Piccola Italia Pizza and Restaurant

11 years after my first review and still the best Italian pizza and sauce in Raleigh. Limited hours (Summer hours and closed on Sundays) are my only complaint. Clueless why this place has less than 5 stars. My standards are high for Italian and this place always delivers.

Went to Piccola Italia before a show at Goodnight We ordered a margarita pizza The pizza was not a margarita It was a plain cheese pizza with a few pieces of basil If this owner is supposed to be an authentic Italian like myself, then the margarita pizza would've had fresh pieces of mozzarella with fresh tomato sauce. Pizza was bland and not tasty at all Please take it off the menu named margarita and just add basil as an extra topping Pitiful

tried to call for a carry out like 5 times, phone seems to be disconnected. probably a good thing if they are not on small details like paying their phone bill food is probably not good either. I want try again.

I'm in town picking up my daughter for a long fall break weekend and I have some time to kill untilHer classes end. It's lunchtime and I can always eat. I hate NC State campus traffic so I drive a bit until I see this Italian Restaurant. I could eat a slice or two.Due to lack of help their hours are reduced just so you know. Several diners were outside eating under and awning which is a nice option if you like that sort of thing. I don't. I don't like competing with insects for my food so indoor dining for me.This place has been in business for decades and if you want to be transported back to the 80's, you are here. The server was new and didn't know the sides (no big deal). He found out and told me. Their menu is typical Italian fare. Pizza, Stromboli....yada yada you get the idea. I opted for the 2 slices and side (salad) for $9.50.Oh my poor salad. One slice of cucumber, one small red onion ring and one cherry tomato mixed j. With overly large pieces of romaine. I ordered blue cheese which was unremarkable, kinda like the salad. The dressing was bland which complimented the salad perfectly.The pizza slices arrived and they were decent size. I got cheese pizza because that's the only way in my mind to taste the basics. Maybe I should have gotten pepperoni. The good: the bottom crust was very crisp. It was a nice change from the usually floppy slices where all sauce bleeds through and makes it all a soggy mess. This was nice. Crisp and took your attention to cut through it with your knife. The Meh: overall, the pizza is BLAND. Most of the flavor came from the Parmesan cheese and chili flakes I added after tasting it. The space was way too thin. You hardly knew it was there. The cheese was adequate but again, didn't bring anything to the party. I guess the biggest disappointment was the crust.I think most people feel the crust is suppose to be a blank slate for the toppings. I disagree. I think the crust should be flavorful as well. Making dough rise too quickly doesn't allow for flavor to develop. The crust was flavorless. Not worth the calories so leave it when you finish with the rest of the slice.The staff was friendly and attentive. The seating area was clean albeit a bit dated. Overall, a 5/10. Maybe if I come back I'll try something else. Maybe the pizza guy had a bad day.

My husband and I were in the area so we decided to stop for dinner. We ate outside since it was a nice night out. Since it was Italian I decided to go with a glass of wine which was a pretty decent pour (slightly more than normal I would say) and my husband had the margarita which he said was ok. I ordered the garlic clam sauce and it was good. Now, was it the best pasta dish I've ever had? No, but it wasn't bad at all. The way I described it to my husband is like I went to a friend's grandma's house for dinner and Grandma, originally from Italy, is reaching the age where she's getting too old to cook like she used to, but she's done it for so long and none of her kids or grandkids expressed an interest in learning so she has to continue cooking to keep them connected to their Italian culture. Although, it's a slightly exaggerated comparison, somehow describes the taste perfectly. My husband said he could see it based off of his chicken parm (which smelled delightfully). The service took longer than I expected, but everyone was so nice. I'm honestly surprised this place has only 3/5; it's at least a 3.5 at minimum.

Took 50 mins to get our food. I've never had an antipasto salad with nasty pickled vegetables on it. My fiancée food had so much garlic it was hard to eat. 2 hours later we both feel sick and I hardly ate my nasty salad. I would never eat here again! If you want to be sick to your stomach this is the place for you. $62.00 wasted money!!!

Piccola Italia has been a Raleigh establishment since 1982. I remember coming here since I was a little girl so I had to make this review longer than usual to do justice. It's authentic, traditional home-cooked Italian food at its best and the owner Frank, true to his Italian roots, always asks me about my parents and makes me feel welcome like family. I think a lot of people miss this place because it's not trying to be glitzy or glamorous, it's a comfortable family setting, but after 40 years in business the food still has that same special something - and my dad eats here every week! My favorites are the pizza and the pasta. The pizza is hand tossed with a crispy crust and homemade tomato sauce. The Tomato Sauce is the BEST in TOWN - smooth and rich in flavor (the Marinara is a more bold and chunky sauce if you're into that)! The pasta is delicious and always al dente - just be sure to ask for the parmesan if it's not on the table (gluten free pasta is also really good). Sicilian Pizza is Amazing - order ahead of time for that. Meatballs and sausage also delicious. Thank you Frank and to your family for the labor of love to keep this place alive through fires, recessions and remodels - for my family it's a home away from home - Authentic Italian at its Best.

Glad we hit this spot, I think it goes overlooked with the more trendy places around it. All of the food was great and our waitress made our night with her humor and honesty about the food. All of her recommendations were spot on! Great place to grab Italian, I wish we had more time the Sicilian pizza take 1.5 hours but looks worth it!

This was sooo good and the staff was amazing!! The owners daughter came by and spoke to and thanked us for our business as well as talked about memories!!Great place!

Piccolo Italian has the best pizza in Raleigh! Newly renovated with nice open layout. We have been coming here for many years because of the nice atmosphere, courteous staff, and good food