We were a group of 14 who recently ate at the Brown Bottle. The food was excellent. The ambiance enjoyable. The service - it could be better. They were busy so that was probably part of it. Let's start with the ambiance. I'm not sure what the building was used for originally. Maybe a hotel? But it is very big, historic, multiple rooms, just an interesting and cool space. All of the food was delicious. For appetizers we had the sauteed mushrooms, meatballs, salsiccia, and garlic bread. You'll want extra garlic bread to soak up the sauces in all of these dishes. Generous portions, delicious flavors, all winners. Our group had many different entrees, and everyone was pleased. Portions were large, so most people ended up with boxes to take home leftovers. We were too full for dessert. My only reservation about Brown Bottle was the service. They were busy. But the servers just seemed inexperienced. They brought all the appetizers but didn't notice we had no plates, so we had to go and ask for those. They also never refilled our waters. Pretty much every glass was empty. When we asked for additional drinks, she brought those, but we never saw any water pitchers, and she only refilled the specific people who asked for additional water. That just seems like something an experience server will notice. Nevertheless, I'd definitely go back. All the dishes our group tried were delicious! read more

Let me start by saying the service was great and I think there's slight room for improvement on the dishes. I went with the vegetable tortellini with chicken and the own downside was the amount of olive oil...it was just short of swimming in it. On the flip side, the taste was there and it sounds like everyone else I was with loved their dish. The atmosphere is definitely on the moody, more formal side. I'd recommend to others and will happily return for round two. read more

Everything was exceptional! I hadn't been back in over 40 years--since going there for my prom dinner.   After moving back home after all that time it's still just as amazing. The service, quality of food, atmosphere, and entire experience truly stood the test of time. I can't wait to go back again! read more

I have been eating at both Brown Bottles since they opened. I've always been satisfied with the food & service. On 3/14/26 we went to the Waterloo BB for dinner. I normally get a pasta dish but decided to get prime rib. What a huge disappointment. I don't eat a lot of prime rib but know good pr when I have it. This piece of meat had the taste & appearance of a small overcooked steak. Not the usual thick juicy cut prime rib is known for. I ate 2/3 of it and just left the rest of this expensive ($34) piece of meat on the plate. The restaurant should be embarrassed to serve something like this. read more

Beautiful building, soothing ambience, appropriate decor and good service. For the prices I would have expected handmade pasta rather than out of the box noodles and ravioli. read more

A reasonable option if you're looking for a more upscale feeling restaurant with a nicer set of menu items. The brown bottle provides a comfortable atmosphere for dining with others and very friendly service to match. The food here is alright - a little more expensive than other local options but not unreasonably so. The flavors are fairly basic, heavily dependent on sauces but the herb and spice combinations didn't really come through very strongly. The textures were also a bit indistinct, with most of the items a bit overdone. However, portion sizes are quite generous with plenty of food to take home after. Overall, a reasonable option if you need a nice setting for a conversation and a meal. read more

See all

Just want to give a kudos to Brown bottle Waterloo. The hostess was polite and professional but the waitress we had, Melissa, was outstanding!!! She was pleasant and recommended some sauces with our appetizer. She apologized a couple times for not getting back to us in a timely fashion but we had NO problem with anything! The food was outstanding as always I had the chicken Dijon and my husband had the orange roughy of course had tiamasu for dessert! read more

The food was delicious and the portions don't disappoint. The service was really nice and attentive asking how our food was and refilling our waters when passing by, they were also very nice. The ambiance is really low lit fancy vibes, definitely a place to go to celebrate something but I enjoyed the quiet atmosphere. read more

The Brown Bottle - Pizza Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

See all

Went there last night for my birthday dinner with my wife and our waitress Peyton was amazing! The food was delicious too!!!! Great atmosphere!!!!!! read more

Our food was terrible. We were there last nite. My spaghetti was cold with no flavor. It tasted like someone had opened a can of tomatoes and dumped them on the spaghetti. No spices nor seasoning. Everyone else was almost done by the time they heated my food. I had a pink squirrel and they did not get the ice cream mixed with the liquor. Most disgusting meal the two of us have ever had and expensive. We will never dine there again! read more

The guy who took my order over the phone was short and rude. They forgot one of my salads. The food had no seasoning. Baked Ziti and was bland and watery and the lasagna tasted like it was a day old. Lastly, there was zero ricotta cheese in either dish. This place is not what it used to be. read more

Our server switched our 2 Greek salads we ordered to an entirely different entree that was not pleasant & very costly...not a pleasant meal, service or experience December 26, 2024... read more

Why bother having a site to take reservations if you use a pad of paper to track reservations. You need to update your website to not take reservations the same day. read more

The only reason why I travel to Iowa is to visit family. I happened to be there for a wedding, and was able to also meet up with my immediate family. We are now all in different places so it was nice to meet up with them. We decided to have a dinner with just us and thought that Italian was a good idea. Others recommended The Brown Bottle. It was....OK. The service was a little on the side on nonexistent. There was basically no one in the restaurant and yet we barely saw our waitress and it took forever to even put in an order. The food was basic. It wasn't overcooked nor undercooked, but seasoning was not balanced. The marinara sauce basically only tasted of oregano, and the Chicken Marsala only tasted of Marsala. Even when eating the mushrooms they only tasted of Marsala. I will say that the bread was very good and extremely plentiful. That was really the only thing worth coming here for. Overall, this place has a lot to work on. read more

The Brown Bottle - Baked Feta Dip - Pizza Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

See all

Good service but average food. Menu seems geared towards fitting the restaurant's tight budget by using the same ingredients in tons of way. I was honestly surprised by our experience, because locals sang this place's praises as the best place in town. read more

Lovely evening!--the seafood lasagna is outstanding and the cheesecake is the best I've had in ages. Service is very accommodating, staff is super pleasant! If you're looking for a special place to celebrate something special, make this your night out. Atmosphere is nice and peaceful. We'll be back! read more

Thirty years ago tonight we were at the Brown Bottle for our rehearsal dinner with our wedding party. My fiancé got the Veal Marsala and I got Lasagna. It was a great dinner and service was great. Sorry I'm late posting this review. read more

Been going here for years love the lasagna the sauce is spectacular we go twice a month to the restaurant and also get take out best zItzlian in town read more

The food and the service were amazing! My husband got the Chicken Parm and couldn't stop talking about how good it was. The Fettuccine was awesome. We got dessert to go. Royce was amazing server! read more

Top-notch Italian food in Cedar Falls. Probably the best I've tried as an out of town or! Which staff was personable and worked quick, checked on us often, and the food was fantastic. Highly recommend! It's a bit of a picture out of the past... Late 70s feel maybe. if you're looking for new and modern this isn't your spot, however, I really enjoyed the old world retro atmosphere and decor. read more

Very good restaurant hidden in the city of Waterloo,IA. Very cool relaxing atmosphere, foot was amazing. I had the chicken, comes with a side and greasy bread. Well done, friendly staff as well. read more

See all

The brown bottle, Waterloo has become a family tradition for us! The lasagna is absolutely incredible. The wait staff made our evening with family wonderful. read more

Don't come to this restaurant if you are not hungry. Huge portions, very good food and excellent service. Came here with co-workers on a business trip. We had an appetizer, drinks and three pasta dishes. Each were very tasty and filling and a great value for the price. The ambiance is casual but upscale. Comfortable for a relaxed dinner but good for a nice, special occasion as well. Will come back, for sure. read more

Wow! I really feel like I am in a horror movie. Please do not ever go to this sorry excuse of a restaurant. We booked a private event for 40 people for my mothers "Celebration of Life." The management were beyond rude and hostile. We asked to order apps and bottles of wine, but apparently that was beneath their social status they accused us of being low class and nothing but having a Buffett party. I was heart broken. I was discriminated against, and my "budget" was not of their concern. The managers Chuck and Joanna literally said my thousands of dollars meant nothing because Saturday was their busiest day. As a Native American I know they did not want me anywhere near their establishment no matter how much money I had to offer. 21st century.... Heartbreaking!!! Wish this was a better experience for myself and my family to grieve the loss of our mother. read more

Service 5 stars. Food and price 2 stars. The Brown Bottle is known for being an upscale restaurant in the cedar valley. It's where you go for date night. But unless you want over priced mediocre food look elsewhere. The service was very good. There is nothing that our waitress could have done differently. She was polite and took care of our party of 11 wonderfully. There is very little on the menu that wind cost you $15-25 per person. So be prepared. A plate of linguine pasta with butter sauce is $15, add Alfredo sauce $2 more, add chicken another charge. I went for a $15 item, one of the lowest priced items and it was literally two noodle tubes stuffed with a small piece of ham, ricotta cheese and a ton of white sauce on it. It was like soup it was so runny. It was awful. No one in my family was impressed. The garlic bread was just toasted bread with butter. No garlic to speak of. The ambiance was ok inside the restaurant- minus the jingle bells on the overhead music in April. The entryway to the restaurant is an old historic building entryway. Supercool in its own right. But the building is now low income apartments and the smell of cigarette smoke bombards you as you enter the lobby. Not their fault but adds to the first impression. This place just isn't my thing. If the food blew me away i would be okay with the high price. But it's just not that great. read more

First time dining at The Brown Bottle! When you walk in, you get an antique and romantic vibe; old books lined the walls and created more private spaces to sit. As far as the food, the main dishes are smaller portions, but delicious! I recommend going on a Thursday night for Date Night! It comes with an appetizer, side salads, garlic bread, two entrees, and dessert. Even though the main meal has smaller portions, there was still plenty of food :) read more

The Brown Bottle - Butter Dill Salmon (bottom) Chicken Parmesan (top) - Pizza Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

Made a reservation on their website for 7:30 pm on May 11, 2024. Arrived at the restaurant and gave them our name and that we had a reservation for 7:30 pm. The gal at the hostess stand was extremely rude and informed us that the reservation system says to call for a reservation when booking after 4:00 pm. We were then told we were the 4th "reservation" waiting for a table. We left after waiting 20 minutes due to the rudeness. When you work in hospitality, don't treat people that way. Particularly when the technology isn't working for you. In fact, you'd be better off taking reservations over the phone all the time. If we were the 4th on one night, there is clearly a problem. We don't recall seeing the message they claim is there when booking a reservation. Seriously, do better. read more

Best place for Italian food in the greater cedar valley. Not only are the prices reasonable for the great atmosphere and service, but the food is wonderful. Someone at my table accidentally spilled wine on their clothes and the manager offered to pay for her dry cleaning. SO nice and accommodating. Love this place! read more

See all

Have eaten here twice. Both times I found myself asking what is it about this place that makes me say...mediocre? Is it the quantity of food? Possibly. Small size portions. Is it the cost? Probably. Probably 30% more expensive than other similar restaurants. Is it the quality? Ah - yes, that's probably the main reason. The food doesn't have much flavor, much texture nor much to recommend it. Not particularly bad, but not particularly good. The pizza in particular was very average - and overly expensive for it being so bland. If you're reading this because you're considering giving this place a try - my recommendation would be to try someplace else. read more

The food is almost always really good and they have a pretty big menu. The wife and I go there a few times and year and the place is very nice and has a great atmosphere to enjoy a dinner. Pretty much all the pasta dishes are very good and we love the drink menu too. Nice folks and good service too, thumbs up all around. It's a bit pricey for things but not terrible, that's the only reason I'm not giving it 5 stars. read more

Was seated for 23 minutes and no one came to my table for an order of any type. Avoid this place.

We are traveling from Illinois's to Minnesota and spent the night in Water Loo. The Brown Bottle was a short distance from the hotel and Had great Italian meal. A must go to the next time in the area. read more

Waterloo, Iowa, Brown Bottle Food excellent! Service terrible..two and one half hours on a Tuesday night, we ordered apple cobbler, got our friends peach cobbler, dirty plates not picked up, salad plates sat on the table until the end, asked for drink refill, never happened! Walked up front to get our ticket else we would still be sitting waiting! Waiter apologized three times during that time.... read more

My boyfriend and I came here for our first actual date since COVID started. We had never heard of this place before then, but we decided that if we were going to eat out we should at least support a local business. We got the prime rib and the seafood lasagna. Everything was cooked perfectly. The prime rib melts in your mouth. The seafood lasagna was amazing. The service was wonderful. We will be returning. read more

This is supposedly the good place to go eat in Waterloo, but wow. The food is horrible. The manicotti has undercooked pasta, bad, bad ricotta filling (bad!! Grainy, tasteless, insipid watery filling) and basically a can of chopped tomatoes on top raw and metallic. Terrible!! Their vegetarian lasagne was just bland. The water was pretty bad. But the worst was the tiramisu. There was about a tablespoon of coffee in the whole thing, all at the bottom. Dry!! And something was way off with the mascarpone too.. even so. Imagine eating tiramisu with no coffee. Dry cookies in a slightly sweet off mascarpone. Sad. The service was very good, a very nice and attentive waitress. We had the bread starter which was ok, even if it had little to do with Italian food. Overall: outrageously priced food, you'd get a better quality from your microwave. read more

The Brown Bottle - Pizza Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

Don't go to this restaurant at their Waterloo, Iowa location. The building where the restaurant is has unkempt residents and loitering homeless. Felt uncomfortable and unsafe. Service/waitress at restaurant was poor. Manager did nothing and made excuses. read more

Fabulous food and great service, love the atmosphere when you walk in, love the food there, super filling and the alcohol beverage was great. (Gin and tonic). My favorite was the the tearmesue dessert. read more

I'm sad to say that my husband and I have both lived in Waterloo & this was the first time we've been to the Brown Bottle. We've always know it was there but just never went. Last night we went for New Years Eve and we were very impressed. Excellent service from beginning to end. Good customer service when going to a restaurant seems to be hit or miss anymore. This restaurant isn't cheap but I felt so much better paying the bill after getting such great service. The ambiance is perfect. Very classy. Great for date night. Located in the historic Russel Lampson which makes it very unique. The lobby area was absolutely beautiful. The food was spectacular! I had the white lasagna and it was so good. I also had a martini...it was seasonal. I think it was called a dirty snowman? Not sure but it was very good. Something else that really impressed me was how hands on the owner's are. We recognized them from the website and they were both there on site. Maybe that could attribute to the fabulous customer service. It just shows that they really care about what's going on at their business. We will surely be back again. read more

The Brown Bottle - Pizza Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa

We always make a family visit to Brown Bottle when we come to Iowa to visit family. The food never disappoints. Pizza is excellent- thin crust. Lasagna is always amazing. We love the chicken Dijon with its delicious crust. Portions are healthy. Perhaps this was our best visit ever as our waiter was Kenny and his service was impeccable. Kenny has a great sense of humor and makes you feel right at home. Boom! read more

Second time here. Must stop if in Waterloo. Lasagna is always great, and love the atmosphere. read more

The Brown Bottle - Pizza Near Me - Waterloo, Iowa