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Gives a whole new meaning to BYOB

My wife and I have eaten in almost every restaurant in J.C. and Presto`s along with Madame Claude are our 2 favorite restaurants.We go there a lot and food is always good.Plus it`s BYOB so you can save money.We live in Journal Square area so it`s not that close to us but we still go to Presto`s at least once every 3 weeks.

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The service is fine if you are not in a rush.

All the food is cooked to order; no pre-prepared re-heats.

The place is small, popular and does not take reservations. You get there at the wrong time; be prepared to wait.

Those are the "ground rules".


As an alternative, I understand Olive Garden can seat you right away....

francese... the specials... mozz tutti... hands down, the best italian food around.

Have been going here for more than a decade and the food and atmosphere are always consistent. The service does lack at times, but the food more than makes up for it. So does the BYOB.

Haven't mentioned the restaurant on here as the place is quite quaint and I didn't want the word to get out. if you haven't tried it, I suggest you do. (except on thursday nights around 8:30.)


As for the BREAD guy/comment from the previous post... if every other table comes in and like yourself, enjoys eating an extra roll or two, I assure the cost gets high.

I guess I am in the minority here, but i just don't like this place. The food is good, but the service is terrible, and so is the lack of "customer service attitude". We have had so many issues with getting seated at this place, even after waiting patiently for a table to open up. Additionally, I find it to be crappy that a restaurant (and, especially, an Italian one) will consider charging for additional bread. I havent been back to Presto's in over a year, possibly close to two by now, so this may have changed. The few times I visited, I thought it sucked that they would charge an extra two dollars for a second basket of four to five pieces of bread.

What can I say? I love eating bread...

Having said all of this, both the wife and I thought that their Fettucini Alfredo was really good, if not quite authentic.

Veal Francaise with Roasted Potatoes.

hot antipasto for 2

hot chicken wings

seafood marinara

veal parm

special: broccoli rabbe with shrimp or sausage

special: stuffed veal chop

I usually get scungilli fri diavalo over linguinni, my wife likes their eggplant rollatini

I haven't heard of many people that don't like Presto's, so let me be the first. We tried it about three years ago and have never been back. It was like pasta soup the sauce was so watery.

Though, to be fair, with all the rave reviews posted here over the years we should definitely try it again.

Recommendations?? What's your favorite dish there?

Prestos is excellent.

Prestos is an institution and a great asset to downtown. My wife and I have been going there for over twenty years. The food is not trendy or fancy but it's well made with fresh ingredients. All dishes are made to order and served piping hot. Portions are very generous. The atmosphere is very casual and homey. There is no pretense at all. The owner is local and caters to a local clientele that wants well made, southern Italian / American food. If you want fancy food, trendy decor / ambience or fast food service this isn't the place. If you want food that is flavorful and priced reasonably, bring a bottle of your favorite wine and take the time to enjoy yourself. It's great to have more choices to eat out in the downtown area. Madame Claudes, Marco & Pepe, the Light Horse, Skinners, Hamilton Inn, etc. all have their niches. From what I have heard and read I am really looking forward to trying Satis and Box. I still miss Ox. Prestos will always be a favorite. We're lucky it's here.

I agree with the OP and post 2 and it's BYOB which is a plus. Presto's is one of the oldest restaurants in the Downtown section and they got it right compared to the rest of the places in that area.

We don't go there much but I like it a lot. And if you eat in, they have a great salad that comes with the meal. The only thing is the service is slooooooow, which is fine if you know ahead of time.

I never see any posting about Presto's here. We get takeout there at least once a week, always good basic southern Italian, not fancy but reliable. whataya think?