Arturo Ristorante

Started us out with bruschetta and olive tapenade which was good! We weren’t that hungry but wanted to come here. We shared the calamari and mussels in white wine both were good. We had an arugula salad which we had them switch from blue cheese to goat cheese (very accommodating). Salad was good but lacking something…they didn’t give us the pine nuts nor did they substitute or ask. Anyways, they did take some money off after I asked. Why did I have to ask??

After days of traveling from Vancouver Island, I was craving a truly satisfying meal — and Arturo Ristorante delivered beyond my expectations. I called ahead, a little worried that my road-weary, disheveled look might not fit the atmosphere, but the host immediately put me at ease, kindly telling me, “Don’t worry, there’s no dress code — just come in and enjoy yourself.” That set the tone perfectly. I took a seat at the bar, and enjoy myself I did. With eight stunning pasta options on the menu, I couldn’t choose just one. Luckily, my bartender Tom — as gracious and hospitable as he was gorgeous — suggested a split order and guided me toward his personal favorites. Best advice ever. The chefs are absolute wizards. The homemade pasta and sauces were so exquisite they nearly brought me to tears — truly one of the most memorable meals I’ve ever had. I ended with the tiramisu, a dessert that managed to be both rich and airy at the same time, the perfect finish. What a heavenly spot. If I could give more than five stars, I would. Thank you, for such a beautiful experience.

Absolutely delicious! Baja shrimp, gnocchi, ravioli, caprese, wine, cocktails… wow! We have a lot of friends in hockey who travel from Ottawa up to the sault and all they can talk about is the food in the Sault! Being from there, it makes me really proud when people come to my hometown and are absolutely blown away by our Italian restaurants. When I mention, my cousin got married at Arturo, of course it was “We love Arturo!!” My only complaint is we don’t have an Arturo in Ottawa! :)

Our first time at Arturo's was a celebration for my mother's birthday. At our request, they were able to tuck us away in a semi-private space at the back of the restaurant. Our server was the co-owner Thomas. He was fun, very attentive and made a lot of time for us, without being intrusive. The food was excellent. They offered a steak and pasta special that I'm still thinking about. It was a Friday night and the place was buzzing with an active, but not too distracting atmosphere. Highly recommended. We will definitely go back.

We, a group of 7 out-of-towners who had just rolled into town after an 8 hour drive happened to stumble upon this restaurant on Sept 15. We did not have a reservation, and Tom the owner, offered us bar seating. If we were ok with it. We were glad to take that offer, and were not disappointed. Tom looked after us from start to finish, and went out of his way to make us our personal cocktails based on our preferences! Even showed us the longest pepper mill he had :) Amazing food and most of all awesome service! Thank you for taking care of us Tom!

Stopped here during our drive from Calgary to Toronto. Best meal on the trip. We were greeted and seated right away. The service was excellent from start to finish. The meals, from starters to deserts were incredible. Not a single missed step. Some very creative dishes. Sault St. Marie is lucky to have a spot like this. If you're anywhere near this establishment, go pay a visit, you will not regret it! Thank you!

An unexpected elegant twist - absolutely do not judge a book by its cover! (Only reason I rated 4-stars for Atmosphere) A very unassuming and simple exterior in the downtown area. Small but very very good. Making reservations might be a good idea. I travel for business and stumbled across this spot - I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to experience this awesome Italian cuisine! Food all tasted great! Very nice atmosphere.

The food is quite good but the service was absolutely abysmal. I didn’t catch the waitresses name but she was a slim brunette 20 something who has no business doing that job. She was utterly horrendous and is a liability to a place that is otherwise quite good (albeit overpriced for the quality). They had started her off as the bartender and then had her waiting tables. She does not belong in the service industry. Absolutely terrible.

The food was ok, but nothing special. At this price point I would expect perfect Italian flavours and my dinner, while was decent, could not tell if this was Italian or not. The service was good, the server was polite and friendly. I was there on a quiet night after rush hours, the ambiance was nice, but I can't say this restaurant took me to Italy. To summarize my experience, it was an overpriced comfort dinner.

Amazing! One of the best places to dine in the Sault! Incredible experience; whether it's off the menu or you let the chef prepare you a special meal. The service is outstanding. Always inviting, friendly and you feel like you're remembered. Very special place.

Located on the Main Street in downtown Sault Ste. Marie. Cozy restaurant with warm decor. Note that the restaurant is very small, and a locals favorite, so reservations are recommended. The menu has interesting options and all the dishes we ordered were well prepared and tasty. Prices are moderate/high. There is complimentary bruschetta before dinner and then complimentary bread with dinner. The salads that come with the dinner entrees were delicious and well dressed. The Gamberoni fra diavolo was very tasty and it had enough spice to add flavor but not so much to make it impossible to eat . Papperdelle allo zafferano was delicious and well prepared. We asked our server to change the papperdelle for angel hair and they were gracious to do it.

BOTTOM LINE: Decent but overpriced. What's priceless, however, are the filtered reviews, and the arrogant/petulant replies by management. Small town politics narrated on Yelp, but hidden by Yelp's mysterious filtering system. Lengthy 1-star reviews were posted in the summer of 2013 after what appeared to be a private dining event with numerous guests. Management decided to respond to these claims in an even lengthier fashion, but in doing so, made me question their professionalism. Here's my unsolicited advice on how NOT to manage PR with the community (as taken from the management's responses): 1. Starting your response by bragging about yourself doesn't help: "Our family has been passionately (maybe too passionately) running restaurants in Sault Ste Marie for decades, more importantly on a continuous upward trend of success and expansion at every interval". 2. It's probably not a good idea to call your customers "addicts": "The lack of food delivery at the end of the evening was for obvious reasons. At that point I think its rather obvious that our willingness to supply "munchies" to those guest who need them as a byproduct to their addictions was rather low on our scale of things to do" [Of note, this appears to have been edited by management, but I remember reading this, and a follow-up review quoted this statement as well]. 3. It's hard to take you seriously when you end your defence not only by touting a business expansion, but also using LOL - "I may as well take this time to promote my mobile catering unit lol!" 4. Given the aforementioned PR FAIL, it's hard to imagine that the subsequent 5-star reviews by newly created 1-review Yelpers were legitimate [and neither did Yelp for that matter, and were filtered as well]. Well Yelpers, if you're still reading my review, you'll be happy to know that the food here is actually pretty good, though you better bring that corporate charge card. The portions are huge and ordering just one main will likely make you uncomfortably full. I've had their ESCARGOTS, which I highly recommend. Probably one of the best value items on the menu. Their VEAL MEDALLIONS MARSALA was tender, juicy and winey. I've been here on other occasions, but can't remember exactly what I ordered, but I was never disappointed. I'm giving these guys 2-stars mainly for their poor PR management; otherwise, they'd be a solid 3-star, or even 4-star if money is no object.

Overall a good experience. Staff friendly and efficient. Steak and shrimp special cooked perfectly. And appetizers of scallops and spinach delicious. However, Caesar salad was limp and lifeless. Red wine served a touch warm too.

My wife and I have been to Arturo's 4 times in the last year. We just relocated to Sault Ste. Marie and enjoy the fine dining experience. We enjoyed our first three visits but our fourth was a total disaster with the ambiance. The tables next to us were vulgar and out of control. I politely asked our waiter to address the issue with management which he quickly responded in a positive manner. He returned one minute later and told us there was nothing he can do as instructed by the owner. We finished our meal which was outstanding including service (generously tipped for). The waiter was extremely apologetic and we accepted his sincere apology. It was obvious he was embarrassed, but he could not make those decisions. I decided to call the owner the next day. A week later I reached him. I mentioned to him the wonderful meal that we had but that it was ruined by other vulgar patrons in his establishment that night. He responded that he knew these patrons. They were his best customers, instrumental in building his business and that he would never do anything to upset them. Several other fine dining patrons that night were very annoyed and commented on the situation during there meal. I concluded that nothing would be done and ended the call in a polite manner. The owner called back ten minutes later and offered a gift certificate for $100.00 to return at a later date, and asked me if that would be acceptable. After pausing for a few seconds thinking this doesn't address the issue, I agreed but started commenting that the language was still inappropriate. He stopped me in my tracks and went into a verbal cussing abuse telling me every swear word he heard that night and offered again the one hundred dollars. I will never return to that establishment. Fine dining, is quality of food, service, and ambiance. When one fails, the experience fails.

Decided to treat myself when in the Soo and so we went to Arturo`s - great choice! Classic Italian fare in an upscale environment. The wine list is small for the menu, but the few choices are thoughtfully selected, and they do carry a couple of nicer bottles not on the list. This is a family run place, and they are very friendly and laid back. They are also willing to modify dishes a little, change the sauce, that kind of thing, so if the exact thing you want isn`t on the menu, ask. We started with the smoked duck - excellent! The blueberry port sauce is a delicious accompaniment. I had the seafood risotto in a white wine sauce - excellent, with plenty of mussels, clams, shrimp and scallops all properly cooked and very tasty! My wife had the squash ravioli special in a rose sauce and she absolutely loved it. My son had the gamberoni - jumbo shrimp in a white wine lemon sauce and he thought they were fabulous too! The richness of the dishes (and probably that bottle of wine also) didn`t leave any room for dessert, but I watched some go by to another table and was somewhat envious. This may have been the best meal I have ever eaten in the Soo, and I will definitely be back the first chance I get.

General: Food 5 stars - Service 5 stars The following review is based on my last seven visits in 2013 and is showing the continuousness of highest food quality and waiter service. The restaurant resides on Queen Street in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Behind the restaurant is a huge parking lot that can be used (during day time for two hours). Please be aware there are some lots only for residents, but if you see the signs you know where to park. Ambience: The inside of the restaurant is typical Italian style, romantic, comfortable and family style at the same time. All tables are covered with white tablecloths, silverware and glasses. The noise level is more on the quiet side and you can enjoy your visit here. Every time we went in we had best service from greeting and bringing us to our table to get seated. Beverages: The drinking list shows a wide range of red and white wines and liquors / cocktails as well. Since we are in an Italian restaurant we ordered every time red wine. The last time we decided to have an Amarone red wine and were more than satisfied with our decision. If you do not want to spend a lot money for your beverages - no problem - they also offer a red and white house wine. Other beverages without alcohol are also available and you can order delicious espresso, cappuccino and regular coffee too. The wine was served in a decanter by our waiter. He was very attentive and refilled our glasses every time in a perfect manner. Food: The menu is short and this is like it should be. Additional to the regular appetizers, salads, pastas, entrees and desserts there are always specials available. Before you get your ordered food served you get some slices of Bruschetta, Olive spread on bread and fresh bread with butter. We already tried different appetizers like the Scallops, Escargot and the smoked Duck. All appetizers are so good, it is hard to choose a favorite. If I had to, I would take the smoked Duck with the blueberry port wine sauce. For the entrees we had the rack of Lamb, Gamberoni, Saltimbocca and the Veal Pizzaola from the regular menu and different Fish specials. Every part of the entrée was cooked to perfection and we never had a complaint. Our son always got his favorite noodles with tomato sauce. The same for the entrees as for the appetizers. It is a hard decision to choose my favorite here. Every meal was so delicious... Also eating a dessert is a must for us. We have eaten different kinds of icecream and Key Lime Pie, Rocher cake and Tiramisu. Conclusion: In this restaurant you get authentic Italian food on a reasonable price niveau. If you are looking for cheap low quality food - this is not the place for you. But if you can deal with the expression "food culture" - you are right here. I am rather paying for high food quality and amazing taste instead of having every day something cheap just to satisfy my hunger. And for myself it is worth every time to pay two times the bridge toll and answering two times the questions at the border control, because I am not living in Canada. There was only one restaurant in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan that I accepted for having good food. But a year ago the quality went down and since this summer they changed their menu more to the Fast Food side. So there is now only one choice for me for having good food in going across the border to Canada. And my favorite here is Arturos Ristorante. Thank you for serving me in the past and in the future.

Had a very nice evening out. The decor was very nice as well the restaurant wasn't that loud, so one was able to have a conversation over dinner. The meal was the special - Sea Bass. It was done superbly very moist an not dry. As the side salad I had the Arturo's salad which is an appetizer but they did it up as my side salad for the special. Excellent salad.

Excellent authentic Italian cuisine in a warm inviting environment. The owner, Thomas, took time to say hello and engage with our table. Attention to detail and timing was perfect. Can't say enough about the spinach and scallops appetizer - simply remarkable. Off the well-lit beaten path in Sault Ste. Marie, but worth it.

Amazing! Rivals any fine restaurant in NYC! Had the Zucchini Flower Fritter appetizer to start with, it was so good. The veal chop dinner was inventive and delicious, You won't be disappointed.

Outstanding food and service, what a treat to eat here. Authentic Italian food, Osso buco special was amazing. We went early on a Friday nite after a long car ride, all four diners loved their meal. We will be back.

Outstanding food...Outstanding atmosphere and excellent Service make this a must visit experience

I must admit, I happened across this review and discussion intentionally. Since I had been arriving to meet up with another guest to say a quick hello as I was passing through town. I have to say that I was a bit bewildered at the goings on I was observing in the brief time I was actually in the restaurant. Since it was a bit of a show, I wanted to see if anyone had chimed in on the night. It had been in a bit of shock seeing the chef take something off of a guests plate and eat it with his hands!!! I confess curiosity has the better of me. So I've read the review and response from the said customer and chef or owner. So here's my take on what I saw. I guess I should mention, I do not know the people in the party or the owners of this restaurant. To the owners and chef I would have to say, regardless of your apology, I would imagine you would understand being you've been in the business as long, that no matter what you've said in reflection of your actions it will still leave a lasting impression with the general public. First off, the cook followed one of the diners outside to further escalate the tension and didn't remain in control of himself as a seasoned professional. Two, regardless of your "passion", taking a customers comment so personally regarding the quality of food no matter what words were used is quite an amateur response. Especially when you had gone over personally to ask how everything was. Did you really not want to know? As the saying goes "Don't ask a question you don't want the answer to." Why not just say "Thank you I'll take that into consideration, sorry for your disappointment." and leave it at that. Seeing as you have said you've been in the business so long, one would think you would also master the art of self discipline and remove yourself from the matter so as to avoid any more conflict or distress to yourself and the other diners! Did I mention I'm a chef at a very long standing restaurant outside of the Sault? Okay now I did. I also in reading the response from the owner wonder to myself how is it an apology to any of the people he described he was truly sorry to? At the end of it all you put in a shameless promotion for his new catering?! Kind of a backhanded apology if you ask me...but no you didn't so I hope I don't get an angry chef coming to grab food off my plate, follow me outside of his restaurant to further the bad experience the next time I frequent a restaurant owned by your family..if in fact when I do return to the Sault, I am unknowingly eating at one of your establishments. I certainly won't be taking myself there for any other meals. Nor will I give any recommendations to my guests when they ask me where to go to eat when passing through Sault Ste. Marie. I'm giving this two stars purely for the entertainment and wow factor of this situation. Regarding the chef's response to my review: Thanks for the proof reading from the respondent and I believe chef of the restaurant so that I could clarify that I was not actually dining just popping in. I"m sure you;ll receive more jobs for catering. Its the Sault. The choices are slim. You take what you can get sometimes. Seeing as you've had bad press I"m sure some people would take into consideration that hopefully you'll pay extra attention to the next job. Seeing as you have had the bad press. Trying to resurrect your reputation is number one. Lets just see how far that takes you. Wish you the best in your personal struggle with Ego. Seriously though if your so professional and seasoned as an owner then just suck it up and apologize. We as chef's absolutely have to have some level of EGO. It's a tough game but in the end it will always be our down fall if we don't practice self control and be a bit humbled by these constructive criticisms.

My family has been visiting Arturo's for years and we have NEVER been disappointed! Some of our favourite dishes include the scallops over spinach, the chicken marsala and the escargot. Recently, however, our main attraction has definitely been the cheesecakes. They are homemade and are an excellent way to end a delicious meal. The service is always fabulous when we visit and I cannot wait to dine there again.

would like to reply to the owners comment, first off I was one of the guest upstairs waiting for the 6 people to come join a suprise party thrown for the man you got into and incounter with. They had this planned for a long time and worked very hard in setting it up and picked your place to host it. Why well that's there reason, they must of thought you were the best choice. That being said, its very dissapointing to read this. "The lack of food delivery at the end of the evening was for obvious reasons. At that point I think its rather obvious that our willingness to supply "munchies" to those guest who need them as a byproduct to their addictions was rather low on our scale of things to do" none of us are anything CLOSE to an addict we were there for a mans 40th birthday party and his children where there aswell, as about 20 customers that payed to drink your booze and await the guest that's what u refer to us as? everyone had drinks that were being surved from your bar. You clearly didn't want to make the food we had ordered because you were upset with the main guest that the party was for. And instead of you doing the many things you would rather do the reason you couldn't make the food., you came upstairs to the room that they had rented from you to just complaine and crash the party some more. That had to of been the lowest and most immature thing I have ever seen, when you get into a conflic with a guest esspecially over a complaine on your food, witch you admited to being a bit off you simply brush it off and move on. Some people need to learn how to take criticism (helpfull criticism if that, he wasn't being a complete dick about it) and move on and learn from it, and you are deffinitly one of them. I'm extremly dissapointed about this and I have and will tell more people about what I had witnessed. And its rather sad that when you came upstairs, the man you got into a conflict with brushed it off ignored you and tryed to make the best out of his night. And you sadly couldn't.