I have never been more disappointed in a restaurant in my life. We waited at the bar for 30 minutes past our reservation, only to be told we could either wait five more minutes to be seated or sit immediately—in the bar. The room we were supposed to be seated in was Galentine’s themed, which was a major reason we booked this place in the first place. We paid for the overall experience and ended up getting none of it. To make matters worse, we were getting dirty looks from one of the servers (the one with the large eyelashes), as if we had caused some sort of problem—despite doing absolutely nothing wrong. That same server then sat at the bar openly trash-talking customers, which was extremely unprofessional and uncomfortable to witness. There was also constant confusion around payment. Despite the fact that we prepaid, our waitress asked us twice if we had already paid. After confirming yes both times, we were still brought a check at the end of the meal. We were then asked if we had already left a tip or not, which made the situation even more awkward and uncomfortable. The food was equally disappointing. $60 per person for bread that was hard as a rock, a Caesar salad with no dressing, and a fried chicken cutlet that was as tough as plastic and completely inedible. When we finally reached the dessert course, the tiramisu was frozen in the middle. When we spoke up about the overall bad experience, we were offered a “free dessert”—despite the fact that dessert was already included and paid for in our Valentine’s package. It felt dismissive and showed a complete lack of understanding of the issue. As someone who works in the restaurant industry, I try very hard not to leave bad reviews or complain—but this was genuinely one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had. The only positive from the entire night was the fast and friendly service from the bartender. Inserted photos below- wish I could add the video of me tapping the bread on the table but google will not allow a video. Absolutely not worth the money, the hype, or the reservation.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 5
Peter Goldman
First time (and last) at Cornell's and was very disappointed with the experience. First off, the restaurant itself is very dated and had musty odor. We had a booth in the bar area that was torn and taped over, while the tablecloth had white craft paper over it making it appear extremely tacky.
We started off with the arancini as an appetizer along with an order of meatballs. The arancini was over-fried and dry inside. The meatballs (2) were small with a tiny scoop of ricotta and definitely not worth the $15 they charged. Both appetizers were obviously microwaved prior to being served. We should should have stuck to the .25 cent chicken wings being offered for happy hour at the bar. The main courses, unfortunately, were no better. We had veal francaise, chicken francaise and chicken milanese. The waiter couldn't tell the difference between the dishes and mixed them all up which really didn't matter because they were all equally terrible. Both chicken dishes were dry and not seasoned properly while the veal was overcooked and tasteless. All portions were small and again, all were microwaved.
We spent over $180.00 and walked away hungry a d disappointed.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Michael Dalto
Amazing food and service. Owner is great. Can't wait to go back.
Isaac Adler
Amazing experience every time! The service is extremely friendly and the food is delicious! I recommend coming here for nice occasions.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Eye P Daily
Serious fruit fly issue there
Eye Pee Daily
Serious fruit fly issue there
Daniella Richardson
My husband booked a reservation for last night to celebrate my birthday. I was excited to finally try Cornell’s for the first time, but ended up quite disappointed. We were seated in a booth by the bar, and were instantly surrounded by fruit flies. Enough that prompted us to ask to be moved to another room in the restaurant. They moved us and then proceeded to bring our half-drank waters and used bread plates/silverware to the new table. I thought that was odd for a supposed fine-dining restaurant. They had to auction off the waters based on where we had been seated previously.
We ordered the Bruschetta appetizer, listed to be toasted Perrecca’s bread. It seemed like the pre-toasted bread that you can buy at the grocery store, it was very obvious that it wasn’t the Perrecca’s bread that we all know and love. It was very hard and I had trouble even cutting it with a knife.
Then dinner arrived. My daughters had both asked for an adult portion of just pasta marinara. They were served side portions and told they could just order more if they were still hungry, even though the server had originally said the adult portion wouldn’t be a problem. My husband’s and my dad’s food was good. Veal and chicken parm, large portions, piping hot and flavorful. My dinner, however - the Chianti braised short rib with mashed potatoes and roasted carrots - arrived cold. Without carrots. I called the server over and let her know. She did apologize and the kitchen made a new plate for me. The meal was tasty, and while not hot was warm enough temperature. Unfortunately, the whole meal came back up this morning when I awoke with awful stomach cramps and nausea.
During dessert - one daughter had the tartufo and loved it - we were accompanied by a rather large ant crawling along the wall by our table. One of my daughters said “Oh, and you do realize there are still fruit flies at this table too, right?” We had, but I think everyone was trying not to complain since it was my birthday dinner!
Service was friendly, although not quite to the level of skill or refinement that you would expect for the price paid. There were maybe 6 other table there on a Friday night, and I have to say the lack of customers and cleanliness doesn’t bode well for this establishment. It’s sad, because we really do love Perrecca’s, but Cornell’s really missed the mark.
Jasmine -
Amazing every time! We love coming here for our special get togethers, never disappoints. Thank you to Dawn for welcoming us in with a friendly smile & thank you to everyone here for the continuous great experiences. 10/10.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Nick Fantasia
Great food, Great service. Classic old-school Italian. A really good overall experience. Definitely would recommend. We will be back.
My first visit to this family-run Italian restaurant was pleasant overall — warm service and flavorful dishes, though the chicken francaise portions were extremely small - two tiny thin tenders… and one appetizer seemed off. We were very surprised that our braciole didn’t come with pasta :( I hope they rethink that choice...
I’ll certainly return for a second visit, as I always like to give local places another chance.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Sydney Robinson
Can’t beat the food here. Everything is fresh and they were very willing to customize (two of us ordered chicken parm with vodka sauce instead of red sauce and they enthusiastically accommodated our request). Our party of 6 got our appetizers and bread quickly. Staff were very nice and attentive and were not pushy at all even though our visit was late (last reservation before closing time). We took a slice of chocolate cake to go and that was delicious even after the ride home. One of our top Italian spots.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Robert Heikaus
The food was delicious. The service was excellent. The portions were generous. We talked today about going back as soon as possible to try their other dishes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Deborah Weisheit
We celebrated my daughter’s wedding at Cornell’s with a wonderful dinner. The food was exceptional as usual, delicious and beautifully presented. Our server,Jill provided impeccable service as did the rest of Cornell’s staff. Thank you so much to Maria and her staff!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jeff Strait
Another absolutely phenomenal restaurant on Jay Street in Schenectady when here this evening looking for authentic Italian in a relaxed environment, haven't had Italian food that tasted this good since my mother made it, wonderful staff! Absolutely phenomenal food, would highly recommend taking whatever special is offered when you choose to visit, tonight's special was stuffed flounder, green beans and mashers absolutely phenomenal food here, could not recommend this place enough if you're looking for high quality authentic Italian cuisine in the Schenectady area along with top notch fine dining, and amazing staffing!.
The staff genuinely takes great care of you.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I have never been more disappointed in a restaurant in my life.
We waited at the bar for 30 minutes past our reservation, only to be told we could either wait five more minutes to be seated or sit immediately—in the bar. The room we were supposed to be seated in was Galentine’s themed, which was a major reason we booked this place in the first place. We paid for the overall experience and ended up getting none of it.
To make matters worse, we were getting dirty looks from one of the servers (the one with the large eyelashes), as if we had caused some sort of problem—despite doing absolutely nothing wrong. That same server then sat at the bar openly trash-talking customers, which was extremely unprofessional and uncomfortable to witness.
There was also constant confusion around payment. Despite the fact that we prepaid, our waitress asked us twice if we had already paid. After confirming yes both times, we were still brought a check at the end of the meal. We were then asked if we had already left a tip or not, which made the situation even more awkward and uncomfortable.
The food was equally disappointing. $60 per person for bread that was hard as a rock, a Caesar salad with no dressing, and a fried chicken cutlet that was as tough as plastic and completely inedible. When we finally reached the dessert course, the tiramisu was frozen in the middle.
When we spoke up about the overall bad experience, we were offered a “free dessert”—despite the fact that dessert was already included and paid for in our Valentine’s package. It felt dismissive and showed a complete lack of understanding of the issue.
As someone who works in the restaurant industry, I try very hard not to leave bad reviews or complain—but this was genuinely one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had. The only positive from the entire night was the fast and friendly service from the bartender. Inserted photos below- wish I could add the video of me tapping the bread on the table but google will not allow a video.
Absolutely not worth the money, the hype, or the reservation.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 5
First time (and last) at Cornell's and was very disappointed with the experience. First off, the restaurant itself is very dated and had musty odor. We had a booth in the bar area that was torn and taped over, while the tablecloth had white craft paper over it making it appear extremely tacky.
We started off with the arancini as an appetizer along with an order of meatballs. The arancini was over-fried and dry inside. The meatballs (2) were small with a tiny scoop of ricotta and definitely not worth the $15 they charged. Both appetizers were obviously microwaved prior to being served. We should should have stuck to the .25 cent chicken wings being offered for happy hour at the bar. The main courses, unfortunately, were no better. We had veal francaise, chicken francaise and chicken milanese. The waiter couldn't tell the difference between the dishes and mixed them all up which really didn't matter because they were all equally terrible. Both chicken dishes were dry and not seasoned properly while the veal was overcooked and tasteless. All portions were small and again, all were microwaved.
We spent over $180.00 and walked away hungry a d disappointed.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Amazing food and service. Owner is great. Can't wait to go back.
Amazing experience every time! The service is extremely friendly and the food is delicious! I recommend coming here for nice occasions.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Serious fruit fly issue there
Serious fruit fly issue there
My husband booked a reservation for last night to celebrate my birthday. I was excited to finally try Cornell’s for the first time, but ended up quite disappointed. We were seated in a booth by the bar, and were instantly surrounded by fruit flies. Enough that prompted us to ask to be moved to another room in the restaurant. They moved us and then proceeded to bring our half-drank waters and used bread plates/silverware to the new table. I thought that was odd for a supposed fine-dining restaurant. They had to auction off the waters based on where we had been seated previously. We ordered the Bruschetta appetizer, listed to be toasted Perrecca’s bread. It seemed like the pre-toasted bread that you can buy at the grocery store, it was very obvious that it wasn’t the Perrecca’s bread that we all know and love. It was very hard and I had trouble even cutting it with a knife. Then dinner arrived. My daughters had both asked for an adult portion of just pasta marinara. They were served side portions and told they could just order more if they were still hungry, even though the server had originally said the adult portion wouldn’t be a problem. My husband’s and my dad’s food was good. Veal and chicken parm, large portions, piping hot and flavorful. My dinner, however - the Chianti braised short rib with mashed potatoes and roasted carrots - arrived cold. Without carrots. I called the server over and let her know. She did apologize and the kitchen made a new plate for me. The meal was tasty, and while not hot was warm enough temperature. Unfortunately, the whole meal came back up this morning when I awoke with awful stomach cramps and nausea. During dessert - one daughter had the tartufo and loved it - we were accompanied by a rather large ant crawling along the wall by our table. One of my daughters said “Oh, and you do realize there are still fruit flies at this table too, right?” We had, but I think everyone was trying not to complain since it was my birthday dinner! Service was friendly, although not quite to the level of skill or refinement that you would expect for the price paid. There were maybe 6 other table there on a Friday night, and I have to say the lack of customers and cleanliness doesn’t bode well for this establishment. It’s sad, because we really do love Perrecca’s, but Cornell’s really missed the mark.
Amazing every time! We love coming here for our special get togethers, never disappoints. Thank you to Dawn for welcoming us in with a friendly smile & thank you to everyone here for the continuous great experiences. 10/10.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great food, Great service. Classic old-school Italian. A really good overall experience. Definitely would recommend. We will be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
My first visit to this family-run Italian restaurant was pleasant overall — warm service and flavorful dishes, though the chicken francaise portions were extremely small - two tiny thin tenders… and one appetizer seemed off. We were very surprised that our braciole didn’t come with pasta :( I hope they rethink that choice...
I’ll certainly return for a second visit, as I always like to give local places another chance.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Can’t beat the food here. Everything is fresh and they were very willing to customize (two of us ordered chicken parm with vodka sauce instead of red sauce and they enthusiastically accommodated our request). Our party of 6 got our appetizers and bread quickly. Staff were very nice and attentive and were not pushy at all even though our visit was late (last reservation before closing time). We took a slice of chocolate cake to go and that was delicious even after the ride home. One of our top Italian spots.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food was delicious. The service was excellent. The portions were generous. We talked today about going back as soon as possible to try their other dishes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We celebrated my daughter’s wedding at Cornell’s with a wonderful dinner. The food was exceptional as usual, delicious and beautifully presented. Our server,Jill provided impeccable service as did the rest of Cornell’s staff. Thank you so much to Maria and her staff!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Another absolutely phenomenal restaurant on Jay Street in Schenectady when here this evening looking for authentic Italian in a relaxed environment, haven't had Italian food that tasted this good since my mother made it, wonderful staff! Absolutely phenomenal food, would highly recommend taking whatever special is offered when you choose to visit, tonight's special was stuffed flounder, green beans and mashers absolutely phenomenal food here, could not recommend this place enough if you're looking for high quality authentic Italian cuisine in the Schenectady area along with top notch fine dining, and amazing staffing!.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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