This is one of my all time favorite restaurants in Baton Rouge. I am a frequent goer here and with my first time being on Yelp I have to review this place. Without a doubt my favorite Italian restaurant in the 225. Let us start with the service. The servers are wonderful and very cool. Ask for Nick or Jake and these two suave young gentelman will definitely take care of you and are more than friendly. They are incredibly knowledgeable about the dishes here and also the type of wines that would go well with each dish. Or if you dont want to sit down at a table, The bartender Mathew is a more than charismatic fellow who is willing to have a chat and get you your drinks. Also incredibly knowledgeable about anything that you would like to order. I feel like family everytime I walk in. The ambience is incredibly romantic and nice. To start with the food lets talk about the bread. Yes the bread needs to be talked about. Delicious sourdough loaves with olive oil and an inhouse special herb mix. The appetizers are all wonderful but the two to die for are the crab cakes and antipasto. The crab cakes are incredibly tasty with a delightfully crispy outer coating and a delciously soft and tasty filling. The antipasto is a classic italian beginners course with bread topenade and different cuts of italian meats and cheese. Great quality. Now of the entrees that I have ordered, my favorites all come from the pasta section of the menu. The pasta here is homemade as well as the saces and are all delicious. My comfort dish is without a doubt the pesto. Wonderfully done and amazing for first timers to this restaurant. The Alfredo is also amazing with a great twist on a classic dish adding cranberries and other wonderful things to an Italian staple. The last dish is an Asian inspired dish with a brown egg on top. It is amazing and something adventurous for those of us who dont mind something a little different. Dessert as well is great! The classic chocolate chip cookies at ninos are absolutely amazing. These cookies have always been a favorite of mine. They were for a while, the only thing I ordered until I heard of the zucchini bread. Similar to a banana bread but instead made with zucchini and it is absolutely delicious. Not too sweet but a great finisher to a meal. Ninos is literally THE PERFECT FIRST DATE RESTAURANT. Peace! read more

This is a hidden gem! Anything in the menu is recommended and the specials. Great wine selection and exceptional service. read more

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I've driven by Nino's countless times over the last 8 months, but with its gaudy exterior and its sign that looks kind of like it's made up of chili peppers, I always assumed it was a Mexican joint. Luckily Yelp corrected me in this misunderstanding when I was browsing for new places to try new Perkins Rowe. I had a lovely little meal at Nino's, and I'll definitely be coming back. Though their bar is somewhat limited, their wine selection is nice. The dining room isn't the height of elegance, but it is small and intimate, and had enough light for me to enjoy my book. Always a plus. Service was fine, though it started to get spotty when the restaurant began to fill up. I wasn't looking for a huge meal so I just ordered two appetizers; the pesto gnocchi and the crab cakes. The crab cakes could have made a meal in themselves; two generous cakes with a small salad and a very yummy stack of cucumbers and tomatoes smothered in pesto olive oil. The gnocchi were absolutely divine: perfectly cooked and with an amazing texture. The creamy pesto over the top was the perfect pairing. The meal I had at Nino's was delicious, and I'll definitely be going back. Though it can't really stand up to the excellent cuisine in the other cities I travel to, it's one of the best meals I've had in Baton Rouge, which is saying something. read more

Tonight I had the privilege of eating here with My family and our Yelp CM after winning a restaurant week contest. I think we all really enjoyed the meal overall. Our waiter was phenomenal and his recommendations were all wonderful! The seafood cannelloni was so tasty but my favorite part of the whole meal was the dessert! The chocolate chip cookies were amazing and the chocolate brownie was out of this world! The tiramisu was also yummy but nothing can beat that brownie and those cookies! Obviously, I was so blown away by the desserts that I forgot to take a picture of them before they were already in the tummy! Thanks so much Yelp for a splendid dinner night with friends and family and a sweet little restaurant! read more

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I have wanted to go to Ninos for a while. A small but perfect Italian restaurant. Great food, great service. No complaints at all! The atmosphere is quite romantic! Very much recommended for date night. read more

The atmosphere is intimate with white table cloths and candle lit tables. Bill has taken care of me the last couple times and is really great, even remembers which wines I like even if I don't. Food is spectacular- there is nowhere else like this in BR. All of their pasta is made from scratch in house and you can tell. The ravioli is to die for! Filled with shrimp, scallops, crab, cheese, and topped with a red pepper pesto. Always make a reservation beforehand! There are only about 15 or 16 tables in the whole restaurant plus four seats at the bar. But even if you don't, it is worth the wait! read more

Nino's - Antipasto - Italian Near Me - Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Never been to Baton Rouge but was recommended to try Nino's by some medical students my DH met in another shop - thank you! The outside of Nino's is unimpressive. It's tacked onto the end of a strip mall and is small. The food, however, is sublime. Really some of the best Italian food I have ever eaten. I had the grilled heart of romaine salad. Oh my lands - it was incredible. How to describe the flavor? The romaine was lightly grilled with a lovely smoky flavor (I know grilled lettuce, go figure, but it was so good). It was dressed with a reduced balsamic glaze (sweet) and finished up with shaved Parmesan and tomatoes. The flavor was intense and so vivid. DH had the spaghetti bolognese which he said was exceptional. He never likes anything so I was impressed. He also had the spinach salad (looked like a spinach salad). We shared crab cakes. Perfectly cooked - crispy outside and creamy inside with lots of crab and moderate spiciness. It came with a coleslaw sort of salad with a lemon dressing. Ate it with the crab and it complimented the crab and spices beautifully. I have nothing bad to say - we left there feeling perfectly sated and relaxed. Thank you Nino"s for a great evening! read more

Delightful, romantic, small & low lit authentic Italian restaurant! Nice Italian wine selection as well. Service is warm and the food is delicious. Cons: the seating is VERY tight. Almost elbow to elbow tight.. This doesn't bother me too bad but to some it may be a bit much. read more

The service was excellent. The place has a nice, cozy ambience. The food was hit or miss - the seafood pasta was very nice, the crab cake appetizers were nice, but the meatballs and spagetti were marginal, at best. The meatballs themselves were tough and dry and the spagetti sauce is hardly traditional Italian and was quite bland. Might try it again at some point -- not sure. read more

Very impressed! Went here randomly last night for my birthday and every single bite was to die for! Highly suggest the toasted ravioli! The atmosphere is wonderful. Dimly lit and very romantic! And service was wonderful! Rheagan was very sweet and attentive but didn't bother us too much. Thanks for providing such a great experience for my 30th bday! read more

Always good. It would be nice if bringing your own bottle were a possibility. Yummy food!!! read more

Atmosphere is great and food was outstanding. I recommend this for any one who is looking for a soothing environment and authentic Italian food. read more

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Food was great and service was good. Unfortunately my new vehicle was broken into while I ate dinner. No lighting or security cameras on the side of the restaurant where the majority of parking is located. Kitchen staff out back said that a vagrant has been hanging around frequently. This could have likely been prevented buy spending about $40 on some security lights. I'd like to go again but will not do so until this issue is addressed. read more

This is one of my favorite restaurants in BR. Fresh food, homemade pasta, everything amazing!!! Everything I've ever gotten has been fabulous. Love the ninos Alfredo. House salad spectacular. The bread is fresh and homemade. Chocolate chip cookies are a must. read more

Great experience no disappointments with any thing. Peach bread pudding along with Fish of the day fantastic. Will be returning soon. read more

This is a Baton Rouge secret. Tiny restaurant in a random spot but the food is delicious. We had two cheese boards they were so good and the pasta was amazing. read more

This is some of the best pasta I have ever had in my life. No exaggeration. The freshness of the ingredients can be clearly tasted (and this is from someone who doesn't have that refined of a palate). I got the gorgonzola and it was just magnificent. Great ambience too. Took a first date there and it was very much in the right mood. read more

The restaurant is not unattractive by any means snd it's not extraordinarily pretty however the atmosphere that is created is intimate and warm. A charming little spot in its own way due in large part to the lighting and how the small space fills up with other diners. The service is perfect. Best of all the food is exquisite. The antipasto platter is a must. Capasante pasta is perfection. read more

Did they close? We just went out of our way to come & no one is there with lights out. Very disappointed they didn't post anything about it on FB before we drove in. read more

The food is ok. Their pasta sauces are lacking. Small hole in the wall place. This is the second time I've been here. Took 2 hours each time. Took 1 hour to get our salad. It just my husband and myself. We ordered everything as soon as we sat down. We asked for bread after 1 hour once we realized everyone around us was getting bread. When we asked for bread the waitress told us they were out of their traditional style bread but she could offer us pita bread. I don't know why she didn't just offer that to us in the first place. It's cool they make their own pasta but what they put on the pasta isn't that great. The M&M dish was gross and more like a soup with noodles. My husband did like the steak and pasta special but they served it to him cold and we were just so ready to get out of there we didn't even complain. The mussel appetizer was good and the only reason why I'm giving this place 2 stars. read more

Best Italian in Baton Rouge. I've lived in Baton Rouge on and off now for roughly 8 years and nothing comes close to the quality of Italian food you get from Nino's. Their (well priced) menu is predominantly farm to table setup with a seasonal menu that has endless options for both your meat and vegetarian eaters. After a bottle of wine and a great meal we were able to talk with Chef Elton. The man was extremely nice and interested in our experience and the feedback for his food. He offers a chef's table for 6 - 8 which we will be partaking in for the Christmas Holidays. Give it a shot, you wont be disappointed. read more

Small, quaint. Delicious:) Hometown goodness and definitely worthy of checking out. It is small and can get crowded and loud but the food is amazing read more

Omg best Italian in town. Fresh pasta the charcuterie plate best I ever had by far. I have never had anything I didn't like there. .....secret they have THE BEST OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHIP cookies!!!! read more

Absolutely delicious. Innovative, yet comforting menu. Staff members there are so friendly. There's a reason you need a reservation even on a weekday. This is one of the best restaurants in Baton Rouge. Awesome, awesome, awesome! Highly recommended! read more

We visited Nino's for the first time yesterday and the dishes were very impressive. I've found it difficult to find good Italian food in Baton Rouge that isn't an Italian Cajun mix. Boyfriend had the Capasante pasta dish and it had that traditional seafood lemon butter flavor that he adored. I ordered the ravioli bolognese and it was great- meaty, sour, acidic sauce balanced with fresh ravioli and leeks. Our other guest had the seafood cannelloni- uh, holy smokes- this was by far some of the best Italian seafood pasta that I have ever had! Even microwaved the leftovers and they were excellent. Our other guest had the hazelnut crusted chicken alfredo pasta with dried cranberries. Again, beautifully crafted- fresh spinach parpadelle pasta coated in Alfredo sauce, slices of hazelnut crusted chicken and sprinkled with dried cranberries. Balance, perfect balance. As for the negative- (1) Our waiter took a very long time to greet us, which, when he did he brought over two waters, for four guests, apologized for the wait and then told us that he would take our drink order when he got back with the other two waters- poor wait service strike one. Wait staff should not apologize for making you wait and then tell you that you have to wait longer. Possible solution: bring over 4 empty glasses and a pitcher/carafe/bottle of water for the table, greet us and tell us the specials while filling our glasses. (2) We all ordered salads and one of our salads contained the base of the lettuce plant with roots and dirt still attached!! Horrible, horrible oversight by the kitchen crew. Even worse, after we notified our waiter he apologized but still charged us for all four salads. Really?! You served us actual dirt and we received no compensation other than 'Oh, sorry about that. Unfortunately that happens in farm to table cuisine.' Poor service strike two. Possible solution: apologize, don't charge for the salad and offer a complimentary dessert. (3) The restaurant was incredibly loud. So much so that I could barely hear the guests sitting next to me. I felt like I was in a loud sports bar on game day. I would've loved a quieter more intimate setting where I can easily communicate with those I'm sharing dinner with. I noticed that the restaurant was playing music and I wonder if the noise level would have been lower and more tolerable if the music wasn't playing or maybe turned down. Possible solution: turn the music down or when the restaurant gets busy, turn the music off. (4) The first time our waiter came to check on how our food was when we were all done eating - poor wait service strike three. Possible solution: retrain wait staff in proper restaurant service. (5) The bread and olive oil were not good. The bread was room temperature, thick cut, dense and doughy- not in the crusty outside, chewy inside, traditional Italian bread kind of way but more in the 'no knead recipe on Pinterest type of way.' I would say the inside was similar in consistency to that of a beer bread. The olive oil had that great strong olive oil flavor with shredded parm in it but it would've been much better had they added herbs, salt, fresh cracked pepper and a little bit of balsamic vinegar or even a roasted red pepper olive oil. Possible solution: different bread and flavored oil. All that being said, I would deal with the negatives for the amazing food. Our main dishes and (the clean) salads were absolutely delicious! read more

By far one of my favorite restaurants ever. Small, great service, amazingly good food. Well worth the price. Get a reservation, this place is small. I always pick this place for special occasions! read more

We had the pleasure of dinning at Nino's with friends last night. If you have not been, you are truly missing out, The fact that it is 5min from our house is dangerous now - i predict many many more dinners here! Their normal menu looked scrumptious. Tonights special was a Hake fish - we ordered one for the table to try as an appetizer - It was good, but the table all agreed we like flakier fish. They were participating in Baton Rouge's Restaurant Week and had a fabulous selection-so we opted for that menu! My Selections: Shrimp Spedini ( prosciutto wrapped shrimp) - perfect, delicious! Caprese Salad: So Fresh!! Cap Steak Pasta - WOW! the Cap steak was so full of flavor, cooked perfectly and so tender. I did try the pasta it was served with (trying to watch my carbs).. the truffle cream was AMAZING.. okay so perhaps i had 3 bites.. dont judge me! It was scrumptious and the pairing was perfect. Naturally we had the homemade Tiramisu - hands down the best i have ever had ( aside from Italy!) It is a very small, intimate little place but yet I truly felt we were the only ones there - Our waiter Matt took such great care of us, he kept the wine flowing, the waters filled and welcomed us to stay, relax, visit - A true Italian Welcoming feeling all around! Sorry - no photos this time (we were hungry and having too much fun!) and no one wants photos of empty plates - right? read more

5 Stars yes absolutely . My wife and I were tying to figure out where to go for dinner last night and we had heard about Ninos from some other people. We arrived at 5:00 pm on Saturday night and we were the first to arrive. The hostess informed us that the restaurant had reservations for almost all the tables but we were fortunate that there were a few tables left. I can see why the restaurant was almost sold out for Saturday night.The food was very very good. My wife had the Lasagna and I had the The Spicy Salsiccia (Homemade caseless Italian sausage made with locally sourced beef and pork cooked in a 17 creamy marinara, tossed with spaghetti and topped with Parmesan, fresh basil and shaved fennel). We had a great bottle of wine that was suggested by the very informed professional waiter who provided us a history of the restaurant . I love a good cappuccino and they did not disappoint -Just delicious. My wife and I were full after the meal but we wanted something sweet to top off the evening. You have to try their home made cookies yes I said home made cookies with their home made ice cream. They arrive hot to your table with the fresh home made ice cream. We cant wait to go back. I would highly recommend that you call and get reservations especially for Friday or Saturday night. read more

Our experience started with the hostess asking if we had made a reservation for the evening. We didn't but there was literally 8 empty tables open. I laughed thinking she was kidding but she was not. She also stated they were booked solid until 830. As a side note we continued to watch the dining room the entire time and there were always more than two tables open... She said we could sit at the bar which was ok. The bartender was great. Friendly and helpful with a nice dash of conversation but not too much. The food while good tasting was very expensive for the portion size. I finished mine in 6 or 7 bites. Pasta should be served in a heaping portion. On the postive the pasta is made on site and pretty yummy. The grilled romaine salad was also tasty. I would be skeptical about coming back not because of the service or the food both of which were good....but the price for what you get and the whole snooty reservation thing. It's like calm down Baton Rouge..... read more

Love the meat and cheese selections. Been here a few times, never disappointed. It is a very small restaurant but you seem to feel like you're the only ones in the dining room. Maybe because you are busy with the selections you have made from their menu! We spend a lot but we feel we receive the quality food and service to go with that price tag. Dining out should be enjoyable, I always enjoy Nino's. read more

This is my favorite restaurant in town. The food is authentically Italian, meaning carefully prepared with the best ingredients. It is NOT overdone pasta glopped with sauce and cheese! They rotate the menu frequently enough that there's always something new to try. The service is great, and the wine list is superb. If you can't go to Florence for dinner, go here. read more

Tonight was regrettable. We ordered the 36 buck "grouper" special. What arrived was plainly not grouper, and was overcooked also. The waiter, when asked, said we'd been served "red grouper," and when he finally realized they'd been busted, after a trip to the kitchen, told us it was actually pompano. We got apologies, but no other effort to deal with what is a very amateurish and , unfortunately, downright dishonest experience. We've praised Nino's to plenty of people when it was deserved, but they lost a lot of good will tonight. read more

Great service. We were a party of 8. I had the cauliflower soup and the ribeye special. Both wonderful. I thought the pasta was a little salty but still tasty. read more

Has to be the best Italian in Baton Rouge, hands down. One of the best overall restaurants in town. It's tucked away in strip mall on Bluebonnet, so many just pass it by. That's too bad. This place is serious - local, seasonal ingredients made to perfection. My favorite right now is the wild mushroom pasta with a fried egg on top. It's perfectly executed and the egg yolk makes an amazing sauce for the handmade pasta. My wife loves the lamb. She's a huge lamb person and swears up and down Nino's is the best she's ever had. Service is attentive, but not overly so. Only con I can think of is it's not open on Sunday or Monday. Reservations, particularly on weekends, are a must. read more

We loved every minute of our time at ninos. We were guest of friends that had been several times so they helped us with the menu. Everything we had was yummy. We brought our own wine and paid the cork fee. read more

Food was rich and full of flavor. We had two appetizers to share amongst our table of 4 and everyone loved their entree. Really good wine selection as well. Can't wait to come back! read more

Fantastic meal. The black pasta and the steak special were amazing. Top class italian food

Great place for an intimate dinner. How this place is not more popular; I don't understand. You can tell they use fresh ingredients and care about where they come from. We had great service. Most of the Italian restaurants cover their dishes in cheese and lots of sauce that drown out the other ingredients. Nino's let the simple fresh ingredients speak for themselves. If you want something a little different than the normal over "cheesed" and "can only taste the large quantities of sauce" dishes; this is the place. Great presentation and great taste with fresh ingredients. It is easy to miss this place traveling down Bluebonnet as it is tucked away in the corner of a shopping center. Do yourself a favor and try this place. I think you would come back again. read more

Almost don't want to let people know how good it is because seating is limited! Don't be fooled by the somewhat strange location. This is the best quality & tasting food in Baton Rouge. Farm to table at its best. read more

Farm to table fresh! Excellent handmade pasta and very fresh ingredients make this place a treasure. The only problem is I ate too much!