Maggiano's Little Italy

one of the best dining experiences i've had since moving here over 5 years ago. very cordial, knowledgable staff, who actually know how to properly serve a bottle wine table-side. wine list is impressive. the protion sizes are lovely, and the food is authentic, fresh, and made with care. definitely recommend reservations, as it is a small jewel of a place and gets full quickly. more

this used to be a reliable place to have an enjoyable meal. they have changed the menu to a family dining experience and taken some of my favorites off the menu. it was ok but definately not what it was a year ago, i guess the economy has caused them to have a much narrower selection, kinda reminds me of ""the sizzler"" of italian restaurants, so sad more

Inattentive waitress, SLOW service - and this is while the restaurant is fairly empty. Just imagine what that means when it is crowded. The food...was so bad. Flavorless and had a weird aftertaste. What made it worse is that everyone who spoke to us, including our waitress, kept telling us ""how good the food is"". Come on don't lie, that's false advertising. THE worst Italian food I've ever tasted, and I've tasted a lot as I am a lover of Italian food. You can't even call it Italian food. DO NOT BE FOOLED by the fancy decorative atmosphere; you will regret it. Pros: The decor was simple but elegant and a comfortable climate. Cons: horrible food, slow service more

This is a first-rate, mid-priced restaurant.\r \r Anyone who complains about this restaurant has something wrong with them or is possibly a competitior leaving negative comments.\r \r I dine here a few times a year and the food is always great for traditional Italian American cuisine.\r \r What makes this restaurant stand out is the restaurant's cool / romatic garden courtyard (request to be seated outside), it's quality of food, and a friendly and professional staff.\r \r It's the best restaurant at the Grove that's not too hard on the pocketbook.\r \r Definately a very nice dining experience!\r \r \r \r Pros: Great Traditional Italian Cons: None really - call to make reservation Fri-Sun Nights more

You'd think a place like this coukd keep their bathrooms clean... I wonder what the kitchen looks like? Staff was too busy swapping head shots and audition stories to bring bread to my table. Seriously? The food was OK, poor attention to detail. The value is there for big eaters and their all-u-can-eat ""Family Style"" plan, but there too much wrong with the place to really enjoy the experience. Pros: Cheap Group Dining Cons: Dirty bathrooms, average food, bad services more

I ordered a drink three times. It never came. The waitress never brought plates for appetizers -- I had to get them myself. Nobody ever refilled the water. The menus weren't even picked up from the table. Simply horrible. There are so many good options at the Farmer's Market -- why would you waste your time at Maggianos? Overpriced, mediocre food, terrible service. Avoid at all costs. Cons: Terrible service more

The service... Perfect! \r The service is professional, and the servers are genuine... ABSOLUTELY PERFECT!\r The food comes out SO FAST! It's unbelievable.\r It's hot & fresh.\r Huge portions. \r Great value.\r THE MOST FLAVORFUL FOOD I'VE EVER HAD. Not overdone at all..Just right!\r \r I am so picky..but this place was the best I've ever had! We started with the chopped salad w/chicken...Then had the Ziti with HUGE & TONS OF CHUNCKS OF Meat..and Crispy Grilled Salmon on Spinach, with the best juice!! I AM CRAVING IT AGAIN RIGHT NOW!\r \r The restaurant & ambiance are sooo nice... and It's huge in there!! Walk around.. private rooms.. Big tables.. Cool, fun bar scene.. EXCELLENT GREETERS, SERVERS... Really top quality, in every aspect. Pros: portions, flavor, freshness, service, quick, great energy & ambiance, DELICIOUS!!!! more

Great food! Great ambiance on the patio! Fantastic for large groups! We had a bday party of about 20 people and the staff was really on top of things. Pros: Great food and patio area. Fantastic for large groups! Cons: Ditzy and incredibly slow bar waitress more

First let me say that this place is amazing for large groups of 10 or more. 18 people from my work made plans to celebrate a birthday at the Cheesecake Factory nearby (which won't take reservations). We showed up at Cheesecake and the hostess laughed at us and said it would be at least 4 hours to get a table. We literally walked across the way to Maggianos completely unnanounced, and the manager was happy to accommodate us. We were seated (all 18 of us!) in less than 15 minutes!!! On a Saturday night!!! The staff is apparently well-trained to deal with large parties, and were not flustered one bit by the size of our group. They made the night fun and special. I also found the family style dining to be helpful with such a large group. Ordering about 8 or so ""refillable"" platters served family style was much easier on us and the staff than having each person order a separate entree and worry about splitting the bill or food coming out at different times. The food is a different story. Most of the items are very average and just okay. The pasta dishes are especially boring and bland. There are only a few things they excel in, specifically their Fried Zucchini, Bruschetta, Chicken Francese, 4-Cheese Ravioli, Lasagna, and their namesake and spinach salads. Stick to those dishes, or go with a large group and you should have a decent experience. The back patio is VERY nice. And they have a kickass happy hour with $3 drinks, live jazz, and $2 appetizers (including the aforementioned fried zucchini and bruschetta). Pros: Great for groups. Nice patio. Nice happy hour. Excellent service. Cons: Food is ordinary. Portions too big. Need better olive oil on table for bread. more

My gf and I just got back from this place. I've never written a review before and I wouldn't if just one aspect of it was bad but the entire experience was horrible. Our waitress seemed indifferent and more involved in chatting with her friends. She checked on us about once and it took us about 10 minutes for her to come over to us to start with. The place was dead. There were tons of waiter staff standing around. Maybe since it's so slow they are generally unhappy because they aren't making money but if you have a table you'd think you'd try to make the most out of it. The food was also very bad. My gf felt sick on her way home from the Mac and Cheese and I ordered the Lazagna which was tasteless and dry. I still don't understand how lasagna could be dry but somehow this place pulled it off. I think our waitress knew we were unhappy and tried to only give us 1 copy of the receipt so we couldn't have a copy ourselves. All in all, just avoid this place. Cons: everything here is a con more

TAKE OUT PORTIONS ARE 1/2 SIZE OF WHAT YOU GET IN THE RESTAURANT BUT STILL YOU PAY REGULAR MENU PRICES. VERY DISAPPOINTED AND WILL NEVER ORDER TAKE-OUT AGAIN. more

\r My boyfriend was craving an italian food, so we went to Maggiano's at the Grove. I was impressed by\r nice outdoor patio atmosphere. Very nice watress took an order, server brought GIGANTIC portions of\r food (I ordered eggplant parmezan). It was extreamly greasy, no taste of eggplant at all, layers of refried bread crums and tastless tomato dressing. My stomach reacted funny right away. SO, IF YOU ARE INTO\r HEALTHY FOODS, GOOD OILS(THERE WAS NO TASTE OF VIRGIN OLIVE OIL, I AM NOT EVEN TALKING\r OF EXTRA VIRGIN OIL..), DO NOT GO TO THIS PLACE, THEY USE BAD OILS OR BUTTER, REFRIED MANY\r TIMES...ATMOSPHERE IS VERY NICE, FOOD - POOR QUALITY INGREDIENTS, VERY GREASY FOOD NOT WORTH YOUR MONEY, UNLESS YOU WANT TO PAY EXTRABUCKS TO SIT IN THE NICE PATIO... more

I have been here many times, the food is always consistently great (pesto chicken pasta, YUM! Service is always great, attentive every time. Very busy though, expect to wait for a table, but we've always managed to sit at or in the bar area and eat if there is a wait for the dining area. A word of caution, if ordering pasta, always ALWAYS oder the ""haf order"" Otherwise you will be eating pasta for a week, the regular is an ENORMOUS size. Pros: yummy food, giant portions, fab service Cons: can be long wait if no reso more

We, a group of 11 people, went to Maggiano's on a Sunday night. The wait was LOOOOONG (got there around 6:00pm and were sat at a table around 8:00pm) as we expected. We neglected to make a reservation, so can't complain. Other than the wait, the experience was great. Drink refills were done frequently, without having to ask. Also, we ordered a dish but when it came out, it wasn't what we thought it was. So we asked the waiter if it can be taken back. The waiter did not hesitate a moment and gladly accepted our request. I regret not getting the name of the waiter, but he surely made all 11 of us come back to the restaurant. Overall, it was a great dining experience (great food, great portion, excellent customer service), but next time, I'll make sure to make a reservation before going. Pros: service, food, portion Cons: wait more

I used to work here and hated almost every minute of it. So, with that being said, my review might be slightly influenced by this. The food is fine, but it is nothing special. If you are vegetarian it is kind of hard to get a decent plate of pasta. Everything has meat in it and when you remove the meat the dishes become rather plain and bland. A lot of the dishes are very heavy on the butter too. If I ever went back I would get the gnocchi, it is definitely the best thing there. The portions are HUGE, a plus for some people I suppose, but it is just an overwhelming amount of food if you ask me. You will definitely be taking some home with you. It is very crowded on the weekends, always a wait of usually an hour. It can be like that at a lot of places, but it is good to know this before you get there. I would strongly recommend reservations. The service seemed to be so, so. Equal number of complaints and compliments from guests when I worked the host stand. The management is very good about trying to satiate unsatisfied customers. If something goes wrong I would definitely ask to speak to management b/c they will usually be able to ""fix"" things for you. Its fine, but I am just over it and think there is better pasta in LA. Try C&O Tratorria on the west side. Pros: you can walk around the farmer's market and/or grove while you wait forever to get a table Cons: long waits, food is nothing special more

i really do not like this restaurant. the food is way too filling.. everything is fried. the pasta is so... more

i really do not like this restaurant. the food is way too filling.. everything is fried. the pasta is so heavy.. it is not authentic italian.. its ... more

The one in San Jose (Santana Row) is a lot more intimate plus has the added bonus of an outdoor life-sized... more

The one in San Jose (Santana Row) is a lot more intimate plus has the added bonus of an outdoor life-sized chess set. At the Grove, their lobster r... more

I must admit that I am partial to this place because I grew up eating here in Chicago. The portions are huge. I would not say it is the best Italian ever, but it is pretty good and the atmosphere is great. I have almost always had great service here and the outside patio is very charming. The bread is delicious. The Mozerella Marinara is my favorite starter, make sure to order extra marinara sauce. The soup is yummy and they give you a nice serving of it. The salad dressing here is fantastic, I love it. The pasta is good, not great, but good. Skip the lasagna. It is awful. The eggplant parmisagn is very breaded. It is different than most places, but still good. The cheese dip appetizer is very tasty. The stuffed mushrooms are a skip it. The apple cobbler is just okay. I would stick with the chocolate cake. Overall, good value and good atmosphere. This would be a nice place for a group of friends to eat family style. Pros: big portions, tasty food, nice service, pretty consistant Cons: some of the dishes are just okay and lack a bit of taste more