Amore by Wegmans

I have been a regular at this place for almost a year. While the food has fluctuated in quality I still give them five stars because of the outstanding service. Everyone working here is a pleasure to be around, particularly Kelly and Jackie. I’ve never gone anywhere and had bartenders be so friendly and sweet as they are here. So thank you guys for making me feel so at home!

Love the calamari appetizer! I’d prefer it with marinara sauce though. Also had the margherita pizza and gnocchi, both were amazing. We felt as if we were back in Sorrento on our honeymoon! Perfect portions too!

Been there many times in the past and always enjoyed it. Was there last night and very disappointed in the menu. Many good items are gone. Flatbread, arugula salad, small order of just meatballs. Pizza was not the same and not as good. Probably will not go back again.

My husband and I stopped by Amore on a Saturday night without reservations, so we sat at one of the cozy tables at the bar. Although our server was exceptionally nice, the rest of our experience was really mediocre. The food arrived very late (we were expecting delays, but 1.5 hours for our food to arrive is unacceptable) and was not worth the cost. Perhaps being spoiled by beautifully prepared meals at Wegmans soured the experience, because I recognized many of the menu items that you can get in takeout in the grocery store, and the taste was not much different. So it felt odd paying much more to sit at a table in a restaurant with gaudy décor, for the same items you can purchase in the grocery store next door as a 6 – 10 $ meal, in a matter of minutes versus 1.5 hours. That being said, we did enjoy our drinks and appetizers, and will perhaps return again during one of their happy hours to give it another try.

Our Mother’s Day lunch was captivating in the Tower Room. We felt like royalty in a castle spire! The food was really delicious, beyond reproach. Airy pizza, fresh bright red sauce, impeccably cooked fish with herbaceous salsa verde. The servers were friendly even though 4 of our party of ten were kids. They even «went to the store» to get my son ranch dressing to have with his kids’ meal. Next time I’ll consider ordering family style, to put the huge lazy Susan to good use. The main dining rooms were not nearly as chic as this private room, or the bar area. But if you can have the same food, it would still be well worth it. Well done Wegmans!

Why Rochester, why? Moreover, why Wegmans, why? How can you be so bad at Italian food? Both of our neighboring major cities do it so much better, so why can’t we?
I went to Amore a few weeks back for dinner, and outside of the dessert (which is where the second star comes from), everything was just not great. I opted for the four-​course tasting menu for $ 29 (which is actually a pretty good price), and chose the Crispy Potato Gnocchi, Escarole Salad, Scallops with Farro and Brussel Sprout Leaves, and the Tiramisu.
I’d break it down like this:
Crispy Potato Gnocchi — Easily the worst gnocchi I’ve eaten in my 30 years of life. When you hear «crispy gnocchi,» you think pan fried, not deep fried. These were tough, chewy, and the crispiness was not crisp, but rather toughness. There was decent heat from the peppers which is appreciated, but even the red marinara sauce couldn’t save this pile of miniature hockey pucks.
Escarole Salad — Have you ever made Caesar Salad before at home? Welcome to their Escarole Salad. Plain, cold, and boring. An OK anchovy vinaigrette, nice shaved slices of Parmesan, but really nothing else worth mentioning.
Scallops with Farro and Brussel Sprout Leaves — The creamy farro with the toasted sprout leaves was actually pretty brilliant. Possibly the best part of the meal. Really an amazing accompaniment to what could’ve been an amazing scallop dish. Sadly though, what usually are luscious diver scallops were completely destroyed by overcooking and a lack of seasoning. The scallops were cooked to death and were like rubber in the mouth. I got them down eventually, but believe me — not without effort.
Tiramisu — Hands down, the silver lining of the meal. Thank goodness for that. The tiramisu was soft, creamy, and intensely flavored with espresso — just the way I like it! If I were to fault it for one thing, maybe it seemed like the chef was a little heavy handed with the mascarpone layer, but that’s being picky at best.
Sadly, I really don’t want to give Amore another try. This series of mostly failures was more than enough to teach me to go look elsewhere for Italian food in town.

This place isn’t nearly as bad as folks are making it out to be.
Maybe because it’s part of the Wegman’s empire and people expect nothing short of the highest forms of culinary perfection from anything associated with the Wegman dynasty?
We were just happy to be able to grab dinner here on a saturday night w/​o having a reservation. The service was good enough in my opinion. The food, while not on the same level as Rocco, Lucano, or the other high end italian restaurants in the city was not bad at all. Certainly better than chain restaurants and the prices here are pretty reasonable.
I’m glad we skipped the flatbreat appetizer as the bread they give you for free was sufficient. The salad was ok, a little on the bitter side. For an entrée I had the pork tenderloin which I thought was pretty good although slightly undercooked. I tried some of the chicken parm and again, not stellar but certainly good enough for what it cost.
The manager scurried about checking on people and even gave me his business card and a coupon for a free pizza on my next visit! Hate on this place if you want, but I’ll be back

This review is for the «Italian Festival» that Amore had recently. Me and my husband were really excited to try some foods from Amore as we hadn’t been before. We got there approx. 630p — We started by stopping at first wine sample table and no wines were explained at all — We tried one sample — which was fine. We were told that a waitress would be around to get our drink order if we wanted additional. There were 3 – 4 cheeses and 3 cured meats — no labels or utensils to grab the items from the plate. There was a table of 3 focaccia pizzas — that were dry and cold. There was also 2 cold grain salads and Green beans and tiny asparagus drenched in olive oil — also cold. In the initial ad it claimed there would be a «Pig Roast» which was what they called their roasted pork sample sandwiches with greens and shaved cheese (My husband loved this — hence the 2 stars — would’ve been 1). There was another wine sample table — which we didn’t try any as they had no semi-​sweet or sweet wines, which we prefer.
At the end there was what we thought would be the «Good food» here, but not the case. My husband tried the sausage and peppers with a cranberry sauce — which he described as ordinary. I tried the 2 «grilled» shrimp on a rosemary skewer which was cold, rubbery and soooo overcooked. The mini cannoli’s were tasty with pistachios on one end. The gelato we were so excited about — butterscotch bourbon which was grainy but had a decent flavor.
Other small details — We saw no waitress to assist us with ordering a drink — so we just had a tiny water that was offered. The ticket clearly said 21 and over — there were multiple young children literally running around and multiple what appeared to be high school students there when we went. Very few tables to sit outside where everything was.
It was 20.00 pp which we could’ve spent so much better — this was a misrepresented festival if you look at initial description (which was removed now from internet). We were so turned off by this we would never consider eating at the restaurant — which is a shame since we love the Wegmans.

You expect the freshest ingredients when you eat in a restaurant within a grocery story, and Amore meets that expectation. The calamari was tasty with a nice creamy dipping sauce. However, the chef also breads small slices of lemon that — in the dim restaurant lighting — look identical to the pieces of calamari. It’s a bit of a bitter and sour shock when you eat one of these pieces whole, unexpectedly. The spinach lasagna had good taste, but the plate had a significant pool of orange grease around the edges that could have been avoided. The music is incongruous: Fine Young Cannibals, the Pretenders, the Go-​Gos. The music should be a nice background feature, not something that jumps out at you because it seems so out of place. The service was friendly and prompt. All in all, we’d eat there again.

Service was great. Everything else not so much. We stopped in for some cocktails and appetizers so we were pretty happy this wasn’t our dinner tonight.
The cocktail I had was not strained at all. Couldn’t drink it with a straw because there was so much ice, fruit and seeds (?!!). See picture for details.
We had the mussels which were pretty spicy, which would be fine if it said on the menu that it was spicy. They were also pretty sandy and there were a few that were not opened.
The rosemary flatbread sounded delicious, but unfortunately quite salty. I could taste the sea salt crystals and actually chewed on some. We commented on the saltiness though and the waitress took it off our check, which was nice.
All in all, lots of potential but a huge disappointment :(

Service was excellent — waitress knowledgeable — the atmosphere was wonderful. One in our party got the tastings menu and selections and portions were just right — flavors good — tiramisu was slightly frozen in the middle. Table bread was cool and not hot. Ordered Alfredo pasta — a bit too al dente. We ordered a mousse that was slightly grainy in texture. All-​in-​all an average dining experience.

Very underwhelming. Food was just okay. Service wasn’t very good. Fairly inexpensive, so I guess you get what you pay for.

Overall I was not impressed. We had reservations for a party of 8. Family was visiting from out of town — a die hard wegmans fan and HAD to eat at Amore before returning back to Arizona.
Walking in made all my initial thoughts go out the door because it is SO beautiful inside! The wine list was good, I had a glass of reisling and it was very satisfying. We decided to go all out — some wine, different appetizers and entrees. None of the food was great… or even «very good». It was all… okay. my initial assumption of what it would be but hoped for more since the old tastings restaurant that was in the Pittsford wegmans was in fact very good. It was all comparable to their frozen foods fancied up.
The service was great though and I wouldn’t expect anything less from wegmans. Unfortunately not enough for me to come back. I would come back for happy hour though. An elegant atmosphere with a calm surrounding would be ideal

As I walked through the restaurant, the ambience was cozy and décor was pretty. We were seated on the second floor next to the stairs so I had a perfect view of the Wegmans café seating area. Yes, it’s connected and open. They tried to create some separation in one of the rooms by adding fake vines along the clear glass, which looks pretty good if it wasn’t for the the fact that you can still see everything else going on in Wegmans. Now, this is only one side of the restaurant. Upstairs they have a very nice room that can hold up to 10 for a private party. The room has a chandelier, ceiling-​to-​floor fabric curtains, and thrones as seats. It looks like you can have a tea party with the Queen. Well, maybe the princess.
I ordered the scallops with butternut squash risotto and brussel sprout leaves. The scallops were seared perfectly. The risotto was okay but could have been cooked a little longer. I had a small taste of the spicy meatball parm pizza and it was okay, but I’m not a pizza person. The meatballs were soft and it didn’t seem spicy at all.
The cannoli ricotta filling is tastier than the shell, which was more so hard than crispy/​flaky. The chocolate mousse was rich but not overwhelming with the almond cookie. Both were good portions.
Would I go back? Meh, if someone else pays.

Honestly, we did try going to Lucano Restaurant across the street first however, being a Friday night, they were packed with reservations! We had never tried Amore and it was next door, easy choice.
We still had to battle the terrible parking lot they have there but that’s another story. We walked in and Sparkle, the hostess, greeted us. She was very sweet, as she took our coats. She seated us upstairs, which I didn’t even know existed. They had live music in the café area of the store that we could hear. The upstairs kind of overlooked the café — but it was still very nice.
For starters, we ordered drinks. I ordered a Tuscan Cooler which was like blueberries and what tasted like wine, I cannot recall the actual ingredients. My husband ordered red Valpolicella wine — we both enjoyed our choices. The waiter brought us some bread but the oil it was served with was just that — OIL, it definitely needed some seasoning!
We ordered the Pesto pizza and lasagna special. The pesto pizza was very good, pine nuts, tomatoes, broccoli, pesto, and cheese. I love this combination so it was an easily satisfying dish for me. My husband’s choice was the lasagna, which had a combination of beef, veal and sausage — very good but not that big of a portion for $ 15.00.
Overall the food was good but it’s hard to shake the feeling that people are sitting in the room next to you eating out of to-​go containers from the café. I mean I even caught myself telling my husband we should go buy some cat litter after dinner.
Overall though, dinner for two was under $ 50 — and because it was reasonable and we were in and out within an hour, I’d go again.

I would waver back and forth on calling Amore a three or a four star experience for me, but I think in the end, it really is just «A-​OK.»
The feel of the place is pretty nice, at least entering through the doors for the restaurant. I think it would a really weird first impression if you went through the store or had to sit in one of the tables out in the shopping area. The service I had was… just okay (though I was there on a Thursday night). The server didn’t really do much in the way of suggesting us dishes or drinks or anything to that effect. Really didn’t make much banter either.
The bread came out first, was pretty solid, nothing to really write home about. Came with some oil that really needed some flavorings. Some butter would have been a nice touch. We both got a drink, and they were both really solid, but the drinks menu was very narrow (though focused on seemingly Italian mixed drinks, I don’t have a sufficient wealth of knowledge to know if they actually were), and they were very reasonably priced given that we were there before 7pm so they were half off. I got the sausage pizza, the crust was crisp, but the pizza itself really lacked much of a kick. The sausage was very mild, almost painfully so, with no complexity in the flavor. My girlfriend got the shrimp carbonara special, which was excellent, really few complaints about that, it could have used a touch more pepper, but that is a personal taste preference.
I think in short, Amore is a decent experience, but it doesn’t do much to set itself out. There is no shortage of Italian places in Rochester, and this one just really doesn’t match up to the rest.

Going back and forth… three stars… four… why is this hard? I want to be realistic. Did I have prejudice clouding my interpretation of our experience? I went in with hesitation solely because of the commentary I’ve heard from other friends who’ve tried it. Some complained about the prices, others the service, and others just about the overall experience. I didn’t know what to expect so I was actually surprised when our meal went over quite well.
I think the overall experience served us well for what we were expecting for the evening. We were in a lazy mindset after my return from a quick road trip and my boyfriend feeling a smidge under the weather. Neither of us wanted to cook, but takeout seemed less than appealing. We also didn’t want to get dressed up. I didn’t want to put on mascara. So, we ended up at Amore. It was the perfect opportunity for us to finally sample the food, and, conveniently pick up some essentials from the grocery store following our meal.
First and foremost, the service was top notch. That is a seriously attentive staff. It appears like they’re given a few set things to recommend and are trained well, however, it seemed bit forced in our encounter with our main waiter. Beyond that, I think four other people visited our table from the girl pouring our waters, the server delivering our pizza, the manager delivering our gnocchi… clearly teamwork is important here. I appreciated it. Although, it didn’t necessarily match the vibe of the restaurant, but I will never complain about a place that serves you well no matter what caliber of food you’re served.
Therein lies another thought about the atmosphere. It cradles the line between chain Italian and attempted fine dining. It’s smaller than I expected. The bar is modern, mimicking the style of Next Door in Pittsford, but the dining room is rustic. That disconnect seemed unusual. I personally abhor the rustic Italian restaurant murals and décor that decorates many of the Italian restaurants in our area, but I understand their intent. Yes, we’d love to feel like we’re sampling food in an Italian villa, but it felt forced. I prefer simplicity in décor. No need for a themed dining room. If I want that, I’ll go to Italy. But, I digress.
The wine list was solid, lots to choose from depending on your preference for white, sparkling, red, etc. I focused on the red list this visit, ordering a quartino of the Montepulciano. Not a bad option — cost effective at $ 14 to share as we both only wanted about a glass. Price comparison: Had we ordered it per person it would have been $ 10/​glass. Also, the red section had a nice range of Italians and a handful of California options.
I think our approach in ordering is similar to most of our visits to Italian restaurants. Only a few times have we had superb pasta dishes elsewhere and we generally avoid ordering it off the menu as we cook pasta at home regularly. It’s hard for us to justify $ 13/​$ 16 for spaghetti and meatballs when we can make it the way we prefer it, and for less. I’d say, if you’re going to get a pasta dish, opt for the smaller one because it’s still probably more than you’d serve yourself at home and wallet-​friendly.
We shared our dishes this evening, ordering the pumpkin gnocchi for an appetizer and the arugula mozzarella pizza, adding proscuitto for our entrée. I was pretty impressed by the gnocchi. They tasted like they were prepared that day, and were so fluffy that they melted in my mouth almost like cotton candy would. The pumpkin flavoring was subtle and paired perfectly with the slightly roasted sage, dash of brown sugar, and light cream sauce. It was more than enough for the two of us to start our meal, could even be ordered as a single entrée, and surprisingly not heavy at all — a great seasonal dish at $ 8. Our pizza was also better than I expected, specifically the crust. They actually did a decent job nailing the wood fired, just-​charred-​enough flavor. The mozzarella was so creamy and melted perfectly. The greatest misstep was the arugula. It should have been at least drizzled with a touch of olive oil because it was so dry, bland, and not easy to eat atop the pizza. I’d prefer it dressed with olive oil, lemon, and salt. Either ask for it prepared that way or opt for the margherita instead. I’m also curious to try the black truffle mushroom pizza as we just took a cooking class with everything prepared using black truffles and I want to compare it flavor-​wise. So it looks like I’ll be back… I also saw they have a bellini on the menu so I might pop over to the bar to give that experience a whirl.
Overall, it’s a convenient stop if you visit the East Ave Wegmans regularly. I’d say it’s worth a visit, but not necessarily first pick for date night or a group outing. Save it for the lazy nights when you don’t want to cook and would like something above the Market Café options.

Cutest place with the Alice in wonderland table upstairs in the back. Rosemary bread was my favorite, everything else was just. Well. Italian. Some stuff more salty than others. Can’t believe all the ingredients were from Wegmans.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s Amore! When a picture of Sophia Loren leaning over in a dress hits your eye, you ask «Am I at Wegmans?» You are, and… that’s Amore, tooo!
Back to Sophia Loren in a minute.
Our reservation was at 5:30 pm, the time that the restaurant is supposed to open. We checked in a little early, however the Bar was fully operating, and there were two women already there, sharing a large dish of Potato Gnocchi. The bar has a really warm atmosphere, with butterscotch-​stained wood bar tops and shelving, jars of dried beans and pastas, and chapel windows up above, with scroll-​iron balcony-​facades, giving the second floor a glimpse of the seating area down below. The television plays soccer. The bill comes in a sauce jar. That was my favorite part. The eye-​catching seating area is accented with tomato-​red roses, raspberry velveteen stools, and crystal chandeliers. The surroundings conjured up my an image of a bearded man, with a beautiful tenor voice, bellowing out an opera song in my head.
We were content reading the menu and sipping on lemonade, but we were grateful that the hostess came to meet us the instant that it turned 5:30 pm. I wanted that gnocchi. She took us to the dining area, with a show-​stopping open kitchen. There is a beautiful tiled oven, in that tomato-​red color again. Copper pots hang from iron hoods hanging from the ceiling. You sit on adorable chairs that look as if made in some family’s country furniture store and belong in a fairytale cottage.
We ordered the Arugula Antipasti ($ 6), the Potato Gnocchi (large portion) ($ 17), and the Eggplant Parmesan ($ 10). They try to get you to order a warm rosemary flatbread for $ 4, but you can also request traditional italian bread with olive oil, which is complimentary. Pretty much every dish is family style, and both the bartenders and the servers encouraged sharing the dishes. The arugula salad came out first, and was covered with generous amounts of freshly shaved parmegiano-​reggiano. It was enough for two, and light with an olive-​oil and lemon juice dressing. The cheese tasted sweet next to the bitter greens and dressing. I think it actually stirred up my appetite for the next course.
The Potato Gnocchi made my heart bellow an opera song again. It was not so much the gnocchi themselves, although they were delicious, and more giving than firm. The house marinara was a perfect harmony of tomato, seasonings and a salty-​brine flavor coming from what I believed was the prosciutto de Parma. That stuff is fun to eat and mighty tasty. I loved that it actually tasted homemade, which is what I expect from a Wegmans meal. The eggplant parmesan is considered a vegetable side, and while priced to be an entrée, the portion comes in a medium sized ramekin. It is filling and comforting, with layers of eggplant, cheese and baked in tomato-​basil sauce.
While eating, I looked to my left and saw Sophia Loren, leaning over in her dress. Wegmans and spaghetti – two things that conjure up memories of family in my mind. Sophia Loren – not as much – but she is a big deal at this place. Yes, I saw those billboard ads with volumptous women eating spaghetti. But she’s everywhere. There’s a quote from her on the wall, there’s a portrait of her in the dining room. Perhaps this woman embodies Amore’s nod to love and romance. Outside of my personal confusion towards the homage to Sophia Loren, I truly enjoyed the family-​style dishes and italian countryside theming. The sauce sent me back to sitting at my family’s table eating spaghetti on a Sunday night. That makes a meal worth it.

Like other reviewers, I was disappointed in Amore after having had high hopes for it. The prices are high, the food is solidly mediocre. My «sausage» pizza came with sausage, ricotta and some kind of greens (server couldn’t tell me what kind of greens, exactly, it was) and no red sauce, which was a little surprising. The crust was soggy in the middle. Eggplant parmesan had a slick of oil floating on the top. I’ve also had the calamari there, and it was LOADED with rosemary — so much that you couldn’t really taste anything else.
I was also baffled by the restroom location — you have to leave the restaurant, walk through the seating area for the café past other people eating their subs and so on. Even if you can pretend that you’re in a nice Italian restaurant, trekking through the grocery store to get to the restroom completely ruins the mood. Pretty big misstep, given that Wegmans rebuilt the entire space. They couldn’t put a restroom in Amore itself?
I also dislike the empty jars used to serve the check in. I guess they’re trying to «upcycle» but it came off as tacky and just stupid.
There is no shortage of good Italian (or Italian-​inspired) restaurants in the Rochester area, and Amore does nothing to distinguish itself positively. I’d spend my money elsewhere.