Originally went to La Luna Rossa on the recommendation of a friend, who happens to be a pretty big foodie. The several times we have been there, including Valentines Day have not disappointed at all. Chef Benny is a master in the kitchen and he finds the time to come around and talk with his guests. This personal touch always makes the evening a bigger hit! The food Chef Benny creates is in a word awesome! Rich deep flavors, ample serving sizes and wait staff that really care about how their guests are enjoying their time in the restaurant. read more

Great food and good service. Cute family run business. Quaint setting with a limited number of tables that are NOT crowded into the facility. read more

Tasty food and wine- especially calzone and calamari! The service was a bit slow/disorganized. Overall, a good spot for Italian cuisine

Loved everything about this restaurant. My husband and I went here for their Mother's Day set menu. The staff was extremely friendly and I cannot say enough about the food. So much flavor and cooked perfectly. It definitely reminded of Italy and made me want to go back. Will definitely be back! read more

Pleasant family Italian restaurant. Seating is comfortable with lots of space between tables. The menu has a good selection of appetizers, pasta and main dishes. The gnocchi was delicious and all dishes were fresh and nicely prepared. Good wine list. Server was very cheerful and obliging. Private parking lot. It wasn't that busy early in the week but I expect it's very popular later so reservations are needed. read more

We tried out La Luna for the first time and were excited because of the very positive reviews. I was floored that the restaurant has been open since 1988, I totally thought it was a newer one. Our server was a lovely woman but she brought us the wrong bill for another table the first time and the second time missed an item and we wanted to pay for what we had so had her revise it. Had the calamari to start... found it a bit bland, chewy and not crispy like we had expected. The spicy tomato sauce it was served with didn't complement it well. For entrees, we shared the Butternut Squash Ravioli and Scallopini Crostacei. The ravioli were made from scratch but we found the pasta quite firm so maybe needed to cook a bit longer and the filling had way too much cinnamon for our liking. The veal in the scallopini dish was tough and the seafood was good but nothing special. Not sure if it was an off day but we didn't enjoy our meal much and were disappointed. We found it pricey as well for what we got. read more

La Luna Rossa Ristorante - Italian Near Me - Calgary, Alberta

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Food was fantastic. I had a calzone but with crape filled with sausage and bison. Made a reservation and the service was excellent and very personal. Like having a private chef. Loved the experience and this will become one of my go to restaurants. read more

Food was awful and as result I had really bad food poisoning. Not sure if the chef was on drugs or just forgot to cook the garbage excuse for a meal. The staff were not friendly at all and I wonder if they tried to make me sick. Hope this place cleans up their act and no one else has to experience this. read more

The food was amazing and the wine was paired great with our meal. You can tell the family takes great pride in providing an authentic Italian experience. Also, I appreciated that they had very strict covid protocols in place, so our group felt complexly safe. Thanks for a wonderful evening! read more

Went for lunch, prices a little high but portions the full dinner size Seafood chowder was creamy with 3 mussels, the rest of the ingredients not pulsed, not chunks, kinda minced Lots of lobster, crab, wonderful taste, delicious Lunch special, veal chop with oyster mushrooms , huge bone in veal steak, sauce demi glacé with the shrooms Medium rare perfectly wow read more

My wife and I celebrated our 30th anniversary at La Luna Rossa. I believe it was since Calgary is just getting past Covid, or maybe because it was a Monday night, but we were the only ones there so it felt like we had a special 'private' chef. Benito, the chef and owner was just the right combination of friendly (chatting in between courses) and giving us our privacy. With wine, appetizers, pasta, the main course and coffee, we were entertained and fed absolutely delicious food for a fantastic evening. The ambiance is great with only 5 tables in a cozy space. The food was home made, prepared with care and was absolutely excellent. And chatting with Benny a few times in the evening allowed us to sample his specials and made the evening so much more entertaining. It was Fantastic. I am recommending Benny and La Luna Rossa to all my friends. Molto Benny ;) read more

The food was delicious. But it took 2 hours to actually come. The food also came in the time set portions ever. There's not way you would get full off a single one of their main dishes. Would not recommend if you're looking for good food with good service. In response to the reply below: We don't deny the food was good. And we thank you for the wine. But when you see us ordering food that clearly wasn't enough, don't you think it would be wise to speak up and tell us the portions are smaller than we think? We had zero indication of that. And come on, if you think we were looking for somewhere fast we wouldn't have stuck around waiting for 2 hours. Otherwise we would have just got up and left. The service was obviously subpar that night. It's a disappoint to see management pin the blame on their guests for poor performance. read more

I love this place. 10 tables and a quiet atmosphere. I come here fairly infrequently but I can remember every meal I've ever had here. (Yes the meals at that memorable) the service is on pace to keep you feeling relaxed but never waiting. Your glass is never empty and the wine is reasonably priced. I recommend any of their lobster or scampi dishes, the veal is always amazing, and I enjoy their pasta as well. They also have amazing specials, listen carefully for off menu items and if you aren't sure what you want or how you want it, simply ask how the chef recommends it. read more

While my family was visiting we decided to try some Italian and this restaurant came recommended by a reviewer Derek knows so we thought we'd give it a try. We booked a reservation for that evening and when we arrived there was only one other party there at the time which was a nice contrast from the noisy restaurant we'd been to the night before. The restaurant was bright, light and quiet which was perfect for us. With the hosts recommendation we tried the special cheese platter for an appetizer - something light to start. It came with three different kinds of cheese - a creamy brie, a soft cheese that might have been friulano or something similar, and a dense Parmesan (possibly Grana Padano, not hard enough to be Romano) with the really nice flavour I just can't get enough of. I would definitely have that again, it was deliciously simple. For dinner we all had something different, which is rare as we tend to all like the same dishes. I tried the bacon wrapped guinea fowl special. It was perfectly cooked, with a delicious sauce that went great with everything on the plate. Next time I really want to try the scallops dinner! Along with everything else on the menu... For dessert I tried the Tiramisu which came with a really nice orange creamy sauce on the side. It was one of the most delicious tiramisu's I've ever had, and I can't wait for more! I would enjoy coming back to La Luna again! read more

My friend knows the owner and he always goes here for special occasions. I trust his recommendation because he's pretty thrifty, so if he says a nice restaurant is his go-to place, I'm in. This restaurant is pretty cool. Old school chef, ambience and service. Wine is reasonably priced, particularly on Thursday when select bottles are $30. Now for the food. I'd highly recommend the calamari and spaghetti with seafood or lobster tail with pasta. I love a good pasta and La Luna's version is the real deal. I can't make pasta or serve seafood this good at home, which is my indicator that the chef knows what he/she is doing. My husband wasn't crazy about the veal, but he's never tried it before. I hear the tiramisu is amazing. Prices are reasonable. Service was very good. read more

So quaint, comfortable, and friendly for a mid-week relaxing Italian dinner for two. Homemade bread, best bruschetta in town hands down, olive oil dripping down our chins, butternut squash ravioli with goat cheese & pancetta--delectable, homemade lasagna--light & fresh tomato bliss, and finished off with heavenly homemade desserts of sponge cake & tiramisu--yumma! We'll be seeing you again guys! :) read more

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We were unable to figure out a place to eat for dinner so I turned to yelp to tell us. Yelp! You were not wrong! This place is absolutely fantastic! The waiter was incredibly knowledgeable about the menu, wine pairings, and everything under the roof of the restaurant. Never have I had such fantastic service before. Sound dampening ceiling as opposed to the usual Calgary standard of warehouse style allowed us to have a conversation at a near whisper despite the place being full. The owner is the head chef, I made some additions to my meal. When you ask for changes a signature recipe it's usually a bad idea. This man knows his stuff! The changes were made with the whole dish in mind, the blending of the flavours, the balance, and the right cook time for the new dish was done perfectly. This is a professional chef. The appies were great, the meal was superb, the desert was nice and light. The wines for each course were delicious. The whole meal from start to finish could not have been better. I would highly recommend this place to anyone. read more

Wow! What a gem in Calgary! We were lucky enough to happen upon this quaint, family owned restaurant where authentic Italian cuisine ruled supreme! The atmosphere, service and flavor were wonderful. I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone. Thank you Diana for such a wonderful evening!! read more

Service was very great but food was just ok. A bit pricey for the quality. My daughter had lasagna. Nothing special, we could have had the same thing else where for 1/2 the price. Lobster was dried. Nothing special about any of the appetizers. I think the chef forgot to put salt in the food... they all had no taste. We had to ask for salt. read more

Maybe I came at an off night but the food was not 5 star. Service was good and serving staff was attentive. I've had much better caprese salads. I guess the bread was really good, but we were so hungry waiting for the rest of our party to arrive that anything would've tasted extra good at that point. read more

Terrific restaurant. Family owned and run by various members of the family. Dad wears the chef hat and his kids take care of the tables. We should all make an effort to support local business such as this, but this place makes it a complete joy to do so- full tummies and all. On a recent visit to my home town, we hosted my mothers birthday dinner here. The food was so good we came back again before we left town. You simply can't go wrong here. The entire table loved their mains, everything from the Lamb chops to the Lasagna. You do have to come with some patience but trust me when I say it pays off- as the head Chef (Dad) plates up every dish himself and makes sure it's noting short of perfect. Two of our guests ordered the Lamb Chops which came out cooked to perfection, literally. Not undercooked or overcooked, just cooked perfectly- which by the way even the best of restaurants can't seem to nail. The rest of us carb loving people ordered pasta and weren't at all disappointed. If my husbands comment doesn't put it in perspective, I don't know what does- "I love you and your lasagna but this is the best lasagna I've ever had." Promptly followed by a kiss of course, soften the blow. But I don't mind, because on our second trip back to this gem, I order d the lasagna and he was right! So good. I need to up my lasagna game. As for Wine, they have a good selection. They carry genuine Chianti from Italy. Which is impressive. To be a genuine chianti it has to the have the black Rooster label and a serial number as this specific type of wine is governed by the Italian government. If you ever have a bottle of Chianti without these two distinguishing marks- it's not legit. I learnt all of this during a trip to Italy last year, and legit chianti is truly delicious. Bottomline, this is the place to go for a traditional Italian experience- from the wine to the food. Reservations recommended. read more

Great find. While in town one day I happened to be invited here for dinner. I travel 50% of the year and dine out a lot. Great chef. Fresh prepared for you. No kitchen short cuts. Lovely. Great sevice. Fair wine list. Highly recommended. When a 5 star rating is deserved. read more

The food and service here is great. The waitress was super friendly and the food was delicious (albeit a little pricey). It does take a while for the food to come out but everything is made from scratch so it it worth the wait. Great find. read more

OMG What a GEM!!!! My younger brother told me about this place and booked us for a family dinner last night. The place was super quiet, it really is a hidden gem in Calgary! They are a 2013 Open Table Winner, and its easy to see why. The service was amazing, it was as though you had been friends with the server and the chef for years. The kitchen has a big open window so we chatted with Benny the chef all night, he gave us recommendations on what to order. I had the veal tartufata and it was fantastic. My brother and my father had the rack of lamb, with 5 generous pieces and cooked to perfection, the sauce around the lamb was amazing as well. You can tell they put a lot of care into the food. After the meal Benny treated us all to a round of crema lemoncello or "Italian Eggnog" as he called it, and we had some cappuccinos. I'm not sure why the restaurant was so quiet, but I'm sure it won't stay that way for long. Go check it out! read more

Went there for my 30 th birthday dinner with my family !! The best Italian restaurant hands down in the city. The family run business makes it feel so warm and cozy inside!! Everyone is so nice and kind there ! Benny the cook, everything he makes is mouth watering! read more

It shocks me to see any sort of bad review on here, because I have visited this restaurant on several occasions and have never been disappointed. The owners take pride in creating a high class experience for their customers. Whether you go with friends, family, or a significant others, this restaurant is all about creating an experience and in return a lasting impression. I particularly love the open kitchen concept that adds to the individual experience. If you are looking for authentic Italian food run by an amazing local Italian family, then this is the place for you! read more

Was invited out for a casual Monday lunch. Service was attentive, informative and not overbearing. Just right. My hosts soup of the day, Zuppe Di Pesci was declared "just right" for a cold winter day. Chalk full of seafood in hot broth. Warm fresh ciabatta was delivered promptly and before the soup. We both ordered pasta. I am a recently retired food and beverage professional after 40 years in the business; most years spent in Calgary and more than a few within the Italian restaurant scene. As a result, I am usually very hesitant to order a carbonara in a restaurant. I know how to make this simple yet difficult end result dish at home better than what most call and try and do these days. Today I took a chance and I did not regret. Perfectly cut pieces of sautéed pancetta, (maybe even the original recipe Guanciale, although I did not confirm) egg yolks, parmigiano reggiano and a high end semolina dried pasta from Italy that I confirmed with the Chef. Yes, I want a dried pasta with carbonara that will hold up to the sauce. Fresh pasta does not marry well with a carbonara contrary to a post that thought dried pasta is bad. It is not and you need a little bite which you do not get from fresh. Fresh has it's place but so does dried. End result was a high quality perfect carbonara without onions, mushrooms, peppers, mozza, cream, peas etc etc. Just a simple 4 ingredients. No scrambled eggs, just a silky smooth sauce with the right amount of pancetta, parm, egg and pasta. "Perfection". You can have a glop of something with double the weight at less cost anywhere in Calgary. But if you want the real deal, please try here. Quality before quantity will usually serve you well. IMHO read more

Went there for lunch food was great! The decor is a bit sparse but service is excellent lunch menu a bit limited but i would definitely go back again! read more

Amazing food wonderful family that owns the restaurant and staffs it. Feels like coming home every time we eat there

Its a tiny, but nice and clean restaurant. A small menu, but authentic Italian. We were greeted by a friendly gentleman in a tie and vest AND by the chef himself! The food was incredible! I had Bison Ossobucco for $38 and my wife had Fresh Halibut. I rate the food 9.5/10 and the service a solid 9. I highly recommend this restaurant. read more