28 Best Italian Restaurants near Madeira

“Outstanding pasta and pizza and the bakery breads are even better. It’s the best bread I’ve ever had anywhere? Game changer bread! You gotta try it…“

“Excellent service and the food was great! Definitely a go to place for a casual meal.“

“The food is amazing, they have a large wine and spirt offering. The staff are always courteous, knowledgeable and very accommodating. Casual dining with an upscale feel.“

“We ate at Caruso’s for the first time July 3, 2024. My wife and I thought our meals were 5 star, delicious! She had the Chicken Marsala and I had the Rigatoni Rustica. We asked our waiter Sam for his recommendations and we’re so glad we took his advice. Best Italian dishes we’ve ever enjoyed. We can’t wait to return with good friends. Excellent! Denny & Barb G.“

“It was our first time there and they had amazing food, great staff!!! We will definitely come back Again and would highly recommend them!!!“

“Ashley helped us with a gift card fiasco(Something called Feeding America). It was Mother's Day and very crowded. She spent time with us even though she was needed elsewhere. SO IMPRESSED! We definitely will be back. BTW food was excellent!“

“Food is so good! Tried the new avocado chop salad today and it's my new fave!“

“Norwood Piada is one of the best locations in Cincinnati!“

“I don’t usually care to leave reviews, but if you are looking for something quick and healthy with excellent service, this Piada in Deerfield is the place to go.

It is my favorite restaurant. I go here so often the employees call me by my name and know my typical order. Specifically, the two male employees who work the line are incredibly friendly. Whatever they are being paid is not enough! I am always greeted with a smile and my order is always perfect.

The food is amazing, I usually get a custom salmon salad. The ingredients are fresh and taste great. Some say it’s expensive, but you can’t put a price on your health and it’s so hard to find restaurants with healthy food that’s quick to order.

10/10“

“We went here because was close to the hospital. Used to go to olive garden. Never again. Carrabbas is top notch from top down!“

“First, long time drivebyer, first time diners. This is multi fold. 1) I recommend Padrino 100%. A surprise destination for Monday as “marinara night”. 2) Grace is one of the nicest, personable, and best servers I can say I’ve had in recent memory. After telling her that we had never been and how we typically order food when we go out, she walked us through every page of the menu and asked pertinent questions like “hey do you guys want apps tonight?” After we talked we thought maybe we should try a pasta, hoagie, and a pizza. She provided suggestions for each of those sections and we took her up from her list. I saw an employee of the _____, not sure if it was month, day, week, or what, or if she’s had it before, but she definitely deserves it! Which brings us to… 3) FOOD! Not only that, but PRICE!!! I will preface this as if nobody picked up on our “try some of a lot of things” and then have leftovers for the next day approach which has been illustrated above, but I’d say what we got was SUBSTANTIAL for what we spent. Heck, screw the dollars, let’s talk about flavor! Pasta: Vodka Tortellini, and she recommended we each get a garlic knot to finish off the sauce. I can’t give a fair shake to the knots because I just couldn’t eat anymore, but boy did they look and smell delicious. But the pasta? Shoo Sammie: Padrino Club. Sure it sounded and probably gets viewed as basic, which it was way more than basic thanks to their garlic aioli to top it off. And go with Grace, swap for the Parmesan fries! I’m not usually one for fries anymore but golly…. Parm fries for the win (I’ll say they’re at fault for me not making it to a knot) And finally Pizza: again our quests of trying a lot we were told we could split a large between specialities and we did. The choices: Chef’s Forte and Drunken Goat. I can safely say I’d expect any of their pizzas to be delicious based off trying these two. The veggies part on the Forte were SO big and noticeable and delicious and cooked to perfection. Will we be back? 100%“

“Great food, great atmosphere loved our dinner there“

“We went to Buca today and our food came out so quickly after ordering and was delicious! Our waiter, Griffin, was wonderful and answered all the questions we had with delight. 10/10 would recommend.“

“Our server was fantastic... and thr food was phenominal... i am not a fan of spinich and artichoke dip but theirs is fire!!!

Kid-friendliness: I saw a kid there so i guess

Wheelchair accessibility: They have handicap parking and a ramp“

“UPDATED REVIEW: 4-30-25 Dining Experience

The traveling manager, Justin, reached out and invited me back in to try Forno again. This visit was spectacular from service (Maiya was amazing!) to the entire meal and after! We got the Burrata appetizer and a delicious saffron ball appetizer to start. Then, we got the half and half pasta bolognese and wild boar which were full of flavor! We also got a bottle of wine half off for ‘Wine Down Wednesday’! Thank you for reaching back out to make up for the prior birthday visit debacle. I would highly recommend Forno to anyone and also insist that you try their ‘Pope’s Chocolate Salame’ dessert because it is, without a doubt, the best dessert I’ve ever had. You won’t be disappointed!

Original review from my birthday dinner in November of 2024:

Dined with a party of 6 at Forno for my birthday (also noted on the reservation) and was very excited since it was my first time here and the reviews were anything short of wonderful!

I’ll start with what was slightly disappointing and end on a high note:

We were sat by a friendly host and were then introduced to our server. He did not ask if we were celebrating anything nor did he wish me a happy birthday. We were treated as any regular table (which is fine, I did not ask nor expect any “special” treatment). I suppose I was just hoping for a simple “happy birthday!!” enthusiastic verbal recognition or a candle in my dessert (that we were happy to and did pay for). I mean, hey, who doesn’t want a candle or someone to wish them happy birthday?

We had a pretty substantial bill so it wasn’t that we had hardly ordered anything. I will chalk it up to the restaurant being busy during this time. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a bit disappointing and my friends also commented that he didn’t even say happy birthday or give a candle.

The food was good. I liked my dish and my partner said his was decent. Other feedback from members in my party were “delicious! I want to try another dish now too but I am too full!” and “maybe a bit too salty for my tastes but otherwise good!”

The dessert salami was what blew me away, I wish I could order the entire thing (loaf?) of it, ha!

Not sure I would return to celebrate anniversary or anything, but maybe for a casual meal.“

“Chicken and steamed broccoli (+ salad and bread sticks)
Waitress forgot marinara sauce for side order of meatballs.
Wrong salad dressing.

Wheelchair accessibility: Handicap parking is completely full during peak hours.“

“Gabbys and their owners recently held a dinner benefit for one of their former employees and chef with 30+ years experience. The hospitality by the team, the welcome we received and the support from their employees was excellent. In a world where community means alot, consider supporting small businesses who support others. I'll definitely make the drive to visit here during normal operation.“

“The entrance delivers luxury and elegance. Hostess was very inviting and friendly! A live performance was also showcased at the front of the restaurant. A pianist played beautifully throughout the evening.

Heads up to first time guests- parking is ONLY valet or you need to find parking out on street with a meter.

We went to celebrate our anniversary and they made us feel so special. We were brought two glasses of champagne (which was delicious!) by our server as she greeted us.

Our server was wonderful! She had great recommendations and was so kind. Also very prompt and on top of everything!

There was a lady I’m unsure of her status. But she helped clean up a table (possibly supervisor? ) and she was speaking down to a young bus boy. To me it appeared to be a language barrier and that made my husband and I uncomfortable to see.

Let’s get to the food!
We started with Brussel Sprouts which were delicious! Highly recommend trying. The soft Gorgonzola dulce was such a nice compliment to the saltiness of the pancetta and perfectly seasoned Brussel sprouts.

For dinner entree my husband had the butternut squash risotto and I had NY strip that was paired with Potatoes.

Hands down the risotto is one of the best dishes I have had. Compliments to the chef on putting together such a fantastic dish. Sweetness paired with a subtle hints of pesto. This is one of those dishes you’re going to crave and will have to go back specifically for.

The Ny strip wasn’t special by any means. $57 I was expecting to be wowed. Overcooked, charred and lacked flavor that I was hoping for. The risotto coming in around $20 was the winner of the night. My husband and I both ate from it and it was enough.

We really enjoyed our evening! Again, the atmosphere was wonderful. So elegant and inviting. The service was fantastic. Our server was just amazing. We felt so welcomed and highly recommend the Brussels the risotto.“

“great food. my grandson loved it“

“Great service awesome atmosphere but food (we ordered) a bit underwhelming. Appetizers were good, so was the burger we were told by a member of our party but our two Italian dishes were a bit one or two dimensional. But id go back to try something else for sure.“

“It was Easter, and there were many tables with large groups. We, in fact, had eleven in our group. The servers were super busy, but our server, Tyler, was so nice, patient and working super hard to satisfy all the large tables he was serving, that we didn't really mind that it took a little longer than normal to finish our meal.“

“The food was absolutely delicious!! I had the seafood Alfredo (shrimp and scallops). I loved it!! It was very filling and I have enough for another meal. Our waitress was very kind and patient with our fairly large group (9, including 4 kids ages from 4-9). It was a wonderful birthday celebration with my family!!“

“LOVE this place! The food, the drinks, the atmosphere! They have the best espresso martini ever! After dinner dessert drink! TRY IT!“

“Cincinnati Pizza Week brought us here! Fiancé has high standards for Italian food and loved the red sauce on the pizza. Food was great. Wedge was the best wedge salad I’ve ever had and HUGE! Restaurant is decorated lovely and smells like Italy. Service, however, was disappointing. Host stand is at the other end of the entrance. Unless there’s a different entrance we didn’t know about- but didn’t see any signs stating otherwise. Host didn’t greet and rather went to the table and pointed for me to come to the table rather than walking us there. Table was hardly cleaned and food on the table cloth. Not a single person came to our table to greet us for almost 15 min. Server didn’t apologize for us waiting. Server hardly came by to check after food came out or would do so when walking by, not stopping to check on us. I wanted a bowl for the wedge salad. It was huge so hard to eat on the plate but she didn’t stop long enough for me to tell her and I had to blag someone else down. Al thought it was Pizza Week, I would’ve expected it to be busy but business didn’t seem busy and had several tables to expect this kind of service. Maybe she was just having a bad day.“

“We recently attended a private "pop up" dinner here. The home made pasta dishes were absolutely delicious and the best pasta that I have experienced outside of Italy. All meal courses were wonderful and unique. The chef has a true gift. The service was friendly and efficient. We will definitely return!“

“Was in town for the weekend and stumbled upon Pompilios. We were pleasantly suprised how good our meals were! The homemade Italian dressing was one of the best I’ve had.“

“Y’all, Francesca is the best. These are the best croissants I have had in Cincy, and some of the best coffee. I came in to pick up a birthday cake and Francesca spoke with me in Italian and was so, so kind and generous. Definitely go see this place.“

“Absolutely delicious pizza and garlic rolls! We ate there for the first time today and loved it.“