Review of Gondolier Italian Restaurant & Pizza

We found the Gondolier restaurant on the Find Me GF app while driving from SC to LA. The stellar 5 star rating was a definite draw for us. We typically trust these ratings - without question - because we know the GF community to be one of support and honesty not just hype (or a buddy helping out a buddy type thing). The atmosphere is good, very relaxed and family friendly. The food is pretty commonly priced and the portions are huge. The 2-star rating comes from the food and the waiter. He had no idea what GF was. None. Nada. He said he was new ( a week on the job) and he constantly went to check with the kitchen to see what was available for me (I have Celiac and am super sensitive). I couldn't ask any questions about the menu because he didn't know anything about it without having to go back and forth to the kitchen. The restaurant was not busy at all (maybe 10 people total) on a Wed night. I ordered baked ziti (GF) and my hubby ordered Veal Parm (he is not GF). As I said before, the portions are HUGE. The only caveat is there is no seasoning at all. The tomato sauce on my ziti was basically flavorless (tasted like bland cooked hamburger meat) and I wound up having to add tons of salt and pepper to even tolerate a few bites. I thought maybe it was just the GF dish but my husband said his Veal Parm had no taste at all either. So disappointing especially after the stellar reviews that this place got. I doubt we'll ever be back in Lake City, FL again but if we are, we definitely would not eat here. Nice enough place, clueless wait staff and season less food. Def thumbs down.

Celiac friendly?

No