Highly recommend for coffee, fresh baked breads, roll etc. brunch and evening wine.
Laura
Very good service and the food was excellent. We always worry about having Italian food away from NY/NJ area but we were quite surprised by the flavors and quality of the dinner. We would recommend stopping here to eat.
Lawrence Aranda
Great food, 🔥. Avocado toast and eggs with homemade multi-grain bread are absolutely delicious 😋. A must have!!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
carmen rodriguez
The food was disgusting bad bad I don't recommend this place, the food was so terrible. FFF 0/100.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Taylor
For $275 before gratuity, their tasting menu with wine pairing for two fell short. I think the chef has talent but lacks support from both front and back of house. - No course explanations, waitress instead left stained printed paper from the 5:30 seating for us to reference. - The timing was off, felt rushed, and almost forced until they fell behind at fourth course. - Nowhere to put silverware between each course. - Each plate and its pairing lacked creativity. I think the james beard nomination went to their heads cause the pricing, presentation, execution just didn't add up. NYC/SF/CHI would eat up and spit out this place in two months.
Erik Leingang
Went for lunch today with my wife and 19 month old son, and we have not ever felt so unwelcome in a restaurant. There were multiple tables with dirty dishes, while employees stood around. We stood by one for a bit, expecting one of the employees would help, but to no avail. We eventually just cleared the dirty dishes ourselves and sat down, while we were continually glared at by a female employee with dark hair. We ordered food at the counter, and were disappointed to find that the burger that was advertised was unavailable until four, and while waiting for it to arrive we watched her welcome her friends who came in, clear a table for them, and then they all proceeded to give us dirty looks. I’m not sure if we just didn’t have the correct designer clothes, or the fact that we had a child in the middle of the day but the dirty looks continued our entire stay. We ate quickly, food that was fine but expensive, and left, again to this employee who had stopped working to have lunch with her friends, glare at us on the way out. Needless to say we will not be returning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 1
Sandra B
I LOVE Anima......but the kale salad, albeit Delicious, was THE tiniest salad I have EVER seen. It was a small amount in a small, 4" bowl....for $12. Everything else is AMAZING and I don't mind the higher prices, generally, b/c it's so fresh and amazing umami. But this was fresh kale....and the croutons were from a box instead of their usual homemade ones. Worth complaining about....just get something else. Their salads in the same bowl are CHOCK-FULL of goodness and ....full. ...Unless I don't know that they're reducing amount and I just don't know yet.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Coffee Pourover, Meat and Cheese Platter, Fish Entree, Burrata Crostini, Pan-Seared Walleye, Arabbiata with Squid Ink Spaghetti and Shrimp, Lobster Paccheri, Porchetta Hash, Adult Mac N Cheese, Carbonara Bucatini
Dave Safirstein
Great healthy choice for lunch. Sandwiches and bowls were incredibly fresh and flavorful. Everything down to bread was home made and delicious.
Sadly all this was ruined by the rudest interaction we've had in years with a manager. We had our infant grandson sleeping in a car carrier in the booth, so quite crowded.
She stopped by the table after food arrived. Expected a how is everything, instead, 'you'll have to move that chair, it's going to be in the way for our dinner service'. Mind you it was 3:15pm and we'd have been long gone. Again grandson made it impossible to fit.
She returned throwing all our coats at us. 'you cant put these at an empty table'. the place was empty. Temps in the single digits with NO COAT RACK in the place.
Absolutely ruined what could have been a nice albeit expensive dining experience. They take payment upfront otherwise we'd have left. So upsetting, we took all to go.
Predict they will be out of business
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 5
Service: 1
Matthew
Over cooked pasta, burnt steak. Took a long time but they apologized. I suppose, minus the apology, that this gave the place an Italian character
Ashley
We love the spot for date night as we have historically had a great experience. However, this time it was sub-par. I think this was solely a service issue. Not sure if our server was new or just spacey. We ordered calamari, cacio e pepe, spicy shrimp, and one other pasta dish that I can recall the name. Fridays are seafood night and knowing this, we had to ask our server for a specials menu. So unfortunate for those who would miss out just from not knowing to ask! We ordered all small portions to share. The calamari was cold and and the breading fell off I think because it had been sitting, the shrimp and cacio e pepe were room temperature. But the other pasta dish (sausage with red sauce and peppers) was hot, luckily! I know how food all of these dishes ate normally so it was a bit disappointing! Mind you the place was not overly busy. We sat for 20 minutes following eating and then had to still ask our server for the bill. I think this was purely a service issue as I know the food can be great. I hope there is room for improvement or it would be hard to continue to go back to pay for a barely warm dinner.
I’d like to share some feedback from my visit on 11/1/2024. While I enjoyed the food, my experience with the service unfortunately fell short. My server, Raylene, appeared to be attending to only my table and one other, yet I had to flag her down for refills, and there was no follow-up to check on our food. Additionally, we didn’t receive a farewell as we left.
I did notice two other staff members—a gentleman who was working diligently and an older lady who seemed equally engaged. It’s clear that they were dedicated to ensuring guests had a good experience, which I appreciated.
Although the food was excellent, the lack of attentive service from Raylene left a negative impression. I hope this feedback can be helpful, as I’d love to return if service consistency can be improved.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 1
Heather Abfalter
I have to say I had a very disappointing experience here last week. The prices are outrageous for the portion size. The service was poor and the charcuterie board was very small with only a few crackers. When we asked for a few more crackers our server hesitated. I will not be returning.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
Alexa
An inverse relationship - the standards keep getting lower and the prices higher.
5 years ago this use to be the place everyone wanted to venture to.. great food, lovely atmosphere, welcoming staff.
As of recent, it feels as if the love has faded out of the restaurant. The dishes and cutlery are consistently dirty, the last coffees I had were burnt to a crisp and if you want to really get a good look at the status of Anima, just venture to the restrooms - you’ll see the dishes piled up in their back room. No matter when I come here it feels like this mountain of dishes obliterates my appetite.
If it weren’t for holding out hope they will return for how they use to be, I would never come here.
Brandy F
Johni blew me away with the amazing customer service I received today! I am a new mom and am trying to surprise my husband with a date night and she went above and beyond to help me! Thank you!
Highly recommend for coffee, fresh baked breads, roll etc. brunch and evening wine.
Very good service and the food was excellent. We always worry about having Italian food away from NY/NJ area but we were quite surprised by the flavors and quality of the dinner. We would recommend stopping here to eat.
Great food, 🔥. Avocado toast and eggs with homemade multi-grain bread are absolutely delicious 😋. A must have!!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food was disgusting bad bad I don't recommend this place, the food was so terrible. FFF 0/100.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
For $275 before gratuity, their tasting menu with wine pairing for two fell short. I think the chef has talent but lacks support from both front and back of house. - No course explanations, waitress instead left stained printed paper from the 5:30 seating for us to reference. - The timing was off, felt rushed, and almost forced until they fell behind at fourth course. - Nowhere to put silverware between each course. - Each plate and its pairing lacked creativity. I think the james beard nomination went to their heads cause the pricing, presentation, execution just didn't add up. NYC/SF/CHI would eat up and spit out this place in two months.
Went for lunch today with my wife and 19 month old son, and we have not ever felt so unwelcome in a restaurant. There were multiple tables with dirty dishes, while employees stood around. We stood by one for a bit, expecting one of the employees would help, but to no avail. We eventually just cleared the dirty dishes ourselves and sat down, while we were continually glared at by a female employee with dark hair. We ordered food at the counter, and were disappointed to find that the burger that was advertised was unavailable until four, and while waiting for it to arrive we watched her welcome her friends who came in, clear a table for them, and then they all proceeded to give us dirty looks. I’m not sure if we just didn’t have the correct designer clothes, or the fact that we had a child in the middle of the day but the dirty looks continued our entire stay. We ate quickly, food that was fine but expensive, and left, again to this employee who had stopped working to have lunch with her friends, glare at us on the way out. Needless to say we will not be returning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 1
I LOVE Anima......but the kale salad, albeit Delicious, was THE tiniest salad I have EVER seen. It was a small amount in a small, 4" bowl....for $12. Everything else is AMAZING and I don't mind the higher prices, generally, b/c it's so fresh and amazing umami. But this was fresh kale....and the croutons were from a box instead of their usual homemade ones. Worth complaining about....just get something else. Their salads in the same bowl are CHOCK-FULL of goodness and ....full. ...Unless I don't know that they're reducing amount and I just don't know yet.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Coffee Pourover, Meat and Cheese Platter, Fish Entree, Burrata Crostini, Pan-Seared Walleye, Arabbiata with Squid Ink Spaghetti and Shrimp, Lobster Paccheri, Porchetta Hash, Adult Mac N Cheese, Carbonara Bucatini
Great healthy choice for lunch. Sandwiches and bowls were incredibly fresh and flavorful. Everything down to bread was home made and delicious.
Sadly all this was ruined by the rudest interaction we've had in years with a manager. We had our infant grandson sleeping in a car carrier in the booth, so quite crowded.
She stopped by the table after food arrived. Expected a how is everything, instead, 'you'll have to move that chair, it's going to be in the way for our dinner service'. Mind you it was 3:15pm and we'd have been long gone. Again grandson made it impossible to fit.
She returned throwing all our coats at us. 'you cant put these at an empty table'. the place was empty. Temps in the single digits with NO COAT RACK in the place.
Absolutely ruined what could have been a nice albeit expensive dining experience. They take payment upfront otherwise we'd have left. So upsetting, we took all to go.
Predict they will be out of business
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 5
Service: 1
Over cooked pasta, burnt steak. Took a long time but they apologized. I suppose, minus the apology, that this gave the place an Italian character
We love the spot for date night as we have historically had a great experience. However, this time it was sub-par. I think this was solely a service issue. Not sure if our server was new or just spacey. We ordered calamari, cacio e pepe, spicy shrimp, and one other pasta dish that I can recall the name. Fridays are seafood night and knowing this, we had to ask our server for a specials menu. So unfortunate for those who would miss out just from not knowing to ask! We ordered all small portions to share. The calamari was cold and and the breading fell off I think because it had been sitting, the shrimp and cacio e pepe were room temperature. But the other pasta dish (sausage with red sauce and peppers) was hot, luckily! I know how food all of these dishes ate normally so it was a bit disappointing! Mind you the place was not overly busy. We sat for 20 minutes following eating and then had to still ask our server for the bill. I think this was purely a service issue as I know the food can be great. I hope there is room for improvement or it would be hard to continue to go back to pay for a barely warm dinner.
Restaurantji Recommends
I’d like to share some feedback from my visit on 11/1/2024. While I enjoyed the food, my experience with the service unfortunately fell short. My server, Raylene, appeared to be attending to only my table and one other, yet I had to flag her down for refills, and there was no follow-up to check on our food. Additionally, we didn’t receive a farewell as we left.
I did notice two other staff members—a gentleman who was working diligently and an older lady who seemed equally engaged. It’s clear that they were dedicated to ensuring guests had a good experience, which I appreciated.
Although the food was excellent, the lack of attentive service from Raylene left a negative impression. I hope this feedback can be helpful, as I’d love to return if service consistency can be improved.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 1
I have to say I had a very disappointing experience here last week. The prices are outrageous for the portion size. The service was poor and the charcuterie board was very small with only a few crackers. When we asked for a few more crackers our server hesitated. I will not be returning.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
An inverse relationship - the standards keep getting lower and the prices higher.
5 years ago this use to be the place everyone wanted to venture to.. great food, lovely atmosphere, welcoming staff.
As of recent, it feels as if the love has faded out of the restaurant. The dishes and cutlery are consistently dirty, the last coffees I had were burnt to a crisp and if you want to really get a good look at the status of Anima, just venture to the restrooms - you’ll see the dishes piled up in their back room. No matter when I come here it feels like this mountain of dishes obliterates my appetite.
If it weren’t for holding out hope they will return for how they use to be, I would never come here.
Johni blew me away with the amazing customer service I received today! I am a new mom and am trying to surprise my husband with a date night and she went above and beyond to help me! Thank you!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Anima Cucina is a top-notch restaurant in Bismarck, ND. The friendly staff makes you feel right at home, and the food is simply outstanding. No matter what you choose from the menu, you’ll be thoroughly satisfied. I particularly enjoy their coffee, salads, and the Carbonara, which is one of my favorite dishes. The pasta is freshly made at Anima Cucina. You can either sit outside and soak up the sunshine or find a cozy spot inside. This place is truly spectacular, offering a taste of Italy right here in North Dakota. Bon appétit!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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