Donn D.

What a huge disappointment this place was. I suppose I should know better than to get Italian food from a place called Dave's. I mean that's like expecting authentic Mexican food from a place called Steve's Taco Truck. When you walk in the first thing you will notice is the contemporary look. It feels more like a college cafeteria than an Italian restaurant; warm but devoid of any personality aside from the huge 'Welcome To Gilbert' mural on the wall. They do have a well stocked bar, but when we arrived at 12:30 every table was vacant save one. Despite the great reviews this should have been our second warning. I did see in the Yelp photo's that the garlic bread was captioned as terrible, but my daughter wanted to try it so we gave it a shot. One bite and she was like "Nope". It had the thinnest layer on cheese on top and was super dense and unyielding. Moving on to the spaghetti and meatballs. My Munchkin immediate identified the meatballs as Sysco or some similar food service fare. The sauce was okay but not fresh by any measurable degree. I had the thinnest Chicken Parm ever, covered in sauce and mozzarella cheese which couldn't disguise the blandness of the chicken no matter hard it tried. Nothing about the food said fresh ingredients. We both ate about four bites and decided we were done and would head over to Oregano's. To be fair, the waitress (no personality) did take the garlic bread off the bill, but when I asked for the bill and said we didn't want to go containers for the full plates of food didn't even bat an eye like she expected as much. This place lured us in with good reviews and how busy it looks on the weekends. If our experience is any indication I give it six months tops before going under unless they do a complete overhaul from the top down.

Denise M.

My son was in the mood for Italian food, so I do search for Italian restaurants near us. Dave's Italian Eatery popped up. The menu online looks promising, and it's very close to our home, so we decided to give it a try. This place is very bright and fresh looking, for lack of a better description. There's a bar, and a really great mural. There's an entire wall of banqettes, and some tables in the second room which is divided only by a half wall. There are some walls which I thought had exposed brick, but later noticed were wall boards. Either way, I love the look. We were seated right away and the nicest server came over. He really seems to love the restaurant and love the food, which is always a plus in my book. The boys each got a beer, and I got the Italian margarita. It was a sweet drink that kind of tasted like an Amaretto Sour, which makes sense since there's Amaretto in it. I liked it. They brought gigantic rolls with butter to the table. I really liked it because most places serve sourdough bread, and I don't really like sourdough bread. These large white rolls were yummy. I wasn't very hungry so I just ordered two meatballs, but I asked if I could have the meat sauce instead of the marinara that it usually comes with. Our server said there would be no problem with that, and there wasn't. Hubby got the spaghetti and meatballs, and son got eggplant parmesan. All of it was delicious and I give kudos for a really yummy meat sauce. For me, the meat sauce can make or break an Italian restaurant. They seem to do a pretty brisk take out business, and there were quite a few people by the time we left. I would love to come back and try the pizza, because pizzas that we saw coming out looked fantastic.

Ryler W.

Service was amazing Adyson was super friendly and had the best suggestions! It's so unassuming from the outside yet so cute and clean on the inside! And coming from a Arizona boy the Italian good was amazing

Raman S.

Pizza was doughy and seemed like the dough has not risen properly, the dough was undercooked.

Cara T.

Who said nothing is for free? Not Dave's! Their Grand Opening event was yesterday from 12-4 offering Free Pasta!! This is the second Italian Spot in Gilbert from restaurateur David Bhatti, who also owns Eatalio Pasta & Wine. His beautiful family was there in support of this event and we even meet most of them. Additionally, Dave's father is the owner of an Italian eatery in Southern California that's been in business over 40 years! It was fairly busy when we arrived. A line had formed down the sidewalk. However, it went pretty quickly as the food was set up buffet style- outside. They had seating inside and out as well as a DJ, face painting, raffle and prizes. They served their spaghetti, fried ravioli's & penne alla vodka. All of it was tasty! We were not able to sit inside as it was packed, but we were able to get a table out front near the music. We stayed a few hours and waited for the raffle that was held at 2 PM. Well worth the wait as we ended up winning a nice Soundcore boom box! The menu consists of more great italian dishes. Numerous pastas, chicken entrées and firestone pizza such as the unique combination of their "fig and pig" pie. Look forward to coming back and exploring more of their Italian cuisine.

Carla N.

Hubby & I had dinner here last night. We were seated right away. They brought out 2 rolls with butter. Neither one of us liked the rolls. They were crusty on the outside, but softer in the middle. They were dry even with butter. Hubby ordered a beer on draft. I had red Sangria. The sangria was good. We ordered garlic bread. Hubby got a house salad & spaghetti & meatballs. I got chicken par, but Alfredo on the pene noodles. Our server let us know the kitchen missed the garlic bread. She asked if it was okay to bring it out with our food, which we were fine with. The garlic bread ended up coming out after our meals. It was not good. It didn't seem cooked at all. The bottom pieces were dense & just off. Hubby did not like his spaghetti & meatballs. He said the sauce was watery (maybe from the noodles) & was flavor less. I did not like my dinner either. It was not hot. The chicken was dry & the sauces did not have flavor. The Alfredo was very bland. We had a lot of food left because neither one of us ate much. Our server asked us twice if we wanted to go containers & we declined both times. She ask if we liked our dinner. Hubby told her no. She was very concerned. She offered us a free dessert, but we declined. She apologized multiple times. I told her it was not her fault. She had us write our name & phone number on the receipt. She said she w give it to the owners in hopes they would do something for us. We have not heard from them yet. They seem to do pretty good business, but it was not for us.

Mark M.

We stopped in for the soft opening and couldn't be happier to finally have a great Italian spot so close to home! The atmosphere is warm and inviting, with super comfortable seating and a beautiful bar. I went with the homemade gnocchi--absolutely outstanding, some of the best I've ever had. My wife ordered the spaghetti and meatballs, and those homemade meatballs were incredible. We also shared a pizza and were blown away by the crust and the perfectly balanced sauce. Whatever you do, save room for the cannoli--they're phenomenal. Service was top-notch from start to finish. Jaz and David were genuinely welcoming and made the whole experience even better. We're already counting down the days until we go back! Highly recommend.

Adam L.

Tried Dave's for lunch after hearing good things. Unfortunately, I couldn't find many positive things to say about Dave's. To me, it felt like Dave's wasn't making much of an effort. We had the Caesar salad, fried mozzarella, Cajun chicken pasta, and pepperoni pizza. Nothing was particularly good or memorable. My biggest pain point is the Cajun pasta. The alfredo sauce lacked any richness or seasoning whatsoever. It was watery and bland. The chicken was way overcooked. Overall, for a "Cajun" dish, the entire thing was wholly under seasoned, disappointing, and damn near $20. 2.5/5, I won't be returning anytime soon.

Kim S.

If you know me, you know, I love to check out a new local Mom and pop shop. I stopped into Dave's Italian eatery to check out their menu and pick up a couple items to go. I ordered a caprese salad and a kids spaghetti. Absolutely delicious. I must come back and try the gnocchi Happy Hour will be starting after Thanksgiving on drinks and appetizers

Sean B.

My replacement for Dunkin for the same price while supporting a local restaurant!! Got just the morning special breakfast sandwich with added bacon and a larger coffee. My favorite breakfast morning routine before hitting the road for work.

Rox R.

The food is delish and the employees are extremely nice. Very attentive to anything we needed and also have great recommendations. I had the Cajun chicken penne Alfredo. I would have liked for them to incorporate the Cajun in the sauce and not just sprinkle the top with old bay seasoning. We also had the mozzarella sticks which were little squares of mozzarella perfection with amazing pull. The sauce to dip them in was also great and could taste the fresh tomatoes also tried the vodka pasta and chicken parm. All dishes are huge portions so come hungry.

Joe D.

Grand opening today.Free Italian buffet, live DJ, raffle, and prizes, The food is all very good. It came out hot and fresh. Staff is friendly. The restaurant is very busy with a huge turnout of people to celebrate the opening. The inside is very spacious with plenty of seating.

Vinny D.

Small, casual neighborhood joint serving very good Italian dishes. The staff are really friendly and accommodating!!! The music that is playing adds to the Italian vibe. The pizza was cooked properly and the ingredients were fresh. The pasta was cooked perfectly and seasoned very well. They have a little bar and happy hour which is nice and some great appetizers. The arancini were very good too!!! We spoke to the two of the owner brothers, Harvey and Jazz and they were very nice! Our bartender Tricia was awesome!! Definitely a new dinner option in our area!!!