Bella Italia was not what I expected. And that turned out to be a very good thing. From the outside and inside, this is a bit of a hole in the wall. The kind of restaurant that is clearly filled with regulars who know exactly what they're ordering and probably don't need to look at the menu anymore. That can sometimes make a newcomer feel like they've accidentally wandered into somebody else's family dinner. Not here. The staff was friendly and welcoming, and we were made to feel right at home. I ordered the lasagna expecting the usual Italian classic. Layers of pasta, ricotta, mozzarella, and all the familiar ingredients I've come to expect. Instead, I was presented with a lasagna featuring a beautiful, creamy béchamel sauce. Béchamel. In my lasagna. That's the kind of sauce I expect to encounter in French cooking, not while I'm sitting in a little Italian restaurant in Mobile. But I'm very happy to report that Italy and France have apparently decided to put their differences aside. It was wonderful. Creamy, rich, and absolutely delicious. Not what I expected, but exactly the kind of surprise that makes discovering new restaurants so much fun. Bella Italia is a nice find. A little bit of a hole in the wall, filled with regulars, friendly people, and food that may surprise you in the best possible way. read more

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Friendly hostess & waitstaff I chatted briefly with the hostess as I waited on my other party to arrive and the she did say they are very busy on Fridays (and weekends). She suggested reservations even for a party of 2. As we noshed I noticed even though we were here on a Tues about 1/2 the tables are occupied. They were also set up for 2 large parties ( one of about 12 and the other over 20) that take up all the available empty tables. As we were leaving they had to turn a family away because they had a waiting list! On a random Tuesday! Note there is no bar that you can slide into as a singleton when they're busy but they are open 6 days a week and do to-go orders. Nice four page menu with plenty of choices. All of their entrees come with side salad and 2 slices of garlic bread. Additional bread is available 6 slices for $3.99 I noticed half of their pasta entrees are vegetarian. I'm used to seeing a restaurant only have a couple vegetarian selections so their menu was impressive. Besides the salads there are at least two entrees that appear to be keto friendly -the Vegetable spaghetti & Salmon & Veggies both which have a serving of vegetables instead of pasta. Normally I eat low carb/keto but fell off that wagon a couple of weeks ago and this placed looked too good to try and 'behave'. We split the Fried mozzarella appetizer with sauce. I had the cheese manicotti with meat sauce which was awesome. My son had Tortellini with meat sauce which he enjoyed. The serving was a little small for his taste but not abnormally so. We both had Tiramisu for dessert and it was out of this world good. I'm already planning my next visit. Nice ambiance but the bldg is small. read more

Absolutely amazing food, and service! The owners are the original owners of Roma's. I am so addicted to their creamy seafood sauce, they have our loyalty forever! They are also incredibly accommodating when I have asked for substitutions, ie. Using the creamy seafood sauce on an order of shrimp scampi, my all time favorite! Their in-house made dressing, I could drink straight from the bottle, and salads are always fresh, cold, and crisp. Their tiramisu, oh my goodness, don't get me started .... but, a hot cup of fresh coffee to sip with it is the cherry on top!!!!!!!! read more

I have been writing reviews for Yelp for many years. I write good reviews for most restaurants I visit and I have written some bad reviews for places I felt did a disservice to the restaurant going community at large. But, I have NEVER had the opportunity to write a review for a restaurant that completely blew me away, like the restaurant we visited last evening. I need to go back and subtract a star from every restaurant I've reviewed in the past! (Hyperbole) A guy I don't know, on Facebook, highly recommended this Italian Restaurant. We have had our own favorite Italian restaurant that we have loved for more than 10 years (Petrella's, in Cantonment). So, we tried Bella Italia, expecting to be able to go back and tell the guy "our favorite Italian restaurant is better than yours." No such luck. From the moment we walked into Bella Italia, we knew we were onto something, starting with the sincere way we were greeted. Our waitress talked to us like family - telling us about the chef/owner and how he cooks everything from scratch and how he sourced many of his high end ingredients directly from Italy. (And huge, fresh shrimp from our local waters.) The Tiramisu is flown in from New York. The food was amazing. Our waitress brought us out a complimentary appetizer that was so simple - some Italian bread, lightly buttered and seasoned, with some large flakes of parmesan, and a small bowl of dipping sauce that consisted of ranch dressing thickened with cucumber, dill and some other tasty ingredients. Wow! I ordered a Salmon dish that rested on a bed of house made angel hair pasta and covered with a delicious house Alfredo sauce and wifey ordered a shrimp dish that consisted of some HUGE gulf shrimp on top of some cheese ravioli. Both dishes were served with hot garlic bread and everything was outstanding. Portion size was very generous, too. For dessert, we chose the Lemon Italian cream cake. It was very light and refreshing and we were pleased with the finale of our dining experience. If you're reading this review and shopping/evaluating which Italian restaurant to try out next. PLEASE GO HERE. You will not be disappointed. This is my new favorite restaurant and it will probably be yours, too! read more

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Wanted to try for dinner on 07/22/25. They were closed for some unknown reason. Oh well. Please leverage/use social media to communicate and just not a sign on the door. read more

The menu has great, very affordable menu choices. The service is good. We frequent Bella Italia often. One downside... the fluorescent lighting in the wait station area and the hallway leading to the restrooms is very overwhelming to the atmosphere in the dining area. We have to shield our eyes if we are facing the wait area. It would be nice if this hard distraction was remediated in some way so it doesn't impact the dining experience. read more

It's Italian! Yes! finally a place that can rival New York's best. I'm telling' ya hands down this is the best home cooking' I've had west of New Jersey- hands down- Fagetaboutit! Even Tony Saprano (God rest his soul) would love dis place. I recommend da Chicken Parm (get outta here!) If ya haven't tried dis place- do it! Mama Mia!! Oh and ask for Alicia she will take Care-a-ya. Tell her Tony sentcha. read more

Bella Italia Restaurante - Outside - Italian Near Me - Mobile, Alabama

Really Great Italian restaurant. All kinds of selection options Love the Tilapia with pasta read more

Italian food was the dinner choice of the evening so I googled Italian restaurants within close distance to our hotel and found this lil gem! Looked up the menu online and it had lots of choices so decided to have dinner there. Located in a small strip mall, plenty of seating was available and we went towards late afternoon for linner and it was fairly busy, but plenty of seating available and seated immediately. We started off with the bruschetta and it was so flavorful! Also came with a side of marinara that was so good as well! I decided on the gulf shrimp with cheese ravioli in a garlic butter lemon sauce and BFF decided on the fettucini chicken alfredo (both entrees came with a side salad and garlic bread). My entree was very flavorful, fresh, and light, so if you are looking for something on the lighter side but satisfying, try it! My BFF really liked his fettucini chicken alfredo but it was too heavy (take half of it home or share). For dessert we chose the Tiramisu and it was heavenly! Everything is made fresh to order, so if you are looking for a leisurely lunch or dinner, this is your place! Service from our server was a bit slow, but she was very friendly. I asked her if Italians owned it and she said yes, he is Sicilian! Prices are very reasonable and portions are a good size. Definitely try this lil gem out, you won't be disappointed! read more

Always great food like Roma Cafe - be sure to try the hamburgers and the Philly cheesesteaks they are fabulous read more

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The fettuccine was good and flavorful. We ordered calamari and it was well seasoned. I do not like the extra charge for using a CC/ debit. When that happens, I take it out of the tip. The business should know that no one carries cash anymore so if the business puts it upon its customers to pay the CC transaction fee, then their worker will get less of a tip. Great service though. The place could use some decorating to make it look more Italian. read more

I rarely leave negative reviews, but our experience here was beyond frustrating. Our waitress managed to get both of our orders completely wrong. To top it off she then spent over half of our meal sitting at another table chatting with a different customer. She was so preoccupied with her personal conversation that she completely ignored her other tables. It wasn't just us, either--multiple other customers were visibly annoyed, and we eventually saw people going up to the management to complain because they couldn't get any service. Even after the manager was alerted, the lack of professionalism was shocking. We spent more time waiting and being ignored than actually eating. We won't be coming back. read more

Service was excellent atmosphere was Charming. Food could not have been more generic Cisco. Nothing was homemade. Not the breadsticks,salad, pasta or chicken parmesan. read more

Thank you, Yelpers! My daughter and four of her sorority sisters wanted to celebrate their last night together before summer. We choose this place over a steakhouse and Half Shell Oyster house. The restaurant called to confirm about 20 minutes beforehand. Fortunately, we were a block away. Every table was full except ours. Lauren did a fantastic job waiting on us. The food was incredible. Huge portions, fantastic flavor. This place blew us all away. The salads and desserts were great too. We had a great time and everyone really enjoyed the food. We will be back! read more

A gem of a restaurant. The outside is nothing to write home about, but everything we tried was excellent except the tiramisu. Now this is just my personal opinion, but I thought the coffee content was too strong, similar to Carrabba's. This is coming from a guy who loves extra dark, black coffee. Go figure. If you're in the area, your taste buds deserve a visit to this restaurant. read more

Great service. Delicious dishes. Generous portion sizes (when you're used to NYC plates). As a visitor from the big city, I was certainly surprised by the wide range of choices and how wonderful each dish for our large party was. They even held up rather well as leftovers the next day. Don't sleep on this excellent dining choice just down the road from the airport! read more

Amazing!! we were a party of four and EVERYONE loved the food ! We had way too much food so we brought home another meal for later. The four of us passed around the plates and enjoyed EVERYTHING. service was Suberb. ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS! read more

The food is always fresh and DELICIOUS. Prompt and friendly service every time I've been there!

3rd time to eat here... delicious! The owner and staff were very kind and helpful. We need good Italian in Mobile. Help this business out. read more

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Zucchini sticks were very good. The house salad and garlic bread were delicious. Chicken and veal Parmesan with penne pasta was fabulous. Lauren was a good server. The space is small, but not crowded. read more

Nice little hide away with the freshest, most authentic and impeccable Italian food in the city. The service is always A-1 and the ambience is intimate. If word gets out about this jewel it will have to relocate to a bigger venue. read more

Enjoyed the food and our server was great! We had the fried zucchini, chicken Alfredo, penne sausage di Tuscana, and Italian cream cake. Everything was incredible. Only thing we weren't crazy about was the music was a bit loud. read more

Food was fresh, and hot from the kitchen. Waitresses was friendly, polite, and prompt. Took a little while to get our order but they were slammed the whole time we were there. Nice atmosphere cozy and quaint. Great prices. read more

Excellent service. Food was very, very good. Relaxed ambience. Kinda expensive, though. But, hey! it's extremely difficult, if not impossible, nowadays to find great service, ambience, AND food at restaurants. We will be back! read more

We thoroughly enjoyed our meal at Bella Italia! The food was excellent and so was the service. I would highly recommend trying Bella. read more

Bella Italia Restaurante - Spaghetti and meatballs - Italian Near Me - Mobile, Alabama

Our server, Alicia, was awesome! We enjoyed every bite and they have the best alfredo sauce in town!

I was thrilled when I read this Owner was back in town and was wanting to open a restaurant again! The red sauce he makes is sooooo delicious, he needs to bottle it up and sell it! Everything this man and his crew makes is absolutely wonderful. The waitresses are so nice and friendly and tend to your every need. My husband is a big tea drinker and they never let his glass get below the half mark before filling it up again. The service they gave was fast and friendly. The word is getting out fast that he is back and has opened an Italian restaurant again, because the second time I went they were getting packed in as I was leaving and that was on a Wednesday evening. If you want authentic Italian food, this is the place to go, you won't be disappointed. read more

Bella Italia Restaurante - Chicken Alfredo - Italian Near Me - Mobile, Alabama

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Decided to try this newly open restaurant. It's located tucked away in a parking lot strip mall. The curb appeal was very poor. Upon entering the resturant it was very small & cramped. Tables were bunched together and people seemed to be stacked on top of each other. The atmosphere was dark and cheap. Several misplaced fake plants, room dividers, fake brick wallpaper, & one obnoxiously large flat screen TV in the corner playing a random TV show. We were seated by the hostess. Our waitress makes her way around to our table and gets our drinks. We eventually have several questions about the menu. Our question was in regards to a particular a dish called "Spaghetti with Garlic Olive Oil" the menu read " Sautéed mushrooms, olive oil, fresh garlic, fresh basil, special Italian herbs, and topped with Parmesan sauce." Our question was "How is the Alfredo sauce different from this Parmesan sauce?" The waitress chuckled awkwardly & said she would have to go ask. She then returned back & asked "Exactly what dish are you asking about?" When we pointed it out and read it to her she stated "Oh that's just sprinkled with Parmesan cheese." Ultimately we ordered cheese sticks, two house salads with ranch, chicken Alfredo with broccoli, and chicken Alfredo with mushrooms. NO OPTION OF ITALIAN DRESSING FOR THE SALADS AT THIS ITALIAN RESTURANT! The cheese sticks were great & hand breaded. They were served with a house marinara sauce. Our salads were severed & the waiter had to be asked to get us silverware's. We noticed that the lettuce on both dishes were wet. The ranch dressing did not stick to it and ended up in the bottom of the bowl. The other toppings on the salad felt as of an after thought. Our main entree was served with "garlic bread". Some of the pasta was overcooked as we ate. The chicken was UNSEASONED & DRY DRY DRY. The Alfredo sauce tasted like Ragu from the jar, and was runny like after you put a little sink water in it to get the last little bit out of the bottom of the jar. Wont ever be back, and rate it a 1/10 on service, 0/10 on ambiance, and 1/10 on food. Our total with water was $53! read more

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We have enjoyed this place but management has just become awful. My wife and I went for dinner and were told it would be a 35 minute wait because they had tables reserved for half of the restaurant. The kicker is that we showed up at 5pm, none of the reservations were until 6:30pm. No solution was offered and the host was no help at all. Very disappointed. read more

We were seated immediately and the service was excellent. Our waitress, Lina was all smiles, very attentive and quick to serve. The food was delivered in a timely manner, a beautiful presentation and exceptional quantity. The meat sauce is the best I've had in town!! They played beautiful music during our visit with low lighting, which made it a wonder night out! read more

Bella Italia Restaurante - Stuffed Manicotti with Meat Sauce - Italian Near Me - Mobile, Alabama

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This is hands down my favorite Italian restaurant in Mobile. Their appetizers and garlic bread are very good but the entrees are over the top good. We've tried the lasagna, shrimp scampi, garlic shrimp ravioli, and spaghetti with garlic olive oil. Every one of them was outstanding. Try this place, you can't go wrong. read more

Amazing service! And the food is amazing the lasagna is a must try!love our server and the vibe! 5 stars!

We've been twice. Once for lunch and once for dinner. We both ordered the Chicken Parmesan. It was hot, fresh and delicious. Bella Italia will definitely be on our rotation for regular visits read more

My friend and I ate lunch here recently. She had already been with her husband and wanted to make sure I knew there was a new Italian restaurant in Mobile. I went right for the spaghetti and meatballs. The sauce was outstanding in flavor. A bit "chunkier" than I prefer but excellent balance of sweetness and acid. The meatballs were very nice size and very tasty. I ate till full and still had plenty leftover for dinner. My friend had the meatball sub and she also had plenty to take home. I'd say it was 8" long. Despite being full there was room for cannolis. And they were delicious! The filling was so creamy smooth. Yummy!!! Reasonably priced with generous portions. Very satisfying lunch and I will definitely be back. read more

Everyone had been talking about this place opening so I suggested to my sister that she and I go there for dinner last week. To start with it's very small in the corner of a strip mall. Half of the items on the menu were unavailable to order --the food took forever, they said that they were down a cook so that's fine. It happens... They had no Italian, balsamic vinaigrette, or oil and vinegar salad dressing ( I didn't want to argue, but I found it very hard to believe that there was no balsamic vinegar or olive oil in that kitchen. I just opted for no salad), I don't expect to have to choose between blue cheese or ranch at an Italian restaurant. The food was fine, nothing special . I ordered chicken Parm. My sister ordered a pasta dish with veggies. The garlic bread was basically Texas toast and it was burnt. It didn't really feel like an Italian restaurant. It felt like a burger and fried food place that served some Italian dishes. Overall, it felt rather disorganized and haphazard; I didn't feel like our server had much knowledge of the menu and it was difficult to ascertain what things were available and not available (for example different things were crossed out on my sister's menu then on mine). I don't think I'll go back, especially considering how much the meal cost for the location, ambience, wait time, and mediocrity of the food. I want to give the benefit of the doubt that this is just new restaurant growing pains. Also this is just a personal preference, but I didn't really care for the paper tablecloths; It really detracted from the dining experience. read more

The best Italian food we have eaten!!! Our waitress was so sweet and attentive. Our new little place to eat. Amazing!!!! read more

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Food was delicious!!! Waitresses was really friendly. The establishment was clean. We enjoyed ourselves.

My fiancé and I tried this place last night and it was wonderful! When we first walked in, all three waitresses smiled and greeted us. Our waitress was very attentive and sweet. It was also some of the best Italian food I've had at a restaurant. We tried the bruschetta as an appetizer and it was different than what I've usually had but it was good! The marinara sauce that it came with made it better. Their marinara is some of the best I've ever had. I got the Penne Basilica, which was delicious, and my fiancé got the seafood manicotti, which he enjoyed. We had the cheesecake for desert and it was delicious. You can tell everything is made from scratch and it's so good. Will definitely be back. The garlic breast was some of the best ever too!! read more

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My daughter and I had lunch yesterday. We enjoyed the salad and garlic bread. Our waitress was friendly and gave great recommendations. I had the meat lasagna. It was delicious with a lot of meat and cheese, yum! My daughter had the shrimp scampi. It was garlicky which she loved. She wants to come back and try the chicken fettuccine next time. read more

Bella Italia Restaurante - Italian Near Me - Mobile, Alabama

This is the best Italian restaurant in Mobile..and we have been to all! The chef is from Italy, so maybe that is why! The servers are friendly and very prompt in seating and serving. The lasagna is nicely layered and full of meat and the best cheeses. The garlic bread is herbed and buttery yummy. The salad comes in a chilled plate which makes the greens crisp. My husband who doesn't even like Italian usually, was happy with his meal so we took friends back with us two weeks later! I think he was impressed by the attention to detail at this place. read more