RHONJ Star Gia Giudice Defends Her Restaurant’s No-Kids Rule

Gia Giudice is standing by her new restaurant’s adults-only evening policy after the venue drew a wave of negative reviews.

The 25-year-old daughter of Real Housewives star Teresa Giudice opened Il Vero in Westwood, New Jersey, with business partner Maria Sausa in a soft launch on October 7.

The restaurant bills itself as “a destination for Italian-Mediterranean dining, beautiful cocktails, and evenings meant to be enjoyed from beginning to end.”

However, Il Vero becomes strictly adults-only after 5 p.m.

“Il Vero is an adult-oriented dining and lounge establishment,” the restaurant’s website states. “Dinner service begins at 5 p.m. and is intended for adult guests.”

The no-children policy soon sparked criticism. In a one-star Google review, a customer claimed that a party of eight adults who arrived with babies in strollers was turned away at 5 p.m. on a Saturday.

Giudice later responded to the backlash in a TikTok video, explaining why the restaurant chose to enforce the rule.

“The first thing that I want to address is that we are a restaurant that only accommodates adult dining,” she said.

“While I know that might be a bummer to some who want to bring their kids out to dinner, there are many restaurants in Westwood that are kid-friendly.”

Giudice described Westwood as a “very family-oriented town,” saying that was part of the reason the partners wanted to introduce something different. She added that Il Vero offers “a new atmosphere that adults were actually waiting for” and said the town has responded positively.

Her goal, she explained, was to create an elevated setting where guests would feel inspired to “get dressed up.”

Giudice also noted that Il Vero had been open for only about a week and was not yet accepting lunch reservations. She said the restaurant could eventually consider allowing children during lunch service, while keeping dinner reserved for adults.

Many viewers supported the restaurant’s decision, sharing their approval in the comments.

“No shade, but not every space needs to accommodate kids. Don’t change that rule,” one person wrote.

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Another commenter, who identified herself as a mother of a toddler, said she welcomed the concept: “I LOVEEE that this is adult only! When I’m kid-free and go out with the girls or with hubby for dinner, I do not want to hear a child.”

“I do not want to be in mom mode,” she added.

‘I gladly pay higher prices for no kids. You’re setting a tone for the atmosphere, nothing wrong with this. 

‘I like your vision, sometimes adults just want to go out to dinner and not have to deal with other people’s children around. It changes the vibe,’ a third said.

Giudice’s business partner Sausa has also responded to the criticism from Il Vero’s early visitors.  

She told the Daily Voice: ‘Our decision to create an adults-only dining experience at Il Vero was intentional.

‘There are many wonderful family-friendly restaurants in the area, and we think that’s fantastic. However, we wanted to offer something different.’

The entrepreneur, from Queens, New York, explained: ‘Both concepts can exist, and neither needs to be criticized simply for being different.’

She continued that the restaurant valued constructive feedback, before adding: ‘However, there is a difference between genuine, constructive criticism and criticism simply because a restaurant offers something that doesn’t align with someone’s personal preferences.’

Sausa stated that ‘everyone wants to be a food critic’ and that negative feedback from one visitor ‘doesn’t automatically mean the restaurant is doing something wrong.’

The Daily Mail has reached out to Il Vero for further comment.