St Petersburg: Il Patio (September 2010)

My spouse and I dined at Il Patio for dinner in early September 2010. The IL on the sign is recognizable, but Patio looks like the Pi symbol, followed by AT a backwards N and O. There were two sides to this restaurant, one serving Italian food, and the other serving Japanese food, but the servers worked both sides, and it seemed like you could order from either menu regardless of where you sat. As a matter of fact, I think the Italian-looking side was simply the smoking section, with the Japanese side being non-smoking. There was also outdoor seating for both restaurants. IL Patio is a chain restaurant, and we saw many more of them during our days in Russia. We ordered two pasta dishes, along with a few alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and our total bill was about $50. The pasta portions were adequate, although not overly large, but I did see other customers order pizzas, which were huge (yet I think personal-sized). This affordable chain of pizzerias has locations throughout St Petersburg, including an outlet at Pulkovo-1 Airport. The Tuscan-inspired décor and speedy service create the restaurant’s casual atmosphere. Il Patio has a menu of Italian and international cuisine, but their specialty is pizza, which is cooked in an open oven. A selection of pasta and seafood is also available.