I've been to Roman Cucina many times, and there's so much about this spot that keeps me coming back. Located in the middle of downtown Fullerton, it's a charming and cozy space that's perfect for a date night or celebration. Come early, or plan to walk around a bit because they are walk up only, and your wait could be a while depending on where you want to be sat. Still, it's worth it for the great atmosphere and delicious pasta. Certain days of the week have different specials. For example, Thursdays they have discounted martinis (they have some GREAT drinks), and Wednesdays discounted wine bottles (and no corkage fees if your whole party orders an entree) so definitely make sure to check out if they're offering anything the day you come in. They have a pretty large menu of pasta dishes, and other entrees. Everything I've had off the menu has been delicious, including the special pasta of the day I ordered on my last visit. Plates range from $20 and up if you add proteins, but the portions are large and you definitely won't leave hungry. The service is very solid, but our last server Jessica really wowed us! She was personable, and had many great recommendations about the menu. Aside from checking in on us frequently and making sure our wine glasses were never empty, she really made our recent visit a standout one. Definitely stop by here if you're looking for a nice Italian dinner in Fullerton. read more

Roman Cucina - Interior - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

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First time to Roman Cucina. We went as a family with two small kids as part of a school fundraiser. We really enjoyed the atmosphere here. The place is cozy and not pretentious. They accommodate families and people on dates equally. The food was good. We particularly liked that kids eat free on Mondays with purchase of an adult entree. That's great when one of your kids only wants the dreaded butter noodles and the other only eats noodles with Parmesan cheese. The meals were all very good and the service was excellent. Our glasses were constantly refilled and the wait staff were all very friendly. Okay, my one criticism is the suggested gratuity on the bill. When looking at the bill, the suggested 20% tip seemed like a higher recommendation in dollars for our total. When calculating it out, the amount listed for our 20% tip was actually 25%. In fact, all the suggested gratuity dollar amounts listed on the check were inaccurate, with the suggested dollar amounts higher than the percentage indicated. For example, if your check was $100, the bill would suggest $25 as a 20% tip...it's in fact a 25%. Everything else was great and we would come back, but definitely double check the math! read more

After going here for 16 years it's evident this place is not the same. I stopped writing reviews after a while but it's about time to update my review. Service is still top notch. Servers and management always on point and always want to make it right. This time I just didn't feel like bringing it up. 1. Calamari used to be our favorite thing here. We've been here 6 different occasions in the past two years and each time the calamari was a giant salt bomb. Given our long history here and how much we loved this place, we wanted to keep giving it another chance but its clear. The chef has lost his sense of taste and he overcompensates by trippling the salt content. Calamari is officially dead. 2. The pasta has also been consistently mushy and overcooked. Penne is OK but still soft. All other pastas were mush. Again, this is a repeat offense. Too much salt and super overcooked pasta, What two items are consistently still good? The bread and house salad. Both are delicious and haven't changed. I think we're done with this place now. Too bad. We have to find another Italian spot. The top notch service is the only reason this review isn't 2 stars. read more

Checking off different restaurants in DTF and got around to trying Roman Cucina this past Tuesday for dinner. They have daily specials and Tuesdays is Pasta Night - Order 1 entree and get the 2nd one half off. The 2nd entree is also regular size too which is awesome! I ordered the Pasta Our Way which is 1 meatball and 1 sausage with red sauce. For pasta I went with fettucine since my friend ordered a Chicken Parmigiana with spaghetti. I'm always conflicted when it comes to either meatballs or sausage since I like both equally. Fortunately they have a dish that comes with both which made my life a lot easier. The red sauce was really good, but felt like it needed just a little something more. Pasta was cooked perfectly. No complaints regarding the sausage and meatball! However, I liked the Chicken Parmigiana more, so towards the end of the meal my friend and I swapped dishes since she liked mine too. The chicken was excellent! I rarely ever order this dish, but it was so good I think next time I come back I'm not even sure if I want to try something else. I felt like the sauce for the Chicken Parmigiana had more flavor than the Pasta Our Way. Like I mentioned earlier, the red sauce in my dish needed something and whatever that was, the Chicken Parmigiana had it. Maybe it was the type of pasta too. Normally I would've went with spaghetti, but I didn't wanna order 2 of the same pastas. Personally not a big fan of the bread, but that's just a personal preference. I like the inside, but the exterior was just way too crispy/crunchy for me. It reminded me of banh mis which I also dislike for that exact reason. Anyway, service was great! The staff was friendly. Dimly lit, but not too dark inside. Will definitely be back on Tuesday again! read more

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Back for my annual review but with pictures this time! Stopped in earlier this week before leaving town and the pasta giani was just as good as the first time I had it! It comes w a complimentary house salad and regular bread. I tried the garlic bread and I wasn't really a fan. I think it wasn't cooked all the way through, but I see the potential. Service was good at the bar! Still a 10/10 in my book, don't walk.., RUN! Can't wait to go back when I'm in town! read more

Roman Cucina - Garlic bread - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Stopped in on Valentine's Day with some friends and as expected there was a long wait. 2.5 hours but all good as it was easy to pass the time in DTF. Service was too notch, and the food was good. Not great but good. The bruschetta appetizer was the highlight, calamari, entrees and desserts were all fine. I enjoyed the fact that they didn't rush us or anyone around us. It felt like people were there to enjoy the ambiance and they were ok with that. read more

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Came in initially with good expectations but was disappointed with how rude the hostess or coordinator was when asking for a table for 2 and I felt skipped over as other people that had walked with parties of 2 and over hearing them say they didn't have a reservation either get sat before me. Luckily Julian E was our waiter and made everything amazing; Great personality and was attentive and made sure all the food came perfectly as well as drinks. He defined my night with great service and would come for the quality of service and food was great was well with good portions for the price. Was little loud within the restaurant but with how busy it was I am not surprised. read more

we went here for happy birthday 18 they brought out the cake. It was all lit up and as they're bringing out the cake they had earlier brought boxes for our food that we didn't eat and all of a sudden there's a roach coming out and on the table and at the same time the cakes coming out so we were like OMG we still had to stop and sing happy birthday, but there was like eight or nine of us at the table, and we all witnessed the roach on the table never again will I go to this restaurant again? And then they only gave us 20% off the bill when I feel that they should've come the whole bill. A lot of people didn't eat all their food and they was gonna take it home but couldn't because of the roach on the table. read more

Cheese ravioli with Alfredo sauce 9/10 Very good! Loved the flavor! The ravioli was stuffed to the core. It was cheesy and delicious! The shrimp was cooked well and complimented the dish nicely. I enjoyed the mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes in this dish. The broccoli was fresh. That's a very good pasta dish! Service was excellent! They brought out the food very fast! Lickety split as they say! Everything was hot/ warm and fresh. The server did a great job. They were kind and offered drinks while we were waiting for a table; how sweet is that?! We waited 30 minutes for a table. Ambiance was super busy, which I get that when it's "college Friday." Thursdays seem to be rather busy in downtown Fullerton. 10/10 The cucumber tomato salad 10/10 Oh, my goodness! This salad was so fresh and yummy! I loved the basil and the light dressing. I chowed down on this salad so hard. My husband looked at me crazy thinking I was eating raw tomatoes lol I told him there was flavors going on that made it so good. It didn't taste like raw tomatoes and cucumber. It was so light and flavorful. I thoroughly enjoyed this starter/ appetizer. Mozzarella Garlic Bread 8/10 Lots of cheese, which was nice. It needed more garlic flavor. The cheese over-powered the garlic. The bread itself was alright; it could have been toasted a bit more. Fried Calamari 6/10 The calamari was a bit on the chewy side. That's not good. You want calamari to be nice and tender really. I'm not sure if it was overcooked slightly, or what. I wasn't a fan. My husband didn't care for this either. Wouldn't order again. Tombrello pasta 7/10 My husband ordered this pasta. He said it was super salty, and the sauce was non-existent. It did look as though it needed some more sauce. It looked like noodles with cheese sprinkled on top. I gave him some extra Alfredo sauce from my dish, and it improved the dish a lot. Not bad overall! The service was really what stood out the most. Exceptional service. The food varies by dish. read more

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Roman Cuchina is a great Italian restaurant in downtown Fullerton. We have eaten here several times and decided to return. The last few times, we dined in the main dining room. This time we dined towards the rear of the restaurant which has a hallway with two seat booths along one wall. This area is more intimate and quieter than the main dining room. It is slightly dim, and has a great cozy vibe with stacked stone, lots of pictures, and string lights on the wall. Thursday night is definitely the night to come here for cocktail night and $7 martinis. Check their website for the specials they have on the other nights. I started out with the Key Lime martini. Beautiful color and exactly how you would expect it to taste, delicious. We also enjoyed the Italian Surfer, Bada Bing, and Peach martinis which we have here had before. Our friendly server Victoria greeted us and brought a basket of warm bread to the table. The entrees come with a house salad with a good vinaigrette dressing and fresh ground pepper at the table. For my entrée, I had the Lemon Crème Sauce and Shrimp Pasta which was heavenly. The sauce was nice and creamy with a great lemon flavor which I loved. The shrimp was cooked perfectly. This dish is a little on the heavy side, but I was happy to bring home the leftovers to enjoy it a second time. My girlfriend enjoyed the Shrimp Speziato, a good pasta-less dish for people who would like something on the lighter side. Service was great and the food and drinks all came out timely. We will be back again soon! read more

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I went with boyfriend and mother in law for a quick lunch and sat at the bar. James helped us and was an amazing bartender! He was attentive and nice. The food and drinks were amazing and so was the location read more

Roman Cucina - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

First time visiting this establishment. Upon arrival we were greated with a smile and the staff across the board were attentive. I took my daughter here for her birthday as she likes italian food and this place did not let me down. The food was delish and most importantly the ambiance was great. I highly recommend this location. Hope to visit this place again for another review on other plates. read more

Roman Cucina - Shrimp and Lobster Pasta (Spicy) - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Absolutely beautiful ambiance and low lighting give the spot the perfect place for a date night that's sure to wow any date or guest. Food is amazing quality and the service is top notch. Very professional and attentive staff. Been going here for over 20 years. Always an amazing experience. read more

The food was delicious! Huge servings. The service was fabulous. Everyone was so attentive and gorgeous! The music was a blast, love the 80's! Great vibe - went on a Saturday night. Not too long of a wait. Excellent! read more

Roman Cucina - My date with a massive plate of calamari! - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Great pasta place with huge portions. Pastas come with side salad with delicious bright vinaigrette dressing and bread. We each ordered a pasta and we all went home with great amount of left overs. The pesto and lemon cream pastas were amazing but the 3rd daily special with sausage was a bit under seasoned. We were all happy with our cocktails too. It would be a great little date place too. It gets pretty busy even on a weekday evening after 7pm. Plenty of free parking on the back lot read more

Roman Cucina - Daily special - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

I forgot how good Roman Cucina was! Is it bad to be craving pasta everyday now? Everyone at the table loved their food. Our service was great, especially since we had a larger group. They give you bread while waiting for your entree (one of best parts DUH). Parking is a little tricky, so be prepared! read more

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long overdue review but the food here is always amazing, fresh, and so filling. The servers are always so nice and helpful. It's always busy here so expect a wait but it's worth it! read more

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great menu, service, food, parking, drinks and.... Don't eat all your dinner. save some for evening snack while watching the news! read more

It was extremely busy even with a reservation we had to wait about good while to get seated, at which point I ordered a Paloma. The bar mentioned they wouldn't be able to make a proper Paloma due to not having the right ingredients but I ended up still getting one anyways. Can't blame em, they really didn't have the right ingredients, it was overly bitter but it's my fault for ordering it, not their fault that it wasn't a good Paloma. 2/5 just stick to drinks that they offer Service was great besides the fact that we had to wait a while, they would top up our waters, offer refills on soda as well as check up on us to see if everything is good. Had the calamari as an appetizer and I would definitely order it again and will recommend anyone to order it. 4/5 possibly a little too salty but to each their own, still nice and crispy and the lemon offsets the saltiness. The pasta trombello was good, probably wouldn't order it again but the server recommended it so I went with his rec. 3.5/5 had a nice kick to it and the small pieces of sausage and mushroom was a nice touch. The fettucini Alfredo was awesome, solid 4.5/5 great flavor but it was a little too thick for my liking, I like it creamy but not too creamy. I'd definitely recommend their fettuccini Alfredo though, nice and rich flavor. The shrimp was a good addition as well, probably stick to shrimp over chicken for this specific restaurants fettucini Alfredo due to the sauce being thick it coats the shrimp real nice Overall 3.5/5 I'd definitely come back and try some new things before I give a final review read more

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My favorite restaurant in the whole wide world honestly. Been celebrating my birthday with my dearest friends for the past 8 years & they already know I'm coming here for my birthday, no questions asked! I ALWAYS get the Pasta Gianni with spaghetti, the BEST pasta in the whole wide world. Always made so perfectly al dente, packed with flavors, just perfect. I love their dinner salad that is included, so simple and fresh, but there's special days where i like to upcharge it to their italian wedding soup, ANOTHER favorite! Love the sauteed mushroom and calamari appetizer, but the portions here are huuuuge so normally, the pasta dish is enough for me, as they also offer bread + butter! Espresso Martini + the peach cocktail is also awesome Service is also friendly and fast, everyone is respectful and nice (although, 2 years ago, there was 1 server who was pretty much tossing napkins, straws onto the lowered 2 seater table near the entrance/hallway which was off-putting, me and my friend were pretty taken aback at how he was tossing stuff from his tall height, but, there's days I suppose that people aren't 100%, still won't affect my 5-star review, but this experience stuck with me lol). Love this place. I will never stop recommending this place to friends, family, strangers online or in person. THANK YOU ROMAN CUCINA!!!!!! (Also, thank you Dylan for the sweet ice cream bday treat yesterday, 4/5. Wasn't expecting that as i've never been given that for any of my past bdays. Really made my day and was a sweet surprise :)! ) read more

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8.8/10 Pesto Pasta- I really enjoyed this pasta! It was very pesto-y as I typically like. I did ask the server to give me a side of sauce on the side and I ended up dumping all the sauce into the pasta. I cannot stand when there is not enough sauce in the pasta. I also added chicken for an additional cost..Pasta just isn't the same without a protein! I don't love that this entrée doesn't automatically include one and that adding it comes at an extra cost. 1000/10 - The server who helped us was PHENOMENAL.Big shoutout to the server Boaz (That's what it says on the receipt). He seemed like he genuinely enjoys his job and working with people. Incredible customer service. He was so kind to even get me another side of pesto sauce with my take out box. Thank you!! 10/10 Environment- This is such a romantic environment to be in. Love the dimly lit vibes and pretty lights scattered everywhere in the restaurant. read more

Roman Cucina - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

Technically o would give them a 3.5. So service ambiance and drinks were a 5. Everyone was super nice. Our order was taken right away and we got bread at the table immediately as well. Reason for -2 star is because my husband and my pasta were very under seasoned. Spaghetti wasn't salted and there was little to no seasoning in the actual sauce. We ended up packing out food to go and I remade the sauce at home to get some kind of taste out of it. My kids loved the spaghetti and meatballs though so maybe it was what we ordered? If you're here for drinks highly recommend but if I came back for dinner it wouldn't be for pasta. read more

Roman Cucina - Shrimp scampi - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Favorite pasta spot in Fullerton I have been coming here for several years and pasta has always been consistently good! My go to is the chicken parm because the portion is big and is crispy with a generous amount of cheese. Their salads are also a hit. The waiters are awesome and very attentive! This place is nice for a date night. On a past birthday I received complementary ice cream with a candle which is a kind touch. read more

Roman Cucina - Salad - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Best pasta I've ever had!! They have a deal on tuesdays, but one entree and get the second for 50% off which I think is such a great deal! Their entrees are around $19~$24, a lot of them have an extra charge for proteins though, which is why I usually like to order the ones that already come with its proteins. My fave is their chicken parmigiana, big slice of chicken breast and a crazy big portion of pasta! Chicken is crispy on the outside and super moist on the inside, I love it!! They give you free bread and salad as well. Service is always top notch, servers are super friendly and efficient. Definitely recommend!! read more

If I could give this place 10 stars I would. We used to live local to here and miss it very much. We arrived on a Saturday and much to my surprise/delight got seated within 5 minutes of putting our name on the list! Our waitress was stellar, I can't remember her name she was a tall-ish woman with olive skin and a bright smile. She got our order of bruschetta in right away. We nibbled and soon gobbled that up and then out came our gluten free pasta with pesto and a generous portion of langostino. "Chefs kiss!" I can't wait to come back here. Management is amazing and the staff is great constantly refilling water and checking in even if they're not your server. read more

1 star for ambiance. The seating process was uncomfortable from the start. There were odd rules just to be seated, and no option was given to wait for a table in the dining room. Instead, we were placed in the entryway, which is a terrible spot to dine. This was for my birthday as well. People were constantly walking in, standing around waiting for tables, and staring. Very awkward and not enjoyable. No idea what the dining room even looks like. The food didn't help. The bread was dry. The eggplant parmigiana was decent enough, especially since it was my first time trying it. The pasta primavera, however, was a major disappointment. The pasta tasted overcooked, the marinara had almost no flavor, and the vegetables were soggy. This was not primavera. I tried adding salt and Parmesan, but it didn't help. Shockingly, for an "authentic" Italian restaurant, there was no fresh grated cheese. I could barely eat it. It honestly reminded me of mall food court pasta. Both my boyfriend and I had stomach issues later that night and the next morning. Not coming back. read more

Long overdue review. We've been going here for years. We went last night. Amazing service as usual. Had my favorite lasagna with ground beef. Got to meet the owner, John, last night. So nice to see owners on the floor and involved in service. The atmosphere is perfect, dim lighting, not loud, lots of interesting decor. The tiramisu is my favorite. Coming from a restaurant background, appreciate how well the restaurant is run. See you soon! read more

Roman Cucina is officially my new favorite restaurant. Tanner, James, and the owner Mike are absolutely awesome--super friendly, welcoming, and attentive. We originally stopped in just for drinks, but they convinced us to stay, and I'm so glad we did. The service was amazing from start to finish and the vibe made us feel right at home. Huge thanks to the whole team for such a great experience. We'll definitely be back guys thank you!! read more

Roman Cucina - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

Highly recommend this place!! A group of friends and I decided to stop by for some drinks and pasta and we LOVED it. Highly recommend getting their espresso martinis( they make them tan), they're sooo delicious and i'm not even a big espresso martini person! We all got different pastas and DEVOURED them all. Their pastas do come with a house salad, served first. The service was on top of it as well. Our server was extremely nice and attentive. The overall vibe here is very relaxed and I highly recommend this place for a date night. It's dim lighting with good food and cocktails! They do have daily specials here as well! read more

By far one of my favorite local restaurants. Parking can be a little tricky depending on time and day , it can be busy . I love dim light romantic feeling of the atmosphere. . All the staff if very friendly and nice . Always make sure to hear the special for the night but my go to is the Pasta Gianni . read more

Roman Cucina - Pasta Gianni - Italian Near Me - Fullerton, California

This has been a long overdue review for this little Italian gem downtown! It is family owned, super friendly, and they make you feel right at home every time. You can tell they genuinely care and actually get to know their customers. The food is great, warm crispy bread, fresh salads, delicious pasta, and don't even get me started on the lemon drop martinis... dangerously good! The cozy atmosphere, great service, and perfect downtown spot make it the kind of place you'll want to keep coming back to. And after dinner, you can take a nice little walk through downtown, it just adds to the whole vibe. Truly a local favorite that never disappoints. read more

Stopped in amongst escape rooms and had a lovely meal. Service and ambiance on point, food was good. Looking forward to returning when we are back in the area. read more

Returned to Roman Cucina for an anniversary dinner on a Thursday. It was already a little crowded even before 5:00pm. We were seated near the back door, I'd wait for the main dining room next time. The bread service is always a nice touch, and their salad and dressing is one of my favorites around. I tried the chicken Parmesan with spaghetti and really enjoyed it. I was a little disappointed that upon check-in we were not asked if we weee celebrating anything, as often times nice restaurants will do that, I should have said something during the meal to our waiter but I didn't end up doing so. Overall we had an enjoyable dinner, I'd recommend making a reservation, requesting a table in the main dining room, and specifying any celebrations ahead of time. All notes I will remember for myself upon our next visit. read more

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This restaurant has a cozy Italian American atmosphere. The staff are friendly and helpful. The place was packed when we stopped by. We got the Steak Milanese which was delicious! I would definitely have it again. We also tried the Bruschetta which was decent; I felt it was a bit bland but the quality of the ingredients was good. Overall I would definitely recommend this place for Italian fare although there are a few places in the area to eat that are also worth checking out read more

This place was very interesting. I came here a few months ago to meet a friend, I told the hostess I needed a table for 2 and she said I couldn't be seated until he was here, even though I told her my friend was only having a coffee and that I'd be having food. After waiting 15 minutes since he was running late, I asked again and thankfully she allowed it this time. I ordered my food and ate by myself but the workers kept looking at me awkwardly. I was just minding my own business, I eat at places by myself sometimes and I never had a problem with it, but here, the workers would be staring while talking to each other. Anyways, I ordered the bolognese and the pasta was cooked nicely, the sauce didn't have enough meat in it, but overall it was still pretty good. I would possibly come back if I was in the area but the vibe I got there was very off putting, so I guess I can just take it to-go if I want to eat alone lol. The restaurant was very dimmed a gave a nice little date night kind of atmosphere, I'd definitely would've told my girlfriend about it if I didn't have such a strange experience. read more

The Lobster Ravioli was orgasmic. Absolutely, the best I've ever had! Their Lasagna was loaded with meat (not a watery sauce with little meat). The entire experience left nothing to be desired. James took great care of us and he can make a great dink. I will be coming back for more :) You can see the ambiance in the photo I checked in with. Everyone was awesome. read more

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The food was absolutely delicious, the service was warm and friendly, and the restaurant had such a cozy vibe--perfect for a relaxing family outing read more

We were served by Boaz tonight and he was amazing. We got better service from him than we have had in a very long time anywhere else. Same goes for the busers, we didn't have an empty plate on the table for more than a moment. We need to make it a point to come out here more. read more

Always order the mushroom appetizer and meatball with ricotta and figure out the entree. Team service, exceptional at scanning the tables and serving without being intrusive. Very well organized and reminded us of our old school days working full service. We don't go out nearly as much as we used to but this is the place we save that night out for. read more

We waited about 2 hours during dinner time on a Saturday. They don't take reservations unfortunately. Excellent appetizers both the calamari and the bruschetta we got. The pesto pasta was delicious compared to the pink sauce we had. I'd say I'd like it more saucy. The Italian wedding soup was a disappointment with 3 little meatballs and the rest was broth. The tiramisu was decent more on the sweeter side. Overall a good Italian spot, good pricing too for the amount of food you get. Wouldn't say worth 2 hours wait but I'd dine here again if there's not a wait. Can be quite loud inside. read more

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