Lucullan's

Used to be a good place to go for good food and service. Now the food is poor, overcooked yet cold. The wait service acts like they don‘t want to be there. We will be hard pressed to go back.

not a great selection, service was mediocre, gotta go back to try the crock pizza though, looks good.

Really had a great time...... I enjoyed sitting overlooking the downtown area looking at the beautiful park. I had the pasta with shrimp and asparagus (the asparagus was grown by the owner!)... my wife had the Cajun Pasta. The food was excellent....and the waiter was very helpful and attentive. I definitely think this is one of the best places in Ames.... check it out.

Now that Ames has Pazeesco‘s (old Broiler) I can‘t imagine this place will be around much longer. I remember when Lucullan‘s was good--did my Prom dinner there. Times have sure changed.

The atmosphere was great, it was quiet and calm. The service was even better, the waiters were friendly, helpful, and polite. There was a little wait for our food because it was busy but we were seated right away. The food was the best part, it was delicious! I had the portabella ravioli which was served with a basket of freshly baked bread and a garden salad. My fiance had the crock pizza and a garden salad. Both were amazing and not a bad price, it was only $26 so just over $30 after the tip. We will definitely be back soon!

My husband and I went here for dinner after hearing rave reviews about Lucullan‘s- however we were very disappointed. After sitting without water or being greeted by a waiter for several minutes, we eventually were brought water and a few pieces of old bread- in fact- one of the pieces was completely burnt. The soup was good- perhaps the best part of the meal. I ordered pesto with pine nuts- it seemed like jarred pesto and they left off the pine nuts. If our waiter had checked on us I would have complained- by the time we saw him again I just wanted the bill. It seems like you are taking a risk if you go to Lucullan‘s- you may need to stop by Little Cesar‘s to fill your craving for Italian on the way home.

Went there and were sat without menus our waiter didn‘t even realize it until after 20 minutes. Then half our food was cold and the other half was really hot so they just microwaved it for us. The alfredo sauce tasted like it had come straight out of a jar and not homemade at all. Overall it wasn‘t anything I couldn‘t make at home from a can.

Geez, Mark and Terry, what happened to your restaurant? Do you ever eat there any more? It‘s a shadow of what it used to be. Time to get back into the kitchen!!!

After 6 visits over a period of 4 months, we‘re not going back. The bruschetta was a fancy slice of pizza, not the toast you expect, the alfredo was good, but the chicken parmesan was poorly seasoned and the lasagna tasted as if it had been reheated. The service was erratic and when we did complain about the bruschetta, the manager seemed like he didn‘t know how it was done. I can do better at home, but your mileage may vary.

This Restaurant is amazing... don‘t believe the other ratings. My girlfriend and I went here for a date and Lucullans had a very romantic aspect to it. From the delicious food (try the crock pizza) to the great service, I have nothing bad to say about this restaurant. Check it out.

Went with my wife for the first time today..... a friend said to check it out. I have to say I was very impressed...... the young woman who waited on us was extremely pleasant and told us about the garden the owners have........ they actually have organic lettuce, basil, asparagus...etc that they serve in the place. Amazing. We had the fish with arugula pesto (fresh from the owners garden). It was the best fish I ever had. My wife stuck with lasagna..... was excellent. I think the atmosphere is the best in Ames... overlooking Main Street. Highly recommend this place... great food, good service..... fantastic atmosphere.

My husband and I went there for San Valentine’s Day and it was very disappointed. First, they bring us a salad and they used packaged parmesan cheese. Then, they bring us bread with olive oil. The bread wasn’t good and I think the olive wasn’t olive oil. After that, we ordered the dinner. My husband ordered risotto with steak and I ordered Shrimp scampi with tortellini. The risotto tasted like white rice and the steak was small like 3 oz. The shrimps were prepared with dried herbs instead of fresh herbs and the tortellini you can find them at Cub Food, they weren’t homemade. Then, the dessert was a chocolate cake with chocolate Ice cream inside and a soup of chocolate sauce. It was awful, too much chocolate. We are very disappointed because we tried before very good Italian restaurants in my country also in Italy for fewer prices. I can believe they can sell that kind of food so expensive. Its better go to Fazoli’s.

Probably the best Italian place in Ames. Other than being expensive there is nothing wrong with this restaurant!

Eating at Lucullan‘s is like being in little Italy.

After receiving many suggestions we go here for a celebratory dinner, we stopped in for dinner last night. VERY disappointing. Bread, appetizers and salads were all brought at the same time. The bread looked beautiful as we watched our server cut it, but tasted like absolute nothing. The olive oil - was it really OLIVE oil? - was bland. The appetizers were so-so at best. The salads were okay, but we were so rushed trying to eat everything at once we didn‘t get much time to appreciate them. The entrees were terrible. "Freezer-burned Lean Cuisine" my friend declared her pasta. How, exactly, is it possible to remove the flavor from sundried tomatoes? Not sure, but they managed. My Chicken Saltimboca was two pale lumps of dried out rubbery chicken topped with overly-broiled cheese and dried out ham. And the accompanying mashed potatoes had no flavor at all, even after dumping a life-threatening amount of salt on top. Needless to say, the plate went away mostly untouched. Finally we had hope for the desserts. A chocolate Bombe thing that looked good on paper and on plate and tasted like a Ho Ho with Hershey‘s syrup dumped on top. The one good experience of the night was the espresso. That they got right. Bleck. Avoid this place. If you need Italian in Ames, Fazzoli‘s has to be better.

I echo the comment about the variability of this place. The first time we went it was pretty good. The next time we went for just dessert and coffee and it was FABULOUS. The waiter was wonderful, the tiramisu was excellent, great coffee and atmosphere. The next time, we went for dinner. The food was only okay, a real let-down, wait staff average, and when we got the tiramisu, it had ice chips in it, as if it had been defrosted, and not well at that! The coffee was lukewarm and bland. I am sometimes tempted to return since we had such a good experience the one time, but my husband says that something else will have to freeze over before he ever goes back.

Everyone was friendly, the food was above average, a bit too expensive with all factors considered. Worth going unless you demand the highest quality Italian food as is found in bigger cities.

This place is highly unpredictable. One time I recieved promt knowledgable service, but the next two times the server was slow rude and unknowledgable. Same with the food; the mushroom rav, bread, and Penne w/ sausage are amazing, but the lasagna, shrimp florentine, and salads are unflavorfull and poorly presented. The soups were once incredible but now all have bacon in them. I recommend they work on their waitstaff and have a variable price range. Oh yeah they ALWAYS have music problems cutting out or going up and down in volume. This place has/had the potential to be a unique and exquisite place but is not executing to be all they can.

I have always had great service here. This is our favorite "date" restaurant in Ames. It has nice atmosphere and the food is always fabulous!

Staff overcame a rush very well. Food was filling and delicious.

Me and my buddies have a Friday Night Supper Club. We ate here after the Special Olympics Closing Ceremonies, so it was pretty late. The bread was fantastic. Then we moved on to a calimari appetizer. It brings a tear to my eye just thinking about its greatness. That was followed by Shrimp Scampi. I can‘t type any longer because the tears are streaming down my face. I must leave keyboard and get back there right now!!

nice atmosphere, the best staff in Ames, ok food, good drinks and drink prices

Excellent place. Great food! Really nice atmosphere.. romantic ... great date place.

My first vist was the other night. It was amazing.... we sat overlooking the park downtown and the views and ambiance were great! We had the mushroom ravioli and my friend had the salmon special..... both were fantastic. The wine was reasonable and a great selection. All I can say about the service was it was the best I‘ve had in Ames.... the guy was friendly and knowledgable. I‘ve travelled to Italy many times and this food was at least as good if not better. I like the fact that it‘s authentic and fresh (I read they even grow some of thier own vegetables!).....definately a more upscale knowledge of food here. I‘m going back when my family comes to town. Exclellent

I used to love this retaurant. Then as staff changes occured over the years, things slid. Last time I was there it was, sadly, a huge disappointment. Turn back the clock, please!

Other than the Broiler, this has to be one of the worst places in Ames. I am amazed it stays open. It is over priced, poor service, and food only slightly better than Stouffer‘s in the frozen foods section. I will say their bread is incredible, but does not save the place. Took my family of 4 and the lasagna was 13.95--and small and bland. Frankly, Old Market in DSM is 1/2 the money and twice the flavor. Even Olive Garden. If you want Italian in Ames, go to Fazoli‘s, take the savings and buy a really good bottle of wine.

The food is good but expensive, and you don‘t get very much. The staff is kind of stuckup, but the bread is really good.

I ate lunch here once and it was awesome. Don‘t know what happened, but dinner on Valentine‘s Day was AWFUL! Extra thick and creamy sauce drowned everything--nauseating. The herbed cheese bread appetizer was good, but the shrimp florentine was not. There‘s virtually no price "range" as basically every dish is $15. It was disappointing for all of us, and now I look like an idiot to my friends for recommending the place.

Great food. Excellent service and great atmosphere.