50 Best Italian Restaurants near Central Islip

“there customer service is a trip ! been waiting over an hour for a slice when they told me 30 mins. unbelievable this is the last time I will order from here.“

“Amazing pizza and chicken best in town! It tasted all homemade!“

“The food is out of this world. The servers are professional and patient. My husband and I felt great, relaxed and we were able to talk unlike other restaurants that you can't hear people on your table.“

“Yes!, but I have been there a few times all have been great but this last time. The food was salty. I mean every dish. We spoke to manager who was extremely nice. Apologize and did the right thing. But I will go back for sure“

“We had an incredible experience at Luca in Stony Brook! Came with a group of six friends for a family-style dinner, and everything from the service to the food was outstanding.
Our server, Kacey, made the night—she was incredibly attentive, funny, and personable, with spot-on recommendations throughout the meal. The cocktails were excellent, and they helped me find the perfect glass of wine to pair with our dishes.

The menu had something for everyone, including one pescatarian in our group who had plenty of delicious vegetarian and seafood options.

We shared a range of dishes:
First Course: Artichoke & Crab, Summer Squash, Calamari, and Meatballs—each dish was fresh and flavorful.
Second Course: The Squid Ink Agnolotti and Braised Rabbit Paccheri—both unique and beautifully balanced.
Third Course: Lamb Chop, Potato-Crusted Halibut, and the Wagyu Skirt Steak (a daily special)—all cooked perfectly, with layered textures and bold flavors.

The portions were exactly what you'd expect from a restaurant of this caliber—elegant but rich and satisfying. Everyone in our group left with very full (and very happy) bellies. Each of us had a different favorite dish, which says a lot about the variety and quality of the food. Can’t wait to come back!“

“These guys are the best! They make you feel like a king when you walk in and treat you like family! God bless 🇺🇸“

“This is my new favorite spot for Italian!! As a local from KP we had not been back since this was Sal's, but clearly we waited too long.. Saturday night, got seated in 5 min, great service.. Owner checked in, and opened and poured the wine. Food was spot on, and did not wait long. Chicken Valdostana, fantastic, definitely recommend. Ambiance was cozy, not loud and décor had me wanting to book a trip to Tuscany. No time for dessert, but next time I'm ordering a Sambuca. Not pretentious, not over priced, just a great spot that clearly the owner has a lot of pride in. Thanks, we will be back! *Don't write reviews often, but this one is worth getting the word out.“

“Always the best, food is delicious and very consistent, the staff is exceptional.“

“The food is amazing ,every dish. The portions from the appetizers to the meals are above the average restaurant.“

“Food is always fantastic, Service Excellent!“

“I grew up in a 100 percent Italian family and I have to say Nona’s lasagna was the best I’ve ever had in my life. At 58 years old I have had plenty of lasagna. This is my new go to spot for Italian fare.“

“Amazing baked clams!!! Amazing Drinks!!“

“Amazing food Nicest people Very clean Obsessed with their rigatoni rustica Grilled chicken panini Grilled chicken salad French fries and bbq sauce 😋 Yummmmmmm“

“We have been coming for years and never had a bad meal. We love this place and is a staple when we go out or to bring in. It's a hidden gem. I hope nothing happens to it when they put in the apartment building close to train tracks. Service as always is excellent and personal. Benny and his brother Victor always treat us as family. Congratulations Matt you have a great restaurant.“

“Delicious home cooked Italian food. Relaxing warm and cosy atmosphere.“

“Everything ordered was delicious. We were not rushed; our server was excellent. The food was perfect and serving sizes large. We were there to celebrate birthdays, and they even gifted a small bottle of prosecco. We plan on returning soon and have told family/friends about our dinner. It is a wonderful, homey restaurant and well worth it.“

“This place never disappoints. Last night I sat and had a table filled with dishes that were so delicious. Spare ribs were falling off the bone and seasoned to perfection. Steve makes the finest dishes packed with savory goodness. Love the bread and toppings. Their Pesto pasta with broccoli rabe and sausage is amazing and one of my favorites. Quaint place with wonderful service too. I recommend trying each dish ❤️?“

“Not only do me and my family come to eat here all the time, I had my baby shower, my son’s baptism & his first birthday here. Every event hosted here is amazing. The food is incredible and you are treated like family!! Best of the best.“

“Service and staff are excellent. The dinners we had tonight were outstanding! Definitely will be returning for another great night out❤️“

“Love their food. Just not happy with the pizza“

“only complaint was how busy it was and I can totally understand why. everything was amazing steaks and italian food alike. I'm super picky about my food and I was shocked how great everything was. I live an hour away and am already planning my next visit back. my new favorite restaurant. highly recommend“

“It was my first time there. My parents have been there before and suggested we stop for a bite! We tried about five different slices! OMG....the deep dish with pepperoni was AMAZING!! I decided to order a whole tray and take it home! We stopped by around 2:30. They didn't have any table service, so you ordered and brought it to your table. We didn't wait long for our food. The service was friendly. We will be back!! YUMMMMM“

“Friendly service and delicious food.“

“We, thankfully, had a reservation on a Saturday night. We had a spacious table for 4. Brittany was our waitress. She was wonderful. She introduced herself, took our drink orders, gave us time to look over the menu, told us about the specials, was attentive to make sure we had everything we needed and wanted. The appetizers she suggested were delicious. The courses were nicely spaced apart. Each course was cleared from the table before the next course was served. We never felt rushed. The food was excellent. Atmosphere was quiet to enjoy a conversation. We will certainly be returning.

Parking: We used the valet parking.“

“Very good food nice people“

“What a great place, food was wonderful ! And the service was excellent. Brought our out of state family of 10 and every one enjoyed there food and great view of beach and sun set. From delicious appetizers to dessert every bite was delicious.Special thanks to Reily our server she did a great job . Thanks La Casa we will be back! He“

“I have been ordering from them for years. They always deliver a tasty meal for a great price. Sandwiches, pasta or pizza, they have the best food in town!“

“Olive Garden has a few different appetizers, main dishes, and drinks. We tried the shrimp appetiser, and it was amazing. Our main dishes were great as well and so was dessert. This specific location in Bayshore, New York, is so spacious and clean. The service was outstanding, our server was so good, and the manager stopped by a couple of times to make sure we were getting everything we needed. We were really happy all around. Will for sure come back.“

“Service was outstanding!!! Nice atmosphere.. First time there, food was amazing definitely going back..“

“?Emilio is the BEST! He provides such amazing service with a sweet smile on his face!
He is such a nice man!
Their sauce is delicious. They make amazing specialties slices and don't over charge you -like similar pizza places in the area do. I appreciate that very much. I love to get their Vegetable Sicilian slice. It is awesome! Thank you ?!! Kar“

“Staff were very attentive food was delicious nice atmosphere.“

“Great consistent food. Priced very fairly. Great atmosphere. Enjoy seeing Todd O and Richie. It's like the 90s and Sprats. We are just missing Danny S.“

“Just like the golf course this venue is one of the best hidden gems on Long Island! Beautiful room. Great staff. Amazing food. What more could you ask for?“

“This is my fiancé and mine official favorite restaurant of st.James and surrounding areas! Always great food and staff, we have even used their catering and the owner Sal always comes over and says hi! Keep it small and make sure you come to this amazing small business. Skip the sushi and big chain restaurants 😂“

“Ate here for the first time this past Friday 12/6. Walked in and loved the decoration of the interior of the restaurant. We ordered the Crostini for an appetizer, and I got the Mezzelune Al Tartufo and my Fiancee got Strozzapreti Gratinati for our main dishes. For Dessert we got the Apple cake. Our waiter recommended the Apple cinnamon old fashioned. Everything was phenomenal. I can’t wait to go back. They should promote that there is parking in the back so people don’t drive by if their isn’t parking in the front.“

“First time good food nice staff“

“Thank for my roast beef and mashed potato and my buffalo blue pizzas 🍕 yesterday, my husband was so happy I bought his two favorites back to Pennsylvania for him! They travel great and always delicious 😋“

“We had an amazing chicken cutlets sandwich w/mozzarella and tomatos thinly sliced on a hero and the bread was fresh and crunchy on the outside.... we also had a mozzarellas/red peppers/black olives salad.... delicious and the Coffee was so tasty!!!! Both me and my g/f always use sugar in our coffee , but here we didn’t even need it!!!! It was delicious!!!! The crew are so nice!!!! I recommend this place !!!! You could take out or eat in . They have a few tables that you can sit down at... it’s really cute!!!!! Enjoy!!!!!!“

“Every time I go service is fantastic, family style portions are huge and food is fantastic. One of my top five restaurants on L.I. The fried calamari is second to none, Shrimp Parm, linguini w clams, veal chop are all must tries.“

“One of the best authentic Pizza loving, cheezy, perfect crispy doughs I have come across. The stuffed pizzas are stuffed just right, the portions are a nice size, shareable as well. The prices are reasonable and the staff are super friendly. ? Their pizza is delicious dinning in or at home and reheated the next day.“

“The staff and have delicious cannoli“

“After spending an enjoyable Sunday afternoon at the Argyle Theater, we decided to try Restaurante Gemilli and we were not disappointed. The food was delicious, the service was excellent, Gusippe our server was friendly and attentive, the restaurant is immaculately maintained. We started with the hot antipasto, for the entrees we had fresh ravioli in a light tomato sauce and linguine with shimp, clams, calamari and mussels. We finished with a fresh made pastry topped with apple and carmel sauce and a large scoop of vanilla ice cream, and a couple of Cappuccino's. The restaurant has a large parking lot so there is no worry about parking or having to walk any great distance. This restaurant definitely exceeded our expectations.“

“They catered our party and the food was fabulous. Their meatballs are soft and the best we’ve tasted. The trays were filled to the top. The chicken parm, chicken francaise, and pasta dishes were great. Hero was great too. I was a little hesitant hiring them only because I had never used them before. I decided to use them because we had gone there for dinner a few times and loved the meatballs and other dishes (chicken bruschetta for one) and their homemade dipping sauce for their bread. I could be happy with the dipping sauce and bread alone, delicious! We will definitely use them again to cater. They delivered and were right on time.“

“Cosy little place with the Italian vibe you'd expect from a charming Long Island Italian place. It's half traditional slices and half sit down Italian restaurant. The sit down food is great and the pizza is higher level. Not your average corner store.They have a wine selection worthy of this level of Italian cuisine.I always judge Italian restaurants by their eggplant dishes. This one passes the test.Servers are quick and courteous. They always have more people on staff then needed so there's never a wait. At least every time I've been there.I used to go when I grew up a few towns over and it doesn't seem to have changed.Their Sicilian is my go to when it comes to slices. I like their marinara sauce for dipping as well.

Vegetarian options: Pizza and eggplant dishes.

Parking: Always more then enough. The parking lot is huge.

Kid-friendliness: Not kid oriented but definitely kid friendly.

Wheelchair accessibility: It's ground level.“

“Food was delicious and nice presentation!“

“😀This is the third party he has catered for us. Sooo good. Thank you!!“

“Was there with a large group…food was delicious and the wait staff was excellent! Highly recommend…I will return with my family!“

“Hi guys We just wanted to tell you how amazing all the food was we had catered over the weekend!! Wings were 10/10 chicken francese and penne vodka 10/10. Salad and a hero My guests were very pleased 😀 So I told a few people how good you are and the service was amazing Thank you very much 🥳🥳 Liz Girl with the nice truck 🤩“

“This pizzeria restaurant has delicious pies. Marconys has a nice restaurant side. The food is delicious. The owner is from Italy. We’ve been getting our pizza here and decided to cater a few dishes. Let me say , I am extremely picky with eggplant parmigiana. I usually make time consuming dish but I did not have the time. Marcony’s eggplant parm was the best ever. My kids keep raving about it. We also had the chicken franchise that was tender and delicious! We will be ordering here again very soon.“