Visiting some family and everybody said I needed to try Buddy's salad. It was definitely worth the hype, the dressing is so delicious. Also the best minestrone soup I've ever had. read more

Buddy's Italian Restaurant - Buddy's Minestrone Soup - Italian Near Me - Pocatello, Idaho

I love buddy's Italian salad . I could come here and just fill up on this. I'd come here just for that. The pasta I had was good, the ambience was fun with good decorations, and the service was attentive. Our waitress kept the refills coming. read more

See all

Best restaurant in town. Friendly and fast service. Great Ambiance and cozy atmosphere. Chic Special w/ salad is my personal favorite.

The service was ok. Atmosphere is nice. Food for me was needing a lot of improvement. Could just be my taste buds.

I wouldn't recommend the meatballs or the burger. Both truly are not inventive, finely ground formed and pressed. The menu describes them as being made in house, but if that's true it's no better than frozen. The bread was a plus though, obviously locally baked and tasty. For dessert I got the Carmelo Sundae, which was the highlight of my meal--absolute explosion of deliciousness.. I don't know that I would come all the way from Idaho Falls back to Pocatello for the Sundae, but if I'm in Pocatello I'm going to be thinking about it lol. The service was, at first very nonchalant, and seemed impatient, but she softened up to us out of towners. The person I was with, had the very unique Italian Salad, which she gave five stars. I could see that it was unique, with pepperoni & cheese, and seasonings like a creamy Italian. It looked very good. The coffee was okay. The 2 best parts about the whole visit were the dessert, and the waitress' line. When I said to her "you look familiar." She said to me "is it from your dreams" possibly! read more

Buddy's Breath is worth it, but remember to keep it in mind if you're going to do something later. The food is always amazing!

Great food always. Wonderful and personal service! Have been a customer for over 50 years

I'm 58 years old and grew up in Pocatello and Buddy's was our favorite place to eat. The sausage sandwich and Buddy's salad was my favorite. I would get it every time. Now 40 years since I've lived here whenever I visit I like to come back for that nostalgic flavors I remember and loved so much. Well not sure why I keep coming back because in the last few times every time it's a huge disappointment. The sausage sandwich is terrible. Not the same homemade sausage they use to make. Now I don't know if it's a pre-frozen sausage patty or a totally different recipe but it tasted awful. I ate half and threw the rest away. And the FAMOUS salad was nothing like it use to be. It was so bad I couldn't even eat it. The lettuce was soggy and brown. The blue cheese in it was hard and stale. The dressing's famous rich garlic taste was not there anymore. It was bland and watery. You use to be able to taste the olive oil, fresh garlic, and creamy consistency. Now it's watered down and tasteless. I'm guessing they don't even use real olive oil anymore. Probably some cheap processed canola oil. Such a shame. I guess nothing lasts forever. I hope their cut in quality to save a penny is worth it, because they lost a loyal customer, and reading a lot of the other reviews I see I'm not alone in my disappointment. read more

This little gem has pure Tuscan vibes. I had the spaghetti and meatballs . It had a real good sauce and the meatballs had just the right amount of magic to complement the sauce. My server was great and was a pleasure to talk to. The only negative I have is that the portions are really big. (Not really a negative) If you are in Pocatello, ID and have a yearning for Italian food go to Buddy's. read more

Food was honestly the worst IItallian I've had that I can remember. It was pretty expensive too. $29 for pasta with meatballs. The salad was huge but extremely soggy, flooded with dressing, consisting of all lettuce with a couple pieces of pepoeroni and cheese on top. We wasted it because it was essentially ineatible. The sauce was overly dry and thick, very dark with a burnt flavor. The meatballs were underseasoned, not moist. The meatball sandwich was dry, little sauce, with the same dry meatballs. I couldnt eat it ant took 90 percent home. The bread was good. So I will give them that. The carmel desert was tasty but very rich and basically carmel topping with whipped cream squirted on top. If it would have been on top of icecream it would be much better I think. Service was average. Ambience was ok. Nothing fancy..​ read more

Very DISAPPOINTED and was of my money!!!! The only reason I am giving a one is the service was awesome and I cannot give them less. I am from out of town and heard amazing things about this place. The only thing that was ok was the salad. I paid over 18.00 for a pasta dish that had so much vinegar taste in it i had a hard time eating any of it. I am not one to send food back and I should have for the cost. That is on me however I will probably not go back after that as I was so disappointed after hearing such great things and getting such bad tasting food. My stomach was upset when I got back to the hotel room but after a bit it managed to calm down. read more

Buddy's Italian Restaurant - Pasta With Sundried Tomatoes , Roasted Tomatoes & Artichokes and chicken - Italian Near Me - Pocatello, Idaho

The pizza was delicious, and the staff was amazing. I would definitely eat at Buddy's again.

We ate there for the 1st time after the new owner. Very disappointed. The salad dressing was definitely different. Even though the server said they hadn't changed it. It was flavorless. I ordered a pizza. The dough was raw and seemed to be premade. read more

Salad was great as always. Entrees came out at the same time, but sadly not all hot. Service was sadly terrible, no refills, no mention of how the food was (came out incorrect) Still delicious but would love to have attention instead of workers being interested in each other's personal lives. read more

Had dinner there on Friday... nice atmosphere, very popular/busy place. Service was pretty fast. I admit Italian is not my favorite so I'm partial. I had some salad before dinner and man was the dressing salty! Maybe it is an Italian thing :) read more

Iconic place with great food and service. I love this little hole in the wall. Is there best.

Generous portions sizes to price. Their house salad is to die for. The wait staff is always quick and friendly. It can feel a little cramped during peak hours, but other than that, Buddy's is spot on. read more

Service is great and the wines are pretty good. The salad and garlic bread are also good. The spaghetti and meatballs were definitely not. Spaghetti had been sitting in water too long and the meatball tasted like warm foam. I would give them another chance. read more

Buddy's Italian Restaurant - Watery sauce, warm foam meatball, and mushy pasta. - Italian Near Me - Pocatello, Idaho

Love the unique dinner salad with blue cheese and tangy garlic dressing! Always get that and a sausage chick special with added veggies. Been coming here for over 30 years! read more

They have the best salad and pizza. Also have the chicks special with meatballs!!! 100 % recommended!! read more

Buddy's Italian Restaurant - Chicks special with meatballs and salad - Italian Near Me - Pocatello, Idaho

We were so excited to try this Pocatello classic. Unfortunately we were disappointed with our service. Food was ok but no one checked on us during the meal and we had to go get our own water and silverware. read more

We left with BUDDY BREATH and I am happy about it. My mom suggested this place to us. We were in town for a softball tournament. I will say that compared to Salt Lake, Idaho is very relaxed on Covid Safety measures. There was no social distancing inside the restaurant. Servers did not wear masks or gloves. We were very surprised. The salad was my favorite and meatballs my least favorite. The staff was very friendly. If I am ever back in town I would stop here again. Check out our pictures to see what we ordered. read more

See all

Have you ever walked into a place and automatically felt you needed a shower? This place is unclean, it smells musty and old, and it could definitely use a good bleaching. The service mostly made up for the lack of attention to cleanliness as our waitress Becky was so kind. She even got a rag and wiped down our area thoroughly just to make us feel better. There was a point in time where our nice quiet lunch was interrupted by what seemed to be someone in the kitchen screaming and yelling at staff, and belittling employees. That man's mouth also could use some bleach. What a nasty person. We almost walked out before our food arrived. Our food? Salad lived up to the hype, but one little salami for a whole salad was weird. the sausage sandwich was interesting. rigatoni and meatballs tastes like it came from a can. Overall I was not impressed. The waitress was great! The atmosphere was not great. The food was trash. read more

More like 2.5 stars - really. The famous salad? Stop it right now. People buying gallons of dressing? Seriously, I can't even. The salad dressing... I'm laughing on a plane as I type. My wife makes better salad dressings literally every time she makes a dressing. Every time. The dressing is below average people! The salad is ALL lettuce. Was nearly no other ingredient. Garlic bread = cheese bread. Maybe had garlic salt. Also subpar. I had spaghetti and meatballs and not much to report on. Sort of old, dark and dingy inside. Have had better meals at airports. read more

Buddy's has been an icon in Pocatello for decades with fantastic food (the salad and red sauce is a must!) and even through a change in ownership, they've maintained their superb service and menu. Thank you, to the manager and our server, for taking on our group of 17 for a family dinner/birthday last night July 6th, 2024 and made it extra special!! read more

This place is the king of great hole in the wall food. I'm so glad that my husband went to ISU and introduced me to Buddy's. The house salad dressing is THE BEST HOUSE DRESSING ever, garlic and blue cheese yumminess. The pasta is cooked perfectly, I had it sautéed in the house dressing, an upgraded aglio e olio if you will. Hubby can't get past the meatball sandwich. It's not fancy, it's just really good. Service is always friendly also. read more

Buddy's Italian Restaurant - Buddy 's Salad..... ohhhh yeah! - Italian Near Me - Pocatello, Idaho

See all

The sauce and meatballs were to die for. I could have licked the plate. The garlic bread was great too. Service was prompt and friendly. The price is not the lowest but the quality of the food makes it worth it. If I lived in Pocatello I would be there once a week trying a new menu item. read more

3 stars is generous. More like 2.5 stars. I initially wanted to go with 2 stars, but my son is a better person than I am and convinced me 3 was the way to go since he was there too. I had the spaghetti with meatball. Yes. One meatball. Nothing earth-shatteringly fabulous. The meatball lacked any kind of spice and had to be cut with a fork because of the outer consistency. I wanted to order the garlic cheese bread but frankly balked at the extra price for the cheese. The plain bread I got was...bread. The chicken with spaghetti was about the same. The chicken was on the dry side and the sauce had an overdose of lemon. All in all we're both trying to figure out what the big deal is regarding this restaurant. read more

We love their salad dressing however, the lettuce was swimming in it! Sooo not good. It was difficult to eat. Also, their spaghetti sauce was not good. My son and I could only eat a couple of bites. Ended up spending $70 for 3 people for lunch. Not worth it at all! read more

Buddy's. This is one of those places that is legendary to the locals, but not all it's cracked up to be for visitors from out of town. I lived here for about a year, and I can say that Pocatello, ID. isn't a big town so there aren't a lot of choices for Italian. Of those few choices, Buddy's is probably the best. That doesn't necessarily make it an amazing restaurant but it does make it the best in this town. I will say with no pause at all that their famous Buddy's Italian dressing is the best I have ever had, anywhere. Five Stars for sure. The salad they bring you, however is kinda silly. It is a bowl FULL of lettuce, so much so that another bowl is on top to keep it all cool and to stop it from spilling. It comes with cheese and salami slices. Hey Buddy's, we don't need an entire head of lettuce. Cut the amount in half and save yourself some money and make more room for salami, cheese and dressing... please and thank you! Their sausage sandwich is also very very good. Their pasta dishes are hit and miss and almost seem to be made differently by different cooks. The sauce is different that most you've had and you either love or hate it. Staff is always rushed but are friendly enough. Decor is the Idaho version of classic Italian eatery. If you are in town and must have Italian food, this is the spot to pick. read more

Buddys is always a fun place to go with friends. Inevitably you see someone you know and the staff is good to remember returning guests. Salad is awesome, veggie Chic is my favorite but have tasted others which are good. Service is generally good and be prepared to wait during crunch times any day of the week. Its great to have a solid, relaible local establishment that is generally always good. read more

Vintage style family restaurant! Italian food taste of the old world. We arrived late but were served a tasty meal. Gravy was delicious as was the salad dressing. The sausage sandwich was also very good. read more

See all

Terrible! Disappointing! My husband lived in "pokey" for years. Raved about great the salad was. We ordered a "full" salad to split. And I ordered the sausage sandwich with "everything". Salad was okay. Sandwich was mostly bread. If there was a sausage in it, I had to open it up to verify! I've had bigger sausages out of a Vienna sausage can. The everything? Hm. Maybe 4 fine slices of green pepper & maybe some onions. Couldn't tell you. The only thing that saved this overly dry mouthful of nothing was the extra marinara dipping sauce offered by our server. Never will l go back!! read more

The food was ok but the waitress was rude slammed it all down on table. Didn't check on us 1x there was only 1 other table in the whole place that was occupied. Maybe she was just having a bad day. Regardless no reason to ruin our experience. read more

This place is absolutely atrocious. The salad is so drenched in sauce you just wouldn't believe it. My clams were so overcooked they wasn't any meat left to pick at. My friends pasta came out cold. We weren't served the coffee and dessert the menu said it would come with. Unbelievable this place is in business. read more

Alas Buddy you lost you magic! What a sad disappointment tonight. Came on a Monday just for Lasagne to learn that they always run out at lunch and rarely have any left for dinner--- what's the problem not in having a Monday special???? Had clams... or tried. Half didn't open. Waitress offered to replace but kitchen reset same clams back. Was so damn obvious... just tell us you don't care about food poisoning next time!!!!!! Rigitoni was tepid. Waitress forgot to bring salad. And the pizza and calazones had doggy crusts. Staff was courteous but slow. read more

What a mistake! Salad so drenched in dressing there was a quarter inch of it pooled in the bottom of the bowl, and lettuce so wilted it seemed it had been made an hour earlier. Garlic bread so dry it turned to dust in my mouth. It, too, had obviously been made way in advance. It was also so loud I couldn't hear my tablemates, and a couple of times I feared for my eardrums. To top it off, it was way over-priced. Our entire party left very disappointed. read more

Pizza is average. Good toppings but dough is average. Salad is also average (too much dressing). Price is good for the food.

People at work were asking me to come try this place when I travel out of town. Yikes, they were so wrong. Maybe this place was good years ago, but currently the food is abysmal. First of all I did my own Gordon Ramsey testing. The meatball was absolutely not fresh or any good for that matter. The texture is all smooth inside like astronaut paste. How do you not make a homemade meatball??? And if you do why does it taste like soap ???? Second the pizza was just not good. Not even close to anything resembling s fresh pizza. The salad had way to much dressing and the iced tea tasted like tap water. The waitress was nice and the sky was blue. Couldn't wait to get out of there. Honestly one of the most disappointing Italian meals I have had in a very very very long time. As an avid helper I warn people to spend their money elsewhere. This place is outdated, the food is processed and absolutely terrible. It's nearing the pizza you get at the end of a Chinese food buffet. It was that bad. Absolutely sad to be so harsh but every word is true. As an Italian man....I say shame on you for serving such ridiculous renditions of what you consider Italian food. Ciao Bella. read more

Have been eating at Buddy's for 40 years and it has slowly been going downhill for awhile now. Just had a salad and it had no flavor!!! Tasted like lettuce, was very disappointed. No such thing as Buddy's Breath anymore. This makes me so sad Pizza was good although read more