Somehow, this place made Yelp's Top 100, and honestly... how? Maybe we just ordered the wrong things, but what we had was painfully mediocre. The fritto misto was like a game of find-the-calamari in a big fried bed of veggies. The pizza crust is basically a big thin cracker. I've never had pizza that crunches like a chip and don't care to again. The pork chop had great flavor, but about a quarter of it was just fat and gristle. The beef carpaccio was described as "meh... it's fine." On the upside, parking is easy, and the place is actually pretty cute inside. Maybe we missed the magic, but based on this visit, we're baffled by the hype. I certainly wouldn't drive out of my way to try it again. read more

Made a reservation for Friday evening. Amazing food. Fast service. Pricing is reasonable. I will definitely be back!

Wonderful food, wine, cocktails and service. The ambience in this building is spectacular.

perfecto Food is good,service is good,perfect vibes Since we didn't reserve in advance so we only have one hour to din in read more

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On our trip to Half Moon Bay, I thought they had the best tasting Clam Chowder. The brushcetta was also very tasty. The Eggplant parm was good but not to my liking as much since I'm not that into it. The server was very helpful and checked on us regularly. The restaurant was beautiful and the musician on the piano made the overall experience excellent. read more

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Overall nice ambiance, the table was a bit awkward for two people but it's nice and cozy if you want some intimacy. Food was good, but I wasn't a big fan of the bread. My friend loved the wine there. read more

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Giving pasta moon 3.5 stars not 4 stars but yelp doesn't allow for half stars. We stayed at a lovely place in Half Moon Bay with a beautiful ocean view so we decided to order takeout. We ordered the pappardelle pancetta, margherita pizza and mascarpone cheesecake. The pappardelle pancetta was very delicious. Pasta made in house cooked perfectly with creamy sauce that had wild mushrooms and pine nuts. The margherita pizza was tasty but standard and comparable to most restaurants. The mascarpone cheesecake was delicious and very rich. We were charged 15% service fees for takeout orders. We paid $11 for service fees for these three items plus tax. The service fees are outrageous since we did not dine in to receive any kind of service. For our takeout, they did not give us any plastic utensils, napkins or complimentary bread togo which was disappointing. The restaurant looked nice and romantic. Maybe it is better to dine in at this restaurant rather than do takeout. read more

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Great Italian restaurant to have nice quiet dinner. The place is nice with high ceilings and beautiful interior. Our server made great recommendations and we were not disappointed. We were a party of 5 and ended up ordering bruschetta, calamari, house marinated olives, pizza, fish, and pasta. Their drinks were exceptional. We ordered two mocktails and a bottle of red wine. read more

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lol... we were bamboozled to say the least. The $20 price listed for their parpadelle Pancetta and the "casual" vibe listed on their Yelp wasn't what we walked into hahaha my bf and I wore sweats, hoodies, and flip flops to Pasta Moon! We were seated at a table next to the man playing the GRAND PIANO and everyone around us was dressed to the nines lol. The same $20 pasta we saw on yelp was actually $35 too. Price aside... it was all yummy. OUR ORDER: -Spring spritz (non-alcoholic): 10/10 -Red Wine (?): bf liked it! -Pappardelle Pancetta: 8/10 wide noodles were a treat! delicious tomato cream sauce -Soppressata: 6/10 not a big fan of the cracker crust. toppings were too heavy for it (should've been thicker) and too salty imo -Short rib bone marrow agnolotti: 7/10 yummy; basically a bone marrow ravioli! Browned butter sauce was richhh -Chocolate hazelnut truffle cake: 9/10 basically a ferrero rocher Overall, a very posh restaurant, but I still believe it wasn't worth the splurge. It was my fault for not looking into the details beforehand lol. read more

Pasta Moon - bamboozled, and full Soppressata, Pappardelle Pancetta, Wine By The Glass, Short Rib Bone Marrow Agnolotti - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

We were recently here on a Wed night for our anniversary dinner; my husband picked the place as he hears great reviews about the ambiance and food. And truly, Pasta Moon did not disappoint us. Yes, the ambiance was really good, people were dressed up though the place had a very chill vibe. Our Calamari and Crab cake were so fresh and well prepared; but the portion size was too tiny, especially the crab cake. Forgot to capture the picture of our drinks but they were okay, didn't impress me as much as the food did. The lasagna was too good, I didn't have to use a knife to cut through it and it was melting in my mouth. It was so heavy that we split it in half and we both were pretty full even with the half portion of the Pasta Moon lasagna. Talking to the server and taking her opinion helped in this case. We also wanted to save space for the dessert. We got a hazelnut chocolate cheesecake and it was perfect to end our night on a high note. : great spot for couples, date night or special ocaasion night in half moon bay : ambiance, food, service, parking ( plenty parking in the back) What could have gone better: drinks P.S.: The prices of dishes on Yelp are super old and hence the mismatch between them and $$$. Definitely, they need to be updated. read more

Pasta Moon - Calamari and crab cake - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

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Great house made pasta, beautiful building with pleasant ambience, well decorated space with great art. Dungeness crab in season was in lots of seasonal dishes, cannot complain. Great for the dates. read more

TL;DR: The perfect restaurant for when you want to go out a little more fancy, have tasty food, and a very pleasant ambiance Food is a bit pricy, but for what you get (and accounting for the fact that it's Half Moon Bay), solid value. We got the following items: - fried calamari/shrimp: quite yummy but a bit soggy. Not as much crunch as I expected, but the variety of pieces was tasty - tagliatelle with fresh jumbo prawns: very creamy and the noodles hold the sauce so well. Prawns must've been at least GMO or something (I'm joking) because they were huge and so tasty. The slices of asparagus were the perfect touch to add some color to the dish - linguine with seared hokkaido sea scallops: the scallops are TO DIE FOR!! So large and the texture was so soft and melt-in-your-mouth. I've never had scallops taste this fresh before. The linguine was also springy and you could definitely tell they were handmade. Bread crumbs were an excellent touch. I think it was a tad bit too oily for my liking though Definitely the perfect date night spot. The staff were also very nice and constantly checked in on us (and gave us all the free bread we wanted :)) read more

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Let me start with positive. They include the ambience; option to sit in or outside, lighting, comfort of seating. It is for all of those reasons that we have tried this place multiple times to see if we just had an off day with regard to service and taste. Unfortunately, the same experience repeats. We have had servers that are not attentive and food that tends to run on the rather bland side. Mocktails are not balanced. Keep in mind we have made reservations each time and still left feeling very ignored in service. Disappointed as we appreciate our local establishments. read more

I believe I got gluten poisoning here this past Monday. I am gluten free and requested their gluten free pasta. I believe that my husband's plate and mine got mixed up. I ate some of my plate and told my husband I didn't think it was gluten free (we each ordered a different pasta dish so there should have been no mix up). These past 4 days I have had the negative effects of gluten in my system, which is extremely miserable. Not a pretty sight and I've had to call in sick to work. So this review is for those seeking gluten free options here, be VERY, VERY sure they are serving you the gluten free option. I really liked this place but doubt I will ever go back because my brain sends off warning signals! For everyone else, the place was nice. read more

This one star review reflects a complete flip from my previous five star review. First of all, the food was good, but nowhere is good as the prior year. Interestingly, enough on this point, I randomly met to a local person at another restaurant who has been going here since they opened and she too agreed with me. But the current food quality is not reflected in this one star. I probably would rate the food at 3. What really irked me was the fact that we were seated by whom I believe may have been the the owner as she referred to the individual that was going to wait on us as having been with her for many many years and that he would take good care of us. Originally there were supposed to be two couples, but unfortunately, the other couple had a family emergency and we're not able to attend. We did not find out this until we were already seated. So we went from a potential 4 to 2 meals. After we were already seated, my wife began to feel ill and did not want to eat, but encourage me to go ahead and eat, and we would then go back to the hotel. The waiter found out about each of these different stages at a couple different times and had zero empathy, but rather more of a "great I'm just going to wait on a table of one now" attitude. So I ordered my appetizer, entrée and a drink quickly so we could get out of there and I could return back to the hotel. Never once did he come back to check on us. I had already informed him that my wife was not feeling well, which is why she did not order. A long while after we finally got our check. read more

Pasta Moon - Menu - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

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Pasta Moon is one of my favorite restaurants in Half Moon Bay, the food is always excellent and the service is amazing. The dining area is well lit and the ambiance is unmatchable. 9/10 would recommend read more

Pasta Moon - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

Disappointing! This used to be our go to restaurant in Half Moon Bay. Unfortunately they have poorly trained staff and they don't seem to care. Rather than write a negative review, I addressed my concerns in an email. It's been several months and I never received an acknowledgment. Looking at the negative reviews here, it does not appear that management cares. Often negative reviews receive a personal response from the owner. It seems they have no motivation to improve. Food also downhill, salad was way overdressed, temperature of deliver food was lukewarm. read more

This is a 4 star spot for me. The reason for 4 is simply this. The taste and the cost do not set well with me. Order cocktail, olives, pasta, and desert, and it was about $96 after taxes. But tasted like a meal I'd pay $60/65 for. The olives were olives lol . The cocktail was pretty good, slightly amaro heavy. The pasta was actually pretty darn good! Just could have used a slight element of texture change. And the desert was pretty good as well. Honestly if I paid $60 for that dinner. I would come back. But at 96... it's a bit high priced for leaving some to be desired. Satiated but not memorable may be the best description. I think it's good and I'd recommend it. But myself might try some other places first before returning. The bartender was extremely nice and friendly as the other patrons in the bar area. Upscale. And fancy. Good date night restaurant in half moon bay. read more

Had the most amazing date night dinner here, this is a great spot to celebrate a special occasion. Everything about both the interior and exterior of the restaurant was so picturesque, with so many lights and candles everywhere. The complimentary bread was so soft and lightly spiced with some herbs. We ordered the tagliatelle with fresh jumbo prawns, linguine with seared hokkaido sea scallops, and fritto misto (fried calamari and shrimp). Such generous portions of each, we couldn't finish between 2 people. Both the scallops and prawns were so perfectly cooked and tender. The tagliatelle was a cream sauce pasta with asparagus and proscuitto, and the linguine was an olive oil and garlic pasta with chili flakes and bread crumbs. I loved how the two dishes balanced each other out and would definitely order both again. You can definitely tell that the pasta is super fresh and homemade, it had the perfect chewy texture. Such friendly and welcoming staff, they really made sure we had a great meal and I highly recommend this restaurant, definitely will be back! read more

Pasta Moon - Tagliatelle with fresh jumbo prawns, linguine with seared hokkaido sea scallops, and fritto misto - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

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The food and service were outstanding! I ordered the tagliatelle bolognese and butterscotch pudding -- delicious! read more

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I had a really nice experience overall. The food was tasty and well-prepared, the atmosphere felt comfortable, and everything came together perfectly. It was an enjoyable visit, and I'd definitely consider coming back again. read more

The restaurant is nice with great interior great parking and very nice stuff the food is okay nothing special quite costly but nothing to make a special trip for. As a vegetarian it was nice to see options in the menu and I ordered eggplant parmesan which was okay. It's not bad but really not that good and definitely not worth it. Another colleague ordered good salad which I believe was good but very small portion like a side dish. Other people order non veg and they did seem to like it. read more

Pasta Moon - Eggplant parmesan - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

We first discovered Pasta Moon around 2015 after seeing it featured on Check, Please! Bay Area, and it's been our go-to spot in Half Moon Bay ever since. Whenever we're in town, it's our first choice for a meal. Sadly, they no longer serve weekday lunch, so this time we made the extra effort to come out for a weeknight dinner. I still wish they'd bring back weekday lunch service. Please. at least one weekday such as Mondays or Fridays. Our waitress, Barbara, was warm, attentive, and made the evening feel extra special. We began with the Squash Blossom Tempura--delicate squash blossoms stuffed with creamy cheese, lightly battered, and fried to golden perfection. The crisp shell gave way to a soft, rich filling, making it both unique and irresistible. Next came the House-Made Sausage Pizza with a thin, crisp crust and perfectly balanced toppings. The sausage was savory and aromatic, the cheese was just the right amount and the crust had just the right char for a subtle smoky flavor. The Pappardelle Pancetta was a standout -- wide fresh pasta tossed with smoky, salty pancetta, a touch of garlic, and a savory sauce that clung beautifully to each strand. The pancetta added meaty depth, while the pasta's fresh, delicate chew made every bite feel indulgent. We also ordered the Linguini with Clams, it came with the pesto instead of the usual sauce. It turned out to be an excellent choice: the bright, aromatic basil pesto complemented the sweetness of the clams perfectly, while the al dente linguini soaked up every bit of flavor. One of my friends ordered the Shogun and loved it from start to finish. We'll definitely be back--Pasta Moon remains a Half Moon Bay classic that's worth the trip every time. read more

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What a phenomenal restaurant! Been here a few times. Love the spacious parking lot, inside is super large and ambiance is amazing. Service is top notch and menu is very diverse. Meat, chicken, pasta, vegetarian, desserts are off the hook. Love the drink & beverage menu, fantastic cocktails. read more

What a great find in Half Moon Bay! This is definitely a beautiful restaurant that's great for having a nice meal or celebrating something special. They have their own parking lot, and we were able to find a spot right away. After checking in for our reservation, we were seated immediately. They have a pretty extensive cocktail, beer, and wine menu, but I love that they also offer non-alcoholic beverages. I started off with a Dragon Fruit Mocktail that had dragon fruit puree, coconut cream, mint syrup, lime, and sprite and was a striking, vibrant pink color! Such a fun drink. Our server offered us bread with olive oil and vinegar while we waited for our meal. Started off with a Fried Artichoke Salad, which was incredible! Since I was sharing this dish, they even split it on two different plates for us without us asking. I really loved both of our entrees! The restaurant is called Pasta Moon, so of course we had to order pasta dishes! We got a tomato-based and a cream-based pasta for some variety. The Pappardelle Pancetta had pancetta, wild mushrooms, tomato cream, pine nuts, mascarpone, and basil. I'm salivating just thinking about this one! The texture of the pasta was great, and I enjoyed the different textures from the pancetta, pine nuts, and mushrooms. The other pasta we got had Dry boat scallops, prosciutto, asparagus, and basil in a cream sauce. These are some of my favorite ingredients in general, so I knew that thrown together in a pasta would make it the perfect one for me! Really enjoyed this one as well. Highly recommend stopping here when you're in Half Moon Bay! read more

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Steve got us a really nice table to celebrate my mother in laws 80th birthday. The food was amazing, service was five stars and overall the best experience was made by Steve coming in talking to us, and making us feel at home. He is the best part of this restaurant. I have been in the industry myself for almost 20 years and I can tell you that nothing in this world is more valuable than the relationships that are built. Steve is a huge part of why this place is successful and we cannot wait to visit him again. And the pasta! Egg plant parmigiana was absolutely incredible. read more

Pasta Moon - Celebrating my mother in laws 80th birthday! - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

Want the perfect place to celebrate a birthday, anniversary or special occasion? Pasta moon it shall be ! Love the experiences I've had coming here. Delicious food for a reasonable price. read more

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One of my favorite restaurants in Half Moon Bay! Food is always delicious and the ambience is great! Had the squash blossoms this time and they were delicious!! I have always wanted to try them - and they did not disappoint! Love Pasta Moon!!! read more

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Stopped by for a quick bite and ended up really enjoying it. Food came out fresh and tasted great. Service was friendly and fast. Would definitely come back))) read more

This lasagna was HUGE. About the size of two iPhone 13s next to each other, height was probably the length of an iPhone 13. Definitely enough for 2 people (though I finished it by myself lol). Never heard of this spot before but went here with 10 others for an early Christmas dinner with family. Service was awesome, Maria is great. Everyone cleared the plates whenever they'd stack up. The restaurant was fairly spacious, a few spots throughout for tables of 2 to sit next to each other for a more intimate meal. They have a separate area for parties and it looked like the partitions throughout the restaurant would allow them to host much larger parties. My wife had this marshmallow lemon dessert thing idk what it's called but MAN THAT WAS AWESOME. Fluffy and tart. Will definitely come back again! read more

Pasta Moon - Pasta Moon Lasagna - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

In one word: YUM! In many words, this place was absolutely delicious and we will definitely be back and recommend highly to others. We came here for our one year wedding anniversary. On OpenTable when you're booking a reservation, it asks and I checked the box for anniversary. When we got there, they had a hand written card for us. Everyone from the hostess to the waiter wished us a happy anniversary. Not super important, but what a nice touch. The bread was really good. They give a homemade rosemary bread...I want to say maybe a wheat...but it is absolutely devine. Very well flavored and super soft and moist. I ordered the Bubbles & Berries for my cocktail which was very good. I then had a glass of wine, which was also a good one and recommended by our waiter. My husband got the Blue Ocean beer on draft because we went there the day prior and had such a great experience. Good choice of drink options. For dinner, we actually both ordered the pappardelle Pancetta. We both absolutely loved it. I had some leftovers that I took home, and it was just as good the next day. The pasta was made in-house and that was very apparent. So delicious and very fresh. The sauce and mushrooms on top were scrumptious as well. The only thing I will say is that our service could have been better being that this is a higher end restaurant, but we also felt like maybe he was leaving us alone because it was our anniversary and he didn't want to rush us. For dessert, I had an espresso martini which was heavy on the espresso side which is my FAV when it comes to these. My husband ordered an Irish coffee and he really enjoyed that as well. The ambiance is very cute. Perfectly lit. Good use of space. We will be back! read more

Pasta Moon - Pappardelle Pancetta - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California

food and atmosphere was great but the service was honestly horrible. My boyfriend and I had a reservation at 8 for our 2 year anniversary and were really excited but when we got there our table wasn't ready yet which is honestly fine but other parties of 2 who had reservations at 8 who came in after us got seated before us and the hostess barely acknowledged us and I heard her say she was sitting the other people before us because "they had been there before". After we were sat we noticed our server was paying way more attention to the two tables next to us and barely attended to us, we even had to order multiple rounds of drinks through the server who served the bread and water not even our own server because he barely came up to us. At the end of the night our server spilled water all over our table and me leaving my skirt drenched and he barely apologized or acknowledged it at all. Very disappointing considering this was for our anniversary. I've worked in the service industry my whole life and would never treat people the way we were treated. read more

This is a great Italian restaurant when visiting Half Moon Bay. I love the interior decor with wooden beams and string lights wrapped around the ceiling making it look like a galaxy. Everything is clean and spotless. The food overall, was a high B+ to me. Our favorite dish was the Pappardelle Pancetta. The creamy tomato sauce was on point with the chunks of pancetta and wild mushroom. The pasta noodle was authenticated made and tasted delicious. The clam chowder is good but nothing shocking. We weren't fans of their house made sausage pizza. I thought the sausage had too much spice flavor of cardamom?! The pizza itself was too doughy and cheesy; not our type. The Fritto Misto (calamari) was just ok as well; it was kind of cold and tasted regular. Overall, this is still a great restaurant especially for the ambiance. Next time, I'll come back for the pasta and maybe a salad! My Video Review: IG: @theprominentpalate read more

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Great service (attentive and never interrupted our conversations). Good food, especially the (huge) lasagna. Really pretty space.

We came in tonight for my husbands birthday dinner and upon arrival we were greeted by the most lovely older gentleman, smile on his face and just a warm inviting feeling. He was the highlight of our evening. Brought out a coloring page for our kids and just pleasant all throughout. What a gem ! However my review is for the older hostess/manager? Whatever her role is... She was dismissive when we checked into our reservation but I thought nothing of it, maybe they're busy but we ordered our food and she brought out the kids pizza. First she was super annoyed with her tone of voice and stated theres no room on the table, mind you i've moved over half the plates and utensils over to one side so my kids dont drop them but I guess it's my job to figure out where you need to place the food?! And then I tell her here place the plate here and moved stuff around. She kept saying its so hot and there's no room. I asked her can you remove these plates and she literally walked away and ignored us. I thought it was just me but my husband actually noticed too. He tells me that lady seems so annoyed muttering under her breath as she walks away. Secondly, my toddler had a meltdown and I decided to walk the girls out so they didn't interrupt anyone else's meals and as I was leaving the older gentleman was so sweet conversing with me and my baby and this lady was just rude , ignored that we we were having a convo and told him about a local patron who missed their reservations .. we need to call her etc. Honestly she treats the locals with a different respect than "other patrons" from my experience today hugging them and changing the way she speaks. Had it not been for my children I would have said something to her.... 8 plus years of coming here and this was by far the most horrible experience for me and my spouse on his birthday. I didn't even return to the restaurant when i took the girls out and had my husband pay the check while I waited in the car. So sad considering the staff and food is always wonderful read more

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What an amazing experience from start to finish! We made reservations for Thursday night at 6:30. Upon arrival, we were very warmly welcomed by the friendly host and guided to our table in the bar area. The restaurant was larger than I expected and had a lovely elegant feel without being the least bit pretentious. The decor was beautiful, the lighting perfect for date night, the seating comfortable and I loved the open kitchen. Despite being larger and busy, it was not overly noisy and easy to maintain a conversation with my husband. We had perused the menu before going in and had already decided we were going to split the Spiced Porcini Rubbed Ribeye, medium rare. Since we were splitting a meal, we also planned to order appetizers and dessert. We started with a special, the Sweet Corn Chowder with chile oil and chives. I love lamb so we also ordered the Anderson Valley Grilled Lamb Chop (Fennel and Pistachio Crusted, Olive Vinaigrette, Celery Root, Walnut Salad, Crème Fraîche Dressing). Sadly I did not get pictures, but I can say they were both delicious. The chowder had a wonderful sweet corn flavor and was so creamy from being puréed. The lamb chop was cooked to perfection, juicy and tender. My husband didn't care for the fennel flavor so I got to devour the lamb. They split the steak and accompaniments for us in the kitchen so we each were delivered our own plate. The steak was cooked perfectly - warm red center for medium rare. The rub was so flavorful. The accompanying Broccolini-Spinach Sauté, Potato Gratin and Tempura Battered Onion Ring were delicious as well. Despite splitting the ribeye, we still had leftovers to take with us. Even though we were no longer hungry we had to try the Chocolate Hazelnut Cheesecake. It was just decadent. We took some of that home as well. While looking over the wine list, we noticed a special Cabernet Sauvignon, a 2013 Ideology from Napa. The wine was well balanced and complemented the meal beautifully. Imagine our surprise, when we were introduced to the winemaker at the bar! Everyone in this restaurant, from the host to the GM/owner, was just so welcoming and professional. We had such a great time we now have reservations for Sunday night to enjoy another meal before we head back to Monterey on Monday. If I lived closer, I would definitely be a regular at this spot. This next time we are going to either try one of their pizzas or perhaps a pasta. I can't wait! read more

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Wow, it's been over 10 years since we've been to Pasta Moon! This time we went to the bigger place down the street. We were terribly disappointed with our service. We waited over 10 minutes for the server to greet us at our table. The rest of the service was lackluster at best. Don't these places know all it takes to calm folks down is quickly taking a drink order? Sadly, don't think we'll be back. read more

My husband and I recently had our wedding reception at Pasta Moon and the event was absolutely lovely. I was very pleased with how they managed to seat 22 people in their Terrace room and they even had room to squeeze in a small table for our wedding favors. Their event coordinator, Laura, was lovely to work with and the main hostess for our event, Maria, was so kind and attentive. All of our guests had a great time and loved the food. It's a little bit of a drive for us but my husband and I will definitely be coming back for our anniversary dinners. read more

The inside of the restaurant is beautiful and grand with high A frame ceilings and wooden beams and chandeliers. The staff worked well with each other to provide good service. However, their tables for parties of 5 to 6 were U shaped booths seats and two chairs on the open end. I only saw one large table with chairs all around but hostess said it was for 8 people! The booth made it very tough to get in and out. There were smaller tables for up to four people that had chairs only. I guess they wouldn't think of combining two tables to allow all chair seating because that would disrupt their flow! The food was pretty good but not spectacular. We all loved the Pappaderlle dish but varied on the other items. The radio signal was very weak, and though they provided free WiFi, it was weak as well. I couldn't open my apps on my phone and only managed to receive the photos sent by my son's iPhone 16 but I couldn't even open the images using the WiFi read more

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Great food and great hospitality. We went for our anniversary and was treated with a card and warm welcome. We had had the tagliatelle pasta, nectarine salad and squash blossoms and they were delicious! read more

Pasta Moon - affogato dessert - Italian Near Me - Half Moon Bay, California