Great experience. Our party of 9 with 5 kids were seated pretty quickly at 6 pm and we felt very welcomed. Everyone enjoyed their meal, and service was very attentive, even at a very busy time. read more

This was a wonderful treat while in Whitfish. Last summer, my wife and I spent a month in Italy. The food here was the closest thing we've tasted to 'real Italian food' since we've been home. The pizza was almost perfect and the Zeppoles were plentiful and light. Yum! read more

Called to put in a take out order and the hostess put me on hold, but forgot to press the Hold button. I waited for over 10 minutes while the she talked to people or just sat there silent. I couldn't believe I was treated so poorly. After 10 minutes of that I just hung up and went somewhere else :/ read more

Second time (see previous review). Still excellent food, this time great service, and not as noisy! Highly recommended.

Been going to Mambos for a long time. It can be really noisy, and the seating is well, intimate (shoulder to shoulder). But its a fun place with good food. Their nachos (friend pasta) are unique and amazing! They pizza is good, the Vodka sauce pasta is the best bowl of pasta in Whitefish. Would recommend for sure. read more

We make an annual trek to Whitefish, and this is a usual dinner out place -- at least for the last decade. It's a place with a lot of action -- the kitchen is real visible -- but a lot of fun. Meal portions are super generous (consider sharing something or plan to bring part of it home). Ambiance while not quiet is pleasing. Extensive menu, but not crazy "how am I supposed to make up my mind?!?!" extensive. Probably not a great place for large parties, but 2-4 people seems fine. Get there early; the line gets longer as the evening goes on. read more

The best thing about Mama Ciao is the menu is quite flexible and customizable. This was one of the first things our server mentioned to us and it was very helpful. A simple concept for a restaurant: a bunch of pastas with fresh sauces and hand tossed pizzas but the execution was there . Thanks for another great meal in Whitefish! read more

My husband and I walked into Mambo Italiano on a Tuesday evening around 6pm, and the place was packed. We were able to get two seats at the bar, where we had a front-row seat to see the action in the busy kitchen. The wait staff was friendly and helpful, and the service throughout the meal was good. More importantly, the food was delicious! My husband had lasagna and I had fettuccini in a cream sauce - both dishes were tasty, and the large portions meant we both had leftovers. The free bread was literally slathered with garlic, and made me glad we don't live in Whitefish - if we did, we'd eat here way too often! read more

A worthy Italian restaurant with multiple level seating. We enjoyed the top deck looking north toward the Big Mountain. Pasta lullabella was an excellent creamy dish preceded by fresh garlic bread. read more

Had a reservation for 7:00. Was asked to wait on a staircase, because our table wasn't ready. Waited for 1 hour. Finally, got crammed into a corner table with no elbow room. The staff was very unfriendly, including the assistant manager who rolled her eyes at us when she thought we weren't looking. And what's up with the stomping hostess? After waiting almost 3 hours for a table and food, we asked for our dinner to go. So.....we were at Ciao Mambo for almost 3 hours with a reservation, but never got to eat there. Absurd! read more

We really enjoyed the food here. We liked it so much that we went twice in the 4 nights we stayed near West Glacier. I had the sun-dried tomato penne both nights and it was delicious. read more

We love the food here but we waited over an hour because there were just two of us. Parties of 3 or more were seated 20 minutes or more ahead of us even though we offered to sit at the bar. We arrived and checked in at 7:05 on a Monday night and we're told 40 minutes. Although I checked in with the hostess twice after an hour had passed, we still sat outside. A party of two should not be penalized. We finally sat after an hour an 10. Might mention that when we arrived there were 10 people ahead of us. read more

The problem with Mambo is not the food or the service, it's the wait time between when you order and when the food arrives. The last three times I've been there, the wait exceeded an hour. After the 2nd incident I swore I'd never go back; however, we had guests in town who wanted to go, so I went along. We sat down at 7:30, ordered at 7:45 and the food finally arrived at 9:15. The restaurant was not overly crowded. My opinion is that the kitchen is too small for the number of seats. If I ever go back I will call in my order 45 minutes before my arrival. read more

Go early no matter what night. This place is always packed. The bread is amazing, warm fresh and covered in oil/cheese/ loads of garlic!! So yummy. It is a slow kitchen but totally worth the wait. Had the pasta Ravenna. Very good with a huge serving, however it is a more tomato based sauce then cream as listed. Great experience. Small restaurant with a local vibe. This is a must for any visit to Whitefish. read more

Good food. Bit crowded and warm. Out server, aubree, was awesome Sweet and efficient. Would come back for more!

At glacier national park on vacation. Decided to make the trip to whitefish for food. There was no wait and the food was great! (lasagna atleast) the waiter was excellent as well. Only complaint would be that it is a little dry on the marinara and there were a lot of larger pieces of tomato(which I don't like) overall pretty good experience! And the ceiling is really cool read more

As always, the food is amazing. It is always a treat to have an experience at Ciao Mambo. We are never disappointed with what we order (usually we start with the Italian Nachos and then order the Chicken Fromaggio and Pasta Ravenna) and the atmosphere is fun and comfortable. After our last visit, I'm not sure I'd hurry back. Our server was prompt but very abrupt and cold - barely smiled. The most disappointing (and disgusting) part was how filthy it was in there. We went right at opening - we were actually the first table to be seated on the Friday evening so this was the best it was getting for the night. Every one of the windows that look out onto 2nd Street were covered in greasy handprints. Underneath the paper the tablecloth was disgusting - and it wasn't just our table - we saw them clean another table next to us and it was equally gross. The salt and pepper shakers were greasy as well as the parmesan - yuck! I know that the last gripe is somewhat beyond their control (but equally gross and distracting) were the flies that swarmed our table all evening. To me, it doesn't really matter how wonderful the food is; if the restaurant is dirty, we won't be back any time soon. read more

A fun place to get some casual Italian food that serves up some hearty fare- go with an appetite, the portions are generous and delicious. Just ate dinner there and had the noodle soup and then the chicken parm with white sauce just add a little more richness to it, as if it really needed more. But it was delicious and after a long day of being outside, it was perfect. The restaurant doesn't take reservations so I'd get there on the earlier side to avoid having to wait in the doorway. Space is limited so if you do have to wait a bit, run next door to the new Quickee Bar for a beer or glass of wine. read more

Every option you want on an Italian menu. Great service and fun atmosphere. But food is just so-so. Dry chicken, not a ton of flavori in dishes. read more

Ciao Mambo, 234 2nd St E, Whitefish! What can I say, Nick and the crew not only make you feel at home in the wonderful Italian eatery, they have fantastic service, great Italian food and a perfect menu. Busy, busy place so get there early:). read more

I can't even believe that anybody wouldn't rate this 5stars. This is my favourite restaurant I've ever been to. But I think you have to order the right thing. The nachos are a must. They make them with deep fried pasta noodles and they're topped with hot peppers, olives, sausage and Alfredo sauce. And the donuts are ridiculous. They're never ending. Actually everything at ciao mambo is HUGE portions. I guarantee you won't leave hungry. I also love the polenta salad. My mouth is watering thinking about the food. The chef can't be human because this food is unreal. I'm not kidding, best food ever!!!! read more

Have been here several times this trip was not anything different. Average Italian. Mushy pasta, average flavors. Good service but entrees arrived before we were done with salad. Had the eggplant parm. Asked if I wanted pasta with it. I said yes and that was a big mistake. It was a watery mess that the eggplant was placed on. Others had the manicotti and pasta with vodka sauce. We were expecting a sort of pink vodka sauce. It wasn't very different than the red sauce on my pasta. Salads weren't great either. Small ceaser had to many mushrooms and there was no small portion of the spinach salad we learned after the fact. To many other better options in town read more

Such a lively and cute place. A loud (loud in a good way) place with tasty food and a great atmosphere. I was totally surprised by the good wine :) read more

Excellent! Visiting Whitefish and this was recommended. The restaurant is very vibrant, the service very friendly and attentive and we all enjoyed our meals! read more

menu with large variety of Italian.. their italian nachos or chicken parmesan are my favorites... fun atmosphere... paper tablecloth and crayons... they give you bread as well... reasonably priced for whats given.. enjoy read more

I have been wanting to eat here for a while but they are only open for dinner and I tend to be in whitefish during the day. Finally went here for a date with my husband. To die for food, we will be back. Huge portions and it's all fresh". Highly recommend this place. read more

I love this place, it's the best restaurant in Whitefish. My favorite thing was the nachos, yum :)

Avoid this place. Unreal bad service. Showed up at 5:40. Quickly got kids' orders in. Ordered our food for two about 8 min later. Kids stuff comes out good and quickly. Our food (core menu items) still not there another hour after kids food. Table that sat 10 min after us had food in 30. Angry but calm. I ask for it to be boxed before it is brought to table and for them to comp something. Waitress comes back to say our meal will be comped. Almost a save. But not. Manager brings boxed food and then asked if I had paid. Wife and younger kid in car now 15 minutes since asking for them to box food. I say waitress told me meal was comped. Manager said that was not the case and called what looked like owner upstairs. He tried to explain how he hires college kids and seasonal workers, and then said, "I told them you did not have to pay." When I said thanks and began to walk out with my very late food boxes, he had the audacity to ask, "oh, you also want to take the food?" I gave him the option of wearing it or moving out of the way. I now have two hour old food in an oven while bathing the kids. Hope it tastes good. I am a tourist from Austin, Tx coming up here for the past seven years and have been to this place before. Was a tad slow last year, but nothing like this disaster on a Monday night at 5:40 start time. Avoid this place. read more

Vibrant.....busy! Mambo's is great Italian on a reasonable budget. Great fun, great food, super atmosphere. Pasta rivenna is to die for. Top place on a budget to eat in whitefish . read more

We've been eating at Ciao Mambo (still think of it as Mambo Italiano) for 15 years off and on. It's been possibly a year since I was last there and wondered if it had gone downhill after reading some of the reviews. Even going in as a bit of a skeptic I'll have to say I was not disappointed. There was a wait, as always. Though they got us in within 10 minutes. I admit, the bread was loaded with garlic, which can be overwhelming if you don't like garlic. Our party tended to take much of it off and still enjoyed the bread a lot. I had the penne with vodka sauce, which was amazing. Two of our party had the chicken parmasano and eggplant parmasano and said it was one of the best they'd ever had. My husband usually gets the bow tie pasta (don't remember what it's called) but he got fettuccine rustica and thought it was even better than his favorite. Finished dinner with the tuppelos, which were amazing. Finally, from the hostess to the waitress to the cook, everyone was super friendly and our water glasses were never empty. Dinner was an all around enjoyable experience! read more

Love this place! I always order the Pasta Ravenna and it never disappoints! The bread is fantastic as are the salads. Yes it's a little pricey but I think it's well worth it. I love to sit at the counter so I can watch all the action! read more

Not many fine dining options in Whitefish. This place was close to our motel. Yes it was busy and we had to wait for just a few minutes. Never an issue for us. Service was friendly and helpful. The fodd was another matter. Mushrooms and olives in a Cesar Salad?? The first warning sign, The plates were massive, also not a good sign. My Carbonara was just a heavy sauce. No subtlety. The eggplant parm was another massive serving of flavorless sauce. The eggplant was so salty as to be uneatable. A pile of ricotta was buried under everything. My wife ate a lot of mine as her dinner was not to either of our liking. I don't know what the attraction to this place is. I only had modest expectations, and this joint didn't even live up to those. read more

Oh my goodness, what has happened to this restaurant? It used to be one of our favorites. Hadn't been here in a few years and brought friends the other night. Yikes. We are still talking about it. The bruschetta was fantastic. It stops there. We ordered two orders of calamari, which used to be great...inedible. Mushy, so much breading I wondered if there was even calamari in it. I asked for eggplant with sauce on the side or very little sauce. It came smothered in sauce. I ordered a side of meatballs because they used to be great. 2 inch diameter and burned and tough and dry. My husband's pasta had a watery "marinara" and the "sausage" had no taste. It tasted like it was boiled tofu. The pizza was doughy. We waited an hour for our entrees as everyone around us was served. We used to know Leon, the manager, when we went there all the time. This place needs him back or some help. So disappointing. read more

Very good, very heavy food so need to be in the right mood. We love going here but get there early, there is a wait by 5:15 or so.

First off I want to state i typically don't leave reviews good or bad but feel this is completely warranted. For my birthday I wanted italian and chao didn't disappoint. Amazing service. Aubrey was our server and warranted the largest tip I have ever left. So with the good is also a little bad. The bruchetta app has way to much oregano but still had decent flavor. The entrees are where the food was amazing. The fettuccini that I received was perfectly cooked and the price was amazing for what we received. The manicotti that my girlfriend received was even lower priced and still was some of the best we have had. Again back to service our server did comp our dessert which is a huge bonus for a special occasion. The restaurant as a whole is small and to fill the demand for this place it makes the tables feel crammed in and causes some louder noise than normal but we will definitely be coming back for more here soon for the great food and great service. Worth the visit every time. read more

Food was good. I agree with other review that seating can be an issue, a little bit pricey and noisy. But I would probably go again.

Great food and service. Thoroughly enjoyed our dinner here while traveling. The sangria (frozen) left something to be desired, but what do you expect when ordering a Spanish drink at an Italian restaurant? read more

Awesome surprise! Family of 6 really enjoyed dinner! Very attentive service! Huckleberry Ale! Garlic bread! Egg Plant Parm! The reviewer from Georgia needs to stay in Georgia! read more

We chose Ciao Mambo for a family dinner... out of town visitors , gluten free , dairy free guests, the entire evening was just perfect. We were treated so well and the food was amazing! Very memorable and fun , festive evening! Can't wait to go back. read more

We were lucky to get in at 5:30pm on a Tuesday...WHAT??? I read about this restaurant in YELP with great reviews. We sat at the small bar which looks into the kitchen. I ordered Fettuccine alla Lulubella only as I saw the guy next to me with a huge plate of spaghetti and meatballs, so I knew the portions were huge. The Fettuccine was delicious - creamy parmesan with pancetta, peas and mushrooms which were cooked perfectly. My husband ordered a caprese salad which was served with tossed greens with a great dressing. He had the Saltimbocca di Pollo as his entree and was a little disappointed. It was a fun and enjoyable experience and we would go back anytime and highly recommend it to our friends. read more