50 Best Italian Restaurants near South Windsor

“We had my sons graduation dinner at Lena’s and it was fantastic! The food was delicious (as it always is) and the staff was great (as they always are)! Everyone had a great time! Thank you Lena and staff!“

“Best Calzone everrrrrrrr!!!!“

“Awesome service, food, atmosphere, and hospitality. Classy and comfortable place to eat top notch Italian. The cheesy garlic bread is incredible. Can’t wait to visit again! Owner is so kind!“

“Amazing food and friendly and attentive service! Anything we have tried here has been amazing. Always support local!“

“I’ve been here countless times and the food is consistently very good. The servers are always friendly too. Tonight I sat at the bar after a class and ordered grinders for takeout. Absolutely THE best grinders we’ve had in forever. My veggie and cheese grinder was LOADED with veggies! My husband’s grinder had so much nest he could have created 2 more grinders. Thank you Soula and staff. You are all top notch!“

“Amazing nice place and food delicious 🤤“

“Ordered a meatball sub with hot peppers and mozzarella. The meatball were delicious! The best! I can not day one bad thing about this place. This was our first time here and we will be back! And the staff were great and treated us like family. They hit it out of the ballpark ! Mangia!“

“Great food and so clean!!“

“It Is My opinion that this is the best Italian Food in Connecticut. if you love Italian food you will love this restaurant.“

“Initially visited about 10 years ago. Hadn’t been back for. O particular reason. Recently decided to go back and we’ve been going there every couple of weeks since. Prices are very good and the food is excellent. Jason does a great job. Highly recommend.“

“Excellent all around. Great food and atmosphere.“

“I truly enjoyed our dinner, conversation, and the atmosphere. On an evening out to celebrate my husband's birthday with friends and we had the most wonderful meal. The atmosphere was warm and cozy, elegant but extremely comfortable and inviting. The staff friendly and helpful as can be. And omg the food, mmmmmmmmazing. Everything looked amazing, I will tell you I specifically had risotto balls, torched wedge salad, ricotta gnocchi with braisedbeef short rib ragu, and chocolate mousse. I can't look at regular salad the same way ever again and everything else was just amazing on it's own, and as a whole evening experience. Please do yourself a favor and set aside some time to have a meal here.“

“Five stars! From atmosphere to service to food, all exceptional! Deborah is wonderful as is her entire staff. We had the swordfish special and the scallops, so delicious! Stacey is an excellent server, she made helpful recommendations for cocktails and entrees. I highly recommend the restaurant, you will not be disappointed. Looking forward to returning!“

“I love this restaurant. The food is always good and the female wait staff is great. The males, are on the rude side....one time throwing steak knives across the table when we requested them to cut our steaks. Every time we dine here, I am so annoyed with the lighting. Fluorescent lighting in a fine dining establishment is the worst. Please...please ...please put in recessed lighting that can be dimmed to make for a romantic dining experience.“

“Carmela’s ravioli, pasta and sauce are amazing. It’s just the homemade flavor you’re craving. We get her pastas every year for Christmas dinner and buy it all year long as well. Once you eat from her shop you will surely be back for more!“

“Hosted our Holiday Party here, amazing atmosphere, food & music!! Holly & Carmine are the best! Check them out ♥️“

“Had a half Eggplant, nice pie! Good crust, great sauce and just the right amount of cheese. Eggplant was tasty too!“

“Great food and cocktails with excellent service 😍🤗“

“5 stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟! I brought my staff here for a work dinner. Absolutely amazing food very authentic and can accommodate large parties! We will definitely be back soon!“

“I was there last night with my family I came from Florida a few days ago and went to ct to see my brother that goes there all the time with his wife and I may say it was amazing service and all 🙏🏻😊“

“Love Holiday restaurant!!“

“We have had food from the new location in Preston Connecticut three times now. They had only been two days, a few weeks, and now a few months when we are here. First impression was the cheese pizza had no taste but the deep dish pep was good. Second impression was similar. Now a few months into establishing, the cheese is delicious. Great sauce and cheese flavor and ratios. Crust is just right. We did have a few pieces of the Detroit/deep dish pep but not all of our deep dish tasted “Smokey.” The best way to explain it is like the smokiness of mezcal tequila. Most of the pep was charred so we suspect it was over cooked or was adjacent to something else in the oven that burnt. Overall, positive experience and in time, we think this restaurant will continue to strive and adjust recipes and cooking techniques to meet or exceed expectations.“

“Excellent food, very consistent“

“Elizabeth's is our favorite restaurant. The food is always good, fresh and large portions. have tried many different entrees and they are always delicious. Especially love their veal parmigiana and the stuffed soule!“

“Love this place, perfect lunch spot while working on the road. The steak sandwich.It is quite different from most places. This is not shaved steak, but cut very thinly. They roast your own peppers, which are excellent. There veal cutlet is also very good. They offer hot plates throughout the week that changes every day. It's a very authentic italian deli“

“We had such a wonderful experience at Joey’s Garlic! The food was absolutely delicious. We ordered the penne a la vodka, shrimp scampi, and fried calamari, and every dish was full of flavor. The portions were huge—definitely family-style! Honestly, one plate would have been enough for both of us, and we still had plenty of leftovers to enjoy at home. The restaurant itself has a beautiful setting with an industrial hipster vibe, warm lighting, and a fun flare that makes the atmosphere really inviting. Service was excellent—our server was both fast and friendly, which made the evening even better. For the quality and size of the portions, the pricing was amazing and very affordable. We truly felt like we got more than our money’s worth. We’re already looking forward to coming back and trying more of the menu next time!“

“Love this place. They never mess my order up and always great service. I've been coming here for years. They let you breath and relax there. Nothing crazy. Their pizza and Grinders are exelent and the only pizza my family will even wanna order or go to. Here is a photo of my Tuna grinder with extra lettuce that was requested. Again, When in Vernon Ct. Type pauls pizza into your GPS.“

“great place delicious food great staff also they have gluten free pizza along with gluten free pasta love it here“

“The bolognese was the best! The service was wonderful also. Had a lovely time.“

“We visited Mario’s for the first time on Friday Feb 27th after seeing a Facebook ad for their fish and chips dinner. We were beyond surprised and very pleased with the entire experience. The fish and chips was the best we have had, the waitress was very attentive and friendly. Although the place is small it was super busy with lots of take out orders but that didn’t affect the dining room orders coming out in a timely fashion. We most definitely will be visiting again real soon to see what other delicious choices they have on their menu. Great job Mario see you again soon.“

“Nick was an excellent server. He was very attentive and provided excellent customer service to our party of 20. And he did so all by himself. I was very impressed with his attention to details and patience. We booked our party in advance and they had the table preset when we arrived. I would recommend this location to anyone looking to book a large party.“

“It’s so hard to find amazing pizza as a life long pizza lover! I can’t believe this place has been here so long and it’s delicious pizza. THANKS PIETROS!!!
Big shout out to Nia!!! She’s beautiful and so kind, she makes my experience so pleasant.

-Jazmin“

“The pasta could be cooked a little bit longer and the drinks could use more ice but ultimately it was a good experience! This restaurant gets the award “most likely to leave you in a food coma” because, if you’ve ever been to an Olive Garden, you’d understand. They feed you until you’re about to pop, then at the end of your meal they give you free chocolate and who doesn’t love that?? 🤤“

“Everything on the menu is good. Nothing is half assed. Really good food all around/ amazing pizza/ grinders. I’m very picky about my parm grinders and everything here is spot on.“

“Took a trip to DiFiore Ravioli shop in Ellington, CT. They make 15 varieties of homemade Ravioli, sauces, oils, amazing desserts, and more. We picked up the TENDERLOIN & BACON ravioli, and the SHRIMP & ROASTED GARLIC ravioli. They were out of the lobster ravioli, but we picked up the homemade Tiramasu. While there we saw they made gourmet sandwiches, which we ordered and ate outside. They were amazing, so big, we could only eat half (pics taken after we started) Great place, staff were fantastic!! Very nice people. We will definitely return!!!“

“Wonderful family and delicious house made Italian dishes.“

“best beef cutlet hands down“

“You might not be able to sit down and eat here like most places, but the food is pretty darn good. First time customers and I am beyond impressed. Staff was kind and friendly. I ordered a meatball sub and it was great! It actually had meatballs and not the smooshed up patte cat food stuff. It had a garlic twang to it and it was still fricken awesome. I'm a VERY picky eater and I'm also not one for garlic. I'm not sure how the food is made, if it was the sauce or the meatballs but i will tell you it was delicious nonetheless. HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT! And for better or worse, they don't salt the French fries either. Even the few flavors of ice cream they had was good (I got the vanilla bean).💕😋 Definitely going back there again.“

“This is an old school greasy spoon diner literally hidden on Franklin Ave. This is cooking from your favorite uncle or granddad. Home style cooking for those who don't want to cook at home. Short order cook on the grill happens to be the owner. The menu is the stuff diner legends are based on. It has nothing gourmet. It isn't long. There's nothing promising to be a new twist on am ole favorite. It is the old favorite, just the way you fell in love with it: with pork, full fat, salty, and all the calories.
Cute place. Aged and tidy. Pleasant wait staff. Quick and good cook.
They only take cash. The entire antique experience is only heightened by that limitation.“

“Unassuming Italian joint in a strip mall but DO NOT sleep on this place. Been a few times tried a few different pizzas and a few different pasta dishes and appetizers and they were all winners. The staff is friendly and attentive. The portions are generous, the atmosphere warm. Fantastic spot!“

“Eclectic menu. While not extensive, there is variety with daily specials. We started with the dumplings and chili with beans. Dumplings and sauce for dipping quite flavorful in the best way. The chili was not too hot, and a hot sauce offered we we wanted more heat. The pasta and red was plentiful and delicious.“

“A Tale of Two Visits

Thank you to the owner of Square Peg in Vernon. I felt if I took the time to criticize my first experience, it was only fair ,and also important, to show gratitude when things are done right.

To OWNERSHIP,

Thank you for responding to us so quickly when our first experience didn’t go as planned. Your willingness to make things right, brought us back for another try, and the food this time DID NOT DISAPPOINT!

We love a good Chicken Parm sandwich, and this was how you do it right. Excellent chicken, perfectly fried with ample amounts of cheese and terrific red sauce. We enjoyed every bite. We also had the fried mozzarella and these aren’t your run of the mill sticks. Nice large rectangles of fried mozzarella just begging to be dipped in red sauce and devoured.

Although the food was good, I appreciate even more the care to make things right. We believe in staying local for our dining choices and it’s nice to know this option stays on the table.

Thank you again!“

“I was visiting from out of state. This is one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten. The area is lucky to have Gino’s. I did try to talk the owner into moving to my state.“

“My favorite spot to hang out. Been around a long time, very consistent.“

“Brian is a amazing waiter. I can’t say enough about him. Makes our meal even better. Thank you for your wonderful service!!??“

“I'm very disappointed. Yesterday, we chose Bond 124 to gather with family after a family members funeral. It was not our first choice, but the other restaurant was closed for vacation. We had remembered attending a grad party at Bond in May that was fabulous, so we thought we would give it a try for lunch. It was about 12:30 p.m. on a Friday. There was one other table occupied and maybe one or two people at the bar. Our waitress was great at first, came right over, brought waters and provided menus. We ordered drinks, which she quickly got confused with, but we thought nothing of it. We placed our order and began our wait. About 20 minutes later, Sam came to the table and asked if we wanted our food orders brought all at once or as they were made because the cheese buger and chicken sandwich ordered was already cooked. We said sure, bring them out as they are made, assuming they would just be a few minutes apart. Nope! First of all, she brought out the cheesebuger and not the chicken sandwich. At least 15 minutes later, the deep dish pizzas ordered came out. At this time, she informed me my soup (which I ordered as my meal) was not available. I asked Sam what soups she did have, and she responded, "I don't know" (Not let me check). When I pushed to know, she huffed off and went to look. Now we had to ask for the chicken sandwich that still hadn't been brought out, at which time she said it was coming soon. We are now at least 30 minutes since the first meal hit the table, and I still didn't have my bowl of soup. Finally, the chicken sandwich came out, and still no soup. When my soup finally came out, everyone else at our table had already finished eating. Due to the sad event that brought us together in the first place, I didn't bother complaining, but to say we will not be back or recommend this restaurant is an understatement. With so few guests, how does this happen. Where was the manager??“

“We had been looking for a place for lunch or dinner that was local and not a chain. Been driving by it for years and finally checked it out. The decor is a little dated so if classier atmosphere is what you're looking for go elsewhere. If you want well prepared italien food, larger portions, reasonable prices, friendly, efficient waitstaff and in a warm, family familiar setting....you have arrived!“

“just ordered 2 large Italian grinders and they were great. fresh bread lots of meat and didn't have to pay extra for lettuce, tomatoes and peppers !“

“They consistently give us great food! One of the local go-tos!“

“We went there for my wife’s birthday lunch…What a great authentic Italian restaurant. Their tomato sauce felt like I was in a small village in Italy and eating fresh out of someone’s farm. Talking about service are waitress Liz who happens to be the owners daughter was so sweet and totally made my wife’s day…..“