Loved the soup of the day! It was light and appetizing with balanced flavors…read more Ordered the chicken masala and it was not bad.

It's always nice to try new places. I didn't even know this one existed until an ad popped up on…read moreone of my social medias. It is a small restaurant, and I do mean small. Like only 20 tables or so. The couple next to us was on a date and I felt like I could follow their whole conversation from the moment we sat down. Our waiter came by to introduce himself, but didn't take our drink orders. When he came back, he jumped right in to our meal orders. All of our meals came with salads and he never asked us about dressing options, so I assumed all salads came with a house dressing. But my dad's girlfriend asked for blue cheese...I mistook her request for dressing and just put blue cheese crumbles on top of her plain salad...no dressing. We did ask him about drinks as he was leaving with the menus. While waiting, we overheard the table behind us ordering their salads and their waiter gave them a whole list of dressing options. Once we got our salads, we dug in but the vinaigrette was so strong, I couldn't eat it without grimacing. I ordered the chicken piccata. It was drowning in capers. That is all I could taste. It was so briny and salty that I could barely eat half of the portion they gave me. The chicken was also a little tough to cut through. I would be willing to try again. I never leave one experience to take over my whole perception.

I didn't expect the pizza to be as good as it was. Good thin and crispy crust with plenty of…read moretopping piled on top! Have been back two times and have been very pleased with each visit. Friendly staff, casual atmosphere, good food!

Have placed orders from this business many times, have always had good experience. The food is…read moregreat.

A classic place to visit and are well-known for their sweetbread deli sandwiches! We stopped by…read morewhile visiting family and actually had them two days in a row: once catered and once sit down. I personally like the sandwiches (gondolas) toasted way better, which is why we just had to go ourselves. This spot was open and accommodating, although pretty packed despite it being absolutely freezing outside. It's calm and warm inside and there are lots of tables and booths. We had a little bit of a wait, maybe ten minutes. The server was nice although a bit rushed. Overall, excellent!

Avanti's is a cute spot for the locals in East Peoria that's been around for a really long time!…read more My boyfriend and I got a couple of their sandwiches and an appetizer for a nice little lunch. We got the Bruschetta which was probably one of the best I've had. It's so good! We also got The Famous Gondola and The Bristol, both toasted. They are known for their Gondola sandwiches so I'd definitely recommend that one if you're trying to figure out what to choose. Otherwise they have lots of options from sandwiches, pastas, and salads. Our service was really nice and helpful. Also parking is super easy with a huge attached free parking lot.

Review Visit: September 17th, 2014…read more In Central Illinois, there is a fierce battle between local Italian places. La Gondola. Avanti's. Michael's Italian Feast. Not only the trifecta of Italian places but also a battle of personal preference. My family and friends grew up on Avanti's. Others grew up on La Gondola while the rest had Michaels. It seems like once you pick one, you stick to it for life. Bucking that trend, I tried them all and loved them all. Michael's has a smaller but very similar menu to the other places. They offer their version of an Italian sub simply called Mike's Sub. I actually had one today since I was in the area and it was just as good as I remembered. It was served warmed and that amplifies the taste a ton. Avanti's has a restaurant you can sit in while La Gondola and Michael's have areas where you order at a counter and they bring the food to you. While this doesn't impact my review in any way, it is something to keep in mind if you visit. After my initial visit, we popped over to FrozenSpoon for some ice cream. While Michael's has a few locations throughout the Central Illinois area, this one is special in having a local ice cream place as neighbors. Ice cream or not, you can't go wrong with any of the Michael's locations.

Love Fridays and the live music. The main room also has an ice cream counter tucked in the corner…read more The pizza is the best Italian style!! Staff is friendly, and accommodating.

Avanti's is a Peoria favorite. They're especially known for their bread. I think sugar is one of…read morethe key ingredients that sets it apart. I end up stocking up on loaves of bread whenever I visit - they're that good! They're also known for their Gondola sandwiches. The signature bread with cheese and cold cuts (you can get lettuce, tomato, etc on it too). There are 2 locations I visit in Peoria, this one and the one on Knoxville. I highly recommend dining in at that location. I ordered online - easy parking and it has its own pick up entrance. Staff was friendly, order ready when I got there, and the order was correct. Food tasted great.

At Avantis for the Easter Buffett. The only thing worse than the food is the service. SLOW, cold…read morefood, dry chicken. Puke on a plate. GO ELSEWHERE. Just got home. Terrible stomach ache. Avoid Rockwood Avantis, it's contaminated.

We ordered the Family Feast with spaghetti and added a salad. The spaghetti had ample noodles and…read moremeat sauce. The garlic bread was well seasoned and the extra bread was fresh. Our only complaint was the salad, for $6.99 we got a small plastic bowl with a handful of lettuce, nothing else was added. We were very disappointed.

First time visit, pleasantly surprised. I got the garlic bread and pizza bread with sausage on…read moretop. The sausage especially seemed like very good quality. Both dishes were very good and actually much better than versions of both at "LaGondola". Pricey though at almost $20. And the neighborhood seemed a bit run down, several empty establishments in the area. There are very few reviews on the pizza at this place and those that I have heard mentioned say this place is not known for their pizza. But bc I thought the sausage on top of my pizza bread was so good, it makes me wonder how that pizza would work out. But crust is important and I'm wondering if their crust is just not as good as their bread. Also, used the drive-thru. Fast, courteous and efficient service.

Order the lasagna! Decent sized helping and very, very tasty. They make it themselves every day. I…read morecan't say enough good about this!

Pasta was really good, the salads are great and the bread sticks are top shelf. Service was really…read moregood and the restaurant has a really cool theme, with a grape arbor overhead. All this and affordable pricing!

We celebrated my wife's birthday at Saffron Social, and the entire evening was exceptional…read more The food was outstanding from beginning to end. The steak was excellent, the lobster ceviche was creative and delicious, the carpaccio was beautifully prepared, and the scallops were truly extraordinary. The bread pudding dessert was the perfect finish to an already remarkable meal. A special shout-out to the manager, Mike, who was incredibly gracious and welcoming, and to our waiter, Adrian, who was absolutely wonderful. Adrian was attentive, charming, knowledgeable, and a great conversationalist. He made us feel genuinely special and was a big part of what made the evening so memorable. I lived in Los Angeles for more than 40 years and have been fortunate enough to dine at many highly regarded restaurants in the U.S. and around the world. Saffron Social deserves to be noticed in that company. This was not simply a very good meal for Central Illinois, it was an exceptional dining experience by any standard. Most importantly, my wife had a wonderful birthday, and we talked about the meal the entire drive home. Saffron Social is absolutely a restaurant worth seeking out, and we are already looking forward to returning.

Food was all delicious. Great conversation over shared appetizers, plates, cocktails, and desserts.read more