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Locanda Veneta

4.4 (629 reviews)
PriceyItalian
Closed • 11:00 am - 8:30 pm
Updated over 3 months ago

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LOCANDA VENETA ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Romantic
Happy hour specials
Good for groups

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Recommended Reviews - Locanda Veneta

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Chicken Medaglioni di Pollo Parmigiana
George C.

WOW!!! One of the most complete Italian meals I've had in a while. Crusty fresh bread with homemade pesto , creamy burrata with Cali tomatoes , and PERFECTLY made chicken parm with an epic sauce- !! Would go back in a heartbeat.

Linguini alla Pescatora with tomato sauce (loved this!!!)
Tiffany H.

I had one of the most pleasant lunches I have ever had in LA at this lovely restaurant. It's hard to have a bad lunch when dining al fresco on a summer day in Beverly Hills...but I do think the delicious food and warm service added to the experience! We started with the calamari alla veneta (grilled calamari in olive oil over a bed of sautéed Swiss chard) and I do not think I will ever be going back to fried calamari again! The textures and flavors were divine and the chard almost tasted like baby bok choy (a veggie that I particularly love). For our main, we shared the Linguini alla Pescatora, which featured Manila clams and black mussels in tomato sauce (you could also choose a white wine sauce). All meals come with a free bread basket and dare I say their ciabatta is how all bread should be--soft but with a bouncy chew, and the perfect vehicle for sopping up our pasta sauce. For such a small restaurant the menu is quite extensive. Their 2-course lunch special (one antipasti and one secondi) for $22 per person seems like a great deal and I may give that a try next time I am visiting. Bon appetito!

Vibe
Sky T.

Wow! What a surprising find near Beverly Hills/West Hollywood area. From the front it doesn't seem much but on the inside it's transforms into a welcoming Italian style place. There's also great lighting for a nice and intimate meal for a small group or a date. We found this place through Dine LA and really enjoyed our experience. The service was attentive without being too overbearing and the food was excellent! We had an octopus that was thinly sliced and burrata that just melted in our mouth. For our main entree we got the gnocchi that was pillowy with pieces of lobster. There's a heartiness and authenticity that gives the food a special feel that isn't too overproduced. Really a gem of a place a look forward to coming back again!

Kayla C.

Easily 1/2 of my favorite Italian restaurants throughout the city. Locanda is very small but the intimacy is what makes it more special. Marco was always wonderful and remembers frequent customers. Absolute favorite is the Cappellaci al Manzo Stufato! Second favorite raviolo d'aragosta, and third is the linguini al frutti di mare. The minestrone is tasty and wine list consists of some fine local wines. What makes this place an easy favorite is how quiet/lowkey/intimate but spectacular the food and service is.

Outdoor Dining - my favorite pasta!
Kara G.

We drive all the way from San Diego County just to eat here - and every single time, it's worth it. Locanda Veneta isn't just an Italian restaurant; it's an experience. The food is beyond anything I've ever tasted. Every dish feels crafted by someone who understands flavor, texture, and balance on a whole different level. The chef is a true artist - his skill and experience stand far above most in the industry, and it shows in everything from the perfectly silky sauces to the flawless tenderness of the pasta. From the moment you arrive, everything just flows. Valet parking right out front means you can relax and step straight into this warm, inviting space tucked near Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills. Inside, it's the perfect blend of romantic, cozy, and family-friendly. Whether it's date night or dinner with loved ones, it just feels right. The Maître D' is phenomenal - genuinely welcoming, attentive, and professional - the kind of person who makes you feel like an old friend from the moment you walk in. The servers are top-shelf, with a rhythm and grace that make the evening seamless. Every detail feels intentional, from the pacing of the meal to how they anticipate what you need before you even ask. And then there's the wine list - it truly hits differently. The selection is thoughtful, diverse, and designed to enhance every flavor coming out of that kitchen. Their team helps you find the perfect pairing with confidence and ease - never pushy, just deeply knowledgeable. Locals rave about how well they handle large parties and private events, and I believe it. The staff works together like a family - making guests feel valued, seen, and completely cared for, all while keeping things beautifully professional. Locanda Veneta is one of those rare places that stays with you long after the meal ends. Elegant, authentic, and unforgettable, it's Italian dining the way it's meant to be - done with passion, precision, and heart!!! Five stars, always. .... An additional plus- seed oil free!

Cappuccino
Lynnette S.

My husband had a doctor's appointment directly across from this restaurant. Decided to have lunch. We got lucky and have a great parking spot right in front. My husband had the Branzino - their special for the day and I had Linguini Pescatora. They started us with their delicious bread. We finished with a couple of Cappuccinos and a Panna Cotta. Everything was delicious and our server was delightful. It's not a huge restaurant but they do have outdoor seating. Will definitely be back. Thank you.

DineLA menu
Sam B.

Locanda Veneta (Italian for Venetian Inn) is an intimate, quaint, charming, romantic Italian restaurant that has been around since 1988 and for good reason. It's just such a treat to eat here. Prior to this visit, I had been here for dinner a few times over the years. The food has always been consistently good and I've even spotted some celebrities. This time around, I came to Locanda Veneta to try the DineLA lunch menu. It was a wonderful deal for a three course gourmet meal. Another thing I really liked about the menu is that the vegetarian options were clearly marked. A vegetarian can order from every course of the Dinela menu. The meal came with complimentary bread served warm and a side of pesto. A definite must-try. It's so, so good!! For my appetizer I chose FAGOTTINI MELANZANE which had eggplant rolls stuffed with mozzarella and basil and baked in a delicious tomato sauce. The presentation of this appetizer was stunning. It came baked in an individual cast iron baking dish and there was a fresh piece of basil over the top. The serving size was very generous as well. As an appetizer, you may want to consider taking some home as this definitely could be a meal in itself. The soup of the day was also vegetarian (red pepper soup that had a vegetable broth base). So there is was another lighter vegetarian option to choose from on the menu. However, I went with the eggplant as I thought it was more unique. For the main course I choose PESCE BLANCO AL CARTOCCIO which was white fish wrapped in parchment paper with julienne vegetables, capers and spices. It did take some time for this dish to come as they make it from scratch but it was 100% worth the wait. The fish tasted so fresh and melted in my mouth as I ate it. The julienne vegetables were also cooked just right. I would come here again just to eat this fish. It was so, so good and a pretty healthy option as well. For dessert there was a choice between the BISCOTTI and SORBET. One of us ordered the sorbet and the other biscotti so that we could share them both. I'm not usually a fan of biscotti but this biscotti was so special. The chocolate chips melted in my mouth and the texture was just right and not too hard. I see why they are called "famous" biscotti on the menu. This is a winning cookie! The sorbet came with 2 scoops of your choice: mango, lemon, and raspberry. We chose lemon and raspberry and it was a delightful end to the meal. Locanda Veneta has seating outside as well on the sidewalk but I prefer the inside of this establishment because it is just so cute and part of the fun of dining out for me is the atmosphere. There was a large party of 8 sitting across from me in the middle booth. This is a lovely place to have a small party. I also spotted some solo diners as well as parties of two. It did start clearing out around two o'clock and I believe they close at two instead of two thirty (as listed on Yelp) so I suggest going early for lunch. Since it is a small place, our waiter was also the host, so it was a little bit of a wait to get our seats but once seated the whole experience was wonderful and first class. We felt very special and also loved where we were seated by the window in a comfy booth. Parking can be a bit tough to find. There's metered parking on the street but it does fill up fast. We parked a few blocks away and walked. They do have a valet as well ($15). Other cool facts: The head chef and owner of the restaurant was honored as one of the culinary talents in Best Chefs America. Won Opentable Diners Choice Award 15 years in a row.

Lunch sized rigatoni bolognese
Michelle S.

I met a friend here for lunch who works at Cedars Sinai. It's location right across from the West tower makes it convenient for people working at Cedars to get to. And for people like me that are driving up being across from the West Tower parking structure makes an easy place to park although it expensive place. I was there for just under 2 hours and it cost me $18 to park! There is street parking if you can find it but of course that's easier said than done. The service is welcoming with friendly and attentive servers. They had a lunch time special for $20.95 you get to pick an appetizer/soup and an entree. I got the minestrone soup which was full of vegetables and a delicious broth that wasn't too acidic, not spicy at all, not too salty either. It was perfect for this chilly winter day. And for my entree I opted for the Rigatoni Bolognese because it was described as a lean meaty sauce. It was hearty and delicious and topped with Parmesan cheese, was amazing!

Ahi tuna salad with avocado
Ariel M.

Perfecto! Italian food at it's finest. Maximo was our server, and he was fantastic His jokes were hysterical, and he's quite the charmer. My friend enjoyed the artichoke soup and I enjoyed the ahi tuna salad. The salad dressing complimented the tuna so well, and it was incredibly fresh. We ended our lovely evening with dessert with a panna cotta I cannot wait to come back for and our server Ciao!

Jenny M.

I was craving authentic Italian and saw some promising words and pictures on here so I ventured out to try this place. I ordered: 1. grilled calamari (for one person) 2. squid ink lobster ravioli 3. panna cotta with fresh berries Bread was complimentary and came with a yummy pesto sauce. Grilled calamari was juicy, grilled to perfection and tasted so fresh with lemon, and the squid ink lobster ravioli was the start of the show - the magic yellow sauce on top of the black ravioli filled with fresh lobster was delectable, each magic puff filled with a the perfect blend of umami. Panna cotta with fresh berries was the best I have ever had - the panna cotta had specks of vanilla bean, not too sweet - it was light, refreshing and perfect tart/sweetness ratio in the housemade fruit compote that the panna cotta was basking in. Service was delightful, friendly and very attentive. This special restaurant knows authentic Italian cuisine without being pretentious. I can't wait to go back during my next trip to LA.

Chicken Parmesan
Claudia B.

I'm disappointed. I wanted to like this place a LOT MORE than I did. However, I can give it a solid three stars. While the food wasn't bad, it wasn't great, either. Perhaps, my husband and I just ordered the wrong dishes, but it shouldn't matter what we ordered. Everything should have been sublime, and it just wasn't. The restaurant was really tiny, which shouldn't have bothered me, but it was more that the tables were crammed together. Thank goodness it wasn't crowded, or I would've been upset to almost be eating on top of other people/tables. Which then begs the next question... why was this place with so many empty tables on a Saturday night? At its most crowded, there were only three other tables utilized besides ours. Again, I liked that, given how crowded the tables were jammed in there, but it didn't speak well of this restaurant's ability to attract diners. Perhaps that is also why Locanda Veneta runs a Travelzoo special offering $100 worth of food for only $55. That is what brought us to the restaurant. They are not bashful to charge steep amounts for their dishes, so even while I secured that offer, a food bill for three of us easily went well over $200, and that was without any alcohol. One glaring strike against this restaurant is that in our online reservation, we stated that we were celebrating someone's birthday. The restaurant had the information in print, but they failed to say or do anything about it while dining. Our friend knew that the dinner was in his honor anyway, but it would have been nice for the restaurant to say or do something on their own... but they didn't. And I didn't remind them. I shouldn't have to. Most restaurants are good about it when we have provided the information in our reservation. A 5-star worthy restaurant certainly would've been on top of that. Now for the food. I will say that our friend, the birthday boy, was very pleased with his food. There's always a chance he was just being polite and appreciative and didn't want to hurt our feelings because we were treating him.... BUT.... he said he loved his dishes, so I'll take him at face value. I didn't try his food, so I don't really know. He ordered the soup of the day, which was minestrone soup, Venetian style, made with chicken and corn in a tomato broth. For his entree, he had pappardelle pasta with beef tenderloin, wild mushroom in a barolo sauce. He finished his food, so I guess that's telling. As for my husband and I, that's another story. My husband ordered a Caesar salad, which he said was really good. However, the chicken parm was not. The chicken was pounded really thin, and they overcooked it, so it was really tough and even dried out, which made it difficult to not only cut, but also, to chew. He didn't finish it. He said there was enough sauce and cheese to help it along, but it didn't fix the underlying problem. I ordered the most expensive entree on the menu, which I only mention because the waiter said it was also their "signature" dish of the restaurant. It was "fresh Chilean sea bass." For $56 and it being their "signature" dish, I expected to love it. Also, because it was a favorite fish of mine. The fish wasn't noticeably seasoned and was in a very sweet balsamic glaze. It said balsamic sauce on the menu, but I didn't know how sweet it would be. Not all balsamic products are served outright sweet; every restaurant does it differently. Theirs was very sweet and not to my liking. Plus, this fish was strange to me and didn't taste or have the texture anything like Chilean Sea bass. I honestly don't know what I was given. As for the lentils, I loved them, BUT they were swimming in the runoff balsamic glaze/sauce, and I didn't want ANY sweet or balsamic flavor competing with the wonderful flavor of the lentils. I was able to eat about half of the lentils, and the rest was inedible to me. As for the accompanying arugula salad, I unfortunately saw a tiny bug fly out of the salad, and that ended my interest in eating it. I squashed the little bug on the tablecloth, so it was not my imagination. I did save the best for last, though. We ordered an apple tart, which was very cutely made in the shape of an apple, dusted in powdered sugar, served with caramel sauce and amaretto gelato. The gelato was outstanding; we all loved that, and we thoroughly enjoyed the apple tart. I probably would've rated the tart as outstanding were the apples not as tart as they were... would've preferred them to be sweeter, but we still really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, this is not a place I will be returning to. I don't mind being charged a lot of money, but the food should be commensurate in quality with what I am being charged. This clearly was not.

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6 months ago

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The bread w pesto was amazing. Delicious! A very classic Italian restaurant ambience.

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6 months ago

Great meal and great service. I have been going here for years and this restaurant is consistently a five star experience

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Maccheroni Republic

Maccheroni Republic

4.4
(4.6k reviews)
7.8 mi
•$$

I LOVE their Bianchi & Neri, seriously the best pasta dish they offer. I am a big fan of thin…read morespaghetti, the black noodles are because of squid ink. It is tossed with shrimp, mushrooms, and roasted pancetta, all in a rich creamy bisque. Our party of 5 all ordered this and we never regret it (about $25 per plate). We also ordered a seasonal dish called Paccheri Nero Di Polpo featuring squid ink paccheri pasta cut to resemble calamari and served with cooked octopus ragù. They serve free bread as you wait and you can help yourself to olive oil, vinegar, and/or their chili oil. Can't go wrong with an order of calamari. Their meat balls were tasty and more sausage forward.

Maccheroni Republic - Life is full of pasta-bilities!…read more So if you know anything about me, you know that I love pasta more than just about anything. While I can only officially claim about 12% Italian heritage, I'm 100% down for Italian food, especially homemade pasta, any day of the week. I'm spending this week in Little Tokyo for a conference, and while Japanese food is also absolutely my jam, when Maccheroni Republic slid into my Yelp feed, I knew that I had to hoof it over there immediately after we broke for the day. I saw the front of the building, and my heart sank because it looked closed, but then I noted the sign that indicated that the entrance is on the right side of the building through the courtyard. Thank goodness! I strutted through the courtyard, and observed about 15 people waiting for tables. Unbothered, I went up to the host stand and chatted with the stylish maitre'd - Dino - who indicated that he could have a table for me in 7-10 minutes. I proceeded to wait and I watched how he deftly sat the other waiting parties in order without difficulty or notes. To the untrained eye, it might have looked a little chaotic, but Dino absolutely knew what he was doing. About 15 minutes later, Dino sat me at a corner deuce in the inside dining room where I had a nice view of everything. Angel efficiently took my order and did a very good job of overseeing my table as well as about nine others. The dining room is so cute and homey, and the patio is a welcome respite from the bustle and business of downtown. Since I was "da sola" or on my own, I just tried the shrimp cakes and I ordered the Rigatoni all Norma which is one of of my go to pasta dishes since I don't eat much meat. Incidentally, this dish is named after Norma, the famous 19th-century opera composed by Catanese native Vincenzo Bellini. According to legend, a famous Sicilian playwright, Nino Martoglio, tried the pasta and was so overwhelmed by its perfection that he exclaimed, "Chista è 'na vera Norma!" ("This is a true Norma!"), comparing the culinary masterpiece to the musical one. So says Wikipedia anyway. The shrimp cakes were delivered quickly by a sweet food runner who kindly checked on me periodically during my dinner. The four shrimp cakes were accompanied by sauteed onions which paired really nicely with the crispy cakes that were brightened with a spritz from the fresh lemon wedge. She also brought a basket with four slices of Italian bread which I enjoyed with the EVOO and Balsamic that were on the table. My Watermelon Ciao was also so good. It was sweetly tart and such a nice treat on a Monday! Not long after I polished off the shrimp cakes, the rigatoni was delivered and dusted with a generous layer of parmigiana. The little fresh mozzarella pearls glistened on the top of the pasta and slowly melted and oozed into the sauce as I stirred it up. Yum! The rigatoni were al dente and delicious, and they were perfectly sauced. Of course, the eggplant was perfectly cooked as well, I only wish there had been a few more pieces of it - although by the time I ate the last noodle, I was so full! Alas, I had no room for dessert, but I intend to bring some of my conference colleagues back for a meal before the end of the week because it was THAT GOOD. I also loved that this place is NOT pretentious at all. There were all sorts of folks enjoying their food here from medical professionals in scrubs to college kids in shorts and t-shirts, and I was also very casually attired, but I was treated well and welcomed with graciousness and delicious food! Mille grazie Maccheroni Republic, Dino, Angel and everyone at this wonderfully lowkey yet fabulous trattoria.

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Interior
Interior
MASCARPONE FLAN
MASCARPONE FLAN
Scallops with squid ink risotto

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Scallops with squid ink risotto
Cento Pasta Bar

Cento Pasta Bar

4.4
(1.2k reviews)
3.4 mi
•$$$

Charming laidback outdoor courtyard setting nestled in trees and a lively kitchen-view, counter…read moreseating inside. The menu is inviting with plenty of great options without being overwhelming. Less is more. But let's talk art (culinary, that is). The dishes certainly deserve main features. To start "the best Caesar salad in LA" and I quote which was certainly true. Grilled octopus charred on the inside and juicy at the center. Spicy pomodoro is perfectly al dente and a well-balanced sauce. But, my favorite-- the agnolotti! Wow, melt in your mouth! The flavor profiles of corn, crème fraiche, and old bay were delicious. My only wish -- larger serving of this (smallest pasta serving on the menu). To complete it, banana pudding tiramisu -- delicious too with a firm center and oozy outside. Atala was wonderful and very sweet. Recommendation: come with a group of at least 4 to try more on the menu -- the large plates (branzino and ribeye) looked excellent! Definitely a worthwhile visit.

Cento is located a little in the cut, but definitely worth seeking out…read more I came for dinner and we had some really outstanding dishes. Of the things we ordered, I really loved the farro salad ($22?) best. Refreshing pomegranate seeds are mixed with the farro and give the salad an added crunch. The farro sits on a bed of dill infused crème fraiche. It is a deliciously refreshing salad and the perfect complement to any meal. For pastas, the sweet corn agnolotti ($28) was so light and fun. The little pockets of agnolotti is stuffed with corn and swims in a savory broth anchored by crème fraiche. It's giving summer and I'm absolutely here for it. Cento's dining space is quaint, so make sure to make a resy.

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The kitchen view from our seats
The kitchen view from our seats
Spicy Pomodoro
Spicy Pomodoro
Beef Tartare

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Beef Tartare
Bestia

Bestia

4.3
(8.4k reviews)
9.1 mi
•$$$

This was one of the best meals I have had in a long time. The Cheap Sunglasses cocktail was nice…read more The housemaid buttermilk ricotta with grilled bread was sublime. The prosciutto and arugula salad was without equal. The Cavatelli alla Norcina was so good I thought I died and went to heaven. We ordered one of each dessert and they were all good. But the Vin Dolce Chiffon Cake, sauteed apricots & cherries and vanilla-mascarpone whipped cream, rules over them all.

I ate at Bestia several years ago, before COVID, and I still think about that dinner today. I had…read moreflown from New York during a dreary stretch, and landing in sunny Los Angeles felt like arriving on another planet. California offered an immediate rush of light, space, and possibility. My memory is that when I turned my phone back on at LAX, my friend messaged to say he'd gotten us the hookup at Bestia. That dinner belongs to a chapter in which I spent considerable time in California and felt energized by the contrast with New York. My friend is highly discerning, with impeccable taste in food, design, and culture. He notices details most people miss, so when a place impresses him, I pay attention. From the moment I saw his message, I knew the reservation meant something. Even before we entered, Bestia's character was evident. Faded lettering crossed the corrugated metal facade, while brick walls and old loading doors preserved the warehouse's industrial history. Inside, enormous windows and garage doors brought light into a room shaped by glass, exposed ductwork, and warm amber pendants. When I fantasize about living in a loft, many of the attributes I picture are here, especially the incredible windows and connection to the street. Inside the restaurant, the dining room achieved a combination I rarely encounter. It had the table density and collective buzz of a great New York restaurant, but within a large, design-forward space closer in scale to something found in Chicago. New York creates energy through tight rooms, while Chicago excels at ambitious spaces with strong architectural identities. Bestia captured both advantages and made its considerable footprint feel alive and unified. We sat shoulder to shoulder at a pale stone counter facing the open kitchen. Golden era hip hop was playing, and A Tribe Called Quest still rings a very specific bell. I ordered the squid ink pasta, and it was exquisite, with enough depth and precision to command attention amid everything happening around us. We also spotted an unmistakably A-list celebrity, whom I will leave unnamed, making the night feel quintessentially Los Angeles. During that period, I often stayed at the Ace Hotel downtown, and the Arts District felt vibrant, raw, and full of possibility. The proximity to Skid Row could be deeply jarring, with severe hardship existing beside ambitious development and expensive restaurants. That contrast kept the neighborhood from feeling like a neat story of urban renewal, even as Bestia seemed to anchor its evolution. The warehouses and loading docks gave the area a character that no new development could convincingly recreate. Nearby, I also remember the American Apparel complex during its demise and the rise of impossibly cool Los Angeles designer John Elliott. His Escobar sweatpants and Villain hoodie helped define the kit of that moment; loyalists will understand. Los Angeles is a fickle city, drawn toward whatever is new and shiny, which makes Bestia's longevity especially impressive. Scene without substance is plastic, and Bestia earned its electricity through exceptional cooking, assured service, and a remarkable space; if I lived in Los Angeles, this would be one of the places I'd rely on whenever I wanted to impress someone. This is absolutely one of my favorite restaurants in the world.

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Bar area!!
Bar area!!
"Coffee and Donuts"
"Coffee and Donuts"
Squid Ink Spaghetti

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Squid Ink Spaghetti
PASTA e PASTA by Allegro

PASTA e PASTA by Allegro

4.4
(1.8k reviews)
8.4 mi
•$$

So shocked I hadn't heard about this place sooner but if you love pasta and don't want to spend $30…read moreon every dish this is the place to go! Loved that it had some classic dishes and some fusion ones as well. Came on a Friday night and joined the waitlist but only had to wait about 10 minutes! There was complimentary bread and a side salad that came with the entrees, and the bread was warm and delicious... We ordered the two Allegro specials on the menu-- Uni pasta and Bolognese. For appetizers we went with the server's recommendation; chicken gizzard confit. Chicken gizzard confit was mind blowing. As someone who enjoys things like gizzard, these were cooked in a way I had never had before and it was delicious. The uni pasta was sooo rich, creamy, and flavorful. 10/10 I would recommend it. The bolognese was good too it was super complex compared to the ordinary bolognese and had eggplants as well. Overall, the ambience was great and experience was amazing. Service was also very good and attentive. Super great spot for a date night or just a casual dinner with friends!

Location did not do this restaurant justice! Inside Honda Plaza, all the way at the very end of an…read moreold aged boring plaza, Pasta e Pasta has a somewhat cartoon character signage. Once step inside, the decoration, the vibe totally changed. It's a dark hue with humbling yet elegant setting with a bar table and I almost felt like a dining in the cave ambiance. The menu was not complicated and only focused on pasta, but there are so many choices to my liking! The squid ink, the mentai cream, the uni sauce, and the garlic butter sauce. We ended up settling with Creamy Crab Gratin, mentai cream pasta, the Pescatore Bianca (seafood spaghetti), and Tarako Spaghetti (Cod roe and squid garlic butter sauce). -Crab Gratin is really creamy and cheesy. I just didn't quite get why there are a few pieces of penne pasta inside. But overall tasted good! -All pasta comes with bread and salad. The salad is really fresh and serve mostly lettuce and cherry tomato, which is how I like it. The dressing is not the ranch creamy kind, more cloudy vinaigrette based, also to my liking. -Seafood spaghetti came with a variety of seafood, shrimp, squid ring, mussels, clams, etc. The portion is huge. -Mentai cream pasta: delicious! I think if I order uni pasta, it'll be the same cream base sauce but with uni and $6 bucks more. I'm happy with my choice. The whole dish is consistent, creamy with a slight kick from the mentai, slices of mushrooms and shredded seaweeds on the top. Delish! -Tarako Spaghetti: I took a small bite and appreciated the strong taste of garlic butter in the sauce. -All 3 pasta are served with the thin spaghetti like angel hair. Service is ok, we asked for water refill and the response was polite. Dirty dishes were taken away timely. If I had more time, I would definitely come back for a second visit. A place like this deserves to be in a more upscale block on the street. Btw, parking inside the plaza is not free even though it's just a strip mall. Expect about $8 bucks for dinner parking. It's gated entrance. If you get lucky, you can park on the street and pay the meter.

Photos
Inside
Inside
PASTA e PASTA by Allegro
PASTA e PASTA by Allegro

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Donna's

Donna's

4.3
(709 reviews)
7.1 mi
•$$$

Food, incredible. Drinks, amazing. Service, always on point!…read more Always worth the hype when we come to Donna's. Had a booth this time and were one of the first people into the restaurant. Pro tip: the 5pm reservation never disappoints. Street parking was not bad either. Definitely a good date night spot!

Wow, I was surprised at how busy this place was on a Wednesday night. We had 5:45 pm reservations…read moreand when we got here the places was FULL. I feel the seating was a little tight in certain areas put they did make clear walking paths. Traffic to get here was horrible but we got lucky and found a non-metered spot about a block away as soon as we arrived in the area. For apps, we ordered the garlic bread and meatballs. The garlic bread was different. It was a sourdough loaf with oozing garlic butter inside but was only toasted whole so overall ate very soft and I missed the typically toastiness I get with most garlic bread. The flavor was still very good, especially dipping it into the marinera that accompanied the meatballs. For entrees and sides, we ordered the lasagna, the eggplant tortellini, the chicken parmesan and the broccolini. I can only say they really like their parmesan here. I'm not the biggest fan so I brushed a lot of it off. The tortellini was the star of the show for me and I think it was partially because all the other dishes were marinera + parmesan so it gave a nice break in the flavor profile. Something to consider when ordering next time. The chicken parmesan was delicious. I found the lasagna to be okay and would pass on the broccolini next time (to be fair, I got rid of all the cheese so that probably change the flavor profile they were going for).

Photos
Bar area.
Bar area.
Vodka pasta
Vodka pasta
Broccolini

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Broccolini
Mother Wolf

Mother Wolf

4.0
(1.4k reviews)
3.4 mi
•$$$$

Food was absolutely amazing. Quality of the noodles and the pizza were impeccable, and the cooks…read morehave it down to a science. The highlight was the zucchini blossoms, their special. I recommend the arrabbiata, the oxtail ragu, and the amatriciana.

It was the husband's choice for our final birthday celebration dinner and he was quick to decide on…read moreMother Wolf. Why? For the BISTECCA ALLA FIORENTINA (38oz Prime Porterhouse). I know, crazy, right? But we did it! You'd think just having the Porterhouse would be enough -- apparently it wasn't because we started with bread. At our server's recommendation we chose the bruschetta. Wow, what a fantastic start! The crunchy charred bread topped with the creamy Burrata and house made apricot jam was beyond delicious! Then he asked for his favorite pasta from our last visit -- SPAGHETTI ALL'ARRABBIATA. We can never get tired of this one. The house made pasta coated in that spicy sauce is so satisfying. Then came the steak. Although our server warned us that it was huge, we were still surprised when it arrived. But then came the included sides of fried fingerling potatoes and Ruchetta salad -- to say 'generous portions' is an understatement. I literally laughed at the mountain of salad when it arrived. It was all just incredible. The Prime Porterhouse was at the correct temperature, seasoned well and melt in your mouth amazing. The fried potatoes were hot, crisp and tasty. The salad was so good that the husband ate it -- I couldn't believe it! I tapped out early and in order to leave room for dessert, I had to force the husband to stop. We chose the CROSTATA DI MARMELLATA because of the apricots. We were so happy to have dined while they're in season and incorporated into Mother Wolf's menu. We were then surprised with complimentary sorbet (NETTARINA) and gelato (VANIGLIA) for our birthdays. Beautifully presented, the sweetness of each dessert was perfectly balanced and a wonderful end to a fantastic dinner. And this goes without saying -- service was impeccable. Thanks to the Mother Wolf team for another great experience!

Photos
Open kitchen
Open kitchen
Polpette Di Coda (Oxtail Meatballs)
Polpette Di Coda (Oxtail Meatballs)
Croquettes, least memorable of the night for me but good!

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Croquettes, least memorable of the night for me but good!

Locanda Veneta - italian - Updated July 2026

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