Why can't I give 10 stars?? This restaurant is OUTSTANDING! I don't use that word often, but if ever a place deserved it, this place does. From the staff, the cleanliness, and decor ... and then there's the food!! We started with the fried meatballs - crispy on the outside, soft on the inside - not slathered in sauce, but served with roasted red peppers and pesto. I had the Tuscan salmon, my husband had the veal Marsala. My salmon was, again, crispy on the outside, perfect in the middle. Served with spinach and cannolini beans. My husband's veal was better than he's ever had anywhere (we're originally from NJ - the Italian food capital!). Tender and not overly sweet, which makes other versions taste like they use supermarket Marsala wine. Hanah was our server. Beyond kind, told us about the restaurant and other places to visit in Utica. Charles, owner, came out to welcome us. His sons are two of his chefs. Rare when an owner does that! Can't wait to go back. In the meantime, I'll be enjoying the sauce they make themselves and sell in Hannaford and Market 32. Do not pass by!! read more

Great service! Jess was amazing! The riggies are delicious and so is the vodka sauce!

The food from their food truck is always good! They were at the Blues Fest and I got this tasty sandwich Friday night (Steak & Utica Greens Sandwich). Saturday I got a 1/2 order of chicken riggies and 1/2 order of Utica greens. Delicious! Service is relatively fast! A plus! read more

It’s A Utica Thing - Steak & Utica Greens Sandwich - Food Trucks Near Me - Utica, New York

Ordered chicken riggies and a Utica appetizer through Uber Eats for pickup. Order was ready ahead of schedule which was awesome. The riggies were the best I've had in Utica and the greens were spot on delicious! I highly recommend this place. read more

It’s A Utica Thing - Chicken Riggies - Food Trucks Near Me - Utica, New York

It's a quintessential Utica experience; recommended to us by a friend. Our group of four was excited to try a new spot in town. We ordered the garlic bread, and it was amazing, definitely a highlight. However, the wings left much to be desired. We also sampled several pizzas, including the spicy tricolor, Utica tomato pie, and New York-style garlic pizza. The spicy tricolor was decent, though nothing extraordinary; the other two, however, were below average. The cheese on the Utica tomato pie tasted stale, and the garlic pizza was a disappointment. We rounded out our meal with a few lemonades and iced teas. The ambiance is fantastic, with a clean and artistically designed washroom. Our server, Alice, was exceptionally helpful and friendly, going above and beyond to meet our needs. The only area for improvement is the flavor profile of the dishes. Ultimately, the garlic bread is the only menu item I can wholeheartedly recommend. read more

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This place looks nicer inside than you'd expect from the strip mall outside. But looks can be deceiving. Maybe it was short staff with only one waitress for the bar and dining room, but we had some really long wait times between our food or even having our table attended. We arrived with just one or two other tables occupied. Waitress said she'd bring by water. I went to the very nice restroom, came out - and only glasses on the table. No water. It did come shortly thereafter and we placed our orders. My friend got Utica greens and offered them to the table. I don't know if there was a miscommunication but all 3 of us had ordered hot apps and they were nowhere to be seen. She told us "they'll be out in a minute" and then disappeared for the next 20 minutes. We ran out of water in the meantime. The complimentary cheese garlic bites she put down with the greens were nice but a very short delay in our hunger. So I ended up trying a tiny bite of greens - unexpectedly a little spicy, breadcrumbs added some zing but I would say overly breaded and flavor otherwise unremarkable. Finally our hot appetizers arrived - after I asked for the manager. That miraculously seemed to do the trick. The manager said our other entrees were going in now, which is more truthful than "in a minute", and I'll say service improved from that point on. I shouldn't have had to do that though. The daily special French onion soup was way too salty. The bowl shape left a deviously smaller top than middle, so not enough bread and cheese to balance the salty soup. And I expect bay leaves in Indian cuisine but not French - could easily have ended up with that slicing my tongue. My friends both said their hot appetizers were good, but nothing spectacular, and the ravioli marinara is a testament to that (tomatoey but underseasoned). Homemade is a positive at least. As far as the entrees, I'm a sucker for homemade pasta. I did vodka riggies instead of chicken, and instead of pieces of prosciutto like I expected from the menu description, it was tiny motes in the sauce. Sigh. But it tasted great, especially with the hot peppers I asked them to add. The waitress did offer to bring around Parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes... guess how long that took? So again, maybe just short staffed and she had to serve some other bar customers before returning to us. So. Ambiance: 5 stars. Food: 4 for the entrees, 3 for the appetizers. Service: 2 stars, reserving 1 for my worst experiences. If we had been comped even one appetizer for the long wait time, if the manager explained that they were short staffed - anything to improve our experience, and I would have given 4 stars instead of 3. But as it stands I would recommend a pass for your Utica edibles. read more

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Food and service are good. Often very busy! Inside is nicely renovated and decorated. Not large but not tiny.

We'd heard about this place and made sure to visit while passing through Utica recently. 100% recommend. All elements of the dishes, from the pasta to the sauces to the vegetables and meats, were delicious. Staff super nice too! read more

First time visiting since they change their name from Charlie's. Order two fish fries for pick up for $50.00. Decided to leave a review after consuming three fries, one piece of lettuce and using my own ketchup. Portions are extremely skimpy as one can see from the picture. Sorry to say this will be my first and last visit to "It's a Utica thing." read more

It’s A Utica Thing - Food Trucks Near Me - Utica, New York

Very slow service despite very few people there; pretty much ala carte , no salad, no bread with a pasta entree , everything was extra! Friendly enough, but not worth the price! read more

Very surprised. Expected another overrated Italian restaurant. Server/bartender awesome. Ambience was just perfect with lighting and music. Wings cooked perfect. Pizza, great sauce but undercooked. Layer of uncooked dough on top. Wine is reasonable read more

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Be ready for a transformation. My girlfriends and I wanted a comfortable a spot that had a cool vibe with great food and drinks. A place where we could chit chat over shared plates. It's A UT hit the mark. Service was on point and food was upscale Italian with a flair. The charcuterie board was delish; tomato pie unexpectedly tasty. Bolognese with homemade pasta, yes homemade! Pork chop cooked perfectly. Salmon w risotto was tender, exceptional. Not sure which was best ?! Definitely Check it out. read more

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Our first time here and we are pleased with the meal and the service. I had chicken piccata with their homemade pasta, delicious. My husband's fish was a good size and it came with pasta. read more

It’s A Utica Thing - Haddock Oreganato and Chicken piccata. - Food Trucks Near Me - Utica, New York

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New York State Fair Ordered Utica greens and Chicken riggies. Greens were a 8 out of 10 Riggies were like watered down Ziti. Luckily we had a camper at the fair, had to add hot sauce and 1/4 block of cream cheese to even resemble riggies. Not to mention there was only 2 pieces of chicken in the whole dish. So glad we paid fair prices for substandard food (not) read more

Excellent experience on a Sunday night! Nice ambiance inside with the decor,lighting,and music playing. The host and server were very pleasant and service was attentive. Drinks were on point and interesting. The food is homemade and you can tell made with passion. All 4 of our meals were delicious! Highly recommend and we'll be back! read more

Walking in you notice the bar and it's very lively. The service was pretty good. My wife had a watered down mixed drink so watch out for that. Food was much better. Everything tasted as it should. Overall it was a nice experience. P.s parking isn't the best, you might have to walk a little. Not always a bad thing after all that food. read more

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We stopped here for dinner on our way to Lowville. What a wonderful little place. the food is great. the service is fast. It is so convenient : just off of I-90 before heading north. I recommend it to anyone. read more

Just moved back to the area and this place is already my new go to spot! It looks great inside and has a comfortable yet upscale atmosphere. All the pasta's homemade, and all the food I've tried has been delicious. Chicken Riggies and Margherita Pizza were absolutely out of this world read more

It’s A Utica Thing - Chicken Riggies - Food Trucks Near Me - Utica, New York

Wayyyyy over priced! 52$ for two chicken Caesar's salads?? Let's count the ingredients: lettuce, chicken, cheese, and croutons, that's four! Albeit, their dressing is very good because it's homemade but I'm not paying $25 for lettuce and chicken! Done with this place!! read more

Loved the food, ambience and service!! Our server Abby was so nice and gave us a ton of recommendations for food and also for places to visit (where we were visiting). We both love pappardelle and their bolognese and cacio e pepe were so nicely prepared! read more

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The food was really great! I took my seven year old daughter, for lunch, who is a picky eater. She enjoyed the food and service. We also enjoyed the ambiance. The place is brand new, and the pasta and sauces are made in-house. The owner came out, shook hands and asked if we enjoyed ourselves. He was very friendly and the waitstaff are personable. I would like to come back for their Happy Hour! read more

I tried the It's A Utica Thing food truck and was not disappointed. I ordered the Everything Utica sandwich which was made with tomato pie as bread, chicken riggies, and Utica greens. All the local food favorites. The sandwich was definitely a unique combination, it was tasty and also enormous. There was not a long line or wait time and the staff was friendly. The sandwich was somewhat expensive but that's kind of to be expected with food truck food. read more

Just awesome. We keep going back and trying new things and everything is delicious. This place is a gem in Utica!

Didn't eat in the restaurant yet but it looks like a great place to hang out. I have the spaghetti and meatballs with the wedge salad and both were awesome. Salad was so delicious along with the meatballs. Definitely going back there. read more