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    Cucina Carini

    3.8 (136 reviews)
    ModerateItalian, Caterers
    Closed • 12:00 pm - 9:00 PM

    Order Cucina Carini Takeout or Delivery

    Cucina Carini Photos

    Business Info

    CUCINA CARINI ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Outdoor seating
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Cucina Carini

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    Dining room
    Matt C.

    More of a 3 1/2, but, for the 1 BILLIONTH TIME, Yelp still hasn't listened to my petition to incorporate half stars, so here we are. I rounded down instead of up because of my personal experience that night, but I could see that half star going either way. ANYWHO, Cucina Carini.....a local pizza shop that has an attached dining room that, while pretty small, is also pretty nice. BYOB, which we didn't know heading in, and unless we are missing something, the only beverage options are either water, or whatever YOU bring. (We weren't asked what we would like to drink, nor saw any beverage options on the menu.) SO, water it was, which was fine with ME anyway. ALSO, another thing not listed on the *dine in menu,* is that they DO have a kids menu, which consists of what you would think it does; chicken fingers, fries and the like. We sit and get to work looking over the menu. We land on crab ravioli for me, (crab meat, asparagus & plum tomatoes in a sherry cream sauce), potato gnocchi for The Misses (With spinach & bacon simmered in a gorgonzola cream sauce,) and the chicken fingers meal for The Little One. Entrees comes with soup or salad (soup for her, salad for me). Where CC is losing some points is on service. Our server was fine, but the kitchen was very mixed up. When we sat, our Little One was being a kid, so while getting her situated, we ordered all of the mains. About 5 minutes later, when the server brought the bread over, we asked to order an appetizer of fried mozzarella (which I assumed would be the fresh mozzarella, breaded and fried, but instead was the packaged Sams club type breaded sticks variety..the menu says "Fried Mozzarella, Breaded mozzarella, fried golden crisp & served with marinara sauce. Nowhere does it mention "sticks." *shoulder shrug emoji*). In rapid succession after that, the kids meal came out, and then, and I mean probably 3-4 minutes after ordering the mozz *sticks,* THEY hit the table. Still no soup or salad. The mozzarella sticks were made suspiciously fast. Maybe 15-20 minutes later the ENTREES hit the table. The server does recognize that she never brought the soup or salad, and offers to put them in To-Go containers. *second shoulder shrug emoji* The entrees themselves were good, not great. Decent flavor, but both dishes underseasoned. A little salt would have gone a long way. I had to add parmesan cheese, red pepper flake, and some salt myself to coax a better flavor out of my ravioli. The Misses's gnocchi also needed some doctoring to bring out some true flavor. The kids meal was a generous portion size, but then again, it WAS $13, so..... We decided to actually do dessert, as The Little One wanted cake, and I had seen a picture of the Peanut Butter Bomb, and absolutely wanted to try it. One bomb, and one Lemoncello Cake slice was the order. The Lemoncello cake was good, but again, lacking in deep flavor. You got a hint of lemon, then the rest of the bite was chewing on air. It speaks to the lightness of the cake crumb, but the flavor needs to be punched up. The Peanut Butter Bomb however; no notes. Delicious. Chocolate mousse on top of a peanut butter mousse, on top of a chocolate cookie type base, the whole thing covered in chocolate and peanut drizzle (?) and sprinkled with peanuts. Definitely the best thing I ate here. SO, all things put together, it wasn't a bad night. Service was a little slow, which was only really a problem because we had a squirmy 7 year old. I probably would have appreciated the pace if it were The Misses and I just sipping a bottle of wine. But, the kitchen course timings and mix up, plus the muted flavor of pretty much every dish knocked it down a few pegs. I could see Cucina Carini easily being a 4 star spot and a go-to, "our spot" type place, it just didn't get there for me on my one visit. It's a little far from us, but if I'm in the area, I would definitely give it another shot.

    Steve J.

    Grabbed some to-go from here today. Never had the pizza before so I gave that a try. Also had a pasta dish and salad. Salad was crisp.cold and fresh! The Escorle soup was very good. Pasta dish was tasty as well, a bit garlic heavy but good. Pizza was good as well. Nice sauce and decent crust. My only complaint is crumbled sausage...I'm a sliced or lump kinda guy!

    Calamari Fritti
    Ilene S.

    Had a fabulous meal at Cucina Carini. Started off with mussels in bed and fried calamari. I didn't eat the mussels but heard they were decent size in a good sauce. The calamari was crispy, seasoned well and perfectly cooked. I had the Veal and Shrimp Francese which was very good. Lightly breaded, good lemon flavor and a decent serving size. I had enough left over for lunch the next day. I tried the veal and crab Calabrese which was also had a delicious sauce. Everyone was very happy with their meal. The bread was fine nothing special. We did order dessert. I was told the cannoli was good. We also order the lemoncello cake which was light and flavorful. Our service was good with friendly staff but we did need to ask for our water to be filled. The building was nicely decorated but extreme loud when we first got there. They do offer a small room in the corner that can be used for a private affair holding about 12 people. We will definitely be back.

    Coffee & tea included !
    Christina M.

    They hosted a bridal shower for us it was amazing!!! The food is out of this world!! So fresh and so tasty everyone was complimenting the food the whole time!!! They were so reasonable and so flexible with us... had the entire restaurant and a private parking lot !! 100% book any party here you won't regret it!

    Clams Casino
    Phylicia H.

    Returned for dinner and the food, quality and service was consistent and great like the first time. Did takeout this time and tried the pizza and chicken parm sandwich. Pizza was the perfect size and tasted great. Thin crust and delicious! Chicken parm sandwich did not have enough sauce to my liking, but flavor was there. Very filling and I was able to eat leftovers for lunch the next day. Gem in the neighborhood that I would still recommend!

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    1 year ago

    Food and service was great a few months ago. Taking my wife for our anniversary tonight.

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    1 year ago

    Haven't been there in a while staff wasn't friendly at all food was ok not going back

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    2 years ago

    This is a nice place. I wouldn't call it the BEST Italian food, but it's overall a nice experience and never a bad meal.

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    Page 1 of 4

    Ask the Community - Cucina Carini

    Are you a BYOB restaurant?

    Yes they are.

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    Tutti Toscani by Lamberti

    Tutti Toscani by Lamberti

    4.2(269 reviews)
    7.4 mi
    •$$

    Our server recommended the flatbread special so we ordered it and despite finding it on the bland…read moreside we did finish it - adding extra cheese, salt and pepper to it. In passing we mentioned it only when asked by our server if we liked it that it had lacked flavor. To our surprise she took it off our bill. This is the kind of service you really don't find anymore and one of the reasons I like coming back to tutti toscani. I ordered the veal which is always good, large lump crab on top. My husband got the trio of pasta but only enjoyed two of the three. The rest of the table raved about the mushroom special almost licking the plate clean - I am not a fans of mushrooms so I'll trust them. Overall I always enjoy coming here, I don't feel like I've been ripped off when the bill hits the table and service is usually good. I do enjoy sitting outside better than inside when able it's a prettier feel to me.

    We hosted my mom's surprise retirement party here, and Tiffany made everything so easy from start…read moreto finish. Tutti Toscani offers a few different event packages to meet your needs, which made planning stress-free. They even handled the cake, which was a huge help. We held the event on the patio, and it was an absolute dream. There was plenty of space and flexibility to truly customize the event. The wait staff was professional, attentive, and incredibly helpful, ensuring every guest felt taken care of and that everything ran smoothly. The food, as always, was fresh, flavorful, and beautifully presented, which really impressed everyone. The atmosphere was cozy and inviting, making it feel special and personal, yet relaxed at the same time. From start to finish, the team at Tutti Toscani made the event seamless and enjoyable. I would highly recommend hosting your next celebration here!

    Photos
    Tutti Toscani by Lamberti - They'll provide as many tables as you need to bring your vision to life and can rearrange them however you like.

    They'll provide as many tables as you need to bring your vision to life and can rearrange them however you like.

    Tutti Toscani by Lamberti - Bread

    Bread

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    Tavern & Table

    Tavern & Table

    4.4(17 reviews)
    4.0 mi

    Haven't been here in a while, and was in the mood for some pasta... So what better way to stop by a…read moregreat little dive bar and get some great pasta then on pasta flight night! Found a couple seats and the bartender greeted us right away! Always super friendly staff. Started off with some steamers which were delicious in the wine and garlic sauce. Sopped up the juices with garlic bread. The pasta flights were delicious. Each sauce better than the next. My favorite is the bolognese or the Alfredo. I had the bolognese on penne, Alfredo on tortellini, and a marinara on my ravioli. Also had a side of meatballs! Also had the Fra Diavlo on gnocchi and the vodka sauce. Pasta flights are on Wednesdays along with trivia. Check out their specials for other fun events each night of the week.

    Once I saw a video on this place serving a pasta flight on Wednesdays, I reached out to my cousin…read moreand we booked it there. Nothing makes me happier than a food flight. It's like here's 3 smaller portions to try instead of one main dish, its perfect. I started with a Caesar salad. Dressing on the side, maybe too many croutons but a standard salad. Penny vodka, capellini Alfredo and gnocchi bolognese. The meat sauce was a small upcharge and worth it. Every one of these pastas was delicious, really well seasoned, pasta was cooked perfectly and plenty of sauce. Wednesday night is possibly also karaoke night so at some point it's going to get overly loud with the host playing a music question. Plenty of parking and easy location to get to. Service was great, the ladies were very attentive and friendly.

    Photos
    Tavern & Table
    Tavern & Table - Pasta flights on Wednesdays only!!

    Pasta flights on Wednesdays only!!

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    Outside

    Casa Nostra - Chicken and eggplant pasta special. Fantastic. Everything we had was

    Casa Nostra

    3.9(88 reviews)
    2.4 mi

    The service was a bit slow as it looked like they only had 1 server so she didn't come over for…read moreabout 15 minutes after we were seated which was fine since I couldn't find a menu online to check ahead of time. They had a pineapple burrata appetizer special which was something I haven't seen before so that immediately caught my attention. It was a decent size and ate like a salad for my husband and I to share. We got the bubble bread for an appetizer too since we've never had it before. For my entree, I decided on the Chicken Frangelica which gave a sweet and savory flavor. My husband had the butter fish which was tasty. Give them a try if you're in the area. The decor inside was nice and they have an outdoor seating area.

    We've been to Casa a few times over the past year and have also ordered takeout, but this visit was…read morea little off. When we first arrived, we were greeted by a gum-chewing hostess and seated right away, which was fine. It took a few minutes for our waiter, Juan, to come over and take our order. We didn't order any appetizers, so our salads came out quickly. After that, we waited...and waited...and waited. The delay was long enough that the manager came over to ask how everything was and whether we were interested in dessert. I had to tell him that we hadn't even received our meals yet. When the food finally arrived, everyone else enjoyed their dishes--veal parm, chicken franchise, and a few others. I ordered the special, described as a porterhouse pork chop with potatoes, vegetables, and a mushroom cream sauce. Thankfully, I asked for the sauce on the side, because it was very sweet--even the waiter mentioned that. The pork chop itself was cooked the way I like it, but it was not a porterhouse cut. A true porterhouse pork chop should be bone-in with both the tenderloin and loin sections. What I received was more like a pork loin cut, and while it was listed as 16 oz, it didn't appear to be anywhere near that size. Moving forward, we'll likely take a break from Casa

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    Casa Nostra - Canoli

    Canoli

    Casa Nostra - PeppShroom pizza

    PeppShroom pizza

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    Cheesesteak

    Versi Vino - Wine!

    Versi Vino

    4.7(139 reviews)
    5.6 mi
    •$$

    My boyfriend and I went here for happy hour. What a delight this place is. We got the half off…read moreflight based on the 3 wine flavors they have available for happy hour. We then got a berry mule off the happy hour menu. Honestly next time I would get the berry mule and try the other cocktails on the happy hour menu. It was really good. Off the happy hour menu we got the flatbread, white bean dip, empanada and chicken fingers. Highly recommend the flatbread and white bean dip. For dessert we had the ala dude cookie skillet. I would go back for the cookie skillet itself. It was delicious. Overall it was a beautiful place in an area you wouldn't expect (next to a dunkin' donuts). The waitress was very kind and explained their advanced menu. But again since we just ordered off the happy hour menu it wasn't bad. Just to let you know our bill was under $60 for 2 people with multiple plates and drinks! Highly recommend :)

    Went to Bar Tacconelli's tonight hoping to be WOWED, but WOWED I was not! The service was good but…read morethe food excellence that Tacconelli's usually delivers was not present tonight. We ordered 4 small plates. Meatballs which we had from Vince before and loved, not so much tonight. They were cold, bland and very dense. Gnocchi which were mushy and lacked flavor. The arancini were over cooked (fried). The Sicilian pizza was the best, then again it should be Tacconelli's is known for pizza. Dessert was ok tiramisu. but the cappuccino was horrible! I'm not even sure what the served me! It was like mud, thick and bitter with no froth. They need to go back to the drawing board and start over. We actually cancelled a future reservation we made with friends. We will not be going back anytime soon!

    Photos
    Versi Vino - Track your wines!

    Track your wines!

    Versi Vino - Cheese and Charcuterie board!

    Cheese and Charcuterie board!

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    Bar seating

    Ristorante Toscana

    Ristorante Toscana

    3.5(234 reviews)
    4.2 mi
    •$$

    Ironically this was my first time to this NJ Toscana…read more Id been to the PA one twice. I love the beautiful decor and how varied regions of Italy are showcased in their rotating menus. Very tasty bread (I used most of it sopping up my pasta sauce!) I could not NOT get the Pear (pasta) Sacchetti - soooo delicious. A definite go-to for me here - wowee!!! My besties Seafood Manicotti was damned amazing too! Very rich but perfect! We ended our evening with decafs. Our server was lackluster and MIA a lot. My poor friend's dish wasn't hot enough and she was nowhere to be found... (wasn't overly busy at 5:45 pm either). My/our only ding.

    Toscana used to be a staple in my family's household, especially for our Christmas Eve dinner. I do…read moremiss the days when this restaurant was byob. The vibe here is nice and the outdoor dining section is beautiful. It's been a while since I've dined here and was hoping for a more positive of an experience than last time. We elected to sit at the bar, my first time sitting at the bar here. We were greeted with baskets of bread and some dipping oil which hit the spot. We started with drinks, of course. My Blood Orange Martini was great, especially if you like sweeter drinks (my fiancé said it was too sweet for her). My fiancé loved her Spritz off of the seasonal cocktail list. We all ordered Nuovo Linguine & Clams, 2 in red and 1 in white. It was beautifully plated with lots of clams (also came with shrimp and clam balls -- the star of the dish), but we all thought the dish itself was bland. This is a dish I've ordered many times in the past and used to love. Maybe an off night or maybe things have changed in the few years since I've dined here. Anyway, after my last two experiences here, I'm not in a rush to come back.

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    Ristorante Toscana
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