Trattoria Carina

Vibes: very intimate, bustling neighborhood Italian BYOB; bring a date or a couple friends Tasting notes:- Stuffed cherry peppers: the perfect light bite to kick off the meal, balanced to be a little vinegary, a little oily, just a touch spicy- Corn panzanella: refreshing and full of delightful crunch - Cacio e pepe: garlic-forward, rich and creamy sauce that solidly enrobes the al-dente pasta - Spicy crab: umami-rich, addicting sauce; loved that the sauce accumulated inside of the short, curly pasta for a delightful burst of flavor with each bite - Chicken parm: a generous piece of uniformly coated, crunchy chicken; the side pasta is on the sweet side, very tomato-ey- Tiramisu: fluffy and balanced; a sizeable piece that is good for sharing Other thoughts:- Love that we were greeted with bread service right after we sat down- Friendly, attentive service - Above meal was satisfying for four dults Impression: chicken parm is truly one of the best I've ever had, trattoria is my go-to pick for Italian!

I've been to Trattoria Carina several times and they never miss the mark. The food is always delicious, and the service has been consistently top notch. The house made pasta is always on point, but some of my favorite dishes have actually been their creative sides and appetizers. The snap peas with pickled Fresno peppers, aioli, and candied orange peel, and the swordfish conserva stuffed pickled peppers are two of my favorites. These were both so good that I've made them at home. The atmosphere is intimate and well suited for a date night or small group outing. The location is easily walkable from Rittenhouse or Fitler, and there's a nice bottle shop a few blocks away for your BYOB needs! I would highly recommend this restaurant, and it's a frequent stop for me anytime I'm in Philly.

Trattoria Carina was such a great experience! First of all, you can BYOB! We love that. Our party opted to start with a ceasar salad. It was a delicious ceasar salad.We also got the spicy crab pasta and the chicken parm which a huge portion. It also comes with a side of rigatoni.The menu has a lot of classics and the service was extremely friendly. The outdoor seating is so charming and on a Wednesday evening it was buzzing. Would totally put this in my regular rotation if I lived in the area.

Incredible night at trattoria! Enjoyed the outdoor dining and immediate bread service. It's nice that this is both BYOB +cocktail service. The Caesar salad is actually INCREDIBLE like i could just eat that!! The gemelli was so filling and the noodles were so clearly homemade and DENSE, love. Chicken parm was still crispy despite its massive size.

A flawless experience top to bottom! Make your rezzies and add "eating spicy crab pasta on the sidewalk" to your summer bucket list. I (finally) got to enjoy a full meal here and was totally blown away by the quality and care that goes into this menu.Not to brag, but my date (hello Yelp Miami legend Diandra L!) and I put together the most flawless order:1) The classic Aperol Spritz. Hard to do poorly but this was extra refreshing as we sat outside on a hot night. 2) Our server recommended the caesar and it really is very good. Crunchy breadcrumbs on top, tossed to perfection so every leaf is properly sauced, and a refreshing addition to an otherwise heavy meal.3) Chicken parm. If you're dining here for the first time, this is a MUST order. Their cutlets are some of the best I've had and it comes with an order of rigatoni. The portion size is out of control - enough to fill up four hungry people.4) Spicy crab pasta. A nice amount of heat and the pasta is al dente perfection. I don't think you'll go wrong with any of the pasta options here but this is a fabulous dish.We also opted to BYO a little rosè and I deeply appreciate the option to do so. They kept the ice coming and we dined at a leisurely pace. Very European vibes and so grateful to have this gem in the neighborhood!

Expectations were high because some of the specific reviews for this spot were unbelievably high praise. In the end, it really did live up to expectations.To start, we were torn between the whipped ricotta and the meatballs. At the recommendation of the waitress, who was delightful, we went with meatballs as she said these would make us happy (plus they also have ricotta). And they really really did make us happy. They were enormous and so well seasoned. The sauce was a delight.The caesar salad is a fairly standard choice for us at this point but this was also great. A hint of lemon that wasn't overbearing and the dressing itself not overly sardine-y. Also a huge portion.For the mains, we got what everyone else seemed to be getting: the spicy crab and the chicken cutlet. The spicy crab is no joke in terms of spice, maybe even a bit too spicy for a pasta. But there is a generous portion of crab meat and overall it's a nice dish. The chicken cutlet was the star, as we knew it would be. So well breaded with an amazing layer of cheese. It comes with pasta on the side which was somewhat of an afterthought for us.The space itself is a bit cramped but we were sat next to the window which actually worked out quite well, as we had a little ledge to place our dishes and wine on. The place is BYOB but also serves drinks.Would definitely come back as there were so many other things on the menu I was interested in trying!

You ever just had a Chicken Parm that changed your life? One that makes you question if you've ever actually had a Chicken Parm before? I hear you lol, it's not the most common occurrence.Well, you can guess where this is going, but if you want your life to be changed by a beautiful amalgamation of breaded chicken and mozzarella cheese with a side of rigatoni pasta, Trattoria Carina is the place. My God.I know they put mozzarella cheese on this bad boy, but this isn't no normal mozzarella. This is like pizza cheese. I LOVE pizza cheese. I know that likely doesn't make any sense to you, but it makes sense to me and I think real ones will understand. Look at the attached pic and tell me you don't feel me.Every bite of this goliath was spiritual, as it was perfectly breaded and kept its crisp all the way throughout the last bite. It didn't turn soggy like some mid Chicken Parms do.The only other time I've had a Chicken Parm in the same stratosphere was Emilio Ballato in NYC. Emilio an egomaniac though lowkey...There is no corkage fee here, so we walked into this beautiful Northern Italian ambiance with a chilled bottle of 1858 Red Blend (bottled by Caymus) and a dream.We built a SOLID team around the S-Tier Chicken Parm (CP), starting with the Prosciutto and Caesar salad and getting the Spicy Crab Pasta to be the Robin to CP's batman.My girlfriend's death row meal is a caesar salad and fries (the craziest death row meal I've ever heard, I know), with her caesar salad of choice being from here. That should tell you everything.The Spicy Crab was PHENOMENAL, and paired extremely well with the chilled bottle of 1858 Red Blend (bottled by Caymus). My sources are actually saying it is looking to be the goto guy next year on a new team. Spicy Crab wants to run his own show... CP and Spicy Crab oddly reminiscent of LeBron and Kyrie on the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers...All in all, Trattoria Carina has become my 2nd favorite restaurant in Philly right behind Kalaya. They're so different though it's hard to pick...IG @jnov_Tiktok @jnov_reviews

Came back again for my birthday and my experience was tremendously improved. My last review was critical of their service being super slow and inattentive. I normally do not care but last time my family and I were waiting for almost an hour for our food without contact with our waitress. But this time our waitress (sophia) was super attentive and came by often and was super sweet. Our food was amazing as always, with some new notables being the caccio e peppe and the clan spaghetti. The pasta here is just so perfectly cooked and fresh, and I find myself craving their pasta whenever I am away from home. 6/5 through and through (and yes that is a six out of five stars)

Really enjoy this spot. Outdoor dining is hard to beat and food is reliably good. Big portions. Also ina good neighborhood

I've been dying to try this place for literal years. Finally made it in for dinner and it's just as good as I hoped it would be. We got the butternut squash arancini and burrata to start. They were both fantastic but the arancini in particular is one of the best things I've had in a long time. The flavors were perfect. We got the cacio e pepe and spicy crab pasta for entrees. Cacio e pepe was 10/10. I was a little disappointed by the spicy crab pasta though. I thought the flavor was mild and while it was good, it just didn't compare to how extraordinary everything else was. They also had a good wine list and were quite generous with the pours, which is always a plus. The staff in general was very kind and attentive.Even though it took me years to come here, I'm counting on being back soon. It's such a cute spot.