We went for an anniversary dinner. Wow the drinks started out with a bang - so tasty. Then the appetizer was probably my fave at an Italian restaurant. It was creative, and new - Sicilian Pepper Poppers. A small cherry pepper stuffed with cheese with a batter surrounding it. It was like an explosion of cheesy goodness when cut open or bitten. Then we had the meals. OMG - the cheesy sauces in my Butternut Squash Ravioli and in my wife's FAZZOLETTI Pesto pasta were divine. The fresh pasta combined with the sauces make for plate of delicious flavor. With each bite, we were so happy, yet sad the plate showed food disappearing ;) We were too full to have dessert but they have a sister restaurant hand make the desserts, and we were tempted. Next time! read more

Lala - Outside Sign - Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

I had a great experience coming to Lala. I came for their mob wife dinner unknowingly, and it was a delicious meal plus a really cute theme. Our server, Jesus, was the nicest -very attentive and kept things fun! 10 out of 10 would come here again! read more

Lala - Spicy Rigatoni - Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

What a lovely spot in the little Italy area of San Diego. We tried several appetizers and all of them were delish. I highly recommend the Carpaccio, Calamari and eggplant. The staff and chefs are amazing. Can't wait to go back! read more

great experience at lala!!! good was incredible highly recommend the tomatoes and burrata and the pinwheel lasagna! service was also so fast which was perfect because we were so hungry and our server took great care of us! the inside was of course so beautiful i love the style of the restaurant read more

Lala - Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

The ambiance was so cool! The steak mmmmm I am still drooling thinking about each perfect buttery bite. The spaghetti and meatballs were also spectacular and the service was memorable! read more

The two stars is only for our great waitress who was on it. The restaurant is very small and unimpressive and has no A/C it was so warm that it made it difficult to enjoy our warm dishes, which were disappointing as it was. The veal Parmesan was grissel-y and chewy, not one of us in our 3 person party could eat it. We left more than half of it. We also got the sausage pasta which none of us liked, wasn't very flavorful and just boring. Like most restaurants these days, very unimpressive. I would not come back here ever. read more

The service and restaurant esthetic was amazing. The drinks were very good too! The pasta was good not great along with the salad. I would definitely go back again. read more

Everything listed, food was excellent & reasonably priced, ambience was perfect for me & My wife's 23rd anniversary, & the service was seamless with special touch of a anniversary dessert from our top notch server Chad, It was busy but he was extra attentive ! A must go for sure read more

Great, our server Jesus was amazing! He went above and beyond to meet our needs and made the experience very special and fun! Loved it, thank you. read more

Lala - Came here for my birthday dinner, food was amazing. Our server Jesus went above and beyond and made the experience so special. Thank you! - Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

Sat at the bar with my buddy last night and had such a great experience. Nathalie and Eli were incredible bartenders and the vibes in the restaurant were great. My buddy got a cocktail and I had a mocktail. Both were superb. Thanks Nathalie and Eli for such a great night, will def try and make it back before my vacation is over read more

Great pasta, beautiful ambience and designs inside. Great service and drinks. A little pricey but perfect for date night.

A group of our friends went with us tto Lala to celebrate my wife's birthday. We expected an upscale place with food to match, but were generally underwhelmed. The appetizers are pretty good, but the only main courses we considered ok were the spaghetti & meatball, and the osso buco. The dishes have a monotonous taste that gets old after the first few bites. If you must go here, stick to appetizers and booze. read more

The food and drinks here are amazing! We enjoyed the French baguettes with the burrata as well as the oysters. SO Delicious! Our servers were attentive and Jesus was the best and recommended the most delicious appetizers and drinks! We will definitely be back! read more

I went here for a friend's birthday. Even though we had made a reservation, it took about 45 minutes for us to be seated. It also took quite a while to get our orders taken and once we did, half of our meals came out nearly 40 minutes before the other half. Our server was no where to be seen the entire time. The food was delicious and everyone was nice but I was pretty shocked by the service. read more

I absolutely loved the ambiance--such a vibe! The space is aesthetically stunning, with a great crowd to match. The food was incredibly fresh and delicious. read more

We were excited to try Lala and made reservations as soon as we had some free time. First off, I can say the service was impeccable and we enjoyed that part of the experience. The food was good but not necessarily outstanding. Everything comes as shareable plates as the waiter explained to us when we were seated. We ordered the Blistered Tomatoes and Burrata, the Spicy Caesar and Stuffed Shells to share. Of the three dishes our favorite was the Caesar. It comes loaded with Parmesan cheese and a pleasant slightly spicy flavor. The sauce on the Stuffed Shells was fresh but the serving size could have been larger for the price and the cheese inside the shells was a little bit off on this evening. The blistered tomatoes and burrata were also fresh but just average in taste. For dessert we had the Tiramisu which comes in a glass which was a bit unusual but tasted great. Inside there was music playing at a reasonable level and the vibe is dark and moody in appearance. I would recommend not sitting near the very front of the restaurant as they were unable to close the front off to stop the cold from coming in at the tables nearest the front wall. Parking can be difficult given its location in Little Italy but there is a valet directly in front. read more

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Celebrated my birthday here with a larger group and had a great experience. The drinks were all delicious, and the bartender gave excellent recommendations. The menu is well-curated with plenty of shareable plates, perfect for groups. The atmosphere strikes a balance between upscale and casual--dress however you feel. Music was on point, and the decor is super cute and inviting. I'd definitely recommend this spot and will likely be back! read more

Went there last monday, had a reservation for a party of 4, came on time, yet it took us 45 minutes to receive our meals. They brought out one dish first and then maybe 20 minutes later we got the rest. Mind you other people who were seated after us got their meals before us. No one apologized or explained the wait and they also brought out the wrong meal at one point. Usually I am more patient when the restaurant is busy and we have to wait 1 hour for our meals but for a monday with maybe 3 or 4 parties total there???? They were fully staffed and just not accommodating whatsoever. Really disappointing especially when you pay that that much. read more

The place looks nice when you walk in and by the prices of the food you'd think it would be good but it's not. The food is mediocre. The gnocchi is way too big and dry inside. The oysters are a big pile of soggy breadcrumbs. The calamari was soggy and rubbery. The old fashion had way too much fruit with way too many little ice cubes. 0 bitters were added to that drink. I'm 27 but I look younger so the server probably thought I wasn't going to tip so he was rude all night until I gave him 20%. Then he started to show respect. I should have gave him nothing. Waste of time considering there are other great places in little italy. read more

Highly recommend the lasagna pinwheels they're definitely very good and if you like cheese, they're very cheesy! I would definitely order them again. The sauce is amazing as well. The service was good too. read more

One of the best restaurants I've tried in sd all the food was excellent. The vibe was perfect. This place is a 10/10! read more

Lala - New years steak - Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

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Had the Alfredo with truffles. Extraordinary! Delicious, you could taste the flavors. Small setting. Intimate. Great seating. Servi excellent was great. I had Ruan as my server. He made great eye contact and was friendly. Host was friendly and welcoming. The music was nice and a great backdrop. The patrons do talk loudly though. I think that's just them though. I would recommend to anyone. I did make a reservation online. I don't know if it was needed. read more

Okay but not great. I had a reservation and initially changed the time once, which the restaurant was able to accommodate. They later adjusted the time again, which actually worked out well since we were running late anyway. However, when we arrived, we still had to wait about 30 minutes for our table, which was a bit frustrating considering we had a reservation. That said, once we were seated, the food was very good. Just wish the seating process had been smoother. read more

Amazing atmosphere. Our group enjoyed all the beautiful decorations inside. Tasty cocktails and amazing appetizers and main courses. Our server was Italian and very on it. We will be back. read more

Food was delicious. Our server Michael was professional and fun. The ambiance was lovely.

Great place to take a photo for social media. Ok place for dinner and a drink. The Lala Martini was excellent. I'd go back for this for sure. The rest of the menu wasn't super memorable but nothing was bad. The arachini was good. The Bibb salad was fine. Steak was good. We felt like we were being rushed out though and the server just plopped the check down and didn't so much as ask if we wanted dessert. I would label the service fairly unrefined. Overall not a bad dining experience but I wouldn't tell my friends to hurry there. read more

Incredible food and incredible service! Jesus C. was extremely attentive and ensured we have a great dining experience. The atmosphere of the restaurant was perfect for a family birthday dinner. read more

Amazing!! A delicious Aperol spritz and such good food!! Jesus was the best server with the best energy giving us the best experience. A must go if you're in downtown San Diego in the mood for fantastic Italian with a dark lit ambiance vibe! read more

My boyfriend and I came here for drinks recently. Eli was our bartender and he was amazing! This was our first time there and I was blown away by the service and quality of drinks. Every drink was perfectly balanced and Eli was extremely friendly and kind. I will be coming back again and asking for Eli! read more

Lala - Sign - Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

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the food here is pretty mid if you ask me. feels a little too see-and-be-seen kind of place and not so focused on the actual food quality. tried the spicy Caesar (total lack of flavor and not even spicy), calamari (this was okay), scallops Rockefeller (WILDLY overcooked and over salted), and the stuffed shells (also pretty forgettable). however, the LaLa's martini is freaking killer. I'd order five of those if they wouldn't kill me. love them. read more

Took my girlfriend to Lala the other night for our anniversary and I have to say the experience was amazing. The food and drinks were top tier, I definitely recommend the pinwheel lasagna and calamari!! Andie was super helpful in helping us decide what to get and drink, she helped make our night special. I definitely will be back! read more

The service here was amazing, the staff was extremely kind and courteous. However, the food was meh. Would say it sits below average taste wise, and takes forever to get anything served. The restaurant was also freezing I might add. We were sat by the thermostat and it said it was 59° in there. There whole slogan is "for the girls" but I don't think any girl wants to sit in a room that's below 60 while they eat. read more

I was really excited to try this place with my bestie, but we couldn't even get a chance to get inside because according to the guy behind the red rope, after taking a look at us, said they were "full". Seemed like a line to a club to get in and if you are not dressed the part, you're not getting in. Put a sour taste in our mouths and lost customers. read more

The restaurant has a really stylish ambience and good feel to it. We would always come in for the Veal Parmesan and it was amazing. The service was good and the cocktails fantastic. The only reason I am not giving it 5 stars is because they no longer serve the Veal Parmesan, instead opting for an Eggplant Parm. Not our fave!. Will be back if the Veal Parm comes back. That aside, I recommend you stop by for a visit. read more

Delicious drinks & quirky fun vibes. Would recommend for apps and drinks, but the entrees were not very good.

The food was not good to be honest, the grilled oysters had a bunch of mushy breadcrumbs on them, the calamari was soggy, ordered an old fashioned and it came out with a bunch of ice cubes. Service was okay read more

This place was the perfect spot for a girls night out! It was decorated so cute for Christmas with the pink Christmas trees and the gold tassel inside! There were definitely a good amount of photos opps for the girlies. If I was basing my review off the food alone, I would give it a 5/5. Everything we ate was delicious, the short rib arancini and the gnocci Rosa being my favorite dishes of the night, but the rest did not disappoint at all! There was a mixup with our drinks and unfortunately 2/3 of our cocktails came out incorrectly and it took longer than it should have to get figured out, that being said they did remake both drinks and they turned out being good (which we really appreciated - nothing worse than paying for something you are not going to enjoy). I would 100% come back for another girls night to try other cocktails off the regular menu as we had ordered on the holiday menu. Also - a HUGE bonus to this place is the $12 valet, you literally pull up to the restaurant and the rest is taken care of. read more

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Food is not good at all. Service is mediocre and the music is too loud you cannot have a conversation without raising your voice.

This place was amazing! Celebrated a 24th birthday here and everything was awesome! The servers and staff were so welcoming and accommodating! The food was great... must try the gnocchi and stuffed shells! The espresso martini was a hit! read more

Lala - Bars Near Me - San Diego, California

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what a Jem! Small cozy and sexy place great to enjoy a cocktail and some excellent food with your date. I can see the great influence of the new generation of the Busalacchi, Looks like a lot of work went to designing and building this place detaching from the classic Italian old-school restaurant that we used to have here in California. Service was on point, and I was very surprised because it's a brand new restaurant but you can see that this family has a lot of experience. And of course the food was amazing, read more