Justin Paule was amazing! He went out of his way to give exceptional service! We will be back! read more

I love how regardless of how large your party is, they can seat you within 10-15 minutes of your arrival. It also helps that they take reservations within a few minutes of you arriving. Prices are great and food is delicious. My favorite is the manager's special where you can choose 2 different sauces for your pasta, it also comes with a soup or salad and dessert. Their appetizers are delicious as well! Our go-to is the cheesy garlic bread and calamari but the shrimp scampi is yummy as well! The service is pretty good. There are times you hardly see the servers but the taste of the food and prices are still worth it. read more

Food good Service terrible. Food : 8/10 Service: 2/10 Waitress just really never "showed" up during our seating. She brought no bread, salads wrong, bad attitude. Will not visit this location again. Photo at 5:29 PM Thursday July 02. read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

As per usual the Spaghetti Factory put out a great spread for a party of 12... Our waiters Gavin Kuld was a superstar.. He knows what it is to take care of his people.. read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Meghan's Birthday - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

I had no idea what I was in for. Came here for a company dinner recently and I've never been to any of these locations. Nor have I heard about these chains. To me, this sounded like an Olive Garden. I was wrong. Service is typical. The place is huge and decor is nice. For the price, the menu was very reasonable. You get salad/soup, your entree, then ice cream for like $20. I regret ordering the white clam sauce. I was imagining it to be very white wine with clams, and I was super disappointed. Only took a bite and disliked it. It was mostly just pasta cooked with some weird tasting white cream sauce. I don't think I will ever come back here. read more

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We had our 65th Anniversary on the upper floor by the Bar with a group of 12. Highly recommend . Food is fairly priced and Great. We are so appreciative. read more

I think it was an off day yesterday? Too much salad dressing on the salad, meat sauce, mushroom sauce tasted off. Must have something to do with the red sauce used. Spumoni use to be a larger scoop for dinner and what happened to the two choice butters for the bread. Not like the old days. Lively atmosphere. Not a quite place if you want conversation. Great service thou and 8 minute walk from the Omni after passing a few homeless on the sidewalk. read more

I met up with a group of friends for a birthday party. They celebrate at this restaurant every year because of the good food, good service and great environment. Everything was so good! Everyone raved about their orders from the bread to the salad and entrees. We ordered lasagna, pasta, meatballs, spumoni. Gavin was our server and he elevated our experience to incredible. He was on point considering we were a party of 12. Gavin never missed a beat! read more

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OSF is really nostalgic for me, and I love the pasta "full course" with bread, salad, spaghetti, and spumoni ice cream at the end! I had the Vesuvius sauce & mizithra, half and half. The mizithra is my favorite here. Perfectly cheesy & salty (but not *too* salty). Our server was very charming, we actually had a birthday discount (which is still a generous discount in the year of 2026). read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Bread and salad - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

It was a family dinner. Reservations were made because it was a big group. We got there a little earlier and we waited to be seated. Ashton came to seat us and was our waiter! He was great. After dinner he acknowledged me and my son for being veterans when I asked about a discount. When I come here I always get the brown butter and mitziri spaghetti. I LOVE IT! Everyone's entries were good to them. read more

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I met my besties for dinner prior to attending the Nightmare Bar a few blocks away. We had a reservation. I checked in early for the reservation and the hostess acknowledged me. I let her know that the rest of our party was parking and that I was early. When everyone arrived (5mins into our reservation time), we sat in the lobby waiting area in front of the hostess station. There were about 5 parties of customers waiting to sign up for the guest list. We had to wait until each party in the lobby signed up on the wait list until a host seated us. This was another 5-7 min wait. They were busy with dinner rush starting so we were happy that we made a reservation. We were seated under the famous staircase, which is my least favorite seat. With my awesome dinner companions, I quickly ignored the staircase above us and had a great dinner. Our server was a blonde/gray haired gentleman who was very attentive. We ordered: 2 Spinach & Cheese Tortellini, Chicken Marsala, and Manager's Special:.Half mitzra and half clam sauce, plus an appetizer of garlic cheese bread, and a side of Parmesan broccoli for the table to share. At the end our meal we had the traditional spumoni ice cream. This was a hit. Overall, great experience and good food. This place is nostalgic and it brings all the good dining memories back when I come here. read more

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We went before a weekday Padre game. It wasn't too crowded and we were seated quickly. Our server was super friendly and welcoming. I ordered the mizithra and my husband had the lasagna. Everything was good except the soup was too salty. There was so much food we couldn't eat it all. I love the mizithra at the Spaghetti Factory. It's a little dark inside, but the big booths are nice for families. read more

I haven't ate here in so long and forgot how decent it actually is. Their bread is so good I wish I could eat loaves of it lol The white clam sauce is yummy and they have a decent Caesar salad read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

So much seating 3 levels big comfy booths and tables that can be pushed together. Good food. Came out fast. Service was a bit slow at the bar. Parking is tough go early. Get the special It comes with bread and salad. Cesar was a bit fishy. Gk with the garden salad. read more

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I was looking for a place to wrap-up my Comic-Con experience. I passed a long line several times in front of OSF, located in the Hard Rock Hotel, and thought to myself I had to give it a try one day. The next time, the timing was perrrfect....no long line. When I took a look at the outside menu with the Comic-Con theme, I smiled because I love it when restaurants have a themed menu. I stepped inside a beautifully decorated vintage restaurant and asked for outdoor seating to people watch. Our waiter was pretty cool in his Yoda light-up ears. The restaurant had an enjoyable atmosphere. Although it took awhile to receive the food, the service was good and the prices were right on the money. My favorite part was the large portions to take home. This was definitely a memorable dining experience :-) read more

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Came here last minute, and there was an hour wait, so we decided to go up to the bar. The place is deceivingly huge with 3 levels, yet still feels intimate with its fireplace, velvet and leather seating, and old school elegant vibes, so 9/10 on the place. The host stand at the entrance can get a bit chaotic, but as soon as you pass that, you're in the clear. We sat at the bar, and had their shrimp scampi, artichoke dip, and mushroom pasta. Our server was amazing. She was friendly, sweet, and helpful, even how busy they got, so service is 10/10. The food was decent, but doesn't compare to the other many Italian places in downtown and Little Italy. I'd give their food 6/10. read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

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Haven't been here for more than a decade. It's so hard to park downtown. We took the trolley downtown this time. That was fairly convenient and saved us parking fees. When my daughter was little, it was one of her favorites places. we used to eat at the Old Spaghetti Factory all the time. I'm so glad that it's still here and we had a chance to try it again. Menu has been expanded since the last time when there was just the "classic menu". The dining trolley is gone, now. The restaurant was beautiful. Food was good and a good value. I love that the dinner still offers 3 courses-- soup or salad, your entree, and a scoop of ice cream for dessert. I also am appreciative that there were some low carb options for me on the menu. Just a block from the ballpark, this is a nice casual option for downtown dining. read more

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Welp for starters, we had a 6:45pm reservation and wasn't seated until 7:25, which I get kinda busy on Valentine's Day but what's the point of a reservation if you can't accommodate that time slot?..anywho, the atmosphere was nice, classically themed restaurant rustic in a sense. Food was 10/10 my fiancé had the chicken Marsala and I had the Tuscan chicken penne that's only there for a limited time although if you ask me, it should be on the main menu permanently lol it was bomb! Oh and the berry sangria ..But the highlight of our night was our server Ahmed! That man needs a raise, he catered to our every need last night and was a delight to have as our server, we will be back and I will request to be seated in Ahmed's section. read more

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Our food was delicious, but our service was phenomenal. Justin was so attentive and did such a great job taking care of us, he was fantastic! Thank you so much! read more

The GOOD: their Steamed Broccoli served with their delicious grated Mizithra cheese on top, their Chicken Piccata entree, their spumoni ice cream dessert. The BAD: Parking in the Gaslamp, we got fortunate as it was a mid-week Wednesday dinner. Had it been on the weekend, forget about it. It would've been impossible to find parking on the street, or expensive to pay for parking in the nearby parking structures. Way back in the day all their dinner entrees came with milk, coffee or iced tea included with your meal. Neither GOOD nor BAD: Service was just okay. Nothing to complain about, but nothing to write home about as far as exceedingly good. After ordering, it took quite a bit of time before their complimentary sourdough bread and butter arrived. They accept AMEX for payment, dining room (3rd floor by the bar) and restroom was clean and tidy. Food was reasonably priced and portions were adequate for what you pay for. The restaurant was consistent with other OSF dining experiences if you're familiar with the brand. read more

My wife was craving the Old Spaghetti Factory and we decided to dine in before the Padres game. I ordered the Chicken Marsala with Minestrone soup with an added meatball. The chicken was moist and the Marsala sauce had great flavor while paired with mushrooms. The Mizithra pasta that came with the dish was so good with brown butter and a generous amount of cheese (so good). The soup was delicious and I'm glad that I added a meatball. I ordered an Italian cream soda with orange flavor and this was my favorite thing of the meal. Last, the meal came with dessert and I enjoyed the spumoni ice cream. The service was a little slow and took awhile to greet us. The ambiance was very dark inside and the restaurant is very large with plenty of seating. Overall, not too bad for the price and you get a large amount of food. read more

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Our annual visit during SDCC! It is close to the convention center and has a shorter wait time compared to other restaurants. We went for lunch around 1pm on Friday during SDCC and the wait was less than 15minutes. They have a special menu you can enjoy from during SDCC which comes with house salad, entree and their famous Spumoni ice cream (which they sold outside on a cart as well!) I got the spinach and cheese ravioli in senior portion (which came in smaller portions) since I did not want to have to carry around left overs. The flavors are spot on and just the right amount of sauce and cheese on top. I love their house salad dressing as well. Very refreshing and a pretty large portion. Staff were dressed up for the event and were super friendly and quick with the service. But the bathroom was a bit of a mess: trashcan overflowing and stalls had no toilet paper. It is understandable since there were a lot of people but the public bathrooms or in the convention center were in cleaner state. I did let a staff know who was apologetic and thankful for letting her know. So hopefully they got it all cleaned up for the next crowd of customers. read more

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We celebrated our daughter & her BFFs UCSD graduation here last night. We had a party of 16. Often a large party means poor service but not here! Our server, Justin, was great! He was personable, attentive and made sure we were all well taken care of. The food was good and plentiful! Thanks Justin for helping to make our special event great! read more

Stopped by after the auto show to enjoy a lunch with the family. We were seated right away on a nice quiet table by the corner. It took a little while to be acknowledged during our visit, but it wasn't busy. Then they forgot one of our kid's food that also took a while to come out. Hence minus star. While we wouldn't go out of our way to come here again, but it's a good place to stop by to take a break from walking downtown San Diego. read more

We were looking for a good dinner spot in downtown San Diego and came across The Old Spaghetti Factory. It's been years since I've been to one of these restaurants. We arrived and the wait was only about 10 minutes. I really didn't know what to expect. We were all pleasantly surprised. From Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo, Chicken Fettuccine, Chicken Parmigiana, Chicken Marsala, and Mushroom Sauce... everyone was pleased with their choice. The restaurant is big and decently clean with good ambiance music. They bring fresh bread and you get dessert! Prices are reasonable. read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Mushroom Sauce - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

I had never heard of The Old Spaghetti Factory before, so when a friend's grandma recommended it, I was immediately excited to try it. We came after a long softball clinic at San Diego State, so we had some very hungry girls with us. Any place that serves bread and butter already has my full attention. Some of the must-have dishes on my list included the garlic cheesy bread, calamari, and a fancy mixed cocktail. The ambiance was classy yet rustic, creating a warm, family-friendly vibe. The service was great, with staff constantly moving around and checking on every need. There was plenty of space, which made the experience even more enjoyable. Overall, it was a great first visit, and I'm so happy I finally got to try this old classic. read more

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TLDR: Food: 6/10 Ambiance: 8/10 Service: 3/10 We came to San Diego for a family trip (with my 3-year-old, 5-year-old and 8-year-old along with my husband). We flew in directly from the airport and came straight to OSF. We initially had to wait 45 minutes to be seated, which was surprising for a Monday night. Once we were seated, it took about 12 minutes before our waitress came to take our drink order. At that time we decided on place our order. Each meal Comes with bread and salad or soup and ice cream, and the kids meals also come with drinks! The bread, salad minestrone soup was really yummy! Soup and salad came out fast but our entrees took about 40 minutes to arrive. During that long wait our waitress passed by our table several times and never let us know that it would be a while-- or even checking in with us. But the worst part for me is that she didn't collect our used appetizer plates-- even though she cleaned the tables all around us. There was another party there with about 15 people, and they were getting very anxious and had asked the waitress when was their food coming, so I knew that we were going to have a slow night of service. When the food finally came it was ok. The chicken Marsala was not very flavorful and the meat sauce is more salty than what I am used to. My husband had the lasagna and said it was just ok-- and he is a very easy to please person. I would not recommend this place but it did have beautiful decor. read more

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Returned after 4 months for a second visit, and unfortunately it was a big disappointment. The restaurant was very quiet, which may explain why service felt slow. The server didn't seem very friendly, either. I ordered the chicken piccata--the chicken was tough, dry, and lacked flavor. The pasta was topped with shredded cheese that tasted dry and powdery, which didn't help the dish. My child also noticed that the portion sizes seemed smaller compared to our last visit. Overall, the food quality just wasn't the same as before. Really disappointing, especially since we had a much better experience here previously. read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Chicken piccata - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

Awesome!!! I got the tortellini. Loved it loved it loved it!! Our server was super on point, and everyone in our seated party was super happy with everything. The ice cream is awesome!! read more

Awesome lobster dish with ravioli and the pasta plates were fun to build. You build your own dish. Our server was very kind and pro active, thanks. The place is dimmed lit and very clean. read more

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Mizithra cheese and butter sauce noodles were a very, very dry. Very little butter arrived warm the minestrone soup you could tell was straight out of a can, and a full loaf of sour dough bread dry as cardboard no butter server in a brown paper bag. Unfortunately, I will not be going back. There's so many better Italian restaurants than Old spaghetti factory. read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

The way that this place is talked about, I thought it would be a pretty cool experience in some way. Either the ambiance would feel like I'm in rural Italy or the food would be delicious or it would stir up so many emotions. The only thing this place was good for was the bread. it was two stars in every way possible. We came on a Wednesday to celebrate a birthday and it was underwhelming to say the least. With 14 people in our group it was a lot to serve and food to prepare all at rhe same time. But we were the only group in our section so it felt weird that it took so long to get our soups and salads out. But super quick after that to get our entrees out. The table ordered everything from the Crab and Lobster ravioli, Chicken Parmigiana, Chicken masala, Spinach Tortellini with Alfredo Sauce, Italian Cream Soda, Cotton Candy Limeade, and more. Star of the night was by far the spinach tortellini. It was such a nice blend. It wasn't overly creamy or saucy. None of the flavors overpowered each other. All the other dishes felt like I could have made them at home. The one problem with the meal was the lasagna. It was quite hard. We sent it back and got another one and same problem. I thought maybe it was just her over exaggerating but I bit into it and it felt undercooked. That was just the icing on the cake for our experience. The server was exceptional. Super gracious and patient as we all took forever to order. Took care of us and we sent her away with some of the cake we had for the birthday celebration. All in all. Wouldn't rave about this place. Now that I've been there I can cross it off the list of places I feel like everyone has to try. If I were to come back I'd go for the spaghetti since it feels like I tasted all the other items essentially. read more

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Cool spot because of the old school feel and famous chain type of vibe. Food is average, lacking flavor and is pricey for the quality of the place. read more

The Old Spaghetti Factory - Italian Near Me - San Diego, California

We love old spaghetti factory so I will always love them for having a solid menu. We went for our daughter's birthday dinner (her pick) and enjoyed mizzithra brown butter, mushroom ravioli, spaghetti and red sauce, and a meat lovers treat. I didn't take any pictures we were very involved in keeping our 5& newly 7 year old occupied. There is tons of seating - we saw 3 different levels - we ended up on the top level I'm assuming. It was located next to their bar area. My only issues are staffing related. Our server was very nice but we only saw her two times during our visit - when we first sat down and when we ordered our food. Someone else took our drink order and another person brought our food out. We needed extra silverware and a few things which we ended up taking from another table since we couldn't find a server. I had also wanted to order a slice of cake for my daughter for her birthday but no one came anywhere near our seating section. I ended up ordering a slice of cake to go from the old spaghetti factory app for pick up at the front desk. If it had just been my husband and I we wouldn't have minded waiting but keeping kids occupied for an hour and a half really was our limit. We grabbed another waiter in a different section to get our bill and icecream. I absolutely don't blame our waitress - she had her hands full (a fight broke out at the bar we were sitting by and the cops were called) but I do feel like having more staffing might have helped just in general for a busy weekend. Still 5 stars - we will always love Old Spaghetti Factory no matter how busy they get! Also - my kids loved seeing all the police cars when we were leaving so that was fun. read more

I always try to rate a restaurant based on what it is, not against others in the category. I know OPF is an okay or average place. We were greeted with an electric smile and were sat very quickly. They offer a three course dinner. Soup or salad, entree, and a scoop of ice cream for desert. All for about $22-$26. Not a bad deal. We ordered a soup and salad and the soup was was nearly cold and the salad was drowning in dressing. Not a great start. The bread was okay. Not warm but not bad. The mains came; I had the Mizithra cheese and meat sauce spaghetti combo. My dining partner had the spaghetti and meatballs. They ate half of one meatball and a few bites of the pasta and it was so salty their palette was blown out. My mizithra had so much cheese it was like a fur coat if cheese on spaghettti. Also very salty. I managed to eat about a third and was done. Just disappointing. The server was pleasant and was efficient. When he came to check on us we said we were done, he asked about boxes as most of our meals were not eaten. We told him we didn't need anything and that the meals were so salty we could not eat them. He didn't seem to catch on that he has two diners who were not eating and wanted to leave. He brought us the check and said he was sorry for the food. The bill, just under $50 was paid. It really was totally disappointing. As we were leaving I asked to see the manager and she was very nice. She listened, asked clarifying questions and allowed me to speak uninterrupted. The manager refunded our money which was nice, but unexpected but it was also very appreciated. So there you have it. A lousy dinner but a very nice manager. Perhaps in the future it will be better and that tonight was an off night. read more

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We went for my daughter's graduation dinner aka one of the busiest nights for food service. Not only were they really sweet and helpful with the reservation, but they allowed me to come early to help decorate the table in celebration. Luna our server was INCREDIBLE; especially since we were a BIG group!! He was attentive in details, super sweet and just helped make the dinner that much more memorable. Thank you for making our celebratory night wonderful!! read more

What a cute restaurant to visit in the Gaslamp District. It's a historical building and there is charm in the structure and layout. It is three floors with plenty of seating. Being it was during the Comic-Con convention , I was surprised we were seated within 29 minutes. The staff, from the host, to the server, server assistant were all friendly and very efficient. The menu was comic book themed for the event and there was a prix fixed menu that included an appetizer, entree, and their famous spumoni ice cream. I ordered the chicken parmigiana which came with a side of spaghetti and red sauce. The chicken was about four or five ounces and was moist. The spaghetti sauce was well seasoned and a safe bet for a choice. The cheesy Sicilian bread was served with marinara sauce was ok. The bread is very dense, but it was cheesy and shareable. Their famous Mizarthi pasta is a must order as it is creamy and rich with their browned butter sauce. The chicken Alfredo was another safe bet to order. Portions were a good size and at times shareable if needed. Other tables were ordering heaps of their famous broccoli plate. It has the mizarthi cheese and brown butter sautéed in it and kids were eating it like crazy. Great way to get veggie intake! Every table was filled, but it did not feel rushed. Our server was a young lady who was on point and gave us enough time to enjoy our meal and catch up with our friends, but efficiently moved the service along so that we were on track. Overall, it was a good experience and there is something for everyone with a very reasonable price point. Check out the historical building, its architecture and enjoy a good lunch or dinner while there. I can see why it's so popular. read more

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Very delicious Italian restaurant in Gaslamp quarter. We went for dinner and the food was very delicious! For appetizers we shared the cheese bread and fried calamari. With an entree you get a side so I had the Ceasar salad. We also received house bread. Plenty of food you'll leave stuffed! For my main dish I had the pesto Alfredo pasta and it was very delicious and a large portion. If you're in the area I definitely recommend coming here! read more

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I chose The Spaghetti Factory to celebrate my birthday, thinking it would be a fun experience, but it ended up being quite disappointing. While Samantha, our waitress, was friendly, she seemed overwhelmed and, unfortunately, forgot the kids' food altogether. After a long wait, we noticed the kids and all the adults meals were missing. We waited over 40 mins to get some of our food. When the meals did come, they were lukewarm at best. I approached Jordan, the department manager, to express my concerns. Unfortunately, his response was lackluster. He appeared distracted. I expected a much better experience. Overall, I left feeling unsatisfied, and this birthday celebration will not be one to remember fondly. Please don't except much from this place. It's pretty sad. read more

Almost three years to the day since my last OSF review, but unfortunately, the same issue persists. The first picture is of her plate after she ate, and the next two are of mine. Thank God I only ate a third of my portion. Otherwise, I might still be in the bathroom. We never have this issue in any other location, including the restaurants in North County and Newport Beach. Two stars for Crystal, our server. Best waitress we have had in a long time...anyplace. The food gets a -5. Too bad. read more

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