Bland and uninspired. My farfalle primavera special was overpriced and tasteless. It could have used some bell pepper or flavorful mushrooms. The kitchen got my husband's order wrong on both the salad and the entree. The restaurant is still undergoing renovations and the fiberglass insulation hanging from the ceiling does not inspire confidence. Not planning a return visit anytime soon. read more

We Hadn't been here in awhile and went with friends tonight, food was so bland we had to add salt and Parmesan Cheese to everything we ate to give it taste! It's disappointing we used to love it here. Maybe the chefs changed or recipes but it won't be a choice any soon again. Sorry read more

One of our favorites. Excellent food, friendly service and BYOW. But the main attraction is Mr. Salvatore and his accordion! Not only he plays all the Italian classics, he also plays a few tango tunes and lets me sing along! If you like gnocchi, this is your place! read more

Went there tonight, and glad we did! Food was like my grandmother used to make, escarole & beans over chicken, and the portions were huge. Ambiance of Italy, with an accordion player walking around singing & playing Italian songs. Will definitely revisit! Excellent service & food! read more

La Cucina - Italian Near Me - Denville, New Jersey

This place smells amazing as soon as you walk in. Quite a few people picking up take out. It is slightly crowded, but I like the historic setting. Lots of old time stuff to look at ( an old ice box,etc.) We were a little late for our reservation, so they made us wait even though we had called and were told no problem. The owner , who was running the front, seemed overwhelmed and stressed - quite a bit of yelling at the staff. He sent away walk ins quite rudely - it seemed that he likes to make a show of how busy it was. You do need a reservation on the weekend. However, I guess it is busy because the food and service were both A+. We had four different entrees, which were huge, and everything was excellent. The best sauce I've had in a long time. Lots of specials.The waitress was perfect - friendly, attentive but not hovering, knowledgable. She had no problem bringing extra plates for us to share, even encouraged splitting certain things. I would definitely return: great food and service, good value for the money. read more

Good food and great service! They give gray portions and everything was delicious. Considering the pandemic the service was super quick and the staff was very friendly. The setup of the restaurant was very cool and felt very homey, would definitely come back! read more

A good menu and fair prices for Denville. I had the chicken special which was delicious. Three stars because one person in our party was charged $7 to substitute broccoli for potatoes. The atmosphere was very loud as well. Our food took 45 minutes to arrive despite a less-than-crowded evening. I will probably visit again and give them another chance. read more

Awesome Italian food. BYOB. Cozy atmosphere. If you were a fan of Attilio's when it was there, don't be turned off by the change in ownership/name. Still the same quality, delicious food. In my opinion, they have the BEST steak pizzaiola (and will make it chicken pizzaiola upon request). For all you penne alla vodka lovers out there, you must try it! Or, if you decide to order another entree, ask for it as a side, they are happy to do so. read more

This is a great example of wonderful American Italian cuisine. If you and your party are eating in you- it is quite the nice treat as the restaurant is actually located inside of an old house, and has all the quaint charm one might expect of such a location. The ambiance is truly wonderful a real at home, cozy feel. The wait staff is incredibly friendly, and all in all I could find no complaint with the service. The food that I have sampled has all been without fail well beyond average, often bordering on great, but at the worst was very good. Also make certain to save some room for desert as their cakes are some of the finest I have had, truly delicious. I will admit to being a little underwhelmed by the Tiramisu- as it was served in a bowl and more representative of pudding than cake, but to each his own (mileage will vary). On many occasions I will also call in for a takeaway pizza pie, and have never been disappointed as it is one of the better pies to be had in the area- which is truly saying something. Of note to diners who prefer to drink wine with their Italian meal, no alcohol is available on premises as the establishment is BYOB. read more

I don't understand how this place gets four stars. Some friends of mine told me to try out this place and said it was good. I got a large cheese pie in a side order of calamari. It came out to $33. When I got home I opened the bag in which the calamari was in and i literally there were nine pieces of fried calamari. How does that feed a family of four and not only that it was 1395 for the calamari. And you know what to make the long story short I don't even want to talk about the pizza because it tasted like cardboard. I live in Denville and this will be my first and last time that I will go to this place hope other people have a better experience than what I had good day. read more

My wife treated me to La Cucina recently for a date. I had been wanting to try this place for years! I was surprised at how packed it was inside - this place does great business. It's BYOB, which is always nice. There are several different quaint dining areas, all with old pictures of the original architecture and famous actors who have stopped in over the years. The pizza was exceptionally good, as was the calamari. Many patrons were eating traditional Italian meals, and I got the sense that their food was excellent. The entire restaurant has an air of "old Italy" which permeates its ambiance. I definitely recommend this place, and upon next visit, will be trying a dish off their extensive menu. Be sure to make a reservation in advance. read more

Went to the Tusan Table this past Tuesday for dinner. Our waitress told us obout the $ 25 dinner menu. She told us the items on the menu that were not included in the special package, and the appetizer were half portion. I got the fried calamari appetizer and the lasagna bolognese. The calamari was fried well with a nice coating, but the marinara sauce was thin,bland, and tasted like canned tomato soup. After a bit of a wait my kid size portion of lasagna came to our table, a nice mix of meat in the lasagna, but it was sitting in the same canned tomato soup. My wife had the meatball appetizer, it had more breadcrumbs than meat in it. Her main course was stuffed shrimp with crabmeat. Again mostly breadcrumbs, could not taste any crab. The highpoint of the dinner was dessert, a mini cannoli with whipped cream and chocolate sauce. That and the coffee were very good. I don't understand how this restaurant got so many positive reviews, could it been that the kitchen had a bad night or maybe the they give you less on specials night. We usually go to Little Nicki's in Hopatcong for Italian, Nicki's is closed Monday's and Tuesday's and we didn't feel like cooking, so we thought we would try something different. In the future we will not be going to The Tusan Table in Denville again, I would rather drive the extra miles to Hopatcong. read more

By far the most authentic and delicious Italian food you will ever eat. Anything with their fresh ricotta is to die for. Perfectly cooked gnocchi. Amazing vodka and franchise sauces. Pizza is actually incredible too which is rare for a place with dinners of this caliber. Oh and it's BYOB! Perfect homey old world ambiance. A must try. read more

I give La Cucina 5 stars not because anything doesn't have room for improvement, but because they're closer to 5 than 4. Expect a great, old home (really, it's an old house!), creaky floor, clean, friendly, thorough menu, BYOB experience, reasonably priced, and that's what you get. read more

Great food, great service and during a remodel at that. Took some food home and it was a great leftover meal the next day

While visiting Parsippany for business I had an opportunity to eat at La Cucina. I've lived in Sicily and Pisa and this is the best I've had outside of Italy. Very much recommend. read more

I'm very torn writing this review. I've loved coming here ever since the 80s when it was still the EC Peer store. When it reopened in the 90s as Atillios it quickly became a favorite. When it became La Cucina, the quality continued. I had not been in a few months so we decided to go. Sadly, it was the first mediocre experience I could recall. The Cons - the entrance area was extremly cluttered and disorganized. The counters and glass display case by the kitchen were littered with barilla boxes instead of appetizing "to go" options that used to be there; the area that used to have groceries was sparce w a half empty iced tea siting on a shelf; one of the front tables had jackets all over it, etc - I dont typically judge a book by its cover, but the owners should try for a little more than "messy and unappetizing". Oh yeah, and the boxed wines on the counter (i assume its used for cooking?) dont scream top notch ingredients. - service was mediocre at best. The waitress never came back to see how we were doing or refill drinks and the kitchen was slow despite it being the end of the night. - the hostess sat a table of 8 screaming hyper 10 year olds by us while the parents were seated in a seperate section of the restaurant. Don't care how casual the restaurant is -- no place should allow this. Its rude to the rest of the guests trying to unwind after a long week. The pros: - Still offering huge portions at reasonable prices. - After all these years the quality has remained consistent (except for the almost raw linguini. I like al dente but someone w weaker teeth than me could have easily broken one). Like I said, I've been coming since childhood and will certainly be back. I hope what we recently experienced was more of a bad night than anything else. Would be a shame to see this place go down the tubes. read more

Owner is beyond rude and unprofessional! Asked to have a substitution on the pasta as an option going forward and he said he would not consider it. I mentioned that he will lose customers because there are many people who are not eating carbs and he said he's fine with losing customers and can take our business elsewhere if we want. We brought this up nicely and his attitude was beyond unprofessional! And accordion player completely drowns out conversation. Food is OK... Nothing you can't get at any other run-of-the-mill Italian restaurant. They lost our business... And clearly couldn't care less. Do yourself a favor and take your business elsewhere! read more

I've been here twice and have yet to be disappointed. Came from California and will becoming back each time I visit. All the workers are so friendly! You may also spot a celebrity inside if you're lucky like I was the fist time! read more

The food and portion sizes here are great - we really enjoy coming here for dinner. That said, i find the menu to be somewhat limited and they run out of their specials quickly. I know that a limited menu can mean fresher ingredients, but eh, i still struggle to order almost everytime. Their pasta dishes are great though - if your in the mood for bolognese i would highly recommend. If you're looking for lighter fare, maybe sit this one out. read more

Very cute but a very limited menu if you are looking for something lo-cal, grilled etc.

Wonderful establishment. Although it was busy when our group was there, we were promptly served and the place wasn't too noisy. I had the Chicken Picate, which I would reccomend. All in our group enjoyed their meal and had nothing but good things to say about it. Friendly wait staff and owner! read more

We went there for my 70th Birthday party with 14 people 5 adults & 9 kids on a Monday night. We order 3 Appetizers fried calamari, eggplant rolletini, and a mozzarella appetizer. The service was good on the appetizers, but the bread & butter was nothing to speak about, the calamari was hard and the eggplant was overcooked. Most of us found the main courses to be pretty good except it was smothered in tomato sauce (pastas) child platters were good. Main course took a long time. Generally a good value. But not an Italian's version of a good Italian restaurant. read more

This place is great for larger dinner parties. Its BYOB which is great. we went on a weeknight with about 15 people and were given a private room which was great. The portions were very large for dinner. Appetizers should be shared among the table, but dinner entrees can be shared as well. The dinner is a bit pricey (but worth it for the amount of food you are getting). I will definitely be returning. read more

I have been to La Cucina once for a sit down dinner and another time we ordered take out. The first time I had there seafood special which was delicious! The portions are very generous and the quality of the fish was very good. For take out I ordered the Marsala which was out of this world! The sauce was perfect the chicken was perfect they nailed the entire dish. Usually take out is a little sketchy to transport home but this was not the case the food was incredible. I am new to the area so I am very happy to have found La Cucina and look forward to dining there often. read more

I live locally and have attempted food from here several times. Tonight I found it to be absolutely bad. Zuppa Di clams in the wrong sauce, a number of them not even open, day old bread served and an order of Shrimp Fra Diavlo with pasta that barely melted in the water. It was returned and was then given back to me after they tried to either toss it in a fry pan or heat it in a microwave. Now they do advertise pasta as being served al dente which is terrific if done that way. Needless to say I won't return. read more

The food was great but on the expensive side for a BYOB $77 without tip for 2 !!!!! Also the waitress wasn't friendly at all real downer .

I love this restaurant! I always order the risotto - absolutely the best! Great food, great service and friendly staff. I love the ambiance there also! read more

I've driven through Denville so many times but never noticed this place. Fortunately, I got introduced late August. One of us got the classic pizza which was amazing... A 10" pie is more than enough for one person and the brick oven effect is just SO good. I personally had the cheese ravioli since I had been craving ravioli for a while. It was impeccable and hit the spot immediately. I went for a second time with the boyfriend a couple weeks ago and ordered the pizza for myself. He ordered another dish that included chicken, sausage, and peppers in a white wine sauce (forgive me for not remembering the dish name). It was a little bit too vinegary for me but the chicken and sausage were still good. Both he and I were hoping it'd come served over some kind of pasta but it did not. I think I'll stick with the Italian classics when I return. The atmosphere is fun. The people are incredibly friendly and accommodating. read more

We were hear just the other night for a friend's birthday dinner. There was around 14 of us and I'll admit that we were a pretty rowdy crowd. We were so loud and crazy with all our BYOB but the staff was soooo sweet and accommodating. They went above and beyond. Originally they were out of fried calamari, which was the birthday girls' fav but miraculously they made one last portion for our group. The food was delicious. I ordered the linguine with white clams and husband ordered gnocchi with bolognese which I am eating this very moment for lunch. read more

The food here is delicious and affordable. Not a fan of the "no substitutions" signs all over the place... it's BYOB, so remember to stop somewhere before you arrive. Waiters/Waitresses are friendly, competent and quick. My only complaint (and reason for 4 stars instead of 5) is the bus staff, they consistently clear plate by plate instead of the whole table - makes it seem like the kitchen is out of dishes the whole night... it's a little intrusive while you're in the middle of eating and having converstaion... they are frequently asking "are you done", which is annoying... other than that, no complaints and love eating here! read more

This was a surprising experience. I used Siri to find a food restaurant near me, and this one was the top choice. A group of six of us went, and when we got there the building was under construction and we thought it was closed. Thank God it wasn't. The service was amazing and the food was even better. Each one of us enjoyed our meals! I tried the Ravioli of the Day, with peppers and ricotta in a white vodka sauce. I just finished eating my leftovers, and it was just as good! And the price wasn't bad either. With two apps for the table and 6 meals, we each payed $27 after gratuity. I will definitely be going back! read more

I'm not sure why people love this place so much. It's BYOB which is great, but it's expensive for mediocre food. Most pasta dishes are $14-$18 with no salad included. And the bread they give you is regular Italian bread with little butter packets, nothing fancy like EVOO. Food was alright. It was packed even at 7:45 at night (half hour wait!), so definitely make a reservation before you go. On the plus side, they had someone playing an accordion which was pretty nice. read more

The best food I have ever tasted. Service was great and everyone was polite. We had a party of 14, no problem seating us in a room upstairs. No problems at all. All of our quests raved about it and they didn't even rush us out after dessert. I would recommend it to highly and I will be returning. read more

la Cucina does not disappoint! We tried the Garlic Bread, as was suggested and it was fantastic. For my entrée I had the Spaghetti Bolognese...DELICIOUS!!!! The atmosphere was nice, a lot of character & a home-cooking feel. Definitely make the slight drive out of town to try this place if you're in the neighborhood. read more

Food was good but we were seated at a large table in the front room. Location was fun until the party of 7 was seated right next to us. The volume in that small was so loud that on several occasions I said to my husband "what I can't hear you" almost equally as loud as the table next to us. read more

Very good service and delicious dishes. The place is operated from an old general store. Old time charm throughout. Very nice!

Glad i found this place. Very homey and authentic old tome italian feel. The lasagna special with meat sauce was amazing, so was the rigatoni christina which had a delicious sauce. Calamari appy was ok, lightly breaded if you like that. Stuffed mushroom special was ok, not crunchy, wouldn't get that again read more

Pretty pathetic. For a place that claims to make artisan brick over pizza, we had to leave it on the table. The calamari we ordered was barely cooked, nearly raw, but we ate it anyway because we were starving and it's a good thing because we didn't touch the pizza which was a soggy mess of mozzarella even though we asked for very little cheese. They should try paying their gas bill so they can actually cook the food. Never again. Totally UN-appetizing. read more

What can I say, this place is just awesome. The food is consistantly excellent. I have probably eaten here well over 20 times and they never disappoint. They always have great specials and they regular menu is just as good. Great service, great food great restuarant! read more