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Bellini's Ristorante & Bar

6801 Cahaba Valley Rd., Suite 106 (Hwy. 119), Hoover (across from Meadowbrook Post Office in Inverness/Greystone area)
981-5380
www.ourbellinis.com/home.html
Organic black angus beef, veal, seafood and classic Tuscan Italian dishes; extensive wine selection and weekly dessert specials. A few that sound mouth-watering include Oysters Bellini (baked oysters stuffed with shallot and smoked pancetta served with bechamel sauce and spinach), puff pastry-encrusted crab; Lasagna Involini (lasagna tower with tomato sauce topped with buffalo mozzarella and stuffed with Italian sausage and cheese). Chef Benard Tamburello owns the well-regarded Bernie's On Main in Columbiana. In 2004 he and his wife, Sophia, purchased La Dolce Vita in Hoover. Sophia's parents were born and raised in Benevento Italy. Chef Benard is a second generation Italian and has a background in Sicilian food.

Posted on Sunday, June 29, 2008 at 10:06PM by Registered CommenterDeborah Lockridge in | Comments5 Comments

Reader Comments (5)

I cannot say enough good things about this place. The server was just outstanding and made us feel like we were being served by a real New York waiter. He wasn’t in your face nor doing the typical Alabama waiter thing we have seen in so many places. He definitely didn’t have an Alabama accent. We had two bottles of wine that were a perfect pairing unfortunately we couldn’t remember the server’s name because we got a bit tipsy. We have tried a few other Italians and while Bottega and gianmarco's serve excellent food they just don’t have the professional new York style service we got at Bellini’s
The suggested the Steaks and veal chop and gave a beautiful presentation of the specials. We choose the veal chop and grouper and it was as good as we get at Mario Batali’s Carnevino Italian Steakhouse in Manhattan. The bread pudding and tiramisu were also excellent. The entire meal was outstanding and the service was better than any other place we have ever had in this area. It sure is nice to have an Alabama restaurant that can finally keep up with New York, and boy do they.

June 30, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterSam

Excellent food and service. Tried Bellini's on the recommendation of a friend. I took a group of girls from work. We sat a the bar and had a few drinks which were all excellent. The bartenders recommendations were perfect. We were seated in an semi secluded area in the bar. It was perfect for the "girls". We ordered appetizers, baby wedge, caeser salad and several of the daily dinner specials. All were served to perfection. Our server took excellent care of us. We could not have asked for a better meal and service. We will be regulars.

July 5, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterWendy

We decided to take the family out for dinner. We had heard good things about Bellinis from our friends but were unsure if kids would enjoy. We were happy to see the restaurant was kid friendly. We sat outside and my wife and I were able to have a drink and dinner. We shared the pastel formaggio (think that is how you spell it) as an app and it was excellent. I ordered the chicken toscana and my wife had the barramundi fish special. Both dish were presented very nice and were nice and hot. The kids ordered pasta/sauce and chicken fingers. Both were excellent. Our sever was excellent and the hostess greeted us promptly both arriving and departing. We had an excellent time and will be regulars.

July 7, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterBrad

Tried restaurant on a recommendation from a co-worker for my husbands birthday. The restaurant is decorated beautifully and the atmosphere was up beat in the bar and relaxing in the main and private dining rooms. The service was top notch and the food was excellent. Both owners stopped by to say hello and that was a very nice touch. Highly recommend.

August 5, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterKevin

Just got home from a very disapointing night at Bellini's. First, I had a reservation for over a week and when we arrived we were seated in the bar. We had the bar crowd almost touching our chairs on one side. We had to listen to the TV in the bar all night and it was much too loud and tuned to a station like MTV or the equavilant. We had to give up even trying to carry on a conversation with our guest on the other side of the table. When asked about our experience, I told the chef that I could not believe they would take a reservation and not tell you they were seating you in the bar. He apologized but that was it. I wish I could say the food overcame the bad experience with the seating, but it did not. Very ordinary for what should have been an upscale experience. Bellini's will not get a second chance.

December 20, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterDisapointed

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