Tuscan Blu

Ignore the 1-star review "Karen's" that come in with parties of TWENTY THREE and then still find something wrong with their dinner. This is the best Italian place my wife and I have been to in Raleigh in 10 years. It's not some upscale new age whatever, it's an old school Italian place with some real people. Authentically Italian or not, this place is consistently excellent. We will be back, and you should try it out. I've never even left a review on yelp, so the fact I typed this crap out should say something. - Macklin Robinson (Professional Goalkeeper for North Carolina FC)

I absolutely loved the food! The pasta was one of the best I've ever had, full of flavor and perfectly cooked. The atmosphere of the space was equally wonderful--warm and inviting. We also had the pleasure of meeting the owner, Mauricio, who was incredibly kind and welcoming. A fantastic experience all around!

Hubs made reservations here after I said I wanted some hearty Italian. I couldn't eat after a certain time due to having surgery the next morning, so I wanted something to hold me over. We made reservations for 8 and arrived a bit ahead of time. We were warmly greeted and promptly seated. The restaurant was almost empty, save for an elderly couple. We placed our orders: chicken parm for hubs and puttanesca for myself. Hubs inquired about the chicken, specifically if it was thinly pounded--the way he prefers. He was told yes. Didn't think we needed to ask what type of pasta was used in the dish as we are accustomed to it being spaghetti traditionally. The dish arrived with a DRY THICK WHOLE CHICKEN BREAST AND ZITI!!! Hubs immediately lost his appetite. He took a bite of the chicken, which was thick, dry, hard overcooked. He was NOT happy. My puttanesca heavy handed on the black olives--over powered the dish which was spaghetti. I read the menu and for some reason it never crossed my mind that this dish had no meat. It was nothing special... just spaghetti olives and onions in a regular-degular sauce. We found the cuisine to be underwhelming. And not that money is a thing, BUT $4.95 for a 16oz bottle of soda--?? A bit insane! Also, there is a supplemental fee that's added to the bill. ( we paid in cash) We were just not impressed. The restaurant, however, is super cute! Quaint, initmate, low lighting, rustic Tuscan feel. The staff was warm, pleasant, and inviting. ( Would like to see Linguini Alla Carbonara on the menu)

Food was good!! I love a good Alfredo and this was really good tasting. The bread was fresh and delicious. We made reservations on Saturday early so it wasn't busy but I imagine as it gets later it would get pretty busy as it's small but quaint and really cute. Would for sure be back!

My boyfriend and I had the very best time. The waiter was great. I appreciated that once our meals were served, our waiter did not interrupt and let us enjoy our food together. Everything we had was to die for. I had the lobster ravioli and he had the pesto gnocchi. We ate every bite and it was absolutely delicious. You could taste the fresh basil in the pesto and the fresh lobster in the ravioli. We also had tiramisu and the limoncello cake for dessert. Both were also amazing. We will definitely be making this a regular date night spot.

We ate at Tuscan Blu during our mini-moon after our wedding! It was just what we were looking for, a nice meal just the two of us. The server was kind and knowledgeable, and the food was incredible. The ambiance was romantic and quiet, and the owner greeted everyone with kindness and even checked in on patrons to see how they were enjoying their meal. We will definitely be back. It was the perfect meal for our special day!

Everyone was super kind! Food was delicious and we loved the area it was in! Would come back for another special occasion!

The best Italian food I've had in the triangle! I try something different each time and it never disappoints. The staff are extremely friendly and welcoming, and the restaurant has beautiful lighting in the evening. I'm definitely bringing the entire family next time they're in town.

This was our go to place for Italian while our son was at NC State. Disappointed we won't have a regular reason to go. This was our first and last meal in Raleigh 4 years apart. Highly recommend.

Visiting from out of town for a family function one of our local relatives made reservations here for 13 of us this past Saturday. The ambiance of Tuscan Blu was the only good thing about the experience. We had a waiter (no name) but had a beard that was terribly condescending. In particular I asked him how the parking validation worked (since parking is really confusing). He looked at me with his stark glare and said "didn't you read the signs outside?" I said yesAnd there were no instructions. He reluctantly assisted. Second observation was for a Saturday night the restaurant was empty. #RedFlagMy son #1 ordered veal parm. Our friendly waiter (ha) came out with chicken parm and admitted he hit the wrong button. He offered to send it back but due to everyone eating my son just took it. No apology. It would have been nice to remove from the bill or discount but no such empathy.My other son #2 ordered fettuccine Alfredo... it never came ... we asked again ... friendly (ha) waiter said... "forgot to punch it in". So my son #2 was starving by then and ended up eating after everyone was done. Again no apologies or offers to discount or remove from check. The Food that did arrive was average (coming from 100% Italian that grew up with homemade pasta almost daily) I paid the check for everyone and really because we were in a hurry to get out and I knew I was stuck with the 20% gratuity I didn't look at check in detail.Next day I looked at it and a couple things popped up as concerns: Ice tea $4.95?? (Compared to $6 Stella beer) and a $20.40 "supplemental fee". I called Tuscan Blu about that and they said it was a credit card fee. There was no documentation in the restaurant about that or in the menu and the person on phone said no to crediting it back. (See attached). BE WARE OF EXTRA FEES AT TUSCAN BLU! Not the kind of restaurant that makes you feel warm and welcomed. I highly suggest avoiding this place and it's hidden fees and confusing parking situation.