I’ve heard so many great things about Bottega—from the food to the top-tier customer service—so when my friend was in town for a lawyers convention and suggested dinner, this was one of the first places I recommended. We were deciding between here and Lapeer, and she ultimately chose Bottega because of its reputation.
We had reservations for 8:30 PM and weren’t seated until around 8:40, which wasn’t a huge issue. However, once seated, the service quickly became disappointing. Our waiter took our drink order, dropped off the drinks, and immediately walked away without asking if we wanted to order anything else. He eventually came back and asked us for our appetizers.
While waiting, we noticed the table next to us receiving significantly more attentive service—frequent check-ins, questions about their food, and overall engagement—while our table was largely ignored. When our appetizer arrived, it was dropped off without any follow-up. It’s like he had the zoomies. He never came back to ask how everything was, which is something I’m not used to.
At 9:29 PM, I stopped the waiter to ask if they were about to close (closing time was 9:30). That’s when I realized we were never even asked if we wanted to order entrees. His response was that he thought we were “enjoying our food and we could still order if we wanted to ,” but from the energy, we chose to go someplace else.
To be clear, the food was excellent—I’d give it a 9/10. Unfortunately, the service was a 3/10. I considered whether timing played a role, but since the table next to us received attentive service during the same time frame, it was hard to overlook the contrast. I’m not sure if it was because we were black and the only minority there, but the difference in treatment stood out.
I live not too far and truly wanted this to be a go-to spot, but the experience didn’t reflect the “one of the best restaurants with the best customer service in Birmingham” reputation I’ve heard so much about. I might consider returning to the café side to see if the experience is different, but as of now, I left feeling underwhelmed.
I’m sharing this in hopes that it helps improve consistency in service, because the decor was beautiful and the food itself is worth it. We had the Parmesan soufflé which was delicious and very comforting, so were the oysters.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
Rod Duraski
Very pleasant dinner experience at the Bottega cafe, which is a separate more casual area from the Bottega dining room, though still charmingly elegant. Reservations are not accepted for the cafe so I recommend early arrival for prompt seating. Wait staff are uniformed properly for this establishment, courteous, attentive and knowledgeable. Cuisine Italian inspired, with American Southern sensibilities. I enjoyed the hangar steak, perfectly medium rare, well seasoned with nice slightly crusty sear. Highly recommend this lovely restaurant.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Steven Antselevich
We had a great time. We love botega, we think it's the best restaurant in Birmingham. This time food didn't taste amazing for some reason, still great.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Alonzo Jones
The wood-fired pizza with prosciutto and arugula was perfect, thin crust not too charred. Cafe side is great for lunch, but the full restaurant feels special. Portions generous, left with leftovers.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Gina Hayes
We went for my birthday and it was our first time visiting. The service was amazing from entry to the bar to the table. The portion sizes aren't too big but I had an appetizer along with my meal and desserts so it was enough to have room for it all. The fresh florals on the tables were a nice touch to the ambiance.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jesse McLaughlin
Always good food!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Stacee Thomas
My husband took me there for my 40th birthday last night and it was perfection! He wanted it to be special to me so that was the only option for dining. Vesna waited on us and the service was phenomenal and so personal, she really made the experience even better!!! Every single dish exceeded expectations and was expertly crafted, executed, and presented (per usual Bottega standards). Hands down, this is the best restaurant in the south and yes I’m biased!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
JimMyriah Harvey
My friends and had the best night we’ve ever had at a restaurant in years! I wish I remember my dining professionals name because she was very knowledgeable her recommendations for perfect! No flaw in my whole experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Felicia Dailey
Dominique, Brent and the food made it a night to remember. It was simply fabulous!!
The food was amazingly put together. The tuna bread was delicious. The fried oysters were cooked to perfection. The lamb shoulder was nice and tender. The pizza was amazing. The coconut cake was definitely chef kiss. The service was great. The ambiance was soft lite.The was incredible I had the calamari that was cooked to perfection with the grilled peppers that was succulent. I got the sausage pizza that was made in the brick oven that brought the flavor to another level. I got the prime New York strip witch when well with the gnocchi gration. The flavor was nice and flavorful. I got the salmon that was crisp and juicy. I had the Catalan Happy hour without the sparkling water. It had a nice Finnish. The lemon martini Fortunato nice and strong. The flavor was super nice. I tried the martini extra dirty it's like they picked my brain extra nice. I tried the Bottega bar the mousse, caramel,peanut, and feuilletine was smooth with that surprise crunch super nice dish. I tried the pecan coconut cake OMG the best coconut cake I have had in my life it's definitely a must try. The the service was top tier. The ambiance was natural and soft. Follow on Instagram and TikTok Bishop_P_King for more reviews
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Quinton Gooden (Ultim4teG4mer18)
This place is so cool!
Amazing meal and impeccable service!
Just make sure to wear decent clothes if you don’t want to stand out!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sara Kahi
Simply the best! Delicious and creative!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sonia DeMellier
Never had a bad experience at Bottega! Every member of the staff is ready to make sure you have the best meal. The dining room is beautiful, the servers are very knowledgeable about the menus and preparation of all food. We are many times repeat customers.
I’ve heard so many great things about Bottega—from the food to the top-tier customer service—so when my friend was in town for a lawyers convention and suggested dinner, this was one of the first places I recommended. We were deciding between here and Lapeer, and she ultimately chose Bottega because of its reputation.
We had reservations for 8:30 PM and weren’t seated until around 8:40, which wasn’t a huge issue. However, once seated, the service quickly became disappointing. Our waiter took our drink order, dropped off the drinks, and immediately walked away without asking if we wanted to order anything else. He eventually came back and asked us for our appetizers.
While waiting, we noticed the table next to us receiving significantly more attentive service—frequent check-ins, questions about their food, and overall engagement—while our table was largely ignored. When our appetizer arrived, it was dropped off without any follow-up. It’s like he had the zoomies. He never came back to ask how everything was, which is something I’m not used to.
At 9:29 PM, I stopped the waiter to ask if they were about to close (closing time was 9:30). That’s when I realized we were never even asked if we wanted to order entrees. His response was that he thought we were “enjoying our food and we could still order if we wanted to ,” but from the energy, we chose to go someplace else.
To be clear, the food was excellent—I’d give it a 9/10. Unfortunately, the service was a 3/10. I considered whether timing played a role, but since the table next to us received attentive service during the same time frame, it was hard to overlook the contrast. I’m not sure if it was because we were black and the only minority there, but the difference in treatment stood out.
I live not too far and truly wanted this to be a go-to spot, but the experience didn’t reflect the “one of the best restaurants with the best customer service in Birmingham” reputation I’ve heard so much about. I might consider returning to the café side to see if the experience is different, but as of now, I left feeling underwhelmed.
I’m sharing this in hopes that it helps improve consistency in service, because the decor was beautiful and the food itself is worth it. We had the Parmesan soufflé which was delicious and very comforting, so were the oysters.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
Very pleasant dinner experience at the Bottega cafe, which is a separate more casual area from the Bottega dining room, though still charmingly elegant. Reservations are not accepted for the cafe so I recommend early arrival for prompt seating. Wait staff are uniformed properly for this establishment, courteous, attentive and knowledgeable. Cuisine Italian inspired, with American Southern sensibilities. I enjoyed the hangar steak, perfectly medium rare, well seasoned with nice slightly crusty sear. Highly recommend this lovely restaurant.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We had a great time. We love botega, we think it's the best restaurant in Birmingham. This time food didn't taste amazing for some reason, still great.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
The wood-fired pizza with prosciutto and arugula was perfect, thin crust not too charred. Cafe side is great for lunch, but the full restaurant feels special. Portions generous, left with leftovers.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We went for my birthday and it was our first time visiting. The service was amazing from entry to the bar to the table. The portion sizes aren't too big but I had an appetizer along with my meal and desserts so it was enough to have room for it all. The fresh florals on the tables were a nice touch to the ambiance.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Always good food!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
My husband took me there for my 40th birthday last night and it was perfection! He wanted it to be special to me so that was the only option for dining. Vesna waited on us and the service was phenomenal and so personal, she really made the experience even better!!! Every single dish exceeded expectations and was expertly crafted, executed, and presented (per usual Bottega standards). Hands down, this is the best restaurant in the south and yes I’m biased!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
My friends and had the best night we’ve ever had at a restaurant in years! I wish I remember my dining professionals name because she was very knowledgeable her recommendations for perfect! No flaw in my whole experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dominique, Brent and the food made it a night to remember. It was simply fabulous!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Wow! And the desserts are more wow!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
The food was amazingly put together. The tuna bread was delicious. The fried oysters were cooked to perfection. The lamb shoulder was nice and tender. The pizza was amazing. The coconut cake was definitely chef kiss. The service was great. The ambiance was soft lite.The was incredible I had the calamari that was cooked to perfection with the grilled peppers that was succulent. I got the sausage pizza that was made in the brick oven that brought the flavor to another level. I got the prime New York strip witch when well with the gnocchi gration. The flavor was nice and flavorful. I got the salmon that was crisp and juicy. I had the Catalan Happy hour without the sparkling water. It had a nice Finnish. The lemon martini Fortunato nice and strong. The flavor was super nice. I tried the martini extra dirty it's like they picked my brain extra nice. I tried the Bottega bar the mousse, caramel,peanut, and feuilletine was smooth with that surprise crunch super nice dish. I tried the pecan coconut cake OMG the best coconut cake I have had in my life it's definitely a must try. The the service was top tier. The ambiance was natural and soft. Follow on Instagram and TikTok Bishop_P_King for more reviews
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
This place is so cool!
Amazing meal and impeccable service!
Just make sure to wear decent clothes if you don’t want to stand out!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Simply the best! Delicious and creative!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Never had a bad experience at Bottega!
Every member of the staff is ready to make sure you have the best meal. The dining room is beautiful, the servers are very knowledgeable about the menus and preparation of all food. We are many times repeat customers.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great dining experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Loading...