Cena

(Translated by Google) Great Italian restaurant In my opinion it is in no way inferior to those in Italy. Great service. Italian wines and beers. Authentic Italian dishes. We were very satisfied. Whenever we're in Tampa again, we'll eat there immediately. (Original) Super Italienisch Restaurant Meiner Meinung nach steht es denen jn Italien in nichts nach. Super Bedienung. Italienische Weine und Biere. Authentisch Italienisch Gerichte. Wir waren sehr zufrieden. Wen wir wieder mal in Tampa sind essen wir sofort wider dort.

1st anniversary dinner. 2 of us placed in middle row of tables right next to huge loud boisterous table. A lot of running back and forth by our table. Food and drinks didn’t make up for the lack of ambiance. Maybe ok for lunch but wouldn’t try again for a date night.

10 out of 10. This is the best food in the bay area, hands down. We've now been here 4 times in 2 weeks and have tried about everything on the menu. There is no better Veal Chop anywhere, and the cocktails are super. The oxtail gnocchi and the bolognese are simply last meal worthy.. Chef Michael has cena firing on all cylinders and we will continue to visit regularly. Service is superb. His staff is world class and is the perfect frame for this masterpiece!

10/10!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*shakes head. Rated 2 stars compared to other tasting experiences in Tampa and St Pete I have had. The food was fine. Only fine. Not at all worth the wait. Horribly slow service. We ordered the 4 course truffle tasting menu which was a special feature. The first course took over 45 minutes. It was meant to pair with a glass of wine but we had to order more wine because after 45 mins of waiting for the first course our glasses were empty. When the first course came It was an espresso sized cup of soup that we ate in less than a minute-. Pasta came overrun with crimini mushrooms and like 4 shaved truffles on top. For a truffle tasting menu- I didn't taste truffle until the gelato. They basically shaved some truffles on everything they served. In the end we ended up ordering pizza from our table to be delivered before we got home. So disappointing. I've wanted to eat here for a while. Not worth it. Sad:(

(Translated by Google) great food special treatment (Original) Comida genial trato especial

#cena mediocre fare for $$$this place was way over rated. Made reservations for my wife and I and another couple. Arrived 5 mins before my 8:45pm reservation time and the mgr or owner already looking flustered asked if we had the reservation for 8:45p ? Told him Yes and this dude tells me he wouldn't have a table inside for us for at least 30 mins!!! I almost told him no, you are going to ask someone to leave since you have a reservation that needs the table and you can have them move outside... but I told him we can sit outside instead since it was already so late, mind you this is the earliest time I could pick two weeks in advance. So we go outside and wait for our table to be prepped.. the kind waitress takes our order, super sweet and accommodating and we get our food, it tasted good, nothing out of this world, about two minutes into diving into our dishes and the table behind us decides to light up a cigarette and pollute our lungs while we ate, and my wife and I noticed there was a couple making out that looked like they were about to F each other in public...At this point it's a race to eat the food to escape all this. All in all, the experience wasn't good, food was just 'ok', and the nearby smoking wasn't pleasant. For the $60 price tag per couple, the lack in prep for our reservation, and the distasteful ambiance, I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone.. and it has such high ratings... I'd much rather spend my money elsewhere, expected much more from this place.

(Translated by Google) Love Price ♥️ (Original) Love Cena ♥️

(I HAVE A NEW RESPONSE BELOW THIS 11/19/2018) Went to dinner here. Being a sophomore food connoisseur eating at many different establishments. Was questioned if I had reservations. No, I didn't. Was surprised to see others were sat down promptly without being asked the same. My wife noticed that the server delivered bread to the two new guests that were just seated, after us. However we didn't receive the same. Menu said another order of bread was $2, when the complimentary ones never made it. Paid too much for a bone in rib eye, that is served to you medium rare without asking you what temperature you desire. My wife excused herself to the restroom, but returned immediately. She couldn't use it being there were cockroaches already occupying the females restroom. Cockroaches?? at this high dollar, reservation based restaurant with views of favoritism towards different customers? What a mistake! Never Again!!! Thank you for your response. I posted that review January 14, 2018. And you replied 2 days ago. "Your establishment" response? Are you the new management that has cleaned up the bathroom roach infestation? Did you give customers the choice of deciding the temperature of how they wanted their steak prepared? Did you tell your employees to not ask Hispanic people if they have reservations? Did you explain to your employees to bring water to the Hispanic customers? Did you explain to your employees to ask EVERYONE if they have reservations, and not promptly sit others down? I didn't want to make this review "Race" related as you've read the existing post. At the end of the day, Money is green. It has no preference. For you to tell me...how my lies don't seem too appealing but you thank me for my honesty, is a slap in my face! I can't make this up towards my experience at your restaurant "Cena". I don't just make up reviews. I write to exactly what happened in the events of "your establishment". Read the rest of my reviews. I have no reason to make false review or representation. I want you to know that I will NEVER show my presence at "Cena, your establishment ", even if it was FREE and you gave me extra gift cards to take home. I speak TRUTH in my experience and I'm sorry you don't have dignity to accept it. I have no reason to lie!

--- Short Synopsis ---Cena has great quality food. I would just come here for their awesome and interesting take on a tiramisu alone, but they also serve other amazing dishes, like the seafood risotto. --- Detailed Summary ---I was able to find some parking across the street next to Cena. Inside Cena, there is a open and modern feel to the place. Our server was a helpful and kind gentlemen.I came here for restaurant week and my girlfriend opted for the three course option for restaurant week. I also ordered three (separate) dishes because there was so much I wanted to try.The complimentary bread is good and comes with the usual olive oil and balsamic vinegar, so i cannot really argue with that. The bread also goes really well with any (leftover) sauces you may have from your other dishes.For appetizers, I was able to try their calamari and octopus scachatta. I never had octopus on a scachatta before and it was delightful. The dish was tasty with the tomato sauce, sausage, spinach, cheese, and octopus. The calamari was not bad as well. The squid ink aioli and salsa (pico de gallo) were interesting accompaniments to the calamari. The pico de gallo had a nice spicy kick to it from the jalapenos. For entrees, I got the seafood (shrimp and scallops) risotto and got to try the wild game meatballs with polenta and garlic broccolini. Both were rich and had great flavor. For the risotto, it had a nice creamy/cheesy texture and flavor and the seafood was seared nicely. The wild game meatball was delicious! For dessert, I got tiramisu and was able to try the restaurant week's watermelon grattachecca with pistachios and lime sorbet. Both were not bad, but the tiramisu absolutely took the "cake" over the other dessert.Cena's take on the tiramisu is awesome! It is interesting and I absolutely loved it! The mascarpone mousse with the soaked cookie in a ellipsoidal shape was cool, but the taste is even better. The taste is not too sweet, but has good flavor. The (thin) outside layer was like a light vanilla bean mochi texture/flavor. The small crunchy coffee crumbles provide a good texture contrast. Also, the cookie inside the mascarpone is not soaked or soggy, which is sometimes a problem with some tiramisus I have had. A great dish overall.