Al Dente

Great local spot. We went 6pm on a Sunday and were able to sit right away. This would be the place to take the parents when visiting.It was clean inside and has a simple menu with straightforward options. We enjoyed the zucchini blossom appetizer a lot! The sparkling limonata made in house was really refreshing on a hot day.Our server Savannah, was really nice and attentive.We both enjoyed our entree picks of the Penne Vodka and the Filet mignon. As the name suggests, the pasta was perfectly Al Dente and very saucy (my favorite).I didn't think I had room for dessert but she brought out a slice of lemon cake thanking us for visiting. This was definitely the 5 star treatment and was very light and delicious.We live down the street but I noticed there was a bus stop right by here so accessible if you don't have a car. Parking was street parking but we had no issues.We'll be back!

Unfortunately Al Dente did not live up to its name. Tried this place off of Yelp reviews as visitors to the area who wanted Italian. It's a very small place with a small patio and sign, kind of hard to find at night. We ordered 3 items (zucchini blossoms, lasagna, and pollo Fiorentino) from their online ordering system for takeout. When we arrived at the restaurant only the pollo Fiorentino was in, the other items had ran out. This was annoying bc we had already paid for the other 2, not sure why they left it as available to order as the restaurant still had several hours to close. My husband picked up. The server suggested to sub with their bolognese and artichokes instead so we opted for that. We also got a free bruschetta from the current Yelp check in offer and the server threw in a free lemon raspberry cake for dessert. My husband said the waitress was very nice and apologetic. After arriving to the restaurant about 10-15 min after placing the online order we had to wait another 20-30 min for the new order to be ready. So we were starving when we got home! Overall impression was the food was bland. The bruschetta was actually our favorite. The artichoke tasted like a steamed artichoke and were 2 whole pieces which looked almost like a lamb chop or chicken on first glance. Couldn't really detect any other flavors in there. But the pollo dish...let's just say that was the game changer, and not in a good way.Artichokes - 2/5 meh. Not a huge fan.Bolognese - 2.5/5 just mid. Lacked seasoning and flavor. Pasta was cooked al dente though. Pollo Fiorentino-0/5, the chicken cutlet pieces were 80% RAW! It wasn't just a tad underdone Totally pink and raw throughout the main chicken pieces beneath the breading, like they had just flash fried the cutlets. The breading was also very pale in color. This was a first for me to experience such a huge and potentially dangerous gaffe at any restaurant. Thankfully we had barely started on this dish before noticing most of the dish was raw so we didn't get sick from it! Lemon raspberry Cake-4/5 this was pretty good. Enjoyed the flavors and the cake was light even with the frosting We did call the restaurant to let them know about the raw chicken. They were apologetic but the same waitress mentioned to call back the next day for a refund from the manager as she was unable to. We took pictures and kept the food just in case the manager doubts our story the next day.Overall really disappointing as this was our nice Italian meal in San Diego and we don't have much time here. Would not try again. Just warning as a cautionary tale on the chicken and hope their food can match their service in the future for others.Update a week later:Still no refund. As stated we called to notify them of the raw chicken and they asked us to call back the next day when the manager was available. Tried several times to get a hold of someone and left 2 messages but still no call back. I would definitely avoid visiting in the future for fear of food poisoning. Something is seriously wrong here with their operations, there has to be better Italian food in San Diego.

I rarely take the time to write a review. However, tonight I was caught off guard in the best way by a server.I hope I am getting her name right. I believe it was Savannah. She was warm and bubbly, but still efficient. What impressed me the most was her knowledge of the menu offerings. You could tell that she was actually passionate about the menu. Don't hate me, but I'm not a huge pasta person. I know, I know.... why was I there? Because I'm a good girlfriend and my boyfriend loves it. Savannah was able to give me the lowdown on everything and find me the perfect dish. I didn't even bother with the menu because she was so helpful and enthusiastic. She came back to make sure I loved my salmon and was genuinely happy to help. I just took her recommendation on a glass of wine too and it was the perfect combination. I couldn't tell you what wine it was, but go in and ask her. I think it's rare to leave a restaurant with such a good feeling these days. I'll definitely be back. Hopefully the whole staff is as lovely as the young woman we were fortunate to have as a server tonight.

We had a lovely time at Al Dente. It was easy to have a big family table here (we were in a group of 7 and I see from Open table we could do 12). We started out with family style appetizers, which included garlic bread, fried zucchini, truffle fries, marinated artichoke, meatballs. It already felt like a feast; there was a lot of food. Our party loved the fries and zucchini. Later on I had ravioli which I think is a little thick but I loved the pesto sauce. My husband's carbonara was ok; I am a carbonara snob and I prefer mine without cream and this one unfortunately is loaded with cream. Service was great, our server was very attentive and friendly. If you have a big party and want dishes that people can share and cater to different tastes, this one will be it.

I love this place! My favorites are the Fettuccine Tartufo, Zucchini Blossoms and the $14 wines.

Came here during restaurant week, so we got a 3 course meal for $35 per person. For the price, I am really impressed with the food!The meatballs were decent, but I loved the penne pasta. The texture was great and I felt the creaminess of the sauce wasn't too heavy.The cannoli was also a really great end to the meal! Perfectly sweet.Our server was great, she was very kind and checked up on us. We got seated in the back patio area and they had heaters outside so we wouldn't be too cold.Overall very happy with the experience and would come back to try the rest of their menu!

Visited for the first time during restaurant week and was so excited and pleased with the experience!The vibe of the place was casual yet nice and felt very spacious with the table arrangements. The chairs were super comfy and allowed plenty of room around you! The food was delicious and the portions were perfect, for the restaurant week special we ordered one appetizer, entree and dessert and left feeling stuffed and satisfied :)Can't wait to go back and try other items on the menu!!

They changed out the menu 2 days ago when we went so we didn't know what to expect. We had a large party of 7 people and we ordered their appetizer platter and wow it was plenty of food. We decided to cancel some of or main entrees after seeing the appetizer! It was enough food to share for the table. Great vibes and service all around. Would come back again! Parking: I would park around the corner near Sprouts.

I must have driven by here many times and when I was meeting up with a friend for dinner, I suggested here since they have an outdoor patio. After a brief rough start, two rocky tables, no propane, we settled on a large table on the patio since I had Cako. Since we came for dinner the day after Valentine's they were out of a couple of wines we wanted, but there was a really good one from Mexico that we enjoyed.We started with the classica bruschette. Loved the toasted bread and flavorful tomatoes. I decided on the pollo parmegiana. It was delicious! A nice breaded chicken breast and fettucine with marinara. Daveed had the Pappardelle Bolognese which he said was excellent. He shared some and I have to agree! I know what I want next time!Service was excellent! The young woman was excited that it was the first time for all of us. One of the sweetest things our server did was a comped dessert. I think it was because of the start of the evening. It was very cool! I'm really glad I got to try Al Dente and I can't wait to return!Cako Approves!

This would not be my go to Italian spot. We ordered the 3 course date night menu. A lot of the food did not taste fresh and like it was from a store bought jar. The Caesar salad was ok & the meatballs didn't have much flavor. The carbonara was ok along with the tiramisu. It was an overall ok meal, but not impressed with any of it. I wouldn't go back. Our server was really sweet and the ambiance is ok.