The garlic chicken pizza is the best I have ever had. The service was a little slow, but they were quite busy and let us know they were trying to be quick. The reason we keep coming back is the service. They make you feel like family, and the food is outstanding. read more

Truly, truly foul. The absolute worst food in the Portland area. No clue why anyone would go here. I like low-brow, dirty Italian as much as anyone, but this looks and tastes like a compost pile. And this slop can cost as much as $18.99 for an entree! Please, please..... someone e-mail me and explain why anyone with half a taste bud would even get within 10 miles of this place. read more

This family run place is a nice little gem when I'm in the mood. Its bread & butter is traditional old-school northern red/white sauce dishes, and pizza. Though the prices are a bit steep, the portions are decent and I always feel like a got a nice home-cooked hearty meal. I recommend getting the soup & antipasto patter addition to the meal. Also, not sure if they still do, but at one time they had all-you-can-eat weekday specials. Those specials are great carbo-binges on a cold rainy Portland night. Support local and give this family run institution a whirl! Note: If you want lighter seafood/vegetable based southern Italian, this likely isn't your jam. read more

This place used to be so much better! As a matter of fact, we were recommending people make the drive even from Vancouver WA, because the food WAS really good. Not anymore! We ate there just a few days ago. Plus: The bread is warm and good. Negs: Food ...meh! For $23 the Veal was tough, overcooked, dry. Tasted like they had reheated it in the oven a few times. The tiny amount of marinara sauce they give you on the pasta tasted like some average sauce out of a jar. The Linguine with clam sauce was maybe 2.6 out of 5. We are still looking for a great Italian restaurant that is not a chain in the Portland or Vancouver area. So far Olive Garden is the best and Ive had much better, but haven't found anything great in this area. read more

Now I wanted to give this a five star review. I really did. I remember going here as but a young boy 2 decades ago. But the food here really brought me down like the thought of my own mortality from saying I haven't been here in two decades. The premise was good, a family owned Italian restaurant. But, I was expecting authentic Italian flavors. What I received was like your friend who studied abroad in Italy for a semester and told you about Italian food and you tried to approximate it. The ravioli was on par with Chef Boyardi. Now I love Chef Boyardi. But I can also buy Chef Boyardi 4 for $1 at Winco. Let me be clear, I gleam zero pleasure from writing this. I wanted to like this food so badly. I love chicken parmigiana. But this one had so little flavor. No matter how much pepper and Parmesan cheese I put on it, it just didn't live up to expectations. The bread is really what got me. Like I can go go to Safeway and get a whole loaf of French garlic bread for $3. What I got was a handful of slices of plain French bread that was clearly from Safeway. Now, if you're gonna try and get one over on me I am 100% not mad as long as you're clever about it. But there was zero effort put into fooling me. 10/10 will try again in another two decades. read more

This place is in an odd location, but convenient if you want titties with your tortellini. Also, it's not pretentious. I am so sick of this pretentious Portland Italian fare. Just feed me some heavy granny Italian food and shut up. Me dare cibo! It's good for all-you-can-eat spaghetti and baked things. No one should be charging $15+ for spaghetti. It's blasphemy. Their cheesy bread, pizzas, panzerotti (calzone) and chicken piccata are actually very good. I also love their Italian sodas. This is like your nonna's kitchen, but I always hear: "So what, no f**kin' ziti now?" read more

Some of these reviews make me want to freak out on your hipster asses. This is an authentically eastcoast Italian food, that definition means that it is composed of Sysco products and lots of cheese, they are not claiming to grow this stuff in the back. I always get the Ravioli with Mezza sauce baked with cheese, and it's always epic. read more

DeNicola's Restaurant - Ravioli baked with Mezza sauce - Italian Near Me - Portland, Oregon

I love this place. Not making any claims to fancy, but truly itself - their baked cheese covered pastas are sometimes the only thing that hits the spot. If you're just looking for yummy, filling, big portion comfort italian food, this is the neighborhood joint to hit up. read more

We chose this DeNicola's because they have $5 coupons on Restaurants.com for $2. I know $3 isn't a huge savings, but it's a beer...and that's something! Unable to ever make a decision, I suggested we both order something different and share. We chose the chicken Fettuccine Alfredo and the meat Lasagna. We also got salad sides for $2.50 each. When you order that, you get a plate of meats and cheeses and basket of bread. Our eyes were definitely bigger than our stomachs because that was far too much food for the 2 of us, even if my date is 6' 3" and could normally eat a horse. I preferred the lasagna because it had more kick. The fettuccine was good but the sauce was a bit mild for my taste buds - which have probably been destroyed by all the spicy foods I eat. However; I could really appreciate how many large chunks of chicken were in it. Lastly, the decor is a little dated but at least you feel it is authentic and not a large chain with the latest faux Italian design. The wood ceiling and beams were lovely and there was a charm to this place that makes it desirable. I would say that is a great place for a family or a dinner date. The prices weren't that bad either, because with 3 beers and all that food, our bill only came to $30 (after the $5 online coupon). read more

There is a sign outside of Denicola's that says something along the lines of you've driven by hundreds of times and now it is time to stop in. True, many of us have probably driven by hundreds if not thousands of times. Denicola's has been here since 1978. When I find out that a place has been in business for 33 years, I need to know about it. A coupon for pizza brought me here. On the coupon it said "Best Pizza in Portland". How anybody anywhere can claim to be the best of anything is beyond me. Best is subjective. What might be the best to me could be the worst for you. Or vice versa. I'm always interested in trying new pizza in this town so I took the long walk out to Powell and got a large pie to take home with me. The coupon was for a large one topping and I chose to get my cheese pie with salami. First off. In my opinion it isn't the best pizza in Portland. They claim east coast style pizza. Close, but not so close. Not a bad pie. The cheese seemed a bit off and it didn't have enough sauce, but aside from that it isn't a bad pie. They definitely didn't skimp on the meat as you can see from the photo I took. Anyway, I see some bad reviews for this place. I think I'd still like to come back and try some of their entree's. Everyone is entitled to their opinions. That is one reason Yelp why exists. read more

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I've Been coming to DeNicolas since I was a little kid, still the most amazing pizza & best Italian food in Portland as far as I'm concerned. Warm & welcoming, this place is rustic, authentic, and is your classic, basic, Not overly complicated or fancy attempts at Italian Food, just great Pizza & Pasta. They know what they're doing after 40+ years, and Nailing it, day in & day out. I love this place and look forward to every visit! When all other Italian food in Portland gets too complicated & lets you down & is nothing but a cool trendy location (speaking from experience)... you can "come home" to DeNicolas. GREAT food, great service fair price. WIN! read more

My family has always spoken really highly of this place. Mainly due to the food. We came in tonight had a very mediocre experience. The woman serving us, a taller, bigger lady with a arm tattoo of a fish was NOT pleasant. She has a sour demeanor the moment she came out. She gave us the wrong dressing first and was very rude when we mentioned it. Then she basically threw the straws at us. She let our drinks get empty and when we asked for refills (we had to ask, she didn't notice even though she came over two different times) and it took her about 20 minutes to send the hostess over with them. The bags we got for our boxes were glued shut and when we opened them they ripped entirely down the middle???? Very odd. Also. I ordered to go food which they had forgotten. Then they bring out one of my items but not the other. Then I ask for a bigger to go bag, one that isn't paper and she said they don't have any. I've never been somewhere that didn't have to go bags.. wow. Food was good. That's for sure, but service wasn't. Since this is a family restaurant I'm saddened they don't have more warm and friendly servers. However, the hostess, a tall girl with dark hair in puma shoes was very nice and pleasant. read more

Great Old Fashioned Italian Restaurant! Donata and her family continue the fine tradition started by her parents. Everything is wonderful. I have never had a bad meal here...ever! read more

This experience was so good for us that I'm compelled to give them 4 stars. From the minute we walked in until the minute we left, we were well taken care of and treated like royalty. We were greeted and seated immediately upon walking in the door and taken to a nice end booth. Lots of wood and high backs on those booths, offering an air of privacy. You could have a conversation with your mate without fear of being heard by your neighbor. Immediately after sitting down we were brought water, including a pitcher of ice water for refills. I ordered a glass of Pino Grigio, a delectable variety whose flavor exploded in my mouth like no other Pino I've ever had. It was nicely chilled and frankly, good. Bread arrived immediately, including that nifty little focaccia bruschetta kinda thing they have going on. Gluten Free Pasta options, mostly penne which I had served with a Marinara sauce that was really very good. Linguini with clams. Yum! Well, I guess this place has none of the swank we might be looking for in classic Italian dining. I don't think it's supposed to be fine dining and I don't think they hold it out as such. The service was impeccable, prompt, friendly, and spot on in every way possible. Once all the niceties were taken care of there was no hovering and the server checked on us to make sure we were OK. The food is more than acceptable, beyond mediocre, and better than a lot of other more upscale places I've been too. This one is on the list. Oh yeah, one last thing. Very light music in the background. If you like Frank, you'll like this. read more

This place is a gem!! Great food good clean booths awesome atmosphere. Had the combo pizza tonight was delicious. Nice thick crust and fresh ingredients. I've had most items on the menu and have never been disappointed. Would highly recommend if you like Italian food!! read more

Amazing meatballs. The meatball parmesean comes out looking like a pizza, avoid it. would be better if they had an organic pasta option. good sauce. very east coast grandma decor. could be amazing. read more

Honestly wanted to enjoy this place because it's such a hole in the wall, family owned joint. But what is advertised and what we actually got speaks for itself in the pictures. I really enjoy PDX pizza week because it gets me to try out new places I'd otherwise might not come across. Unfortunately, I will not be coming back. Service was poor as well. read more

DeNicola's Restaurant - What you get- reheated mehhh - Italian Near Me - Portland, Oregon

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Horrible service, we ordered 2 entrees, only received one item correctly - I mean how do you leave the the chicken off a $25 chicken fettuccini alfredo? When we called the restaurant to ask if we could get the correct item, they said "no - we've been busy and are done for the night" and punted us back to Postmates. Business must be awesome - we'll never support them again. read more

I'd always passed this place driving to and from downtown,I was curious but after working in Italian restaurants for 10+ years Im quite picky. I purchased a groupon and though what the hell!Im so glad I did amazing service our waitress Alana after hearing it was our first time made our whole evening special!Its refreshing to have a great server these days. We had a great antipasto plate,an amazing house salad that had a vinaigrette that was so delicious.Wine list was decent.We shared the gnocchi with meat sauce and eggplant parmigiana.I am not kidding when I say the eggplant Parmesan was the best I've ever had.I was perplexed at first why it was such thick slices of eggplant but was soon was amazed by the melt in your mouth texture.The gnocchi was good but not great,but I will definitely be coming back.So glad this gem is right down the road from me! read more

DeNicola's Restaurant - Eggplant Parmesan,Gnocchi with meat sauce and cheese ravioli in marinara - Italian Near Me - Portland, Oregon

I would give 3.5 stars if I could. Look, this is not a fancy place. It is a no-frills experience. You come here for decent quality large portions of hearty, saucy pasta. I was going to give four stars but I would've liked to see a little more effort from the restaurant. Like the bread they give with the meal was seriously low quality and the pasta is always cooked to the point of not requiring teeth to chew. The ravioli was SO soft and the filling tasted like low quality/store bought. However, I REALLY like their tomato sauce. It's super acidic and tomato-y in a very satisfying way. I also recommend the mezza mezza sauce, which is reminiscent of a vodka sauce. From what I've ordered so far I'd most recommend the spaghetti and meatballs. read more

I have no idea if the food is good or not since the "Manager" of the establishment could not spend 5 seconds of his time to find my order that I sent in two hours previously on my laptop at home. I could not remember which grub hub type site I ordered it from and when I told him that, he would not look for the items by what food items I ordered or go through the orders that were ready-just became obstinate and insulting Telling me he would wait on more "technologically capable" customers. Is that how society is now-not technologically astute so NO FOOD FOR YOU -with apolofies to Seinfeld. Do you even know what a Huddite is? Paid on line-get a text that the food is ready-go to=get to restaurant- and because I did not have a receipt, on my laptop at home, and did not know the name of the site, he just could not be bothered to get my food. Too much work and I think I might have upset his tender feelings when I said this is "F%^&(*& crazy". Hope and pryaers he will recover. I am sorry, but when I pay money for an item-you tell me it is ready, then you do not diegn to do a simple search for my food because of my faulty memory is bad-well that sure is service. Enjoy my $33.00 and the meal I ordered. read more

As I look through the reviews for DeNicola's, I get it -- both the praise and the criticism. But for me, they still get 4 stars. The food (when dining in) has always been excellent. I am possibly addicted to their Manicotti and my husband is a huge fan of their Chicken Parmigiana (and he always asks for a different style pasta on the side, which they've always happily substituted). We have had to go order mix ups (like one that we were charged for but didn't "come through" so we had to wait 30 minutes while they made it for us (and forgot a few things.) And, to me, it does seem a bit over-priced. Not terribly, though. And I'd much rather spend a little extra here then get a "deal" at some chain Italian restaurant, that's for sure. I love the family vibe, and we will come back, again and again! read more

Order door dash. Dodged the bad service everyone talks about. Food arrived hot which was good. Mediocre food. I had the spaghetti ravioli combo plate. Meh. Worst part of the meal was the cannoli we ordered. I had never had a cannoli. I took a bite and my fiancé said "you don't have to eat it if you don't like it". She had a bite and couldn't finish it. What's wrong with this cannoli?!? Needless to say, the experience went from meh to blech. read more

Was completely disappointed with the pizza I ordered from here yesterday their quality has went way downhill. For starters the crust was literally almost a half an inch thick and was like biting into cardboard horrible flavor Way too thick. they used enough dough to make four pizzas. There was hardly any pizza sauce on the pizza which made it even worse because it was just dried out. the toppings like the olives and sausage that were supposed to be for a combination we're just kind of piled up in the middle of the pizza instead of spread out like it should be. If this is the type of quality that they are going to have now I will not be eating here again I used to like their combinations but after my experience probably will not eat here again read more

i received a couple of gift cards for Christmas each of them for $25.00 not only can you not use them both at the same time, you can only use $5.00 at a time. when I called to get information and was planning on putting an order the woman I spoke with was rude and had terrible customer service. I will never patron this place. read more

Some items were good, some were flavorless. Got the spaghetti aglio olio and it tasted like plain noodles. My partner got the Alfredo which was better. read more

The food was delicious, It's got so much flavor it tastes like mom made it. DeNicolas is truly the best Italian restaurant in the Portland area! I drive in from Estacada which is 55 minutes one way , Its definitely worth it . The service was outstanding, She was friendly and made sure my order was correct before I left. Thank You for a wonderful experience. read more

I enjoyed going on here for dinner it wasn't too bad. It's a basic Italian place, the salad was okay the dinner was okay as well. read more

DeNicola's Restaurant - Looking forward to some Alfredo - Italian Near Me - Portland, Oregon

I've had solid Italian comfort food in the restaurant on several occasions, admittedly years ago though. Decided to try their pizza for the first time, and ordered through GrubHub. It arrived lukewarm, with lukewarm soda (unsure if this was the restaurant or delivery's doing, or combo). The crust was too thick and lacked any flavor. Sauce and cheese were fine, nothing special. Toppings were abundant, but seemed thrown on after the fact and barely cooked- the onion was pretty much raw. Not sure if it was because we ordered a little over an hour before closing, or had it delivered that brought the quality down or if this is just how they make their pizza. I won't be trying it again. I may return for their pasta, which I remember much more fondlyZ read more

DeNicola's Restaurant - Pizza was covered in toppings, but they were too heavy and they seemed thrown on at the end, not cooked on. - Italian Near Me - Portland, Oregon

Forgot about this place for a few years (Portland has so many good places to eat!) but we tried it again a few months back. We REALLY liked their meat sauce. My daughter and I usually split two dinners. One of them is always the cheese ravioli with meat sauce. They also have some nights when they have all you can eat spaghetti for a really good price. Try it, you'll like it! read more

The pizza is extremely overcooked. It's nice big crust. But only looks good in a picture. The crust is as hard as a rock. Topping are cheapest quality they can buy. And taste gross read more

Male staff was super friendly and nice. Made a mistake with a order and he fixed it and was very nice about it. The food was good. Definitely order the salad and antipasto. The antipasto was salami, pepperoni, cheese, and pepperchinis. The bread was warm, soft, and yummy. Pasta was about average but was nice to try the gnocchi. They do an all you can eat pasta, sun-tue for $8.95. read more

Hey this place is so underrated I mean wow this is old school Italian food! You new foodies that don't know crap chasing the hype fools probably wouldn't appreciate a gem like this top 5 Italian restaurants in Portland. The staff is very nice old school place you can tell that the regulars have keep them alive because they stay consistent. I have never went there and the food wasn't spot on. Do you're self a favor and order that clam linguine with the white sauce! OMG trust me I'm the best food critic in Oregon this is something special never play you're self. I love how they give u breads cheese and meats as appetizers this is a Portland Gem you gotta appreciate places like this because there is not a lot of them still around and ain't no telling how long it will be here for this is a taste of old Portland you can only get here. read more

DeNicola's Restaurant - Italian Near Me - Portland, Oregon

It has taken me a very long time to write this review, because every time I hear about this restaurant, My blood pressure shoots up through the roof! A few years ago, my husband and I, took my family to DeNicolas. My husband and I USED TO LOVE this place, and wanted to take my visiting family to a nice, 'Mom, and Pop,' restaurant. Prior to going to the restaurant, I had to cash my payroll check, to pay my rent. I had $434.00 in a US BANK envelope on my person. I also had $80, to pay for the meal. We were crunched for time. The waiter, (Tall, Skinny, Olive complexion, with black hair), gave us our check, which was only $60.00. I put down the $80, because I thought he did a pretty good job. We got up, and left. 5 minutes later, we were a few miles away, and, I realized that I left the food, AND MY RENT MONEY on the table. I immediately called and spoke with a manager, who said the table had been cleaned, and they would look for it. I asked if she knew who cleaned the table. she named the tall, skinny waiter, who served us. We drove immediately back to the restaurant, and spoke with the manager: an older blond lady. I was hysterically sobbing. I asked her, if I could please speak with the waiter, because he was the ONLY person at our table. He served us. He cleaned the table. The manager says, "OH, HE WOULD NEVER DO THAT! HE IS SUCH A GOOD KID!" Suddenly I glance in the back, and see the waiter, who cleaned the table walking back to his station. He takes one look at me, turns around and RUNS to the back... All the while, this blond manager is defending this kid, who STOLE MY RENT MONEY! A few payday loans later, I lived through it... but I will NEVER, EVER, EVER, eat at DeNicola's again. I will make sure my friends, and family don't eat at DeNicola's again.... I would rather eat cold, Congealed Fancy Feast, in an Aspic of Butt Sweat. Eat here, if you want a Thief for a Waiter! read more

My husband got a large combo pizza to go this evening. We noticed after he got home the pizza dough was not cooked all the way inside. It was still uncooked/raw under the toppings. Totally wasted $25. I wouldn't plan to go back here anytime soon. Sorry, I really wanted to like this place being our first time, but could have found better pizza elsewhere. read more

DeNicola's Restaurant - Italian Near Me - Portland, Oregon

My girlfriend and I really love Italian food and we love getting it whenever we travel out of town. We decided to get DeNicola's and it was a great choice. The pizza was honestly perfect and the spaghetti and meatballs had amazing flavor! read more

We received a groupon for this restaurant and even though Italian food is not really my thing, my husband loves it so we decided to check them out. My husband got the lasagna and the plate was huge he said it was better then mine (hurt) lol. I got the mussels and they were cooked perfectly a little too much butter for me but hey butter makes everything better right. The breadsticks never stopped coming and were better then the ones i've gotten at Olive Garden.If my husband is in the mood for Italian i would definitely return its such a homey italian restaurant with its founders picture displayed proudly above the entrance makes me imagine I might just be in Italy..... read more

Service, ambiance, and food were great and sincere! We got the veal piccata with a side of spaghetti, and the combination spaghetti/ravioli platter with a side order of meatballs. The meatballs were really good!! It was all a lot of food and was all pretty tasty. Definitely reminds me of places I would go to growing up on the east coast. read more

I have been going here for over 20 years. Its the best pizza crust in town. I love how generous the toppings are. It's a pretty long wait at times when you order one, but I promise it's worth it. The spaghetti sauce is delicious. It's for sure a must try place. read more

Great food. Pizza crust was a little too doughy, but delish. The red sauce has some Zing to it and the eggplant parmigiana was excellent. They are close for remodeling right now which is brilliant.:3 read more