Debating between Carinos and Del Taco and Carinos was closer and had some interesting menu items. At the peak they had 170 locations and are down to 30 nationwide now. We came in a Monday about 40 minutes before closing and it seemed like they were getting ready to end the night. No one else was in the restaurant though there were a couple people at the bar. We told them we just wanted something fast and would be in and out quickly and were seated quickly at a booth. Our waitress was amazing and still kind and energetic though it was the end of day. Free bread with garlic balsamic olive oil, bread was warm and they were very generous with the amount of dried garlic. Margherita pizza: we picked the most standard one and it was odd. Instead of cheese and fresh basil it had slices of tomato and dried basil. Crust was underdone and there was way too much cheese on it. Italian nachos: Crispy pasta chips, black olives, pepperoncinis, Roma tomatoes, jalapeños, Alfredo sauce, mozzarella and parmesan. We had it with chicken and it was interesting but drowning in Alfredo sauce. read more

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So we come to town a few times a year and we came to Carinos a few months ago, the server was so helpful with the menu and specials, etc. sorry to say this time was not that great, not horrible but not great. I felt rushed with the young man waiter hovering over the table looking at me while I looked at the menu, we had just gotten there and gotten our teas. Seemed inpatient so I went with the same lunch special I had last time and forgot that for some crazy reason the pasta and sauce does not come with mozzarella cheese! Who wants pasta with no cheese? Yes I realized after the fact while not being pressured to order, the FINE print list of all things ADD Ons. I'm surprised the sauce was included. It would be a nice touch if the waiter or waitress would kindly ask if I want some baked cheese, I would say yes! He did ask about parmesan but thats not the same. Needless to say, I required a large takeout container and brought most of the pasta home in case I want to add cheese and bake in the oven. Honestly, next time i'll boil the pasta, make the sauce, and bake it with cheese myself. I'm disappointed , I thought we had found a nice little place to come eat while we're here since there is a lack of places besides the usual. read more

Johnny Carino's - Penne pasta, sad with no baked cheese. - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

I had the Angel Hair with artichokes, subbed gluten free penne for the angel hair and added chicken. It was very good, a light olive oil and lemon dressing, perfectly light for a warm summer day. My husband had the green chile chicken lasagna that he said was excellent! Servings aren't huge which we also liked. Service was very good and prompt. Celeste was very attentive, we wanted for nothing! Lots of parking and easy to get to. read more

Johnny Carino's - Angel hair with artichokes and chicken sub w gluten free penne - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

Our servicer, Israel, was amazing. Very Attentive, friendly, and helpful. Food was so so good. There wasn't anything I was disappointed with. The Italian nachos, Spicy Shrimp and Chicken, Hatch Lasagna. Restaurant was quick to seat us and very clean. Atmosphere is nice. Fun for an afternoon lunch or would be a great date night place. A+ in our book. read more

Johnny Carino's - Spicy Shrimp & Chicken - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

Good vegetarian options - we did a make your own pasta and the fettuccine with chile (which had a nice heat to it). It's nice that the dishes come with salads and they offer complimentary bread with olive oil. read more

Honestly you can make a trip to the grocery store and go to the frozen section and grab Stouffer's Lasagna, spaghetti and then grab a loaf of French bread and go home and eat. This would be far better for your budget and your taste buds would thank you! Oh and the soup out of a can is fresher than theirs. Our 1st and last time eating at this chain. read more

We had a wonderful experience at Johnny Carino's, and Danielle made it even better. She was incredibly attentive, friendly, and went above and beyond to make sure we had everything we needed throughout our meal. Her customer service was outstanding, and she was very knowledgeable about the menu, answering all of our questions with confidence and making great recommendations. It's rare to receive service this exceptional, and Danielle truly made our dining experience memorable. We will definitely be back and hope to have her as our waitress again. Thank you, Danielle, for the amazing service! read more

Food was great Service excellent Ambiance pleasant and comfortable Place was clean , service was fast On a Saturday 4:10 read more

Just dined at Johnny Carino's (May 30, 2026) in Alamogordo, New Mexico and our server Samantha was entertaining, polite, quick, and extremely efficient. "Samantha, you really made our day...we could not have asked for better host. Thank you!" read more

The 3 stars are simply because 4 out of the 5 times I've gone to eat here, they have been out of so many ingredients that we end up ordering food we didn't even want. Aside from that, I've always liked Carinos and find their food flavorful and delicious. I absolutely love the bread they bring you at the start with the herb infused olive oil to dip it in, it's so good. The pastas are good, similar to Olive Garden. The portions are generous and we always have leftovers to take home. They have lunch specials during the weekdays, they do have beer and wine as well as various cocktails. They also offer a kids menu and the kids have the option to make their own pasta dish. Fun! Food wise, my family loves the calamari and I'm a sucker for their soups. They also have a Green Chile lasagna that's quite tasty. Their desserts are a shareable portion. This place is great as long as their kitchen is stocked because when it is, we never leave disappointed. read more

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Johnny Carino's is a chain restaurant. Menu has a nice variety. Food was great. Service was a little slow, but considering their were too servers for the entire restaurant, we knew to be patient. I will go back. read more

My husband and I were traveling through and stopped here for dinner. This was by far the dirties place I have ever eaten. The chairs and table stands had not been cleaned probably since they were moved in. Covered in grease, dust, food, and unknown debris. Poor food and high price. Never again we will go there. read more

Love the food and the bread and oil is delicious! Good service and friendly people. Good variety to choose from

The service was honestly great. The guy was very attentive. Ambiance is fine it's a family friendly place. I was glad to see they had local beer from Cloudcroft. Unfortunately I did not like the pizza. Visually it looked undercooked. Taste wise it just wasnt good. I think they need to fix their pizza dough because this isnt it. It lacks flavor and it doesnt look fresh. read more

Johnny Carino's - Personal pizza - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

Food was amazing! The customer service was awesome! Our server, Tina made sure we enjoyed our food and were having a good time. She was beyond sweet! read more

The food was alright but not the best. But the drink I liked it. I think it was so far the best than the food. The service is good.

I know there are not many places to eat in Alamogordo, but I would avoid here based on my experience. I get it, every other restaurant in the world has staffing issues. But if that is the case, then shut down half of the restaurant. Ordered Italian nachos without olives. They came out correct, but the cheese was cold and gloopy. Like it sat under the heat lamp for a while. Manager offered to have the re-done new and they came back with olives. We had waited for 30 minutes for an appetizer, so we picked through the olives. Someone in the kitchen neglected to tell the waitress they were out of green chile lasagna. Waited 45 minutes for it and that is when the waitress told me they were out. They offered to get me something else, but I refused. We had waited so long for food, I didn't want to spend any more there. I'd just rather leave. Maybe you'll have a different experience, but I'm not going back if I'm in the area. read more

We're in from San Antonio, TX with a large group of families. Decided to do the TO GO catering for the group instead of eating in. The manager Eric took our order and from beginning to end he provided excellent service. Our food was delicious and hot and ready to go! The overall staff was polite and courteous! We really appreciate Eric making sure everything was perfect! read more

Traveling through stopped for dinner. Everything and everyone was great. Had the pizza and salad. Thanks read more

Service was not good, we didn't get ice in our drinks and they never came back with ranch for our pizza.

Our waitress Brittany was AWESOME!! The food, atmosphere and service were exceptional! Will definitely be returning

Can you picture an old and well worn restaurant where the owners have given up? This is it. Tables are worn and veneer chipped. Dirty dishes stacked on a table right inside the door. Not a lot of customers on a Saturday night and adjacent to hotels. Offered bread and an oil dipping concoction. It had an overwhelming amount of hard pink/brown pieces. I think they were dehydrated onions. Not sure what else since the oil was almost totally absorbed. Just yuck! The waiter indicated that the sandwiches had recently been added to the menu. We could hear metal trays and cookery being tossed around in the open air kitchen. Nobody seemed happy to be working or eating there. Split a sandwich and a salad. The salad greens were mostly white iceberg and flavorless. Bowl was barely half full for an entree salad so clearly cutting back on portions. Sandwich was on a smaller square roll and was lunch meat with some cheese. Maybe 4-5 bites per half. Glad we didn't get any of the authentic Italian dishes which were a lot costlier. Deserts were lackluster and not made in house. Skip this place - they've given up. read more

We are not big pasta eaters, but I wanted to try the Italian nachos. At the beginning the fresh bread with garlic and olive oil was very good. Our server was very friendly and did a good job without hovering. We started with a small order of calamari. It was very good My wife said it was better than the calamari served in the restaurant across the street. I had the Italian nachos for my entree and my wife had the salad with salmon. My nachos were wonderful. Very big portion with tasty peppers and a very good Alfredo sauce. I asked for no olives and double the jalapeños No problem. My wife's salad was very good. She said the salmon made it better. Both of us had to get a take home bag. It was just as good later after heating it up. It was a very good dining experience. read more

What happened to Johnny Carino's??? This restaurant used to be really good but not anymore. We order the pepperoni bread, the lasagna, and they were terrible. The garlic oil used to be really good also, but not anymore. Server wasn't good and ambience was ok. Will not go back. read more

I've been here many times so I know what to expect from the kitchen staff. I order the same thing every time, chicken parmesan, because I like a good chicken parmesan. It's always been good, no complaints from me, until tonight. The wait staff was very kind and considerate. When my chicken parmesan showed up, I could tell right away it was overcooked because the breading had black marks on it. But I tried it anyway, mistake, the breading was crunchy to a fault. I sent it back for a new one. When it came out, it looked just like the first one, and was crunchy like the first one, that is not how it's supposed to be. So the manager came over and I told him what was wrong. He told me the internal temperature was a perfect 175. Well any good chef or properly trained manager would know it's supposed to be 165, not 175. So that means neither the kitchen staff or the manager has been properly trained, because he saw no problem with it. Now I admit, it's probably been 40 years since I had my culinary training, but there are some things you just don't forget. The owner needs to send his manager to a school for proper training, so he can then turn around and teach the kitchen staff. So I refused the meal and refused to pay for bad quality. Other than the manager, I don't think anyone in the kitchen was over 19. If they don't know what the temperature of the food is supposed to be how can they put out a quality dish each and every time. Until the necessary training has happened, I won't be back. And the manager needs to be careful how he talks with people, as you never know what there background is. Chef Gordon Ramsey would've had a field day in there. read more

I can't for the life of me figure out why this place just gets three stars. It's wonderful I come here just for the Italian nachos and have never been let down yet. I would give it more stars if I could and my wife absolutely loves the jalapeño tilapia. read more

Johnny Carino's - Tell you nachos minus the black olives and a root beer. - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

Food was okay, it was a bit tasteless and the bread was stale and seemed to have been sitting out on a counter for a while before being served. My daughter got a margarita pizza she say it was good. My wife got a chicken salad dish and I got a chicken pasta dish neither was very good. In the chicken salad my wife was missing the candy pecans it was supposed to come with it. Mine was so dry I had to drink water to eat it. It was dried chicken on top dry pasta with vegetables. Not very enjoyable for the price you pay, which wasn't cheap. read more

Johnny Carino's - Margarita pizza - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

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Got the Hatch Green Chili Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo. It was excellent! Waitress was very nice.

Worst pizza ever. Service was fine but the pizza was terrible. The place needs an update/refresh. read more

I usually stop here on the way to White Sand and over the years it has gone up and down. During pandemic service was horrible, and despite the recent reviews decided to go back. We went on a Saturday afternoon and we're seated immediately. Staff was genuinely friendly. Food was pretty good and decent portions for the price. Italian sodas are great! Restaurant is pretty clean and booths are spacious. read more

This place is nothing like what I was expecting, the drive to this area is scarce so when you see places like this you're excited to eat or at least that was my take on how I felt at the time. When you first come in you would be expecting something akin to an Olive Garden or a Carrabba's this place puts you in the mind of one of your favorite pizza spots that you sit down and dine in. The appetizer we had was Calamari that's not my thing but it was decent also I didn't eat it without marinara so I can't tell whether or not it was bland per other reviewers. My family ordered a kid's pizza and shrimp scampi, the scampi was not good at all per my family member and the pepperoni on the pizza had a mushy taste to it, not like your average pizza. I've eaten my fair share of pizza so I felt worthy enough to review its meat selection. They were out of the lasagna that was advertised over 50 miles away! THE INFAMOUS GREEN CHILE CHICKEN LASAGNA I was expecting a line down the street per other customer reviews! Disappointed but that was okay due to the menu being full on both sides. Okay, this is where it turns dark! Upon entering and scoping the place out like a lead detective on a missing persons case I looked over to my left and saw two lovely ladies eating and when I say eating I'm talking about a spoon in one hand and a fork in the other barely looking up from each mind-blowing bite from the skillet sizzling and the look of pure determination I was hooked and instantly knew what I wanted, I could feel the button on my pants getting ready for take off. After my family ordered I ordered the Sizzling Skilletini Cacciatore with chicken and sausage per the server's suggestion. Sounds amazing right my sentiments exactly! I was under the impression that I would be eating sliced Italian sausage and grilled chicken along with peppers, and onions. I received a skillet with some spaghetti noodles that taste exactly like plastic, strips of overcooked boiled chicken, crumbled sausage, and the biggest pieces of bell pepper I've ever eaten in a pasta dish it taste inappropriately disgusting. I was shocked that something that sounded so amazing and looked as equally scrumptious left me desiring a pizza from Pizza Hut. Enough about that I even decided to take the talking skillet home against its wishes meanwhile the server brought us little dessert-to-go boxes after asking for more and while laughing not at him but at the shock and horror of it all he said they were out of the bigger ones, go figure. The bread and the olive oil were stale but the Bellini drink was good. Overall the server was sweet he had a nice demeanor I did mention to him how disappointed I was in the food quality of our dish but he just nodded and smiled he either didn't hear me or didn't care. I wouldn't recommend this for a family especially now with the economy, parents work hard and just want to come to a place to relax and enjoy food and drinks so they don't have to cook and hang out with family loving on one another. You'll spend so much time complaining at the restaurant and then complaining again about the leftovers at home but also you don't want to because at least you're blessed to go out to eat right? Owners please do better you should take some type of accountability and consideration for all these terrible reviews over the years and respect reviewers suggestions and opinions taking heed to them. With new businesses popping up all around this place will be out of business by the end of the year I guarantee unless they get new kitchen staff even though the wait staff was great, it's the kitchen that needs to do better. You can train customer service but if you don't like to cook the food will always tell your secrets the reason why my leftovers didn't want to go against their will. read more

Johnny Carino's - Sizzling Skilletini Cacciatore - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

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After having eaten dinner at another Johnny Carino's location ( Fargo North Dakota ) about 3 years ago and really enjoying it we figured this location would be just as good. We ordered the Spaghetti & the Hatch Chile Lasagna. The Lasagna was excellent although the Spaghetti was a little disappointing, it was hot but seemed to lack flavor and not what I remembered from the other location. We really loved the ambience & the service was great from start to finish. We will give Johnny Carino's another shot at whatever location we come across in the future although I will not get the Spaghetti again. read more

Nice break from fast food. It was clean and spacious. Lots of window views. The food was fresh and as ordered. The salads were fresh and cold. The meals were fresh and hot. The only thing that wasn't hot was the bread but it was soft and fresh. The server was friendly and prompt and checked on us often. Parking lot was large and room for rigs in the back. It is close to everything just off the Main Street. It was a pleasant restful place for a meal. Give it a try fir Italian food in a city that serves majority Mexican type food. read more

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Great great food, ambiance, and service! Walking distance from Hampton Inn hotel in Alamogordo, NM. All servers are very pro active checking on their guests to make sure we have enough water, dipping sauce, bread etc. They all wear masks too. The place is clean. A must go and will never regret it read more

Johnny Carino's - Spicy Shrimp and Chicken pasta - Italian Near Me - Alamogordo, New Mexico

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Good food, everything was fresh, flavorful, and hot. They were short staffed so we were served by the manager. I would eat here again. read more

We came on Valentine's night. The wait time was not too long. The service was great and quick. My husband got the seafood Alfredo and loved it. I got the rose merry lemon chicken. Flavor was great. Portions were large. The restaurant was clean. read more

Clean, good service nice atmosphere. Pricing is reasonable for the quality of food. It's the food where things fall apart. Salad had really dead wilted pieces of lettuce pizza was on a premade crust with a very limited amount of toppings. Pizza is such a high profit item. I just can't imagine why they are cheaping out on it. read more

Italian chopped salad was coated in way too much sauce -- impossible to finish. Pasta was mushy and bland, chicken was untastefully sweet. The free bread and garlic dip was tasty. Our server was very nice, so overall we had a good time. read more

This place was within walking distance of our hotel, Hampton Inn, and my co-workers and I wanted to give it a try. Both my co-workers got the Lime Avocado Salmon and they loved it. It was mentioned that it was up there with the best they've ever had! I got the Johnny Trio with chicken parmigiana, lasagna, and spaghetti the meal. It is great as well! The service is wonderful!! read more

Hello our server was Tina. Our daughter and I took my husband out for dinner, and everything was just outstanding!! Tina impressed us with not only her outstanding customer service but she went above and beyond to make sure that we were all taken care of!!! Superior outstanding service !! Thank u very very much Tina. We sure hope to be there again soon!! God Bless!!! read more