La Bella Vita

Such a cute little restaurant with a quaint/cozy ambiance. Hands down BEST italian I've ever had, tried lasagna, pasta fagioli, and vodka sauce spaghetti and it was so delicious. Despite the food being so amazing, the service was probably the best part! Such wonderful, sweet human beings doing an amazing job.

Great option for delicious Italian food on Mulberry Street! With so many options in Little Italy, La Bella Vita is worth keeping in mind.The calamari was impressive -- well seasoned and crispy, without tasting oily or heavy. And the sauce it came with was excellent, just the right amount of tanginess.For pasta entrees, the fettuccine meatballs was excellent. The pasta was well prepared, and the marinara was great. The meatballs were maybe a touch dry, but not to an extent that they took away from the dish. A simple classic, well executed. Definitely recommend this dish.The spaghetti carbonara was good, but not as much of a hit as the fettuccine. The pasta itself was equally well prepared, but the pancetta didn't stand out. It was a bit tough and chewy, not quite as crispy as I had hoped.Still a great meal overall, and a solid option for a classic Italian meal!

Lots of choice of places to eat in Little Italy. I don't know why we opted for this one. Food was decent but my husband who only drinks diet cokes, ordered one and then a refill. When we received the bill, he was charged $9.90 for 2 cokes. We spoke with our waiter who also might have been a manager of sorts but all he could say is sorry.. we charge for each coke. I told him every where we had eaten previously in Manhattan offered no charge for refills. I suggested he tell customers that there are no refills. Mind you. This was fountain cokes not a bottle or can.So, with lots of choices, go somewhere else! This is not the customer service I would expect and therefore, I would never go back. The food does not make up for poor customer service.

Came into this joint on Mulberry street, Little italy. Girl at the front was friendly and took me in asap. I ordered the Pappardelle bolognese, it was definitely delicious and met the expectations for what a bolognese should be, bread was also served fresh. The restaurant is a tad bit small, but the atmosphere makes up for that.

Came here with a large group and they were very accommodating. I order the eggplant parm which tasted alright but had practically no cheese on it.

The ambiance was loud Italian restaurant. The colorful Christmas lights and haphazardly stuck on roses were a poor attempt at decorating for Valentine's Day. Service was slow. The time it took for the next table to finish their pasta was the time it took for our Bruschetta and Carpaccio to come out...Food was also subpar. The bread for the Bruschetta was slightly stale. We could not taste the promised truffle on the Carpaccio. Lastly, the pizza was salty and took a long time to come out. Overall, the whole place felt like a tourist trap that wasn't even trying. I would NOT recommend this place to friends and family.

3.5My daughter and I were hungry while visiting the San Genaro feast. I usually eat at Da Nico's, but wanted to try something new. This place had a seat outdoors and as soon as I noticed, the hostess was approaching me to see if I wanted a seat.We ordered spaghetti , meatballs, and bruschetta. The spaghetti was okay, but I wouldn't say anything special. I didn't eat the meatball because despite being told they weren't flavored with pork, I didn't trust that to be accurate. The bruschetta was okay, along with the sangria, however, I wasn't exactly blown away, by anything here. What I didn't care for was the guy who brought the food out (not my server) declined to bring me an additional plate and told to use the same plate that I used with the bread to start with-- that kind of too me aback. The server was cool and was prompt with everything.Overall, the experience was average, but I probably would pass on returning here.

Lovely and well run. Lots of locals so we felt good about our choice. House wine was nice

This is one of the rare instances where I wish I could give more than 5 stars. Everything from the food, to the atmosphere, to the service was perfection. They don't even have a traditional waiting stand, the servers are just standing around greeting potential customers or flashing smiles - which was very inviting. They have plenty of seating, both indoor and outdoor. I chose to sit outdoors, on their elevated platform just inches from the sidewalk. It does a great job at making the dining area feel separate from the sidewalk without having a barrier of any kind. They have Italian music playing at a volume as to where you can listen if you so desire, but also tune it out if unwanted. The decor and ambience felt very rustic.I placed my order, Penne Vodka with Chicken, and within a matter of minutes it was ready. I had only gotten to eat two pieces of bread from the basket they gave me. The penne vodka was divine! So creamy, so sweet, it was just the picture perfect penne vodka. I also highly appreciated how all the wait staff tag-teamed water refilling, because I drink a lot of water. Overall this place was an easy 5 stars on every front! If you want Italian on your trip, this is the place to go.

Bella Vita is located next to about 30 other Italian restaurants that are probably also quite good, and I only ended up here because my friends had come here before and said it was good. It was very easy to get a seat on a Friday evening, and we sat outside next to the road.I ordered a shrimp scampi, which ended up being quite good! The portion size was very healthy and there was a good amount of shrimp. It's one of the better shrimp scampis that I've eaten.Overall a good Italian spot that's reasonably priced and a place that I'd definitely recommend.