Always pass around this plaza all the time and I can't believe I've never tried this place. Ambiance is great for a casual date and I've seen patrons with their families so they can accommodate large parties. I don't normally eat pasta as I can never finish it. Their menu selection is huge! It is a bit overwhelming as the names of the entrees can become redundant and can leave you asking what the hell is it? Ultimately I had their salmon shrimp scampi special which was described to me. And it does taste as good as it sounded. Also tried the salami, cheese anchovy as well as the fried mozzarella. You can't go wrong with these. Definite go-to spot as they have a bar as well. read more

I've been coming here for years! They have excellent service. Portions are big if you get the large portion. Inside is big, great for parties. We needed a wheel chair accessible table and it was perfect! Very accommodating. Everything came out great. Just the price is a little pricey read more

When I end up at an Italian Restaurant that I have not been to before, I usually have the Carbonara. It's usually a great representation of the food the restaurant serves. The carbonara at Paesano was one of the better ones I have had in Hawaii. Flavorful and creamy. I'm looking forward to trying other dishes in the future. read more

Haven't eaten here in years. Got a bunch of takeout entrees a week ago. I had the regular size Linguini With Meat Sauce and Caesar Salad. The flavor of the pasta was still as good - not too tangy. They make a great Caesar Salad where you can taste a bit of the anchovy. We all enjoyed what we ordered. Portion was generous. Two servers helped carry the boxes to the car. read more

Paesano - Linguini With Meat Sauce - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

One of the more upscale Italian restaurants in the Aiea area. Plenty of parking since it's in the Waimalu Shopping Plaza. Price is a little high, but you are paying for the ambiance, too. Service was a little slow, but the restaurant was crowded. It took a while for our server to come and take our order so we had to order drinks, appetizers, and entrees all at the same time. However after that everything went at a nice pace. Drinks came quickly, appetizers followed at a decent pace, and entrees were well timed after we finished our entrees. They give a wonderful complimentary bread with butter. Bread is hot, with a flaky crust, and tender inside. Delicious! Appetizers we ordered were the Fried Mozzarella and Crab Cakes. Mozzarella sticks were ok. Super crispy breading and warm, but the cheese inside wasn't melty and stringy like it should have been. The marinara sauce that came with it was very good. I don't usually like the standard marinara sauce that accompanies cheese sticks but even daughter thought it was really good, it was fresh and light tasting. The crab cakes were awesome. You get two sitting in some aioli and covered with radish or some other micro green (sprouts), and a sauce made from tomatoes and onions. Somewhat like lomi salmon without the salmon, and somewhat like an even lighter version of the marinara sauce with the mozzarella sticks. Hubby said he would have just a bite, but took more because it was so good. The sauce really added to the experience! This dish is good enough to eat alone with the bread as a small meal! Will definitely have this again. Mains we had were Alfredo with broccoli, chicken Parmesan with Ravioli, Veal Parmesan and Veal with mushrooms in a Marsala sauce. Except for the chicken Parmesan that only came in ones size, we got the small portions. The smalls were pretty decent sized. The veal dishes each had one nice sized piece of veal. Chicken parm was huge with two very large pieces of chicken smothered in marinara sauce. Ravioli that accompanied the chicken were cheese filled. (Regular pasta may have gone with the chicken better.) This was a very substantial dish, and while he couldn't finish it since we had eaten the bread, mozzarella sticks and crane cakes, daughters fiancé liked it. Everyone enjoyed their selections. Veal Marsala had tons of lightly sautéed mushrooms - enough for a piece of mushroom with each bite of veal. Sauce was good. There was plenty of linguine that accompanied it. Hubby liked his Veal Parmesan, daughter her Alfredo. Broccoli was cooked just right - still crunchy, not mushy. All of the entrees were good. We didn't get dessert because we had a special dessert at home, so I can't comment on that. Won't come here often because of the price but for special occasions when we don't want to travel far, Paesano is a great treat since we live in Aiea. We will definitely continue to come here again! read more

See all

Been to this place a couple of times and had dinner here the other night. The reason I'm posting now is to share my experience there. As I planned to go there for dinner, I went on my Yelp app and looked at all the reviews to help me decide what dish I was gonna select. Some of the reviews complained about the fettuccine Alfredo and how bland it was. So I decided to have that along with Parmesan Chicken. I also had a few sides along with my dish. I had my favorite the Sausage & Pepper, the Sautés Mushrooms, and the Calms. Let me tell you this.....All these Buggah's was Winnah's!! So sorry for those who had a bad experience, but I really enjoyed mine! The service, da Grindz....not to mention the 3 loaves of that onolicious bread!!! One more thing, Paesano's get Meeeean action! #Killahgr read more

Convenient restaurant with lots of parking, once you know where it is (across the parking lot from Safeway in Waimalu). It's a great place for a casual get together with nice, quiet atmosphere and attentive service. Our waiter apologized that the food was taking long and brought us complimentary calamari. Our group was so busy talking and I actually hadn't noticed the delay, so it couldn't have been that long. The calamari was yummy! We probably didn't notice the delay because we were satisfied eating the warm bread. The bread was brought out piping hot and although we didn't eat it right away, it was still hot! Warm and soft, with a crunchy crust! I ordered the calm linguini and substituted the linguine with rigatoni. The clam rigatoni was good, but not great. Reasonably priced at $21 and I would order it again. Delicious bread and reasonable prices! read more

Paesano - Calamari - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

See all

I think this was our second time eating here but the last time was so long ago. This place is unique in that it's so weird to have a moderately priced good quality Italian restaurant so far west of Honolulu. A bunch of us ate here tonight for a family dinner. I had the mussels with veggies and my wife had the clams on linguine. We also shared several appetizers with the table. Food was pretty damn good. The bruschetta was hands down the best eat and I wish I could've had two trays of those for my dinner. Service was spot on and our waiters were really nice and always providing quick service. Oh, and the food was brought out really quickly. Lastly the restaurant is really clean. read more

Pasta done consistently well. Approved by Italian-American friends and acquaintances. Solid bread basket. This is a home run place for family and friend dinners when you're not sure what everyone is gonna like. I like that this place serves huge portions and that you can dress up or down for this place. I've seen fancy dining attire here to people in slippers and shorts, and that's okay! That's what makes family dining, well, family. Service is always great as well. Happy dining! read more

Around this same time of year in 2014, my family & I ate at Paesano in Aiea- it was okay, at most, three stars. Last night, five family members & I, had a 7:00 dinner reservation. Parking was FREE & wasn't a problem. We were seated by 7:00, menus in hand My words alone, would not give the food & portion we enjoyed, the proper respect it deserves- please check out my photos (keep in mind that ALL FOOD came out HOT!) After we ate close to everything off our plates, my girls still had room left for dessert- Tartufo Ice Cream- which they enjoyed very much HAPPY 81st BIRTHDAY DAD read more

See all

Impressive lunch. Service is above-excellent. Calamari steak is perfectly cooked. Restaurant is clean and table settings are super special. read more

Paesano - Calamari steak. Excellent. - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

Ambiance and service was awesome. Food delicious, large portions. Will definitely go again!

Excellent Italian food in pearl city. Staff is nice. Overall an enjoyable date with my wife

My favorite Italian restaurant in the island. Hands down. I love the Manoa location the best. I would recommend to anyone who is looking for a great Italian restaurant read more

Came here on their first night reopening and it wasn't crowded at all. We walked in sanitized our hands and our hostess escorted us to a private room. We had a party of 12 so 10 sat in the room and the other 2 sat outside at their own table. Ambiance; a very fancy modern look with slightly dim lights in main dining area. The private room was very brightly light Parking; ample parking. The restaurant is located right across Safeway so it's very easy to find. Service; they seemed friendly, but they were moving around a little too much for me to ask questions about the menu Food; delicious! I ordered the cheese ravioli w/ Alfredo sauce. And that tasted like regular ravioli, but my friend ordered the steak and pasta and the bbq sauce on the steak was good. And my other friend ordered a seafood mix pasta with lemon on top and that had to be my top favorite! So good! Highly recommend! I ordered a small plate and I could barely finish that, but save room for dessert bc they looked delicious, but I didn't get to try just bc I was already full. Will be trying my next visit! read more

See all

Between Assagio's and Paesano, I give the nod to Paesano. Assagio's food is good but not standardized and varies between locations, e.g. Kapolei vs Miliani vs Ala Moana vs Hawaii Kai. Paesano's food quality is good and remains and quality is consistent. I love their seafood pastas and especially their calamari vinaigrette which Assagio's stop offering. read more

Paesano - Calamari Vinagrette - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

See all

We.love the Manoa location and the food here was equally delicious. They only reason I dropped a star was the parking lot was a little sketchy. Few strange people roaming it. Otherwise, food was delicious! Staff were terrific! Bill was $260 for seven of us... Not bad. read more

The Osso Bucco was good but the wait time for a table is long even though you made a reservation. Other than that the food was read more

Favorite Italian restaurant Service good Staff friendly Food made very well Best veal on island read more

Food is great *****service is great *****ambiance is great restaurant is clean and very relaxing ***** love the crab cakes and hot bread

Went here for the first time for a casual dinner. (FYI because of COVID, it is required that you make reservations prior to dining in.) The ambience is beautiful! Our waiter was friendly and quick to take orders/refill drinks. The highlight of the night was their crab cakes. They are just to die for! I'd say this is one of the best Italian restaurants in Oahu. Will definitely be returning here for my Italian fix in the near future. read more

See all

Bought my favorite Chicken Olio linguini for take out today. Was shocked that the price was $33 for a regular. Got home and was shocked again that the good was terrible. Did they change ownership and cooks? Am not going back. read more

This place is so awesome. The staff was amazing and attentive. The food was so delicious. We had a reservation and was seated on time with minimal wait. We went here for my late birthday dinner and it was a perfect choice. The appetizer crab cakes were yummy and the Caesar salad was so crisp and delicious. Our entrees were so good. The portions were perfect. I had the small portion Seafood combination, it was so good we had leftovers for the next day. My boyfriend had the Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo, so tasty. The garlic bread was so good. We will definitely be back. :) read more

See all

We had lunch yesterday at Paesano Ristorante in the Pearl City area. We ate the Ala Scampi Calamari with garlic and butter sauce with linguine noodles. It was good. But, if I had to compare it to Assagios in Mililani, my palate would lean towards Assagios. The prices are about the same and the portions alike. The restaurant atmosphere is nice and the service was good as well. There were lots of parking and easy access to the freeway. Would I return to this restaurant, I would say yes. read more

Paesano - Ala Scampi Calamari with Linguine. - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

I loved Paesano in Manoa. For over 25 years we've made it our go to for special occasions. We even had a good experience at the Waimalu location a few years ago. Unfortunately last night my go to chicken Sorentino was sweet! I'm not sure what happened? Sugar instead of salt? ...now I don't want to chance going there again. read more

The food was delish and wonderful service. Great for family party meeting and all. The restaurant looks so clean and classy.

For the price of the menu and and the suits they wear you would expect more. If you are looking to have a nice venue for a post church meal or just come to feel fancy this place is perfect as long as you're okay paying high end restaurant prices for mid to low grade dishes. read more

Whenever I'm feeling a little fancy and am having a craving for pasta and don't wanna drive all the way to town, Paesano is the place to go. Located in Waimalu Shopping Plaza in the same complex as City Mill, Starbucks, and Safeway. There is ample free parking in the huge lot in front although it does get crowded at peak hours. The restaurant is clean and dimly lit for a romantic ambiance. I've come here before for numerous occasions whether it be birthdays, Valentine's Day, and anniversaries. The service is fairly good, but keep in mind they don't do split checks, and can nickel and dime you for splitting entrees. The pastas here are pretty tasty and I want to say comparable to Assagio's. Some of my favorites are the Shrimp Scampi, Shrimp alla bolla (light wine sauce with snap peas and scallop), and my husband usually gets the shrimp and pasta. The entrees can get pretty pricey $20-30, but they do offer a smaller portion if you have a smaller appetite. Their tiramisu is pretty good too if you have room for dessert. However, throughout the years I do feel the quality has gone down a bit and the portions have gotten smaller. I'd still come here if I didn't wanna trek to town to fulfill my pasta cravings. read more

Paesano - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

See all

We ordered take out for my grandma's birthday and I just don't think the price matched up to the quality and taste.. Italian restaurants typically run pretty pricey so I wasn't surprised at the menu, but I don't think it was worth it. My brother ordered Shrimp Scampi (most expensive out of everyone's) and it only came with 7 shrimps.. My husband enjoyed his chicken parmesan with Fettuccine Alfredo. We noticed they cook their chicken on the pinker side.. which sort of made us question if it was ok to eat it.. at least it wasn't dry lol. I was impressed with their bread, since we did take out I thought it would of been cold and dry, but it was still very warm, moist, and soft. The caesar salad was good too, just a little too overdressed... all in all, I don't know if I'd come back for a $200 bill.. read more

See all

Let me tell you.... I have tried a few Italian restaurants here in Hawaii and have always been disappointed. Not here! Paesano's food was delicious!!! We ordered takeout and the gentleman taking our order was super nice and helpful. The Roasted peppers and Tomato bruschetta were our appetizers. They were exquisite. We ordered meat sauce rigatoni & added riccotta and the linguine with meatball and sausage covered in marinara. Both were found under the Farinacci part of the menu. So delicious. The meat sauce has so much flavor. We had leftovers for the next day. I will definitely have to come back but only after I get out of this carb-coma. Thank you so much! read more

Haven't been here in years! Interior is still the same as I remembered it. Looks like a fancy place but all the customers coming in were not fancy, everyone was dressed super casual which is nice! (It was a hot day, no one wants to be fancy on a hot day!) The food was ok it is very similar to Assagio's, wouldn't doubt if it is the same owners. The salad dressing was the same as Assagio's and this is the only other Italian Restaurant other than Assagio's, that I know of, that has Chicken Olio (my favorite) on the menu. So if you like Assagio's, you'll like it here, only difference is the food was presented sloppy looking, like there was no care in plating the food so it would be pleasing to the eye. And as every foodie knows, you eat with your eyes, your nose and your mouth. But it did taste good! I would come here again if I had a get together with someone, but would choose Assagio's over this place for a more complete dining experience. read more

So far amazing welcomed, I drink a lot of water and it has not been empty yet! The ambience was beautiful and clean the food was so yummy we have lots of fun read more

See all

Excellent service, excellent food, tables 6 feet apart. Great outing. Would definitely recommend. read more

Paesano - Scallop & shrimp alla bola, fish piccata, shrimp/salmon special - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

01/2019: On this occasion, it was my fourth time at Paesano Restaurant; all previous times, I was with my husband; this time, though was in a large-sized work function for a colleague's retirement luncheon. I was very impressed that they accommodated our large group size and still had plenty of space for several of our colleagues to perform hula dances as a tribute to the honoree. I had the pasta with shrimp, and it was hot and delicious! Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of my food (I wish I had because it was plated well too!), but the experience was quite memorable. The service was excellent, and the staff was professional and friendly. read more

See all

Before I begin this review, I would like to note the ridiculous list of surcharges: there is an additional $2.00 charge EACH for the split of entrees or $1.00 for salads. They also do not do separate checks. In terms of the experience, the service here was welcoming and friendly. We didn't have a reservation and the restaurant was crowded, but they were still able to seat us. Our server was also good and we never went without water, which is a plus for me because I drink pitchers. The food is where things slide. I ordered the stuffed eggplant. My wife ordered the fettuccini. Fettuccini Alfredo is generally a bland sauce, but can be excellent when done right (e.g. the use of gorgonzola in the sauce), however this was just bland. A good portion of noodles, not so much of the other ingredients. The eggplant was better, but again was rather bland. No hints of garlic or basil. Plenty of cheese, but I'd rather have more flavor than fat. Honestly, I think these things would be okay, and I'd probably give it four stars just because of the service, but at over $20 a plate, I'm not impressed. Overall, okay, but can't see myself going back. read more

We recently hosted a dinner party for 24 here, why here? It was the only place we could get that number in a semi-private room on short notice that wasn't Chinese. The interior was nice, cool, quiet, all of which made for a great beginning. The staff was on the top of their game and promptly had water and bread on the tables. The specials were given with the menus and we ordered wine and drinks around. I appreciated that we were given time to peruse the menus and talk amongst ourselves before they returned to take our orders and deposit more bread and butter. Orders of appetizers and salads were taken and we asked and were given until after we ate them to return for entree orders. The carpaccio was very good, the clams...off the charts, most likely the best I have had in 808. Salads were well received by everyone with the only comment by one that there was too much garlic on the Caesar. On to the entrees. Orders from Veal Saltimbuca to the fish special to pastas and huge plates of Lasgna. Only one complaint, again too much garlic. When asked what he ordered...Garlic Chicken! Lol, the same person with the same issue on the Caesar Salad. The specials were ordered by several and everyone enjoyed what they had and shared bites across and side to side. There was a copious amount of food and we were not rushed in any way. Many bottles of wine ordered and consumed. Not a glass remained empty until we said "no mas"! Deserts were offered but declined. We were all deliriously stuffed. We will be back with a much smaller group but even with a large party there was no lacking in service. Parking is a non-issue as it is in the Waimalu Shopping Center. read more

See all

It's been a long while, a very long while, since I've had good Italian food. The next time I feel like having Italian, I'll know to go to Paesano. The interior is very nice, there are glass partitions and a fresh single rose on each table. The customer service is very good at Paesano. They're very attentive and quick to refill your water. Their complimentary house bread is great. I'm not sure why I like it so much, there's nothing that special about it except that it's served warm and the crust is a bit crispy and the bread itself is soft. They provide butter with the bread but I usually ask for olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sometimes, I ask for minced garlic and olive oil to spread on the bread. The pasta is delicious-my favorite is the seafood combination. It comes with shrimp, mussels, calamari and clams with either garlic sauce or tomato sauce on linguine. They don't skimp on the seafood, they give a pretty good portion and actually a little more seafood than pasta. Their calamari is a really nice surprise because it's cooked very well, it's not hard or rubbery at all. There's lots of parking available in front of the restaurant. Some of the dishes are a bit pricey but I say the food is worth it. It's hard to find good pasta that comes with great service. I'm definitely a fan of Paesano and suggest a trip here if you're craving Italian food. read more

Paesano - Seafood combination - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

I had my first visit today in 3 years, and as with my original visit, I had no expectations whatsoever. I met my aunt (she chose the restaurant), who has become somewhat of a regular over the past year, for lunch today. She asked me to meet her at 1230, and I must admit I wondered how busy or large the lunchtime crowd can get. Lucky for us it wasn't crowded at all, and we were able to have our pick of where we wanted to sit. LIKE: 1) The attentiveness of the staff. Perhaps they were just a little too attentive though since there were hardly any customers during lunch. In any case, we did appreciate the constant water refills and inquires if everything was "ok." 2) My food. I did my homework this time, and based on recent reviews I decided to order the Fettuccine Alfredo with chicken and broccoli. It was good. Not terrific, but not bad either. I especially appreciated that the sauce wasn't too rich. This was far better than that chicken dish I had during my first visit. 3) Cleanliness of the restaurant. My memory fails me in trying to recall the design/decor of this restaurant during my first visit, but I will say that it has a clean and neat appearance overall. DISLIKE: 1) Waiting. We waited for slightly over 5 minutes for someone to acknowledge us when we walked in. This was slightly disappointing since the restaurant was not busy at all. 2) No refills on soft drinks or iced tea. Sigh. 3) I wish there was more broccoli came with my dish. BOTTOM LINE: I am adding 1 additional star since I feel I had a more positive experience today overall. read more

Paesano - Fettuccine Alfredo - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii

I was always curious about this place and today I finally made it there for lunch. Ordered the crab cakes and shrimp scampi. My wife had the eggplant parm. The crab cakes were the best I have had since 1997 when I lived on the East coast. The shrimp scampi is a garlic and buttery feast with perfect linguine and large succulent shrimp. Wife was happy with her eggplant, I tried a bite of the eggplant parmigiana and the marinara is spot on! read more

Had a very nice dinner at Paesano's, it was a Sunday night and we were able to be seated at 6 with no problems. Staff we very attentive once we sat down. Bread and water came out promptly, our server made us aware of the specials right away and gave us plenty of time and space to make a decision on what to get. There's nothing worse than being rushed for turn over. I ordered the friend mozzarella to start which I always do, this definitely could've been better. They were they standard frozen kind from a food service vendor. The sauce was good so it helped. Next I ordered the ravioli with meat sauce and the wife ordered a shrimp and pasta dish. Both were good, the portions were good ( small ) the flavors we're also good. The meat sauce wasn't to sweet but could've had a touch more seasoning. Over all a good experience and we will definitely go back for another meal read more

Paesano - Italian Near Me - Aiea, Hawaii