worked there for a year in a half. A new company bought them out and everything went down hill. I use to love the place and feel good about cooking there but I would never eat there agian. I quit because i felt embarrassed working there. gross gross gross. good thing i know all there old recipes. :)

I'm giving this two stars not because of the taste of the food, which was just OK, but because of the portion size for lunch. I had chicken breast picante with a side salad. The salad portion was the smallest I've seen in a restaurant (for $3). The chicken was maybe half of a half breast and came with pasta Alfredo. The chicken breast may have been small but the large plate it was served on was filled up by the generous serving of pasta. I wasn't placated though. If I'd wanted pasta for lunch that's what I would have ordered.

The food used to be great! I guess now it got sold to a different company and when I went there last night night the food was awful!! Nothing was the same! Everything tasted different! I won't be back!

Wow I skimmed down the list and saw a lot of bad reviews here. The restaurants some of these people ate at must of been in crappy areas. All of the Buca di Beppos' in the Chicagoland area are amazing. I have never had a bad experience. Great food, Friendly People, Warm Environment. I guess it is pricey but what isn't anymore. You want cheap go Taco Bell or something.

I love the one in Washington DC near Dupont Circle. I had my birthday there. Service, as well as food, was superb. Portions are large, which makes it very convenient for sharing--a + for a birthday celebration with a large croud. The staff was very professional and attentive to mine and my guests' needs. They even stayed open for us way past closing time on a Saturday night, without a single complaint and without asking for payment. They made sure we had a good time.

Went to eat a lunch. Was greeted when we arrived but after about 10min watching waitperson after waitperson walk by and ignore us, we walked-out. This location was in Worthington, OH.

I def. reccomend this place they give you a ton of food, if you've never been I go to the one in Franklin, TN, they give you the whole pan of everything sure your bill is about (for a family of 4) 120 bucks, but it's worth it you will have a ton to take home.

We went there for my 20th birthday. The waiter was amazing and attentive, and the manager checked on us to make sure we were having a good time at least twice. The food was perfect and my entire family had a wonderful time. I HIGHLY reccomend going there, whether for a birthday, anniversary, or just a regular dinner date.

Mixed bag.  Food is okay but (like many faux-Italian chains) quite overpriced.  And I've been there at least twice or three times and have indeed found the place quite loud.  It's not the worst choice for a Friday dinner date plus a movie- but I don't have any real desire to go back.

expensive, nasty, plus theres porn on the bathroom walls

The most horrible restaurant i visited so far in my life. The ambience was pathetic, it was liking sitting in a roadside market with people shouting. If you want to relax and njoy ur food, this is not your kind of place

HORRIBLE IF THEY HAD A NO STAR OPTION I WOULD PICK IT. This cost me and my family $165...three adults and two 12 year olds. The lasagna tasted like the pasta was moldy or the eggs had been bad, the gnocchi tasted like tasteless packing peanuts with a boring milk sauce. It was disgusting, all $25.00 of it. (A plate, I'm talking) The dessert was honestly the best part and it probably wasn't even made there. The kids left most of their food on the plate and enjoyed the dessert more than anything else. The "house bread" was hard, stale and tasted like it had been imported from Italy a week ago. I know they are trying to capture an "authentic" taste but bread you can't even bite through? the "italian ice" was just flavored soda, and the meatballs tasted more like ALPO. I have had MUCH BETTER at take out Italian places, or even the grocer's freezer. You will not be delighted with the food, trust me. Or the prices. The boots are uncomfortable, and my mom, who is disabled, could hardly scoot in and out of them, they had no backing, just hard wood. We were all freezing not too long after sitting down as we had ice cold air blowing on us from above. Their "marinara" sauce was authentic in that they tried to make it clumpy chunky with tomatoes, and totally flavorless. So imagine bland, gross salsa on everything. Ugh. Do yourself a favor and don't ever try it. It claims to use hand-me down recipes but all it hands down is a huge bill and some high school home EC quality food.

My wife wanted to go to Bucas in Burnsville, MN for her birthday since we always enjoyed the food in the past. Called the place (for Sunday Nite) and asked if reservations were necessary and they said no if we came after 5:30 PM. Got there at 6 and were told that we could have gotten in if we had a reservation. Told us that there was a 30 minute wait. Finally got called after 1hour and 15 minutes even tho there appeared to be a lot of empty tables. waited another 20 minutes at our table and never saw a waiter. Decided it wasn't worth waiting anymore since we were all pretty ticked, hungary, and thirsty by this time. I asked the people at the next table when they last saw a waiter and they said it had been awhile. They said they were nursing their beverages cuz they were not optimistic about the service. Left and went elsewhere. Truly disappointed! They have also reduced their menu and my wife's favorite dish is not on there anymore. Which was the reason she wanted to go there in the first place.

This is so yummy, I had my birthday and my husbands birthday here. I recommend reserving the pope table for parties of 14 or more. You have to call about a month ahead, but it's worth it. We have such a great time here. The food the best Italian food around. But call the down town one, the food seems fresher here than the one in Mira mesa.

This is a great place for those 12 and younger. But if you're an adult seeking a quality Italian restaurant, this place is only slightly better than Chef Boyardee.

I ordered a margarita and they brought me a glass so full of ice there was probably 1 oz. of liquid in the glass. When I pointed this out to the waiter, he responded: "That is how we make it." We waited 30 minutes to get in and our waiter was very slow. My fork had some melted-on cheese. The seafood pasta was decorated with mussles, 5 of the mussle shells were empty. Because of the family-style menu, nobody felt like they got what they wanted. The menu is very hard to figure out for a vegetarian or a vegan. The fried calamari was soaking in oil and had no salt. The place was generally a rip off. Make some spaghetti with marinara sauce and save your family $120!

Phony, a money factory, a tourist trap, full of gimmicks intended to do one thing: raise the average check.

Too much food and too contrived; not a place to take a business associate or anyone you would want to discuss anything with seriously.

Love the old fashioned big city Italian restaurant atmosphere. Most of their food is served family style. Even the Tiramisu! Maybe not quite as good as Maggiano's, but a close second! Downtown Indy location is my favorite.

What a horrible restaurant - the worst in Pittsburgh! After asking information on the "special of the day" Shrimp Arrabiato, the waiter informed us he did not know what it was like. After he got a description from the kitchen, we ordered it, and instead of spicy shrimp on angel hair with a lemon-white wine sauce, we received a huge platter of spaghetti, with no sauce, and about 15 small shrimps, and a few cubes of (rubbery) mozzarella cheese. Instead of comping the dish or even offering some sauce in a bowl, they offered a free dessert. As if we wanted dessert after that horrible meal?! This was my first and last time at this restaurant.

I have only been to a Buca Di Beppo once, and it was a fairly positive experience. The food was good but it had a obvious commercial taste that does not measure up to some of the better Italian restaurants that I have eaten at. It was a friendy upbeat enviorment and the portions are big. I was just slightly disappointed . We had the Lasgna and some other pasta dish that I cannot seem to recall right now (apparently it did not make an impression). The Lasagna was adequate at best. I would definitely go back, but if given the option I could think of several better places I would choose.

I love Buca. I love the atmosphere decorations, bathrooms. Hilarious and ludicrousy tacky. There food is also very good. All family style. My favorite dish there is Rigatoni positano. It is rigatoni with chicken and eggplant in a tomato garlic sauce. Only problem is that it is only at certain locations. I also reccomen their canneloni, green beans, lemon chicken, chicken saltmbocca, Veal Parmigiana, Spaghetti, margherita pizza. And the deserts are decadent- Chocolate Vesuvio, aplle crostada and spumoni. Buon appetito.

Good not great food. Lots of it, though. So, for families or groups the noisy, crowded atmosphere, along with the large amount of food are all positives. More of an experience than a geat meal. It is what it is. Which is a moderately priced Italian place trying to be old world Italy and failing with style. My wife loves their vegetables and some of the chicken dishes, and the kids really enjoy the whole deal.

Excellent food pizza is the best, spicy arriabiata is #1. Quattro al forno is also one of my favorites.

One of the best dining expeiriences I've had in my lifetiime. Everything was perfect, the staff was super friendly and for the amount of food and the quality of it, it was served in an amazing amount of time. Would I go there again? Absolutly, in fact, I already have.

WORST DINING EXPERIENCE EVER! And Im really not that picky. We had reservations as Philadelphia's Center City location after our wedding rehersal and had pre-ordered everything in advance but we were treated like intruders. There was no record of what we'd ordered. Our party was seperated, then seated in the wrong section, then asked to move. We were given one server fo 17 people. The manager, waitstaff, and hostess crew were openly hostle and rude to us. It took an hour to get our food- we received the wrong food- we had tables hoisted over our heads- we never received any apology from the manager or anyone... I could go on and on but you get the idea. If you want an italian restaurant that can handle large parties and has better food just go to Bertucci's down the street. I wish we had, and now we can never get our special day back.

Went to the BdB in Exton, PA last night. If this is any example of the chain overall, it's highly overrated. The pasta (penne cardinale) was overcooked, and didn't have much chicken in it. The chicken with lemon was not bad, but it was nothing special. Garlic bread with mozzarella was sort of soggy, and not particularly noteworthy with respect to taste. The calamari appetizer was the best of the lot, but again, nothing to write home (or to RIA) about. Three of us shared the above mentioned dishes (the pasta and the chicken were the small sizes, supposedly enough to feed 2-3 people), and I still went away sort of hungry, so so much for the huge family-style portions. The dining atmosphere was nice (sort of kitschy). Although the amount of food you get is a good deal for the price, the overall didning experience is far from outstanding. And, to boot, real Italian food it ain't - it's another caricature of Italian, much like Olive Garden. I won't say I'll never go there again, but if I do, at least I'll know what I'm in for.

Yummy!!

Wonderful atmosphere, wonderful food and always a great waiter or waitress. One of our favorite places to go. We are lucky enough to have two of the restaurants within 45 minutes and go to both. They also have great take home tins to warm up the leftovers. The garlic cheesebread is to die for as is the caesar salad. Two of us go everytime and there is plenty of food for dinner the next night, I love taking home the leftovers . The prices are very reasonable, so dont worry if the portions are too big, you will leave full and happy with a little food left over. I am not all the familiar with the true Italian dining experience, but this is a place that you never see everything on the walls, the pictures and posters are what helps make the atmosphere so awesome. The music is great. Great for a unique dining experience.

I went there once, and will never go again. The food seemed like they just ran to the grocery store and picked up some pasta. I make better food than them. The so called family portions were tiny. I don't know who they think they're feeding with these portions. I am a small person who doesn't eat very much, and I left still hungry. I can't even finish a value meal from a fast food place. One last note, the decore was the ugliest I have ever seen.

Celentano makes better Italian, pick it up at your local supermarket in the freezer section.

Food tasted like chef bor-ar-dee, large portions of poor quality food. Carrabbas or Macaroni Grill is much better. Another negative, the place is too freaking loud, you can't even talk with your company.

While some here find this truly authentic Italian, they should be more precise. This is, as they bill it, immigrant Italian, meaning Southern Italian, Neapolitan. Not all of Italy eats everything covered in Marinara sauce and loads of pasta. Northern Italy gave the world Risotto and many other dishes, which this chain completely overlooks. On the other hand, going here is fun and can be a great family or large-group experience. Their biggest weak point is the huge helpings, designed to serve 3 or more. There is very little on the menu for a single person with normal to modest appetite, which is sad. Not everyone has a family, not everyone travels in a group or pack - single guests are an important share of the market which this chain just about ignores! Too bad!

Truly authentic Italian. I love all the crazy pictures. Also the garlic bread is freakin to die for. Great place for the family to go.

Surprisingly good, fresh and authentic.

I went to the Buca in Davie, Florida and it was Great! I do not agree that you must go with a big party. I went with 2 of my friends. They now have smaller portions that make it great for smaller parties. The shrimp parmesan is incredible and the garlic mashed potatoes are one of my favorites. The service was great and the staff was all friendly without be overly theatrical. I would def. go back with small groups or large ones.

Quite possibly the worst Italian chain restaurant in the US. HOW CAN YOU BURN MARINARA SAUCE?! Well, BdB managed, and since it's served on everything they offer, all of our food was rendered inedible. Combine awful food with the tacky TGI Friday's-style decor and the loud music, and you have a place I won't visit again.

I really love the salad here and the meatballs are truly excellent. But don't order too many - they're about the size of a softball and one or even half of one is more than enough for the average appetite. The pasta and meat dishes Ive had were also very good especially the lemon chicken I had last time. The well orchestrated atmosphere makes you think of crusty old east coast Italian eateries circa 1940's and 50's. Dean, Frank, Perry and other well-known old Piasans can be heard crooning away on the piped in music. The decor is kitschy clutter...making you think the owners hit every estate sale of every old lady who ever collected a cheesy souvenir. If you have a large enough group, you might want to opt to sit at the Popes table a huge round table in an alcove all to itself featuring a small white plastic bust of the Pope sitting on a Lazy Suzanne in the middle of the table. (For some reason this just cracks me up!) Overall, a bit pricey for pasta but a fun, entertaining, cozy atmosphere.

I'd prefer the food on individual dishes

Large portions and relatively inexpensive. Unfortunately the food at Bucca de Beppo is utterly tasteless. Very average restaurant at best; go to a real Italian restaurant for a good experience.

Ok food, ok atmosphere. Does try hard to appear not to be a chain but not quite hard enough.

This place is a fraud. Can you really call this authentic? Go in a group, yeah, so you can be as obnoxious as everybody else and be miserable for 90 minutes.

Average food. Godless society. How can someone familiar with italian food say that Bucca serves it with passion? You can't and never will.

So much fun, it is more an experience than just a place to eat. You must go in a group! There is a room devoted just to the Pope, which has pictures everywhere and a cast head on the table. There is a special kitchen table so you can eat where the food is prepared and are introduced to everyone that enters the place during the "tour." The menus are on the wall, there is something gaudy and great in every spot you look. Southern Italian Food at it's best, Oh and the name means "Joe's Basement."

A great place to go with a big group. Huge portions of good food!

I've been to the Buca di Beppo in downtown Denver twice in the last month, and I enjoyed it overall. The waitstaff is a bit too pushy and in-your-face for my taste, but I got good service otherwise. The food is very tasty, and the portions are gigantic. Everything is served family style, and each dish we ordered served about six people. (We made the mistake of ordering two main dishes for four people the first visit.) The food is really garlicky and spicy, which I liked, but we breathed fire for the rest of the evening. We saw lots of big groups at Buca di Beppo, ranging from families to teenagers dressed up for Valentine's Day dances, and it seems like a great restaurant for a celebration. For a chain, Buca di Beppo has a lot of personality and surprisingly good food.