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ITA101

4.0 (177 reviews)
PriceyItalian
Closed • 4:00 pm - 9:30 PM

ITA101 Photos

ITA101 ATMOSPHERE

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

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Recommended Reviews - ITA101

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Reviews With Photos

These photos are pictures of a hard piece of wood that was in my dinner plate at ITA 101
Sandra G.

My husband and I ate at one of our favorite restaurants last night, ITA101. We ordered the octopus appetizer which was delicious. The homemade bread was also very delicious. We both ordered the Spaghetti Norma which had fried eggplant and tomato sauce. It was delicious but we both couldn't finish it and took our leftovers home. That is when i got the shocker. I was eating my spaghetti and eggplant and one piece of what I thought was the eggplant was so hard in my mouth. I pulled it out and it was a piece of hard wood which looked like a piece of eggplant and almost broke my tooth. It was disgusting. I could not eat the rest of the meal. I now question what the conditions are like in their kitchen. Unfortunately, now I am very disappointed in ITA. I posted pics of the wood below.

Sept 2023 fig inspired 4-course
Giana D.

Had an amazing dinner celebrating my anniversary tonight. I tried the 4 course fig inspired menu which featured prosciutto wrapped figs, mushroom ravioli, red snapper, and apple pie with fig ice cream. I'm so glad I ventured from my safe options and tried something new. Everything was delicious. Our server was great. Will definitely be back to explore more of their menu.

Chicken
Dino D.

A culinary delight. Real world old world cuisine from the various regions of Italy depending on day. Menu changes frequently and you may have to check it the day you go! Open 4pm to 9:30 and BYOB. Prices are in line with current inflationary trends but not out of sight. Portions appear small but filling. So whether you choose chicken, fish, beef or pasta everything is made to order. Our group was 6 and we had a variety of entrees. The brasato was exquisite, cut with a fork and tasty. Service was pleasant and attentive. We tipped over 20%. Ambiance was adequate, not noisy and when the lights dimmed it entered romantic mode. Now if you get tiramisu don't expect your traditional fare! This is made table side! Three lady fingers with an espresso poured on to "wake it up." Very creative! The menu is limited so I suggest reviewing it before you get there. Ah salud!

Dessert Apple with Plum Ice Cream
Richard R.

I had been hearing about ITA101 from a few friends as the hot and newer legit Italian eatery in South Jersey. I am not sure how to pronounce ITA101, is Ita1010 to I-T-A101? Does it stand for a college course in Italain? I guess I should have asked. However it is pronounced, we drove up to Medford on a nice October evening after calling ahead for seating availability. We were told we could have a table outside but inside was full until 9:00 PM. That was fine with us as it was nice enough weather and we were armed with sweaters and light jackets. ITA101 is located right on Main St. in Medford. Street parking is easy to come by. The restaurant space itself looked very nice and casual. It is smaller, and probably only holds 30-40 patrons. As mentioned above we chose to dine outside to snag a table and there were several nice tables right beside the restaurant. ITA101 is BYOB which is great. ITA101 serves a smaller and limited, rotating menu with fresh, local ingredients in a farm to table fashion. The Chef Kevin Maher spent 14 years in Italy honing his craft. What we ordered; Braciole di Maiale con Fungi, Polenta, Gorgonzola -pork chops with chanterelle mushrooms, polenta, gorgonzola. Gramigna di Seppia Nera con Capesante, Gamberi e Rombo-black ink gramigna, scallop, shrimp, fluke, sungold tomato sauce The pork chop was ordered off the weekend Regional menu. This dish was outstanding and the pork was tender and juicy. The polenta was done just right and there were some apples to give this dish a little acidity. The squid ink pasta was also very good and had just the right amount of heat without overpowering the dish. The pork chop however was definitely the highlight. For dessert we had the Torta di Mele con Gelato alle Prugne - apple cake with plum ice cream. This was also very nice and not overly sweet. ITA101 provides a pretty incredible homemade bread. The portion sizes were good but not gigantic. ITA101 is a bit on the pricey side, entrees were $25 to $30 without sides or appetizers. Service was excellent all night. 4 Yelp stars.

Very good watercress salad
Brian S.

Looking for something to do on a rainy Thursday yesterday we drove to the sleepy little town of Medford specifically to try this highly touted Italian restaurant. Although very good in all facets of their operation it just lacked what it takes to earn that fifth star. So, our 100 mile round trip jaunt was not in vain but don't think we would do it again any time soon. The food all very good can be seen in my attached photos. Bottom line: if you are in the area or live near by, then by all means give them a try.

Octopus
Alanna B.

ITA101 is a favorite local Italian restaurant. This is NOT your traditional Italian restaurant - you won't find Chicken Parm here. This is an authentic, regional Italian style cuisine. BYOB, street parking, OpenTable Reservations. Each week features a Pasta Tasting Menu mid-week (Tuesday/Wed or Wed/Thurs) and a weekend Regional menu focusing on a specific part of Italy. On Sundays they feature a main ingredient that is incorporated into every dish for a special tasting menu. The regular menu is available in addition to these special tastings and menu options. Pasta is homemade and very innovative cuisines. Highly recommend if you have not been to ITA101 yet. Also - the Chef makes some of the best fresh bread! It's hard not to make a meal off the bread alone!

Tagliolini with Short Rib Beef Bolognese

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2 months ago

Business owner information

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Kevin M.

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2 months ago

Excellent food and service. Perfectly sized portions. Small place making for a nice atmosphere.

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4 months ago

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9 months ago

Fantastic fresh seasonal food. This is actual Italian food, not American Italian. The care that the chef makes with each dish is evident.

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1 year ago

Just a quick dinner with a friend, we both had a salad a small portion of pasta and we shared a tiramisu for dessert. Absolutely scrumptious

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3 years ago

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3 years ago

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2 years ago

The food was delicious, course timing was perfect and service was great! BYO! They have a different menu each weekend which is cool.

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2 years ago

Great Italian restaurant! We will definitely be back. The staff and ambiance were wonderful!

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4 years ago

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Page 1 of 5

Ask the Community - ITA101

Why would this restaurant be considered not good for kids?

I would say if your kids are well behaved, it would be alright? It's a small, open, and intimate setting, so noise will definitely travel. It's perfect for a date night, in my opinion...

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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My best friend and I have been wanting to try Femmina since he moved to Medford a year again…read more Finally the situation presented itself and we decided to head there on a Friday night. The parking lot was PACKED and it took a bit to find a spot. We were told there would be a 30 minute wait, which was significantly less than I thought considering they do not take reservations for parties less than 6. We were actually sat in 15 minutes and our server brought us waters and Arnold palmers while we perused the menu and specials. After placing our order, a food runner brought us buttery warm garlic rolls and a different style of crusty bread as well. We decided to start with the arancini ( Italian rice balls) which came with four huge rice balls stuffed with a ground beef bolognese style and served with marinara. Our house salads came with a thousand island style dressing and consisted of chopped romaine, grape tomatoes, and cucumbers. Very basic but the dressing seemed like it could be made in house. For our entrees, I did the limoncello chicken and my best friend did the paparadelle with lobster. Mine had the most decadent lemon cream sauce bathing several chicken cutlets covered in crab meat with melted cheese and a huge mound of capellini. His was covered in chunks of lobster claw meat, mushrooms, prosciutto, and peas with a sherry blush sauce. Both entrees were huge and we took more than half home but everything was delicious. For dessert we opted to share the tiramisu since it's made in house. It had a thin layer of chocolate on top, which made for the most delicious mocha flavor. Our server was wonderful, the place was packed with people celebrating birthdays and everyone sang every time another candlelit dessert was paraded through the dining room. The ambience is cozy and comfortable and I can't wait to go back!

We were in the area for lunch and decided to choose Femmina. It was a little bit late, about 2 pm,…read morebut there were still customers. That was a good sign. Femmina has a good size lunch menu and the prices were reasonable for lunch, especially with how generous the portions were. Entrees were served with a house salad and complimentary breads that were delicious. Our server was fantastic, she spent a lot of time in Italy and explained that the owners were from the Naples area. Both our dishes were very good and we took some home to eat as left overs for dinner. I would definitely return to Femmina Italian Grill.

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

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3.9(86 reviews)
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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

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.

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More of a 3 1/2, but, for the 1 BILLIONTH TIME, Yelp still hasn't listened to my petition to…read moreincorporate 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.

This was Our First time dining here and Cucina Carini did…read moreNot Disappoint my husband and I ! We were immediately greeted by the staff and the inside of this restaurant appears like a courtyard of an Italian Home or a beautiful Open Space with a rustic feel. It even has a faux Upper Terrace Balcony and the whole place has Really Great charm! We had 7:30pm reservations on a Saturday night and the place was full of lots of Happy and chatty people enjoying their food and beverages. Almost everyone dining inside had a bottle of Vino! Our server had Great Recommendations, as this was our first visit here and a little guidance went a long way. We ordered the Bruschetta and meatballs for starters and both were Amazing and flavorful! I ordered the chicken Parmesan but everything looked and sounded amazing on the menu. It was difficult to select just one entree. My husband ordered the homemade Pappardelle with Bolognese sauce! Wow.. he now has a New FAVORITE Pasta! And I tried some of his dinner and it was Spectacular. . Next time, I plan to order his dish. We ordered the Escarole Cannelloni bean soup. It wasn't too bad, I haven't had Escarole in a long time and it was buttery and tasty. I probably would get a salad next time. Since I'm being honest. At the end, we split an order of Tiramisu and it was delicious but my recipe is better lol. Theirs is not homemade but it was tasty. Not bad for $7.99 but the portion was kinda small. If that's the only downside of our Meal, we didn't make out too bad. What a great evening out with my Absolutely Favorite Person on the planet

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ITA101 - italian - Updated May 2026

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