Stopped in here after hiking at Seneca Regional Park with our dog, Onyx, and honestly we were only…read moresupposed to grab a quick drink. Ended up staying for almost three hours. Started with an espresso martini, a smoked Old Fashioned, and the fritto misto to share. Everything was really good. Then we split the lamb burger and the shrimp risotto for lunch. Both were excellent, although I think the risotto edged out the burger. Our server Mike made the whole experience. Before he even brought us water, he showed up with a bowl for Onyx. Come on, that's an instant five stars in my book. We ended up talking wine with him for a good part of the afternoon. He had us sample a few different pours before we landed on a Nebbiolo we loved. Later, after another conversation about wine, he brought over a taste of a white we'd never even heard of because he thought we'd enjoy trying it. It never felt like an upsell. It just felt like talking with someone who genuinely enjoys wine and likes sharing it with people. Relaxing patio, great food, excellent cocktails, and genuinely memorable service. We'll definitely be back, and Onyx probably will too.

The food is absolutely amazing here at Local Provisions. I ordered the rigatoni bolognese and…read moreeverything from texture, flavor and portion size was perfect. I ordered to go and food was ready on arrival. I wasn't greeted by anyone upfront though, just grabbed and left. Casual but very pretty restaurant.

ITALIAN WITHOUT THE SPLURGE: My favorite here is the spaghetti Bolognese. I've ordered it many…read moretimes and it never disappoints. I've also worked through several other pasta dishes and they've all been solid. The pizza is good and the meatballs are especially tasty. Bottom line, you get the quality of a sit down Italian restaurant at more affordable prices. That makes it an easy choice when you want something good without checking your budget first. They even offer bottles of wine around $30 if you want to make it feel a little more like a night out. It's truly a family run place. The husband and wife have been working here for as many years as I've been coming, and that consistency shows. They don't make their own desserts other than the cannolis, which is easy to forgive given everything else they do well. This place is a clear step above most fast casual Italian spots. Try it next time you're craving Italian.

When Pomodoro Fairfax closed a few years ago I thought I would never get another chance to…read moreexperience their spectacular pizza that I had been ordering for decades, never finding its equal. While I did find another really good pie in Andy's Pizza, even that as great as it is did not quite measure up. Only today, did I try the Pomodoro location in Sterling, not really expecting it to measure up (as I had previously heard it was different), but wanted to at least say I tried it before giving up on ever tasting the perfect pie again. I am delighted to report that the extra cheese pie I ordered was *exactly* the way I remember it from the defunct Pomodoro Fairfax location. The perfect sauce, the moderately salty whole milk mozzerella cheese with a a crust that has just the right consistency was all intact - no change from my fine memories. In short, it was a perfect match and a perfect pie! It goes without saying I will be back, but next time I will try the Chicken Parm (another standout from Pomodoro Fairfax). This time I will go in with the high expectations that it will be the same too. In short, this restaurant easily gets my highest recommendation to all. Five stars and then some!

First off - our server was great! So no complaints there. We are new to the area and are obviously…read moretrying new/non chain restaurants when we can. The restaurant itself is old school Italian with the drippy candles in wine bottles and dated decor. It could definitely use a facelift - and still maintain that classic Italian restaurant vibe. The food was the most disappointing part of the journey. Calamari that was chewy and not at all seasoned - clearly frozen and out of a bag and our meals were no better. I LOVE veal saltimbocca and get it whenever I can. The veal was thick, mozzarella wasn't fresh, and it was drowning in canned mushrooms. Nothing about our meal said fresh. We were leaving the next day for a quick trip so we did not take our leftovers home, but I can honestly say we wouldn't have even if we didn't have a trip planned.

I had this out of the blue chicken marsala craving and did a little research and decided to give…read moreCantina D'Italia a shot. I will start off by saying that I had low expectations given the track record of non-chain Italian restaurants I've tried since living in northern VA of which 85% have been terrible (remember I'm from NJ where Italian food should be the state food). But I said YOLO, crossed my fingers and ordered the marsala via GrubHub. The moral of the story is that I was PLEASANTLY SURPRISED by Cantina D'Italia overall because the marsala was pretty tasty, spaghetti cooked almost perfectly, garlic bread with cheese perfectly seasoned and cheesy and they sent an added little unexpected bonus of a pretty side salad with a homemade vinaigrette and fresh Italian bread and butter! Oh and the portion was HUGE! Totally got 2-3 meals out of it. Cantina D'Italia has given me hope ... or I should say at least gave me an Italian restaurant I just might frequent and explore all the other menu options :)

North Italia was amazing! Our server was incredibly knowledgeable and made our lunch experience…read moreeven better. Even though Chicken Alfredo wasn't on the menu, he let me know the kitchen could still make it with pappardelle pasta. It was my first time having it that way and WOW! Every bite was absolutely delicious. A special thank you to Max for the recommendation. The service was excellent, the food was outstanding, and I can't wait to come back. Highly recommend!

I was not familiar with the North Italia chain, because there are none in the northeast - New York…read moreand New England. That's probably because of all the really good Italian restaurants in all the major cities and Little Italy's up there. They were not crowded on a Thursday evening for our party of 9. I started with a Turino Old Fashioned, which features Whistle Pig Rye and hazelnut liqueur. The hazelnut was very prominent. But Whistle Pig Rye also has a distinct flavor, and I could not taste that at all in my drink, and in general I was expecting a stronger flavor overall. Our dinners all came out relatively close to each other, 7 of them in the first wave, and the remaining 2 within a minute. My Braised Short Rib Lumache featured maybe 1 scoop of the short rib, atop pasta shells in a cheese sauce. The pasta and cheese appeared to be the standout in this dish, when I would have expected it to be the short rib. I don't think the Italian restaurants in the Northeast need to be too concerned. And with them you are more likely to get personal feedback rather than something which is generated as comments and automatically suggests trying the Happy Hour for more satisfaction.

Jery made my little sisters night unforgettable. Today was…read morehis second day, and if that's an indication of the rest of his time here, they are very very lucky to have him. If you want a 5 experience in Herndon, Ask for Jery

update 7/26 While working in Herndon VA we looked on Yelp…read morefor the beat Italian restaurant near us and found this gem. Made a reservation on open table and went to this lovely resturant in the downtown area. We were seated by a very pleasant gentleman, and within seconds, the staff came to the table to check on what we wanted in water choices and anything from the bar. Minutes later the bread showed up on the table with olive oil. After reviewing the menu we ordered the Fried Calamari and zucchini. Followed by a Chicken Parmigiana for me with a pink sauce over the linguine. The meal was delicious and the pink sauce was just perfect over the fresh made pasta. The sauce was made perfectly and enhanced the chicken. My friend loved his Veal cutlet parm. Just the perfect end of a week of work with delicious food. Only thing was the bread could have been warm. The staff was amazing and could not have been more attentive.

Tried this Mediterranean eatery on the recommendation of an acquaintance, and I'm glad they told me…read moreabout this place! I ordered the mixed kabob (salmon and vegetable) and everything was tasty, hot and delicious! Everything had just the right amount of seasoning. Even the grilled pita bread had a nice light sprinkle of seasoning. The white tsiki sauce was creamy and had a nice texture due to the slices of radish. The salmon was tender and flaky. I'm definitely going to try more items on their menu on a return trip and I'm going to recommend to friends to try this humble eatery that's serving hot tasty Mediterranean fare!

So, we decided to meet up at Cafesano one Friday evening. When I first entered Cafesano, the…read moreatmosphere was very lively, yet intimate. After locating my friend, we discussed her recommended dishes since she frequented Cafesano. She eventually stated that I wouldn't be disappointed with the skewers, so, I decided to commit to the Steak and Shrimp Skewers. With the busyness of the Friday crowd, I expected there to be a wait time with ordering our meals, however, the order line essentially was non-existent, which was a win. The cashier was nice and efficient. However, when it was time for my food to come out, it took quite a bit of time. But, eventually my food came out fresh off the stove, which I appreciated. On to the taste of the dish. Unfortunately, with the promising words from my friend paired with the reviews, my expectations for this dish may have been quite high, causing immediate disappointment. I sadly felt like everything on my plate lacked flavor. The meat could have been seasoned/marinated better giving a more flavorful skewer experience. The portion size was good and price was very affordable. As it pertains to parking, the options were abundant.

Hey friends! This spot came highly recommended for a quick lunch spot near me. I was honestly…read moresurprised it was busy based on how great the food and service was! Lucia's is a small, Italian mom and pop spot featuring brick-oven pizza, house made sweet treats and a full service bar. I ordered a slice of cheese pizza to-go for lunch. AMAZING! Crispy bottom just how I love it. Cheesy was nice and gooey. All pizza is made-to-order, so I had about an 8-minute wait which was well worth it. It was so good I came back a couple days later and got a full box to-go! Customer service: super friendly Atmosphere: family-oriented, great for groups Prices: Average Plenty of free parking I wish they weren't so far from home! I hope you enjoy!

We enjoyed a great dinner with family. Menu is relatively wide including many pasta dishes and…read morepizzas. Service was great and all the meals were delicious. This is a full service Italian restaurant with nice interior.

Absolutely magnificent homemade pasta!!! This lasagna lover couldn't get enough of it. The…read morebolognese is scrumptious! The rigatoni pesto special was delectable , and the service was friendly and enjoyable. Thank you, Ezekiel and Heather for such an enjoyable meal.

We've been a few times and the food is always excellent, but the service, more so the kitchen, have…read morelagged. We ordered and waited. First the waiter forgot my wife's glass of wine for so long the bartender got tired of seeing it sitting there and walked it over herself, apologizing for the delay. We received our food, but the extra bread we'd asked for was "still in the oven", and it was still in the oven after we'd nearly finished and my wife's clams dish had gone cold. The waiter apologized, but then it took him 20 minutes to return with refills so we decided to skip dessert. So then it took another 10 minutes to get my card back once he disappeared with that. This is the third time we've been underwhelmed with slow or disjointed timing. Some meals come out while others at the table have to wait. It's really odd. I don't think we'll give it another go. I prefer supporting local, but not while my meal goes cold waiting for people at the table to receive their meals.