About Guilford Bistro & Grille Cafe and reviews

I recently had a business lunch at the Guilford Bistro and was pleasantly surprised at the décor and lunch salad options, and I noticed that they would be open for Mother's Day dinner; I went with my parents on this Mother's Day, 2019, and we had a nice dining experience. We chose the calamari for an appetizer plus the Terramare salad. The calamari was probably the best I've ever tasted! Even though the pieces were sliced thick, they were super tender, and the breading was perfect! The marinara sauce was amazing as well. We shared the Terramare salad which had anchovies, olives, cucumbers and a lovely balsamic vinaigrette. For entrees, my mother and I each ordered the Main lobster ravioli with vodka sauce, and it was amazing. My father had one of the specials which was braised short ribs with a reduced red-wine sauce over parmesan, mashed potatoes and asparagus; the meat was tender and the sauce was delicious! For dessert we shared a lemoncello mascarpone pie and a NY cheesecake - amazing! The prices were a little steep, but the quality of the cuisine matched the price point. Regarding service... most of the wait staff was incredibly attentive, although our particular waitress was spread too thin and let our finished dishes sit for way too long - not a big deal. Would I dine here again? YES!!!

My friend and I came here for lunch. We were lured in by a description in Yelp that said Beer Bar along with being Italian. The beer bar aspect of it was profoundly disappointing. Under "microbrews" in the menu they listed Blue Moon and Miller Light.So obviously the beer bar qualifier was way off.  But they did have 4 other more local beers on tap that weren't on the menu, so I'll give them that.We ordered paninis for lunch and they were perfectly fine. The service was good too.I consider this restaurant to be a solid Italian restaurant with a comfortable family style to it. It's quite cozy inside in a good way.

My wife and I love going to the Guilford Bistro. This is a special restaurant where I feel like every single item on the menu will be absolutely outstanding. That is a rare find. Usually a place has one or two dishes that are good, but this place has numerous. When I come here, I always try something new and I am always impressed. I've had the everything from the Bolognese, which is often a special, to the swordfish. We've tried several appetizers and rave about anything with arugula and a balsamic drizzle. We tried the BYOB this time when my mother-in-law came to visit. The fee was a little confusing because online it looks to be per person, but then the menu in the restaurant had a flat uncorking fee of just over for the table. In any event, the food is amazing and the options are plentiful.

This place was excellent! Our waitress Ally was wonderful, she was so accommodating and upbeat. The food was tasty, the bread and seafood was fresh.

Driving back from vacation and this is one of my destination spots in route home. Its pretty pathetic since I live in NY and we have some great Italian food, but this bistro is just heavenly. This is my 3rd time here I believe. This time around I got something new and again it is consistently amazing food. We arrived around 4:45 pm on a Saturday. Although there was really no one in there, we were asked if we had reservations. We replied no and were seated in the same spot I always sit,  near the bar/window area, which is fine by me. Let me tell you by 5:15 this place was packed. No one had reservations and they almost had to turn people away. This must be the place to go on a weekend. It should be,  it is awesome.We got the burrata special app (salad with cheese) oh my goodness it was soft and tasty and just fresh and perfect. My husband got the spaghetti with prawns special, and I got the buccatini bolognese special.We had to pack some to go because we were so full but this is one of my favorite restaurants. I hope people in CT learn about this gem. I did by accident years ago and now I purposely stop by for great food.Perfect food, perfect presentation and just the perfect end to our trip!

Cosy, great service, great food, and keeps improving.   Pros:  Food always great, Italian-ish, but lots of variety (you can take your vegetarian friends and Paleo out and everyone can leave happy).   Service is brisk, efficient, accommodating, and friendly; they actually appear to like and appreciate their customers (ref. Amarones).  You can eat one or two appetizers and leave with a full and happy tummy.  You can BYOB if you want but they now have a good wine list and full bar; so can't beat that.Cons: (Depending on how you look at it), its right off 95 and at the intersection of Boston Post Road and 77, so not as charming as if it were on the Green or a little glen in the woods, and there is not a ton of parking (I think 10-12 spaces), but they can't help that, really, and we all need a good stretch of the legs now and then.

Food is fine, but hard to enjoy it after realizing I was going to be paying a CORKAGE FEE for this self-proclaimed "byob bistro."  Thank goodness there were only 4 of us - at .95/glass that fee adds up! Who does that?! I have never paid more than a or fee and have been to many places that don't charge at all. Never going back, with or without wine.

We stopped here almost two years ago on the way back from Foxwoods.  We were looking for a better restaurant right off I-95 that was not a chain.  Boy did we find it! I just found the pics on my phone when I was deleting old pictures for my iPhone backup!It is a smaller bistro with very high quality, creative recipes.  The bistro is my favorite type of restaurant because I like the individual attention to each dish.Normally you wouldn't think that steak should go onto a salad, but in this recipe it really worked!  I also got this cauliflower dish as an app, and it worked so well.  We remember that the two waitresses there were just so nice and welcoming.  It was such a nice place and such a nice memory.  I would love to go back sometime, but it's just a little far for me.

If I could rate with zero stars I would. My wife has a severe nut allergy and spoke to the server before ordering.  Server confirmed there are "no nuts In that". First bite yielded a nut and an allergic reaction, causing my wife to immediately run to the drug store for Benadryl, use her epi pen and go to the ER. Owner's response " that wasn't a nut, we don't cross contaminate". Servers response-- delivery of the bill. One staff member had the humanity to actually ask if she was ok. Pathetic.

This is probably my favorite restaurant in Guilford. The staff is always warm and welcoming, the food is incredible, and the atmosphere is delightful. And the best part is that even though they have a bar, it's still a BYOB place!  I highly recommend the Guilford Bistro.

Three stars is generous.  We were in Guilford for a doctor's appointment and came here to grab some lunch.  First off that parking lot is crazy small.  Ok now on to the real stuff.  I ordered the chicken Caesar salad because someone else on Yelp had recommended it - Spare yourself - pedestrian salad and just plain mediocre.  My husband had the burger which came with parmesan fries.  Those fries were really quite good.  The hamburger, while it looked very appealing, was also just okay.  They need a better mix of meat to give it some flavor.  Very disappointing.

Amazing experience here! The portions are extremely generous and everything was very well seasoned and cooked properly. We ordered the salmon special, veal bocatini, and fettuccine con pesce. The salmon was the highlight - flaky, tender, and beautifully seasoned. The veal and pasta were delicious too but a more standard tomato sauce. Highly recommend!

It's on the corner and parking on both ends of the restaurant. The entrance is off to one end and enters right on top the bar- literally. Went for lunch at 11:45 on a Friday and the place was empty. But 25 minutes later it was almost full. Lots of people go and start drinking early on a Friday. Lunch specials were a nice offering and my lunch partners had the Caesar salad with salmon special. They both were happy with it.  I got the bistro salad with grilled chicken and balsamic dressing.  I have to say it was a bit bland. Dressing needed some zip it was kind of sweet which I don't love. Grilled chicken needed some pizzazz also but the serving size was generous.  The other lunches I saw folks being served like Ike's very good. Lots of burgers - wraps- paninis etc available too. The waitress was excellent. Refills and checked in on us. She was very busy with the lunch crowd. The decor is nice. And the wine glasses are huge- with a generous pour. If you're in guilford stop in.

This is probably my favorite restaurant in Guilford and the surrounding area. The food is amazing every time! It is fresh and authentic. Its unique and classic all at the same time. Also the staff is very friendly and helpful. I highly recommend it! I also recommend making a reservation, especially due to their small-ish size. (Which I also love because the atmosphere is very cozy.)

First time eating here..Arrived 6:30 Friday night, seating right away. Good atmosphere. Ordered calamari to start and it was fantastic- light breading very tasty and a plentiful basket. We also ordered shrimp and scallops appetizer and was disappointed only 2 scallops and 2 shrimp, a little salty but it was on a bed of spinach which was tasty. I ordered wine and received it immediately, my husband ordered a drink that wasn't delivered for a good 15 minutes :(. Next came the main courses and they were both delicious- he ordered blackened tuna and bruschetta salad. He was very pleased with his order. I ordered a special pasta dish can't remember the name but it had meat sauce and ricotta- so very tasty I couldn't finish it all. Our waitress never came back to check if we needed anything or get us another drink or even fill our water....by the time she did come back, I didn't even want more to drink I just wanted to leave- she filled out our check standing at our table. Overall the food was FANTASTIC! Service not so much. We will probably come back because the food was so good.

A very cute little place on Rte. 1 in Guilford. My mom and I decided to come here for a lunch before shopping. When we walked in I was happy to see that a Yelp sticker was on their door. Upon entering, it's a little challenging due to parking, but you'll find a spot on either side, just be careful it's very tight. We sat at the bar, and to our left was a nice little round booth area for a party of five or more perhaps. The bar seats were so comfortable. The lighting was perfect. I enjoyed a chicken caesar salad and it was delicious. One of the best I have had in a while. I had to ask for more dressing because I love to dip my chicken in. I love the ambiance of this place. It has a rustic feel to it, and it's a very quiet place to enjoy a lunch or dinner. I would highly recommend this bistro to anyone on the shoreline area. I enjoyed myself, and will more than likely be returning sooner rather than later!

A great spot for dinner. I had salmon, my sweetie had the bistro pizzette. Has a full bar menu. The food was excellent, they had a kids menu upon request (the grilled cheese is VERY cheesy). The service was well intentioned but maybe a bit inexperienced (if my kid spills water everywhere, can you grab a towel instead of stand and watch as we desperately sop up with napkins??). The acoustics are terrible, so one noisy group can really dominate the whole place. They have about 8 parking spots next to the restaurants. All said, we would go again.

Came in for lunch a few days back. I was greeted by a smiling face and was instantly sat. The entire experience was amazing, truly, from the food to the service! We had an amazing server that was informative and bubbling with personality! The food is always top notch and I would go back over and over again for our server Ally! She added to the beautiful ambiance that was exquisitely decorated for Christmas! Thank you bistro and thank you ally, for the amazing experience my party and I had!! 10/10 would recommend!

Outstanding Italian food, rivaling anything in NYC. The owner is first generation Italian and it shows in every dish (especially the bolognese special). Parking is limited outside but it's well worth the hassle; park a mile away if you have to.I'll be going out of my way to stop by here as often as I can. Highly, highly recommended.

Wonderful!  Small & charming atmosphere. I recommend making reservations. We showed up at 5:30 pm without reservations and they had a full house booked for 6:30.  We agreed to free up the table by then and did not regret it.  Cheryl and Sarah took excellent care of us.  They both were very knowledgeable & that made our vegetarian requirements easy. There was a birthday party of about 8-10 or so ladies having fun.  My husband and I did not mind But I overheard 1 guest who did mind.  If you prefer a quiet atmosphere I would ask while making your reservation if there are any large reservations at the same time.   Obviously small settings can amplify others conversations. Definitely check it out they are a gem!