2nd review--This time on 'take out' subs. We ordered the Chicken Cutlet, Porkette, and Tuna. Whoa! Flip a coin on the sub we liked best-they are all superb! Honestly, 1 sub is more than enough for 2 people, unless you are absolutely starving! Super fresh, delicious, made to order with perfection! Honestly can't say 1 negative thing, other than it's going to make me crave it! 5 Stars from me--you can't go wrong here! read more

I can't imagine who I was before I ate here, because I'm not the same person after!!!!! My parents visited from NJ, and so I took them here as a pre Mother's Day dinner. I've never had a better experience. Impeccable service, food that I swear will be served someday when I get to heaven, and all from a family business that treats you like you're a guest in their home. Blown! Away!!! We ordered the meatball appetizer and the eggplant stack, along with the downtown chicken, Sunday gravy and the seafood special!! I don't know if Jane Austen could describe these dishes with the eloquent language they deserve they were utterly to die for. And the desserts?????? Peanut butter cannoli!!! And snickerdoodle butter cake!!!! I'll never eat anything like it as long as I live!!!!!!! read more

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We had our first experience at Scalessa's Cafe and it absolutely did not disappoint. The ambiance was everything you want in an old school Italian restaurant. Feels like you're walking into a family event. Our waitress Alicia was very friendly, helpful made our experience even better. All of the food was amazing, but the greens and beans blew my mind. It took me back to my grandmothers greens and beans. The drinks were great. We will definitely be back! read more

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We wanted some kind of sandwiches for takeout and decided to try Cafe Scalessa's takeout menu. RJ ordered a meatball sandwich and I ordered the porkette which was pork, broccoli rabe and sharp provolone. The sandwiches were $18 each and we questioned if there was any cheese at all. I don't think there should be any kind of cheese question on an $18 sandwich, but they were both delicious. read more

Update on my experience: My boyfriend and I came here a couple of weeks ago (on a Saturday evening 1 hour before closing time) and sat at the bar. Not going to lie, I was craving for their delicious chicken Marsala and decided to give this restaurant another try. Our bartender/server, Nicole, greeted us with a warm welcome. We ordered a couple of their signature drinks, as well as the delightful chicken Marsala with gnocchi (this time around) and everything was HEAVENLY! I'm glad I decided to give this place another shot. Cravings were satisfied and definitely will be coming back again. read more

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Had lunch today after a couple hours of pickleball. I had the chicken/sopressata/cheese sandwich. It was delicious and ample quantity to satisfy my appetite. Our waitress (Alicia) was helpful and friendly. Service was fast. Ambiance was great and no drafts from the cold when customers entered the restuarant. I'll certainly be back. read more

Food was very good and seasoned well. The staff was very friendly and very attentive. The bathrooms were very clean.

Very good Italian food. Very good sauce. Very good service. Very good drinks made at the bar. Very good barmaid when things were very busy. Very good wait service when things were busy. The only reason this is not a 5 star review is most (appx 90% +) of the entrees come with gnocchi and I'm not a huge gnocchi fan and have never asked for a supplement from them. Maybe I will in the future. The al dente pasta though is truly nice. Whereas Cafe Scalese is a little expensive for Italian food we have never had anything but a very good meal. I recommend it. read more

Gift d and service were outstanding as was listening to Donnie sing. Cafe Scalessa is one of our favorite restaurants and have never been disappointed! read more

We ordered Baked salmon with roasted veg, mushrooms Linguini, Wild garlic soup with Tofu and Cole prawns Every dish was yum yum !! We finished off with Creme Brûlée, absolutely delicious Service was fantastic and ambiance very good read more

We had a amazing visit. Very good lunch crowd. Tess is an amazing bartender. Donnie is a good'ish singer. The pepperoni cheesesteak was perfectly balanced. Porchetta was too return for over and over. read more

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Went to dinner for our first time at Scalessa. Our dinner was delicious , we really enjoyed the calamari.

Great food!! Love the service and menu items. Lots of personality st this place The service is excellent! read more

Great food and service, never disappointed! Butter cake to die for! will return soon!!!! read more

Very busy when we arrived we had a reservation and was seated immediately. Highly recommended the food was hot and delicious the service was excellent. Highly recommend Scalessa's. read more

Food! Service! Atmosphere! All amazing and we will be back repeatedly. So glad this is in the n neighborhood (Pike Creek location) now! read more

The food is REALLY good. We've been here four times in the last six months . The only challenges it's very loud and they have TVs playing mafia movies, which may not be appropriate if you have younger people with you . I marked it as four because of the noise otherwise food is a five read more

We were fortunate to get a table without a reservation one Saturday night. The restaurant was just about filled to capacity. I ordered the Chicken Marsala and it was incredibly delicious. My wife had the rigatoni with sausage and she said it was outstanding, We had the Brussels sprouts for an appetizer and they were equally as great. The service was excellent and I was surprised how quickly our food was served. The only negative was that they had no beer on tap. read more

Service is super and friendly. All of their food is fresh and has and excellent taste, especially if you are craving good Italian food. Donnie Scalessa is a wonderful host and will accommodate your wishes. I highly recommend this new Italian restaurant!. Also, the ambiance is excellent. Darkly lite room, music and old movies playpen. read more

Just amazing. The food is the best I've ever had. I'm Italian and I know great Italian food and you have to come here. Don is simply the best at what he does. He's a perfectionist and I've never had a bad meal at both his locations. The service was great. The wait staff is friendly and personable. Adriana, our waitress was great, very friendly and attentive. Don, the owner entertained us with his singing. His hand is on everything which is why this place is so good. The food reminds me of when I was growing up. I've tried everything on the menu over the years and it's all 5 star quality. Joe from West Chester read more

Had an amazing Friday night dinner for our first visit there after discovering this gem looking for something new. The atmosphere and décor were inviting and comfortable. It got pretty busy and I was glad we made a reservation. Our server Mia was excellent, helping guide us to some delicious choices and explaining a bit of the history of the place. She was attentive, knowledgeable and engaging. We had the risotto balls appetizer which was a wonderful combination of perfect flavor and texture. I had Grandma's Sunday Gravy. The homemade rigatoni pasta alone was fantastic, complimented by the rich, meaty sauce and a couple tasty sausages. My daughter had Shrimp La Rosa which she loved. There are many things on the menu we look forward to trying on a future visit in the not too distant future. read more

I am a fan of Veal Parmigiana and Broccoli Rabe. Cafe Scalessa serves the BEST of both dishes. It has a wait staff that is attentive and alert. I love this restaurant! The owner is very friendly. read more

Had another great meal last evening. The lasagna was sooo good. My friends enjoyed the Veal parmigiana and seafood pescatore. Drinks were great and the tiramisu, just wow! Can't wait to go back! read more

Food and Service at Scalessa's is always excellent at both locations in Wilmington and Pike Creek. My favorite dishes are the Lasagna and the meatballs. 10/10 read more

The best pasta carbonara this side of Philadelphia. Price was $17, I had to look at the bill twice to make sure I had read that correctly. I don't live close by, but this is worth the drive. read more

Great food nice people. I called advance to get reservation and explain my situation. I take my 84 year old Father out to eat weekly. He has dementia and mobility issues. They were more than decent. They took the reservation. Even sat us by the door. The place is nice. Atmosphere good. Food was great. People could not have been nicer or more accomadating. Pop had raviolii. I had a gnocchi with crab meat delicious. We will definitely be back... read more

Cafe Scalessa - Dad & I enjoying our meal. - Italian Near Me - Wilmington, Delaware

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Great portions, service, and everything was delicious. Happy to check out the beautiful space. The butter cakes were divine! So good that I forgot to take a picture. read more

Cafe Scalessa - Chicken Scalessa - Italian Near Me - Wilmington, Delaware

I waited a long time to try this place because I assumed it was just "another Italian restaurant" in the area. My husband had been wanting to go, and I finally agreed. I'm so glad I did! This is the only Italian restaurant around here that has truly accommodated my dietary restrictions. I love eggplant parm and eggplant dishes in general, but every other restaurant insists on breading and frying them, and they refuse to make it the authentic way. Scalessa's actually listened. I ordered the eggplant stack where they usually flash fry the eggplant and they they accommodated my needs by just grilling it. It was absolutely delicious. They're also willing to prepare eggplant parm without frying or breading which is how a real Italian kitchen should be. Nothing here tastes pre-made, unlike some other places that batch-cook their eggplant parm in advance. I'm unable to eat fried and breaded due to GI condition. The service was excellent, and the food overall was fantastic. We shared the special crab dip, which was amazing. My husband ordered a gnocchi dish that was out of this world. The place is very loud and lively. You're definitely not going to get a romantic quiet evening here, but you will have a lot of fun. Thank you to the owner and the team for appreciating true Italian cooking and being so accommodating with dietary needs. We'll definitely be back! And thank you for not charging that obnoxious credit card fee restaurants are starting to do. read more

Fantastic food all homemade. The gnocchi in the chicken Marsala were amazing! Reasonable prices and a cute atmosphere

I've been wanting to eat at Cafe Scalessa's since they opened their new location in Pike Creek just 2 miles from my house. But I rarely eat out much when I'm here in DE as I cook a lot ‍. My friend brought me take-out from Cafe Scalessa's when she came over last night ... two meatball salads and eggplant parm. The meatball salad surprised me as I thought there would be just one meatball with it my salad ... but there were 2 gigantic meatballs!! So moist, tender and flavorful - BEST meatballs I've ever had!! And the dressing they paired with the salad was perfect and a great combo!! Their eggplant parm was equally OUTSTANDING - tender, flavorful and the gnocchi were PERFECTLY cooked ... Delizioso !! Cafe Scalessa's has my vote for Best DE Italian Restaurant !!! read more

made reservations for dinner, had The best experience! Cafe Scalessas excels in all categories: food is unbeatable, truly! service is attentive and knowledgable. Cannot recommend the shrimp la Rosa enough! Or the chicken Scalessa, omg I dream about this dish. Love it here! read more

I felt compelled to leave this review. This place is authentic Italian as only Scallessa's can offer. Everything is fresh and genuine, that is if you grew up truly Italian American. The owner, Donnie, is s great host and master of ceremonies. Food is fresh and genuine and served with a smile. I highly recommend! read more

Just ok....not what I was hoping for...maybe another time. Service was friendly and prompt.

Fantastic food and service. It's byob just FYI. Will definitely return very soon. Highly recommend

Authentic Italian food! Great atmosphere, wonderful service! Our new favorite restaurant m!

Incredible blush sauce, gnocchi, calamari, desserts are to die for Great live music Mia was our server and she was so sweet read more

Heard so many good things but unfortunately did not live up to expectation. The Eggplant Parmigiana while it had good flavor, was so loaded with cheese, I needed to remove the cheese to eat the little eggplant left. Literally insane amount of cheese in between every layer of eggplant and thicker than eggplant itself. The gnocchi was good. Chicken parmigiana and calamari were average. read more

Fantastic! Enjoyed the wedding soup and chicken marsala. Husband said the veal parmigiana was the best he had in a long time. Others at our table loved the red sauce. Very busy Saturday dinner, needing to wait about 15 minutes even with a reservation but worth it, and noise level was a little high but service was friendly and attentive. Will go back! read more

Cafe Scalessa is the best Italian food in the tri-state area, period! Attention to detail, original Italian recipes and other creative dishes. Donnie ensures his staff is on their toes! Love they are having a success! read more

The appetizer, calamari was tender and crisp on the outside. Our main meal we each had the chicken and veal scalessa. We had homemade gnocchi on the side. From start to finish the meal was full of flavor. The warm attentive service Rose gave us made us feel genuinely welcomed. The incredible food, excellent service, and welcoming atmosphere made for a perfect evening. We will be going back. read more