I have to rave about The Oven! Great food, great atmosphere and the best gluten free pizza I've ever had! The Friday night Land & Sea buffet was very good according to my husband! If you're in the area be sure to check it out, you won't be disappointed! read more

My husband and I ate here for dinner this past Saturday. The restaurant was busy, but we were seated immediately. I was a little concerned about the music at first, as there was a speaker right over our booth playing loud accordion music, but the rest of the music on the playlist/station was enjoyable - a lot of it seemed to be modern Italian music, a bit different than you'd normally hear at an Italian restaurant. Our waitress was very pleasant and friendly (as was the hostess). She brought our drinks right away, and was quick both with taking our order and bringing our food when it was ready. My husband ordered the cheese tortellini, which was your basic tortellini, nothing special. He said after that he wished it had come with meat sauce instead of marinara. I ordered the chicken pesto lasagna, which was on special. Its appearance was a bit off-putting, as it was a mostly white mass in a white baking dish, and most of the oil/liquid had leached out of the pesto layers, making it look greasy. For all that, it had a pretty good flavor, although I would have preferred less mozzarella and more ricotta, as well as more pesto and veggies - spinach and mushrooms would have been a welcome addition. Both meals came with a piece of garlic bread and the salad bar. The salad bar was decent; I was happy to see a romaine mix rather than iceberg lettuce. I thought it a bit odd that the bar only had pickles and not cucumbers, but maybe this is just a Thumb thing? For dessert, we got the doughballs, which are bite-sized pieces of fried dough with cinnamon sugar and icing. I could have done with a lot more cinnamon sugar, as they weren't as coated as, say, an elephant ear. We got additional icing on the side, per the recommendation of our waitress, for dipping. They were quite good. I hadn't been sure about paying $6 for them, but you get a large basket of them - probably too much for two people, but we ate almost all of them anyway! Overall, the meals were decent. It was a bit pricey for what we got, but we don't mind supporting a local business, and the service was very good. We'd eat here again if we were ever in Caro, but I think we'd both order a different entree. read more

I really wanted to give this place a great review. Stopped in this afternoon to grab a bite. I ordered the daily special which was baked spaghetti with garlic toast and salad bar. My companion ordered the pulled pork sandwich with homemade chips. The waitress was attentive and the food was really very good. When I paid the check, the cashier gave me a credit card slip to sign. I noticed a "convenience fee". Manager was very rude when I asked what it was for. They charged me extra to use a credit card. Ridiculous. Food was good, service was okay but because of the fee and the rude manager (older tall woman), I definitely won't be back. Shame read more

After reading other reviews, I see I am not the only person with the same issues. Food was OKAY. A tad on the pricey side, but I was willing to pay it. ISSUE #1: Credit/Debit card fee Absolutely ridiculous. I am sorry that you got yourselves into a contract that apparently charges some sort of merchant fee, but the way your business handles it is inappropriate. Sneakily charging your customers to cover this fee because of your poor business decision. I understand that because of YOUR poor business decision, these costs must be absorbed somehow. But how about going about it openly and honestly. Have a sign on each table, instead of a small sign on the door and apparently by the register that no customer goes near. When the server drops the check off, mention the fee so it is not a surprise on the bill. BETTER YET, mention the fee before they order. ALL businesses have fees relating to credit/debit card usage, but you do not see your method as a common practice. IT MAKES YOUR CUSTOMERS UPSET. ISSUE #2: Server being required to stand and watch you TIP them. WHAT?! WHY?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! I do not even understand WHY this might be necessary. I will tell you what it is. UNCOMFORTABLE. As the server awkwardly stood there and watched me sign the bill, I looked up at her and gave her a "Can I help you?" look. She quickly apologized and explained that the owners make her stand there (and apparently watch) while the customer signs the bill. She got kind of an attitude for the bit of attitude I gave her with my look, and I cannot say I blame her. She probably gets this look often. I was very tempted to tip her less because of the ridiculous policies in place at this restaurant. I quickly realized that it is probably not her fault, and tipped her the fair 20%. I would bet that not everyone takes the time to realize it is not the servers fault, though. Nope, I won't be back. I hope you enjoy your ridiculous policies and the negative feelings it passes on to your staff and customers. read more

The cooks or management has elected to decrease the amount of meat in which they include in their sandwiches. Today I ordered a grilled Pannini Club and received the following: 1 tiny strip of bacon which was split into 2 1 slice of turkey 1 slice of ham 1 slice of cheese 2 slices of very crisp bread And a large gross amount of Mayo About a month before we brought out of state family in and they order the same sandwich and got 3 times the amount. The waitress asked the owner to come and speak with me on the issue but she was too busy with ADT to come and discuss the concern. The staff also stated she was with them ALL day. So 5 minutes to break way is too much to ask for? To the owners of The Oven it is nice to have your place secured but if you feel that is more important than the customer service you might have a larger problem. Without customers you will not need a security system since you will be out of business in no time. Since security is a concern they will not miss our family as well as our organization's business. read more

YOU WILL LOVE THIS PLACE! :) Not only does this resturant have AMAZING food and so many choices, but GREAT service. The family that owns it is friendly, and honestly cares about the community. Trust me, you are losing out if you do not choose this as your place to eat- take out or dine in!! read more

Was in town twice for work. This was the most crowded place in town...must have good food. This place struck out both visits. How do you ruin spaghetti? They can. Diners beware the food here is ranking some of the worst food ever. Today I ordered the black and bleu pasta and the 3 pieces of steak that came with it were coated with so much seasoning the one piece I ate brought tears to my eyes. They took my plate and threw it in the garbage(a good place for it) Then gave me 1/2 off! Lesson learned... read more

I never write reviews but I needed to. The food was good and fast that's why they get one star, but other than that the service was horrible... Sitting us they throw the silverware on the tables, ordered and didn't get for food we ordered. Than when waiting for our boxes to go it was like our waitress was no where to be found. Will not be back..... read more

My husband and I were living in Caro for his job. Not from the area and didn't know where the good restaurants were. The answer: practically nowhere but The Oven was one of the worst!!! Their pasta was DISGUSTING. The pasta to sauce ratio was ridiculous; it was more like "I would like a little pasta with my sauce." My husband ordered the "chicken parmesan," and all it was, was microwavable chicken breasts with canned tomato sauce and cheese. It looked and tasted horrible. The service was also TERRIBLE. The "hostess" was on the phone when we arrived and ignored us and catered to people who walked in AFTER us until someone asked us what we wanted. We were literally asked, "What do you want?" When we sat down, our waitress was rude, trashy and uneducated. We complained to the "management" of the quality of the food and service and they replied "you're too stuck up." REALLY?!?! Oh, and the prices were outrageous for the food quality and service. read more

Ate here with some friends from work. The food was just okay. The prices were just okay. The bartender offered us the great imported beer they had on tap. Had 3 pitchers (that I didn't buy) but drank and it was flat and warmish. My friend gets the bill and it's $18.00 A PITCHER! SMALL PITCHER at that!!! Now granted it is part our responsibility to ask the price, but this was complete and utter STICKER SHOCK! Will NOT go there again because of it! read more

I've been here and ordered out on several occasions. The staff is always very friendly and leaves you to your food without approaching too often. The burgers are pretty good, stromboli is delicious but the shrimp alfredo is mediocre/subpar. They do large group events and the buffet set up works well. Reasonable to slightly higher pricing. read more

The buffalo chicken dip was greasy and plain, fried pita bread it was served with was just friend air. Music was heavy, almost like religious chant music / classical pretending to be Italian. Did not fit the ambiance. Menu is basic and after eating the buffalo chicken dip I didn't dare try anything else, even if it did sound good. Waitresses were also speaking very loudly in the back which was obnoxious. read more

I was excited to eat at The Oven. Unfortunately the food was cold, hard, and disgusting. I would not feed this food to my dog. But that's not the worst - upon being told my total, and handing over my credit card, the waitress said under her breath "Well it's gonna be a little different." Right before she had the chance to swipe my card, I said "what do you mean?" She said there was a "small surcharge" for the credit card machine. WHAT?! I have NEVER heard of a restaurant doing this. If they do, they certainly don't charge that fee to customers, and they eat it under the table. She referenced a small framed piece of paper behind her that was too small for customers to read but apparently explained this "policy." I decided to pay with cash and refused to tip and I will take my business to your competitors who have better food and do not charge this obscene fee. Linda Downing - change your policy or continue to lose more costumers. read more

My family and I really liked this place. The food was good and the server was good. The issue is the sneaky business practices of this place. WE WILL NEVER RETURN TO THIS PLACE! We had a group of 7 people. We ordered Pizza, ravioli, a few orders of fish and chips, dough balls, a nice spread. But the sneakiness came when our bill came. My wife used her debit card to pay. The bill was over $80. When the bill came back my wife noticed a fee charged for using her debit card of 3 to 4%. We never saw this posted anywhere and the waiter never said anything until my wife hesitated and started to ask. Then information that was told to her that to use a debit or credit card has a fee. Then quickly said we don't take personal checks. It seemed as if the waiter wasn't going to say anything unless it was brought up, and he seemed really uncomfortable about this issue. So it goes on the owner, they make this policy but make the wait staff take the questions and get burned because many people are saying it will come off the tip. I feel sorry for the servers who get burnt by their owners policies, it isn't right and it isn't the wait staffs fault. Also on a side note, the owners also make the servers stand over you as you sign for your card, another creepy and uncomfortable feeling for the servers and the customers. Once again the waiter seemed really uncomfortable about this procedure, and apologized to us for this rule of the business. I did not notice the fee posted any where in the place. When we talked to other families who have gone to this place with this new policy they stated the same thing. One guy said he thought there may have been a little sign by the cash register. It should be posted better maybe every menu should have a sticker on the front cover stating this policy so it isn't a surprise after you have eaten. That would allow people to get up and leave like we would have done if we had known. If the ownership thinks this is okay to do then they shouldn't be so sneaky. Obviously it is a very questionable practice that is why they aren't being up front about it. Our total bill with tip was $110, we tipped the nice waiter 20% still, because he was doing what he was told. But we WILL NEVER GO BACK, we probably went there on average 8-15 times a year, so their sneaky business practice cost them about $400-$700, I hope that $3-$4 fee was worth the lost business. A lot of People don't carry that much cash on the, debit cards are king today not cash. Credit card fees are part of the cost of doing business, don't sneak it on the bill. The interesting thing is there are a lot of our family friends who said the same thing about never going back, being upset, ect. I feel like this nice place has cost themselves a lot of business at this place and at JJ Jamokes, which the family also owns. We have been told the same procedure exists there as well. I am very disappointed in the business practices of this family owned business. read more

Coming from two waitresses which are still in high school my friend and I went there yesterday September 12, 2016, we got seated right away, well because we were the only table in there besides one other one at the bar. we noticed all the waitresses sitting there doing nothing besides watching us walk in, when the waitress, we didn't get a name but she had red short spiked hair, probably in her early 30s. She got our drinks to us right away which was a good thing. But when she brought us our drinks she just walked away not asking us if we were ready or if we needed a minute, which good thing we did need a minute, so about 10 minutes went by, she finally came back and when she took out order she was really rude to us, and when she brought us our food she slammed it down on the table and again walked away and when we got up and went and found her sitting there doing nothing laughing and talking with the other waitresses to ask her for something she got up looked at us and rolled her eyes and sighed, that was the only time needed something thanks goodness because we didn't get checked on at all. Mind you guys we were the only ones in there besides the four people at the bar which wasn't even her table. Oh and the food was absolutely horrible, I could see the butter drip off of my friends pasta, and the dough balls were way over cooked same with the cheese sticks. We've had awful service before but we never this bad. and to throw in the prices are defiantly way over priced for the amount of food, and the taste of the food. read more