We tried and tried to find somewhere decent to go to dinner the night we were in South Bend. I hadn't been to Rocco's since I went to school in South Bend. I knew it wouldn't be the best place to eat, but I didn't remember there not being much to choose from in town. So, we were stuck going here. I should note that neither of us had pizza. It's very possible the pizza is better than anything else here. Other reviewers certainly seem to think so. For me, though, the food, the service, the atmosphere, all of it was just average at best. Rocco's, and possibly most every restaurant in town, is a college place. It works for college students, but I don't recommend it for pretty much anyone else. read more

Great pizza and Italian food with a wonderful ambiance. People were super nice and service was great

I have heard from many that this is simply THE BEST pizza in town. Not true, at all. We ordered carry out since the restaurant is real close to our home, the pizza was ready shortly after I arrived. When we got home 5-7min later opened up the box ready to chow down and be amazed.. The pizza was GROSS! The sauce had no flavor, and by no flavor I mean it was as if it was red colored water. To top it off the bread part of the pizza was wet, there is no other word to describe it- the pizza was impossible to pick up it was so soaking wet. Soaking wet pizza + no flavor = HORRIBLE. The pizza was so bad I don't even want to complain because I am not interested in even eating a free pizza. To sum it up I will not be back. read more

I agree with Thomas T in his low review. No odd coincidence that our posts are just shy of a week apart. Rocco's 4-star Yelp rating needs desperate re-evaluation. I respect this website's recommendation, and most 4 or 5 star places are stand-outs, indicative of their praise. Rocco's fell well short of my expectations. It is a good restaurant, just not great, and certainly not one I would brag about to my friends. I ordered the gnocci with meat sauce and my friend spaghetti w/ meatballs. The sauce was insipid and runny, and both plates lacked depth and spice. For how long it took to make and serve (15-20 minutes from order), I expected more than something I could have made at home. The WORST part was our side salad. In a small bowl I found one tomato, one cucumber, 5 slivers of carrot, and the rest iceberg lettuce. The blue cheese dressing had a few nice chunks of blue cheese, but the rest was too overpowering. Even my friend, who isn't very picky with meals, failed to finish his salad. I realize that my standards are high, and I didn't order the pizza (their most coveted dish), but the experience was not favorable. Rocco's may be a town favorite, but if you are a sojourner or simply passing through, and are looking for a flavorful meal with good service, I would look elsewhere. read more

By far the best pizza place in South Bend and the surrounding area. We've been coming to Rocco's since I was a student in 1999 and the place is consistent and fun and very affordable. For people that complain about the service, I think it's funny. This place is run entirely by the family and they are there every night. This isn't a chain restaurant with a polite but un-engaging wait staff. This is a family-run business and they love their customers like people not sales receipts. Anyway, best pizza in town and expect it to be loud, fun and full of life instead of a Grape/Main Road chain. read more

For South Bend eating, yes please!!! I was visiting South Bend for the night and got this recommendation from a security officer on Notre Dame's campus. She said, and I quote "If you are in South Bend one night, you gotta check out Roccos!" Well, with that recommendation, I was sold. Warning: The place looks a little divey from the outside. Almost a turn off. However, once you step inside, you are in your grandmothers Italian kitchen! We went on a Friday night and had their lasagna special. I was told the pizza was amazing, but just wasnt in the mood for pizza for dinner. Let me tell you this ...this lasagna was incredible. HUGE PORTIONS AND HOME MADE!! Delicious layers of pasta, sausage, tons of cheese, and plenty of sauce. On a cold winters night, this will make you feel amazing. Get this: The sausage is home-made in shop. You can totally taste it also. It has such a delicious sausage taste and not like the crap that is tasteless from other joints. The waitress was super nice. She allowed us to upgrade to the Italian salad for free since it was our first time - well worth it. All meals come with a salad which is a nice touch too. The bread was fresh out of the oven and th ebutter was soft. If you are in South Bend - Go to Roccos. read more

This place is a must when visiting South Bend for a Notre Dame football home game. I always find the service is good and the pizza is delicious. read more

ate their since the mid 80's. After the old people left, things went up in cost and the food got skimpy.

I think this is the best pizza in town - hands down. It's consistently perfect every time and our whole family loves it! It's also one of those places that you love to go over and over...the owners always remember us and our children and it feels like we're eating at "home". read more

Rocco's is a must go if you have never been there. One of the best Itilian resturants in northern Indiana. I have covered a good portion of thier menu and love it all. read more

Usually, when I start to write a review, I know exactly how many stars I want to award. For Rocco's, it's a little more difficult. If I had to break it down, I think I would give them a 5 for food, with closer to a 2.5 for service. My husband and I were in South Bend for a wedding. We were exhausted, and decided to place a take out order from Rocco's. We ordered one pizza, one order of lasagna, and two cannollis. Easy enough, I thought. We were told our wait time would be exactly 25 minutes. We walked around, killed some time, and came back 25-30 minutes later. We were told it would be two more minutes - that our order was just finishing up. The hostess who was helping us didn't ignore us - but seriously, we were told "two more minutes" at least 8 times. I finally walked up to the manager and said, excuse me, we were told our order would take 25 minutes, but we have been waiting for 45 minutes. Do you think you could check and see how much longer it's going to be? He grumpily stormed away. It turns out that they had to bake a fresh batch of cannolli shells for us - if we had just been told this in the first place, it would have been fine, but the "2 more minutes..." "2 more minutes..." "1 more minute..." thing, over and over, was pretty annoying. I wanted to dislike the food after the wait and the strange service we had received, but wow....everything was absolutely delicious and worth the wait. The pizza (we had the veggie combo with white sauce) was absolutely delicious. Fresh tomatoes, onions, and basil, with lots of cheese, on a soft crust, with an olive oil sauce. Totally beats most of the pizza we are used to in Indy. On Friday and Saturday nights, they bake homemade lasagna. The lasagna was super fresh, with a creamy ricotta base. The noodles appeared to be homemade, as well. The serving was large, but not unreasonably so. The cannollis were actually our favorite part of the meal (hence, why I said worth the wait). The shells tasted as fresh as one would expect, the cream was sweet but not TOO sweet, with chocolate chips mixed in. I could have eaten 5 of them. There was a steady stream of regulars coming in and out the door who received prompt and friendly attention and were called by name. I had to wonder if our order might have been quicker had they known who we were? Anyway, despite the snaffus in our order timing, the food hit the spot, and I would try Rocco's again if I ever went back to South Bend. read more

Omg omg omg omg omg omg....best pizza in SB. My husband and I ate in a way that we would normally feel ashamed about but didn't care it was like Crack. read more

Rocco's Restaurant - So delicious sausage pizza - Pizza Near Me - South Bend, Indiana

One of the best Italian dressings I've ever had. Pasta is freshly made. This is someone from the north east saying this.

There's nothing I could review about Rocco's that hasn't already been said. Hubs and I stopped in for dinner last weekend and it was busy as we expected. Pasta is a bit pricey which I expected due to their usual ND crowd and its followers (this includes us). What I didn't expect was that they offer zero chicken dishes. I had a taste for Chicken Marsala and it was no where to be found. Disappointing, but my little ol' review will hold no clout for them to offer it. Oh well. read more

Since I am from Brooklyn, I am a bit of a pizza snob. As such I was very skeptical when I heard there was a great pizza place in South Bend. I went in with low expectations but was blown away by Rocco's! It is by far and away the best pizza I have had in South Bend, and I think it is good even by NY standards. My husand, who lived in Italy for 4 years, also agreed that is was great pizza. Bruno's sauce has no flavor and for me that is the determining factor. I love the crispy, thin crust at Rocco's and their sauce is well seasoned. Get the Julia salad with it, and you have an awesome meal. For the record, I agree that their other stuff is not the greatest. I would stick with the pizza and the salad. To clear up some confusion regarding credit cards - they do take them these days. I was there just the other day and paid with a debit card. read more

With out doubt the best pizza in the South Bend area. I have moved to Chicago, and for the last 5 years have been trying to find a pizza as good as Roccos, but no luck. The staff and the owners are the best, some of the nicest people i have ever met. Legit Italian pizza and food. read more

Family owned and operated. Very friendly. Great food. Julia's salad is great to share. The Pizza is some of the best around. Fresh ingredients, hand made crust. Quaint, casual atmosphere. read more

I was in town visiting and heard good things about this place so gave it a try. A solid three stars. The place is very casual and the service was good and friendly. Arrived at peak dinner rush so waited about 15 min which wasn't bad. The menu is limited to pizza and pasta so if you are looking for "some" protein you need to order the meatballs and sausage from the apps menu. Both were good. The best dish was the lasagna--- EXCELLENT! The pizza was good but I prefer my crust to be more thin and crisp. The sauces on all the food tasted homemade and struck a nice balance of sweet and savory. Plenty of large tables if you are coming with a large group. Cheers! read more

Perfect family-owned pizza restaurant. Amazing staff and awesome local environment. The pizza's great typically request it thin crust and a little extra crispy. Good salad as well. read more

Some great authentic Italian! Spent 20 years in NJ before moving to Texas the last 10 and it has been ten years since I had Italian that was that good. Large portions, great taste, and very friendly staff. We had a few different kinds of pasta dishes that were all great, minestrone soup and caprese salad were also good. Can't wait to get back the next time we visit our daughter. read more

My wife and I have always observed the Covid-19 mask regulations. That's why I don't appreciate the rude lecture my wife received by the (who I assume to be) owner when we were being seated tonight. When we walked in everybody seated was NOT wearing one so we didn't put on ours and just came in. I have NEVER been verbally accosted for not wearing a mask and I don't appreciate it now. This has never occurred at the Volcano or Cosimo and Suzies where we will sat Italian food in the future. The little Italian guy could stand to mind his manners when addressing customers. The one star is for him. The food was good but we will eat elsewhere in the future. read more

I grew up less than 10 minutes from Rocco's, and I've been away from South Bend since 1997. I just made my first trip to Rocco's last Friday after a Notre Dame baseball game. I'd certainly go back when I'm in town again if someone wanted to go there, but it's not something that I'd put on my calendar as a must-do activity. The pizza was good but there was a strong aftertaste of salt in pretty much everything I ate that evening. It didn't ruin the experience for me at all but it made me wonder what all the fuss was about. The service was outstanding and the people are very friendly. We weren't rushed at all even though we arrived late in the evening. This is a great family business that I'd be happy to support in the future. read more

This place is great. The family's story makes coming here even better. I tasted the spaghetti sauce and I have to say, it is the best sauce I have had at any restaurant in America. My sauce is the only other that compares to Rocco's. The pizza is good. Thin and crispy crust. I enjoy the pics on the walls as well as the friendly wait staff. If you are in the area Rocco's is a must try restaurant. read more

Rocco's Restaurant - Pepperoni pizza - Pizza Near Me - South Bend, Indiana

The Food: 3/5 The Julia's salad was really good and definitely a 4 or a 5 out of 5 stars but the pizza was a solid 3. I personally found the pizza sauce to be bland, but overall it was okay...I did like the very simple menu that shied away from offering 1,000+ dishes like a lot of other italian places. Service: 5/5 We had a large group and had tons of drinks and were basically totally unhelpful as customers -- I think she had to come back four times to finally take our order. The waitress was super attentive and didn't appear to get flustered by our inability to actually open the menu and order something...she even attempted to split the pizza by individuals which the computer didn't agree with but have to give her props for trying. Overall I would definitely go back. read more

We (2) had a 15" and brought 3 pcs home. We got supreme and subbed green pepper for green olives. The green olives are LEGIT! I did not enjoy the massive amount of onion on the pizza though, it comes in circles on the pizza. Lots! I loved the crust and would come back again, minus onions. read more

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Great service and food! Really enjoyed the pizza here! We ordered a pizza for take out and the staff was very friendly.

Love spaghetti and meatballs, can't go wrong with a family business, A Favorite South Bend Restaurant!

Pizza is amazing here. They were super busy but still only took about 25-30 minutes to get our pizza... and the pizza is absolutely amazing! read more

Rocco's Restaurant - Beautiful - Pizza Near Me - South Bend, Indiana

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See all the great pizza reviews. Ours was very disappointing . Crust was served soft, not crisp. How does that happen if the pizza is hot out of the oven? We ordered sausage & mushroom. It came with onions added, and I do not like stringy onions on pizza. Then, the wait person wanted to charge us for it, when we didn't want it to begin with. I think she should have offered to remake it. I had to ask her to speak to the manager about it. We expect great pizzas to have lots of cheese. There were large areas of the border with not much cheese, which all great pizzas should have generous cheese. Makes a customer feel like they are skimping by. I am wondering if they doctor up the pizzas for the regulars and that's why they love them so. We have been going there for about 7 years, once or twice a year. read more

I found a treasure in Rocco's. Thank you Yelp for making me look good! A week later and my wife can't stop talking about the lasagna--says we need to drive from the 3.5 hours from Bloomington to South Bend for more. I had the spaghetti with meatball which was superb and my daughter got the spaghetti with mushroom sauce which she devoured. The wait staff was fantastic and the owner was super friendly. read more

The food here is passable, maybe by South Bend standards really good. However the service is as bad as one could possibly imagine. We came, six of us, on a Saturday night after a Notre Dame football game. We waited a half an hour, in line with what was quoted for us, and were seated relatively promptly. Then the problems began. After a round of drinks and appetizers all of a sudden our waitress refused to serve our friend. 20 minutes later, I also tried to order a beer, perfectly sober, and the response was "I don't think I can serve this table any more alcohol." She stated this without clarification and without pausing to explain. She returned to the kitchen and we were subsequently approached by a manager, who forcefully clapped our friend on the back, threatening "I will kick you out." To be clear: we were sitting calmly by ourselves and talking at an extraordinarily normal volume. We then waited patiently until our food was brought over thirty minutes later, with only one inquiry regarding the timing. Servers are absolutely allowed to have bad days and become frustrated with customers, but we were all baffled and mortified by our service. We then left the restaurant without incident, only relived that the experience was over. Would not recommend this restaurant. read more

I LOVE Rocco's Pizza! I usually get one with olives, mushrooms and garlic and its made perfectly, non-greasy and a very generous size. Highly recommend going here because their pizza and other offerings are so good and it's great to support a long-standing family business instead of a chain. read more

Rocco's is always a great experience. The staff is extremely welcoming and friendly. The pizza is always delicious (also hot; be careful). It can be a little busy at times depending when you go, but it's always a friendly and lively atmosphere. read more

Rocco's has the best pizza in town. If you want to go to a cute, local italian restaurant, this is this is the place to go. The toppings are fresh, especially the veggies. The Julia's salad is a must! Heard the pasta is great but we have never tried anything but the pizza. read more

Very good family owned restaurant. Serves great pizza and they make you feel like family.

This restaurant came very highly recommended, it is well liked as it was packed. We ordered pizza and could not pinpoint whether the culprit was the cheese or the sauce but the pizza was very salty which kind of drowns out the taste of the ingredients as a whole. read more

Best I've ever had in from the Detroit area they made it super quick the pizza is light and fluffy

The Best Pizza in town Old Italian Restaurant ambience Trying to shove tooo many tables into too small a dining room, but its all about the Pizza and the Pizza is awesome read more

Rocco's is simply amazing, a must visit every time I'm in SB to visit ND. Service - phenomenal! Terrific family and friendly atmosphere. Wait - usually isn't a wait at all except during football weekends. During football weekends, we gladly wait a hour on Friday nights while downing a couple 32oz beers. Pizza - best I've ever had (which I've had my fair share). New York style with fantastic sauce, thin crust, and fantastic toppings. I'd highly recommend their house made Italian sausage. You won't be disappointed, give it a try when in town! read more

My family and I have been going to Rocco's since I've been a baby. BEST PIZZA EVER. I've been to Italy. This is the best pizza you will ever eat. Taylor Swift has eaten here. Perfect amount of sauce and cheese and the crust is always perfect. read more