Paolos Italian Restaurant - Kent (WA)

5 /5 Heffelfinger Alex “Heff”: 4 course meal for our anniversary dinner, all the food was delicious and I like the portion sizes werent large

5 /5 S Mayeda: Update: Paolos has a summer menu which I have attached. It includes lamp chops and scampi which we had. My wife loved the lamb chops, they were very tender and flavorful. The scampi was also excellent. Our first time at Paolos. I read a lot of good reviews for them. They didnt disappoint, my wife loved the Cioppino and my son loved the crab and scallop pasta. The service was excellent, it was very quick and they were constantly checking on us. Every Italian restaurant we go to my wife will order the Cioppino and she said it was one of the best shes had. She loved the broth and the seafood wasnt over cooked. We will definitely be back.

2 /5 Pearl Lee: We were in the area for my boyfriends doctor appointment and its been a while since we had Italian food so we stopped by Paolas for lunch. It was Monday around 12ish and there was plenty of parking for us as well as amble seating inside. When we arrived, a waitress was the only one working the front area which seemed fine but she seemed very frazzled. The dining room definitely fits the romantic vibes with great lighting, cute partitions giving you more intimate feeling, and they were playing lovely Italian music. The bathroom was lovely and clean when I went to use it. We ordered the sandwich and soup combo and chicken Florentine. The food took way too long on a non-busy week day. It would have been different if they were full or getting consistent take-out orders. Or an update on when it was arriving would have been nice from our waitress. The corn chowder was really good, cranberry turkey sandwich was decent but the placement of the ingredients made it so that things were falling out with each bite, and my boyfriend enjoyed his chicken Florentine which had a nice light sauce. But I wouldnt say the food was impressionable or worth that wait. Some issues that I had was the complimentary bread is offered way too late into the dining experience. It was not offered before ordering nor after ordering. It was offered to us like midway through after we had ordered and it seems that was the case for others as tables that came after us got the same treatment. Furthermore, the bread pieces you get look like pieces that would get thrown out to feed seagulls or crows. Other restaurants would give you more appealing cuts but the presentation and amount of bread just looks like leftover scraps. They do offer a free complimentary dessert for an anniversary but not sure if I want to come back for an anniversary or special occasion and just in general. The final issue was our waitress was just a bit too frazzled and slow on service. Our water got low twice but it was filled once and that was at least 20-30 minutes of it being empty. I also asked for lemon slices and the waitress gives it to me 10-15 minutes afterwards but at least she remembered but they were also already squeezed so it was kind of pointless. And one minor gripe that I have was the music from the initial visit was nice but then there were random pop songs that were Italian dubbed or just did not fit with the rest of the playlist. It almost felt like whiplash when I heard it. I was really looking forward to this place due to reviews but this is the first time that I cant agree with the ratings or reviews.

4 /5 Jacinda Johnston: Great place. 3 out of 4 meals were excellent and the last meal was good. Wait staff was attentive and kind. Feels like an upscale experience but in a casual setting. Based on personal preference I wish the setting matched the quality of food and service but thats hardly a thing to complain about. Definitely a hidden gem.

3 /5 tom williams: We enjoyed Paolos for the first few years after they opened. For a variety of reasons it has been about 10 years and we have been looking forward to dining there again. Tonight was the night, made reservations which surprisingly we didnt need. The wait staff was obviously inexperienced and in training. Our dinners both were lacking seasoning, ingredients were not proportioned, and the chicken in each dish was tough and grissly. Paolo was definitely not in the kitchen. We had hoped they had sustained their delicious offerings over the years but unfortunately we were very disappointed.