I ordered the Grouper Piccata, and from the very first bite, it was evident that this was not a meal designed for speed or mass production. The fish was tender, perfectly cooked, and complemented beautifully by a delicate lemon butter sauce with capers that added just the right balance of brightness and flavor. The pasta was rich, comforting, and generously portioned, making the dish both satisfying and memorable. Alongside it, I had the opportunity to try the Mama's Lasagna, and it truly lived up to its name. Every layer tasted as though it came straight from a family kitchen rather than a commercial chain restaurant. Rich tomato sauce, melted cheese, and hearty flavors combined to create that unmistakable feeling of homemade comfort food. To finish, I enjoyed a classic Tiramisu paired with a perfectly pulled espresso. What stood out just as much as the food was the overall experience. The wait time was very reasonable, the service was warm and attentive, and our waitress was genuinely welcoming throughout the evening. The portions were generous, the prices were fair, and every dish reflected care and attention to detail. In a world increasingly dominated by corporate dining concepts, it is refreshing to find a restaurant that still serves food with authenticity, tradition, and soul. If you are looking for honest Italian comfort food, generous portions, excellent value, and a dining experience that feels personal rather than commercial, this is absolutely a place worth visiting. I will gladly return. read more

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A hidden gem!! I came here years ago and totally forgot about it but recently went back and was so impressed with it. Great lunch and dinner deals and specials and the food is quite tasty. They are great with gluten free items and the gluten free pizzas are great. A little slow for service overall but a nice place to meet family and friends. read more

Pomodoro Cafe - Italian Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Found this gem on our way back home from a road trip. Do not skip this place ! Great food done right!! Fabulous service! !

Enjoy coming to this place that is located on the corner of the plaza, with plenty of parking. They have specials daily for the most part. Ie: BOGO menu items. We didn't see a special for the day we were there, however found out after we ordered that the wine was BOGO. Hanna was our waitress. Not sure if she was having an off day or moment, however it was noticeable to everyone at the table that she was short and seemed annoyed at our existence. So much so, one of the people in our group wanted to request a different waitress because it was so uncomfortable. Towards the end of our meal she suddenly became friendly. So maybe something was going on with her personal life or work life. Four stars still because we enjoy the food here. The cake was a bit dry though this time. Restrooms were clean. When we left the front team by the desserts were really friendly. read more

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The Chicken & Shrimp Carbonara has become such a favorite we literally fight over who gets to order it (because heaven forbid if we both order it lol!) We recently tried the peanut butter chocolate cake and it was to die for! read more

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A family stopped in town to visit their brother and I recommend them to stop at Pomodoro for pizza. They came back very excited that they really enjoyed the pizza and all the fiction that was on it so they would let me know that whenever they're in town they will be stopping by there and picking up a couple of boxes of pizza to go when they hit the road read more

We have been getting takeout pizzas from pomodoro For years, we ate here in the restaurant years ago.Boy, were we missing really good food!! Pomodoro has now gone to top of my list as my number one italian spot in gainesville!! Everything from the service from our amazing server Lock, yes that is her name..lol. To the appetizer, the bread that they bring out was hot, with some amazing drizzle reduction sauce.They give you with the bread. And my chef special, the sea bass was amazing.We definitely will become back more to sit in.Not just order pizza for carry out anymore And the owner originally had a pizza place in my hometown back in connecticut in my mall and that's why I love their pizza so much!! You get that feel of italy all over the wall in the restaurant.They're a beautiful artwork on every wall. read more

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Amazing pizza! Brittany, our waitress, was so nice and attentive! Beautiful atmosphere, food, and service. Will be back for sure.

This place is so cute and they do different specials every day both dine in and to go specials. Cute ambiance, friendly service. read more

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Stopped in with a few of my family and had just appetizers. We had the meatballs with marinara and cheese, which were amazingly delicious light and fluffy and very tasty. We also had the crabcakes which were in a sauce with pinenuts, which was also very tasty and we also had the bruschetta, which was also amazing. The restaurant is very what I would call out of the way, romantic with scenery paint it on the wall and very Italian. When you walk in the door, the smell is amazing and if you weren't already hungry, you would definitely get hungry smelling that garlic in the bread and the pizza spaghetti it was wonderful. The servers were also very friendly and I wish we could've stayed a bit longer and had bigger meals. I would definitely eat here and make this my hang out if I live near by. read more

Pomodoro Cafe - Crabcakes in a wonderful garlic with pinenuts sauce - Italian Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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Food has always been very good for all the years open and prices have always been reasonable. Service has been good; above average. The Ambiance is average to above average. Their food quality and their prices make it great to enjoy any meal. read more

The food here was delicious and the portions are perfect! I got the early dining special which was a great price for all the food it comes with. The little slice of cake was a great addition. The balsamic dressing is so good with the soft warm bread and was great on the salad as well! The service was excellent and the ambiance is adorable and gives the feel that you're in Italy! There aren't many Italian options in the area but this is a great one read more

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When we walked in we were immediately greeted, the hostess was so nice! The restaurant is so beautiful, we were seated outside and immediately were brought bread. Tasted homemade and of course was delicious, I had a house salad and my husband had the minestrone soup. The bowl was so big and very good! For entree I had the pesto penne ( can't remember what it was called)! It was very tasty with chicken, mushrooms, sautéd onion! My husband ordered the chicken & shrimp carbonara and he practically licked his plate. We had the bread nots as well and those were a little doughy but I liked that about them and my husband didn't prefer that. ! I would recommend this place if you're in the area! read more

Met our friends from Hawthorne here who recommended this restaurant since we were in Gainesville for appointments. What a delicious treat. The food was very good and our server, Brianna, was excellent. Three of us enjoyed the pasta fagioli. I had the penne alla ciccio special which included the soup (or salad) and a small dessert. Husband had the chicken pesto aioli sandwich and our friends had the lasagna and the grouper piccata. Highly recommend this restaurant. read more

The food, service and atmosphere is great! I don't know why anyone would give it less than a five star review. I don't have a consistent or favorite meal, as I always try something different when I go there, and so far everything has been great. I do feel sorry for the manager though, as last time I was there, he was furious that people just don't show up. read more

Wonderful fresh made food with good service. Already been there twice in a week! Will recommend to anyone new in the area. Also, daily specials-both food or drinks! Gotta give it a try, you won't be disappointed! read more

I really want to like Pomodoro. it's beautiful on the inside; especially after the recent renovation. And it's a restaurant I used to love. Turnover is high. For this, or who knows why, food is hit or miss. Absolutely inconsistent. Sometimes, very bland. Sometimes spicy. I've been going here for 30 years... it's a restaurant that changes depending on the staff and the management. And that changes. A lot. Even pizza is completely inconsistent. Depending on the staff there that day, they can be incredibly friendly or absolutely rude. Years go by when it's horrid. Some years are great, but even then it depends on who's working. I want to love this place. I used to. In the early 2000s I was there 2x a week. I wish they'd return to what made them good. But for now, you go there when there's no other choice. And even then, meh. I miss the Pomodoro of the past. I can't recommend the Pomodoro of the present. read more

This restaurant has it all; superb food and service. I have not been disappointed by any of the dishes & the personal touch from the chiefs & staff. When I went here for my birthday, the waitress was so attentive and gave me a large delicious slice of cake on her. Today, my husband and I enjoyed dinner on Valentine's Day - the chief, who also was helping to host, was able to fit us in without a reservation. They had beautiful complimentary roses given to each guest. I just love this restaurant from the phenomenal food to the caring staff. read more

Ordered a house salad but they sent out a Caesar. The Tender medallions were some of the best in the game. The food was awesome and the staff was very nice and helpful. read more

We ordered 2 entrees for takeout.. Shrimp Carbonara and Fettuccini Alfredo. The sauce on both entrees had an odd flavor, very garlicky and had a little burnt flavor. Each came with a Cesar salad, which to our dismay was covered in soggy and stale croutons. We used to love this place.. not a big fan after spending $53 and being disappointed. :( read more

We've been at this restaurant a a couple of dozen times. Rarely is it a bad situation but we have noticed when Carmen is not there things get wiry! we walked in today we were immediately seated in the booth facing towards the front door ....sat there, sat there...., sat there, and 20 minutes later after everybody else around us had been served their water and bread we inquired what was going on. Everybody pointed at everybody else and we proceed to walk out .....at this point we will only come when Carmen's there ... he does not allow the foolery with the three waitress showing attitude! read more

Worst Veal Parmigian I've ever had. Didn't eat 10% of it. Wasn't offered a substitute or any other compensation. Won't be back. Service was very good other than that. read more

Everything went well. We had a brief wait, which after eating there we found out why, food was excellent. Our server was Guerrmo aka William or Bill, he was awesome. Chef Dicandia came out and visited our table to check on service and food. He is very involved. The Cafe was busy yet staff was attentive and efficient. Patron noise was minimal which gave the restaurant a nice ambiance. Could have a conversation without raising your voice. All in all highly recommend Pomodoro Cafe read more

Pomodoro Cafe - Crab Cakes - Italian Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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Friendly staff, nice atmosphere and excellent quality at a very reasonable price. My wife ordered the Pasta Valentino and I had the Grouper picatta and they were both delicious. Our server, Brittany, was great. We loved the fact that the chef owner was present and stopped by our table to ask about our experience. This was our first visit but it most certainly will not be our last. read more

A. To start, I had the chicken and rice soup that comes with the entrée, the taste is good but I barely found any rice in it, mostly liquid when they poured it in the bowl, I had to move aside some pieces of chicken that gave the soup some flavor but were not fit for consumption. The soup gets an average mark due to excesive liquid and not the substance, they do need to improve on this item. B. The Branzino Pizzaiola is a Sea Bass fillet, served in a tomato sauce, with mussles, clams, mushrooms....delicious seafood platter. C. Waitres checked regularly to see if we needed something. Very good service. D. We asked for capuchino coffee, double shot, but we could not drink it as it just tasted like hot milk and not coffee. E. Italian style decor, soft music plays in the backgrouund makes for a perfect dinner date. E. Overall we are regular customers here. We have visited the place over a dozen times. We keep coming back for the main courses. Some things are hit and miss. read more

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Pomodora is a consistently good hideaway in the NW corner of Gvl. My favorites include the various traditional veal dishes and the selection on ravioli dishers. I know their pizzas are popular and the flow of people stepping in to pick up a pizza suggests that's true, but I can't get away from the pasta choices on the menu. If anyone diving on I-75 prefers an actual meal rather than junk, you can be seated at Pomodoro, before you could reach the take out window at the nearby junk burger shops. read more

We were seated almost immediately (after being asked if we had a reservation) and had service IMMEDIATELY! This kid was on the ball!! We got our drinks, appetizer, soup and salad and we've only been here 15-20 mins max! Great service!! Only complaint? I'm very allergic to shrimp and when the waiter asked if we wanted the calamari for an appetizer, of course we said yes. Unbeknownst to us both, there were fried shrimp included on that plate (thank God I caught myself before eating it!!) and 2 wedges of fried zucchini. Next time, I'll know! The fresh bread was thoroughly enjoyed by my husband who even went so far as to resort to dipping it in the marinara sauce that accompanied the darned calamari! Dinner just came out now and both dishes look delicious!! My husband is halfway done with his Veal parmesan already and I haven't cut into my skirt steak yet...more in a few minutes (lol). Okay...while the skirt steak was a lil overcooked and tough, also topped with something super sweet, but after taking each bite with some fettuccine and sauce, the spicy from the sauce kind of evened out the sticky sweet topping of the steak (thank heavens!). My husband isn't used to fresh pasta, sauce or Veal, so it took him a lil while to get accustomed to the new flavors on his palate, but once he did, he cleaned his plate! Dessert is coming in the form of tiramisu for me since I ate very little prior to the main course and still have a little bit of room! Taking the rest of the side of whipped cream (Which I can't have anyways), small bite of tiramisu and what's left of our bread home to my dog. I know, she's weird, but if we show up empty-handed, we might as well not go home at all! In closing, Pomodoro Cafe is an... Excellent cozy place for dinner... Probably a great lunch spot too... Has EXCELLENT servers for sure! (Especially ours, Benny) Try them out! (Now I wished I'd gotten the Osso Buco listed under the chef's special...always wanted to try it! Next time, next time!) read more

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Went on Monday, for Takeout- special- 16" large pizza $9.99. Toppings $1.00 each to add.... SO WORTH IT! Loved it!!! Thank you so much!!!

One of our favorite Italian places in Gainesville. We were able to speak to the owners in Italian and their passion for bringing quality food is obvious in every dish! read more

Such a nice restaurant! If you go during peak dinner times, be prepared to have to wait a little for your food, but it's worth waiting for! This was our second visit and it's was delicious both times! I recommend the Ravioli Fiorentina (pictured), the sauce was really good. read more

Pomodoro Cafe - Pre dinner bread, comes with sweet balsamic dip - Italian Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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Lovely place! Very well organized! Just a tiny wait and we were seated. The place was packed, and many people were picking up to go orders. I had mammas lasagna and my friend had the mixed grill. The salad was delicious and fresh, the soup was excellent. He ate every bite! Their bread is amazing, baked by someone who knows how to make bread without the tough exterior. The dessert case was full of decadent morsels. We were too full to try it, but we will be back. I can't say enough about this lovely restaurant. The wait staff was excellent! read more

Decided to stop in after class, my first visit. At first I felt invisible because they sat 4 people before they even seen me, I was alone at it's Valentine's Day. Haha, anyway after finally being seated, I ordered a Calzone w/2 toppings and a sweet tea. The tea was surprisingly good, sweet tea is always a toss up, but it was pretty good. The bread they brought out to eat while waiting on the meal was good, warm and buttery. The Calzone was HUGE, very good, highly recommend! The atmosphere was nice, very clean, no carpet is a definitely a plus. I'll never understand why restaurants have carpet, all I can think of is how much ground in food is in it. The sever, Hannah was fabulous. It was very busy, as it was a Holiday, my favorite (the day I got divorced, yah me)! Anyways, IMO it's worth the stop and give it a try, I'm sure I'll be returning sometime soon. read more

Pomodoro Cafe - Italian Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

What a find. In town visiting grandson and decided Italian for dinner. Noticed they had gnocchi on the menu(my absolute favorite)The gnocchi were light and fluffy sauce very flavorful. Husband had spaghetti and clams excellent grandson had chicken Parm. He said he was going to bring his roommates back for dinner. Server was on point. Very attentive. Quaint and very clean. Will definitely return on my next visit. read more

Date night at Pomodoro Café in Gainesville, my first time back since my college years over 15 years ago. Entering, you feel the classic Italian cafe's sappy decor. First off, as you are seated, you can't miss the Desserts. I recommend this place for a decadent dessert! On a diet? Forget dinner, but don't miss dessert. We sat in an inside booth, but they have a patio and fan/heated outdoor dining. The menu is full of options and overwhelmed with words versus worthwhile pictures. Complimentary bread, I won't complain. We decide on one of the Pomodoro Fish Italian special and a Calzone for dinner. Service seemed a bit slow, but the servings were large, and the food was satisfactory. The dessert was the star tonight! I appreciate full-service dining, and after 15 years of not visiting, my takeaway was that the whole experience would have probably been just as good or better via take-out. The staff seemed self-occupied for a Sunday 7:30 dinner time and did not add to the overall dining experience (only a couple of tables occupied, one large family party). read more

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Great Food and service loved the manager made my son's day . we appreciate the experience. Will definitely be back when we're in the area..

The half pressed sub lunch special is AMAZING. Fries are great as well. The porch needs updating but there is no smoking there. read more

We had an awesome meal enjoyed a heart pasta dish with salmon and scallops in a vodka sauce with sun dried tomatoes and mushrooms. Terrific appetizer of hummus with steak and pine nuts, gnocchi early bird special, and veal Marsala. We love the bread and balsamic oil drizzle. Their desserts top notch!! The chef is always there checking on everything! read more

Pomodoro Cafe - Heart shaped seafood pasta in vodka sauce - Italian Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Great food, good service. When ordering for takeout we got the wrong order once, but it was easily fixed and they threw in a free dessert.

Went here tonight with my daughter and we loved it. It's a cute smaller restaurant but just the right size. Very homey and warm with murals depicting an Italian village. Kind of cheesy but totally ok. I had the all you can eat Wednesday pasta special. You choose your pasta type, sauce type and soup or salad. I got the Mamas red sauce and Angel hair and it was great. Had the salad with house dressing. Also came with freshly baked rolls and garlic and butter on the top. Really good. They also brought out a container of bread dipping sauce which was good and tasted like it had balsamic vinegar in it. My daughter got the Chicken pasta Alfredo and said it was really good. Portions are decent. So why 4 stars? The menu clearly states the all you can eat that includes pasta and a salad all you can eat. When I asked for another salad she said it would be a separate add on charge for a second salad. Like huh? She said in a friendly way that the only thing that is all you can eat is the pasta. Definitely did not say that on the menu. Another small rub was the salad included in my daughters chicken Alfredo came with a salad. It did. But there is a choice of house dressing or Caesar dressing. She ordered Caesar they added $3.50 to the bill. All in all a good place but be careful of the pricing. read more

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VERY GOOD EARLY BIRD DINNER We recently visited Pomodoro Cafe, an Italian restaurant in Gainesville. Plenty of parking in a strip mall anchored by Publix. We came shortly before 5 p.m. on a weekend evening and by the time we left, most of the tables were taken by families and older couples. It appears that this is a popular restaurant among locals. Our server was friendly and checked on us throughout our meal. Beautiful murals adorn the walls and the domed ceiling. Seating is mostly booth tables with a few larger tables. There is also an outdoor terrace area. We started with Fritto Misto ($11.25). We ordered the early bird dinner special ($13.95 and served daily 11-5:30 p.m.) that includes a soup or salad and dessert. We selected the soup special - cream of mushroom soup (other choices were pasta fagioli and Tuscan minestrone). For our entrees, we ordered Parmigiano Siciliano, Tuscan Shrimp Scampi and Penne alla Ciccio. We enjoyed our dinner. The fried appetizer was a medium size order of fresh calamari and shrimp and a few zucchini sticks. The large bowl of cream of mushroom soup was delicious and was garnished with fluffy light gnocchi. The pasta dishes were generous full-size portions. The scampi had plump shrimp with a nice lemony sauce. The penne's pesto cream sauce was really rich. The parmesan trio of chicken parm (a little burnt), large meatball and spicy sausage served on spaghetti was too much food for me. There was no choice for dessert - everyone is served a small square of a light cake topped with whipped cream icing. read more