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    Giovanni's Italian Eatery

    4.1 (77 reviews)
    ModerateItalian, Pizza, Thai
    Open 11:00 am - 2:00 pm, 4:00 PM - 8:30 PM
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Giovanni's Italian Eatery Photos

    Business Info

    GIOVANNI'S ITALIAN EATERY ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Quiet
    Casual
    Good for kids
    Good for groups

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    Reviews With Photos

    Pineapple Fried Rice
    Bess B.

    A diamond in the rough. That's what comes to mind when I pulled up to this hidden gem in the city of Shafter. I've heard of Giovanni's from coworkers who stopped by when they were in town. Told me it was a fantastic Italian joint. But, you get a two-fer here. Not only does Giovanni's specialize in Italian food, but Thai food, as well! And no, it's not a fusion-type grill. They sell each type of food separately. When you walk inside, it's still got all the Italian-esque decor. It's got lots of seating. The lighting is not too bright, so it could provide some level of intimacy for dates. Today, I tried the Pineapple Fried Rice to go. Drove all the way back to Bakersfield and it was still piping hot! So delicious! It was a good portion that saved me some for tomorrow's lunch. It came with several shrimps, sliced carrots, chicken, pineapple, and fried egg. The next time I visit Shafter, I'm thinking of trying the Baked Mostaccioli!

    Lasagna

    The food was so delicious and fresh! I loved it the service was absolutely amazing, the place was also very clean and nice! 10/10!

    Stuffed mushrooms.

    Had Giovanni's last night and it was delicious. The stuffed mushrooms were delicious. We had the garlic chicken fettuccine alfredo with broccoli, lasagna and the tortellini alfredo. Everything was served hot and delicious. Noy and Angel are great. Angel was waiting by himself and the service was great.

    Dinner time is from 4-8pm!
    Kelly S.

    One of the great gems of Shafter! I did not expect such good service and food from this place. It just shows that the owner really does care about their customer base. I was on a travel assignment from Los Angeles to the Bakersfield area for work and came across this small Italian restaurant on Yelp. It had the best reviews and everyone was chiming on how amazing the owner and the Thai food was. So naturally, I had to give it a chance! I arrived a few minutes before opening and saw multiple cars waiting outside too. Unlike me, they already knew to call in and place the order as he is very attentive to the phone. I walked in and was greeted by the owner, a local man originally from LA area too, he explained the menu and his best seller and offered the local Thai menu too, as many stated that this is the best Thai food in town. I ended up ordering the shrimp pad thai with tiramisu as he seemed very proud of it. He told me to wait in my car as he would hand-deliver each order to their individual while making small talk about their day. I can genuinely see the connection that he made with the locals thoroughly. The Thai food was very good but not great compared to some of the places I visited in Thai Town in Los Angeles, but it fills a niche in Shafter which people needed, a real authentic Thai location which has the best service hands down of any place I visited in Shafter during my week stay. The price was very reasonable at $12ish for the pad thai and $4ish for my slice of tiramisu. I would come back just for the service and to actually try their Italian cuisine haha! tl:dr Great personalized service with good food at a little small town. A gem of Shafter indeed!

    Pizza bread appetizer
    Linda W.

    If you have cravings for Italian and Thai food then you have to travel to Shafter! A gem down the street from the DMV on walker street. Celebrated a birthday with family and the food was great! The bread rolls were excellent with just a little butter dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. My son ate two of them and I wanted to save my stomach for other things but I still ate 3/4 of the bread! We started with stuffed mushrooms and pepperoni cheese bread. Couldn't get a picture of the stuffed mushrooms because it was devoured before I could get my phone out. The pepperoni garlic cheese bread was delicious (the French bread was light and airy). I was told the pizzas and calzone was great. I didn't get a picture of the already devoured tortellini in alfredo sauce because I was eating the delicious fried pineapple rice and panaeng chicken curry! The best pineapple fried rice I had so far. The panaeng chicken curry was on point!

    Wall hanging
    Christina E.

    It's been a really long time since I walked into this place. When we arrived the place was empty and our service was great. Our drinks were always being filled. When our dinner bread came out, I was in awe, I don't think I have ever seen more prettier looking bread. It was hot and buttery. My only negative was that we were given country crock instead of real butter. But we did get some olive oil and balsamic vinegar to dip our bread into. The menu was decent but looked like it could use a few more pasta choices. Maybe like some linguini and clams or eggplant parmesan. We finally decided on what we wanted. I ordered the mushroom and olive lasagna, he got the Portabello mushroom ravioli with their pink sauce and our daughter got a pizza. We weren't disappointed when our plates arrived. I was a little shocked to see my lasagna in a bowl but once I paid attention to my dish I understood why. It was hot and oh that cheese was smothering my dish. The sauce was poured on generously and I had a generous amount of olives and mushrooms. There were more than eight - ten ravioli on that plate. It was a real dinner serving and that sauce looked delicious. The pizza, you could tell that was hand made. The crust was a pretty golden brown, the pepperoni was a gorgeous looking brick red and black olives to top it off. Again, oh that cheese. One thing I always wondered was why doesn't anyone ever season the dough. That's just me. Service was great and so was our meal. I'm glad no one cooked today since it gave us the chance to dine out. I'd say this was a successful dine outing.

    Ribeyes, shrimp scampi, fresh roll, portobello mushroom ravioli.

    Food was absolutely amazing. Ribeye's, shrimp scampi, calzone, took a pizza to go. Small town gem. Jacob the server is very personable and attentive. Love this place. Thank you for a wonderful meal. Don't forget to grab a piece of carrot cake before you leave!

    The Pad Thai
    Ronald Q.

    Was a bit hesistant to order from here but a friend said that their thai food was good so i gave it a go and im glad i did. The pad thai was tasty just a slight salty but other then that it jad good flavor. I believe they do free delivery if u live within 3 miles of the restaurant so thats a plus all in all ive only had the thai food so i can only recommend that at the moment

    Chicken calzone

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    1 month ago

    Their food is always fresh and authentic! Large portions! We order their calzons. We order to go.

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    17 hours ago

    Food is very flavorful, service was great kept checking if we needed anything, atmosphere was nice will be coming back

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    7 months ago

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    6 months ago

    His personal pizzas and his Baked Turkey sandwiches are amazing!! Love this little hidden gem of Shafter!!

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Love the Thai food not a huge fan of the pasta nah more though! Over all it was a nice experience with the grandkids

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    4 years ago

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    4 years ago

    Good food, great customer service and family owned. Thai & Italian food, I recommend it.

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    6 years ago

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    14 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    5 years ago

    Was looking for chocolate cake and tiramisu and stumbled upon this wonderful gem in shafter amazing pasta calzones and desserts

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    11 years ago

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    5 years ago

    I love the Giovanni's special sandwich and cheesecake! I always order to go so I'll have to try the dine in one of these days.

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    9 years ago

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    4 years ago

    41/2 stars good service good food. I have eaten at the eatery for the past 2 decades and intend to continue. I happily recommend.

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - Giovanni's Italian Eatery

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