Everything we ordered was delicious and freshly made. The wait staff were attentive and helpful with the menu. They also had good recommendations on what to eat. The restaurant atmosphere was bright and joyful.
We ordered the fried burrata as an appetizer. It came with mortadella and a pistachio pesto sauce. I’ve never had a dish like that and enjoyed it a lot.
My wife got the table side gnocchi inside of the pizza crust. She enjoyed having the pizza crust as a bowl.
I ordered the spicy vodka sauce with rigatoni. The spice level was perfect and I managed to eat the whole plate. All of the portions were large and will definitely fill you up.
Lastly we ordered the chocolate cake which was decadent and delicious. We will definitely be back with friends and family!
Maria Flores
Celebrating fathers day and decided to do lunch to beat the crowd, its a beautiful sunny hot day in San Diego. I made reservations prior to arrival just incase it was a bit busy, there was plenty of parking when we arrived. When approaching the entrance we were greeted and seated right away and we had the opportunity to pick our seats to our liking. Place is beautifully designed and laid out has a great nice vibrant atmosphere loved all the decor in the restaurant. The host shared the soup and pasta of the day which was greatly appreciated, as that helped us place our order. We did order the mushroom soup of the day and pasta which was incredibly tasty and delicious, this was our first time tasting a mushroom soup and I have to say we loved it. We also ordered an order of garlic bread which went great with everything else. I had a cucumber mojito that was nicely refreshing and I enjoyed it very much, I could hardly taste the rum so it wasn’t too strong but good enough to enjoy. Lastly the dish I ordered was a couple of sides combined into one, as they did that accommodation for me. I ordered a stuffed portobello mushroom that tasted just like lasagna, roasted mixed vegetables and rosemary baked potatoes. My visit there was nice and was a wonderful experience, service and food was beyond my expectations and I highly recommend it for any occasion.
Sarah Escorcia-Braden
Every thing about this place was amazing. The food, was so good, we scraped our plates. The cocktails and mocktails wereabsolutely delicious. The service was exceptional and the atmosphere felt beautiful and very Italian. I can’t wait for another date night to come back here and try more things.
Bobby Moore
This tucked away little Italian joint is one of the few gems of La Mesa dining. As the absolute best authentic Italian restaurant this side of the 805 freeway Aromi delivers a quaint, thoughtful and calm ambiance that enhances the delicious food they create. Every dish we have had here is simply exquisite. It reminds me of eating in small towns in Italy. Aromi mimics the sentiment precisely. Thank you to the owners, cooks and waiters for chasing a dream and accomplishing what you set out to do. A 5 star fine dining dream.
john jennings
Reserved a table and It was ready. Not busy in there. Waiter took our order then we got some dishes early they ate then we got the other orders when they were finished. The worst way to serve. The waiter was sitting and eating while our food was ready. No refills, no how is everything. This was a grad party which I told them when I reserved. But waiting 40 minutes for pizzas and 1 was wrong. Come on!
Andrea Cipolla
I went to this restaurant for the first time and it was a fantastic experience. The server, Nino, showed kindness and professionalism. Really good food and drinks. I will definitely be back. Recommended
Erica Axtell
Absolutely delicious gem in La Mesa! We purchased the garlic bread, truffle fries, pesto pasta, and tonnarelli cacio e pepe. The initial service was great, with free bread too. I will say, it did take a while for our pasta to be served after ordering, but it was very clear that everything was made fresh and in-house. Will definitely be back!
S L
I’m writing this review not to bash Aromi, but out of a genuine hope that this restaurant can reach its full potential. The quality of the pasta here is truly fantastic—clearly made with care and skill, and easily the highlight of our meal. I would love to see Aromi succeed, especially given how competitive the San Diego dining scene is. That said, my experience was marred by a few issues, mostly with the service. The servers felt cold and unwelcoming, which was disappointing given the inviting atmosphere I had hoped for. In all fairness, there was a large party in the restaurant during my visit, so it’s possible the staff was simply overwhelmed that night. Still, it’s important for guests to feel acknowledged and comfortable, regardless of how busy it gets. Another downside was the pacing of the meal. Our dishes didn’t arrive at the same time, which always sours the experience when dining with a group. To top it off, the check was dropped off at our table without us asking, making us feel rushed—as if we were being pushed out the door. As for the food, while the pasta was excellent, the pizzas didn’t stand out. They were good, but nothing different from what you’d find at other Italian spots in the area. With so many great options in San Diego, I’ll probably wait a while before considering a return visit to Aromi. Still, I sincerely hope the staff can step up their service game, because I want places like this—where the food has real potential—to thrive. I’ll be keeping an eye out for more positive reviews in the future, and I wish Aromi the best as they work out these growing pains
Dan H
Was looking for a good small Italian place for a date. We were so excited from the experience we had to go back… 5 more times. This place has turned into our spot in some ways. The food is delicious and filled with flavor. We have since moved away from the area, but we will back anytime we are around.
Ileana Henton
Wonderful! Excellent service delicious food and great atmosphere .
How do you rate a place you will never try again? A single star seems too generous! We planned to try a new (to us) Italian restaurant for a family dinner tonight. We called early afternoon for reservations for a party of 7 at 6 PM. We arrived on time, but they were unaware of our reservation and had no table set up. Luckily, there was an available table big enough which had to be cleared first (they were not expecting us).
After perusing the menu and placing our order, we were advised (after waiting 15 minutes after placing our order) that one of the dishes I ordered was not available (eggplant Parmesan)—the one menu item I checked for on their website to decide whether to try the restaurant. There was nothing else on the menu that interested me (they didn’t even serve pizza!). So i decided just to stay with the salad which I had already ordered and eat that with the rest of the family when their food arrived.
Since there was a pizzeria literally next door (owned by the same owners as Aromi)—Pizza by Aromi. I went there and ordered a $23 12” mushroom and Italian sausage pizza from there and took it back to Aromi to join my family. But we were told by the owner of both establishments that was not allowed! The rest of the family could stay. I could stay, but just could not eat their pizza at the same table inside their restaurant. In my opinion that prohibition was absurd! It was their pizza, purchased from them, but I was not allowed to enjoy it with the rest of the family with the salad that I ordered!
50 minutes after we arrived, the food we ordered had not yet arrived, so we elected to leave to dine elsewhere at a more hospitable place. We took my pizza which was already paid for (but would have preferred a Costco pizza)!
We were willing to give them a try. We did. We were disappointed. If the quality of their dine-in food was like their take-out pizza, it wouldn’t be worth their expensive prices! Needless to say, we are one family that will never return.
Atmosphere: 3
Service: 1
James Camacho
My friend and I were looking for a new Italian spot to try out and found a nice restaurant that was a pleasant surprise. Aromi has some delicious options with an attractive interior theme. I ordered the spicy rigatoni with vodka sauce and my friend ordered the Pistacchiosa, which is a pasta with a pistachio type of sauce. Everything was delicious. The food tasted fresh and well seasoned. The decor in the restaurant is interesting. There are mirrors on the ceiling, which I think is a fun idea. There are a couple reasons that the I don't give this restaurant a perfect 5 stars. First, there was a table next to us that was not cleaned and there were no other customers present while we were there. Also, typically you would receive complimentary bread while you wait, the bread here was $9. I think the price for that should be less considering how much customers spend on everything else. All in all it was a good experience. I am curious about some of the other dishes, so I will be back. Eat up!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Keith Terry
My experience for this to be authentic Italian food. I ordered a pasta sausage dish. and the sausage was cut up in small squares never seen that before. and very little sausage for $25. and did not serve any bread with our meal. the calamari Way overpriced barely any flavor. Soso food overpriced will never be back.
Everything we ordered was delicious and freshly made. The wait staff were attentive and helpful with the menu. They also had good recommendations on what to eat. The restaurant atmosphere was bright and joyful.
We ordered the fried burrata as an appetizer. It came with mortadella and a pistachio pesto sauce. I’ve never had a dish like that and enjoyed it a lot.
My wife got the table side gnocchi inside of the pizza crust. She enjoyed having the pizza crust as a bowl.
I ordered the spicy vodka sauce with rigatoni. The spice level was perfect and I managed to eat the whole plate. All of the portions were large and will definitely fill you up.
Lastly we ordered the chocolate cake which was decadent and delicious. We will definitely be back with friends and family!
Celebrating fathers day and decided to do lunch to beat the crowd, its a beautiful sunny hot day in San Diego. I made reservations prior to arrival just incase it was a bit busy, there was plenty of parking when we arrived. When approaching the entrance we were greeted and seated right away and we had the opportunity to pick our seats to our liking. Place is beautifully designed and laid out has a great nice vibrant atmosphere loved all the decor in the restaurant. The host shared the soup and pasta of the day which was greatly appreciated, as that helped us place our order. We did order the mushroom soup of the day and pasta which was incredibly tasty and delicious, this was our first time tasting a mushroom soup and I have to say we loved it. We also ordered an order of garlic bread which went great with everything else. I had a cucumber mojito that was nicely refreshing and I enjoyed it very much, I could hardly taste the rum so it wasn’t too strong but good enough to enjoy. Lastly the dish I ordered was a couple of sides combined into one, as they did that accommodation for me. I ordered a stuffed portobello mushroom that tasted just like lasagna, roasted mixed vegetables and rosemary baked potatoes. My visit there was nice and was a wonderful experience, service and food was beyond my expectations and I highly recommend it for any occasion.
Every thing about this place was amazing. The food, was so good, we scraped our plates. The cocktails and mocktails wereabsolutely delicious. The service was exceptional and the atmosphere felt beautiful and very Italian. I can’t wait for another date night to come back here and try more things.
This tucked away little Italian joint is one of the few gems of La Mesa dining. As the absolute best authentic Italian restaurant this side of the 805 freeway Aromi delivers a quaint, thoughtful and calm ambiance that enhances the delicious food they create.
Every dish we have had here is simply exquisite. It reminds me of eating in small towns in Italy. Aromi mimics the sentiment precisely.
Thank you to the owners, cooks and waiters for chasing a dream and accomplishing what you set out to do. A 5 star fine dining dream.
Reserved a table and It was ready. Not busy in there. Waiter took our order then we got some dishes early they ate then we got the other orders when they were finished. The worst way to serve. The waiter was sitting and eating while our food was ready. No refills, no how is everything. This was a grad party which I told them when I reserved. But waiting 40 minutes for pizzas and 1 was wrong. Come on!
I went to this restaurant for the first time and it was a fantastic experience. The server, Nino, showed kindness and professionalism. Really good food and drinks. I will definitely be back. Recommended
Absolutely delicious gem in La Mesa! We purchased the garlic bread, truffle fries, pesto pasta, and tonnarelli cacio e pepe. The initial service was great, with free bread too. I will say, it did take a while for our pasta to be served after ordering, but it was very clear that everything was made fresh and in-house. Will definitely be back!
I’m writing this review not to bash Aromi, but out of a genuine hope that this restaurant can reach its full potential. The quality of the pasta here is truly fantastic—clearly made with care and skill, and easily the highlight of our meal. I would love to see Aromi succeed, especially given how competitive the San Diego dining scene is.
That said, my experience was marred by a few issues, mostly with the service. The servers felt cold and unwelcoming, which was disappointing given the inviting atmosphere I had hoped for. In all fairness, there was a large party in the restaurant during my visit, so it’s possible the staff was simply overwhelmed that night. Still, it’s important for guests to feel acknowledged and comfortable, regardless of how busy it gets.
Another downside was the pacing of the meal. Our dishes didn’t arrive at the same time, which always sours the experience when dining with a group. To top it off, the check was dropped off at our table without us asking, making us feel rushed—as if we were being pushed out the door.
As for the food, while the pasta was excellent, the pizzas didn’t stand out. They were good, but nothing different from what you’d find at other Italian spots in the area.
With so many great options in San Diego, I’ll probably wait a while before considering a return visit to Aromi. Still, I sincerely hope the staff can step up their service game, because I want places like this—where the food has real potential—to thrive. I’ll be keeping an eye out for more positive reviews in the future, and I wish Aromi the best as they work out these growing pains
Was looking for a good small Italian place for a date. We were so excited from the experience we had to go back… 5 more times. This place has turned into our spot in some ways. The food is delicious and filled with flavor. We have since moved away from the area, but we will back anytime we are around.
Wonderful! Excellent service delicious food and great atmosphere .
Restaurantji Recommends
Wow. Apparently changed owners.
Food was fantastic. Service was excellent. Definitely going back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Tonnarelli Cacio E Pepe
Little hidden neighborhood gem, food is great, service is better!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Cheese Wheel Pasta, Bruschetta, Prosciutto Brushetta
How do you rate a place you will never try again? A single star seems too generous! We planned to try a new (to us) Italian restaurant for a family dinner tonight. We called early afternoon for reservations for a party of 7 at 6 PM. We arrived on time, but they were unaware of our reservation and had no table set up. Luckily, there was an available table big enough which had to be cleared first (they were not expecting us).
After perusing the menu and placing our order, we were advised (after waiting 15 minutes after placing our order) that one of the dishes I ordered was not available (eggplant Parmesan)—the one menu item I checked for on their website to decide whether to try the restaurant. There was nothing else on the menu that interested me (they didn’t even serve pizza!). So i decided just to stay with the salad which I had already ordered and eat that with the rest of the family when their food arrived.
Since there was a pizzeria literally next door (owned by the same owners as Aromi)—Pizza by Aromi. I went there and ordered a $23 12” mushroom and Italian sausage pizza from there and took it back to Aromi to join my family. But we were told by the owner of both establishments that was not allowed! The rest of the family could stay. I could stay, but just could not eat their pizza at the same table inside their restaurant. In my opinion that prohibition was absurd! It was their pizza, purchased from them, but I was not allowed to enjoy it with the rest of the family with the salad that I ordered!
50 minutes after we arrived, the food we ordered had not yet arrived, so we elected to leave to dine elsewhere at a more hospitable place. We took my pizza which was already paid for (but would have preferred a Costco pizza)!
We were willing to give them a try. We did. We were disappointed. If the quality of their dine-in food was like their take-out pizza, it wouldn’t be worth their expensive prices! Needless to say, we are one family that will never return.
Atmosphere: 3
Service: 1
My friend and I were looking for a new Italian spot to try out and found a nice restaurant that was a pleasant surprise. Aromi has some delicious options with an attractive interior theme. I ordered the spicy rigatoni with vodka sauce and my friend ordered the Pistacchiosa, which is a pasta with a pistachio type of sauce. Everything was delicious. The food tasted fresh and well seasoned. The decor in the restaurant is interesting. There are mirrors on the ceiling, which I think is a fun idea. There are a couple reasons that the I don't give this restaurant a perfect 5 stars. First, there was a table next to us that was not cleaned and there were no other customers present while we were there. Also, typically you would receive complimentary bread while you wait, the bread here was $9. I think the price for that should be less considering how much customers spend on everything else. All in all it was a good experience. I am curious about some of the other dishes, so I will be back. Eat up!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
My experience for this to be authentic Italian food. I ordered a pasta sausage dish. and the sausage was cut up in small squares never seen that before. and very little sausage for $25. and did not serve any bread with our meal. the calamari Way overpriced barely any flavor. Soso food overpriced will never be back.
Loading...