Don't bother with this place !!!! Insulting and a rip off. Never experienced anything like this in my lifetime. Besides the food being mediocre at best , they added and doubled the charges that were not listed as such on the menu. I ordered scungilli app as an entree. She said all entrees come with a side salad so since I made my scungilli an entree for $5 extra I believed I got a side salad. I asked for it on linguini. When the bill arrived the $17 appetizer plus $5 to make it an entree became $39 and was renamed Frank Sinatra which was a different dish..whaaat? The waitress then said maybe I didn't explain it right. She then said when you make scungilli an entree we double the price, but the menu says $5. Then she said the linguini it was on was $15..whaat? They just double talk to confuse you. We spoke to the so called "wife of the owner" who double talked me again. They did not want to make anything right. When I told her how disappointed we were, her response was , I'm sorry you feel that way. They did nothing to make it right nor did they care. Horrific service and management. They are uninterested in satisfying their customers. They're a disgrace . Just ripping off unexpected vacationers. So we will never be back and I hope you will take this warning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Antonietta Rizzo
PLEASE DO NOT GO THERE!!!!!The worse restaurant I have been to. They have no idea what Italian food really is and have no manners especially the one that calls herself the owner’s wife. The pasta was over cooked and a scungilli appetizer that was $17 cost us $39 because we added a $5 extra for pasta. The manager and the owner tried to explain the cost and said that they charge twice for the scungilli when you get the $5 for the extra pasta. I should invite the owners to my house so they can taste real Italian food. Very imbarassing!!!! Shame on them for telling people that it’s Italian food. All the food was real bad.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Sondra Valo
Food was wonderful, service was great, but the ceiling was leaking in a few spots- they had some fans set up near the ceiling like this happens often…
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Claudia C.
I really wanted to love this place. Italian restaurant on the beach - could have been so perfect! The good - the staff were all very kind, welcoming and friendly. We went on Valentine's Day without a reservation and were graciously seated. The atmosphere is lovely and the restaurant is clean. The not so good - the food. I had the penne bolognese and it was in the bottom 25% of all similar dishes I've tried at Italian restaurants (and we visit many since I'm actually Italian). My husband had the Chicken Parmesan and the chicken tasted like it was previously frozen. Sadly, the best part of the meal was the bread and my husband's soda. Lots of potential here, but the food sadly falls very short.
K T.
I had a bad experience at a different restaurant down the street so I walked to Fortini's and was greeted with a smile. The food and drink were terrific and I had a very pleasant and friendly evening. This place has been around for years and the family and neighborhood feeling still exists.
Craig Patterson
Paulie and Luke come from a long line of Italian chefs and restaurant owners.They grew up in their father's italian fine dining restaurant and are excellent at their craft.It is the premier high end experience on Clearwater BeachWe come here every time we are in Clearwater and are never disappointed
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
cr skyes
Great food, service.Kid-friendliness: My kids only like homemade Italian food. This place is authentic. They loved it
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Calamari, Lasagna
Mike McCarthy
2nd time at this place. That should be a good enough review, should that not satisfy you… here you go.Family owned, Great service, Good relaxed atmosphere, and the food, amazing.You come here and might think, “longer food wait times” and honestly that’s the only thing someone might be upset about. If you catch a server with anything other than a happy face and respect towards you, their probably having a bad night. Have not experienced that here. As far as the wait for food goes, it’s authentic, made fresh. I mean it’s Michelin star worthy food, if you want shorter wait times and terrible food, go to Applebees or any other name brand restaurant. Those restaurants don’t care if you come back, this one does and they go the extra mile to make sure you think of them the next time you want to go out or next time you want to impress a date.I’m so sure you’ll enjoy this place, I have and will continue to do so. Thank you Forlini’s and to the chef/ owners I really appreciate your work and effort.Kid-friendliness: Yes!Wheelchair accessibility: Yes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Lasagna
Chris D.
Awesome ambiance, food, and service. We there for a company dinner after meetings all week. Clearwater Beach, FL has a hidden gem Great Italian food with an upscale atmosphere. Must take the time and enjoy the food.
Lynn Armey
Best Italian meal I’ve ever had!! Nice atmosphere. Great service. Highly recommended.
Limited menu, but everything they serve is top tier quality and the service has always been perfect.Parking: Small parking lot but they have valetKid-friendliness: Not many items on the menu for kids. This is a pretty fancy place, recommend older kids onlyWheelchair accessibility: Only one curb to worry about and it has a ramp area
Not impressed. To start off, the waitress told us we could not add a protein to the pasta dishes because "the owner was cooking because he is short staffed and he doesn't want any crazy tickets." So... ok. The Coke was in a can and $3 each refill. I asked for a side of Cesar dressing for my salad and the cup was maybe 1/4 full (I don't know why she bothered). We asked for a roll and more pesto when the waitress brought out our meal. She brought two rolls as we were finishing. She said she had to help with the "ancient system" but really she forgot. The portions were rather small for the price of the meals. The atmosphere was nice and clean but for $87 for a dinner for 2 for just salad, pasta and one roll, we probably wouldn't go back.
Marina J Z.
Very nice staff and the food was very good and the selection was great! The prices were very reasonable.
Charlie Castleman
During my recent visit to Forlini's Restaurant, I had a mixed dining experience. The food was decent, though I found it somewhat overpriced for the quality offered. The menu had a reasonable variety, but the presentation of the appetizers and main dishes felt outdated and lacked excitement.Service was acceptable; the staff was polite and did their best under the circumstances. However, they seemed stretched thin, juggling cleaning tasks along with serving, which impacted the attentiveness we received as diners.The atmosphere at Forlini's was louder than I anticipated. The noise level, primarily due to a crowd at the bar, lent the restaurant more of a sports bar vibe rather than the fine dining atmosphere I was expecting. This was a bit off-putting and made me question if we had chosen the right place for our evening out.In conclusion, while Forlini's has the potential for a pleasant dining experience, certain aspects like the noise level, service, and food presentation could use some improvement. It might not deter everyone, but it's something to consider if you're looking for a quieter, more refined dining experience.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 3
C Will
Excellent food and atmosphere.Absolutely excellent experience. We ordered the Sausage and Pepper for an appetizer and a meal of Lasagne and Scallops Sinatra. We were greeted by a wonderful staff. My spouse and I had the pleasure of being taken care of by Enio. What a wonderful and kind soul. He was very attentive, polite and professional. His demenor was friendly and accomodating. As a person who has 35 years working in servicing customers and being from a small town in Texas who believes in kindness and respect to everyone, Enio went above and beyond. He made us feel like we were the most important people in the room. The service he provided us is not what I believe he was trained to do. He has that "it" factor of being a wonderful and an integral part of what service is. I cannot wait to share my experience with my co-workers and friends/family in Texas. Thank you Enio.
Don't bother with this place !!!! Insulting and a rip off. Never experienced anything like this in my lifetime. Besides the food being mediocre at best , they added and doubled the charges that were not listed as such on the menu. I ordered scungilli app as an entree. She said all entrees come with a side salad so since I made my scungilli an entree for $5 extra I believed I got a side salad. I asked for it on linguini. When the bill arrived the $17 appetizer plus $5 to make it an entree became $39 and was renamed Frank Sinatra which was a different dish..whaaat? The waitress then said maybe I didn't explain it right. She then said when you make scungilli an entree we double the price, but the menu says $5. Then she said the linguini it was on was $15..whaat? They just double talk to confuse you. We spoke to the so called "wife of the owner" who double talked me again. They did not want to make anything right. When I told her how disappointed we were, her response was , I'm sorry you feel that way. They did nothing to make it right nor did they care. Horrific service and management. They are uninterested in satisfying their customers. They're a disgrace . Just ripping off unexpected vacationers. So we will never be back and I hope you will take this warning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
PLEASE DO NOT GO THERE!!!!!The worse restaurant I have been to. They have no idea what Italian food really is and have no manners especially the one that calls herself the owner’s wife. The pasta was over cooked and a scungilli appetizer that was $17 cost us $39 because we added a $5 extra for pasta. The manager and the owner tried to explain the cost and said that they charge twice for the scungilli when you get the $5 for the extra pasta. I should invite the owners to my house so they can taste real Italian food. Very imbarassing!!!! Shame on them for telling people that it’s Italian food. All the food was real bad.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 2
Food was wonderful, service was great, but the ceiling was leaking in a few spots- they had some fans set up near the ceiling like this happens often…
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I really wanted to love this place. Italian restaurant on the beach - could have been so perfect! The good - the staff were all very kind, welcoming and friendly. We went on Valentine's Day without a reservation and were graciously seated. The atmosphere is lovely and the restaurant is clean. The not so good - the food. I had the penne bolognese and it was in the bottom 25% of all similar dishes I've tried at Italian restaurants (and we visit many since I'm actually Italian). My husband had the Chicken Parmesan and the chicken tasted like it was previously frozen. Sadly, the best part of the meal was the bread and my husband's soda. Lots of potential here, but the food sadly falls very short.
I had a bad experience at a different restaurant down the street so I walked to Fortini's and was greeted with a smile. The food and drink were terrific and I had a very pleasant and friendly evening. This place has been around for years and the family and neighborhood feeling still exists.
Paulie and Luke come from a long line of Italian chefs and restaurant owners.They grew up in their father's italian fine dining restaurant and are excellent at their craft.It is the premier high end experience on Clearwater BeachWe come here every time we are in Clearwater and are never disappointed
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great food, service.Kid-friendliness: My kids only like homemade Italian food. This place is authentic. They loved it
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Calamari, Lasagna
2nd time at this place. That should be a good enough review, should that not satisfy you… here you go.Family owned, Great service, Good relaxed atmosphere, and the food, amazing.You come here and might think, “longer food wait times” and honestly that’s the only thing someone might be upset about. If you catch a server with anything other than a happy face and respect towards you, their probably having a bad night. Have not experienced that here. As far as the wait for food goes, it’s authentic, made fresh. I mean it’s Michelin star worthy food, if you want shorter wait times and terrible food, go to Applebees or any other name brand restaurant. Those restaurants don’t care if you come back, this one does and they go the extra mile to make sure you think of them the next time you want to go out or next time you want to impress a date.I’m so sure you’ll enjoy this place, I have and will continue to do so. Thank you Forlini’s and to the chef/ owners I really appreciate your work and effort.Kid-friendliness: Yes!Wheelchair accessibility: Yes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Lasagna
Awesome ambiance, food, and service. We there for a company dinner after meetings all week. Clearwater Beach, FL has a hidden gem Great Italian food with an upscale atmosphere. Must take the time and enjoy the food.
Best Italian meal I’ve ever had!! Nice atmosphere. Great service. Highly recommended.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Limited menu, but everything they serve is top tier quality and the service has always been perfect.Parking: Small parking lot but they have valetKid-friendliness: Not many items on the menu for kids. This is a pretty fancy place, recommend older kids onlyWheelchair accessibility: Only one curb to worry about and it has a ramp area
Recommended dishes: Sausage Capri, Chicken Parmigiana
Not impressed. To start off, the waitress told us we could not add a protein to the pasta dishes because "the owner was cooking because he is short staffed and he doesn't want any crazy tickets." So... ok. The Coke was in a can and $3 each refill. I asked for a side of Cesar dressing for my salad and the cup was maybe 1/4 full (I don't know why she bothered). We asked for a roll and more pesto when the waitress brought out our meal. She brought two rolls as we were finishing. She said she had to help with the "ancient system" but really she forgot. The portions were rather small for the price of the meals. The atmosphere was nice and clean but for $87 for a dinner for 2 for just salad, pasta and one roll, we probably wouldn't go back.
Very nice staff and the food was very good and the selection was great! The prices were very reasonable.
During my recent visit to Forlini's Restaurant, I had a mixed dining experience. The food was decent, though I found it somewhat overpriced for the quality offered. The menu had a reasonable variety, but the presentation of the appetizers and main dishes felt outdated and lacked excitement.Service was acceptable; the staff was polite and did their best under the circumstances. However, they seemed stretched thin, juggling cleaning tasks along with serving, which impacted the attentiveness we received as diners.The atmosphere at Forlini's was louder than I anticipated. The noise level, primarily due to a crowd at the bar, lent the restaurant more of a sports bar vibe rather than the fine dining atmosphere I was expecting. This was a bit off-putting and made me question if we had chosen the right place for our evening out.In conclusion, while Forlini's has the potential for a pleasant dining experience, certain aspects like the noise level, service, and food presentation could use some improvement. It might not deter everyone, but it's something to consider if you're looking for a quieter, more refined dining experience.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 3
Excellent food and atmosphere.Absolutely excellent experience. We ordered the Sausage and Pepper for an appetizer and a meal of Lasagne and Scallops Sinatra. We were greeted by a wonderful staff. My spouse and I had the pleasure of being taken care of by Enio. What a wonderful and kind soul. He was very attentive, polite and professional. His demenor was friendly and accomodating. As a person who has 35 years working in servicing customers and being from a small town in Texas who believes in kindness and respect to everyone, Enio went above and beyond. He made us feel like we were the most important people in the room. The service he provided us is not what I believe he was trained to do. He has that "it" factor of being a wonderful and an integral part of what service is. I cannot wait to share my experience with my co-workers and friends/family in Texas. Thank you Enio.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5