What a great place! Came in on a snowy night to have some great clam pasta and meet Frank! My husband's flight got delayed, so I ended up dining alone. It didn't matter- they made me feel like part of the family! Everything was spot on! The salad was fresh and the dressing was amazing. The clam pasta was chock full of clams and perfectly done! And the bread was hot and delicious. Can't wait to come back next week and try the pizza! read more

The restaurant is small and parking can be tricky on weekend nights. My server was knowledgeable and patient. My Caesar salad was good but the lettuce was bad. My friends received complimentary house salads. I wish I had gotten that. I had the chicken Marsala which was great, but pasta was bland. Would have been better paired with a mashed potato. I also ordered the braised beef ravioli. The sauce lacked flavor. It was a little better with salt and pepper added. read more

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This was my first visit to Pranzo, as I work thru my bucket list of downtown Willoughby restaurants. A friend and I visited on a Thursday evening, the restaurant was small, quaint and cozy, with a steady stream of customers. There is a small bar. We were warmly greeted upon entering and immediately seated. Our server, Domenic, approached our table a short time later. He explained the menu, letting us know that bread and salad were included with our entrees. We proceeded to order cocktails, wine and a yummy pomegranate spritz. I ordered the chicken parmesan, my friend ordered the chicken marsala. Our salads and bread basket arrived quickly. The salad was generous, freshly made and tasty. The bread was fresh, served with a olive oil, infused with balsamic vinegar. Our entrees arrived just as we finished our salads, perfect timing. The chicken parmesan was prepared and plated nicely. The chicken was tender, seasoned, and topped with cheese and marinara, on top of penned pasta. The chicken was tasty. The pasta was a bit overcooked, for me. The marinara was a bit bland. I ate the chicken and skipped most of the pasta. My friend's Marsala was plated well, lots of mushrooms, but she commented that the entree was somewhat bland. The best part of the visit was our server, Domenic, he was attentive and friendly. Overall the meal was good, I would visit again, but this won't be my go-to Italian restaurant. read more

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Enjoy the outdoors patio and wood fired pizza by Danny. It's also a show to watch him cut with the samurai sword. Great food, wine, environment. read more

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Loved this space. Service was excellent. Food was creative and delicious. Prices reasonable. Make sure you review the "special " menu

Updating this to say "picked a different wine" Thank you for reading my review thoroughly read more

Saturday night we arrived at pranzo and we're going to have some Italian food cuz we haven't been to Willoughby in a while. We were party at 6:00 and after about a 5-minute wait they seated us. The first thing I noticed was I was sitting right above the air conditioning return vent which was blowing some frigid cold air which I am perfectly fine with however my friend's wife did not care to sit there due to the volume of air blowing through. That's fine though I enjoyed the cool air. Obviously they were busy because it was Saturday night but we were engaged in conversation but as I looked at my watch it had been 15 minutes since we had been sad and nobody had approached us. Finally after we were frantically waving down any server we did get one to come by. Yes they were busy yes they were understaffed everybody's understaffed I don't care anymore. To her credit she did hustle because she had a lot of tables. We shared a couple bottles of wine and some drinks from the bar between six people. Or appetizers came out surprisingly fast which was pleasant. I ordered the same thing I ordered every Italian restaurant I always go to which is chicken parmesan. I don't believe they had food runners cuz the food came out in shifts. My chicken parmesan was a relatively large breast which had a skinny side and a fatter side. I started on a skinny side aside from it needing some seasoning in the batter it was okay. The sauce was not how I remember it was actually pretty bland. I decided to dig into the thicker side took three bites and you can tell from the texture it was severely undercooked I removed it from my mouth and looked at it and yep I was in the running for a case of salmonella. I don't know how you fry food in undercook it but they managed to do it. I had half about half the pasta but I wasn't in love with it anyway. Pasta was cooked okay but we flagged our poor server down again and she was not happy with the kitchen. Tour credit she asked if I wanted it re-cooked I said no. She was able to take a bottle of wine off the bill and of course remove the undercooked chicken parmesan. Kind of a bummer of a night I was really looking forward to it. I don't want some nice gift card they gave me I just wanted a meal cooked right but lately I just can't find it. read more

Owner was a jerk when I replied to their email asking how our visit was because I told him that I'm 100% italian and my eggplant parmesean was loaded with seeds and sent pics of it. I didn't tell the server for a few reasons. My mistake. My email to the owner was not rude or in anger. The first indication that he was being a smart a#$% was that he replied in Italian stating that "since you're 100% Italian". Come on! ( I was able to translate to English) He told me that he's sorry it wasn't to my liking but it's made the Sicilian way. He didn't address the fact that my pics prove that my entre was more seeds than eggplant. He wrote "come to my house for dinner and we'll talk about your eggplants." SMH read more

If we could give Pranzo and their team 100/10, we WOULD!!! We used Pranvo to cater our wedding on 5/25/2025, and when I tell you, the entire process was beyond my expectations. From our first tasting, to the final product- our point of contact was through Dominic. He was quick to communicate, explained every step, and was more than efficient and patient the entire time. Our guests were blown away by the food! We had the Pizza Buffet, Cavatelli Pasta, Stromboli/breads and salad options. Everything was QUICK/HOT, FRESH, DELICIOUS, and the dietary accommodations were all met. We had so many compliments and people asking about where they were located... which we all know is rare for wedding food! We also used their bartenders and servers/bussers. The bartenders (Carla?) were TOP KNOTCH. When I tell you they were slingin drinks left and right, they didnt skip a beat! They were KIND, ACCURATE, QUICK, CLEAN, SANITARY, and when they saw us coming- they had drinks waiting!! Our wedding of 100 people did not phase the 2 of them. We will be forever customers of Pranzo!!! We could never thank them enough for how awesome they made the experience for us! read more

Authentic Italian Restaurant! This place is great. Traditional Italian, fantastic flavoring, very nice ambiance and excellent service. We literally stumbled upon this place, never heard of it before and thought we would take a chance. Wow! Oh my God panseared scallops over linguine and the hubs got pasta pillow filled with ricotta. The food was delicious! Omg, the bread too. Strongly recommend read more

Super yummy fresh pasta, always rotating specials, the bread is very good and the desserts are awesome as well. I've been here a few times and enjoy the atmosphere and attentive service. A seat next to the fireplace is especially cozy! read more

Pranzo! - Excellent calamari! - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

Quite frankly, disappointing. It's not that the food was bad. It was ok. But just ok. Not extraordinary. Not memorable. The service was also just pretty adequate. Given the prices, and the reputation, I would have expected better. read more

I tried this place for the first time after being curious about it for years. My wife and I went with another couple and the echoing noise in the place was so bad we had to shout to hear each other at our own table. Maybe they should invest in some ceiling mounted acoustic baffles. The food was ok, but the service was terrible. My friend ordered a shrimp cocktail and it came with a bed of salad mixed with cocktail sauce, so he had to ask a side of cocktail sauce to go with it since you'd have to scrape it off the lettuce if you wanted any for your shrimp. Next, everyone at the table ordered salad, but my friend never got his until he asked the server to cancel his salad order and remove it from the bill, then it magically showed up with the server saying she forgot to bring it and it was just sitting at the pick up station the whole time. The bread they bring to the table seems liked old pizza dough that they're trying to get rid of. The only thing good about our appetizers and salad was the bacon on my wedge salad. My wife and I shared a sacchetti pasta stuffed with black truffles and ricotta. The pasta tasted homemade and the filling was good, but the sauce just tasted like pasta water and it came to the table ice cold. We told the server it was cold and she took it away, with no apology, to get it heated up. When it came back, it was barely warmer than when we first got it and somehow the sauce became even more watery. We decided just to eat it since we were hungry. The server asked if it was better and we said it was still cold, still no apology or acknowledgment of poor quality. At that point we should have been offered a fresh dish or a discount on the bill; neither were offered. Overall it was a poor experience. I'll chalk this one up to live and learn, and I learned I don't need to be curious about Pranzo! anymore and I won't ever be going back. read more

Delicious food great atmosphere kind service I will be back! Best Italian food around.

My family and I love this place! All the food is spectacular and to die for. We're regular customers and are always satisfied with our meals and employees the sweetest people you'll ever meet. read more

Pranzo! - The salmon is breathtaking and 10/10 recommend - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

So, we were in the mood for some Italian food, but unlike most locals, I suppose I wasn't craving for "Italian" but American-Italian. We had a reservation on a Saturday evening, otherwise no chance to get a table at this restaurant. After the insightful explanation of the very Italian-sounding specials by our server, the rest of the party went for them, except me. I wanted chicken parm, period. The sever seemed somewhat disappointed about my choice; little does he know that I drive for 2 hours back home to get the real Italian food, in actual Italy, if I want to. Our shared appetizer, fried calamari, was salty, so were most of the specials. The chicken parm, though, was actually pretty good. Too bad the penne seemed to be and tasted as they were out of the box. Unlike the pasta of my wife's lobster special, they were pretty good too. I don't think that Americanised Italian food with an authentic touch would succeed for this place (e.g., chicken parm with hand-made pasta and a Basilico tomato sauce or so). Hence, it remains a wish of my humble self to find some, someday, somewhere. read more

Reposting because my review didn't show up. Our reservation at Pranzo for our "large" group of six at 7:00pm was not ready when we arrived on time. We waited outside in the cold because there was no room inside to wait. Came back fifteen minutes later as we were told to do and she said we will call you when a table becomes available. Another forty minute wait outside. Luckily two little shops were open. We had already been to another bar earlier and we were not there to bar hop. We came back and a table was emptying and another group was waiting for a table. We quickly snatched the table and they came right over and said "Do you want his table?" Of course we do!!! We reserved a table an hour ago. They brought us water and the wine right away. But then we waited a half an hour to order and another forty five minutes for our food. Most of us ordered pizzas to share to keep it simple. Now it's 9:15pm when we got our food. They dimmed the already low lighting at 9:30. Hint they were getting ready to close. The waiter brings one check. When asked to split the check he says "We don't split checks for parties of six or more. It says it on the menu" The menu has very small print in low lighting. We were looking at the menu for food not the rules of the restaurant. After much debate he finally agreed and he says "I will do it this time but we won't do it next time". They won't have to worry about that. Over priced sub par food. Nothing to write home about. Cold bland pizza and toppings thrown on cold. The one small pasta dish ordered with no meat balls or side salad for 20.00. Tasteless. The side salad for $9.00 was a small handful of arugula in a bowl with three small slivers of cheese and one cherry tomato. They could have at least added an olive. read more

Had a great experience there last night. Great waiter and the best Veal Parm i can remember having in a long time. Will be back.

Me and six girlfriends came here for a little reunion dinner while being home for the holidays and it was a great place! Food was great and we even brought our own wine ($15 uncorking fee per bottle). The service was okay but it was fine because we had so much fun talking and laughing. I had the gnocchi from the regular menu and it was fantastic! read more

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Great food and overall great prices. Nice Italian option for a date night. Service was tolerable, drink options were limited.

Adding an additional star because I've had many great vegan meals here in the past few years. And I've attended a couple amazing vegan wine dinners. (have more, please!) This isn't the Olive Garden, but I feel like food is a good value here since it's fresh and flavorful read more

I have had dinner at this restaurant on New Year's Eve for the past two years by myself. Always had a great experience and the food and service were top notch so I decided to bring my daughter and her boyfriend this year. We were seated in the middle of the floor and the servers serving the tables on either side of us would bump our chairs everytime they walked by. The specials were somewhat limited compared to previous years. Our server was put offish from the get go. When I asked her which plate would she recommend between the two I was considering she couldn't really say and suggested the more expensive one. We had the meatball appetizer which is always a winner! My daughter had spaghetti and meatballs and her bf had the shrimp linguine. I had one of the specials, the shrimp risotto. I was extremely disappointed with mine. The risotto was creamy yet salty. The shrimp were big enough but for 34.00 the portion was rather small in my opinion. Her bf's shrimps dinner was just ok. Our server barely came back to check on us during our dinner. I had to ask someone else to refill my drink for me since I didn't know were she was. Overall I was very disappointed with the dinner and the experience. I had great expectations based on my previous visits but this one was a let down for sure. read more

Second time visiting...Excellent service. Food was simply amazing. Was there for birthday dinner even other patrons wished me happy birthday. Very intimate and wholesome. Very nice place. Lastly, it's a BYOB or you can purchase wine there either way you should dine it you won't be disappointed. read more

Pranzo! - Shrimp Risotto.... Very good.. Only added pepper...risotto was cooked perfectly... - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

My friends and I go here quite often because it is a wonderful atmosphere with a great wine selection. We have had a variety of appetizers and entrees. My personal favorite is the calamari and my friend is obsessed with their lobster ravioli. I recently got the wild salmon that was a special and unfortunately I wasn't fan. It was over cooked and lacked flavor. Overall though, we cannot get enough of this place and we keep coming back for more! read more

So good no matter if we are in a pandemic or not just the best. Had the duck special and ordered 2 pizzas. Just perfection! Love how everyone is so kind that waits on us. Service never misses a beat!!! read more

Food & service Great staff at this place. Can definitely tell the owners care. The place is clean. The food was delicious! Valet is free here--at least on the weekend Wish they had "real" complimentary bread but I shouldn't complain because it is free They serve some kind of pita bread- why would they do that ?? Their sauce is excellent ... Pita bread just doesn't go with my pasta & meatballs well read more

Pranzo is one of the many dining choices in Downtown Willoughby, Ohio...a suburb northeast of Cleveland. This Italian restaurant specializes in wood-fired meats, fish and pizza, as well as traditional pasta and seafood or poultry dishes. It seems to be a decent place for dinner, but it did not knock my socks off during my first visit. Our table of four shared a 10" pepperoni pizza appetizer called the Dominic. It was not too bad, but the crust was not caramelized as it should be coming from a wood-fired oven and the sauce was not as zesty as pizza sauce could be. Maybe not enough oregano? Not sure. Anyway, the pizza was great for four people, but would have been too much for a smaller group. I had the chicken parmigiana, which comes with a dinner salad. (They also have bread sticks with olive oil and balsamic dipping sauce...just so-so in the taste department.) The chicken parm was nicely breaded and fried slightly crispy. The chicken was slightly overdone, but acceptable. The cheese was melted well and covered a generous portion of the patty. However, the tomato sauce (again) left me wanting more taste. Had they given me more zest and tang in the sauce, I might had thought about 4 stars, but I just can't go there. Additionally, the service was friendly, but deathly slow. We weren't in a hurry, but we would have been irritated if we were it seemed we had one server for the entire one side of the restaurant. Lastly, they are a BYOW (bring your own wine) place, so grab a bottle of red before you come or face the consequences. Overall, Pronzo was a slightly above average meal with just average amenities. I have definitely tasted better Italian cuisine in Cleveland...and had a better experience. However, this one is likely worth a try at least once if you're in the neighborhood. read more

Pranzo! - Chicken Parmigiana - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

Great Italian restaurant and perfect for date night! The homemade pastas are great very fresh, ordered the lobster papparadelle. The only complaint was that the pasta was all stuck together in a clump, but it was still tasty. The pizzas are made in a wood burning oven and pretty authentic, great for sharing as an appetizer or main dish. I love the idea of a BYOB, it's fun to bring our own an in pretty sure they don't charge a corkage fee. I also love the bread they serve with oil to dip as well as the salad with homemade dressing. Even though the place is pretty small and tight quarters it is fun to go as a group as well and each bring a bottle of wine to share together at the table. I did see people bring beer and liquor as well as a different option. read more

Pranzo! - Lobster papparadelle. Homemade noodles - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

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If you have time to wait, and love eggplant parm go. Best eggplant parmesan I ever ate. Arugula fennel salad great too. Eggplant is not breaded but loaded with cheese basil layers. Service is typically slow here but generous portions. Worth the wait. You can bring your own bottle of wine or get one there. Staff is friendly. Baked penne and white fish also delicious. read more

Pranzo! - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

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Pranzo is a modern Italian restaurant with a contemporary interior and a brick pizza oven in the kitchen. The food menu is extensive, with choices ranging from pizza to chicken to seafood and a selection of different pastas, which includes gnocchi, ravioli, penne, and spaghetti. The bread was fabulous and is served with every entree. After much debate, I opted for the Gnocchi alla Ranallo, which was dressed in a lovely cream sauce - simply heaven on a plate! I will definitely be back here to try the other dishes, and so should you! read more

Wonderful food and people! Excellent sauces, pizza and pasta. Very nice wine list. Pizza is made in a wood fired oven on the patio.

Good food, poor service with Daryl. We live in downtown Willoughby and will not return. read more

Amazing food!!!! Waiter and staff were super friendly! App, salad, and entree were perfectly spaced out! Wood fired pizza was awesome!!! My wife had the penne and the best balls were the best I've ever had!!!! Def a must!!! read more

So who gets excited about pasta anymore, right? Last night I ordered the Mussels Marinara sautéed with white wine, butter, garlic, parsley and marinara and then tossed with spaghetti. Yep, spaghetti. And I was served the absolutely perfect spaghetti al dente along with a wonderful marinara sauce. I had a little cheese put on it, and I was in seventh heaven. It is wonderful when something so simple is done so right. My wife had the fish, I think it's called basa. She enjoyed it. We shared a bottle of Kim Crawford Savignon Blanc which was a perfect complement to both our entrees. read more

Five stars isn't enough. Stumbled into this restaurant because we stopped near Cleveland on a long drive. Great food. Homemade pasta. Wow. I watched it being made. Incredibly nice staff. Excellent wine. Can't praise it enough. Loved it and will make an excuse to stop near Cleveland again. read more

This. place. is. fantastic. Bit of a wait on a summer Friday evening because of a large rehearsal dinner, but staff was all friendly despite how busy they were. Several wine by the glass options and excellent marinara on great meatball appetizer. The house foccacia was flatbread style and intensely aromatic. We were very impressed with the bread and house-made pappardelle. Frutti di Mare featured fresh, fresh seafood and plenty of it and chicke marsala was cooked just right. Fun lil' patio in the back where you can see the action by the massive pizza oven too. Love it! Will always ask to go back when I'm in that part of Ohio - nice short walk to the town green after dinner too. read more

We were delighted with our meal. Good service and good wine at this Main Street Italian eatery. Perfect date night read more

Pranzo! - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

Love this place even more every time I go ! The waitress was ABSOLUTELY amazing ! The sweetest lady I ever met ! The food was great & the wine delightful! Their patio is the cutest thing I've ever seen and would highly recommend asking for a table outside ! read more

I love this place!! Very authentic Italian food, wine and atmosphere! Everything is fresh and homemade and it's the only place that I have found amazing Cavatelli that's not in Little Italy! read more

Pranzo! - Cavatelli alla Romana - Italian Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

When you think of downtown Willoughby, late night drinking is what usually comes to mind (come on, most of us have been there), but Pranzo now brings fine dining to this little strip of bars. Two things right off the bat - take advantage of the free valet parking (unless you feel like walking or are one of the lucky few to get preemo street parking) and make reservations. Once seated in the cozy restaurant (sometimes TOO cozy - seating is VERY tight), your server will uncork your bottle of wine or graciously take your 4 or 6 pack of beer and keep it chilled in the kitchen until you're ready for another. Oh yeah, one other important thing - it's BYOB! The menu is somewhat on the small side, however the selections are great. I would suggest salad (the arugula and fennel is a favorite) and a flatbread pizza. This will be MORE than enough food and I always end up splitting the pizza with someone and still have food to take home. Prices for entrees range from relatively cheap to pretty darn expensive, but I will say the pricier options are worth it - and besides, you're not paying an arm and a leg for those glasses of wine or beer that you'll consume throughout your meal. There is a cute patio out back if you're in the mood for outdoor scenery and I will say that the seating is much more spaced out. Overall, there is much to be enjoyed about Pranzo. read more