This place is amazing! My husband is part Italian and has traveled to Italy and he thinks this is the best Italian he has had in the South. .. Personally, Italian in general is not my favorite, but I have dined here 3 times!.. Their caprese appetizer is fantastic! its a simple dish, but well composed. I had their seafood ravioli with vodka sauce is worth the visit. read more

My 2nd time back and the food, timing and overall quality is very good. This is a neighborhood spot and it's done well. If you know and enjoy your staple Italian Dishes then come here and you won't be disappointed. read more

Hands down, the BEST italian restaurant that I have EVER eaten at plus service was awesome. There were 3 of us and we all ordered different things and every dish was awesome. We will back in November, make sure you go around in parking lot and find. Love so many different restaurants in Charleston and MT pleasant but this is a keeper!!! Love, love, love this places!)))$)))))$$$! Beside water boy grill, read more

Excellent! Small italian trattoria don't let the shopping center deceive you. Best italian (so far) in Charleston! The veal pancetta was outstanding. read more

The most amazing good I've had. The Gamberi Alfredo was to die for. My son really enjoyed his chicken parm. This will be my go to place for real Italian food. ***** read more

Being an 1st generation Italian from Chicago, holy cow this chef cooks better than my mother. I could cut my veal Parmesan with a fork it was that tender. My wife tells everyone how great their lasagna tastes. Charleston is lucky to have Chef Davide her in Mount Pleasant. The staff is attentive and friendly. Casey our waiter always suggests the best wines to accompany our meal. read more

Horrible service. My wife and were not seated, we had to find our own table after receiving vague directions from the waitress. She came by once to let us know we chose the wrong table. There were several empty tables on a very slow Tuesday night. I had to get up five minutes later to walk back to hostess stand to get our own menus. A couple more passive aggressive trips from the only waitress eventually led to two glasses of water. After wasting 20 plus minutes of no ordering, no bread, nothing, we just left. The food looked very generic, which was a shame because the menu descriptions sounded great. When the cheapest entree is $12.95 I expect a server to take my order, show a little courtesy, and get this show on the road. Especially if I'm 25% of their current business. Will not repeat, the place was tiny, obviously this was the norm. It was a tad loud as everyone sat in such a small space, and the decor was straight out of Italian Restaurant Generic Interior Design Quarterly. read more

I love the family type atomsphere and the food is soo good. Dont let location fool you so worth it.

Goggled Italian Restaurant Mt. Pleasant and Cuoco Pazzo was the second one that came up. Sunday early evening, hungry for good Italian pasta it was just what I needed. We started with the olives, I'm sure home made bread oilive oil and salads I thought I was back in Jersey. I needed a red sauce so I ordered the Pescatore my husband had the Veal Saltimbucca finished off with an espresso and chocolate mouse it was more then I expected. Service was very attentive without being rushed. Will definitely return and bring friends. read more

Talk about a wonderful dining experience! They treat you like family in this restaurant. Everything on the menu is delicious! 12 of us ate here and everyone said it was the best Italian food they had ever eaten! Do not drive by this place, go in and treat yourself!!! read more

Hands down best Italian food I've had in a restaurant - coming from a first generation Italian and from a family with several family members in the restaurant business. No one will ever cook better than my mom but seeing as how she is 800 miles away, this is the closest I can get. Been here several times over the last 3 years and have never been disappointed. Don't be afraid to ask for something that's not on the menu - if the chef has the ingredients he will make it for you! read more

We just popped in for dessert. Had scrumptious tiramisu & limoncello cake. The desserts were excellent & seemed truly house made. The staff was so sweet & they were speaking Italian in the back area, so that sold me on their authenticity! Saw several meals being sent to their tables & the food looked amazing. Will be back for dinner. read more

Does not look like much from the outside but it is a cozy Italian atmosphere with a wonderful staff. The food was amazing! Both my fiancé and I enjoyed our meal tremendously. The small space made it feel more private and personal. read more

This little gem is worth going to. The food was delicious and the service was great, despite how busy it was. I would definitely recommend it!! read more

I don't often give 5-star reviews but Cuoco Pazzo knocked it out of the park on our first visit to this local Italian gold mine. We've been meaning to go for months but with two small children, finding the perfect date night is often as challenging as deciding where/what to eat in Mount Pleasant, which is full of fantastic eateries. Needless to say, we've now found our regular anytime we can find a night without children in tow. The restaurant is small and was full when we arrived for our 8:30 reservation but the meal, the service, the price and the ambiance was 5-star all the way. We started with Brushetta and Caprese which were fresh and incredibly tasty. The complimentary bread was equally spot-on and we probably could have stopped here but we both ordered pasta. Being a Spaghetti Carbonara fan, I had to give it a try even though the menu is full of tempting Italian delights. My wife had the Alfredo Fettuccini with shrimp and both dishes were out-of-this world. We accompanied our meal with an excellent bottle of Chianti and with tip spent right around $100 which I thought was a great deal. Owner David and the entire service staff treated us like family from the minute we arrived and we had the best Date Night ever. Thank you for a great night and you have our word, we'll be back soon. read more

Short and sweet; great service and phenomenal food at sensational prices.

I discovered Cuoco Pazzo when I was visiting Mount Pleasant, and felt like some authentic Italian food. The restaurant was really hard to find due to the road construction on US 17. However, I persisted and found it in a small shopping center behind all the road work. Wow! Was it worth it! I felt like I was back in southern Italy. The chef and his staff are extremely friendly and professional. The food is excellent and among the best Italian cuisine I've ever had. I almost never post reviews, but think this worth sharing. I will definitely go back to Cuoco Pazzo on my next trip to the Charleston area. read more

Our party of six all had the most delicious meals. We are so happy to have found a wonderful Italian Restaurant that not only has fantastic food, but the staff is excellent as well. read more

My husband and I had dinner at Cuoco Pazzo recently and loved it. We had veal piccata and veal marsala. Both dishes were delicious as well as the tiramisu we split for dessert. We were also each served a complimentary glass of their homemade limoncello which was wonderful! Very nice surprise! The atmosphere is small and quaint with nice soft Italian music playing in the background. And, last but not least, our server, Caisy was excellent. He was very knowledgeable, attentive and polite. Overall wonderful experience! We look forward to next dining experience there! And, we will ask for Caisy! read more

It may have been an off night, but for our first time there we were not impressed. Service was slow but may have seemed slower because my husband and son were starving, and it was only 530 and only one other table occupied. Started with calamari and eggplant app. Calamari was ok, but only about 4 pieces for the 3 of us. The eggplant was a joke,, two small silver dollar size pieces rolled in cheese for 11.00. My son and husband ate them in one bite each. Dinner was more eggplant, very good but we should have had that instead of the app and had it sliced. My son had lasagna and didnt eat it. It was mushy and had a bad burnt or old flavor and lastly I had the veal marsala. The veal was very thin and like leather but most distressing was the marsala sauce. It was thick and tasted like marsala glue. If you have ever made marsala you know that too much flour or having it sit for hours (or days?) will give you this taste. The spaghetti that came with it was over done and not good. Wine, was a good pour and a a decent value at 8.00. Overall, (and I hate to say this) Carabba's is so much better, food and value wise.. I dont see a reason we will ever go back. I know all the other reviewers loved it. Maybe an off night, or owner wasnt there. read more

Didn't look like much from the outside but I'd been hearing good things and decided to give it a shot. Wow! What a hidden gem! Food was amazing old school, authentic Italian. The Cuoco Pazzo himself made an appearance to sing someone Happy Birthday in Italian whilst playing the tambourine, the waitress must have been his wife and was very sweet and made some great recommendations. Had the Chicken Marsala which was fantastic, my fiance had the fish and shrimp in lemon caper sauce, also fantastic. Topped off with a few espressos and a shared tiramisu. Great all around, highly recommended. I could have saved myself many "blah" trips to Carrabas had I tried this place earlier. We'll be back for sure. read more

This is a great little spot. We tried many items and everything was exceptional. Service was also great. Folks if you are looking for great tasting authentic Italian then this is a must try. read more

Great find!! Friend in area mentioned this place for awesome Italian food. They did not disappoint. Food was very tasty. You might never see the restaurant as it is tucked into a strip shopping center. It is just what my wife and I have grown to love.......local place not a chain. We will be back for sure. Only reason for 4 stars is really the decor and whole strip shopping center but try it you will love it read more

We had dinner at Cuoco Pazzo in our quest for decent Italian coined which is a challenge in Mt Pleasant. It was a blustery evening however we were warmly greeted and offered a table in the small dining room. We thought the menu appeared to showcase authentic dishes and decided to order a few dishes that are simple yet would demonstrate the talents of the kitchen. The bruschetta was perfectly prepared and served on crisp toasted pieces of Italian bread. The tomatoes were finely chopped with red onion. The veal saltimbocca was the first edible veal dish I have had since moving to Mt Pleasant from Palo Alto. The veal was thoroughly pounded and tender.There was a bit too much prosciutto for my taste, however the veal and the sauce were perfect. It was served with al dente spaghetti and not the mushy mess attempting to pass for pasta. My husband loved his chicken marsala as well. The espresso and Italian cheesecake did not disappoint. We will return. read more

We have been at this place many times trying to find something wrong. Can't do it. Very good food. Thanks for being in Mt. Pleasant.

We have eaten here a number of times and have recommended it to everyone. Wonderful Italian food. No pretense in decor or dining. Just absolutely delicious. I cant waat to go back. read more

This is a hidden gem. Excellent Italian food, great menu selection and very good service.

Terrible dinner tonight. Service was SLOW, SLOW, SLOW! 2.5 hours for dinner and the waiter didn't even ask if we wanted dessert. To top it off, the veal was tough and tasteless. There are too many decent restaurants in the area to waste time here again. read more

The best Italian meal we have had in Charleston area in a long time. The menu was great and the atmosphere was wonderful. The staff goes out of their way to make you feel at home. Our new favorite place to eat. read more

Love the food! In fact, I super love it! It's one of the only two Italian restaurants I go to in Mt. Pleasant. Authentic Italian, nothing fancy. It tastes great and is filling! The atmosphere is okay, but the food is the real standout. And the servers are cool, too. It's family-owned, so it has that kind of look. read more

I had eaten at this restaurant once several years ago, and it was pretty good, so my husband and I thought we'd try it out again. We were seated in an outdoor patio area. It had a nice fountain, but otherwise looked kind of half-finished. It took about 15 minutes before we ever saw any waitstaff. After that, probably another 15 minutes before we saw our server and drinks again, and I had to ask for silverware twice. Did I mention they had no wine list? Something about their liquor license. Anyhow, when I finally received the silverware, my napkin was wet, like it had been pulled from the washing machine. We ordered entrees and calamari. The calamari came out a little while later, and it was good. However, the awful service just continued to go downhill from there. We received entrees from a waiter who we hadn't seen before, only to realize it wasn't our order, and we had to give it to the table behind us. We finally just had to walk out {although we did leave $ behind for the calamari}. My husband had gone inside to use the restroom, and he overheard the waitress picking up the entrees for a nearby couple who had come in at least thirty minutes after we did. And still, our dinner was not ready! We waited for over an hour and a half. We felt ignored and hungry. The service was so inconsistent. I can't imagine anyone seeking out such a horrible experience. read more