Johnny Carinos Italian Restaurant

I must say, I was a bit hyped about going back to Johnny Carinos (Durham, NC), I hadn't been in a while, and I thought that it would be a nice treat for the kids. I thought this because the last time we went, the waiter treated them fabulously, and my husband and me as well. This time it was just myself and the kiddies, and things started off down hill and continued that way. First their drinks were seltzer water, and the waitress seem annoyed that they wanted another flavor, and didn't want to stick with Sprite. They gave us old menus, and then advised me to order something from the menu that had not yet been revised for my son, which was suppose to be a very similar meal to the ravioli that he had wanted from the old menu, and I said ok. She forgot to mention that the price was VERY different, and he ended up not liking it anyway. No one stopped by ONCE to ask how everything was going until were were practically packing up and ready to go. I was suppose to have continuous bread with my lunch item, I had to flag someone down and ask for it, since no one really came by. There was plates and other items on our table that I had to ask to have removed, I would have thought that they would have picked up on that themselves. But, if they can't remember to bring bread, why would they take away dirty dishes? One person took the order, another person gave my son and daugther the grated cheese, and yet another person brought out their new sodas. I had no clue who our waitress was, but that's really unimportant since not ONE of them seemed to care that much about customer service. This was DEFINITELY not a lunch served with a smile. We DO NOT plan to visit again. I do understand that this is my opinion and my opinion only, however I am sad to say that this is what we were greeted with on our last and final visit. more

Sure, it's chain Italian. But if you're the sort of person who always hates chains, there's nothing I can say to change that. If you visited the Brier Creek location when they first opened, the bread has changed in the past six months to year, but it's still good. It's more of an herb loaf now. I have gotten mixed service from time to time, but I keep going back because I love the food. So many restaurants are afraid to use any actual seasoning, but the spicy marinara never fails to actually be spicy! When I need a heart attack on a plate, I go for the Five Meat Country Pasta. When I want something healthier, the Lemon Rosemary Chicken (comes with veggies on the side) does a good job. When I want to confuse my waiter, I order my real favorite - Chicken Milano, but with marinara instead of alfredo. The result is similar to chicken parm, but with grilled chicken instead of the breaded and fried chicken used for their actual chicken parm dish. more

I usually don't like chain restaurants, but I didn't find much to dislike about Johnny Carino's. They give you bread that you can dip into olive oil that has roasted garlic in it, and that's pretty tasty. The menu isn't very innovative, but their food is pretty good - I especially like their pasta with bacon tomato sauce. The desserts aren't worth writing home about, but they're passable. Service can be a tad bit too eager, but that seems to be a general problem with a lot of restaurants. more

Johnny Carino's is so fabulous we can't get enough. The food is outstanding, the portions are large, and the prices are reasonable. Check out lunch time as it is usually less crowded, the prices are much cheaper and the portions--the same as dinner time!! They give you warm Italian bread with olive oil dipping sauce as you wait and that alone, is a meal. The atmostphere is so inviting and waitstaff is friendly and knowledgeable. Dessert is so good and so big!! We love this restaurant and take people there often! more