Lidia's Pittsburgh Pasta

I went to Lidia's for brunch with some friends. We only noticed the buffet was $24, significantly more than we usually would pay for that, after w... more

A haute cuisine chain with an italian flavor. Excellent food, served in courses from very well trained servers. Their brunch is excellent and wou... more

Lidia's offers a wonderful weekend brunch featuring a great selection of their pasta offerings, in addition to other selections, too. Priced at $2... more

I just returned from Lidia's of Pittsburgh. The restuarant is very trendy, though definitely on the loud side. The bread and the interesting spreads in lieu of butter were very good. I ordered the Lasagna Bolognese and frankly I make a better one, this one was flat and in dire need of a little salt - which is not provided on the table. I visited alone and was appalled by the service I received. There were 2 parties going on and the dining room was full, so expected somewhat slow service. I waited 10 minutes before anyone showed up to pour me water and another 10 minutes before my waitress showed up with the menus and asked if I wanted anything to drink. She eventually took my order but that was the last I saw of her. I had a different person deliver the glass of wine I ordered and another one plopped my food on the table. I might have excused this due to the crowd, however as I sat there, I watched 3 tables of couples around me receive very attentive service from the same waitress and others on the wait staff including the host and hostess. Apparently being single at a table in this restaurant makes you invisible. This is truly a shame, I went there during a business trip because I'm a fan of Lidia's cooking shows. I have traveled to many nice restaurants alone over my years of traveling and have never been made to feel this invisible. Go if you have someone to go with - just don't go to Lidia's alone! Pros: Olive and Bean Spread Cons: Poor Servic more

I came to Lidia's on recommendation of doorman at the Hilton. Great food, informed waiter, pleasant service and excellent wine. I had the best lasagna that I've ever eaten! I would return there in a second. My waiter had suggestions and answered questions, the wine steward less so, but still had a good recommendation. My waiter even fixed me up with a few tasty cookies to back to my hotel - big points. Pros: Excellent tasing food Cons: Not enough women waiters more

I enjoyed brunch today with 15 friends at Lidia's today. Lidia's was very accomodating to our group providing friendly and courteous service. Our... more

There were six in our party. Waiter had some training but this must have been his first job. It started with taking a wine order and returning after a long time only to tell us the ""we are out of it:"" No suggestions offered. We ordered a white wine from the house branded labels for $43. It had no body and no finish. It was a wine for someone who doesn't like wine -- no taste. The wine would be an embarrassment if I served it to anyone. Waiter never returned for a second serving of ""insalata 'Casare"" alla Lidia"" even though I tried to get the attention of a ""manager."" The first serving is what I would call a sampling. When everyone else finished I was offered a serving. This was 1.5 hours after our seating. Everyone had finished their meals. I declined under these circumstances. Three of the six at our table liked how their food was prepared. Overall I think the staff is inexperienced, under trained and under managed. It's hard to ruin my day, but they sure did. I can't recommend this restaurant. Pros: Two of Six in Party Liked Their Meal Cons: Poor Service - House Branded Wine Terrible more

A friend and I went to the Heinz History Museum with our kids. We decided to eat at Lidia's for the convenience even though it is a little expensive. Our server was condescending and gave us the worst service I have had in a long time. The kids meals were two pieces of chicken with 3 steak fries for $9.00. The kids were still hungry. The adult meals didn't come even after the kids were done. With no apology the waiter talked to the Manager (who avoided us at all costs) Either they hate kids or we didn't look rich enough! I would absolutely NEVER go to this restaurant again and neither would my friend. I am telling everyone I know. No one should be treated this rude. Pros: Have had decent meals here in the past Cons: Horrible Service, Kids Meals Outrageous and Manager Ignored more

This is not my favorite place as far as atmostphere. I feel it lack the intimacy that a good italian eatery should have. It is tastfully appointe... more

The food was not a dissappointment. We went for the Sunday brunch. I was dissappointed that there was not a selection of fresh cheeses on the salad table. Also, the staff seemed very disorganized for they kept running out of bowls for the soup and plates for the salad table. But the food made up for it. You could tell that good quailty ingredients were used. We had the manigotti and the cheese was fresh and of good quality. The sauce was a plain tomatoe which was surprising flavorable. We would definately come and dine there again! And you can't beat the price for a Sunday brunch! Pros: excellent quality of ingredients used in the food Cons: staff seemed disorganized and lack keeping up with replacing food, plates, soup bowls and forks and spoons more

First off, this is real Italian food, so if you wanted spaghetti and marinara sauce then olive garden might be running a special. Second, learn to appreciate real food, many people are writing bad reviews, one even compared Lidia's to McDonald's, but if thats all you can afford, I'd imagine all food will taste the same after a while, I get it, so I can't hold that against him. Everything is fantastic and worth the money Pros: The food, atmosphere, the wine (order the montiplicano) Cons: Service is slow, Italian Imigrant waiters are hard to understand more

We have been here before and really liked everything about it. This time around left me questioning ever going back. The service is excellent. G... more

We just got back from girlfriend's birthday dinner, and Lidia's served the worst Italian food I've ever eaten. Worse than a cafeteria, worse than the spaghetti served on boyscout outings, and reminiscent of Chef Boyardee in look and taste. We did not enjoy the appetizer. Large, flat, soggy noodles in ketchup. Chef Boyardee's beefaroni with the same quality of ingredients. I tried the pasta trio figuring there was no way to go wrong. I was overwhelmed by the garlic flavoring in the egg noodles. The stuffed square noodles were pretty much inedible. The spinach was slimy and flavorless, and left a film in my mouth. The next pasta, which was my favorite of the three, tasted like Chef Boyardee, which is ok when you pay a dollar for a can of it. My girlfriend's lasagna was edible, but certainly not what she had in mind for a birthday dinner. It was mushy with low quality cheese and unidentifiable sauces. The best part was the bread, which was served in three varieties. It wasn't warm, but somewhat fresh. It was served with what looked to be pesto and olive tapenade, but was blended into a paste and melon-scooped onto a little olive oil. Both tasted pretty awful, and we just soaked the bread in the tiny bit of olive oil surrounding the two lumps of who knows what. I'm certainly not a picky eater, but this food did not have anything good in it. It used the same ingredients as fast food, but lacked the delicious flavor of fast food. The only pro was the attentive staff who acted as though Lidia's was a nicer restaurant than it was. Do yourself a favor, and go to Olive Garden, Bucca di bepo, joe mamas, or just about anywhere. At least it is edible, and you will be able to eat your entire meal and the food tastes decent. The selection was horrible, too. Under pasta there were about 3 things. They didn't even have spaghetti with meatballs. NEVER GO HERE. Ive never posted before but felt the need to warn everyone. Pros: wine list and attentive and friendly staff Cons: all of the food more

This was my second time visiting Lidia's for dinner, and my second disappointment. The first time, which was over a year ago, I ordered a vegetable lasagna, which was made with eggplant other grilled veggies. It was very disappointing, but I suspected that I had just ordered the wrong thing. I just went back two weeks ago and ordered the trio, Lidia's specialty. I was so excited because all 3 pastas sounded great. But I was shocked to find that none of the three impressed me. One was a sage butter spinach ravioli, which were OK. The next choice was an overcooked, mushy, lukewarm linguine in a buttery sauce with grilled asparagus and squash. This had to have been the most flavorless meal I have ever eaten. Lastly, there was a penne with chicken and a red sauce of some sort. The chicken was extremely tender, but I only received 3 little pieces with my first serving and 0 pieces in my second serving. The chicken dish was definitely the best of the three options, but all were extremely oily and lacking flavor. Our waiter was attentive, the hostess was very nice and the wine list was extensive. But overall, the qualit y of my meal was certainly sub-par. Pros: Service, Parking (inexpensive valet), Ambience Cons: Food quality more

I would reccomend Lidia's only to people who have a passion for Fine Food and Wine. The diner who is used to an olive garden or italian oven might be suprised at the difference between northern italian or Tuscan as too a red sauce ""joint"". My wife and I where taken back by the fresh beet and goat cheese starter as well as the well prepared, homemade pasta, especially the gnocci. The waiter was a little unprofesional and inexperienced. The food runner was very knowledgable in red wine and had a long chat with us about some of the pinots and chiantis on the list. A very pleasurable experience overall due to the atmosphere and food quality. The prices very reasonable as well. Pros: food quality, ambience Cons: server experience more

I'm really surprised at some of the bad reviews of Lidia's unless the people who went there are expecting all of their food drowned in tomato sauce and have never had Northern Italian food! This was one of my top 3 best meals and dining experiences I've ever had, we were seated promptly inspite of a packed house, our waitstaff were friendly and helpful without any attitude whatsoever. Every dish we had was cooked to perfection and served beautifully, from appetizer to salad to main course and dessert, all in a beautiful homey mediterranean setting with amazing tuscan decantor chandelier's draping down in the main dining room. This place isn't for everyone, if you're expecting Southern Italian cuisine (tomato sauce) then go to Spaghetti Factory or Olive Garden, we got our money's worth and more at Lidia's. I will go there again on my next trip to Pittsburgh and recommend this restaraunt to everyone I know! It''s fabulous! Pros: prompt seating, great staff, fabulous Northern Italian cuisine, moderate prices, great wine list! more

after hearing many great reviews of this restaurant, my family and i attended. disappointing doesn't even come close. the food was awful, the service shockingly unprofessional and the price outrageous. They sure act like they are better than anything else, but i would have been better off having one of those salads you shake yourself from mcdonalds! Avoid this place Pros: lighting Cons: food, service, attitude more

My daughter and I recently had dinner at Lidia's for the first time, and it will not be the last. Wonderful wine, great food and the atmosphere was comfortable. Our server, Ashley, was extremely accomodating and knowledgeable and was right on the mark with dinner suggestions. We had the Italian Trio. So Good! We also had so much fun with our wine selections and again received great recommondations. We both agree that Lidia's is a must try when you're in Pittsburgh! more

If you are looking for a nice, tasty Italian dinner with ambiance and friendly waitstaff, you will be sadly disappointed with Lidia's on the strip. Recently, my family and I chose Lidia's as the location to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday, and it was perhaps the worst decision we could have made. First, we were a 12 top, and although reservations had been made, they were not ready for our table (scheduled at 5:00, their earliest dining time). Once we were seated, the experience declined from there. All parties ordered and appetizers were brought - we ordered fried calamari, shrimp, zucchini and onion - it was almost all onion (cheap!). Bad, but the worst was yet to come. Several of our party were vegetarians, and the waitress (named Ashley) did not know her menu at all. She told me that although the lasagne was a meat sauce, it could be served with marinara - I was surprised, so I placed a back-up order of pasta in case she was wrong. Well, of course she was wrong, and I got to eat my first taste of beef in 5 years, which completely ruined my appetite. Two other members of our party ordered salmon, which was brought to the table and then taken back for no apparant reason. Those individuals sat for over 15 minutes waiting for their food, and it was not brought out until everyone else had finished dining. After these errors, everyone at the table was a bit uncomfortable and upset, and our waitress then started avoiding our table. She never returned to ask how anything was (i had to carry my rejected dinner across the floor to give to her at a computer station where she was hiding). In short, the food was average or worse but the service was the absolute worst that I have ever had. The evening ended with my mom asking the waitress to wrap her leftovers, to which she made a brush-off motion with her hands and said, ""someone else can help you, ok?"" We were comped several meals, but that can't make up for ruining our once-a-lifetime event. AVOID LIDIA Pros: Location. Cons: No parking, awful service, mediocre food. more

Lidia's is not the Italian restaurant that most Pittsburghers would imagine. Her food is authentic Italian and comes in generous portion sizes. The only bad things I would point out is that it is somewhat loud for good conversation and the women in my party were all freezing. The wait staff was attentive but unrefined, I felt like everyone was fairly new. In the end they were all working hard and any true Pittsburgher can appreciate that! I ordered the grilled octopus as my starter and it was more tender than any I've ever had. I then moved on to their daily special of the pasta sampler. For sixteen dollars you get to sample three freshly made pastas and then continue for seconds or thirds of your favorite(s). My favorite was the three cheese pear ravioli which was sweet but not enough to overpower the cheeses. The polenta on the chicken liver entree is to die for! Finally a second steal is the dessert sampler! At 3.50 a person with a two person minimum it supplies you with 8 delectable desserts which included cannoli, tiramisu, almond cherry crostada and pineapple orange sorbet. Lidia's is not only an amazing meal and overall experience but also affordable. My party of four made it out the door for a little over one hundred dollars including tip. I will go back again for sure....possibly tomorrow! Pros: Portion Size, Value, Great design Cons: Sound level, Inexperienced Waitstaff more