The Appian Way

Went to dinner at Appian Way last night and were disappointed by the atmosphere and prices. The food was good, but we felt like we were taken by the price we were charged for our antipasto and dessert. Over$ 30 for an antipasto platter for three and $ 10 for a gelato — my husband asked for a split between two flavors and they charged him for two full desserts– the house wine was delicious but we still left feeling let down by our experience.

I was psyched all week to go here for dinner based upon recommendations from previous customers, friends and family. Much to my surprise, I was truly disappointed! First and foremost, the prices on the website don’t reflect the prices on the actual menu? Update, update update! Much more expensive than it’s worth. The food was just mediocre at best. The portions were average, which was fine, but didn’t even come with a veggie which could be ordered as a side, for another astronomical amount. Did I mention you had to have the house dressing (which I believe was Italian) on your tossed salad because there were no other choices??? Please do yourself a favor and visit a nice, quaint little Italian restaurant that goes by the name of Café Italia in Albany. It’s worth the short drive from Schenectady and Saratoga counties, and I can’t wait to go back. One thing I will say in their favor is that it didn’t take nearly as long as I had heard it would. We were a party of six and we ordered an appetizer and the Gelato dessert, and we were still out of there in just two hours.

If you want real italian food. This is the best this side of the Atlantic. No questions. Go all out. Get an appetizer. A bottle of Italian red wine. Gelato for dessert. Think its too expensive? Stay home. This is worth way more than what they charge. Enjoy.

Authentic, incredible. My lady and my best spot and first date!

This was just lovely. We were a group of 6 coworkers celebrating the end of the school year. First time here for all of us. Delightful atmosphere. Food was traditional, not terribly original or creative, but fantastic, if you like traditional and high quality. Our server Salvatore entertained us with Italian and Yiddish (!) phrases and was charming and very helpful. I guess, service could be slow. Small staff, all food prepared to order. It worked for us, but our simple meal (one entrée and salad each, no drinks, no desserts) took about 2 ½ hours. We enjoyed socializing and chatting but it may not work for other occasions.
Note: parking lot in the back but you can park in the street most of the time.

Was pleasantly surprised by this small Italian restaurant. From the outside, it looked a little rundown but on the inside it was like you were sitting in someones grandmothers home. It was even peppered with photographs of someone’s grandson on the fireplace mantel.
You can order wine by glass or carafe, but don’t expect a wine list. You’re choices are Chianti or Pino. Beer: Peroni or Coors Light. Not a big deal.
The Waitstaff is friendly, but busy, so as they may not seem to care, be assured that you are being taken care of.
Everything is made to order and the wait time between drinks, salads and entrees is evidence of that. I enjoyed hearing my chicken and veal being pounded from the kitchen while conversing with my family. Because the longer wait, make sure not to eat to much of the tasty home made bread.
The portions are fairly gigantic. You could finish one yourself, but your going to be going to bed right after if you try to do so. I had to send half of my Chicken Parm home with my mother because my girlfriends Alfredo will feed both of us for the next couple of evenings.
The highlights for me were the Chicken Parm, the Penne Vodka and the homemade pasta side with the «gravy».
I would love to return someday to try their seafood options.

Appian Way is a classic local red sauce Italian spot. The food is quite good, pretty much all home-​made. The only issue is that you should be prepared to spend the entire evening having dinner.
Our waiter told us that due to the prepared-​for-​you nature of the food, it would take some time. He was not kidding. Our party of 5 arrived at 6:30. By the time 8 pm rolled around we had appetizers and salad with the entries nowhere in sight.
Should dinner actually come, I have little doubt it will be good, but we may have to either bring in a cot in which to nap or go elsewhere to get a snack while we continue our wait.
Well by 8:45 the main courses arrived and the wait, while way too long, was worth it. The pasta was cut by hand, the veal and sea food was over the top.
Our waiter apologized by comping us home-​made gelato. The amaretto gelato was simply the best desert I have ever had.
Will we go back? I only wish I had that much time!

Best italian restaurant! The food is so fresh, made to order. Just remember that everything is made to order, so don’t expect to be in and out. The wait is well worth it! The stuffed veal is one of my favorite dishes!

Went to the little Italian restaurant based on a suggestion from friends. It’s a small no frills restaurant but TRULY italian. The service is very, very slow which we were told. That’s because everything is cooked from scratch and it tastes awesome! It gives D’Raymonds a serious run for the money. Also, limited beverage selection gives this restaurant only four stars.

Took family members and friends to this restaurant for Valentine’s Day. This is our fav restaurant. But, after 2.5 hours we still were not served and asked for our food to be prepared to take away. They gave us free drinks which totaled to two beer and two glasses of wine. It was total humiliation to us and our friends. Normally Appian way is a five star restaurant experience. Do not go for a special occasion dinner. Wait for a regular night out and experience the very best in Italian cooking.

Great dinner last night. This is «old school» Italian located in (what used to be) an «old school» Italian neighborhood. Home made everything including the bread which I thought came from Perrecas. Our waitress warned me «don’t let her hear you say that» Owner/​chef makes it herself along with the pasta. Antipasto had pickled eggplant that I swear came straight out of my Italian grandmothers pantry. Delicious! Haven’t had this since I was a kid. Brought back wonderful memories. We wanted some wine and the server told us that the house chianti by the carafe «would not offend». It did not. We managed to drink two. Great veal parm and pasta and the menu has a lot of variety. Don’t go here expecting a fancy place. Remember going to Grandmas house for Sunday gravy? That’s this place. Very good food, prepared with care, priced consistent with the quality you will get.

You’ve gotta be kidding. I was told this was the be all and end all of food in Schenectady by a chef from one of the big restaurants. I ate there the same night he did. The food was warm, not hot, took forever, was expensive and was middle of the road. For a $ 40 meal, I would have said, UH? For $ 80 I say not again.

Quality, both in ingredients and preparation. There is a patina of comfort and sophistication to the food. From the orange salad to the brasole sp? to the very nice gelato… well done!

When you walk in to this place you feel like you are walking in to somebody’s house… and that is how I felt the whole time I was there. I went on a Thursday night so it wasn’t as packed as I am sure it can get, but there were a lot of people there for a Thursday night. The wine list was small, but reasonable and we found a carafe of the house red at $ 22 to be good. Our waiter was a doll. He was very professional and kind and it was clear that he wanted us to enjoy our food and experience as much as possible. I got the broccoli pasta and was happy to find that it is not at all swimming in oil like with most places. There was some broth at the bottom of the dish from the garlic and broccoli and just the right amount of oil. The pasta itself was awesome, light and cooked perfectly. My fella got the braciole with gnocchi. I did not try the braciole but it looked great. The gnocchi was good, and so was the red sauce. I agree that the prices were slightly high but I am happy to pay a little more for the food we got. Family restaurants are like these are dying and I don’t mind spending a few extra bucks to see that they stick around for a little while longer! I will be going back to The Appian Way without question!

This is a great little authentic italian restaurant that prepares all their dishes 100% to order (including home-​made pasta). This means you need to wait for your food, but the crackling fire and wine selection will help pass the time. My favorite is the penne ala vodka, or veal milenese.

The place is ok. By ok, I mean, the food is worth maybe $ 15 per entrée, but not $ 22. Unfortunately, the price here is more like $ 22 per entrée. We had an eggplant appetizer which was delicious, a stuffed veal entrée (which was great, actually worth that $ 22), and a prosciutto broccoli pasta which was way too oily and I got tired of it after two bites.
I kind of like the dining ambiance here — it’s small and cozy. But the waitstaff was not present most of the time and I didn’t get the water refill I wanted.