Mouthwatering Italian in Oakland

Vito's Trattoria

★★★★☆ 4.1 (807) • $$$

"A welcoming place amidst office complex, sjc airport, 101 and Kaizer! Love the free parking around it and welcoming outdoor and indoor seating.As you enter, you are greeted by friendly faces! You can make a reservation at "open table" if you plan to be there between peak hours.In $55 (before tip), we got:- your choice of 2 topping pizza - 4/5 - we got jalapeño, mushroom, olives. Bell peppers. They charged $1 for each extra topping. The pizza was loaded with veggies on a thin but tender crust.- veggie primavera pasta - 5/5 - we swapped the sauce from creamy white to vodka sauce for an extra charge and it was totally worth it. Bomb pasta and heavy/ huge portion size. Good to share!- garlic bread with cheese - 4/5 - huge portion and good quality cheese. I wish they added some herbs/ etc too on it to add a kick- complimentary sour dough rolls 5/5 are served on request. Loved it! - garden green salad - 4/5 - side plate of salad with greens, carrots, a big tomato slice and vinegar drenched onions. Pairs well with the sour dough rolls.Service is impeccable :) and it's a pleasure visiting them! #supportlocal"

Filippi's Pizza Grotto

★★★★☆ 3.9 (874) • $$

"Lots of great food and friendly service! I enjoyed my lasagna. The meatballs are huge! Stop by for a visit."

Il Posto Trattoria

★★★★☆ 4.2 (698) • $$

"It was difficult writing this review out of fear this place will get too busy, but I could not resist. This may be some of the best Italian food on the west coast and even rivals some of my favorite New York spots. The pasta was so f'ing fresh and that homemade flavor makes you want more and more. Everything was perfectly flavored and the dishes really let the ingredients sing a beautiful song: I highly recommend you make sure to stop in on your way through town or make this a monthly stop if you live nearby. The staff were awesome and it was so f'ing delicious I can't say it enough. Do your self a favor and go now and get some. Can't wait to come back. Sure it may be $10-$15 more per person than some other spots but you get your money back is flavor. The fried olives stuffed with Italian sausage is the best appetizer I've ever had."

Delarosa Bishop Ranch

★★★★☆ 3.8 (787) • $$

"Eddie was great! Super helpful and helped us celebrate "Makora Day" Definitely would recommend. I'm from WA, so it was a great treat to visit this place."

Creekwood

★★★★★ 4.5 (536) • $$

"I have not been there since they are first opened.Went on saturday night dinner.1) same nice decor, clean, modern look2) Waitress is attentive and nice3) Ordered Gaupacho cold tomatoes soupvery tasty4) ordered mushroom pizza, I have more high expectation, somehow, when they first opened, I felt their pizza is better than saturday.5) ordered Gnocchi in pesto sauce, very tasty according to my husband.6) dessert tiramishi's size is very big, good value."

Marzano

★★★★☆ 3.8 (733) • $$

"Loved this place! Beautiful interior, excellent service, delicious food, quality wine, and fair prices. We ordered the meatball appetizer, polenta, chicken and potato pizza and were thoroughly impressed with the quality of the food and freshness of the dough. Can't wait to come back and try the rest of the menu!"

Evelyn's Big Italian Pizzeria & Ristorante

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (844) • $$

"Huge portion sizes for price and friendly service. A lot of sitting areas and could honestly see someone hosting a large party/event here. Lots of options for food. Seems like a great place for locals. Food was ok. Nothing great, nothing awful. Worst part was the seafood in the pasta dish was over cooked and considering it was $47 made it not worth it. Pizza was nice and crispy as requested. Calamari was perfectly cooked and side salad was a good portion and quality. Best thing was the free bread which was baked perfectly, fluffy and perfect for the pastas or oil/balsamic dip they provided. Would stop by for a pizza slice, probably wouldn't come back for a sit down dinner."

Baci Bistro & Bar

★★★★☆ 3.7 (701) • $$

"Definitely recommend this place if you are looking for italian food. The ambience is good. I really liked the salmon, it was well done. For small plates I liked the fried risotto balls. Service is also good."

Lo Coco's

★★★★☆ 4.2 (517) • $$

"Everything was outstanding. Greeting at the door,wait staff and recommendations, food, vibe, etc. I had the special (linguine with clams, mussels and calamari) and my wife and friend had a pizza and salad and I shared a salad with my buddy who had egg plant Parma. Everyone raved about their dishes. Lo Coco has been at the Berkeley location 41 years!!! Only thing you should be aware of is they don't take reservations unless your party is 6 or more. We arrived at 5:30 on a Sunday and the place was full and stayed full."

Massimo's

★★★★☆ 3.6 (694) • $$$

"Massimo's is a Fremont classic. It's Fremont style fine dining and that's all good, especially for a family celebration. We recently celebrated my mom's 79th birthday with our group of 8 and it was perfect. Reservations are easy to make and modify on open table, which I had to multiple times that day due to changes in plans. Since my mom previously signed up for the birthday club, we used a voucher for a free entree (or take $25 off). Super easy and generous.My mom loved the halibut special and she's picky. The risotto with scallops and sausage is flavorful and rich. It's a must try. The eggplant parmigiana was good and not overly breaded. Cocktails were reasonably priced.I am a Fremont local and appreciate these well established spots. It's a cozy elevated restaurant (mood lighting and linen table cloths), but not stuffy. The bar area is somewhat casual. I have been here in then past for my own birthday dinner, mom's past birthdays, and a casual catch up with a girlfriend dinner. This may just be our go to for family birthdays!"

La Strada

★★★★☆ 4 (543) • $$

"I can't say anything bad about La Strada. Olivia, Carlos, the entire staff are amazing. The location is always super clean, no dust, organized, clean. It's a been a go to spot for my team for the past 18 months. Way too good to be overlooked."

Mangia Mi

★★★★☆ 3.8 (588) • $$

"This is one of my favorite Italian restaurants in the entire Bay Area. Really my favorite - and what got me so excited initially with this restaurant - is the apricot and Sage gnocchi... they haven't offered it in a couple years, but I'm still optimistic. It's worth bringing back!In general, the quality of their pasta is on the higher end, though - so you can't go too wrong.They also have decent cocktails, which is relatively rare for Italian restaurants, and have the best butter cake I've had in my life, which is probably why I continue to frequent the place in spite of missing the more creative/delightful gnocchi options..."

Ciccio

★★★★☆ 4 (518) • $$

"We got here just before 8pm on a Tuesday and it was packed! But we were still able to get seated right away. The dining area is really just one big room, with the open kitchen visible in the back of the room. Service was friendly and attentive. They do have some outdoor seating on their patio, where dogs are allowed. My husband and I each ordered our own pizzas. I do recommend getting the ranch add-on. The yeast makes it so flavorful! The interior was very cozy and festive for the holidays."

Fuso Italian Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.7 (602) • $$

"We celebrated my husband birthday last night for the first time in downtown Vacaville. Everybody, from reception to server, is amazing! Our server, Taylor, went above and beyond to make us feel comfortable and really honest about the kids food servings! I saw her wash her hands so often (my husband joked she must be in a nursing school program, but kudos to her!!) Everyone's ( including chefs/cooks) said goodbyes and thank yous when we're walking out. Their food was amazing!! Their pasta and food tasted so fresh it was surprising. Only reason why not giving 5 stars is that they were slow to offer drink refills and had to ask for that. Other than that, the experience far exceeded what we were expecting and will definitely be returning again soon."

Lara’s Fine Dining

★★★★☆ 4.2 (452) • $$

"We were out the way visiting friends and wanted a nice place to go to for quality appetizers and drinks, and boy, was I upset I hadn't met Lara early lol. We went in on a late afternoon/early evening Friday. The crowd hadn't started and the sun was an hour from sunset. Set at a window table right next to the water and our cocktail orders were taken immediately. From there we decided on shrimp cocktail, fresh oysters, coconut shrimp , artichoke dip and steak strips for appetizers. The taste of freshness was in every bite in all of the seafood. The cocktail sauce they serve should be bottled up and sold in stores. I'm not a big fan of coconut shrimp but I will eat it from Lara's any day of the week! Making it a point to return to try their dinner menu as well."

Dino's Grill

★★★★☆ 4.2 (432) • $$

"Stopped by after a day at Arden farms. It was kinda empty but everything looked very clean. They didn't have any high chairs nor booster seats, just FYI.What we ordered:Pasta Alfredo with Chicken -10/10 portion was huge and the flavor was real good.Kids spaghetti - 10/10 portion was huge for a kid but it was real yummy. Greek salad - 9/10 I love when places add salt and pepper to a salad. The chicken was well seasoned too. The crumbles of feta w chunks of cut tomatoes and cucumber just really brought it together. I didn't even use the dressing because everything was so flavorful. 1 point off because the olives were not pitted, so be real careful when ordering this item.Cheesey bread - 10/10 wow this was real good!Funny thing is that each item comes with garlic bread so we had an overage but that's fine, we took it home. Really great experience and very nice workers."

Pizza Pirate

★★★★☆ 4 (473) • $$

"Best Lemon Pepper wings I've had in a while - I'll be back. Tried the Habanero and Buffalo wings too. All good but Lemon Pepper was the best."

Santoro's Italian Market & Deli

★★★★★ 4.5 (360) • $$

"We were in town for our son's water polo tournament at Encinal High School. During a break between games, we went out for a quick bite and found Santoro's about a couple minutes away.Santoro's is located on the corner of a residential area so you'll need to park on the street. However, the location is part of the charm as you feel like you've stepped back in time when you enter Santoro's. You're greeted by a friendly crew and asked to fill out your order slip. We ordered a couple of sandwiches which were bigger than we expected with layers of delicious roasted meat and all of the condiments. I had the chicken sandwich and highly recommend it.The staff was very attentive and checked on us regularly to make sure we were enjoying our sandwiches. You can tell this is the neighborhood spot as locals came in to grab their usual orders and have a quick chat with the staff/owners."

Three Italian Restaurant

★★★★★ 4.7 (323) • $$

"This lil place was awesome. Great food and appetizers. We sat at the bar, the were so accommodating. I will definitely be back."

Olive & Hay

★★★★☆ 4.2 (395) • $$

"Met up with friends here for brunch before going to the spa!The restaurant is located on-site at the Meritage Resort so it is very convenient if you are a resort guest and/or if you are planning on visiting the spa/pool or attending a concert. It was easy to make a reservation in advance via OpenTable. Just a note that they do close daily between 1pm and 5:30pm, so plan accordingly! The inside was gorgeous - very spacious with a modern rustic feel. However, past the interior decor, the rest of the experience was not very standout. The menu consisted of fairly standard brunch/lunch fare - I ordered the Olive & Hay Chicken Salad which was not bad. The gorgonzola added a lot of flavor. But the biggest letdown was the service - or the lack thereof? Our server was absent after taking our orders (other staff brought out our food) and we sat for most of our visit with empty water glasses as well. No one ever came by to ask if my friends wanted another mimosa, or if the food was okay, etc. I really wanted to like it more, especially because it's so lovely inside. But in the future, I would probably grab food somewhere else if visiting the Meritage again."

Luca Cucina Italiana

★★★★☆ 3.8 (470) • $$

"Great authentic Italian Food. I love this place!! Love watching them cook too!! I order to go too have a glass of wine and watch them cook"

Straw Hat Pizza

★★★★☆ 3.9 (444) • $$

"I reviewed this place about 2 years ago and loved it. Just thought I would re-up my recommendation as I had lunch here today - gluten free crust, light amount of cheese, veggies - perfectly baked! Had that with a salad - perfect lunch at a great price!!"

Ristorante Due Rose

★★★★☆ 3.9 (442) • $$

"I've always passed by this restaurant, but never had the chance to stop by. However, my friend wanted to eat here for dinner.The restaurant is very spacious, with lots of seating. There seems to be a room in the back for bigger parties. One side of the restaurant is the bar area and the other is dining. Our waitress was very attentive. She came by multiple times to check on us and refilled our water glass. I ordered the linguine carbonara and it was amazing! Perfectly cooked pasta with crispy bacon on top! They didn't skimp on the bacon either lol. I love white sauce pastas and the sauce was very creamy. I'm kinda of craving it right now just writing this lol.Complimentary fresh bread and oil and balsamic was provided.I don't drink, but my friend says they have the best Long Island iced tea here! She says they make it strong, the way she likes it and that's the reason why she wanted to come eat here haha. I would definitely come back here and recommend this place to anyone who is craving pasta! There's a reason why they're still open after all these years. Truly, a hidden gem in our community. (Especially since it's located in a shopping center)."

La Borgata Italian Deli

★★★★★ 4.7 (286) • $$

"Was in the area, craving a sandwich and this little deli did not disappoint. We got two sandwiches and split them. Both were really good. Romano was more of a favorite. We also had a cannoli, not pictured but it was delicious. It's hard to find a good cannoli anywhere on the west coast! Service was quick, we did not have to wait long for our order. Really a cute little place, will be back when passing through the area."

Benchmark Pizzeria

★★★★☆ 4.1 (370) • $$

"Excellent Napoli style pizza - thin crust and cooked fast. We're never waiting long to get food here. It can be on the louder side at times, so I think it's best for a meet up spot with friends. Will continue to come back!"

WiseGirl

★★★★☆ 4.2 (321) • $$

"It was a different ambience with a show going on while we are having dinner. I order spaghetti meatballs with garlic bread and it was just OK. I think the price is a little bit expensive."

Napoli Pizza & Pasta

★★★★☆ 3.8 (377) • $$

"The Benicia Napoli will be my new go to for pizza delivery! The online menu was very easy to navigate. We ordered a medium Hawaiian, a cousin Vinny's calzone, cheesecake, and tortellini. Total after delivery and tip came out to around $70. This would be enough for 4-5 people. Delivery fee is only $1.75. Forget DoorDash! The pasta comes with your choice of sauce. I didnt see the options listed. I got a call pretty soon after putting on my order to clarify that. They offer red, pesto, or meat sauce. No white sauce for the pastas. The Hawaiian pizza was packed with toppings. They did not skimp out. Each bite had ham and pineapple. The calzone was also large. Larger than the size of my hand. It came with a side cup of marinara sauce. Also packed with meat. The pasta was also hearty and fresh. It's tasty food that's affordable and local. Why go to the big chain pizza place when Napoli's is an option?"

Pietro's No 2 Ristorante Bar & Lounge

★★★★☆ 3.5 (435) • $$

"Pietro's is my go to from Italian food. Growing up on every birthday my family went there for the best pizza in town. It is still my favorite."

Pietro's No 1

★★★★☆ 3.5 (429) • $$

"This is the steak sandwich of your dreams! I was impressed with how yummy the sandwich was and shocked at how generous the portion was. Don't hesitate to order it. Delicious! Also, make sure to order the minestrone as your side. The GM, Dawn, was hospitable and gave excellent advice on navigating Vacaville/Sacramento traffic since I was coming through Pietro's from the Bay Area. My bartender, Gloria, recommended the sandwich, minestrone soup, and Deloach Pinot Noir. They all paired well together. Thank you! I enjoyed the country music playing and was happy to wait out the traffic in this fun venue."

Zio Fraedo’s

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (443) • $$

"Zio Fraedo's has a low key ambiance. Bar in the middle with tables surrounding it. Our server was excellent and attentive. He was also the bartender so he was working his butt off! We ordered the Zio Fraedo's appetizer platter, it was delicious! Everything fried and seasoned to perfection. For drinks I ordered the Birds of Paradise, tasted like I was on vacation! It's a sweet drink so if you like more tart drinks it's not for you. For main entrees we ordered linguine and clams and chicken and shrimp Carbonara. The linguine and clams was very flavorful and light. Unfortunately, the Carbonara was bad. It didn't look like a traditional Carbonara when it came out and it certainly didn't taste good. The server was understanding and took it off our bill without any questions. We will definitely be coming back but just not for the Carbonara."

Cugini Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.6 (395) • $$

"The food, ambiance and service is second to none. Jenny and I have had most of what Cugini has on their menu. We have never had a bad meal. Armando and Becka are always at their best, making you feel at home. Stephanie, Mia, Angel, Marco and Jesus work as a team in making sure all of their guests are taken care of. Thank you Armamdo for making the best Martinis in town. Simply fabulous place. Love you guys."

Donato & Co

★★★★☆ 3.8 (326) • $$$

"I walked in here after my Pilates class next door over, and had to kill time to pick up my husband. It's a decent place near UC Berkeley with great atmosphere for date nights or just solo at the bar or table.I was recommended a fettucini and overall, it was nice and unique but then again, I chewed on small crab shells each bite. If you're on a date and you need to look good, avoid eating the fettucini unless you want to spit out the small broken shells each bite lolThe bread that came with the food was nice but I wish the sauce came on time.Portion is okay, but I would definitely order a salad or appetizer to fill up more.Service was friendly and chill all around from host to servers, but not too detail oriented. Might be back if I'm around the area when hungry. I also wouldn't say no if someone else makes a date to come here, but wouldn't travel just for this solo."

Caffe Chiave

★★★★☆ 3.6 (363) • $$

"Some of the best breakfast in Oakland, a hidden gem with great pastries! and I can't forget the great coffee as well."

Enoteca Molinari

★★★★☆ 4.1 (243) • $$

"The food is phenomenal. The owner is charming and more than approachable. The man knows his Italian wines. Just ask him for a recommendation. Very classy, romantic setting. Hands down the best Italian restaurant in the bay. There I said it"

Pizza Express

★★★★☆ 3.9 (249) • $

"Ordered large Chicken Tikka Masala and cheese breadsticks for delivery. The food was delicious extremely fresh pizza and breadsticks. Hot on arrival not like other pizza places where it's warm by the time it gets to my home. The service was phenomenal the driver had amazing energy and vibe. Extremely pleasant customer service experience. Very nice man. I love that this place is family owned and has been around for years. I will be continue to order great pizza from this place. I strongly support this business and their amazing pizza. I strongly recommend! :)"