Bazil

Former Location

1384 Empire Boulevard, Penfield NY, 14609

Status

closed

See Gone, but not forgotten

Bazil was an Italian restaurant owned by the Daniele Family who owned Mario's Italian Steakhouse & Catering. I'd go out on a limb and say this is a pilot for a chain - if it's successful (and it ought to be - it's better than the Olive Garden), you'll see more of them.

They now offer a Saturday and Sunday brunch buffet that started in June 2013. Closed April 2018 to be rebranded Mario's Homemade Pasta Kitchen.

Comments:

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See Archive Page for comments prior to 2009.

2009-01-16 11:42:32   I went to the one in Webster a while back, and was served chicken in my supposedly-vegetarian vodka sauce. If this wasn't annoying enough, the chicken was so bland that I didn't even realize it til a few bites in. They promptly replaced my dish, but... if I'm going to be mistakenly served chicken, at least make it good. —JayUnnikrishnan

2009-05-19 02:24:27   food was delicious, service was good and server was friendly. all in all a good experience, the all you can eat dishes are a nice touch and people in my group planned to take advantage of it but were too full when the time came. one unfortunate surprise was an additional charge of $2 for clam chowder soup. the server asked which type of soup and about half of my group ordered chowder.. only when we got the bill did we find out there was an additional charge. it wasn't a big deal, but we should have been told about it ahead of time. —NateMcBean

2009-05-19 10:18:19   I went there just after they started the all you can eat menu, and when I finished and wanted more. They totally got cheap on me. I had to argue for more. As far as the food goes, if this is better than Olive Garden then Olive Garden must really suck. —DamianKumor

2009-07-03 17:40:57   All I can say is that both myself and my mother got Chef Boy-R-Dee right out of the can and paid ten times more. I ordered ravioli with marinara sauce (just like the sauce in the ravioli I ate out of a can as a kid) and mother got the 'margarita pizza,' which was a sorry excuse for anything than a $2 frozen pizza. If you like a lot of bad food for cheap, go here. If you like good food, go someplace else. —Sionainn

2009-07-10 21:10:22   Went to the location on the Bay early on a Sat night. Our server was great. We were seated in a dark area so we didn't get to enjoy the view. The food was decent - I had the chicken parm, husband had the tortellini. I can't get past the fact that this is a local, family owned place but they are blatantly copying Olive Garden. The salad, including the bowl its in and the serving tongs? Olive Garden. The breadstix? Olive Garden. Be original and distinguish yourselves from the chain restaurants!! —DGandDJ

2009-07-27 21:57:25   We tried this place 3 times and wont go again. Its always the same. There are a million kids running all over the place (yes—I know—its the parents fault —not the restaurant—but that's the client base) The service was very weird....she kept making a strange face when I asked questions about the foodd and I had the feeling I was annoying her. (we had her twice and she was the same both times) She flipped an attitude when I ordered a second glass of wine. Finally—I was sick for 3 days after eating the greasy calamari salad. It was so oily and gross I could not believe anyone would serve it. There are so many good Italian places is Rochester that you should not bother with this joint. —JamesPatrick

2009-11-21 10:48:59   OK, it's not Rosebud in the Little Italy section of Chicago but it's not horrible either. Comparisons to the Olive Garden are probably due to the decor and price points. Yes, it does kind of feel like a chain restaurant. When it comes to the food, however it is not even close to an Olive Garden. Try their Chicken Parm and you'll know what I mean. This is not an upscale experience and it isn't the best Italian you'll ever have. It is a good option for Italian without pretense and without dropping a lot of coin.

—wdrazek

2010-05-08 17:58:01   I dont see what all the fuss is about. Went the other night and the veal parm was great. Service was a little slow but the food was great. Worth trying if you like Italian. —MetalFrost

2010-06-27 19:17:24   Bazil's location on East Henrietta Road has been closed and replaced with a soon-to-open "Crab Shack" owned by the same people. http://www.crabshackrochester.com/default.htm —AlainaSomers

2011-07-06 22:34:51   This is very chain-esque but you have to know that walking in. I would say it is on par and very similar to Olive Garden. I found it to be overpriced and not particularly well executed food. Our waitress was incredibly nice though and the amount of seafood i was given was quite generous. I wouldn't return. —WindyPig

2011-12-08 19:47:48   My sister and brother-in-law live in Webster and love chicken parmesan. Often when we go out to eat we end up at Bazil. Their chicken parmesan is fantastic but I try to have something different every time. I haven't had something that I haven't liked yet! The endless salad and breadsticks is a perfect starter and always results in me having delicious leftovers! —HeatherOh

2012-06-07 22:27:50   It's like Olive Garden without the bag of salt on all the food. The vodka pasta dish is pretty tasty. —BatGuano

2013-06-10 11:11:00   I stopped by recently to try the new brunch buffet. Overall it was pretty good... they have a wide selection of items, quite a few more than I was expecting. Overall not as good as Mario's brunch but also not as expensive. Nice addition to Webster and being on both Saturday and Sunday is nice as well. —abraxas