Cannoli Joe's

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4715 Hwy 290 W
Austin, TX 78745

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(512) 892-4444
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Cannoli Joe's - Austin, TX
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( 15 )
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( 9 )

Best

It looked beautiful from the outside and the inside. When we first arrived we were taken for a tour and explained what was what and I thought that was very nice. No restaurant h...

Worst

I had been waiting to try out this restaurant since it opened, once I had the oppurtunity however, I wished that I hadn't. The atmosphere was great and the wait staff was very fr...

Editorial review from Citysearch 10/13/2013

Their pizza is made with only with the freshest ingredients; you'll taste the difference. Their rustic presentation is playful, and pleasing to the eyes. more

Editorial review from Citysearch 1/17/2013

I rate this place the best buffet in Austin. I loved pretty much every single thing they had. So many great flavors! Why had I never tried this place before? Because of all of these horribly misleading reviews. I thought the place would be a real dump. It's actually very nice inside, certainly as nice as Buca's. I went 20 minutes before closing expecting less than their best food. The desserts here are awesome, seem very authentic. The meatballs are perfect, not too spicy, and plenty lean (i.e. perfect). I barely had enough room in my stomach to try a little of everything that looked appealing. The service was average to above average. The people were all friendly. There were not many people there and I'd say it's a little easy to get lost in the place, frankly. I left thinking to myself that I had not experienced nearly as decadent of a buffet in Austin ever, and outside of Austin, not since I had been to either buffet at the Rio in Las Vegas. Several kinds of lasagna were all awesome including the vegetable. All of it was warm except for one thing, the spaghetti with tomato sauce. The coffee ice cream seemed gourmet Italian (not your average coffee ice cream). The chocolate cheesecake was grand. Salads were plentiful to choose from; especially loved the mushroom salad. I cannot believe anybody who really loves Italian food couldn't find a number of things they really enjoyed here. I must say, my hat is off and I will be returning! What a great value too, $8.99 for lunch or dinner! Look out Austin! more

FRIENDS DON'T LET FRIENDS EAT @ CANNOLI JOE'S. 12/11/2011

I just got home from eating at this place with some friends for the first time. A waste of money. I'm so dissatisfied. My son and I ate a little of everything on the buffet and didn't like any of it. It costs too much. I really regret eating here and spending money on food that was gross. Pay no attention to the good reviews. They must be employees of this restaurant trying to keep their jobs. more

Dissapointing.. 6/25/2011

I'm an American of Italian ancestory. I Went for my first time this evening at 5pm. I wanted to get there when it just opened. The building was very attractive in a good location. The inside smelled very appetizing and the decor was great...very Italian. I thought I had found a keeper I sampled everything that was available and there was a great amount of food. My party and myself all came to the same conclusion. None of the dishes tasted Italian. The flavors were all wrong and some tasted nasty! They looked Italian, however the flavors were all wrong. Only the garlic bread was done right. I think the cooks are not really cooks at all. Perhaps they are the dishwashers doing double duty. I was told that one of the owners was to Italy to be trained, If that is true why isn't he teaching the help how to cook? I'm sorry I can't say more on a positive note. well I gave it a try, nothing wrong with giving things a chance. Unfortunately, I will not go back again. (Once fooled shame on you, Twice fooled shame on me.) Buon Appetito more

Great food at affordable prices 6/20/2011

Cindy93 Provided by Partner
most everything was yummy! the exceptions were the stuffed mushroom caps (which usually are great but were little rocks) and the calamari which wa... more

Far from fine Italian food!!! 11/8/2010

It was 6 of us that went there to eat last night. Friday night at 8 pm. The place was like a ghost town!! The food was not impressive at all!! More like cheap italian frozen dinner!!! Nothing fine food about this place!!!!!! Disappointed!! more

Great food at a great place. 10/4/2009

It looked beautiful from the outside and the inside. When we first arrived we were taken for a tour and explained what was what and I thought that was very nice. No restaurant has ever explained to me what was where on their buffet. But I guess no restaurant I have ever been to has had such a large only Italian buffet. I read some of the reviews for this restaurant after I came back and don't agree with the negative ones. I might not be Italian but I have traveled A LOT and tried Italian food at many places. I felt Cannoli Joe's could give strong competition to any other good Italian restaurant. I can understand how some people might think its pricey as I paid $15.99 for the weekend night buffet. I thought that price was fine for the amount of variety they offered. I would think this the price I would pay at any other good Italian restaurant. Each dish was cooked with a lot of thought and was served just at the right temperature. And there was a large variety even for my vegetarian sister. From 6 different types of salads, to 6 different types of pizza, to 10 diff types of pasta from baked stuff to grilled stuff. And not to forget the ice-creams and the desserts. Everything was just right. I might not have liked a few things but that is because I just don't like zucchini for instance and not because it tasted bad. The only bad experience I had at this place was that I thought the hostess was slightly rude to my friend but I'll just give her the benefit of doubt thinking that she might have been busy. However the guy who waited on us was friendly, nice and very respectful. Overall I had a great time and completely enjoyed the food and I would go back there anytime and would recommend this place to all my friends. Pros: Lots and lots of variety :) Cons: I had to think for a few mins but I couldn't think of any! more

Plenty of great food for a picky vegetarian 8/22/2009

If you are a vegetarian or just someone that loves vegetables and healthy eating, I love that I have LOTS of choices. Absolutely try the Alfredo pizza with spinach. As someone that is ""high maintenance"" (husband's words, not mine), it is great to be able to get a spoonful of this and mix it with a big serving of that. The place reminds me of a cruise or a really great Vegas casino. Definitely check it out. Jeanne Pros: Truly gourmet dishes; sample a taste and then go back more

Cannoli Joe's is the BEST 6/21/2009

There food is very very good. The have a great all you can eat buffet and a excellent dessert buffet. If you r in the mood for italian food i reccomend Cannoli Joes cuz they r great!!! 8D Pros: best italian food ever Cons: a little pricie more

If you don't love this place you're crazy 6/18/2009

We have eaten Italian food all over the world and I can tell you that Cannoli Joe's is Real and Authentic. I wish they would build one out North but until then we will drive to South Austin because the price and quality are unmatched in Austin. Pros: Everything is fresh and the menu seems to always be evolving Cons: We live too far North more

Great Italian Buffet Restraurant 6/16/2009

Cindy93 Provided by Partner
The food is fresh, the selection refreshingly varied. They have some healthy options on the buffet for the those watching their waistlines and tho... more

If your wanting real Gourmet Italian food ...it's not here 4/13/2009

All we can say is wow ......we paid about $14 a person for what we thought was going to be a good all you can eat buffett and ended up eating maybe 1/8 of the food we got on our first and only plate before deciding that it wasn't very good at all. Most of the food was very bland and the food that did have flavor tasted like it had been sitting out for a few hours ....cold and rubber like. Complained to the manager and he still made us pay for half of the meal even though we didn't eat it . Needless to say we will never go back ....and do not recommend this place to anyone that wants a good dinner or lunch. I'd rather drive north to Buca di Beppo and know that I am going to enjoy the food than try to swallow the ""Gourmet ""sludge from this place again . Our first clue should have been the lack of cars in the parking lot at 6:30-7 pm Pros: all you can eat .... Cons: buffett style cafeteria food more

Good Food 2/22/2009

I enjoyed food at this restaurant. Not that expensive for the buffet setting. Service has been always good. more

Way overhyped 11/6/2008

I'm surprised at all the positive reviews for Cannoli Joe's. I drive by it all the time and have been wanting to visit for a while now, as I love good ol' Italian comfort food. I was wildly disappointed. The service was very good, both the hostess and the waiter were attentive, friendly, and helpful. But the food was not good. I am a vegetarian, so I did not try any of the meat dishes, but I tried everything else that they had and it just wasn't good. The worst part was that all of it was cold and had definitely been sitting out for a while. I went toward the end of their lunch time, but still, if your whole concept involves a buffet style spread, you need to find a way to keep the food at least slightly warm! The mozzarella sticks would have been good if they had been warm, and there was a white spinach and mushroom pizza that also would have been good if warm, but they weren't good cold. The salads, which should have been cold, were not, and they were soggy and the dressings were clearly from a giant jar. Basically all of the food tasted like cafeteria Italian--overcooked pasta, bland sauces, and glue like texture. Even the breadsticks were bad--half the ones on offer hadn't been cooked all the way through, and all of the garlic bread in both baskets had been overcooked and was hard as rocks. Pros: You can try a lot of different foods Cons: None of them will be satisfying more

MMM.MMM....GOOD!!! 11/3/2008

I just want to say that our waitor was the best. He also works at Golden Coral. Best Italian food in town. more

great service, great food! 11/1/2008

OMG this place is the great. The building alone is awesome and then you walk in and is just as beautiful inside. We were greeted by one of the managers who was friendly and offered us a walk through the restaurant. we were seated and immediately were approached by our waiter who was also really cool. the food was awesome! we will definately be coming back.... great service, great food..... must try more

BUFFET!!!!! 10/6/2008

WE WENT AS A GROUP FROM OUR OFFICE AND WE REALLY LOVED NOT ONLY THE SERVICE BUT THE ATMOSPHERE, I HAVE NEVER REALLY LIKED ITALIAN FOOD THAT MUCH, BUT THESE WERE FOODS THAT I REALLY LOVED, THE FIRE GRILLED PEPPERS AND VEGETABLES, THE SALADS, THE PASTAS AND THE DESSERTS WERE ALL GREAT, I LOVED THEIR FLAVORED TEAS AND AS FOR THE PRICES I DID NOT THINK THAT THEY WERE EXPENSIVE AS MOST OF THE PLACES I HAVE BEEN TO IN AUSTIN ARE TOO HIGHLY PRICED FOR THE VALUE OR TASTE OF THEIR MEALS, I FOUND THAT THIS ONE RESTAURANT IS WORTH THE PRICE (WHICH IS LESS THAN MOST) AND I COULD PICK AND CHOOSE WHAT I WANTED TO EAT....IT WAS DELICIOUS AND I WILL RETURN AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE... Pros: PICK AND CHOOSE WHAT YOU LIKED more

First visit was good 10/2/2008

My husband and I have only eat here once so far. There's plenty of parking and seating. We enjoyed just walking around the restaurant looking at the decor. We could not believe the variety of foods they have to offer on their buffet. It's way too much to try everything during one visit, but we gave it our best shot. Most dishes we found to be good, but there were some that wasn't to our liking. It does costs more than other buffets, but overall we liked our first visit. Pros: Wonderful atmosphere, large food variety Cons: Cost more than the usual buffet more

Fun but spendy 9/15/2008

My husband and I went on a Friday night recently. I went in having low expectations, knowing it was a buffet style restaurant and in my experience this usually means a wide variety of mediocre food, usually overpriced because of all the waste that is taken into account. Keeping that in mind, I wasn't really disappointed. I was actually pleasantly surprised with a lot of the dishes, and I appreciated that the ""chefs"" put out small, fresh quantities of everything instead of enormous troughs. We had fun sampling all the different kinds of food, though there was too much to be able to try it all in one visit. Some of our favorites were pasta dishes, like Rigatoni Primavera, Pasta Rossa, and Fire Roasted Vegetable Lasagna. I also really liked the rotisserie chicken, and the meatloaf with balsamic glaze. Some of the vegetables that stood out were the broccoli limone, the butternut squash, and the summer squash. All the salads where pretty good, and the little mushroom toasts were delicious. more

Mediocre, over priced Italian food 8/8/2008

Mediocre, over priced Italian food. Gave it two chances and won't recommend to anyone. I wouldn't return even if somebody else paid for it.. more
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Menu for Cannoli Joe's


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Austin's Finest Gourmet Italian Feast

Editorial
  • Hearty portions of traditional Italian favorites served at an affordable price.

  • 5/16/2007 Provided by Citysearch
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