Cafe Amalfi Restaurant

This is Old Italy style - very authentic, delicious, and uses the best ingredients. The owner is a warm, friendly Italian man that really takes pride in his craft. The Margherita pizza was DIVINE. I'll be a regular when in Sarasota!

The owner is from Brooklyn and very friendly and engaging. The menu is classic Italian. We had veal parmigiana and linguine alfredo that were both wonderful. The table next to us was gushing over the pizza. Given the owner’s NYC roots, that is no surprise. We had a smooth Montepulciano that made dinner perfect. Cozy and nicely decorated. Highly recommended.

Here on vacation from New Jersey. This was the worst pizza we’ve had in our travels. It was burnt and as thin as cracker. We’ve had better frozen grocery pizza.

Food: 1

Now that's an awesome mazzarella stick! And the pizza was even better. This is a must try if your in siesta key fl. The food is fantastic. Thanks John for making great food and offering perfect service.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Very Rude over the phone refuse to deliver to me and I was 0.2 miles away.

We ordered online. Advertised as new york style pizza and being from New York, was not even close. Pizza was thin and raw in the middle. Escarole and beans soup had hardly any beans in it. Garlic knots were doughy as well. Mozzarella sticks were okay. Pretty underwhelming overall.

Food: 1

Excellent traditional New York-style pizza. Additionally, exceptional dinner options offered at highly competitive prices.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Ok, nothing special.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 3

Service: 4

When you walk in it's very cozy. Nicely decorated. The owner greeted us with a nice big charming smile, and very personable. One thing I noticed that I really like was the fact that you couldn't actually order a slice of pizza we wanted a large pie with sausage and mushrooms. It was very good. We also ordered the appetizer eggplant and the chicken marsala to go, which we have not tried. The waitress Gina was very nice.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

1 star is too many for this place. Plastic plates, burnt bread, cold crab cakes, inedible veal piccata, mixed up checks and an owner with a bad attitude. Owner became belligerent when we dared to complain. He had an unhinged rant in the restaurant (which nobody else was in but us.) Do yourself a favor and go somewhere else. Too many good Italian restaurants in Sarasota to waste your money here.

The *restaurant* was empty. Plastic everywhere. They may not have hot water to wash dishes? The place got so smokey at one point my eyes were irritated. When I told the owner/manager/waiter/cook he said "it's a pizza place!" Yelling at us for daring to complain about it. I just told him to maybe open the door or get a better exhaust fan. He didn't like it and started to become more agitated and told us we didn't know anything about owning a restaurant. The bread was burnt. 2x! And the crab cakes were cold in the middle....so frozen food for sure. And he forgot about the bread. Obviously. Just avoid this place. I had to give a one star.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Had the best calzone and angel hair pasta ever! The meatballs were delicious as well. To finish an incredible dinner, we indulged in the creme brulee. Fantastic!!! Thank you John.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I ordered Uber eats but called before and he helped me get the gluten free. My complaint is the pasta was NOT cooked enough. It was definitely not just adente but too hard/ underooked. Disappointing! Gf pasta is made from rice so it really needs to be cooked well or it is like eating undercooked rice. And they charged me extra for this undercooked gluten-free pasta. Also it was swimming in alfredo so I'd suggest less cream sauce. See photo, which is mostly just cream sauce, and this is after I poured some of it off initially. Nice gentleman on the phone, though!

Dietary restrictions: If you order the gluten free penne or fettuccine, make sure you ask them to cook it well because rice pasta takes longer to cook than wheat.

Food: 2

Service: 3

A small unassuming place in a strip mall. I ordered the Chicken Marsala and it was fabulous! The real deal! I've had marsala at many other restaurants in Sarasota, and they were terrible. Many were sent back. This, however, is authentic and delicious! Tender meat, plentiful sauce and yummy. The best!

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: Veal Marsala, Fried Eggplant Parmesan

UPDATE: returned for another trip 2 years later and it’s even better than before. If you’re considering stopping by, DO IT! And have a fun chat with the delightful owner! Great NY style pizza, amazing eggplant parm, crab cakes delicious. Everything was 10/10!We are visiting from NC.... usually don't write reviews but have to say this is the BEST Alfredo sauce we have EVER tried. It is so creamy and flavorful. Loved it. Try the Fettuccini Alfredo.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Lasagna, Fried Eggplant Parmesan, Cheese Pizza