Ciao Mambo - Missoula

The food and service were excellent, but the temperature in the room was painfully cold—definitely below 60 degrees. Our toes felt frozen, despite wearing warm snow boots, as if we were on a hike in 15-degree weather. Unfortunately, the temperature didn't improve even after we mentioned it to the staff. Enjoying a nice meal in such icy conditions really took away from the experience.

We are long time customers and last night was a mixed experience. We came in around 5:30 pm and it was not crowded. We were sat right away next to the pizza kitchen at a high top table. Our server, Conner, was wonderful. He was personable, kind, and knowledgeable. Shortly after we ordered our appetizer, one of the kitchen staff was calling out orders to his colleagues. This is normal communication within how a kitchen functions. However, the volume and aggressiveness in which this chef was calling out orders felt as if we were cadets being berated by an angry drill sergeant. We brought it up to our server and he handled it like a champ. He agreed that the passionate chef was way over an appropriate volume and told us he would ask them to bring it down a notch or few. By the time our bottle of wine came, it was clear that it was this chef’s world and we were merely existing in it. So we asked the host politely if we could move to a more quiet table, opposite end of the restaurant. They gladly accommodated and gave us free dessert. We really appreciate the poise, patience and professionalism of all the FOH staff. They really care about us and our experience.

The best Italian meal we've had in ages, and that's coming from someone of Italian descent. We tried the Bolognese (gluten-free) and a large chicken Caesar salad. The highlight of our meal was...

What a disappointment. I came in for a quick meal, and despite there being many empty tables, they refused to seat us. Even though the bar was completely empty, they still wouldn't accommodate us. This is not a good way to run a business.

The server was quite rude and shortchanged us on the amount of Italian nacho sauce, making the experience unpleasant. It's no surprise that the CDA branch struggled to succeed...