Found Dino's on a whim (thanks to Google Maps) today looking for a spot to eat after getting at the zoo. Really nice place and good food. Am glad we found it.
Donny Henderson
Great Italian food, great service, just seems like they they close to early to be a great place
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Debisree Ray
This family-owned Italian gem has been a local favorite for years. It’s not trendy or flashy—just a cozy, old-school eatery with a welcoming vibe. We kicked things off with ravioli and mozzarella sticks, both classic and satisfying.
If you’re visiting on a Thursday, be prepared for a crowd—their all-you-can-eat spaghetti deal is a big draw (and they don’t take reservations that day). I went for the spaghetti with meatballs, which felt like a warm, home-cooked meal—simple, comforting, and no-frills.
For dessert, we sampled the tiramisu, cannoli, and key lime cake. They were decent but didn’t quite steal the show.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
Alissa “Lady Carizza” Rice
So I want to start off by saying that my mestball sub was excellent. I can tell the meatballs and sauce are made from scratch (I'm an Italian originally from NY). However, my husband ordered the turkey club and the amount of meat on the sandwich was equivalent to what I'd make for a small child. I attached a photo so you can see what I mean. There was more tomatoes on the sandwich than meat. The food itself does taste great and this review is in no way putting down the actual food itself; we were just bummed that the portion was so small for the turkey club.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Leslie Luther-Fulton
When you go to a little restaurant like Dino’s, part of what you go for is the experience. Dino’s has good food. Dino’s has a very lovely wait staff. Dino has a fascinating back room with all sorts of World War II memorabilia. Unfortunately, what Dino’s also has is an exceptionally rude night manager.
Dino’s advertises a Thursday night special of all you can eat spaghetti. Clear as day on their menu with no exceptions listed anywhere. However, for some reason this night manager refused to honor that special because we had 15 people in our party. Not because we had 15 people planning to order that special, mind you, but simply because we had 15 people in our party. And when he was asked why, he was rude, condescending, and arbitrary and had no logical explanation. He just didn’t like us because we were a large party.
We explained that not all 15 people wanted to order the special. It didn’t matter. They wouldn’t even allow just the one very elderly gentleman in our party to order the special. Just one individual, but he still would not allow it because the entire party was comprised of 15 people Even when we offered to split the tables up this manager was unwilling to compromise because, as he put it, “I still know you a party of 15.”
When he was told that the older gentleman, who is a regular customer, would be disappointed, his only response was “I’m sure he’s been told no before“.
He tried to tell us it was because he did not have enough spaghetti made. But if we had come in on three tables of five, it would’ve still been 15 people so that honestly does not make sense. Unfortunately, he continued to argue by telling us that if we had called in advance they might’ve been able to accommodate us. However, they do not take reservations so that logic is flawed.
We were not disrespectful group and did not arrive close to closing, so I am not sure why this person was so nasty to us. What I do know is that it’s an absolute shame that he does not understand how much future business he has lost for this restaurant. There are not a lot of things in this world that I can control, but where I spend my money is absolutely one of them, and I won’t be spending it at Dino’s again.
Bobby Tubbs
My wife and I have been coming here for a few years now yesterday she ordered chicken fettucine alfredo the chicken was dried out and tough the muffeleta i ordered the bread was tough &the olive salad was not up to par the sausage and gravy was very good
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 5
Amy Jones
If I wanted microwave food I could have stayed home. Pathetic.
Alan Herbers
Very nice staff. Restaurant has a lot of family related WW II memorabilia. Very interesting for history buffs.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Toasted Ravioli with Meat Sauce, Italian Spinach, Garlic Bread
Kenner “Kenner” Kenner
A REAL ITALIAN RESTAURANT!!!!
Elizabeth Keltz
Finally went here after driving by it for years. We stopped in for lunch last Sunday. Service was quick. The sauce was so good! This reminds me of the small Italian eateries I went to with my grandparents in upstate NY. I'll definitely be back.
Love this neighborhood grill. I recently found out the owner is from Lucca Italy which is the same as my family so it feels like home even more.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spaghetti and Meatballs, Tiramisu, Sandwich
Michael Hernandez
Great Italian food, very fresh.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Garlic Toast, Chicken Parmesan, Club Sandwich, Sandwich
Keith Young
Nice, little quaint neighborhood Italian restaurant that is conveniently located in Midtown - in the Evergreen District (right down the street from the zoo). It's nothing fancy as they have mismatch booths & chairs & tables, but to me that's part of the charm. The food and service are always consistently good with plenty of flavor & options to choose from. I've enjoyed the chicken parm, grilled chicken salad, ravioli and a few other items. The only negative I will say is some of seats in the booths needs some work to fix them up, as you feel like you could almost fall through them.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Larisa
Been going to Dino’s since I was a child with my extended family who lived in Midtown right around the corner from the restaurant on Lyndale.
My husband and I planned to come to the area and have dinner so I called to confirm I could pick up some frozen ravioli and gravy for my family who have lived around the corner from Dinos since the 60s for Christmas Eve and occasions. A family member is near her last days and it would be a treat for her and her caregivers. I was told it was fine to order it when we ordered our dinner.
When we arrived we were informed we needed to order the ravioli 2 days in advance. Was told we could order the gravy. Well we didn’t need the gravy if we didn’t have the ravioli.
Very disappointed. Do better.
Larry Gruner
I started eating with the Dino’s family from back in the 1960’s when they had the State Cafe on Beale St. My family has been loyal fans of Dino’s since they purchased it. I could have chosen any restaurant in Memphis to celebrate my 70th birthday but when it comes to Italian food there’s no better food in town than Dino’s Grill. Their spaghetti sauce “gravy” is bar none the best in town and possibly best I’ve had in this country. The eggplant parmigiana is delicious along with the raviolis both toasted and served in their gravy. We had about 25 people and everyone had a choice of their delightful Italian or house salads spaghetti and meatballs, eggplant or chicken parmigiana, ravioli and gravy served toasted ravioli for appetizers and including drinks came out to about $22 /person. The waitress did an exceptional job getting the orders and serving us. Rudy and Mario Grisanti I can’t thank you enough for the hospitality and the delicious meal.
Vegetarian options: Italian salad is out of this world along with the eggplant parmigiana. Ricotta Cheese stuffed shells are delicious. Al lunch they do serve fresh veggies just about every day.
Kid-friendliness: My grandkids love this place and the lemonade plus the spaghetti.
Wheelchair accessibility: We had one member of the party in a wheelchair and since most of the parking is along the street or a parking lot behind the building it made easy access to wheel them in the front door and up the ramp to our room in the restaurant.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spaghetti and Meatballs, New Orleans Style Muffaletta, Toasted Ravioli with Meat Sauce, Garlic Toast, Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo, Stuffed Shells and Ravioli, Chicken Parmesan, Spaghetti with Meatballs and Spaghetti with Sausage, Toasted Ravioli, Veal Parmesan, Chicken Alfredo
Found Dino's on a whim (thanks to Google Maps) today looking for a spot to eat after getting at the zoo. Really nice place and good food. Am glad we found it.
Great Italian food, great service, just seems like they they close to early to be a great place
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This family-owned Italian gem has been a local favorite for years. It’s not trendy or flashy—just a cozy, old-school eatery with a welcoming vibe. We kicked things off with ravioli and mozzarella sticks, both classic and satisfying.
If you’re visiting on a Thursday, be prepared for a crowd—their all-you-can-eat spaghetti deal is a big draw (and they don’t take reservations that day). I went for the spaghetti with meatballs, which felt like a warm, home-cooked meal—simple, comforting, and no-frills.
For dessert, we sampled the tiramisu, cannoli, and key lime cake. They were decent but didn’t quite steal the show.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
So I want to start off by saying that my mestball sub was excellent. I can tell the meatballs and sauce are made from scratch (I'm an Italian originally from NY). However, my husband ordered the turkey club and the amount of meat on the sandwich was equivalent to what I'd make for a small child. I attached a photo so you can see what I mean. There was more tomatoes on the sandwich than meat. The food itself does taste great and this review is in no way putting down the actual food itself; we were just bummed that the portion was so small for the turkey club.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
When you go to a little restaurant like Dino’s, part of what you go for is the experience. Dino’s has good food. Dino’s has a very lovely wait staff. Dino has a fascinating back room with all sorts of World War II memorabilia. Unfortunately, what Dino’s also has is an exceptionally rude night manager. Dino’s advertises a Thursday night special of all you can eat spaghetti. Clear as day on their menu with no exceptions listed anywhere. However, for some reason this night manager refused to honor that special because we had 15 people in our party. Not because we had 15 people planning to order that special, mind you, but simply because we had 15 people in our party. And when he was asked why, he was rude, condescending, and arbitrary and had no logical explanation. He just didn’t like us because we were a large party. We explained that not all 15 people wanted to order the special. It didn’t matter. They wouldn’t even allow just the one very elderly gentleman in our party to order the special. Just one individual, but he still would not allow it because the entire party was comprised of 15 people Even when we offered to split the tables up this manager was unwilling to compromise because, as he put it, “I still know you a party of 15.” When he was told that the older gentleman, who is a regular customer, would be disappointed, his only response was “I’m sure he’s been told no before“. He tried to tell us it was because he did not have enough spaghetti made. But if we had come in on three tables of five, it would’ve still been 15 people so that honestly does not make sense. Unfortunately, he continued to argue by telling us that if we had called in advance they might’ve been able to accommodate us. However, they do not take reservations so that logic is flawed. We were not disrespectful group and did not arrive close to closing, so I am not sure why this person was so nasty to us. What I do know is that it’s an absolute shame that he does not understand how much future business he has lost for this restaurant. There are not a lot of things in this world that I can control, but where I spend my money is absolutely one of them, and I won’t be spending it at Dino’s again.
My wife and I have been coming here for a few years now yesterday she ordered chicken fettucine alfredo the chicken was dried out and tough the muffeleta i ordered the bread was tough &the olive salad was not up to par the sausage and gravy was very good
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 5
If I wanted microwave food I could have stayed home. Pathetic.
Very nice staff. Restaurant has a lot of family related WW II memorabilia. Very interesting for history buffs.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Toasted Ravioli with Meat Sauce, Italian Spinach, Garlic Bread
A REAL ITALIAN RESTAURANT!!!!
Finally went here after driving by it for years. We stopped in for lunch last Sunday. Service was quick. The sauce was so good! This reminds me of the small Italian eateries I went to with my grandparents in upstate NY. I'll definitely be back.
Restaurantji Recommends
Love this neighborhood grill. I recently found out the owner is from Lucca Italy which is the same as my family so it feels like home even more.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spaghetti and Meatballs, Tiramisu, Sandwich
Great Italian food, very fresh.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Garlic Toast, Chicken Parmesan, Club Sandwich, Sandwich
Nice, little quaint neighborhood Italian restaurant that is conveniently located in Midtown - in the Evergreen District (right down the street from the zoo). It's nothing fancy as they have mismatch booths & chairs & tables, but to me that's part of the charm. The food and service are always consistently good with plenty of flavor & options to choose from. I've enjoyed the chicken parm, grilled chicken salad, ravioli and a few other items. The only negative I will say is some of seats in the booths needs some work to fix them up, as you feel like you could almost fall through them.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Been going to Dino’s since I was a child with my extended family who lived in Midtown right around the corner from the restaurant on Lyndale.
My husband and I planned to come to the area and have dinner so I called to confirm I could pick up some frozen ravioli and gravy for my family who have lived around the corner from Dinos since the 60s for Christmas Eve and occasions. A family member is near her last days and it would be a treat for her and her caregivers. I was told it was fine to order it when we ordered our dinner.
When we arrived we were informed we needed to order the ravioli 2 days in advance. Was told we could order the gravy. Well we didn’t need the gravy if we didn’t have the ravioli.
Very disappointed. Do better.
I started eating with the Dino’s family from back in the 1960’s when they had the State Cafe on Beale St. My family has been loyal fans of Dino’s since they purchased it. I could have chosen any restaurant in Memphis to celebrate my 70th birthday but when it comes to Italian food there’s no better food in town than Dino’s Grill. Their spaghetti sauce “gravy” is bar none the best in town and possibly best I’ve had in this country. The eggplant parmigiana is delicious along with the raviolis both toasted and served in their gravy. We had about 25 people and everyone had a choice of their delightful Italian or house salads spaghetti and meatballs, eggplant or chicken parmigiana, ravioli and gravy served toasted ravioli for appetizers and including drinks came out to about $22 /person. The waitress did an exceptional job getting the orders and serving us. Rudy and Mario Grisanti I can’t thank you enough for the hospitality and the delicious meal.
Vegetarian options: Italian salad is out of this world along with the eggplant parmigiana. Ricotta Cheese stuffed shells are delicious.
Al lunch they do serve fresh veggies just about every day.
Kid-friendliness: My grandkids love this place and the lemonade plus the spaghetti.
Wheelchair accessibility: We had one member of the party in a wheelchair and since most of the parking is along the street or a parking lot behind the building it made easy access to wheel them in the front door and up the ramp to our room in the restaurant.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Spaghetti and Meatballs, New Orleans Style Muffaletta, Toasted Ravioli with Meat Sauce, Garlic Toast, Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo, Stuffed Shells and Ravioli, Chicken Parmesan, Spaghetti with Meatballs and Spaghetti with Sausage, Toasted Ravioli, Veal Parmesan, Chicken Alfredo
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