I think giving this restaurant 3 star is very generous. This was our first time, and we were excited about this place because of what we were told. Here are the issues: First ,do not go there if you want to have some conversation with your companion and friends! Too noisy, and annoying if you are inside.The place is not sound prof ,and the tables are too close . Other people have said the same. Before ordering,I've asked about the ingredient of Corbaba. I thought it might be a vegetarian dish, but was told it has some kind of Italian meat .(can't remember what ).my food turned out to be a very creamy pasta with so little meat ,that I've made a decision not to eat much with fear of indigestion ! so I came home hungry! portions are small, and everything is very pricey . The service is good, very friendly ,a little pushy. The worse part was when the waiter had to asked us to vacate our table because people are waiting outside!! all together we have spent 1:15 minutes ,paid for over priced food and I came home hungry!! read more

OMG!!!!!! I have spent many days in Italy and this is the BEST Italian food this side of Firenze, Italia. Amber was the best. Going to dinner with a 3-1/2 year old can be crazy fun. His first comment was where is my food guys (I am still laughing) Amber brought his pizza right away and lots of bread for him, as he did not feel the need to share. I honestly can't wait to return the branzino was light, veggies cooked to perfection. WOW, WOW. . . . I don't want to hear about the one bathroom or parking issues as these individuals have never been to Italy. Spending many days at Apicius Cooking School in Firenze, Italia made this place just hit the spot! Just go and enjoy yourself at this awesome "Little gem" on Brown Ave in Lafayette. Amber you are the BEST! read more

Feels like I'm back in Italy...super cute interior of restaurant but we sat outside which was not a good idea since it got really hot. Daniel was our server and he was great. We ordered a bunch of appetizers to share and my friend had the branzino that came in a fish plate which looked really good. We had a bottle of champagne to celebrate my friend's birthday which was also good. For dessert, we ordered the panna cotta and their special which I cannot remember the name. I really enjoyed the panna cotta, it helped cool us down in the hot weather. Would Dec come back to try more entrees on the menu. Great atmosphere for get-togethers with very cool staff. read more

I've lived in the area for a while, but never got a chance to eat here until recently. The food is amazing (perfectly al dente pasta, well-balanced sauces and textures); the staff was friendly and accomodating; and the place itself is adorable inside and out. Will definitely be returning with friends to treat ourselves. read more

We're so happy to have found this authentic Italian restaurant so close to home. We had delicious salad, carbonara, lasagne, cocktails and wine, and really fabulous tiramisu to top it off. Can't wait to go back! read more

We were very impressed with every aspect of Locanda Positano! All of our selections were perfectly prepared, delectable, and so full of interesting flavors, i.e. the Insalata Autunno, w/organic radicchio & greens, with truffle goat cheese and pomegranate! For my main course, I ordered the Linguine De Mari, a seafood pasta with calamari, clams, tiger prawns, scallops, nestled in a deeply flavorful broth, with sautéed cherry tomatoes. We had ordered craft beers to accompany our meals, and as the host, I was delighted when the bill was presented as it was only $75.00! If you have a chance, GO! read more

Great little Italian place. Very good service, interesting menu and nice outdoor patio.

All the items we ordered were bland. The "famous" meatballs - 3 medium sized meatballs in marinara sauce for $14. The sauce was good but the meatballs had very little flavor. The gnocchi's were cooked well - small and soft. But the pesto sauce was a cream sauce with no basil flavor. I actually had to add some salt which I never do. (I usually complain things are over salted.) Even the salt didn't help. The Margherita pizza was just average. Again, almost no flavor. The cost was $80 with tip for lunch for the three above items and a glass of wine. This is expensive for the amount and flavor of the food served. The one shining light was the service. It was very good. read more

Great Italian food! We love this place. We've had several things on the menu and they never disappoint. The staff is friendly and accommodating. read more

Had a great dinner sitting outside on the patio on a warm evening! The Fritto Misto was fresh light and crispy. My eggplant parm. was delicious and I really liked the fresh tomato sauce it was served with. We also had the special, veal piccata. The veal was very tender and very flavorful. We will return soon !! read more

Best real Italian locally! Terrific food ALL around. Fresh ingredients and great atmosphere. If you're hungry for pastas, pizza, salads and MORE...not to be missed! Very friendly and attentive staff. Varied selection of wines and drinks. Will definitely be back for more. read more

Very good food and convenient for delivery/pick-up. I love their lasagna in particular.

Amazing food, great wine selection, and a wonderful atmosphere. I would highly recommend for any occasion especially if it is a special one! Love the staff. And the owner is sooo nice and super cool! read more

We went to dinner last night with high expectations, maybe too high? The sister restaurant in Danville is so well liked! On a totally positive note, the customer service was excellent. Very friendly, extremely nice waiter and other help. However, I did feel a little rushed. We started off with 2 appetizers. I did not like the calamari at all. Not done to a nice brownness and fishy. The other appetizer was really good, a mixture of meats, cheeses, olives etc. I ordered the beet salad and it was huge and quite good. For my entree I ordered the San Danielle pizza and it was very good. My husband had the fish but didn't care for it. Others in our party had pasta and all were very much enjoyed. The coffee was excellent and the desserts were very good especially the one with hazelnut and chocolate. Nice atmosphere outside and in but extremely noisy. A nice evening for sure but not really wowed. We may return but probably would only order the pasta entrees, they seemed to really shine! read more

Had my second fantastic meal there today - eggplant parm. So so yummy. Staff is incredibly accommodating and sweet. Nice that they also have their own lot with plenty of parking. Can't wait to return. read more

Wow this place was horrible! We use to go when it was in San Carlos and it was great. We heard they opened in the Neighborhood and were super excited. So we went for my wife's birthday. Very sad 7 of us and all ordered something different and all very disappointing. Don't go here. read more

Staff was super friendly and made our birthday celebration very special. 5 stars on the decor and ambience. Would go back

Server very good but disappointed in food. Ordered Smoked Salmon(which I dearly love) served with 2 super crunchy pieces of baguette (not pleasant) and a sprinkle of arugula and thinly sliced fennel with barest dressing, Salmon was so salty I could barely taste the Salmon and ended up eating about 1/2. Others ordered pizza,again disappointing,had to cut off crust because it was charcoal....Caeser Salad was just "ok", Beet Salad was just "ok", Fettuccine Siciliana...pasta overdone,she did like the sauce though. All in all not going back ‼ read more

I have dined here probably no less than 8 times since they opened. I love the unique approach to authentic Italian food the owner has created. Wait staff and chef(s) - all from Italy and continually keeping it fresh. I could list the dishes had at the restaurant, but would be redundant of the other reviews. Each dish has been incredibly presented and flavorful. The staff is very attentive and can be entertaining. The GM, Renato, is a tremendous host and when the owner, Enzo is there, he is attentive and welcoming. You truly feel as if you are in Positano, Italy. Atmosphere is festive, warm and active in the dining room. The dining room is a beautiful open space with one are in a "semi-private" room. The outdoor patio is very inviting with a beautiful canopy overhead and roll downs sides to keep inclimate weather out. All creating a wonderful dining experience. Make reservations for evening dining on weekends - you're going to need them. Weekday lunches are generally accommodating and seating available quickly. read more

Ordered takeout and got the Brussels sprouts, gnocchi with tomato sauce and carbonara. All were good (for Walnut Creek / Lamorinda) however none were really stellar. Would consider coming back. Good outdoor / patio area read more

Born and raised in Italy living in Lafayette for over 10 years and Now i can tell we have an authentic Italian restaurant. Had dinner with my family last sunday my son had the flatbread pizza with prosciutto it was delicious my wife and i had the special short ribs perfetta cottura as we said in italy. Very friendly staff it brought me back to italy for a moment. Raffaelle susgested us a nice bottle of Brunello di Montalcino it was just perfect. We Will def be back. Grazie e buona fortuna ragazzi. read more

I've been here twice and had excellent service and delicious food both times. The Ravioli Positano with prawns is a favorite, and there's a seasonal peach salad we loved. The patio is super charming. read more

the best Italian restaurant ,everything is regale taste and good ,yesterday we celebrate my husband daughter Bday ,very nice and serves all good ,Javier very gentleman friendly ,l recommend read more

Amazing lasagna. The best I've ever had. Great service. Attentive. Will definitely go back.

This is our favorite go-to restaurant in Lamorinda/Walnut Creek. The food is consistently delicious, Italian, comfort food (with unusual, creative, fantastic, non-traditional specials), but it just might be the staff that makes us come back again and again. The staff makes you feel like you are coming to their house for dinner, and as though you are an honored guest. One server frequently sings "Happy Birthday" opera-style, adding to the celebratory vibe. Lots of indoor/outdoor seating with heaters and blankets indulge the "careful" ones. Love this place!! read more

This restaurant does not even deserve one star ! The service and wait staff was deplorable, the noise level did not allow normal conversation, three different wines were selected however they had none of each, salads were tasteless and liker rabbit food, and the main course's for our party were all unremarkable and once again ordinary. The manager or who knows ? Asked us how our dinner was and we told him exactly the above...he asked if we would return and the answer was no from all of us. There was no attempt on his part to correct or offer a "re-do". read more

Highly recommend. Had a great bday dinner. One star removed because my linguine Vongole has sand particles in it though other member of my parties did not. Fantastic service and fun atmosphere. read more

I will say the service staff was friendly but I asked if they could make me plain pasta with olie oil and basil and parmesan (not even any tomatoes) and was stunned that they cahrged me 24 dollars, especially when they had ravioli with shrimp, lobster and vodka sauce for 28 dollars. Also not happy about the 7 dollar bottle of spakling water. They came over witih water and asked which type I wanted, plain or sparkling, so I didn't think it was and extra fee. So 31 dollars (plus tip) for mediocre plain pasta and water... read more

mediocre (at best) food and terrible acoustics. the waiter never asked why the bowl of gluey gnocchi went uneaten. we were so disappointed. having grown up with an immigrant italian grandmother who made, arguably, the worst italian food ever, locanda positano gave her a run for her money. read more

First of all I don't know how Franco reviewed this place yesterday since it just opened today! Anyways, I called on Monday and someone actually answered! It was about 8:48 pm and I asked if they were opened yet the man said no they close at 9:00 pm so I asked again if they are open for business and again he said that they close at 9! Finally I asked if the Lafayette location is open yet and that's when he realized what I was asking! He said that they would be opening sometimes next week. We drove by tonight and low and behold they were open! It was around 6:30sh so the place was pretty empty. We ordered a few items to try things out. I'm not going to bore you with details. The food was mediocre at best and the cost was outrageous! Again I won't go into details because I simply don't want to bore you! The only thing that actually made us very happy was seeing the previous restaurant's owner sitting at the bar who actually acknowledged us and our daughter and he still remembered our names! At one point we also noticed a lumber jack guy greeting the former owner of Artisan and we recognized him he's the new landlord Dave Roberson who basically drove out most of the businesses from this location. Anyways needless to say that we'll never return! This place us just as bad as their Danville location. Another odd thing was having the owners friend's son sitting atop of the bar! Anothet odd thing was that the lights flicker with the beat of the music playing over the speakers! Finally there is a guy who comes out of the kitchen every hour or so to belch out a Pavarotti! STRANGE! I'm willing to bet that these folks won't see their second year just like Jeff Amber' s Gigis! Our bill for 2 was $247.36 before tip! read more

I've been to every iteration of this space since it was Kaffe Barbara and this may be my least favorite. First of, for our 7:15 Saturday reservation, they sat us outside in the tent with a nice view of the parking lot. Inside it is cozy and comfortable with the photo wrap of Positano, Italy in a corner with a table for 8 under a blue Murano chandelier. Don't settle for outside seating. Our first course was a Vesuvio salad which was greens, a few cut-in-half cherry tomatoes and a couple of pieces of shaved fennel in an Italian dressing. I make much better and more interesting salads at home. We shared a San Daniele pizza with buffalo mozzarella, san daniele prosciutto, wild arugula, and tomato sauce and Paccheri Siciliana, thick paccheri pasta with mozzarella, eggplant and fresh basil with red sauce. Both were ok if lacking in flavor. We both poured salt (from a mini shaker with plugged holes) and pepper on them as we saw other diners do. The best item was the chocolate souffle for desert, not really a souffle but a moist warm cake, with ice cream. Service was pretty good, except it was so noisy and our waiter had a thick Italian accent so we could only understand about half of what he said. The couple next to us was shaking their heads after he stopped by their table, too. read more

Celebrated a bday here and 1st time here too. Was surprised to see so many people. Got seated quickly w our rsvp. Love the decor a bit crowded but a fun atmosphere n loud if your dining inside. Started w/a bottle of Italian wine, beet salad n special octopus starter..everything was delish! We ordered pasta specials, brazino, and braised beef. Honestly everything was excellent and fresh. Saw other dishes from other tables n looked so good including the calamari fristo which I'm gonna have to come back n try. For dessert they gave us a complimentary panacotta for the bday person, such a lovely presentation along w the Italian serenade..definitely would come here again! read more

Just had a wonderful lunch. Food, setting, art on walls outside were all superb. Waitstaff very attentive and engaging. We will be going back SOON!! read more

Nice, bright interior space and outdoor patio, but the food was mediocre and service was subpar. We tried a salad and antipasti, both of which were average. Pastas seem to be hit or miss. We tried two, one was good, one was terrible. Cocktails were decent. The wine list is quite extensive, but overpriced. We enjoyed our bottle, honestly, the wine was probably the best part of the experience. This place reminds me of some of the bad, touristy restaurants in North Beach. If you must have Italian food, I'd go to A-16 in Rockridge, which is much better. read more

First timers here, and would go again. Had the Lobster Ravioli. Very good. Perhaps the sauce overwhelms the lobster as the taste of the lobster seemed to not fully come through (or maybe it is my taste buds!) Also several prawns come with the lobster. Waiter asked if we'd like 'parmesan' on the ravioli, and I asked if it was Parmiggano Reggiano, and didn't get an answer. Tried to see the rind, but couldn't. Accepted some nonetheless The amount of ravioli was more than generous. Family member had the watermelon salad. Reading its description, we thought it sounded interesting, and it was. Large chunks of beautifully red, and very ripe melon, drizzled with balsamic, spotted with feta, and again, a very generous portion. At this point, so full could barely even think of dessert, but opted for the panna cotta as this is usually lighter than perhaps a tiramisu. Well, it was a disappointment. Have had quite a few panna cottas at various restaurants. Usually, panna cotta has a creaminess, and does 'jiggle' a bit. This was too firm and again, though panna cotta is not highly flavored, this was completely bland (except for the sauce). A side note here, is that there is an extensive wine, liquor and aperitif list (even Fernet Branca which I should have ordered after this meal!). For those who like Single Malts, this is your place! A good selection from the Glenfiddich @ MacAllan, the lighter ones to the strong ones. Haven't seen a wider choice of 'singles' anywhere. Attentive service from waiters and bussers. Very worth a return visit. read more

Excellent. I was truly blown away but the authenticity of the Italian food. A top spot in the east bay.

I stopped in the first night the restaurant was open. It was a pleasant surprise to see the space open to the public again, after nearly a year since the fine dining experience of Artisan expired. The place is more open than before, with virtually all internal walls removed. I also noticed the acoustic ceiling tiles that used to be installed in the last restaurant have been removed. Between those facts, and the music and tv, the place is even noisier than before. But maybe that's the style they are seeking? I had very good cocktails, that's true. But the food I had was quite bland. My appetizer was the escarole sformato, like a souffle. It was nicely warm, but I had to season with both salt and pepper. My main course was the Trofie Positano..... Trofie pasta with sausage, eggplant and arugula. The pasta was nice, but very little flavor overall to the dish. Italian sausage doesn't need to be hot and spicy to be flavorful, sweet Italian sausage can be wonderfully flavorful. But this dish was bland. The place almost seems like it's going for a sports bar flavor, with the loud music and the tv tuned to tennis and other sports. Then there was also a staff member who occasionally came out from the kitchen and sang Italian opera excerpts. I'm not sure that's what diners expect. And as a couple other reviewers mentioned...... the blinking lights synchronised with the sound system music. THAT I found extremely tacky and weird. I've eaten at the Danville location that's part of the same restaurant family ..... Locanda Ravello. Only once. That place is bigger, but just as loud, and the food there was also bland. I hoped Positano would be an improvement on Ravello, but I was mistaken. Restaurants these days are creating noisier environments in order to turn tables more quickly, thus generating more business and potential profit. But while that's maybe the ambience some find acceptable, I won't be back to either the Danville location, or this new incarnation in Lafayette. There are better Italian restaurants from which to choose in the area, and in many of them you can hear the conversation you're having with dinner companions. read more

Every time we come here it's amazing!! The food, the wine, the atmosphere is so great! We just celebrated a birthday here and out waiter Raffi recommend a few dishes that were Devine! As well as a great wine to complement the dishes! We will defiantly be back and hope to make this restaurant a part of our regular haunts! read more

Went there for the first time for Valentine's Day brunch with my family. AMAZING service and food! We are all instantly addicted and cannot wait to go back :) The waiters were from Italy which really made for a real Italian experience! read more

Love it here! Most, if not all employees are from Italy - they are very friendly and happy to chat it up with you about their home towns or practicing Italian! The food is outstanding! read more