Viaggio Tapas
“The shisito peppers, cuttlefish calamari, and secreto iberico are definitely my top three, but I would honestly recommend any dish..”
“Fluffy yet crispy and full of tender lobster paired with the most delicious lemon aioli.”
“Everything I have had has been fabulous from the Lamb Chops to the Goat Cheese flat bread.”
Viaggio Tapas
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Happy Hour: Yes
Coat Check: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Came to Viaggio Tapas Sunday evening with a friend for dinner. Upon walking in, the restaurant was somewhat empty but surely filled in as the night went on and became quite busy in a low key kind of way. It's beautifully decorated inside and is set up in a way that makes it not feel crowded even on a busy night.
Our server was very polite, attentive, and knowledgeable about the menu. He immediately brought out some sort of chick pea bruschetta, courtesy of the chef which was delicious and much appreciated. I had a glass of the lambrusco (I was ecstatic to see it on the wine list because for some reason a lot of restaurants don't offer it). My friend had the prosecco which purposefully was extra sweet/fruity with a weak bubble to it. We were very happy with our drink choices. Our water glasses were also never empty – something so simple but I feel says a lot about a restaurant's service/attentiveness.
First we shared the mixed board – 3 cured meats and 3 cheeses, which overall was good although I wish we were able to choose the meats/cheeses from a list or menu instead of them having one pre-assembled board (which I assume changes daily or weekly depending on availability).
We thoroughly enjoyed the lamb meatballs and queso fundido flat bread. Very flavorful and unique combinations. Our server offered extra bread (so soft and warm) as well to have with the remaining marinara sauce from the lamb meatballs. Thoughtful.
For dessert, we shared the ice cream sandwiches. The name doesn't do this justice seeing as it's 4 mini macarons with vanilla ice cream in the middle. So delicious.
My only legitimate complaint about this establishment were the prices. While everything we had was certainly delicious and made with quality ingredients, prices were much higher than other tapas restaurants/wine bars on Long Island that deliver a comparable if not superior experience in terms of selection/quality/service (think Salumi, Plancha, Spuntino's).
For example, the mixed board offered at Viaggio's is the same price and on the same level of quality as similar boards offered at Salumi/Plancha but the portion at Viaggio's is much smaller (about half the size).
Two glasses of wine, a meat/cheese board, two tapas, and a dessert came out to about $100 before tip.
Regardless, it's very nice here and although I can't guarantee that this would be my first choice next time we want to do tapas, I certainly wouldn't complain if I found myself here again.
We have decide to discover Rockville Centre Restaurants weekly this summer. Viaggio would be the third restaurant that we have visited at this time. This is a rustic and chic restaurant with a cozy bar in the center left of the restaurant. They have music on weekends and occasionally during the week. When weather permitting, there is also outdoor dining. The restaurant is all about Spanish tapas, meat & cheese boards, and wine & cocktails. We loved the choices of wine and it so happened to be ladies night; so one of us got half price off their glass of wine. We decide to order four tapas; Brussel Sprouts with cheese, Chicken Crockets, Lamb Meatballs in a tomato sauce, and Zucchini flat bread. Although the Lamb Meatballs were very good, they did not measure up to the other three which were outstanding
When you first walk into this restaurant, the ambiance is relaxing and the brick and the abundance of wood gives it a slight homey feeling. You can see inside the kitchen via the see through glass that they have up.
Moving on to the food/drinks: We ordered a pitcher of red sangria, skirt steak, lamb chops, oysters, and seafood paella.
On the house, they gave us octopus ceviche and creme brule.
1. Drinks: The red sangria had a sweetness to it, and you couldnt really taste the alcohol but oh it really hits you!
2. Meat :Skirt steak, we asked for medium rare, but it was a more on the rare side, and it was way too charred. (temp too high) Did not taste good at all. Lamb chops with mascarpone did not have that aftertaste you usually get with lamb and it was good!
3. Seafood: Octopus ceviche, super yummy, I liked the balance of acidity it had. and Oysters, tasted super fresh! Paella, rice was undercooked. *** We told the waiter and he brought it to the chef and came back and told us thats how it is in spain…." I was a little annoyed by that but, then they gave us complimentary dessert.. hmm… ANYWAYS. The Paella, was too saucy, and salty in my opinion
4. Dessert, creme brule, wasnt too sweet, and tasted great!
Over all I would come back as I am curious about the other tapas, Service was 3.5/5
My friends were in the area tonight and wanted a night out. Since I was only a few blocks away at a workshop, I figured, why not? I love tapas, and they said the food was great the last time they had gone, so it seemed like a good option for dinner with friends.
The place itself is cozy and intimate. It's good for groups/parties, date nights, or friends just hanging out and chatting, all while wanting to share food.
The service was fine, so there are no complaints there. My big #1 complaint with this place: the prices.
Yes, I know it's RVC, but this restaurant really thinks it's in Manhattan. I barely glanced at the drink menu, but my friend's drink alone was $11. That was enough to keep me far away from ordering anything off of that.
The small plates were all very overpriced, and yes, these are VERY small plates. Believe you me, I've been to MANY tapas restaurants, but the prices here were ASTRONOMICAL for the amount of food received.
Out of all the tapas we ordered, I only really enjoyed the small dish of patatas bravas. A close second was the cheese and meat board, in which they charge $27 for three meats and three cheeses, all with three slices each. Not a lot of food at all for about $30.
To add insult to injury, they had the audacity to charge FOUR DOLLARS — yes, FOUR dollars — for one small, narrow glass of Coke. The food was so salty that I ordered 3 sodas, to the tune of $12! Yes, folks, there are no refills on soda at this establishment. The cost of 3 small (flat) sodas was the same as if I had bought ONE cocktail. You've GOT to be kidding me.
That sealed the deal that I will never come here ever again. I would much rather go to Plancha or Salumi on LI, or heck, for these prices, spend money to take the LIRR to a better quality tapas joint in NYC.
Sorry, Viaggio, you're just not the tapas place for me.
OMG wow….it's not often that I decide that I'm giving a 5 star review midway through appetizers…but this place has an outstanding menu that doesn't even do justice to the flavor and exotic intuition of the chef. He's a master!!
Where can I start raving since it was just a dream dinner? We were a party of 8 so we ordered many plates (small plates tapas usually come with 4 pieces) mostly 2 of each. So I will say that we got a very good synopsis of the place.
To start, the manager is so gracious and the hostesses are equally as cordial. Lovely staff throughout the dinner with special attention to changing of plates between meals and filling up on water. I could go on for days, but let's get to the food and drinks.
Drinks:
I got a bourbon based drink with lemon and lemongrass – outstanding! This is for the customer that doesn't like something too sweet but really likes a stiff drink with a nice finish. Not too tart, just a nice mix of the subtle sweetness of the bourbon and the freshness of the lemon.
I also tasted the mojito made with dark and light rums – VERY GOOD. Tasty drink with the same freshness from the last.
I sampled a few wines and something else which comes in a mule, seriously, all of the drinks were well crafted.
Appetizers
We started this food journey with (and I'm sorry that I dont' know the name of anything) shrimp served in a delicious oil/garlic/spiced sauce over cuts of french bread. Delicious! Left us anxiously awaiting the next place…(could have had this all night and been happy).
The next plate was grilled octopus – perfect for someone who has never tried octopus and equally as perfect for someone that loves it. It was grilled to perfection without any rubbery texture..another score!
Next we had the oyster shooters….might have been my favorite of the night. If I had to choose, this would be the MUST HAVE! The vinaigrette was refreshing with some sort of cucumber finish and the oyster was plump and perfect.
Now for a second MUST HAVE – the goat cheese flat bread..OMG! so delicious…fresh and creamy goat cheese over caramelized onions and a really well made flatbread base. Should not be missed!!!! We ordered two more plates of this item as the whole table was obsessed.
Then we ordered the special – a shrimp sandwich with cheese type of thing…only two come to one order and I could say that this was my least favorite item. Skip.
Then we had lamb chops with an amazing mint herbed butter…I'm not a red meat person but again, they cooked it to perfection…not tough, but tender and not rare..like magic, melt in your mouth!
Lastly, we had the mussels in a butter broth and they brought us a lot of extra dipping break…again, perfectly cooked and plump…no hard mussels (overcooked)…every single one was great! I usually don't love mussels this much.
Entree
We were already pretty full but really satisfied with this meal, but we had to order one entree just to check. We got the seafood paella. I will say that this was the worst part of our meal…which doesn't mean it was bad, but I think that they poured too much clam juice in it because it was extremely salty. We did speak to the manager and expressed our gratitude at the perfection of everything else…he took it off no questions asked…it was that bad. However, the entrees really outweighed this one dish (it comes with two scallops and a bit of seafood…enough to share two bites for a table of 8….)
Dessert
Because it was a birthday, we had to have dessert and I must say….they didn't disappoint. My mother had the flan which she said was amazing (I don't like flan). I had the chocolate mousse which had a nice amount of whipped cream and fresh berries underneath – very deliciously heavy but a bit too sweet if you don't have a real sweet tooth. Still very good. The mousse and ice cream sandwiches on macaroons were a close tie. Overall, there's no way to go wrong at this place.
I would give this restaurant 20 stars for flavorful creative food, expertly cooked and prepared food, service and atmosphere.
My only complaint is that it's VERY hot in there, especially upstairs near the back wall behind the bar. I mean sweating hot…but that is a small price to pay for such a great place. (Great music also). A bit noisy, but great for families, dates, whichever you like (and really clean bathrooms).
I apologize for no pictures – the food looked so good that we couldn't wait to eat it and we weren't disappointed!
Highest recommendations…and fully supported with Yelp Deals…check it out!
I dined at Viaggio Tapas with our dining group on Thursday, 11/6/15. This is how I arrived at my rating:
Service and Hospitality: 4.5 The owner and his wife greeted our group. Old school but wonderful and other restaurant owners could learn from this. The bartender, Angelo, was nice and friendly. Our server was pleasant, efficient and very accommodating. She graciously explained the menu and specials twice because we had a large table. She also made an extra effort in preparing separate checks for each diner.However, she failed to bring another diner and me an extra dish to place paella shells(shrimp and mussels). More about the paella to come.
My dinner: 3 The Meat and Cheese Board was good(4). The Squid Ink Paella was loaded with average tasting ink-stained rice but contained six shrimp, six mussels, a large scallop and inedible claws of some type of shellfish. At $47.00, I expected a lot more(2).The Chocolate Mousse was the best I ever had, with a creamy and delicious texture which recalled outstanding chocolate ices(5)
Other members' food: 4.5 The other diners loved the food. They loved the Lobster Croquettes, Wild Mushrooms and Wild Salmon.
The noise level was good. We were able to converse.
Our group will return.
We stopped in after 3 for lunch. Very cute and welcoming restuarant. The paella seafood was amazing along with the sangria!
I enjoyed the food here. The waiter was very helpful in selecting the wine as well as the food. It is a little expensive and adds up if you order a few dishes. I had a sausage dish as well as a duck dish that was great.