Delicious Italian food. Our server, Paula, did a great job describing entrees and filling water…read moreglasses. The restaurant filled up quickly after opening and we were glad to have made a reservation. Highly recommended the eggplant involtini served with the house vodka sauce . My husband had the rigatoni with two meatballs and the meatballs tasted like the ones my grandma from Italy use to make. We shared a Mediterranean salad with an excellent balsamic dressing. Our daughter enjoyed the chicken parmesan as did many other people sitting nearby. The pizzas and calzone also looked wonderful. Next time we have to try the homemade lobster ravioli with vodka sauce.

This was by far the best authentic Italian food I've ever had! It truly felt like you were in…read moreItaly! The service and the owners were absolutely amazing and very accommodating! The food just melted in your mouth. If you are visiting or live near Longboat Key, you must check out this place! You won't be disappointed! I also recommend their wine tasting! Excellent!

We stopped here very hungry for dinner after a day at the beach and we're not disappointed!!!…read moreStarting with the fresh salad and crispy warm bread, delicious!! Then I got "Deb's special" that is a Crispy chicken cutlet seasoned and fried to perfection served with buttered noodles and arugula salad, it was all really good!! My boyfriend got the lasagna which was also delicious! Would def recommend checking them out. We will be back!!!

Generous servings of homestyle Italian food served with a smile…read more Arugula and Southern Italian salads were big enough to share! Oregano in the dressing was an unexpected treat! Flounder, served with a side of roasted vegetables, satisfied! Eggplant appetizer was unusual and delicious. Supertuscan red wine is tasty. Make a reservation if you'd like to dine outside!

Had a wonderful dinner at Riva. The rigatoni, Campanelle bolognese and duck ragout Mafaldini were…read moreall excellent. The charred octopus appetizer was a hit and the tiramisu and Terrone Budino Brûlée desserts were delicious. The drinks were delicious with a wide selection. We sat outside and the ambiance was beautiful. The service impeccable - They even accommodated the picky teens in our group who asked for off the menu items.

I heard the StRegis was beautiful but very expensive ($1200/night) so we (4 of us) decided to try…read moreit(Riva restaurant-Italian) for dinner. I went with a pre-conceived notion I would be disappointed but driving into the complex and especially entering the main bar, I was blown away. The lighting and design is special. Each evening at 6 champagne is poured to celebrate so we participated as we walked around to view the complex before dinner. Riva serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. We ate outside and were presented bread and oil with our drinks. My Burrata salad was excellent as was my duck ragout; Mafaldini noodles were very filling. Christy was the perfect waitress- appearing when needed and refilling our drinks. The old Monkey bar on the beach is gone but a new bar honoring this iconic bar is there. As much as I hate to admit it, 5 stars- food, service, ambiance and setting. Valet parking- get your ticket validated

Back home (finally) so we hit the club. Eric always takes care of us and tonight was no different…read more My Caesar salad was excellent as well as the bread. My salmon was cooked perfectly and accompanied with fingerling potatoes. After dinner we walked home and realized how lucky we are to be members and live on Longboat.

The bread! The olive tapenade was amazing! They also have gluten free bread upon request. Butternut…read moresquash soup was great, I do wish it would have been hotter. The filet was cooked perfectly and lots of flavor. The view of the marina is impressive and good people watching! The waitress we had was very attentive and helpful.

We tried this authentic Italian little hole-in-the-wall, and wow--absolutely delicious. You're…read moregreeted by the nicest family, and the owner/chef personally takes your order and even brings out the food himself. He surprised us with a small appetizer to try and even treated us to dessert--such a thoughtful touch. My husband had a special rigatoni with shrimp and bacon, and I had the spaghetti and meatballs--both were incredible. The food is amazing, the service is warm and personal, and the place is small but truly authentic, from Napoli. Don't hesitate to give them a try!

This is one of our favorite places! They food is excellent,…read moreowner and staff are amazing and friendly, and delicious wine!

Our family visited Scarpinos in Bradenton last week for dinner, and we had a fantastic experience!…read moreThe ambience in the restaurant was nice and the atmosphere was very warm and inviting. Our server was excellent, going so far as to check on us regularly and even to box up our food at the end of the meal. The food, however, was the best part! It tasted very authentic, and the portions were incredibly generous. I'm originally from up north between Philly and Pennsylvania, so we had good pizza up there all the time. But finding pizza that's good down here is very hard to do. I can confidently say Scarpinos' pizza may not only be the best in Bradenton, but the best I've ever had anywhere, including Chicago and New York! I will definitely be eating there again and often. If you're looking for a fantastic authentic Italian experience, we can't recommend this place enough!

Enjoyed an amazing dinner here recently with my father and brother. We arrived around 7 on a…read moreSaturday evening, it was pretty busy, but we only had to wait about 15 minutes to be seated. Once seated, the waiter was very attentive throughout the entire meal. To start our meal, we ordered a a plate of the calamari, which were ok, maybe a bit more rubbery than I like. Side salads were brought out after, which were ok, nothing great, very basic. They also brought some tasty, warm garlic rolls/knotts with the salads. For my entree, I had a tough time deciding, there were a lot of good options on the menu, but I was really interested by the Cacio E Pepe, but it is only available as a meal for (2) which seemed a bit excessive. My brother and I decided to get it together, along with a side of sausage to add some protein to the meal. I've seen videos of pasta made with in a cheese wheel online several times, and have wanted to try it, but this has been my first opportunity. They bring out the cooked pasta, and prepare it in the cheese wheel at the table, which was an added bit of fun for the dining experience. overall it was a fun and tasty meal. Got to try something I've been wanting to for a while. One warning, the restaurant is basically just one large room, so it can get a bit loud, depending on the crowd and how busy it is. But I'd go back, and would recommend this spot to other as well.

Went here with some friends who actually recommended it from friends and Yelp…read more The exterior looked like the Italian restaurants you find in a larger city, trying hard to be noticed. The interior was in the same motif, an old school Italian restaurant that's been around for awhile. We had reservations and were sat immediately. Our server came over to our table almost immediately. He was friendly, professional and friendly and explained the menu and his recommendations. Even though the appetizers looked amazing, we opted to just order entrees as they came with a salad and pasta. We ordered 2 Chicken Parm's with a Caeser salad side and their homemade Tagliatelle pasta, Bronzino special and a Pasta (homemade linguine). I was one of the Chicken Parm's. DAMN, it was excellent! Very large portions of chicken and pasta with a tomato sauce that was absolutely one of the best I've ever had in a restaurant! It was thick, tasty and clung to the pasta and Parm. I HATE ordering pasta in a restaurant that isn't drained properly and the plate is a puddle with food sitting in it-and this WAS NOT the case! It was a big ass tasty platter of delicious food. The other plates were as large and delicious! For dessert, I had the Espresso Affogato, again DELICIOUS!!! I WILL be back to try some of the other dishes as, for me, unless they do a really good chicken parm, I won't go on!! Great job by the staff! Our table was constantly bussed, waters refilled and making sure we were satisfied.

had a very nice waiter. took 45 minutes to seat the 4 of us even though we had reservations…read more Caesar salad was boring and the dressing seemed from a bottle. the mushroom soup was dark grey and had the consistency of mushy baby food and didnt taste like mushroom. Puttanesco very salty and noodles were hard, not al dente- inedible. bolognese was a little salty and sauce was scant and boring..

Marcello never disappoints... .. there were 8 of us &…read moreeveryone very satisfied! Gus was our server & was great! Like the quaintness of the resturant!

I love this place, thanks susan and nick for taking me. Great prices and great owner! Bravo for…read moresuperb italian experience.

Amazing Neapolitan pizza! Service was excellent! Lovely restaurant with both inside and outside…read moreseating!

Authentic Neapolitan Pizza at its finest!!…read more Sarasota is very very lucky to have this place.

Food was terrible, owner was more interested in being a singer than actually cooking…read more I don't know what part of Italy she is from, but it's not like any Italian food I've ever experienced in my lifetime The chicken was mushy and they use way too much salt

We had a great dinner last night at La Dolce Vita. It is a small place, I didn't think to count…read morethe tables inside but there is maybe a dozen, and a few more outside. Small and busy, I would recommend getting a reservation. I checked out their menu earlier in the day and was very much looking forward to trying their Pappardelle, Funghi e Salsiccia, a sausage and mushroom pasta dish with a creamy panna sauce. I was not disappointed. In fact, I found my food absolutely delicious. I loved the mushrooms, the sausage, and the sauce really tied it all together. Service was fine, maybe just a little slow at the end getting the bill, but we were in no hurry. Very helpful, one person in our group had some dietary restrictions which were accommodated.