So, so good!! Pasta made in house can't be beat! Flavors from Sardinia are the best! A must try when in Dallas!

This is a cute little restaurant, with great service, a nice romantic feel and a great patio. However, the food is subpar. I was really excited for the dinner because the place seems to be a great, hidden gem but we left a bit disappointed. They have a great selection of wine and we ordered the mussels for an appetizer which were delicious. However, for dinner, we ordered some of the specials they were offering that day - fettuccini with mushrooms in a garlic-butter sauce and a 40 day dry aged rib-eye. Sadly, both were extremely bland tasting. I love Italian food and I'm pretty easy to please with a good steak and pasta, but these just didn't do it for me. Maybe they ran out of salt that day? I loved the place, so I do want to go back even if it's just for appetizers and wine. read more

We sat at the bar on a Friday night recently and received excellent service. Very attentive. Interesting wines by the glass, and the seafood salad was outstanding. Great happy hour prices. Will return!! read more

I love this place. My new favorite. I especially like the chicken with mushrooms. Great food, great service, good wine selection. A real neighborhood gem. read more

Zio Cecio is one of the best kept gems in Dallas. The food is terrific as is the service.

Absolutely wonderful experience. Professional and thorough wait staff, food was excellent with Sardinia flavors and great risotto!. Prices very reasonable. read more

Had dinner here last night. Amazing. Atmosphere is intimate and a modern/refined rustic. Service was attentive. Food was fantastic: mussles in lemon and white wine with jumbo garlic slices and red pepper, a delicate whole red snapper baked in sea salt seasoned to perfection and homeade truffle (yes, truffle) ice cream. The fish was the best I''ve had since seaside restaurants in Italy. Helps that chefs and owner are actually Italian. I'm drooling as I type this. Can't wait to go back. PS: bonus--they have a woodburning oven by Renato Ovens! read more

Great renovation of the old cafe Italia space. The service was excellent and the food very good overall. The pasta dishes were great but the osso bucco was just average. Portions were sizable. I think Dallas' Italian restaurants are not very good overall, but Zio Cecio's pasta dishes are top notch. read more

The place was empty which always makes it tough for a restaurant to deliver a really fun night out! Our waitress was very sweet and attentive. We were one of two tables from 7-8:30. It was a weeknight so maybe they are rockin on other nights. Sign on the door refers to a 2012 rating so they have been around for a while. Food is very expensive for a less than fun hip night out. Will not be back but hope others enjoy. read more

If they had 1/2 star options this would be a 4.5 star review but I rounded up for the great service. We had the opportunity to eat here last night for a co-worker's birthday and everything was wonderful! The place was pretty tiny but well decorated and all staff from the hostess, to bartender to waiter were extremely friendly. Shortly after sitting down Francesco stops by to say hello. He remembered my boss (who had been there before) so chatted with us for a minute then ran off to bring us a complimentary plate of focaccia bread and a sampler of meats, jams and cheeses. There was some kind of celery and sweet red onion jam that were amazing but I was mostly impressed with his touch of service. We briefly scanned the menu but I knew prior to arriving that I wanted to try the dish my boss previously had - the Mezzeluna Alla Fonduta Di Pistacchio (seafood & ricotta ravioli with a pistacchio cream sauce). Our meal arrived pretty quickly and it absolutely lived up to my expectations. The portion was just right and it took all my self control not to lick the plate. The seafood was flavorful but not overpowing and the pistacchio was just the right touch to put the dish over the edge. My co-worker got some kind of risotto with apples and walnuts and really liked her food but said next time she will get my dish. Despite being stuffed we figured we should get the full experience and opted to order dessert. After much going back and forth we decided on the Tiramisu and Ricotta Al Miele Amaro e Bacche di Pepe. As expected the tiramisu was delcious but we were pleasantly surprised by our second choice. It was basically a few scoops of ricotta cheese drizzled with honey, citrus and a touch of black pepper. It was extremely light and I would definitely order it again to share with a group. Overall this was a great experience and I will definitely come back again soon! read more

Was there for my daughter B Day celebration, we had a wonderful experience!!! Food was delicious! Service was great!! Loved the atmosphere!!! It wasn't loud like other comments say...... we will definitely be back!! read more

The best Italian food I ever had!! 5 stars food but in very reasonable price! And you will always have the best from Chief Zio Cecio :)

I was a big fan of his work at Arcodoro/Pomodoro. His new place, Zio Cecio, exceeds all expectations. I look forward to many great meals there. read more

Zio Cecio is only good when Chef Francesco is there. When he is there, the food is inventive, fresh, well researched and probably the finest Italian in Dallas. When Chef Francesco is not there, Zio Cecio is unfocused, totally mediocre & highly unprofessional. I have had 5 Star meals there along with NO STAR meals there. Dallas is desperate for decent Italian food and Zio Cecio is sadly VERY INCONSISTENT read more

Bartender had no experience & thought a manhattan drink special on their menu was a bottle of wine! finally got it made ,but was charged $4.00 higher than the menu price. when we questioned it they thought it was Happy Hour!? Manager had to adjust the bill & was very displeased for their mistake! Food Ok had Fried Calamari but $12.50 for this neighborhood way overpriced. I think this place will probably change hands again! read more

The food was very authentic and made by very talented chefs, but the owner was a very rude and arrogant dick. Chef francesso is the typical old and insecure creep i would never leave my kids around. Mail order brides locked in the basement for sure. He was so unprofessional that he started to talk politics in the dining room. Some non sense about how china was going to own america and most texans are peasent hillbillies inferior to euros. Not going back but wish he didnt ruin such a nice cuisine. read more

Great service and food! The owner was very kind and took great care of us while we waited for our table. The food arrived promptly and was very tasty. We will return for sure. read more

This is by far the best Italian food I have ever experienced in the southern united states. The food and service were amazing for our party. We were served by Juan and he was present when needed and away when he should have been. If it's one thing I cannot stand, it's to be bothered during my $100+ meal with stupid questions, that could be easily answered with your own two eyes. Glasses stayed full, he was extremely polite and every suggestion we asked for was fantastic. This restaurant has a great Italian wine menu, I was actually shocked by the amount of inventory they have stocked. When it came to the food we ordered so many menu items (family style) it would be hard to review them all but ill certainly try: Alla Caprese (Tomato with Buffalo Mozzarella) , Scottadita Del Limbara (Lamb dish), Fritto Di Paranza (Calamari), Focaccia con Erbette di Montagna (Focaccia bread), Nodino Di Maiale Alla Pappa Reale (Pork chops), Mezzeluna Alla Fonduta Di Pistacchio (Seafood Ravioli in a cream sauce). It was all so mouth watering and enjoyable, I honestly can't tell you where to start. You would be crazy not to order at least one order of the Mezzeluna's and calamari, both of these items really stuck out in my mind, I also recommend the lamb but not everyone loves lamb. I've been back a few times now and tried other dishes also, like a chicken dish and pizza one night with a few friends. I am now greeted by name by the management and my server. I show up to this restaurant at 6:30pm with fiends or family and we enjoy our experience until almost 9pm every time. It's not just a place to eat, its a fantastic place to relax, enjoy your company and dine. You want fast Italian and bread sticks, try olive garden? This place is the real deal. I've seen a lot of bad service reviews and while I can't speak for every server here, sticking with Juan has made all my dinning experiences worry free and wonderful. Just because your server sucks, doesn't mean the entire restaurant does. Enjoy!!! read more

Average plus for this Italian restaurant . Our waiter was sub par, took an hour for us to get a chance to order and the restaurant was not busy at all, he just kept walking away. We'd order wine and then be ready to keep going and he'd dash. I had the pistachio seafood ravioli- very good. Not a big serving, but tasty. I wasn't crazy about gnocchetti, was a special. My dad did the suckling pig and liked it. Husband had the bolognaise, not my fav in dallas but passable. The appetizers were good, calamari and focaccia. The tiramisu was 10/10!!!! I feel like 4/5 is a bit of an overstatement overall but I'd give it another try and I'd still recommend to others because there may be things on the menu I missed that are their better dishes. read more

We ate at Zio Cecio last night (Tuesday) and I agree with most of the reviews. The food was quite good, although the pasta was not as perfect as at Nonna. They seemed to be trying to give efficient service, but at times the waiters were standing in a corner chatting while our table had no water or bread. When they finally did serve us, they were over-solicitous. They clearly need better management of their waiters. read more

Nice decor. Disappointing to have to pay for valet when I could park and walk 3 steps inside. Great service. Disappointing food. For $21 the vegetable lasagna was overpriced and tasted left over. This is definitely a place for older clientele. For the price you can do way better going elsewhere. read more

We thoroughly enjoyed a special evening at Zio Cecio with friends. It's a beautiful little restaurant and the staff was warm, kind and helpful. The food was delicious! We started with calamari and focaccia bread - both were delicious. One member of our party ordered the special Burrata salad - get it!! She was nice enough to share - melt in your mouth Burrata cheese with oh so perfect tomatoes and a nice drizzle of Balsamic. Two of us ordered a pasta special - fettucine with crab and a light creamy tomato sauce, the other two ordered the fettucine with bolognese. Both were great - the pasta cooked perfectly and sauced to perfection. Next visit I just may start with their cheesecake though. Perfectly creamy and not too sweet. The only reason I didn't give Zio Cecio 5 stars is due to the noise level - it was hard to hold a conversation across the table - everything and everyone echoed. We will definitely visit again though. read more

Service is slow, food took a long time to come out and they weren't even busy when we placed our order. The bolognese lacked in flavor, my husband's carbonara as well. Better off going to Olive Garden, and I don't even like Olive Garden. read more

Love the service as well as the offerings. IMO one of the better Italian eateries in the Dallas area.

Zio Cecio on Lovers lane is a great way to taste the best Italy has to offer. Francesco is warm and welcoming with everyone who visits his restaurant. Our waitress was delightful and timed our courses perfectly. The patio area has a casual feel (especially for lunch) and the dining area is cozy and elegant. The seafood salad is so fresh and delicious as is the unique (salt encrusted) flavorful - melt in your mouth- snapper which is served table side. We also had roasted vegetables that were, of course, perfectly cooked. We couldn't leave without sharing the chocolate cake and lemon cake, yum! The only bad part is that Zio Cecio is not located closer to us; however, it is well worth the drive to Lovers Lane. From start to finish this is a 5 star dining experience! read more

Food was good. Restaurant was quite noisy. Service was weird, try to order and the waiter would demean your choice. This happened to each of the four of us. Very pushy. Probably will not return. Also felt a bit pricey. read more

Upon arriving at 7:40 on a Saturday evening, we were allowed to pick where we sat(aka no crowd). We chose to sit on the patio and were seated next to the only 2 occupied tables on the whole patio. One of the tables was lively/loud, tho I don't blame them for having a good time but the restaurant for having poor acoustics. When we spoke to the GM. he dismissed our opinions. Once again, a restaurant attempts to make this space work. if u don't get the patio right(along with respectful GM's), it's futile read more

Charged $14 for club soda ($7 + $7 for 1 refill). Went with a big group, food was mediocre, service was so so, but the $14 for club soda is just ridiculous. read more

Lived in Italy for 2 years many years ago and really thought I had gone back in time tonite. This was the best authentic Italian food I have had in Dallas and the veal chop was the best I've ever had anywhere! Additionally, the service was truly Italian as well. Everyone was so friendly and attentive...felt like I was a dear friend who had been invited home for dinner. Will definitely be back! read more

What a meal! The Sommelier really knew the wine and recommended an amazing Italian wine based on our taste preference. The staff was friendly and knowledgeable. We started with beef carpaccio and caprese salad, both fresh, light and delicious. Then we shared a lobster risotto I would definitely recommend. My dish was a dry aged ribeye that was perfectly cooked and seasoned. Hers was the lamb chops which were ever so slightly over cooked but still very tasty, the sauce was to die for. Chef was very gracious and a pleasure to speak with when he stopped by our table with some complimentary grappa :). We WILL be returning! read more

We were totally turned off and left shaking our heads. The Yelp website has two major mistakes in its listing of this restaurant. It is NOT a good place for kids and it is NOT a quiet restaurant. We made a reservation because my wife had seen this restaurant featured on " Mystery Diners" on the Food Network. And some of the reviews on Yelp were good, albeit some were very bad. We decided to give it a try for ourselves. As soon as the door opened and the enormous sound level hit my ears I knew we were in trouble. We couldn't even hear the owner, Chef Francesco, when he was trying to tell us about how all the people on Mystery Diners were actors except for him and how the whole story was a fake story. The sound level was extremely loud and the realization that being featured on Mystery Diners was a fake really turned us off. But we decided to stay anyway. The waiter was visibly upset when my wife wasn't ready to order when he came to the table. He said he would be back and walked off. A few minutes later, as he was still walking around our table, he shouted "what do you want?" in a gruff voice. This was another turn off. The food arrived after a normal wait and it was okay but certainly not outstanding. We had just returned from 2 weeks in Italy and experienced excellent Italian food in every place we ate, no exceptions. We were expecting the same and some of the Yelp reviews led us to believe the food would be excellent. But alas, the food was okay but not great. Another turn off. And the prices were way too high for the quality of the restaurant. Summarizing our experience: We were drawn to this restaurant because of a fake story on the Food Network and specs on the Yelp website that it was a quiet restaurant and good for kids. We were turned off by the sound level so high you can't carry on a conversation across the table without shouting, a rude waiter, average tasting food, prices too high for the quality of food, and a total lack of ambience necessary to create a pleasant dining experience. Needless to say, we will never go back. read more

started with di manzo ai capperi, very nice was great with the bread. just right amount of caper with the meat. then had some noodles tossed with some cheese. the noodles are made there by the chef. top quality. after that had some more noodles this time with cured pork. this was a heavy dish with the same noodles. very good. then we really had the best thing of the night: some roasted jowels from a young pig. very simple only prepared with salt. i appreciate this because it allows me to really taste the meat. after that we had il pesce alla crosta di sale marino. the fish was larger than i expected but this was ok since we had a party of 4. seasoned with black salt. after that we ended with tiramasu, shot of grappa, espresso. everything was excellent in quality and could not find a single thing to complain about. the service was very good and attentive without bothering us too much. they really made us feel like guests. thanks. read more

My wife and I came to Zio Cecio after reading the review in D Magazine. It is a cozy place with a nice atmosphere. The hostess received us with a smile when we walked in. Our table was in the middle of the restaurant so I had a good view of the dinning room. It is a small dining area, crowded but still very nice. Our waiter was attentive and knowledgeable. (I can't remember his name but he was Brazilian, I know this because my wife is also Brazilian) He told us a little bit about the restaurant and the Chef, Francesco, and suggested a bottle of Sardinian wine. My wife and I have worked in the service industry for years and we always appreciated a server who knows what they are talking about and makes our experience personal. We started with a foccacia and plate of fried calamaris with a marinara sauce, it was very well prepared. As a second course my wife had a caprese salad and I had a bolognese pasta and for the main course my wife had the mezzaluna, it was delicious. I had the best veal chop of my life, perfect grilled and served with roasted potatoes. Everything was incredible, our check was almost $300.00 and I didn't even care. My wife and I had an overall wonderful experience. Why the three stars then? After working in the restaurant industry for years my standards are higher than most, my wife especially. She thought the music was distasteful for such a classy place, something classical or jazzy instead some sinatra perhaps? And while our server was great and the hostess polite I never saw a manager, even though I noticed the restaurant was very busy. It was my wife who pointed him out, at least we think he was a manager. He was sitting at the bar with his back to the restaurant and a glass of wine. The servers would occasionally stop by to ask him a question, only once did he get up to do something for a server on the POSI system. He never walked around to check on guests or to help any of the busier servers. He genuinely appeared uninterested in the restaurant, this is unprofessional to say the least. It is never good for business when employees are drinking on the clock( management especially!). I brought My wife to this restaurant (she loves Italian food) because we are big supporters of local family owned places with what we call "food culture." We also like a personal and professional experience. Our server was both but it was disappointing to see, what appeared to be, the only manager on duty at the bar drinking. He was to absorbed in his cell phone to say a farewell as we left. With my experience in the industry poor management can make or break a new business. We really would like to see the restaurant succeed. We will be returning. The excellent food and personal service are definitely worth the pricey bill. read more

If you are in the mood for good Italian food, I would suggest going elsewhere. For starters, the bread is disappointing. It took a long time to hunt down our server to request cracked pepper and Parmesan (to mask the bland, dry taste of the bread). My basic dinner salad cost $10 and when I asked for dressing on the side, I was told to just pour olive oil and vinegar from the jar on our table. Then, I opted for the lasagna, based on the servers recommendation. The menu indicated "market price", as if it it were a fine lobster. How disappointing to receive the worst piece of lasagna I have ever eaten, and be charged $19.50 for it! It tasted like they dumped a jar of diced tomatoes on some noodles and threw in a few pieces of flavorless ground meat. Clearly this was no typical slow-cooked bolognese to pull trough layers of flavors. It truly tasted like a jar of canned tomatoes. I rarely write reviews on yelp, but because this was the worst "authentic" Italian food I've eaten, especially at that price point, I had to warn other diners. read more

ARE YOU KIDDING???? $20 corkage fee is outrageous!! Well, everything was pretty outrageous, really. The parking lot was full of cars, but we were the only table in the place, and they did manage to seat us on the patio so that they looked busier. All the cars probably belong to the help, a dozen of whom were milling around doing nothing inside the whole of our evening. The portions are extra small and way expensive, but are served on extra big plates. Three of us shared three appitizer specials, one fresh Motzarella & tomato Salad (left basil out of that description intentionally because there was not any to speak of on the plate), and one meat and cheese, and one dessert. NONE of which was note worthy, mostly bland and small, and even the pound cake with liquier drizzle was missing it's drizzle (which our waiter tried to tell us was baked in!!!!!) We each had one medium priced glass of their wine. That is a total of 4 appitizers, 1 salad, 1 dessert and 3 glasses of wine. The tab after the tip was just under $200!!!! and all of us were still hungery!! Pass this one by and save your money for the many better places in Bluffview neighborhood (some even on the same street)! read more

I was treated, or rather punished, to my birthday dinner at absolutely the worst restaurant in my dining out experience. Firstly, getting anything ordered either to drink or eat was a challenge. We felt invisible as not a single staff member had the sense of service to even bother to glance in our direction. A member of our party finally got up and ordered a bottle of wine from someone in a T-shirt who we thought might be a manager or maitre 'd, but the wine never came, as his entire focus was on the World Cup match on the TV over the bar. It really felt like a Monty Python skit! Most people around us were being given bread but we were even refused that! When our appetizers finally came after an hour and 15 minutes, the food was mediochre at best. My bolognese could have been whipped up by any amateur cook. When we finally had a waiter that could at least make eye contact, he was very conciliatory and gave the expected "I am so sorry. This is not our usual service." But it was too little, too late. Probably too little cooking time also for the food that one of our friends ate who spent the night and early morning throwing up his dinner. Avoid this place like the plague, or risk getting it ! read more

This was a terrible experience. We had 7:45 reservations at Zio Cecio. When we arrived the restaurant was admittedly very crowded (and extremely noisy) and we were told a table would be ready soon. We ordered drinks at the bar and waited. The young man who first checked our reservation disappeared and the chef took over seating people. A 8:15 we enquired about our table and were told by the chef that we could sit at the table next to where all the waiters filled drinks. We said we didn't want that table and I was actually bullied by the chef telling me that was the table we reserved! We had used Open Table and never asked for a specific table. He was rude and abusive. He also had seated two, yes two, parties that came in after us at nice tables prior to offering us the one where waiters stood over us ordering drinks from the bar. When I pointed to a nice table in the middle of the room he said he was saving that for another party. He may make up the menu but he doesn't know how to manage the front end. He was so dismissive towards us that we called Bijoux down the street who said they would have a table in 20 minutes for us. We left and will never return because of his lack of respect for his clients. We had eaten there several times before and had never been treated that way. His food is not that good to endure his attitude. I doubt that even Chef Ramsey would treat patrons that way. By the way, as always, Bijoux was fantastic in service and food. I gave this one star because you have to give a star to post. read more