Grano Ristorante is a family owned and operated Italian restaurant in the Square One region of Mississauga, Ontario. Sandro and Felina had owned and operated a restaurant in Oakville, Ontario for 20 years before moving to Mississauga in 2007. Stepping into this gem of a restaurant is like stepping into a Tuscan villa, as its authentic atmosphere and ambiance creates an inviting atmosphere where diners can enjoy the best of Italian inspired cuisine. Grano in Italian means 'wheat' and Sandro and Felina chose this name for their restaurant because they also offer their health/carb conscience customers the choice of substituting any of their pasta dishes with a whole wheat pasta. Owner and Head Chef Sandro, and his son and chef Cesare run the kitchen, and Sandro's wife Felina operates the restaurant with the help of their daughter Darla, and their devoted staff. Felina not only runs the front of the house, she also creates mouth watering desserts that her customers adore. Along with the delectable desserts, Sandro and Cesare create delicious main courses reminiscent of relaxing days in the Italian countryside.more...See more text
My boyfriend and I just came back from dinner after finally making a trip into this hidden gem. We live in the area and always walk by and promised ourselves we'd make our way in at one point or another.
We are huge on trying out new restaurants for great food and great service. We often dine out at 5 star restaurants and Grano Ristorante is now in our top 5. It is a cozy, dimly lit restaurant with welcoming and attentive staff. Our servers were well-knowledged in not only their menu, but in Italian cuisine overall. They were a delight!
My boyfriend ordered the gnocchi which could only be described as out of this world! It had this perfect light texture and feel as the ricotta gnocchi just melted in your mouth. The chicken marsala was a light blend of savoury and sweet, perfect to the last bite. The food is served hot and fresh which makes a great deal of a difference when dining out.
I can't wait for my next stop inside, or for an order to go. They will certainly be seeing us again and again.
Thank you for a great night out, Grano Ristorante!
Horrible service - I am no longer a regular customer
I WAS a regular customer at Grano's and am super disappointed that I will never return there again. I am rating this review a 2/5 because the food is so delicious here and I could never say anything bad about how hot and fresh and tasty each dish I've tried is. And I have had most of the menu items, as well as many of the daily specials. The prices I think are also reasonable. Let me get on to why I will NEVER return.
I was here for my sister's birthday dinner. The service was adequate throughout the night which is as expected as I wouldn't say they are known for their service. At the end of the night, we paid the bill and were ready to leave when the owner/manager called us over. She claimed that we did not tip enough (note that there was no specified tip amount added to the bill, therefore tipping for service is at the customer's discretion). She claimed we tipped only a nominal amount. All the customers in the restaurant were staring at us. We recounted the bill with her and she realized that she had COUNTED WRONG. THEN, she had the nerve to say that usually the tip should be 20%. Well excuse me, but when did a tip become a specified percentage. Should a tip not be based on service received? Is it not at the discretion of the customer? We believed that a tip of 15% on the AFTER TAX amount was adequate for the adequate service we received.
If it was expected of us, then perhaps they should have put it into their bill so there would be no argument. We were so horrified and disgusted that one of my party ended up throwing in an extra $20 to save argument and we left. Unfortunately, we won't be returning again. If I had not had so much wine at dinner, I probably would have lost it on her, and refused to tip extra since I don't think it is the law to leave 20% tip. Grano's - you get tipped what you deserve. If you don't like that, then put it into the price to save yourself the trouble of telling customers that you DESERVE to get 20% tip. After coming here regularly for 2 years, I will not be returning. I have referred MANY customers to this restaurant and now none of us will ever come back.
PS they will try and upsell at every opportunity.
If you are coming here do not expect good service but definitely expect delicious food.
This person only left $5.00 on a 300.00 dollar cheque. My menu states a 15% gratuity should be added to parties of 8 or more. Which they were a group of 14 and didnot do so l had to call her up to the bar and explain the tip for my staff was short. I have been in the restaurant business for 30 years and have never had to tell a customer they shorted my staff. They also brought there own cake which we had to cut and serve for them.
By Restaurantica12
October 19, 2010
Grano Remembered
Somehow Grano doesn't come to mind very often even though I usually enjoy how its basic Italian-Canadian fare is more skillfully prepared than anywhere else in the area. Maybe it's the slightly out-of-the-way location behind the Sussex Center, partly the constraints of it's space, which is miniscule, and of course the usual little lack of customer focus annoyances like not having a written list of specials to consider and the attempts to sell unwanted add-ons.
On this Friday noon, we were promptly and cheerfully greeted by Felina, the owner, and escorted to a cozy corner table. We declined the offered bruschetta and were advised to order promptly as a large party was just arriving. We suffered through the barely discernible recitation of the daily starters due to the noisy group next to us and the servers thick accent.
We started our lunch with a shared order of grilled calamari that arrived with fresh Italian bread and butter. It was a tasty but tiny offering of the slenderest of squid rings lightly sauced with a balsamic glaze over an economical base of mixed lettuces. This diner thinks $9 for what looked like about a quarter of a medium squid pushes the price-value proposition more than a little too far.
My dining partner enjoyed his attractive order of Spaghettini Aglio e Olio ($12). Grano's rendition of this item is clearly the finest edition of it in the area with al dente pasta sauced with ample garlic, capers, chilli peppers, and diced tomatoes in a fragrant olive oil. My lightly sautéed salmon fillet ($15) over a base of rich, yummy parmesan-garlic-cream sauced fettucine garnished with bright green peas and diced tomato was a bliss inducing experience, just pure deliciousness. Now i remembered why I overlook the pushy recommendations for additional items and the noise level when busy. It's the usually superior food quality.
We ended the meal with regular coffees and shared Felina's not-to-be-missed special dessert, a phyllo flower blossom with an ice cream core and festooned with lots of fresh fruit. More bliss.
We found this restaurant by accident about 2 years ago. Hard to see from the street and unassuming exterior.
Once inside however, this tiny Italian restaurant hits above it's weight. Dimly lit, candles at each table and with a very comfortable, intimate vibe. We go back every couple months, on special occasions and when we have visitors.
The hostess makes most of the desserts from scratch while her husband creates most of the pastas from scratch as well. Service is also very good.
The specials change frequently so always check them first. The menu isn't extensive but there's something for everyone and the quality is very good. Overall good value.
Save room for dessert. Highly recommend the Tiramisu or Cheesecake!
For appetizers we've had Bruschetta, grilled Calamari & salads. For mains, almost everything but if you see Lasagna on the specials on a weekend, I highly recommend it.
What a pleasant surprise to find this little place so close to home. The calamari was wonderfully light and tasty, and the cream-sauced pasta dishes were rich without being too heavy. We were the last diners of the night on a Monday evening, so I can't say too much about ambiance, but the decor is tasteful and the layout is very intimate.
Great dining experience - will certainly come again.
This restaurant is the best Italian restaurant I've ever been to. Their Food is fresh and you can tell that they are not skimping on any ingredients.
Thank you Grano's.
