Rosie was WONDERFUL. All the staff was great! Food top notch! Very cute intimate place! Can't wait to come back! There was a medical emergency with one of the customers and the staff handled it perfectly. read more

La Rustica - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I'll start by saying O.M.G this is the place to go for ambiance and over the top food. It's not super big so you should probably call alittle ahead to check on seating. Parking can also be a small challenge. But it is all worth it. Try it you will love it. read more

Service was great! Our server was attentive and really kind. For food you get served bread complimentary (which I appreciate because many restaurants don't do that now!). The bread was so soft and delicious. We asked for olive oil and balsamic with it. Then for dinner I had fettuccini bolognese con polpette di pecora (with 2 lamb meatballs). Dinner comes with a house salad but I upgraded to Caesar for an extra $5. Dinner was delicious. They had a really big menu too for a small restaurant so I would definitely go back and try other things too! Ambiance is really cute and across from the water. I was glad we were more on the perimeter because there was a loud group in the middle and I feel like it could be hard to hear each other had we been closer. read more

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We always have a great experience here! Our server Max was excellent - kind and attentive. The food and cocktails were superb. We had arancini and garlic focaccia to start and the gnocchi and linguine alla vongole for mains. The owner Kat came to say hello - we love coming here! read more

La Rustica - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Parking is bad the view is limited when you sit outside, the food is average. The food was good but average to me. The money we spent here we could have went somewhere else and get such a better taste and value. The tiramisu is yummy maybe close to the best I ever had but 14.00 yummy maybe not. We got the classic and it was so yummy. I got the filet mignon. It comes in three pieces and the veggies is just there. The spaghetti was average at best. It tasted like bottle spaghetti sauce. I don't mean to bag this place because it was a really good meal and it was good Italian food what everyone else got but is kind of expensive.i wouldn't come back right now but if my kids want to go I would. It just not my pick for eating out. The bread was yummy. The customer service was great!! read more

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We went for a special birthday dinner (5:30pm). The food was absolutely delightful, we would highly recommend. I wish the service has slowed down though. We felt rushed as the dishes came out before we had half a moment to finish what we were enjoying. We ordered an appetizer, wine, salads, main, dessert. To top it off, the check was brought before we finished dessert. The restaurant wasn't full so not sure why the rush. read more

La Rustica - The view from our table. - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Compared to other Italian restaurants of similar, or even lower, price tiers, this place is pretty underwhelming. The flavors had just one or two notes without a lot of depth, and the sauces lacked punch and acidity. The dishes were heavy on the cheese and cream, which resulted in a rich but underwhelming flavor profile. The food is not bad, but it's certainly not good enough for the price point. The menu gave me an instantly bad first impression by listing a "plate split charge" at the bottom of every section. I've never seen that at any restaurant, and it instantly made me alert to all the ways this house could be cutting corners and pinching pennies. The food did not come in large enough quantities to even suggest such an option is necessary, and competitors that do serve large plates (like Bucatini's in Edmonds) do not insult your wallet by charging more money for the same amount of food like this. It's an unnecessary negative initial impression that the rest of the dining experience was not able to overcome. At least the service was very nice. read more

My husband and I really enjoyed our first visit to La Rustica! We chose it to celebrate our wedding anniversary, and it turned out to be a wonderful experience. We had always wanted to try La Rustica, but under the previous management, it was nearly impossible to get a reservation. Now, booking a table online is super easy. While there is a $50 deposit required, it's not a big deal if you're planning ahead for a special occasion. They also accept walk-ins, which is a great last-minute option. My husband ordered the Fettuccine Bolognese (the closest thing to spaghetti and meatballs LOL). I chose the Lasagna du Matruma. It included pasta sheets layered with pork Bolognese, hard-boiled eggs, mushrooms, spinach, peas, cream, and mozzarella. I've never had lasagna with eggs and peas before, but it added an interesting twist that I really enjoyed. Our entrées came with a house salad and garlic focaccia bread. I upgraded to a Caesar salad and I enjoyed it. The garlic focaccia was soft, warm, and they gave us a generous portion. For dessert, I had the Tiramisu (espresso-soaked ladyfingers, rum-flavored cream, and chocolate) which was perfect. Our server Rodney was excellent. He was friendly, attentive, and easy to talk to. It seemed like the restaurant uses a team-based service model, since several staff members helped deliver food and clear plates. The owner also stopped by our table, and we really enjoyed chatting with her. La Rustica made our anniversary dinner feel truly special. We'll definitely be back! read more

Wonderful! While this place is kind of small and seating not very comfortable because of the chairs and closeness of the tables, it's certainly worth it. The staff were friendly, attentive, and took great care of us. We ordered several items, most of which were fantastic and I can't wait to go back. Probably our favorite was the oyster appetizer, what an interesting and delicious dish! The value and quality are certainly worth noting, it wasn't overly priced for what we got! They do take reservations, which I would highly encourage. read more

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Son lives in this area and we wanted Italian for dinner on our last night here. The ambience is quaint and cozy. I loved the authentic decor. Jordan was our server and was absolutely fantastic. We ordered a nice bottle of Barbara and it was really good. Appetizer was a pork belly bruschetta. It was ok, it smelled gamey go me so I didn't eat it. Guys ate it and said it was more like a piece of pork On it. They ordered the Caesar salad with their entrée and I ordered a half salad, dressing could've been a little more, we our salads and then our wonderful dinner showed up, I ordered a fettuccine Bolognese with lamb and pork meatballs, SON ordered a pasta dish with Alfredo sauce husband ordered linguine with clams with white wine sauce. The food was nothing to write home about. I was bummed my fettuccini bolognese really had no flavor. An awesome Chef knows how to create food that tastes amazing. I barely ate mine. I was disappointed. Dessert Son had Tiramisu and I wanted Chocolate cake. Cake was a no go, so hubby ordered the special, Rhubarb Berry crisp. With homemade vanilla bean ice cream. Yummy and huge portions to share. I wasn't impressed with the food, but was impressed with the service. read more

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Go to La Rustica to ruin your Valentine's Day! We had made a reservation for 7, got there around 650 and we weren't seated till 715. Hostess was negligent in the order of which people came in, this negatively affected the outcome of our seat and made me feel like an afterthought. There was no care in who came first. When we asked to change seats, we were told we would have to wait 45 minutes when in actuality someone wrapped up with their table in about 10 minutes. While this was frustrating, we did not get served in the first 10 or so minutes of being there. While our server was great once we got help, our food was not good! The Cesar salad was gritty and almost wet. My husband lamb was over cooked and my pasta was a seafood after taste (there was no seafood in this dish) In the past this place was great and really enjoyed! VERY DISAPPOINTED read more

I tend to be pretty forgiving when things aren't perfect but this was overall just such a disaster that I'm giving out my first ever 1 star review. And I think 1 star is pretty generous. First, when you make a reservation you have to put a $50 deposit. Given what the food tastes like this is honestly so insane to me that they require such a high amount to hold a reservation. $20 I get but $50 is a lot. Second, when we arrived the staff was just completely lost. It was chaotic and despite there being multiple staff members walking around, nobody said anything to us for a good few minutes. One lady's back was turned to us at the host stand and like she never turned around or said anything and just walked off. When we did get seated the one redeeming factor of this place is the location and the ambiance. It's cute and the patio has a great view. It's a place you'd think you might get some good home style Italian food... We ordered some bruschetta some salads and then a carbonara and a risotto. Bruschetta was fine, salads were fine though the caesar tasted a little off. But the main courses were truly disasters. The carbonara tasted like porky egg noodles and the risotto was basically an oil soup with some soggy rice and a few tiny shrimps. It was honestly disgusting. I picked around to eat the least oily bits of the risotto and dig out the shrimps and literally shook off the oil from the shrimps -- but clearly I didn't like it and when the server came to take our plates she said nothing and put my partners mostly empty plate (idk how he ate all that) on top of the risotto plate to hide the uneaten portion. Food aside, the staff were literally yelling at each other right in earshot of customers. Things like "what are you doing, you need to put bread and water on table 49!!!!!!!!!" And not in a nice way. Suffice to say I will not be back. Idk why we did this either but we got some tiramisu to go and it was also fine but definitely not a traditional tiramisu. Don't go here!!! Also it's so expensive! What a bummer to pay $100+ for a meal I hated lol. read more

La Rustica - Soggy oily risotto with drowned shrimp - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Wow did I want to like this place. I'd been wanting to go for years and years and years. We went for our date-iversary which happens to fall near Valentine's Day. My husband asked for the Romantic package which included two glasses of bubbly, two chocolate covered strawberries and rose petals on the table. It was SO off putting to be presented a photocopy of a flyer spelling out the romantic package and then watching her pluck some petals off a tacky bouquet of grocery store roses and sprinkle them on the table. The temperature was chilly and the din was palpable. We couldn't hear her each other across the table. The table? It offered us a great view of metro shelving and plastic bins, from which they hadn't even bothered to take off the labels/stickers. We ordered the Caprese. The tomatoes were so UNRIPE they were CRUNCHY. Two options when you don't have ripe tomatoes: don't offer Caprese or run to Met Market and buy some ripe tomatoes. We tried to order a Caesar salad to split and were advised that entrees came with a salad and you could "upgrade" to a Caesar for $5 each. HOWEVER, per the menu, the price differential between a house salad and a Caesar was only $3. So, ya. That sucks. The Caesar was meh. My husband ordered the chicken parmigiana. If you'd bought it at a grocery store in a foil pan and were stoned you'd be happy. But this was a restaurant and it was less than Meh. The sauce was meh. It wasn't worth the calories. I ordered the linguine with clams. The clams were overcooked and stuck in my teeth. The linguine / sauce was like chewing on a lemon rind. It was bitter and wholly inedible. Thankfully they didn't charge me for the linguine. The place was loud and COLD. I saw a guest in a turtle neck sweater and a puffer coat. So bad. We have a saying in my family: "No and Never". This is a No and Never. read more

La Rustica - Really bad chicken parmigiana - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Went for a friend's birthday in early December. There was an unexpected power outage; however, the staff did everything they could to ensure things were great. We enjoyed the dinner, desserts and drinks they were able to serve without using their ovens or anything requiring electricity. We received our bill and 2 couples paid in cash with the balance to be entered on our credit card. Without power they couldn't run our card so just took the number down and would run it once power was restored. A few days later, the charge posted to our card with an extra $11 charge. Gratuity was added to our check due to the size of our party. We didn't have a receipt or any supporting evidence so the credit card company wouldn't do anything. I emailed the contact address on their website and have been ghosted by the staff. Unfortunately our first visit will definitely be our last. Lesson learned, use cash or make sure the power is on so they can run your card there. It's sad cause I wanted to like this place. Good thing there are other Italian places in WS. read more

Went here for our anniversary and we had a great time! The food was tasty and had large portion sizes. We had to pay a $50 reservation deposit and the restaurant was pretty small and it felt a little cramped. Service was decent, and they responded well when the neighborhood experienced a power outage. They brought in more candles for each table and it was a cool experience. read more

It used to be a 5 star resturant, with the infamous bread now gone, and last few dinners there are just average, both my wife and i rate it more of a 3 star place now. Somewhat expensive with good but not great food. I understand there was an emphasis on deserts but actually personally think deserts used ot be better as well. If they brought back the infamous bread i could see trying it again, but will proably look for a new favorite Italian resturant read more

Love everything about this place. Food, service, and ambiance are all fantastic. Truly lucky to have access to this local restaurant.

Let's start with the food, shall we? We were a party of five and we each ordered something different then shared a little bit of each dish. Deciding which was best was beyond difficult. The gnocchi was fresh and perfectly cooked. The rigatoni con ricotta had the most delicious sauce. The risotto was creamy and savory with just the right bite to the rice. But the manicotti..oh the manicotti. Try them all, but order an extra meal of manicotti to share with the table! The salads were made with fresh greens and dressings that were obviously made in house by someone who knows what they are doing. The atmosphere is quiet and quaint - tucked away in a residential neighborhood with an outdoor area that is NOT on a busy street! Now let's talk service; attentive but not smothering. Our waiter noticed when we needed something and took care of it without having to be asked. They boxed up our leftovers for us away from the table (always a nice touch!) If you scan the menu online and think it's a bit pricy, you are wrong. Every penny I spent was returned to me ten fold in flavor and atmosphere. My only regret was that I was too full to try their deserts. I may go back just for them. If they are created with the same care as the main dishes, then they must be a little slice of heaven. Go here. Eat here. Enjoy! read more

The Italian food, is the best I have eaten in the US. The service is good. Ambiance could be better, but I think lack of space is the problem. They have cramped seating inside and outside year round. I have seen children there, but double check the website for any restrictions. Street Parking only. Pescatarian and Vegetarian options. I'm not sure about Vegan offerings. You'll have to ask. read more

Italian restaurant that doesn't know its wine. I ordered a Primitivo wine off their wine list and was served a Zinfandel. Yes, they are from the same type of grape, but the difference in climate and soil make them different. read more

We came to La Rustica for our wedding anniversary after driving by a bunch of times to and from Alki beach. We had high expectations, because every time we drove by we noticed it always seemed packed with people. We requested a table outside and we were seated alongside the white side fence which was pretty grimy and noticed there was a tiny spider in a web right next to us. We didn't make much of a fuss though, and decided to just enjoy the view of the water and focus on our meal. We were hoping the food would be a classic, rustic, home-cooking style Italian but despite the great menu selection, all the food tasted too strongly of garlic without much flavor variation. Our pasta was under-salted and our caesar salad was grainy and bland (we paid $5 to upgrade from the house salad). Pros of eating here were proximity to the water, our very polite and attentive server, and the dessert (sour cherry crumble) where they had written "happy anniversary" on the plate for us. Overall it was not the worst restaurant experience but not exactly a standout either. read more

I came to La Rustica after hearing a local mention it as a good spot. We showed up just after they opened, where they mentioned it was a slow day. With only one other table in the restaurant, they sat us by the front door. We ordered drinks and food, which did taste pretty good. Our server, Max W., told us about the dessert special. Max specifically mentioned that the special was a cannoli with ricotta and mini chocolate chips. We immediately ordered it. The cannolis came out and had pistachio nuts on them, (I am allergic to nuts). If Max had mentioned that they had nuts on them, I would not have ordered this dessert. I told Max to which he took the order of Cannolis's back and said it was "no big deal". Max then walked into the kitchen towards a large blonde haired elderly woman standing by the doorway. The woman then began yelling to the entire staff about my nut allergy, where she was chastising me as a customer. This went on for several long and embarrassing minutes. I, as well as the rest of the restaurant, heard her yell loudly "why would you order cannolis if you have a nut allergy?! PERIOD". Max eventually comes out, where we mention that we could hear the woman insulting me. Max quickly responded "oh she's fine" insinuating that the behavior of her openly insulting customers for a food allergy was ok. Max changed the topic to say that they could make the cannolis without pistachios. However, due to being openly insulted by the kitchen staff, I did not feel comfortable having them prepare another food item. Even after Max offered for this woman to remake the cannolis, I could still hear her chastising me from where I was seated. I do not recommend this place, and I will not be back. We ordered approximately $100 worth of food/drinks and to be treated like that was disappointing. Pics for reference read more

La Rustica - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

What a beautiful experience. Everything was perfect from the cozy other worldly vibes to the fresh thoughtful food to the great service. Their complimentary garlic bread is everything garlic bread should be. The salmon I got was cooked to perfection and covered in a generous amount of a delicate pesto. My husband's bucatini con pollo was rich and flavorful with moist chicken. We couldn't decide who had the better dish. We will be dreaming of their pasta until our next visit. Thank you to Jordan for providing great service and also to all the support staff. We didn't get the hostess' name but she was a delight and added to our wonderful experience. read more

La Rustica - Amazing atmosphere. Immaculate vibes - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Hands down the best Italian food in Seattle! The food and ambiance make you feel like you are sitting in a cafe in Rome. The perfect place for a date night. We were able to sit outside and enjoy the sunset while sipping prosecco and eating heavenly pasta! The bread alone was worth going for! The rigatoni con ricotta was amazing. The halibut special should be added to the menu permanently. Rodney our server was a gem! read more

Not a fan of La Rustica's new $50 reservation system. Made online reservation for 7/6 and then cancelled it and made a new reservation for 7/14. Had a nice dinner for four but later found out they charged me for both reservations. I emailed the restaurant and left a phone message, I did not get a response from either. I guess they have lost a long time repeat customer. read more

We've been coming to this restaurant for over 10 years. We have always been happy with our service and meal. The servers were attentive and the original owner Julio always came to everyone's table to say hello and how our meal was. Since the new ownership bought this place, it has turned to mediocre to bad. Today was the last straw. We are no longer coming back here. So sad and unfortunate. Our server, Max was not attentive and dismissive when we try to get his attention. He never came to check on us, to let us know when our meal was coming. He blew me off saying don't worry it'll be out in a second. It wasn't a second. Mind you I had to ask him. If I didn't, ask, who knew how much longer we had to wait. We were just so upset with the whole experience with him that we didn't tip him. That's now bad it was. Worst server we ever had! My cannelloni was dry and the meat inside looks like cat food! Mushy! My husband had the frutti di mare and the sauce was so brothy and bland. We spoke with the new owner and gave her our feedback which I hope they will take it as constructive criticism. read more

La Rustica - Cannelloni - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I decided to give this place a second chance as my family wanted to come here to celebrate a birthday. Let me start off with the older larger blonde woman. Hearing her talk down to the servers was completely unsettling. We could literally hear her from our table as she was speaking rudely near the kitchen. I think she may be the manager. My server was very nice, but he appeared sad and unmotivated from his interactions with his boss. When we got to the food, it was BLAND. It was better previous times, it appears to have gotten worse. I don't know how this place stays booked. The sauce had such large onion chunks that you had to chew on them. I haven't even experienced that at olive garden. read more

This was a nice spot for a casual evening meal with friends or loved ones. While the seating was a bit cramped, we felt that the food more than made up for the small space. Portions were quite large and we both left feeling very satisfied. The service was about average overall. We were originally a little offput by the $50 reservation, but ended the night pleasantly surprised by the food from this little place. The power went out in the entire neighborhood halfway through the meal, but the staff were quick to provide candlelight and help address any needs. Certainly a unique experience! read more

La Rustica - Gnocchi and Bucatini (don't remember which ones exactly) - came with side salad, $5 extra for Caesar and $6 fee to split dishes - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

This isn't the over the top expensive and fancy Italian, this is red sauce at home with grandma Italian - and that's why it's so good. The dishes are warming and comfortable, the food is generally good, and the environment is fantastic. I love it here read more

Came here a couple years ago and left pretty disappointed after hearing such good things. Came here again today to see if things have changed and they have not. I have no idea what everyone else is smoking but the pastas here have no flavor! My partner and I both ordered pastas and were left so disappointed. My partner tried my pasta to see if maybe they would like my dish and nope, not at all. I've had better frozen pastas than this. For a 32 dollar dish, I would expect at least some salt or something. Same thing happened with the pasta I had a couple years ago, no flavor. The pizza, house salad, and steak were good. I just would not recommend the pastas here. read more

Yesterday was our first time back here after not visiting for almost two years. We went at about 6pm and were sat pretty quickly. We were sat in the small area in the back and directly next to another table that had two guests when there were two other tables with a little more privacy. We asked to move over and we were told that they had to ask the manager. Ultimately we were moved so we weren't sitting on top of the other guests. We were given water by the host. We didn't get seen by our server for about 15 minutes, and it wasn't particularly busy. It was a bit chilly in the restaurant and most of the servers were in sweatshirts. It looked a bit unprofessional to me, especially when you go to such a cute place that has such high pricing on their food. We also watched a waitress drop a bottle of wine and continue to bring it to the table after she dropped it. The food was mostly good. I had the medallions in the wine sauce and it was delicious. The pasta on the side was just OK. My husband got the Gorgonzola and his meat was cooked medium instead of medium rare. We had such a great dining experience the last time, but this time it was a little less than great. Pricing is not reflective of how the dishes tasted and how we were treated. We will not be coming back. read more

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La Rustica is fantastic. Food is the best. Service is terrific. Have been there several times and try to have something different each time because everything is so great! Drinks are wonderful too! read more

Nice Italian restaurant. Service was adequate, not overly welcoming or friendly. Not sure if the automatic gratuity of 20% (we had made reservations and were a party of six) had anything to do with the service. Lots of menu offerings and all of or meals were good. That being said, none of our meals had a "Wow" factor. Extensive wine selection. Comfy, cozy, casual ambiance. Appreciated the chef/owner (?) stopping by our table. Parking can be challenging. Overall good, not great, dining experience. read more

We came for dinner last week and I must say I was quite underwhelmed. We had heard such great things and it's been on our list for a while. It started off good but then I found a hair in my appetizer which kind of made me lose my appetite and our waitress, while kind, was SO energetic and loud it wasn't really the same vibe as the restaurant. It was a little too much and quite frankly annoying. And the restaurant is absolutely tiny so it was so loud by like 6pm I could barely hear myself talk. I enjoyed my pasta dish however my mom ordered the carbonara and it was not good. Definitely don't order that. I would sadly probably not return. read more

La Rustica - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Always great. Clam Linguine is a fave. Service is excellent. Neighborhood vibe with lots of character.

Found this quaint little spot while vacationing at Alki Beach. The bread they serve is like none other. So warm, soft and delicious. I ordered the special boar with risotto and the sauce was so flavorful and the meat very tender. My friend ordered the salmon with pesto. The pesto seemed to be on the salty side, but the salmon was cooked perfectly. The serving size on both was nice and large so we had leftovers for the next day. The tiramisu was delish! Our waiter was super friendly and very attentive. Great find. read more

La Rustica - Boar - Italian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Went for dinner on a Friday night, we had a reservation and were seated right at our reservation time. The service is what took this dinner over the top. Jordan was our server and his timing of everything was perfect, we were never waiting but also never rushed. We got the portchetta bruschetta, carbonara, and the lamb shank. All were delicious and would order again. The portions were generous and we left with leftovers of all 3. Overall, our experience was wonderful, we will definitely be back. read more

This restaurant was a favorite, but the last few visits left us with a literal bad taste in our mouths. Pasta that was half al dente and half raw. Sauces that were overly sweet. The worst was a limoncello tiramisu, which was fine on it's own, but covered in a terrible red sauce. It must have been a fruit, but it had a strange artificial taste like Nyquil. I cut as much as possible off the dessert, but where are the palates that made this a great place to begin with?????? read more

Came to La Rustica as drive by it all the time when I commute from Burien to Admiral area I West Seattle. Parking is tough as streets are packed with locals that street park to their homes or are watching the sunset in late afternoon. But, not unobtainable to find one. Sat inside and they have covered outdoor seating too. The tables are small for 2 seaters, but you can make due and server keeps the clutter down. Wine and drink selection is fantastic so you'll have no issues finding a bottle of wine. My wife got carbonara and I tasted it and was great. I had the the lamb shank and came with pasta with a dark sauce that was okay, a bit vinegar taste. Loved the Affogato ice cream with coffee poured on top followed with some Sambuca. Service was fantastic and Max took great care of us assuring a great experience. read more

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What happened here? Been a regular for 18 years since moving to Alki. Last night it took 10 minutes for our server to greet us. She then told us a story about her child having someone spend the night who had poor hygiene and they should have had them sleep in a dog bed not a regular bed. After being served cocktails the server never checked on us so I had to flag her down and let her know we were ready to order. Then it took almost an hour before our entrees arrived. They later offered free dessert because of the slowness but we had been there 2.5 hours and I had little faith the tiramisu would arrive in a timely manner so we declined. I've recommended La Rustica to so many people over the last decade. It makes me a little sad to write this. read more