It seems that Forte has gotten some bad reviews these past months. My wife and I went to celebrate a very special occasion anyways to see what had changed. I reserved online and the staff (Caleb) messaged me to make sure everything was set up and even offered us a nice table because they weren’t busy that evening. I asked if they would set out a bottle of champagne for us cold on the table when we arrived and they were more than happy to do so. Really nice servers and staff, everyone at least seems to enjoy working there which is a sign of a nice restaurant.
Food: Really nice. I had tried this place when it was a French menu, but I think Italian suits this place well too. The food was well thought out and delicious. The Grouper was a delicious dish I really loved it. Everything was super nice and delicious. The house made foccacia was really nice. Drinks were really reasonably priced for being a bit more of an upscale place.
Atmosphere: It’s cozy and the lights are a little low. It’s nice and if you want an intimate date night I highly recommend.
I think it seems maybe we missed the rough patch that Forte supposedly had because last time we had it years ago it was fantastic and just yesterday it was fantastic too. Highly recommend for the price.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Max
Everything wa on point my steak was cooked perfectly rare ! And the drinks were generous
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Christie
Dinner was great! Even though we were accidently "overlooked" after we were seated, we completely enjoyed our time at Forte. The manager Bree came by our table to apologize for the oversight and our server apolized as well. The service we had afterward was outstanding and our food was well worth the wait. We definitely will be back.
Haven
Besides the small few minute wait to be seated everything was perfect! We didn't mind the wait the hostess was just scheduling a reservation. The staff was amazing, they even congratulated us on our anniversary a few times and I believe that was the sweetest! Definitely will be going back! The food was amazing as well.
Lori Barrett
My family recently celebrated a birthday at Forte’. While we had enjoyed Forte’ in the past, this visit was next level. Upon arrival, our waiter, Blake, made us feel right at home, and he continued to be attentive to us the entire evening. My son-in-law and daughter ordered special drinks from the bar. They looked beautiful and refreshing, and both of them gushed about how much they enjoyed them. We ordered the Arancini balls and the Meatballs and focaccia from the Appetizer menu. They were so delicious, that there wasn’t a crumb left on the plates! I was thrilled to see grouper piccata on the menu. It was seared and served with a lemon caper sauce on a bed of sautéed spinach and farro. It was phenomenal! The fish was tender and flavorful, the spinach was perfectly cooked, and the sauce was bright and scrumptious. The rest of the family ordered pasta dishes and salads that were also wonderful. Finally, we finished our meal with sticky toffee puddings all around, which were fantastic. We all ate well more than we should have that night, but the food was exquisite, the staff was warm and personable, and the atmosphere was fun and fancy. We cannot wait to go back to try other special coffees, drinks, and the other items on the extended menu! Thank you, Forte’, for a beautiful evening that we won’t soon forget!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Wesley
I haven't visited this restaurant for at least two years. The previous menu was eclectic, and thus, depending on the individual the choices might be narrowed, but the desserts were excellent. Currently, Forte is definitely an Italian restaurant with upscale nuanced pasta choices. I would suggest reviewing the menu on line and the pasta choices before making reservations since it is not the average Italian restaurant. This means the pastas are more sophisticated than one might expect. Everything was prepared well. The service and employees were excellent. The desserts were the boringly usual tiramisu and creme brûlée you would expect. i only say this because I was looking forward to the choices from several years ago. I did not order a dessert, but I am sure it would have been very good. The prices were reasonable and within the range I have encountered at other upscale restaurants recently.
Amber Glenn
Ordered steak frites tonight and it was HORRIBLE!! The steak was burnt and very very salty! The fries were very salty as well and wayyyy too much rosemary was used! I will not be returning after this experience. AND I’m still HUNGRY!!!!!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
ttranel
For this advertised as an upscale restaurant it is not. The service was great, but I can't complain about that. You had employees standing by the exterior doors on their phones. The food was just average and overpriced for what it was. We were looking for our permanent nice restaurant in the area after the collapse of the chop house. This is not it.
The flavor of the food was excellent. However, what I received did not match the description on the menu. This occurred with the main dish as well as the dessert. For the main dish the grouper was supposed to be on a “bed of spinach and farro.” There was only ONE TINY leaf of spinach, the size of my pinkie fingernail. I asked the server when the dish was placed where the spinach was. I thought it might be buried under the farro and sauce. My friend ordered the same thing and she had 2 tiny leaves. Then the larger piece of fish was slightly undercooked. To conclude the meal we ordered dessert. The description for the crème brûlée stated “with fresh strawberries on top”. They forgot the strawberries! I was not impressed especially since this is supposed to be one of the top rated restaurants in town.
All was going well until the manager came to our table at the end of our meal and literally said they have another 8 top to seat, can you please leave. I told him we'd love to but the check wasn't even at our table. Beyond rude.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Food preparation and service - outstanding! The venue is lovely - perfectly appointed. Only issue - no shades on the door and side windows - the glare was terrible as the sun was setting. Over an hour we could not sit on one side of our table. Also suggest - more options are needed as the menu had very limited choices. Would definitely come back!
EastWind
The menu has changed significantly since my last time here. Food was good, but I don't think the restaurant knows the type of restaurant it wants to be. Very attentive service made the evening.
matt eldridge
Where to begin… when Forte first opened, my friends and I were so happy, finally we didn’t have to drive to Birmingham to have French food. 9/10 times the old Forte was great.However, I was very hesitant to return after looking at the menu. Begrudgingly, my friends talked me into trying the “new” Forte, and boy was it a huge letdown. When we arrived at the table, we could tell the kitchen had started to shut down due to not many people in the restaurant. The chefs were visibly agitated that we were there. The appetizers were barely ok, the charcuterie was not worth the price for the small amount of food, the shrimp tasted good, but were very small.The entrees were absolutely terrible. My pasta was congealed together, and chewy. During one point in the dinner, my friends and I looked at each other and said, this is terrible.It’s such a shame a place with such a nice environment can not deliver. It has so much potential, but a management and chef change is in order.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 3
We had a reservation for 7:15 on Friday. We were seated immediately. Our food did not come to the table until after 9:00. They apologized for the wait time, but this was still disappointing.
Love the arancini
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
It seems that Forte has gotten some bad reviews these past months. My wife and I went to celebrate a very special occasion anyways to see what had changed. I reserved online and the staff (Caleb) messaged me to make sure everything was set up and even offered us a nice table because they weren’t busy that evening. I asked if they would set out a bottle of champagne for us cold on the table when we arrived and they were more than happy to do so. Really nice servers and staff, everyone at least seems to enjoy working there which is a sign of a nice restaurant.
Food: Really nice. I had tried this place when it was a French menu, but I think Italian suits this place well too. The food was well thought out and delicious. The Grouper was a delicious dish I really loved it. Everything was super nice and delicious. The house made foccacia was really nice. Drinks were really reasonably priced for being a bit more of an upscale place.
Atmosphere: It’s cozy and the lights are a little low. It’s nice and if you want an intimate date night I highly recommend.
I think it seems maybe we missed the rough patch that Forte supposedly had because last time we had it years ago it was fantastic and just yesterday it was fantastic too. Highly recommend for the price.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Everything wa on point my steak was cooked perfectly rare ! And the drinks were generous
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dinner was great! Even though we were accidently "overlooked" after we were seated, we completely enjoyed our time at Forte. The manager Bree came by our table to apologize for the oversight and our server apolized as well. The service we had afterward was outstanding and our food was well worth the wait. We definitely will be back.
Besides the small few minute wait to be seated everything was perfect! We didn't mind the wait the hostess was just scheduling a reservation. The staff was amazing, they even congratulated us on our anniversary a few times and I believe that was the sweetest! Definitely will be going back! The food was amazing as well.
My family recently celebrated a birthday at Forte’. While we had enjoyed Forte’ in the past, this visit was next level. Upon arrival, our waiter, Blake, made us feel right at home, and he continued to be attentive to us the entire evening. My son-in-law and daughter ordered special drinks from the bar. They looked beautiful and refreshing, and both of them gushed about how much they enjoyed them. We ordered the Arancini balls and the Meatballs and focaccia from the Appetizer menu. They were so delicious, that there wasn’t a crumb left on the plates! I was thrilled to see grouper piccata on the menu. It was seared and served with a lemon caper sauce on a bed of sautéed spinach and farro. It was phenomenal! The fish was tender and flavorful, the spinach was perfectly cooked, and the sauce was bright and scrumptious. The rest of the family ordered pasta dishes and salads that were also wonderful. Finally, we finished our meal with sticky toffee puddings all around, which were fantastic. We all ate well more than we should have that night, but the food was exquisite, the staff was warm and personable, and the atmosphere was fun and fancy. We cannot wait to go back to try other special coffees, drinks, and the other items on the extended menu! Thank you, Forte’, for a beautiful evening that we won’t soon forget!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I haven't visited this restaurant for at least two years. The previous menu was eclectic, and thus, depending on the individual the choices might be narrowed, but the desserts were excellent. Currently, Forte is definitely an Italian restaurant with upscale nuanced pasta choices. I would suggest reviewing the menu on line and the pasta choices before making reservations since it is not the average Italian restaurant. This means the pastas are more sophisticated than one might expect. Everything was prepared well. The service and employees were excellent. The desserts were the boringly usual tiramisu and creme brûlée you would expect. i only say this because I was looking forward to the choices from several years ago. I did not order a dessert, but I am sure it would have been very good. The prices were reasonable and within the range I have encountered at other upscale restaurants recently.
Ordered steak frites tonight and it was HORRIBLE!! The steak was burnt and very very salty! The fries were very salty as well and wayyyy too much rosemary was used! I will not be returning after this experience. AND I’m still HUNGRY!!!!!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
For this advertised as an upscale restaurant it is not. The service was great, but I can't complain about that. You had employees standing by the exterior doors on their phones. The food was just average and overpriced for what it was. We were looking for our permanent nice restaurant in the area after the collapse of the chop house. This is not it.
The flavor of the food was excellent. However, what I received did not match the description on the menu. This occurred with the main dish as well as the dessert. For the main dish the grouper was supposed to be on a “bed of spinach and farro.” There was only ONE TINY leaf of spinach, the size of my pinkie fingernail. I asked the server when the dish was placed where the spinach was. I thought it might be buried under the farro and sauce. My friend ordered the same thing and she had 2 tiny leaves. Then the larger piece of fish was slightly undercooked. To conclude the meal we ordered dessert. The description for the crème brûlée stated “with fresh strawberries on top”. They forgot the strawberries! I was not impressed especially since this is supposed to be one of the top rated restaurants in town.
Restaurantji Recommends
All was going well until the manager came to our table at the end of our meal and literally said they have another 8 top to seat, can you please leave. I told him we'd love to but the check wasn't even at our table. Beyond rude.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Food preparation and service - outstanding! The venue is lovely - perfectly appointed. Only issue - no shades on the door and side windows - the glare was terrible as the sun was setting. Over an hour we could not sit on one side of our table. Also suggest - more options are needed as the menu had very limited choices. Would definitely come back!
The menu has changed significantly since my last time here. Food was good, but I don't think the restaurant knows the type of restaurant it wants to be. Very attentive service made the evening.
Where to begin… when Forte first opened, my friends and I were so happy, finally we didn’t have to drive to Birmingham to have French food. 9/10 times the old Forte was great.However, I was very hesitant to return after looking at the menu. Begrudgingly, my friends talked me into trying the “new” Forte, and boy was it a huge letdown. When we arrived at the table, we could tell the kitchen had started to shut down due to not many people in the restaurant. The chefs were visibly agitated that we were there. The appetizers were barely ok, the charcuterie was not worth the price for the small amount of food, the shrimp tasted good, but were very small.The entrees were absolutely terrible. My pasta was congealed together, and chewy. During one point in the dinner, my friends and I looked at each other and said, this is terrible.It’s such a shame a place with such a nice environment can not deliver. It has so much potential, but a management and chef change is in order.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 3
We had a reservation for 7:15 on Friday. We were seated immediately. Our food did not come to the table until after 9:00. They apologized for the wait time, but this was still disappointing.
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