted cheese. The sauce tasted very reminiscent of Chef Boyardee's Beefaroni sauce, which was actually good. The meatballs themselves were OK & not very flavorful. For $12.95, one would expect either several more meatballs, or one large meatball. My Margherita pizza consisted primarily of crushed tomato sauce, with a bunch of chiffonaded basil, and no discernible mozzarella cheese. The crust was thin and crispy, but tasted like unseasoned dough. I ended up liberally dousing the whole thing with grated Parmesan cheese, but that didn't really make up for the lack of mozzarella cheese, which is integral to any good Margherita. Our waitress was personable enough, but didn't return until we were both done with our meals. She did spend quite a bit of time talking to some patrons at another table, who seemed to be family or friends, based on the snippets of conversation we heard. All-in-all, this place was OK, but it ultimately didn't live up to the expectations we were given for it. read more

Food was ok gluten free pizza was ok lasagna was a little dry but I've been eating here for 50 years and i will always come back

My review is more on the hostess and how I was treated. We decided to go to First & Last in Hartford, which I may add is many towns away from where we live, but we liked it there. We also wanted to get there early to get in and out, so we got there around 4:30pm or so. There were about three couples sitting in booths on one side of the restaurant. So as I came in from the back entrance I immediately went over to the other side of the booths which is about 20feet away or so and the older lady hostess tells us we don't have any server for that side of the restaurant so you gotta sit on this side by other people. Well, the table was in the corner but every time the front door open we gotta chill like crazy and the cold air came right in so we had to get our coats from our car to eat our dinner. The other side would've been better. Than about five minutes or less no lie I look over to the other side and there's a couple sitting in the booth!!! We wanted to sit in!!!! I couldn't believe it. I tried to get the hostess attention, but she so busy talking to a lady who just walked in that may be the owner as everyone in the restaurant seemed to go towards her to talk. Then I heard the same hostess say well You're the owner or boss so you can sit wherever you want. Well that really bothered me all evening and I started thinking wow they really care about us don't they? My food wasn't bad and our waitress was pretty good, but I couldn't get out of my head the way I was treated. Why didn't she tell me there would be a server in five minutes, I would wait. Or say you're a nobody so you can't sit or that side. She never said nothing. Well as you could imagine I was debating about leaving, but we hung on. I didn't say anything to nobody but I'll tell you, it'll be a while before we go back there. I don't know what was wrong with my money as we spent over $200 and told meals home and I'm sure the owner or the whoever lady they were chitchatting with probably didn't pay nothing. read more

A few months back, I made a trip up to Hartford to pick my dad up at the airport. He asked if I wanted to stop for lunch at this place he used to frequent when he worked up there 30 years ago. I said sure, figuring it was more for nostalgia than anything else. Boy was I wrong. First and Last knocked my socks off. Inside, it's a classic Italian restaurant. Comfortable booths, old photos covering the walls. Normally at a place like this I'd order pasta, but I noticed the brick oven when I walked in, so I decided on a pizza. I thought it would be good- but I never expected it would be THAT good. One of the best pizzas I've ever had in my life. The cupped pepperoni, the sauce/cheese/meat ratio, the dough- all of it came together in perfect harmony. It was so good, in fact, that I ordered another one to bring home. Hartford is an hour away from me and I would still consider making the trip up here just for lunch. It's that good. If you're in the area (or not!), do yourself a favor and give this place a try. You won't regret it read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - Pepperoni pizza - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

We had my daughter's dinner celebration here this past Friday night . I ordered the chicken malanaze which came with a cheese couscous and arugula. It was good I wish the chicken had a sauce instead of just breaded. I also had the bread pudding for dessert man was I full. read more

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Place is Old and Tired. Concept is not for today's world. To many long term employees working. Needs New Blood

The shells with sausage is very good. Simple and tasty. I wanted to try their meatballs so I did get one on the side. The meatball was firm, garlicky and smothered in their tomato sauce. We also got the chicken parm and it was also pretty traditional, although the cutlet was on the larger side. Served with penne and smothered in cheese, this dish was also very good. The service was fast and the staff was very attentive and friendly. I am loving the old school vibe. The black and white pictures on the wall, the light jazz in the background and the decor invites you to relax and enjoy the food. I think this would be a great place for after work dinners and really enjoyed the friendly and welcoming vibe here. read more

The other night my family and I went to First & Last Tavern in Hartford. It was super busy, it seemed like they were having a few large get togethers. We got seated in a booth right by the brick oven, so I could see them tossing the dough in the air and making the pizzas. The walls at any location of First & Last are always covered with old photos of celebrities, politicians or athletes. This time I was seated next to baseball players and boxers. We were all pretty hungry when we arrived. The waitress immediately presented us with a basket of a variety of breads and butter. This bread was pretty tasty, but don't over do it, leave some room for the food. I asked the waitress what the soup of the day was, she said the New England Clam Chowder. Sadly I received the clear broth kind, which is the Rhode Island, this was ok. It was missing all of the best parts. I also got the Roasted Beet Salad. This was very good. It had plenty of fresh arugula, sliced beets, sliced fresh pear and goat cheese. This was a colorful, fresh and delicious salad. We also shared a large Margherita pizza. My brother however requested, they also add; bacon, olives, mushrooms, and pepperoni. I could see them make the pizza right from where I was sitting. This was a large pizza. The edges were thick and charred. The whole center of it was very thin, but substantial enough to hold all of the toppings without it being floppy. It was very tasty and flavorful. Anytime I've had a pizza at First & Last it was always very satisfying! We had a pleasant time at First & Last Tavern of Hartford. The waitress was very attentive and patient. I would return here again. read more

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Your classic neighborhood southern Italian resturant. Wonderful food, great bar, service is top notch. All at a good price. Menu runs from pizza to great classic dishes. Highly recommend ! Love the places read more

Food and service were excellent. My son got the lasagna and allowed me to try it - it's the best I've ever tasted in my life and I wish I had ordered it read more

Wonderful restaurant. Salmon supper and a separate salad was excellent . The pizza was perfect. Loved the cozy attractive atmosphere. The waiter was so accomodating. He made us feel so comfortable As we the leavng, the manager gave us a gigantic amount of the fabulous bread to take with us Best dining experience that I have had in a long time read more

My favorite pizza when I come home to visit. Love the fall special pizza and Neapolitan.

What a surprising find! Full disclosure: this isn't the best neighborhood, so we had lot expectations but just wanted beer and pasta. Turns out they have great food, which is a reminder that you can't let the looks of a neighborhood be the determination of whether or not a restaurant will be worth it. We enjoyed the spring weather on the patio, tasting some great local brews. Our pasta and salad was flavorful - the husband in particular loved his seafood choice. We splurged and split a cannoli for dessert. It was unlike any we'd had before and we thought it was worth the calories. We wouldn't detour to eat here again but we would stop in if we're in the area. read more

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This place is a classic! Perfect for family gatherings and offers a diverse menu of pizza and Italian dishes. As soon as you enter the door the smell of fresh garlic hits your nose. The main dining room is so cozy and feels like a throw back to the 50s with its photos of celebrities and politicians around the room. We loved watching the pizza oven and the warmth of the dining room was so nice for a winter day. The service here is excellent! Our bread basket was always reloaded with focaccia bread- which is the best ever by the way. Their focaccia is such a hit that they sell it by the loaf! We went for full entrees on this visit. What I didn't get a photo of was the delicious seafood chowder special! Do not pass this up if you ever see it on the specials menu. The clams were full sized and there was shrimp and potatoes and other fish. The carrots were a little unnecessary but small enough not to hinder any flavor or texture. The penne a la vodka can come plane or there's an option to add chicken or shrimp. My son asked and they were able to accommodate his request to add in sausage instead. It was a sweet Italian sausage and the vodka sauce flavor was perfect. The portion was big enough to bring home some leftovers. The chicken Parmesan was huge and the chicken was perfectly crispy. The only disappointment with a little lack in flavor of the tomato sauce. Next time it might be better to have it with the sausage and peppers or try their Sunday sauce on a Sunday. The salmon was offereThat's sod plan or blackened and came with crispy roasted potatoes and garlicky spinach. It was a tiny but over cooked but I've had it pan roasted before and it was perfect. I've been here for pizza on a few occasions. People don't believe me when I tell them they have to try the tomato pie. It is a pizza without cheese other than a sprinkle of Parmesan once the pizza is done. It consists of a sweet, crushed tomato sauce that's so flavorful this flatbread is amazing without cheese. I encourage everybody to try it, at least as an appetizer with their table. First and Last has a couple of other locations, but I encourage you to try this original in Hartford. It's such a pleasurable experience with great offerings of food, wine and ambience. Sundays are their busiest nights so make a reservation! read more

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Delicious!! We stopped by after a day at the CT science museum and we were starving! Bread basket was amazing! We got the Seafood chowder, clams in white, shrimp cocktail, salad and cheese pizza! The kids ordered ice cream and I got a cannoli which wasn't my favorite but I could tell it was very fresh (I wasn't expecting an almond favor, my fault for not reading the menu). Lovely restaurant and we will definitely be back with friends and family. read more

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Pizza oven in middle of restaurant. Great pizzas. Food & drinks good too. Looking forward to going back if ever in Hartford again.

Love this awesome place! The most friendly and accommodating staff(esp. the bartender) warm atmosphere, delicious food, great beers on tap. I'd be here weekly if I didn't live over an hour away. read more

Been coming for years. Always great service and delicious food. We recently ordered family size due to quarantine. It was fantastic! We got the chicken parm which came over pasta with sauce and mozzarella. A big portion of it A fantastic salad and homemade bread Will order again like that as we are trying to keep our wonderful restaurants going during these times. read more

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Went for the first time on a Saturday night and when you walk in your slammed with the history of this restaurant all over the walls. The atmosphere and set up is awesome. We were seated immediately and our waitress was awesome. She was a little busy dealing with multiple tables, but made it all work. We were all very satisfied with the meals. The free warm focaccia bread is the overall best thing we ate. When our bowl got low, our waitress immediately got us more. I got the broccoli pizza and it was amazing, thin and crispy. Definitely a good place to bring out of town people to. read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - Cheese pizza, broccoli pizza, focaccia bread - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

Solid red sauce Italian. Good beers on tap. Decent wine selection. Calamari and pizzas are top notch.

Pizza is consistently amazing. Love watching the pizza-making process! Always a good experience dining in and with take out. Wish they had a cross walk from the parking lot across the street. read more

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Im from Newark went there Thursday with my family to dine it was the most horrible experience, there was some tall guy in the pizza spot was just shouting and throwing sexual jokes around that were and out of line,My two younger daughters were present, it was disgusting.My wife convinced me to go back,just for another disaster that same guy was just walking around the restaurant and bumping in to people and not once i saw him wash his hands, then he started shouting at one of the pizza workers on the oven and the waiters and throwing things around,I could handle it no more i left early ,im not sure if that tall skinny guy was drunk or high but, definitely not a family safe environment i dont recommended it, the food was ok,but NEVER AGAIN read more

Very authentic Italian place with a lot of history. The place has been there since the late 1930s! The name speaks for itself when it says this will be the first and last Italian restaurant you go to as you will not want to go anywhere else... Here I was also introduced to an amazing IPA (captains daughter 8.5%!) went down smooth and had a great taste. The bartender was attentive and friendly while our party waited for our table to be ready. A large group of us ate here and the service was impeccable. The tavern has an old time feel to it but the restaurant part appears to be more modern. They have a mix of booths and tables to sit at. They serve a variety of bread on the table and my husbands favorite was the focaccia! For food we got the fried mozzarella it was delicious. The pizza was half cheese and half chicken/bacon. My husband said it was some of the best pizza he ever had! Great quality ingredients and large portion size. I got the #10- classic spaghetti and meatballs. It was extremely tasty and I was in pasta heaven. You have only two choices of pasta here - spaghetti or shells!! Love the simplicity.. While we dined inside, there is also outdoor seating available. CALL to make reservations!! read more

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The food and service was really great all around, the atmosphere is very dress casual. My friend and I both got old fashions with two grinders, and overall it was really good! However, be cautious of price because it is pretty high in my opinion. Also the parking situation isn't ideal as it is in the back and if that fills up, then you have to park across the street. If you keep this in mind, then I would recommend! read more

Wednesdays are for Italian food! This week, we went to the OG in Hartford, First and Last Tavern. For starters, let's talk about how delicious their focaccia bread is. Worth every bite of carbs. I'll leave that right there. We started with the Baby Artichoke Hearts and there were such delicious roasted garlic pieces in it. Mangia. Mangia! My entree was the Chicken Milanaise topped with arugula and served with roasted potatoes. First time trying milanaise. Really good! If you're looking for an alternative to ordering pasta, definitely give this dish a try. It's a delicious lemon/butter taste. My friend went with the Meat Lasagna. Holy thick piece of lasagna! And the cheese....omg! Queue up the dream music now. Talk about putting one in the W column. Hot damn. We also had side salads beforehand with house balsamic vinaigrette. Gotta get those greens in. Olives, meat and cheese all included too. Can't beat it. Love the old school decor inside First and Last. It's a real treat seeing all the history in pictures on the walls. And a special thanks to Kim for being such an attentive and friendly server. More than halfway through the work week now. Italian Wednesdays sure are something to look forward to! Insert Italian flag emoji here. read more

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Solid four stars for food, elevated for the overall Great experience, classic establishment, friendly service, great food, full bar. We had a 7:15 reservation (they take them by phone only by the way) and ended up a half hour early and even though they were busy they were able to seat us. Food was great. They start with a nice generous basket of focaccia and Italian bread, we also got garlic bread (my stepson's favorite) and pizza (very very good, only needed just a little more crispiness to be perfect), pasta fagiole (solid), shrimp scampi with huuuge shrimp, chicken parm (fantastic), and I had a lobster cannelloni (probably the least favorite item we had, not bad not great). Bummer, they were out of tiramisu (they were busy!) but there were plenty of other options. We basically rolled out of the place, entirely satisfied. read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - Pizza (plain), slice of a small. - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

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Always enjoy going to First and Last. Went there most recently following a friend's recommendation to check out their fall specials. Well worth the visit! The service was excellent and the apple pizza was delicious! Especially appreciated pizza chefs Brendan and Joe coming to our table to make sure everything was to our satisfaction. Looking forward to our next dinner there! read more

Marty in the bar provides excellent service. A lot of times I just get the happy hour pizza but everything is good. When I don't want leftovers,Love the combo where the salad comes on the plate-you could still end up with leftovers if you each too much of their great complimentary bread basket. Dress in layers - sometimes it's warm due to the pizza oven read more

First and Last Tavern Hartford - Happy hour menu as of February 2018 - Pizza Near Me - Hartford, Connecticut

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Food is OK, Service is debatable. I was going there often, meeting my friends at the bar/ dining area. I saw a couple get this wonderful thin crust small pizza. This couple had known the people working there for a while. Every time I would ask for thin crust pizza, I would get thick crust. After so many times, I told the manager, and the cook told me if I wanted thin crust pizza, to go somewhere else. What a Jerk. So, after they fired a waitress that was working there for 40 years, I am going somewhere else. The ambiance is very clicky. If they don't know you, there is no ambiance. It's just a loud, mediocre, restaurant. and that you might get good service, if they know you. The rating of 3+ are appropriate. read more