3.5 stars: had a nice early weeknight dinner here. It's cozy inside and the folks working there are quite hospitable and happy to let you take your time and enjoy the food, drinks and company. The plum negroni was a fun twist on the usual, and though I probably wouldn't have more than one at a time, it was pretty good - just needed a quick stir before serving to make it colder. As for the food, we had a pretty minimalistic dinner, just two plates of pasta (the funghi and the buttera) and of course, the complimentary bread. Neither were mind-blowing but I liked the crispy bits of guanciale in the buttera, and the fact that it tasted like a carbonara but with tomato as well. A good option for when you can't decide between the a carbonara/cacio e pepe or a tomato-based pasta. I'd had lots of bread in my travels to Northern Italy so I knew not to expect the tastiest of bread, but I can at least say that it was fluffy and fresh tasting. They were also kind to give us a little homemade digestif at the end of the meal, which was interesting for sure! In general, a solid neighborhood pasta shop. read more

Top. Great staff, Great outdoor sitting. Great food. Very nice place Bla beta makayne walou.

Lovely, cozy spot with homey, well-executed, no gimmicks Italian food. Prices are reasonable although it quickly adds up when you start wanting to order multiple apps and a pasta and a main. We had: Fava / peas salad - Perfect, refreshing salad to start off the meal. Cauliflower sformato - Unique dish, like a soufflé, with a creamy fluffy texture. Delicious. Taglierini al tartufo - Fairly basic pasta imo but with generous / large shavings of truffle. To be honest didn't feel like the truffle was utilized to its full capability in this dish. Grilled Piedmontese beef "tagliata" - Steak is seared to the perfect level of rareness and salted with those nice large salt crystals that really bring out the flavor of the beef. Arugula rounds out the dish. So simple but executed so well. read more

Excellent, authentic Italian restaurant. Be sure to make and confirm your reservation because this place gets busy! Our local foodie friends brought us here & we got the $45 tasting menu for 4 people. We ordered a few cocktails. They brought out unsalted bread with olive oil for dipping. I didn't like the drink we ordered. It was a flowery, sweet saffron based drink that seemed unbalanced. DH liked it because it tasted like chamomile tea. We received 4 appetizers: garbanzo bean and baccalà (cod), carpaccio with cauliflower, tomato bread soup, and chicken livers with rice. I enjoyed the garbanzo and the soup was delicious. I personally don't like the flavor of liver, but those who did enjoyed that dish. Then, there were the pastas: pancetta ravioli topped with venison, cherry tomato topped flat pasta, rolled pasta with preserved onions and grated cheese. We didn't care too much for that last one...texture was like extremely chewy gnocchi and the flavors were odd. I thought they put something like sa'or in it. However, the flat pasta was awesome! It was lightly seasoned with salt and freshly ground pepper, which worked well with the bright pop of the tomatoes and creamy ricotta. Ravioli was fine & it had that nice chewy fresh texture. The venison was just crumbled on top. It wasn't gamey at all. Of the main dishes, the most intensely flavored one was the rabbit braised with black olives with cannellini beans. Deeply savory and creamy at the same time. I imagined Italian slow-cooking at it's best would be like this. The rabbit meat was nice and silky, like roasted dark meat chicken, full of fat and flavor. Some might say it was a touch over salted, but that's from the generous amount of olives. The olives were super tasty and densely textured...totally unlike the stuff from jars or cans. Reminded me of good quality Kalamatas. They also had pits, so be careful! I ate the rabbit dish with the sautéed spinach, which was barely salted, and it seemed to work out. Branzino al Cartoccio was our other main dish. Basically, a parchment wrapped white fish, mildly seasoned, and served with braised fennel. Our dining companions loved this dish. The fish was cooked perfectly, nice and moist. It was fine, but nothing out of the ordinary. For dessert, we had a blueberry pie and dense chocolate cake, both were not as sweet as American style desserts. Our friend remarked that you could actually taste the blueberries. :) They were served with a bit of whipped cream. Overall, a nice place to experience a bit of Europe in Brooklyn. Tasting menu provides quite a bit of food. Nice atmosphere too. read more

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Food was Ok. Service was terrible. My server (older guy with a beard and accent) just took our order and I never saw him until it was time to pay for my dinner. My date was not crazy about the food. The funny thing is, I still left a tip because I'm a nice guy. Absolutely terrible service. There was a lady that was kind enough to let us use a charger and she's the one that I told I did not see my server since an hr ago and informed the server...... Ambience was ok. Experience messed up the evening and I left very annoyed..... . GASHFORD read more

Great food, outstanding cocktails, and even better service. This charming spot is a neighborhood favorite for a relaxing evening with friends or a romantic dinner. read more

Looks like an old Drug Store from the outside, the inside is super uniquely decorated. Had the TAGLIATELLE AL RAGU (Piedmontese beef & orange zest), really good but salty. The sage pappardelle with rabbit was really good, not that salty which is nice. Also had the duck with chickpeas which was probably the best dish of the night. However it took FOREVER for it to come out so that was a downside. Good little place overall. read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

I had an amazing evening at this restaurant. The service here is incredible and the staff is beyond friendly. We ordered a bottle of wine and started with the Prosciutto & Mozzarella. For the main dish I ordered the alla Buttera. Everything I ate was absolutely delicious. The outdoor dining ambiance was lovely and beautiful. I cannot recommend this restaurant enough and can't wait to dine here again. read more

The music was bad and incredibly loud. There were six of us and multiple people asked the servers to turn it down. Every time, the guy curating the playlist (Frank Ferdinand, the Pixies, Cage the Elephant--basically a 14 year olds Walkman in 2009) would get indignant, turn it down for a song, and then crank it back up. We could barely hear each other. Beyond that, the food is and always has been pretty whatever. read more

Used to be so great. The food quality has gone down, the best menu items aren't available anymore, the spritz were flat and service inattentive and judgmental. Such a shame since it's such a great location! read more

Came here for brunch with some friends. They have a lot outdoor seating area. The brunch menu is pretty limited, we ordered the fig salad, which is amazing. We also got three different kinds of pasta from the brunch menus, all of them exceeded my expectations. Even though they don't look very "pretty" on the plate, but all of them are very flavorful and not super heavy. Their homemade tiramisu is a must try as well. Would definitely come back for dinner, been wanting to try their duck dish. The owner and waitress are very friendly and tentative. read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

The duck breast is 10x better than any steak I've ever had. You can absolutely taste the freshness of the pasta. The well-preserved turn of the century pharmacy interior is glorious. This place is an absolute gem. Long live Locanda Vini e Olii! read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Grilled duck breast cooked medium rare - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

Food 4/5 Service 4/5 Atmosphere 5/5 I loved the atmosphere here very charming and old school the decor is gorgeous and takes you back to a bar in the 50s. Very warm feeling and love the neighborhood in which it's located. For an appetizer I had the sardines w bread and butter very simple but very delicious! Sardines are extremely salty so keep this in mind when ordering! For dinner we had the bacalao fish with mash and we had a pasta with sausage (I forgot what it's called forgive me) and shared both plates the food was decent but not seasoned enough for me, very bland. I love flavorful dishes and this just wasn't flavorful enough. I would visit again and maybe try something different or just get drinks and dessert or another appetizer read more

Wow! First off, wonderful customer service!! The wait staff was super friendly and helpful. They made the experience even better! Not, on to the food. Wow wow wow. So yummy! We had the sformato as a starter and for entrees the duck and truffle pasta. Everything was cooked and seasoned perfectly! i can't wait to go back! read more

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We had an excellent valentines day dinner here. It was prix-fixe only, and we really enjoyed pretty much every dish we got. The highlight was the Taglierini Al Tartufo, with giant amounts of fresh sliced truffles, we both loved that. We also really liked the Cauliflower Sformato on the food menu, and the affagato for desert was fantastic. That said, we enjoyed everything that was in front of us, those were just the highlights. For drinks, the Rye Negroni was great, as were the wines available by the glass. Lastly, the service was fantastic. I imagine that valentines day is one of the least favorite days for most service staff in an Italian restaurant, but you'd have never known it from how the staff performed. Everyone was extremely nice, patient, and warm. They had the perfect amount of service where you felt like you never had to wait, but you never felt at all smothered. I can't compliment them enough on this. read more

Finally made it to this place for dinner after having it bookmarked for years. I wasn't sure what to expect based on the very mixed reviews on Yelp (particularly the more recent ones), and I have to admit that my own experience was very mixed as well. I'll start with the food. My husband and I shared the Tagilerini al Tartufo, which was, quite honestly, one of the most delicious pasta dishes I've ever experienced. So flavorful and such a generous layer of shaved truffle. If I could rate this place based on that dish alone, I would easily give it five stars with no hesitation. We then had the duck (with sautéed spinach instead of chickpeas for a $5 upcharge) and another pasta dish with hen of the woods and lobster mushrooms. Both were okay but not amazing. The duck was perfectly cooked, but the fig and shallot marmalade was sooo sweet that I completely avoided it. The mushrooms in the pasta dish were extremely undercooked, as in pretty much raw. The dish was also somewhat bland, even after we added grated parmesan, and also very oily. On to the service. Our main server literally went MIA after we rejected his $120 wine bottle suggestion and went with a $58 bottle instead. We did solicit his opinion on the wine list, but it seemed as though he immediately went for the most expensive bottle without even knowing anything about it. We weren't expecting him to be a sommelier, but when a server begins his wine description with "I think it's..." it pretty much discredits the rest of his statement! He did the same with the party next to us, but they fell for it. After that, our only interactions were with the runner, who was a lot more attentive and interactive. My husband says he doesn't plan to return to this place. I would give it another chance based on Tagilerini al Tartufo alone, but I do think there is a lot of room for improvement. read more

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I have been surprised each time we go here, and I should learn my lesson (read: don't go). My wife and I had dinner here on Sunday evening as walk-ins. Warm welcome and easy seating (they had just opened for service for the day). We were super jet-lagged and also really hungry. We ordered a soup each (the squash soup), and a separate main-course. I had the top-loin, and my wife had the al-funghi pasta. My plate had some wilted arugula, and a number of slices (8?) of pretty blue/red meat. They were quite chewy, with gristle in each slide; I had to spit out a segment of each slice. It was also a very smokey flavor, and it did not pair well with the very raw interior of the meat. I was hungry and tired and sick so just ate it, and did not enjoy it at all. My wife's pasta was fine, per her comments. Not good or bad. For one app and one main each, and good tip, I paid $95. We always hope this spot is better than it is, and we need to stop being optimistic. It is a neighborhood spot for us, so that's a sad statement. read more

I'm already planning my return to this wonderful restaurant. This feels like the Italian food I've been searching for my entire life. Prepare to be greeted with warm, fresh bread with delicious olive oil for dipping throughout your meal Everything I ate was wonderful: Venetian sardines were beautifully seasoned, perfectly cooked chicken livers with a rich risotto, and the tripe!!! Get the tripe -- it's cooked in a lovely tomato sauce. The "guitar strings" and sage pappardelle were also fantastic... you can't go wrong with any of the pasta. Just come and if you have to wait, I promise it's worth it. (I think this place is WAY better than Fausto ) read more

Excellent food and wine. The service is superb. Interesting ambiance. Horrible reservation system.

This Italian eatery is a hidden gem. The owners and servers go above and beyond to ensure the wine, appetizers and entrees are perfection. The pistachio dessert was amazing-light, cool, refreshing! read more

I was dating a young beautiful man from Italy for like a week (we saw each other three times.) First time we went to a Greek place in Park Slope which was very awkward. He'd never had Greek before and acted, well - like it was foreign. So for date three - Valentine's Day - after a lovely dance performance at BAM I wanted to find a place within walking distance that was ITALIAN. I figured that'd make him happy. Locanda Vini e Olii was offering a VD special prix-fixe romantic dinner and though it was a last minute reservation they still had a slot available. The chef came around to each table talking about the night's selections. He and my date chatted each other up in Italian and then the chef asked if I'd been to Camillo, his other restaurant in Prospect Lefferts Gardens - close to where I live in East Flatbush. He remembered me ! That was so nice. Let me tell you the FOOD is AMAZING. My little Italian stallion raved about it. Said he wanted to bring his mother. !! Service was perfect. Great ambiance and vibe. Nice diverse crowd. It's a lovely place. GO read more

Love this place. From the old-school sign out front to the delicious cocktails, I am all about Locanda. Truthfully, I've only ever had drinks and apps here, but it's always a cozy, wonderful time. Sitting at the bar is probably my favorite spot because the bartenders are friendly and very willing to offer recommendations. I usually opt for the charcuterie, but everything looks delicious. I highly, HIGHLY recommend the "soup" pappa al pomodoro (I probably butchered the actual name, but you'll get it when you see it). This soup is SO ridiculously, unbelievably good. I look at it and don't understand why it's so good, but it is. You always want more. read more

Limited bar, food is ok, service was average, not as good as I thought it would be.

Awesome and cute spot. The service and then timing of courses as well as drinks were impeccable. There were 4 of us. The dinner started with house made bread and Italian olive oil. We started with a few appetizers, pasta course and entrees. Appetizers: sardines and cauliflower sformata - yummy! Definitely get Cauliflower! Pasta: pici and tagliatelle, I'm not big on pasta. They were tasty and very shareable. Entrees: roasted cod, duck and beef. My cod was great and huge or may be I was already full. The winner was the Duck! It was delicious. The wine was super lovely as well. We got a few after dinner drinks and were pretty full, buzzy and happy. I feel cozy just thinking about it right now. read more

My bestie just moved to Brooklyn and we are scoping out new eateries in her neighborhood- this one is a slam dunk! The mozzarella di bufala app and kale-and-bean crostini all were yummy. My ragu was DELICIOUS- a must-get. My friends got the mushroom pasta and the al butera pasta which were both excellent. Tiramisu for dessert was scrumptious. Nothing sucks here! read more

super cute neighborhood restaurant and to die for italian! the trippa and pasta was to die for. plenty of outdoor seating but definitely recommend reservations as it was definitely busy :) can't wait to come back again! read more

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My husband and I have lived in the neighborhood for awhile and finally decided to visit this restaurant. We made a reservation and were immediately seated outside across the street from a beautiful, Halloween-decorated brownstone. It was Halloween and of course you expect your typical Halloween stuff: people out in costumes, houses decorated, and teens acting like...TEENS. After 3 minutes of being seated, my husband and I noticed a group of young black kids (I'm black, btw) walking down the street and they stopped across from us (on the opposite side of the street) directly in front of the brownstone that was decked out for Halloween. The brownstone had some pumpkins on the steps and the boys tried to smash the pumpkins. In my head, I'm thinking "Let me mind my business", but this mindset didn't apply to my waiter or the people sitting next to me. Not only did the people sitting next to me start yelling at the boys, but my waiter then says "Those dogs!" When I looked at him and said "Excuse me they're children acting like freaking children", he replies "Those are not kids, they're dogs!" I was so furious with his racist comments and the perpetuation of adultification bias when it comes to black and brown children. To me, while the act of smashing people's property is wrong, it felt like a bunch of kids being kids. The fact that my waiter proceeded to call these black boys "dogs" to a black woman was disgusting and shameful. Times are hard enough and all people want to do is engage in an activity that is remotely similar to what they are used to. The LAST thing I want is to go to a restaurant and feel uncomfortable and threatened by ignorant, racist people. This restaurant needs to do better--the simple fact that your employee felt empowered enough to say this to a customer says just as much about your establishment as it does him. read more

There is lot that can go wrong with the idea of food and sex. I've often heard my female friends lamenting the need for extra care in their eating habits on a date, as to not turn someone off. Sucks to be female, cause this is a date spot. Actually, I've only brought established girlfriends here. Food is one way to a woman's heart no matter what the adage says. So what is it about this place? Everything. Let's start with the fact that every place off the Fulton Street strip fails. I had a friend with a fabulous place called Brown Betty which was near the corner of Fulton, and she struggled. Locanda Vini e Olli is lost in the hood. Located on the corner of two rarely traveled side streets, you'd never just run into it. Add on to this that they've kept the original faded sign that says "Pharmacy". If they're not open, you'd think it was abandoned. The sign however makes sense when you get to the interior. They've adopted the essence of what antique can add to the dining experience. Not that food should e stuffy and expensive, but that it should be evident of the lessons of history and tradition. So I love meat. And this place is a carnivores fantasy. I've had to send the steak back at numerous places, never here. Carefully cooked on the outside with a rainbow of crimson hues spiraling down to the red center. I getting hungry just writing about it. read more

Been on an Italian food kick due to vacationing in Italy! Food was good, not great. Solid neighborhood spot, but probably wouldn't travel again to eat here. It did have a pleasant, low-key vibe that I appreciated. Was in the mood to try a new restaurant, but not stay out too late because it's a school night, and Locanda Vini e Olii was kind of perfect for that! They have a pretty extensive aperol spritz / negroni selection, which was fun! I got a mezcal negroni that was alright, a tad sweet. For food, we got the truffle taglierini, the ragu, and the arugula / corn salad. The taglierini was pricey ($30), but very generous when it came to truffles -- that was my favorite despite the price. Wasn't a huge fan of the orange zest in the ragu, but overall it was not bad. Salad was pretty plain though (should have tried the charcuterie board). So yeah, a solid 3 stars for the food... But I still enjoyed my experience there -- it did feel like I was back in Tuscany for a little bit. Would recommend if you're in the area for sure. read more

First of all, this place is adorable. Quite possibly the best restaurant atmosphere in the city. Second, the wine choices are delicious and impressive. Unfortunately, neither of those things make up for the fact that the food is not all that it should be. The bread and olive oil are excellent, but they give you such a tiny rationing of olive oil that you cannot fully enjoy it. They also encourage you to "buy' more expensive olive oil, which is kind of lame and gimmicky. Our first course was the butternut squash soup, which was emulsified and an unsettling temperature, with some bites warm and some cold. The sage flavor was intense, but it's spring and is sage really an appropriate flavor for the season? The next course was pasta with duck ragout, which was the best course, but a bit destroyed with way too much salt. Finally, we had the skirt steak, which had absolutely no flavor and was seriously disappointing. Like some other reviewer on here said, Al Di La does a much better job. read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

Love love love this restaurant! But don't tell anyone about it or it will become impossible to get a table. I highly recommend ordering family style for a more Italian experience. Everything is excellent but of my favorites is the funghi pasta. I was there with a group of seven friends and we ended up ordering two additional portions. Save room for dessert! The cheese cake is amazing, light fluffy, Italian cheese cake, not heavy and dense like New York style. read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Cheesecake with in season fruit - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

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Very good food. The setting is nice and intimate so it's a good place to linger over a glass of wine. I had an very delicious and unctuous butternut squash soup, hardy tomato gnocchi (cooked more al dente/firm than other places so not quite the pillows I was expecting), and a tasty apricot spritzer. There's a lot more to be desired from the service, however. The waiter kept ignoring us even when my friend said we didn't want to wait for our missing dinner guest to order. I think he misheard her. But that didn't excuse the waiter when the guest showed up later. read more

I went again, but wasn't as impressed. Ribollita: as good as usual. Pici: simple but tasty. Duck: it came barely warm, we sent it back, it came back burned, we left on the dish. Although the dish was sizable, this was not good. In addition, the chick peas were uninspiring and boring. Braised short ribs: very tender meat, and very generous portion; plain and boring beans. Chocolate cake: not even close to the old saker torte they used to have... a huge disappointment. Pistachio cake: tasty. House red wine: ok. Service: very accommodating; Filippo was very understanding after realizing the problems with the duck, which were substantial. He took it off the check (we barely touched it) and comped 1 dessert. He couldn't be more gracious. Overall, it's not a nearby place for me and it's not cheap, so I can't hide that this time I was disappointed. The first time I went I was wowed by everything they brought, but this time there were some issues with some dishes, and they totally murdered the duck. read more

What an Incredible dinner! We stayed just down the street at an adorable Airbnb and loved walking to this charming restaurant. The food was absolutely Sensational!! The service was unbelievable!! We Loved Every Minute! read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

I am always delighted when my husband and I are able to snag a table here and I don't mind eating on the early side just to make sure that we do. It's the best Italian restaurant for miles around. Every dish I've eaten here has been outstanding and the service is fast, warm, and professional. I'd like to give a special mention to the fegatini (chicken liver risotto). It's absolutely phenomenal with the perfect mixed of textures. I will be sad when the weather gets warmer and they take it off the menu. read more

Forgoing the fact that you're spending just as much, if not more, on dinner here v. what a decent Italian meal will cost in Manhattan, Locanda Vini e Olili was a disappointment. -The servers are bitchy. I was in this industry and, for $20-40 for a small plate of pasta, their curt attitudes weren't needed. As soon as we only ordered cocktails instead of a bottle from a wine list, the snootiness came out -Drinks were alright. Certainly interesting options. Not cheap either. The "measuring stick" wine option was done behind the bar, so who knows what they actually charged us for -Food left me disappointed. Beef tartar was a small portion, two pastas (we got the 2 most expensive ones on the menu) left me wishing we ordered two more, and the duck was just meh. The pictures look nice, but it's a few small pieces of duck (some undercooked, some over) with canned chickpeas as a side If you're in / living in the neighborhood, certainly give it a try. That being said, not a fan. read more

This was close to my daughters place so we tried it. We didn't have reservation but they seated us at a nice outside table. The waiter was awesome and so helpful as to his favorites on menu. I had the truffle pasta that was amazing and then tiramisu which was divine. Overall excellent meal in a fabulous neighborhood. read more

The duck breast, while flavorful was a bit under cooked right in the center. Some pieces of the breast tasted amazing while I found myself chewing but spitting the center part out. The toughness of the center part didn't make it the best experience in dining. However, my friends who got the pesto shrimp dish and the ragu pasta very much enjoyed their dishes. The cocktails were great too! read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

On our last day of living in Brooklyn, we decided to try this adorable little Italian place, housed in an old pharmacy. We were not let down. Everything, from the adorable accented staff who know everything and make great recommendations, to the melt-in-your-mouth pastas, lovely cheese plate, and heavenly desserts, was by far the best meal in a long time. The price is very acceptable for the food you get. Portions are perfect. Amazing wine lists. Really. Everything. Amazing. read more

Locanda Vini e Olii - Italian Near Me - Brooklyn, New York

Had a great lunch here in their outdoor dining area last week. The food was delicious, well-portioned, and well-priced. Despite below-freezing temperatures, we were very comfortable outside because of the plentiful heat lamps. The service was good too. read more