Took our immediate family members (7) to Little Mama's for an Easter Sunday lunch. Our server, Jay, was fantastic. Sat upstairs at the Rea Farms location. the food is very good and plentiful, especially for lunch. Very reasonable prices. Even lunch portions are so generous, that several family members requested take out containers. Ambiance is great for a Saturday date night, love their olive oil with red peppers mixed in to dip your bread. This is not another Italian restaurant in Charlotte run by owners that have zero Italian heritage. You all know the places I am talking about. Even got to try their polenta which I loved as a child growing up in New York. I am 100% of Italian heritage. Eggplant and Chicken dishes are great, very nice wine selection at reasonable prices and good pours. There are other Charlotte restaurants that we used to frequent but stopped going because no matter how much you spent on the food, they cheated you on the wine pours. Very short-sided marketing strategy, We leave 25-30% tip for good service and good wine pours. Don't take this review lightly. I know good Italian food! read more

WOW I am so impressed by Little Mamas. If you haven't been yet, then you are missing out! We went here for our anniversary, and the staff were so attentive they brought us out a cake and took our photos. You HAVE to get the peppadew peppers and whipped burratta appetizer - I think about it often. We've sat at the bar or at a table, and either is great. I would highly recommend coming back multiple times to try out different seating and food read more

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Heard about this place from co-workers. I was super impressed by the menu so I ordered takeout. Let me preface this by saying that I had a Sicilian Auntie in The Bronx, NY and I had access to all the offerings of the famous Arthur Avenue. I even make homemade manicotti shells. I am also the former director of sales and marketing for B&B hospitality group owned by Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich so I know what I'm talking about when it comes to Italian cuisine. I was dying for some eggplant parm which is my favorite. So I ordered that along with the Brussels Sprouts and a cannoli. My biggest pet peeve is when I go to a "so called" Italian restaurant and order the eggplant and they leave that disgusting thick skin on it. It's hard to eat with the skin and quite frankly the skin offers no benefit other than the lazy chef who didn't want to take the time to remove it. Most of the frozen eggplant comes with the skin on which is why I'd never buy it. I can only speculate that they used frozen eggplant or are too lazy to take the skin off. Details matter people. I personally don't want to bite into something and have to pull the skin off. It's gross. Little Mama's......I make you this offer......I'm happy to come by and teach your chefs the proper way to prepare fresh eggplant because this was a tragedy. The Brussels sprouts were unremarkable in my opinion. Had no real flavor and was loaded with raisins. Personally I think pomegranate seeds would have been a better choice. Then the worst thing happened.......they never gave me my cannoli. WTF. That's just wrong!!!! I am really twisted about this. Three items ordered in and there should be three items going out. Bad order fulfillment! I can't say that I'm never gonna go back and try something else but I can say that I'm in no rush to give them another go. Instead I'm gonna make my own Sunday gravy and meatballs and manicotti this weekend. read more

Found this little gem by searching YELP, and glad we did. Nice ambiance in a romantic darkly-lit kind of dining room, all wood paneling and a nice little bar area where one could dine solo. The waitstaff was excellent (we had Noah), service being spot on without being intrusive. While they do get on with business in order to turn the tables, they'll back off and slow down once they figure out your desires. Our waiter suggested the Stracciatella for an appetizer and we went for it ... it was not the famous Stracciatella soup many are used to, but fresh mozzarella cheese shreds with pistachio nuts on top and surrounded with a very light lemon zest-evoo sauce ... all served with toasted crostini. We had ours with the oven roasted tomatoes as accompaniment ... and this little dish was the 5-star hit of the night. The rest of the food was very good (we had Italian sausage filled ravioli and fettuccine al bruno pasta), and I was torn between 4 and 5 stars, but settled on 4. The food was 5 star stuff but they need someone bussing the tables, and they need to work on the music playlist. We really loved our 5-star Stracciatella, but spent the rest of the meal with those used plates staring at us. All during the meal they played diner music ... good music, but totally out of place in this Italian setting ... we needed some Frankie. All to say 4 star very good ... just needs a few fine touches to match the otherwise elegant experience. read more

Solid early dinner for us they got us in an hour earlier to accommodate us arriving to town sooner than later. Organic meatball spaghetti is the clear winner out of all the things we tried today. Bread pudding here is one of the best examples of the dish hands down. Parking is free for three hours in the lot across from the restaurant. Staff very polite and prompt ! read more

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Little Mama's delivers. The Mozzarella Presentation was a standout silky, fresh, and plated beautifully. My Chicken Carciofi came with a bright lemon‑caper sauce over creamy polenta, balanced and full of depth. My fiancés Ziti Al Telefono was classic comfort: molten cheese, perfect texture, and rich tomato flavor. Service stayed attentive all night, making the whole experience smooth and satisfying. read more

Little Mama's - Ziti Al Telefono and Chicken Carciofi 10/10 - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

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Had our first dinner here with the parents visiting from out of town for my birthday. Got 3 family portion pastas to share. Super yummy! To start we had the mozzarella presentation and some wine of course. We got the artichoke and white beans with the mozzarella. I would do the red peppers or tomato next time. The pasta was very filling we had the Penne alla vodka. Fresh radiatore and a cream Alfredo sauce chicken pasta that the waiter suggested so my husband could have a chicken Alfredo pasta. We will have left overs for days! The bread was fantastic! All the wait staff was giving us extra baskets when we asked! Ambiance was great. We sat in both. Kind of loud. But that's typical for a dinner. For dessert we had the cannolis. Made fresh! And wow. They are a must. And the tiramisu!! Such another must! A great birthday dinner! Thank you read more

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We had an excellent dinner here tonight at Little Mama's. Our server was very informative and attentive, explaining the menu and giving great order recommendations. The atmosphere was classy, with most patrons dressed in dressy casual, some celebrating events. The four of us each started with a glass of wine; Chardonnay for me, Sauvignon blanc for my husband and red blend for our friends. All wines were delicious. Our server recommended the "Mozzarella presentation" with two selections that come with it; goat cheese stuffed peppers and tomato/basil. We also had tasty bread with a spicy oil dipping sauce. I ordered one of the house made pasta dishes, the fettuccine with crispy chicken. It also had a delicious truffle crumble. My husband enjoyed the chicken carciofi and it was delicious and well seasoned. read more

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Food and service are next level. Great attention to detail and very helpful staff. I've been 3 times and each time was perfect. Great date spot. read more

First the waitress was very personable and helped with wine and food selections. The place atmosphere reminded me of nyc west side restaurants. We enjoyed everything. And reasonable pricing. Highly recommend a visit. read more

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Love this place. Service is good. Very nice staff. Get a free dessert for your bday. Or should I say a feee cannoli. The ambiance is nice and fancy. Very cute modern place for date night. Menu is good. Prices and portion is good. Nothing bad to say about this place. Plenty of parking. read more

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Went here for Mother's Day. Always amazing. The drink list is refreshingly creative, the menu is small but exquisite. The appatizers taste amazing. The amount of food you get with this quality and price is bar none. I can't imagine not recommending such an amazing place. read more

I made a reservation the night before for 6pm for 6 ppl. for my oldest daughter's 18th Bday dinner. I couldn't believe the #2 rated Italian place still had an opening. First pleasant surprise. We arrive right at 6pm and only waited 3 minutes before we were sat at a booth with views of 2 tvs. Cody was our server. He had great suggestions for apps and dinner. We ordered the stracciore moz accompanied with peppadew stuffed with goat cheese and cannelloni bean salami salad. Brody ordered the penne chicken and broccoli with Alfredo lemon crème sauce. Katy ordered the ziti, both Tristan and Karlea ordered the same meal; fettuccini Alfredo with Romano chicken (go figure) I ordered the raditiore and my wife got the chicken Riggie. We all enjoyed our meals until we were stuffed and asked for to-go containers. Cody offered to wrap up the leftover for us and he labeled each container so there was no confusion. After we ate, I told tea out Karlea's bday and he offered to bring a cannoli with a candle for her which was a very nice gesture and made her feel special. I highly recommend Little Mama's for a special occasion or just regular meal with some well prepared Italian food. read more

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Food was good needed a bit more salt to bring out the flavor a little more. Service was very good! Our waiter was great. It's a very quaint little place. read more

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I've lived in Charlotte over a year now and finally got around to trying Little Mama's. For a while now I've been told it's one of the best italian restaurants to go to and a staple Charlotte "Must have" and they weren't wrong. We were in the Southpark area and it was around 5:00pm on a friday and so we just walked in to see about a wait time(figuring it's a little before dinner dish and we might get lucky). We in fact were because there was a last minute cancellation so we were seated immediately in the main dining room. Upon seating, we were greeted with warm fresh focaccia bread which was 10/10 with accompanying balsamic and olive oil. We ordered the soup of the day was a tomato and goat cheese soup which was perfect to start with it being so cold outside. We opted to split the half caesar salad and FRESH Stracciatella Mozzarella bar which had pistachios, lemon zest, and evoo to top it. We split a main of the All Vodka but subbed the penne for a squiggly shaped pasta called Radiatore and topped it with a breaded chicken. TO DIE FOR. I will say for two people it was a lot of food and I probably could've shared my split pasta easily with another. With that being said the portion sizes are plentiful here and served family style so everyone who dines here will leave with a full belly no doubt. Our waitress asked us if we wanted dessert and we willingly passed..this time! I will definitely be back to Little Mama's to enjoy another fabulous meal very very soon. read more

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I came here with two friends for lunch. Have been to the other location and this location was just as great. The server was attentive, the food was all fresh and came out fast, and the vibe was old school Italian for sure. One of my friends said he felt like he went back in time, but in a good way. The prices for lunch are extremely fair for what you get considering the quality of the food. I'll be back again. read more

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Little Mama's is a great lil Italian spot in Charlotte! This review comes a bit late but better late than never. I was in town for a quick trip for Valentine's day and my boyfriend & I decided to try our luck and go here for an early dinner. Of course being Valentine's day, the place was packed but we were able to grab a couple of seats at the bar. The restaurant was easy to find and parking was a breeze since it was in a plaza. When we walked in the hostesses helped us right away and we were able to snag the bar seats. We ate dinner directly at the bar and it was a wonderful experience. The service was quick and friendly and it felt intimate being seated at the bar. We ordered a lasagna and another dish with pasta and a crusted chicken breast and it both dishes were so good! I wasn't feeling too well so after we finished up our dinner we were able to grab our bill, pay, and head out. Overall, a great experience at Little Mama's, especially on a day as busy as Valentine's day. read more

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Food and service was amazing. Love bringing out of town guests here. They represent Charlotte well. Thanks.

OMG, I came here over a year ago and never wrote a review and then couldn't remember the name of the place. Well I was scrolling Yelp and came across someone elses review and it jogged my memory. Before heading out of town after a long weekend, we were looking for a final meal after some shopping at South Park. it was early for dinner but we came into Little Mama's and got a table right away. Everything was so delicious and I remember the waiter recommended the stracciatella cheese which is a must. I don't recommend eating this heavy of a meal and then driving to Charleston because all I wanted to do was take a nap but it was worth it. We had plenty of leftovers because the portions are huge and I ordered extra meatballs to take home with me. read more

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I visited Little Mama's while in Charlotte for the weekend for a birthday dinner and it definitely lived up to the hype. The restaurant came highly recommended, so I was really looking forward to it. The drinks were great, and the sausage ravioli I ordered was hands down the best I've ever had. My boyfriend ordered salmon which he enjoyed as well.. Service was attentive and friendly, and the overall vibe of the restaurant made it a perfect spot for a celebratory dinner. read more

Little Mama's - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

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I absolutely love Little Mama's!! We had Jameson as our server and he was fantastic. He had great recommendations and knew the menu like the back of his hand. Food was incredible as always. read more

Little Mama's - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

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We love little mamas and recently placed a large group catering order. We had 32 adults and 3 kids and based off the recommendations of the menu, we ordered 2 large baked ziti trays, 2 large chicken parm trays and 1 large chicken carcofi tray. Online, each tray said it feed 10-12 people. I wish I took a photo of the trays, but the pasta feeds way more than 10-12 people. We didn't even open the second tray. Luckily we love little mama's so we froze individual portions of it. All that said, it's absolutely a 5 star restaurant. A little pricey, but absolutely worth it. The food all came hot and was well cooked. I would argue it is the best Italian food in Charlotte, and now that we better understand the portion sizes, we would order catering from them again. read more

Amazing food!!! (And I am not easily impressed.) Service was good. The space is quaint and comfortable. We will return!! read more

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Family style restaurant. Went there for a Friday dinner with friends - they were able to accommodate large groups with advanced reservation. We came by the reservation time but waited for another 10+ minutes for the table to be ready. Food was descent. Server made good suggestions on the portions of dishes to share. The mozzarella cheese tasted great. Entrees were good amount of food. Cheese and pepper were offered to the pasta as well. Free parking lot nearby. read more

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Came here for a group dinner and I loved it just as much as their sister restaurant Mama Ricotta's! Ambience is a little more formal but still business casual here. Servings are generous and our waiter did a great job at describing entrees and letting us know about specials. Will be back! read more

I've heard nothing but good things about Little Mama's and let me tell you... the hype is real! This has to be one of the best places to eat in Charlotte, hands down. The service is incredible, the food is absolutely amazing, and the restaurant itself is so nice without feeling overly stuffy. It is truly a gem. Oh! And I can't forget, there's lots of parking nearby! That's a big thing for me with places in the city so definitely had to add points there. There's a large, level lot just outside of the restaurant. It seems to be shared with the other surrounding buildings so I'm not sure how packed it can get during the week, but we visited on a Sunday and it was nearly empty. Win! Honestly, it isn't even worth me rambling about everything because I promise you can't go wrong here. They are making everything fresh with quality ingredients and it makes all the difference. From the complimentary bread and olive oil to start, to the amazing salad options (the half Tuscan I ordered was phenomenal and I would return JUST for the salad!), to the delicious entrees.. it is all absolutely delicious. I'm sure the appetizers and desserts are wonderful as well but I had absolutely zero room and leftovers that made a couple more meals, so I'll have to plan better next time. read more

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I think this may top my visits to Italian restaurants. The whole place is inviting, dim enough for a romantic evening, but bright enough to get supper with friends. The mozzarella bar (not actually a bar, just really customizable fresh mozzarella) is a fantastic idea and is amazing; the mozzarella is cold, the tomatoes are juicy, and the EVOO is powerful. The bread is also great (though be aware the EVOO that comes with it has a bit of a kick); we went through nearly two baskets. That's nothing to say of the pasta. I don't like tomato-based sauces much, but I took a well-rewarded risk with the radiatore pasta. That pasta's also fresh and cooked just enough to leave a little spring in it. The meat in the sauce was also good, though it was difficult to differentiate it from regular old beef even though it was a mixture of pork, beef, and veal. Moses was also a great waiter, giving us well-informed recommendations such as adding ricotta to the radiatore and keeping us topped off on drinks, bread, and whatever else we needed. Price-wise, it's also surprisingly affordable for Charlotte. read more

My reaction is Wow! Went here for a family dinner after Christmas. The spot is really cozy inside with lots of wood accents and very comfortable seating. The Mozzarella apps were fantastic with the roasted tomatoes and basil. These were some of the tastiest tomatoes I have ever eaten and made the dish. The menu highlights pasta so I ordered the lasagna. It was heavenly. A wonderful combination of pasta, a four meat sauce and melted cheeses, all surrounded on the plate with a rich tomato sauce. Trust me this is an incredible lasagna, the portion was hugs and I had leftovers for the next day. The prices are very reasonable for the value received here as well. read more

Second time eating there. Both times have been amazing. Very friendly, knowledgable staff. Attentive. Frank or waiter was fantastic. We had the Fior di Latte with heirloom tomatoes and prosciutto to start. Then the Penne ala Vodka. Also delicious. Highly recommend. read more

Little Mama's - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

This is a great Italian restaurant. Was very happy to try this place for first time. Some critiques but no reason to not come back! Food: I was very impressed with their portion sizes for everything. I promise you, you don't leave hungry. Food is tasty, I had the chicken/eggplant parm combo (1 chicken, 2 eggplants, and one very generously portioned side pasta) and was excellently prepared. I ordered some sides and my favorites were the Brussels sprouts and quinoa. Very healthy sides and tasted very good. The one side that let me down was the parm fries, they were about average fries. I'll note the serving sizes for the sides are about a cup worth, so not as big as entrees or side pastas. We had some desserts at the table and they were also very generous sizes. I had the Nutella pie and it was very well prepared and not super filling which is the way I like it. Sweet but leaves you open to have more food later on in the day. Some things I improve are that the serving breads seem to be overly oiled to my liking. Also their fresh mozzarella cheese appetizer wasn't honestly that fresh. Cheese was lacking in flavor and tomato was grocery store quality. I feel I could go to Publix and dump olive oil on sliced tomato and mozzarella and be the same. Service: 10/10, we were well taken care of. Food came out quick too but we also did not feel rushed whatsoever. Our server was very nice, helpful, and marketed the menu specials with detail. Ambience: Not too loud and felt like a modern style old fashioned restaurant (oxymoron but you will understand when you're inside). I haven't had too many Italian Restaurants in the area in the fear of being disappointed, but this place is great and should be a Charlotte staple for a while. This place can survive in the northeast for sure!! Thank you and will be back to try more of the menu! read more

We had reservations for a party of 9 last week and we were so glad that we ended up picking Little Mama's for dinner. Our server was super friendly and informative about the menu. We all started with the complimentary bread basket which was fabulous and a few of us ordered the fresh Caesar salad as an appetizer. Almost everyone at the table ordered the pasta with vodka sauce. Some added chicken and said it was great while others substituted the penne pasta for fresh pasta. I loved the radiatore style fresh pasta with the vodka sauce. All of our dishes came out hot and were fresh! Overall a great night and I look forward to coming back again! read more

Little Mama's - Penne Alla Vodka sub radiatore for penne - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

Lunch was excellent. The chicken parm sandwich was hot, tasty, and simply good. Add in the braised Brussels in a tangy sauce and food coma city. With tip it was under $20. Check it out. read more

Little Mama's - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

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PHENOMENAL. Key takeaways: LOVED the eggplant parm and the penne alla vodka. Make a reservation. Fred is wonderful. This is my favorite place that i've eaten at since moving to Charlotte a few months ago. Everything was absolutely amazing. We ordered quite a few things--the chicken parm and eggplant parm combo (which came with a side of spaghetti), the italian sausage ravioli, and the infamous penne alla vodka. It's hard to rank everything we tried because there wasn't a single thing we didnt like. However, what stood out the most was surprisingly the eggplant parm, even my boyfriend (who is usually not a fan of the dish) agreed that it was the best out of everything we ordered. Coming in a very close second was the penne alla vodka. Wow. The sauce was absolute perfection. As for the service, our server Fred was fantastic. When we told him that we were celebrating our anniversary, he was so excited and said "let Fred take care of you." Needless to say he most certainly did. After our meal, he brought out a cannoli with two candles, which was very sweet. read more

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Before I start, please make a reservation to make your lives easier! It was full, and the bar was half full when I went in. Thankfully, the other reviews said to make one so I went ahead and did so. I only waited a few minutes for my table to be ready. It gives off a fancy vibe, but is very much casual. Feel free to wear whatever. The menu has a large variety from salads to pastas to steaks. There were 3 of us, so we ordered the family portion of the spaghetti and radiatore, plus there was complimentary bread. That was enough to feed probably 6 people, so with that being said I came home with a lot of leftovers. We also went ahead and got the tiramisu, which was also large so perfect to split between a few people. Overall, prices aren't bad too, service is amazing, staff was friendly and accommodating. Definitely recommend if you're ever in Charlotte! read more

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We came here for a date night and were waited by a nice waiter who knew his job very well. To start, we got the Fior di Latte accompanied by Roasted Sicilian Peppers from the Mozzarella Bar and I was a bit disappointed by the dryness of the mozzarella, but the accompaniment was amazing! We also got the Caesar Salad which was a solid 10/10. For dinner, I got the Penne alla Vodka with Radiatore pasta and the pasta was cooked very well but I wish there was more sauce since it was a bit dry for my liking. This is my go to Italian place here so I'm hoping next time will be my usual experience here, which is a 5/5. read more

Little Mama's - Fior Di Latte and Caesar Salad - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

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Food was so good I forgot to take a pic!! I ordered the chicken parmigiana...so good! Service was great. I've also been here for brunch which was also really good. Family style Italian dining with an authentic Italian vibe. Yesss read more

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Food is always amazing. Favorite Italian place in Charlotte! The service is always stellar, make sure we are satisfied. Don't be afraid to ask for more bread! The ambience is good, it can feel a bit small but very romantic and it sets a great mood. I got the Caesar's salad, fior di latte with roasted Sicilian red peppers for appetizers. The cocktail was an amazing manhattan For my entree I got the chicken riggies but subbed for radiator pasta. It was truly amazing! I look forward to going back read more

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I love this place! The food is amazing and the service is consistently good. I've gone here several times and have yet to have a bad experience. I've gone with friends and family and everyone raves about how good the food was. I'm a creature of habit, so I always get the lasagna, which I highly recommend. This restaurant will forever be on my go to list. read more

Little Mama's never disappoints! We've visited multiple times, and each experience has been consistently excellent at this location and Ballantyne. Date night or celebrating a special occasion, this is the perfect spot. The food is always delicious, and the service is always great! read more

Little Mama's - Penne alla Vodka, Fresh Fettuccine Al Burro, and Lasagna - Italian Near Me - Charlotte, North Carolina

OMG, I am so happy to have found this restaurant. Real homemade pasta and fresh mozzarella balls. This is a restaurant that I will visit every time I am in Charlotte. On my last visit I had dinner here 2 nights and lunch my final day in town. That's 3 meals in 3 days from Little Mama's! read more