

Bravo Bethel Road is an upscale-casual Italian restaurant in Columbus, perfect for those seeking authentic pasta, wood-fired pizza, and signature entrées. Enjoy handcrafted cocktails and wine in our inviting, family-friendly atmosphere, surrounded by stunning Roman-ruin décor. Planning a holiday party or Thanksgiving celebration? We offer catering services and easy reservations to make your event special. Whether dining in or ordering online, Bravo Bethel Road is the place to eat in Columbus, OH for great Italian cuisine. Visit us today—reserve your table or order online!
Upscale-casual Italian chain serving pasta, grilled dishes, pizza & cocktails amid Roman-ruin decor.
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Order and Reservations
Reservations: bravoitalian.com
Order: Order online
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Reviews
The olive oil no longer has that peppery extra-virgin finish it once did. The focaccia was clearly par-baked commercial dough. The sun-dried tomato dipping oil has been replaced with flecks of dehydrated tomato flakes. The produce tasted anemic. Longtime guests will notice the ingredient shifts, and it’s fair to acknowledge that truth.
And here’s the REAL TRUTH.
I stepped back and saw something else. I saw PEOPLE. I saw a struggling business. I’m not interested in kicking people while they’re trying to survive in the face of adversity.
I watched a bartender meticulously extract pimentos from olives with a toothpick and re-stuff them with blue cheese while calmly serving multiple entitled, rude guests. That kind of care doesn’t happen by accident.
I watched a chef prepare a wood-fired pizza with loving attention to detail.
I had a salad dressing that was beautifully balanced and honestly memorable. Not going to lie — even without high-quality EVOO, I asked for an extra side because it was JUST THAT GOOD.
I watched a host juggle delivery pick-ups and jump in to help expedite execution.
The effort was visible.
Restaurants are navigating rising costs and supply chain realities everywhere right now. It’s easy to criticize from the table. It’s harder to recognize the people still showing up and doing the work.
My gut reaction could have been to leave a one-star review. Instead, I’m choosing to acknowledge both the ingredient shifts and the tenacity I witnessed.
It’s possible to miss what something once was and still respect the fight to keep the lights on.
Spinach and artichoke dip was tastey, but artichokes were sparce.The bread was good, too bad they didn’t offer another piece to enjoy with our meal.
Service was defiantly not rushed. Server was decent despite the ‘I’d rather be elsewhere’ feeling they presented.
We made reservations for 6:30 and arrived early and waited about 15 minutes to be seated. It was extremely busy, so we were not concerned about the wait. While being seated we were informed that they were understaffed and that service would be slow. We later found out they only had three servers for the entire restaurant.
We were greeted quickly, if not curtly, and had our drink orders taken. Two members of our party ordered white sangria, one a martini, and the rest assorted soft drinks. The waitress left and came back to inform us they were out of all sangria which would be a common theme throughout our visit. They then ordered peach bellini instead. Those were delivered along with the martini, which was in a normal glass. We were told that they were out of martini glasses, which wasn’t the end of the world considering how busy it was. The martini was a disgrace, it was quite literally just warm gin with an olive in it. They then ordered a beer which was also warm.
We then went to order our food and were informed that a significant amount of the menu was out of stock. This was not communicated to us upon checking in, when being seated, or when greeted by the waitress.
Items out of stock:
Any fried cheese
Calamari
Meatballs
Chicken Masala
Lasagna
Pizza/ Flatbreads
This was a great disapointment to our party as two of us wanted to get their pizza, one wanted to get meatballs and another wanted the Chicken Masala. We also planned on getting Calamari for the table. We took a moment and decided on different meals.
Our soups were delivered with no problems, it was hot and had good taste.
When our main course arrived there were multiple issues, some of which could normally be ignored but added to our growing frustrations. Two of us ordered steaks and they were both cooked wrong, one under and one over. Two people got the alfredo as their meal and another one got it as a side, all three complained it was bland, I tried it and agreed. My food wasn’t very hot, a sentiment shared by our group.
We reordered the peach bellini and the second set was all ice and had no taste of peach or liquor. We told the waitress and they removed it from the bill. At some point i visited the restroom to find it filthy, with the floor covered in urine to the point my shoes were sticking to the floor.
Overall we were very disappointed by our trip and will likely not return.
The only reason I’m giving 2 stars instead of 1, is because I’m hoping if I had dined-in it would’ve been a different experience. I did wait for 15 minutes longer than it said it would take for my food to be ready. I didn’t mind because I understood that the workers were stressed with a large party.
If you like Italian food and a great dining experience, I really enjoy going to Bravo. I like to go during their weekend lunch hour. Generally, there are few people there. You get seated right away, and you can start your meal. We arrived at 11:20 am on Saturday.
There are plenty of starters and wines to drink. Even though we both had water, others had wine with their meals. We received some breadsticks and dipping oil. The bread had little flavor and was light. We ate whatwe received. The server asked if we wanted more. I told them to bring more.
About ten minutes later, our meals arrived. I downed my water and looked for our waiter to get a refill. I had Chicken Marsala, which was delicious. My friend had the pasta woozie. She does not eat much and only ate a third of it. I asked the waiter for some water to wash down my food, and I reminded him about the breadsticks. The time it took to get the breadsticks and water was longer than I liked, but we finished our meal in about 30 minutes.
I then went to the restroom before leaving. The first thing you notice is the lack of heat. It was freezing cold in the restroom. I don’t think there was any heating going into the room. The only heat came from the walls and the door opening. If I were to guess the temperature, it would be around 50. The temperature outside was 20. The restroom was clean, and they had separate rooms for the toilets, which made it look more upscale.
Overall, it is a nicer restaurant and would be a place to go for a family special occasion, but not an everyday place for kids. It is an excellent experience if you want a nicer Italian restaurant.