Great service, good food, great atmosphere. About two hours before we wanted to get dinner on a Friday night, we went online to see if a reservation was available, but the only options were immediately or hours later than what we wanted. We called and asked if we could walk in and they said they would hold a table for us in the back patio, and if a table opened up in the front they would seat us there. We got there about 10 minutes early and nothing up front was available so we got seated in the back patio. They said they would move us up if a table left soon. Thankfully, about five minutes later, we were able to relocate. No joke, that back patio is depressing if you see how bright the front room/patio is. I'm very thankful for our good luck. The food was great, and service was pretty attentive. Interestingly they serve different types of complimentary bread -- what you get is pretty much random. The shrimp barca appetizer was quite good. We got a bunch of pastas and the standouts were the pomodoro and vongole. The sangria was also pretty good. My daughter said she prefers this place to Piatti in La Jolla, which is a tradition for us whenever we visit. So they definitely want to return here when we come back. I'll have to remember to book a reservation early. read more

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A local spot with a great vibe and food. So easy to use a food delivery company and we get a uber discount, so we used it last night. Penne with vodka sauce a big hit and 2 for 1 meatball bucket also a nice deal. Here's the weird part and thus a four not a five star. We were charged $14 as a service fee!!!!! What for???? Might have to look elsewhere.... read more

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I visited Cicciotti's and had an average experience overall. The best part of this restaurant is its location. It is located right right along the coast. Food: For appetizer, we ordered calamari. It was nice and flavorful. The marinara sauce was good as well. For my meal, I ordered. Linguine alle Vongole. The pasta itself tasted good. However. the sauce was too sweet for me. Also, the portion size was small. Service: The service was average. Ambiance: This was the best part of our visit. The dining room had amazing ocean views. read more

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This place has an incredible location. We got there at sunset and it was spectacular. Designed like someone's house, this restaurant has a location just across the street from the beach. We sat in a room full of windows will the ocean across the street. We ordered some calamari and bread. I was looking forward to a glass of iced tea, but that's when things got weird. My iced tea was half filled with soda water, so I sent it back. The owner or manager told me they were having problems with the "gun" meaning the soda gun??? This was a huge red flag for me since they were giving me iced tea from a soda gun. What? Our bill for three people was way over $100, and they were giving me iced tea from a soda gun? Luna Grill brews fresh iced tea, but not Cicciottis? How can such a nice Italian Fine Dining restaurant not brew fresh iced tea? That is like giving me instant coffee at a steak house. The food came and it was okay. I was so rattled by the tea issue. If they are cutting corners and saving money by giving its customers soda gun iced tea, then where else are they cutting corners in the kitchen? It was just okay with me. I just can't get past the soda gun iced tea. Most fast food places like McDonalds, In and Out, Panda all brew their own tea. I just can't believe this place does not??? I will not return. read more

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I came here with my sister for lunch. We ordered the vegetarian pizza and a garden salad. The service was excellent and our server taught us a few Italian words like grazie and prego. The ambiance is beautiful. The restaurant is directly across the street from the beach so you get coastal views. I asked my sister how did she know about the restaurant and she said they have a wonderful happy hour. So I will definitely be going back to Cicciotti's real soon. read more

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We went for my son's 48th bday. It was an outstanding choice, parking and service were exceptional and the food was amazing! The bread was soft and the marinara sauce served with it was delicious. All our meals were different and we were all pleasantly surprised and enjoyed every bite. We plan to return very soon. The ocean view from the patio made the ambiance special. read more

My boyfriend's cousin hosted her birthday with her entire family (the poor staff, they did great). The food was really delicious! And automatic points for having gluten free options as an Italian restaurant. I ordered the house special that came with a bunch of seafood types and a vodka sauce, which was absolutely amazing. The food took quite a while to get to the table, which is COMPLETELY understandable from the sheer volume of people and the size of the restaurant and staffing. The only negative was, when the food came out - there were no scallops in all of the dishes for everyone who ordered the house special (there was about five of us and no one had scallops in the meal - which we were told it would have). read more

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Great tasty foods. Regulars know. Great Service Indoor seating with outdoor patio seating too. Views of the sunset possible. read more

Very good service and food ... even super stars go there from time to time like Paul McCartney ... I luv their pasta and the view is excellent read more

This Italian restaurant is kinda in a weird spot off the street that doesn't have the best parking. There's some dirt spots to pull into, if there's room and there's a little alley that supposedly has some spots as well. Just a note, it wasn't obvious to me, and I struggled a bit to find a spot after driving right past it. The menu is pretty extensive with quite a lot of different entrees, pasta dishes, seafood, and pizza. The dish I ordered was called Bandiera Italiana which was a sampler of 3 different pastas. A gnocchi, ravioli, and manicotti. Every item was extremely mediocre. The sauce on each pasta had minimal flavor. The gnocchi were too uniform in shape to be homemade, probably out of a package. The ravioli was bland all the way through to the cheese inside. The manicotti had a dried out ground meet stuffed inside, again not much flavor or seasoning. I doubt any of the pasta or sauces are actually homemade. Would not recommend ordering this plate at all. We sat outside and had a nice view of the water. Patio is pleasant with heaters. The inside of the restaurant has a warm vibe. There are a few different locations, so this place must be doing alright. With the extensive menu coming out of the kitchen, I imagine a lot of the dishes are going to end up with pre-prepped ingredients which is unfortunate. Maybe my dish of choice was a poor option to try. If I ever return I might try the chefs special for something more likely to be freshly prepared. read more

Cicciotti's - Gnocchi pesto, ravioli, manicotti - Italian Near Me - Cardiff By The Sea, California

Fine Italian dining in a casual, relaxed atmosphere. Love the location, a great place to enjoy dinner and the sunset. The service is always great and the food is delicious. My go to place for fine Italian food. I rarely get pizzas but their wood pizza oven does make crispy tasty pizza crust! Their wine selection is good and not too overpriced (for a restaurant). About the only downside is the parking as their lot is very small and the parking across the street on the dirt is limited as well. It does serve to limit the wait time and they take reservations. I like that when you pay the bring you the credit card machine so no one walks away with your card. read more

Waited no joke 2 hours for our food. Dont go on a weekend in the summer. Service was awful they way overbook

Cicciotti's has a dog friendly patio and specialty dishes that are absolutely delicious. The table bread is homemade and the portions are generous with quality ingredients. read more

I wanted to try something different and was craving Tagliatelle Bolognese. I thought, "what better place to order from than the italian spot that never seems to fail." It's truly never served a bad dish--despite my only ordering either the Vodka penne pasta or some variant of the Gnochi, or meat balls. Well, the Tagliatelle Bolognese was a betrayal. That was not good. Flavorless, in the ways I've know ciciotti's to always deliver on. The bolognese itself was not right, thinly coating the noodly, non al dente pasta. What we want is rich and flavorful, that's all. Nice meat chunks on an al dente pasta. I'll update again soon, you guys are way better than that! I'm not giving it a worse rating because I like the other stuff, but that was surprisingly off. Definitely stick with the gnochi, meatballs and vodka (even the cardiff 101 is great). read more

I came here with not only my wife, but another couple as well. We all enjoyed food and drinks ranging from martinis to old fashions. All of us decided to try different plates along with a couple appetizers, and every single thing was delicious. There was not a single complaint amongst us beyond not having enough room to eat more. Our server was super accommodating and informative with the menu selection and drink options. Definitely went above and beyond with us. One of the best things was the seating options along with the location of the restaurant. The ambience being a slightly chill, relaxed, family environment. I definitely will be back and cannot recommend this place enough. Looking forward to seeing what I get next. read more

Cicciotti's - Seafood vodka sauce penne pasta. - Italian Near Me - Cardiff By The Sea, California

EXCELLENT food AMAZING FIVE star service. Location is a bonus. Especially during summer months. Entire team is beyond FABULOUS!!! We have been coming here more than 12 years now. Highly recommend this place. read more

Tonight we waited 42 minutes for our food. About 35 minutes in, we asked the busser about it, and the waiter finally came over just to tell us it was a busy night. From the beginning, service was disappointing. We had to wave the waiter down just to place our order, and he quickly walked away without even asking if we were finished ordering. We actually wanted drinks too, but since he left so quickly, we never got the chance to order them. Meanwhile, every nearby table received their food except us -- until we asked again. Honestly, it felt like our order was forgotten. On top of that, the waiter never once checked on our table throughout the night. The only positives was the live singer and the hostess, who were both great. We are not sure if the discrimination left a bad taste in our mouth and made the food taste bland. read more

This is one of my favourite places in San Diego. The food is always fresh and the taste is always amazing. The service is very professional and the staff is always very sweet and helps guide through the menu. The vibes are great, ocean view, and they often bring a pianist in the evenings. I highly recommend this place. Food recommendations: chicken cacciatore, vodka pasta with chicken, and margarita pizza. read more

This place is Amazing everything Food service wine Location Visit this location by the beach read more

Cicciotti's was amazing the food was great but the Deserts are on another level it was the best experience ever had in a long time the service was also great the salmon was great. What ever you do GET THE DESERTS! read more

We went for a late lunch/early dinner on a Friday at 3:00. It wasn't very busy. The service was excellent. My husband had redress the lobster & shrimp ravioli and I ordered the cannelloni- both were so delicious and generous portions. The complementary bread with bruschetta sauce were good also. We ordered dessert (crème brûlée & gelato that were so good. The view is excellent of the ocean. Parking can be challenging, but there was some across the street. This is a gem for an Italian restaurant near the coast . One of our favorite restaurants. read more

Cicciotti's - Cannellini- a favorite - Italian Near Me - Cardiff By The Sea, California

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On Sunday 12MAY2024, my girlfriend, her mom, her grandparents and I came here for lunch around 1230/1300. They have all been here before and it was my first time, I stepped out of my comfort zone and agreed to come along. I was skeptical about this place at first but was definitely blown away! The FOOD: there was so many options, I decided to go with the Mistro Di Carne Alla Brace. Everything about the plate exceeded my expectations and I was left speechless when asked my dish was. The dark sauce was a little bit much but I still loved it! The cappuccino was on point, not too hot and not too cold, but just right! The SERVICE: Our server was very nice, welcoming, and friendly. He greeted us and served us with a smile and checked on us frequently. We joked about not getting hearts on the cappuccino foam and had good laughs. The AMBIANCE: the restaurant overseas the ocean which is a great view if you're in the main lobby area. The tarp roofing was questionable IMO but still enjoyed my time there. The bathrooms are detached from the restaurant which I found to be interesting but uniquely different. The handicap ramp is on the backside of the restaurant. Overall, this place was nothing less than amazing! I noticed the extending seating area is also partially used as a storage as well with the flag poles I saw. The extended seating area could use some cleaning but considering how it wasn't occupied it made sense but it could be cleaned up IMO. There is parking in the front on the street and in the back as well. Overall rating: 8.5 of 10. read more

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Osmar is an incredible person! Service was great, he had great recommendations, and made us feel so welcome! Food was fantastic as well.

This restaurant is always a wonderful experience! Great customer service and you could never go wrong with any item here. All of the food is amazing and so are the people!!! Don't miss this vibe read more

Cicciotti's - Cannelloni - Italian Near Me - Cardiff By The Sea, California

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Love the outdoor patio. Great fish dishes and good drinks. Across from ocean so beautiful sunset views.

I recently wrote a review about a negative experience we had this past weekend but the owner reached out and has made me want to write again! The owner was very sincere in his apology and took my review very much to heart so that is a big deal and means a lot! Thank you Gae for your professional and caring concern ... it made a big difference! read more

Very good food and good portions. The manager of the restaurant was very accommodating.

The food was delicious the pasta and the pizza was amazing ! What I loved most was the ambiance and the service! It's been awhile where the service has been something to rave about and this place has it all ! read more

Cicciotti's - Italian Near Me - Cardiff By The Sea, California

CC's has a great happy hour! The oysters are $1.50 each and the flatbreads/pizzas are tasty. CCs comes with a view, so come at sunset but not on a hot day or you'll leave burnt. Overall, a good place to go. read more

Wonderful food! Great views! Amazing service! Taking friends there tomorrow night! Excited! read more

Quite possibly the most disgusting spaghetti I've ever tasted. How do you get spaghetti wrong??!!! Basically mush over-cooked noodles in paste. Stomach ache was nearly instantaneous. Horrible. read more

Cicciotti's - Disturbingly stale mushy nasty pasta, with crappy pasty sauce. - Italian Near Me - Cardiff By The Sea, California

We had lunch yesterday. It was a beautiful day and we sat by the patio which is overlooking the ocean. The warm bread and marinara dipping sauce were so good. Both pastas that we ordered were very flavorful. The Pappardelle Sausage Funghi Tartufati had a lot of sausage and porccini mushrooms. The Linguine Alla Genovese Di Mare had bay scallops, huge shrimp, and creamy brandy pesto sauce. Our server is nice and friendly. We will be back. read more

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Yum ... my wife and I have heard good things of Cicciotti from neighbors with raves of lots of food choices making the what are you going to choose hard. I stayed with my focus to choose linguine alla genovese di mare ... which was amazing. Now, the tables around us I saw meal after meal being delivered that looked amazing. You have to go here and good luck making your choice of what to eat. Restaurant location and Atmosphere and the Cicciotti restaurant team were great! read more

Cicciotti's - Linguine alla Genovese di Mare - Italian Near Me - Cardiff By The Sea, California

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Recently visited Cicciotti's again for the third time. Unfortunately, I wasn't impressed this time around. Location is nice with an ocean view. Service was good. Portion size was small for my lasagna. The sauce was too acidic for my liking. Spaghetti with class sauce please very garlicky with a very strong white wine taste. IMHO prices are high for what you get. read more

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Ambiance - what a view and plenty of seating to see the view Food - amazing and tastes like Italy. We got bread and tomatoes for free. We also got brushetta, margaritas pizza, and Spaghetti with marina..so good..Plenty of food. Love the sweet flavor and freshness. read more

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Cute spot right in Cardiff. We've lived here for a few years and finally had a chance to try it out. Staff was friendly... very casual. We started with the Calamari and Zucchini Fritti - this was really good. We both enjoyed it. We also received bread as a started and that was also yummy. My husband ordered the fettuccini Alfredo with chicken. It lacked a lot of flavor, and he had to add a good amount of salt... so that was a bummer. I ordered the Gnocchi Al Gorgonzola- it was ok. I also added the pesto and didn't care for the big walnut chunks In it. We got a tirimisu to go... and that was really good too. I recommend going at sunset and sitting outside (bring some sunnies, it gets bright :) Enjoy! read more

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I came to this restaurant years ago, and back then it was decent -- not five or even four stars, but solid and enjoyable. Sadly, it has gone completely downhill. The food quality has dropped so much it feels like they're relying on the nice view instead of actually caring about the food. My sister got sick that night, and both my daughter and I felt unwell as well. I reached out to the owner, and he was incredibly rude in his response. I've never written a bad review before (you can check my history), but this experience was just disappointing and sad to see how far this place has fallen. read more

The server provided a beautiful experience and I truly enjoyed the flavors of everything we had! A yummy place indeed and will return!

Delicious gluten free options and fast service. Very friendly atmosphere and great food for sure

Amazing!! Service, ambiance, and music are always a fun time. We come here all the time and can expect great food and a great experience consistently. read more