Strings Italian Café is a cozy and welcoming spot that always hits the mark for classic Italian comfort food. The restaurant is clean, inviting, and has that warm neighborhood feel where you instantly feel at home. The staff is friendly, attentive, and quick to make sure everything is just right from the moment you're seated. The menu offers a great variety of traditional Italian dishes--from rich pastas and hearty soups to fresh salads and delicious bread that come out warm and soft every time. The portions are generous, making it easy to share or take home leftovers. My favorite is the fettuccine Alfredo--it's creamy, flavorful, and perfectly cooked. My husband enjoys their chicken parmesan, which is tender and full of flavor with the perfect amount of sauce and cheese. Service is consistently fast and pleasant, and the prices are very reasonable for the quality and portion sizes. Whether you're stopping in for lunch or enjoying a relaxing dinner with family, Strings Italian Café delivers a dependable, tasty meal in a friendly and comfortable setting. read more

Today we were in the mood for Italian food. This was my first-time and I shared the lasagna, spaghetti and meatballs. Both were very tasty with the bread, minestrone and salad. Actually, we shared the soup and salad and I was already getting full but I had to try the lasagna and spaghetti and meatballs. What I didn't appreciate was the flies and unfortunately, one flew in my lemon water. Yes, we did bring to our waitress attention but I was already done. read more

I used to love going to lunch here but something has changed in their fettuccine Alfredo recipe. It isn't as good as it was. After a couple of tries to see if it would get better I was disappointed and haven't retuned. read more

I take no pleasure in people who can't do their job right. If you can't do any job properly, then you should switch careers. You'd THINK I would have given up by now, but I have not. Another ruined dinner, serving me way undercooked salmon and cold broccoli. I finally flagged someone down, and almost a HALF HOUR LATER, a manager in a red jacket came to apologize and said they would cook me a new dinner. Does that mean no one has already started it by now???? P.S. the replacement in the togo box was cooked perfectly, the broccoli was even harder, lol!! read more

Food is made to order with large portions. Staff is amazing. There is a large patio available for special events like birthday parties and a meeting room. Kudos to Albert the owner and AJ read more

Strings Italian Cafe - Galman pescatora - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

The food was okay, but the service was mediocre, and there were only two other couples there. We are very light eaters, so we only had one helping of the unlimited soup and salad. When we asked for another bowl of soup to go for my husband, the owner refused. We always enjoyed Strings, but we will never go back. read more

On the upside, our server was very positive and professional. No problem with her. In terms of ambiance, this Strings has nothing to offer. The place has not changed a bit since it was new, and that is not a compliment. Everything is dated, tired-looking and seems in need of a thorough cleaning. the food we tried to eat was barely school cafeteria quality. The fettuccine noodles were limp, the sauce mediocre, and the meatballs were grey and blah. The drinks were good. But any time a Diet Coke is the best item in your meal, you are not having a good dining experience. read more

Amazing food and service! Best Italian restaurant in Merced by far! Everything is fresh to go!.

Not sure where the 3.5 comes from? From the moment a friend and I walked in we were greeted and seated right away. The staff is amazing! The food was delicious. Seriously no complaints at all... read more

My favorite place for date night. Awesome service as usual I'm loving the Karaoke. Food was quick and hot. read more

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Went to Strings on 8-26-25, the food was delicious and our waitress was great, very delicious, but...the restaurant was 78 degrees inside at 7 at night! It took about 45 minutes to get our meal and we were simply sweating inside the restaurant. After only 10 minutes of eating, and our glasses having sweat on them from the temperature in the restaurant, We asked them for boxes to take our meals home because it was so hot. Someone came out and told us that they had their thermostat looked at and it worked for a short period and then stopped working properly. So, if you know that your restaurant is going to be very uncomfortable for people, maybe tell them when they come in and they can get the food to go or go somewhere else. At least give them the heads up and option. It is not a cheap place and therefore, we should get to choose if we want to eat there and spend the money or not. read more

Strings Italian Cafe - 78 degrees in the restaurant. This is their thermostat last night. - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

Very good food and service great. Order take out and never disappointed. Recommend for take out as food arrives the same as eating in.

Had lunch here with a big group after a funeral. Service was very slow considering there was hardly anyone dining in the restaurant. My seafood bisque was flavorful, but lacked any consistency. It was too watered down. The family salad was over drenched with dressing that the lettuce was soggy. My meat calzone was just ok. It was filled with plenty of meat, but it lacked flavor. I left still hungry. Not my best dining experience, but then again there was not much to choose from in Merced. read more

Strings Italian Cafe - Meat calzone - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

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Both food and service excellent. All main dishes include either soup or salad. Good value. Highly recommended.

Unexpected find in Merced, CA. Here for work and a local teacher recommended Strings as a locally owned restaurant option. My colleagues and I LOVED our meals that were served attention to the details. The thoughtful fusion of flavors was pleasant yet unique. Not your typical Italian. We will be back when we return in August to try more menu options! read more

Strings has some great food. Everything I have tried has been great. I especially enjoyed the Lasagna Pastry, it tastes great and having both sauces is really nice. The staff has always been very friendly and usually quick. The inside is nice and always clean. My family held an event here too and they were super helpful. They made it really easy and we had a great time. Overall a great place to eat! read more

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Siena was good. Lobster bisque delicious especially with the bread. Wonderful service and wasn't too bad with my little kids. Will ask for light dressing or dressing on the side next time. Will get the bruschetta next time, had major fomo read more

Strings Italian Cafe - Kids chicken nugget combo was delicious and perfect for my hungry kids - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

Haven't been here in over 10 years. We were in town for an event and my husband made last-minute reservations for my birthday dinner. The service was excellent, and so was the food. I highly recommend! read more

Strings Italian Cafe - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

We have been going to Strings, Merced for years. Love their food. Never disappointed. Mike is the best. read more

Been here a couple of times since I moved from LA with my mom and recently came here with my bf who just moved up here. We absolutely love this place including the service, the quality of the food, and atmosphere. They have a variety of dishes from kept friendly dishes to one of our favs the Margherita pizza...something about their cheese! Most recently we ordered the bruschetta, one of their pesto chicken dishes, a pizza, and always a glass of wine when I come here. Plenty of tables, booths, and an outside area to sit and enjoy lunch or dinner, will definitely be back for another date night!. read more

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First time at this place and let me tell you that definitely going back again I love the food I order shrimp Alfredo fettuccine and yummy strawberry lemonade and new your cheesecake for dessert everything was delicious and the service amazing I recommend this place 100 percent ! read more

I meant mention this last month. I had the house specialty and it was surprisingly delicious. I will be back.

I don't know if it was an off night but the food was terrible. Like someone else said- the review should be separated as far as service and food. Service was excellent. Our waitress was attentive and very sweet. The chicken piccata tasted like it was in cream of mushroom soup. My lasagna a tasted like a frozen lasagna that was reheated and the fettuccine Alfredo was the worst! I feel bad because I wanted to like this. It's pasta. I'm not that picky. I like Olive Garden and places like that but this was just a different bad. read more

They were okay. They had mediocre pasta - very edible but not special. The pasta was over cooked and very soft and sauce was salty but lacked other flavors. The staff was very friendly though. They have a big patio sitting area where my dog felt very comfortable in, so i may return when i'm in the area for that reason. Perhaps their other options taste better? I may update the review after I taste other things on their menu, but i'm not keeping my hopes up that much. read more

Strings has the absolute best staff, greeting you from the time you walk in, until you leave, making sure your order is perfect and your glasses are never empty! I highly recommend the Seafood Bisque soup with their fresh bread, you'll feel like you're eating on the coast somewhere. You'll never be disappointed with any dish as they are all amazing and unique. Thank you Strings for providing excellent service and outstanding flavor!! read more

Decent food below average atmosphere Server was polite but inattentive due to being only server Basic strip mall experience definitely not a destination type dining experience read more

Good food. Service is great too. The salads and appetite are good as well. If you wanna order to pick up they're also quick too. My fave is the lasagna read more

I almost wish Yelp let us rate in two separate categories. If this was on service alone I'd give a 5, but due to the food I had to do 3. Our server was a 5 because she was extremely sweet, attentive, quick, and is clearly a very hard worker. The food could use some tweaks though. I tried both the balsamic dressing and the house dressing with my salad and couldn't handle either. Originally got balsamic and in my little container it had super duper thick reduced balsamic syrup on the bottom with a bunch of olive oil on top, so unless I dumped my entire dressing container over my salad it would've been all olive oil. Maybe if I hadn't asked for it on the side they would've blended it better but I had to dip my fork to the bottom to get the syrupy balsamic (couldn't stir it, nothing to bind it) and quickly rub it on some lettuce. It still didn't taste great so I asked for the house dressing and it was weird, like caesar dressing's evil twin or something. Out of curiosity I had ordered the Lasagna Pastry. I couldn't understand what it was based on the description and pictures, and it was yummy but I wonder why this is a menu item. It's literally a piece of lasagna wrapped in a puffy-ish pastry layer, baked, and served with alfredo and meat marinara. Puff pastry/extra carbs is delicious of course but I'm not sure this was the place for it...lasagna, two types of sauce, meat, layered pasta, cheese, and black olives it was too rich. I think next time I'll get the regular lasagna or try the short ribs/mushroom risotto. Still one of the better places in Merced, I suggest eating on the patio it's a really nice ambiance. read more

Strings Italian Cafe - Lasagna Pastry, piece of lasagna baked inside - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

Amazing service! Great food. Will definitely return. We live in Madera, this place is worth the drive.

Looking for a nice restaurant open on a Monday in Merced turned out to be a challenge! I am so happy that we chose Strings Italian Cafe for our family get together. The menu is extensive and we all chose something different and none of the 5 dishes disappointed. The food and service was terrific! We were all too stuffed for dessert but we toughed it out and shared a Tiramisu. It was perfect (Plan ahead for dessert when you go) The decor was attractive and comfortable but I have to mention the headlights from patrons coming and going was an issue. Overall a very good experience! read more

This place will hang up on you on their busy rush dinner hours! I was hung up on 5 times as I redialed several times!! They can't handle being busy! Either not enough cooks or not people packing to go orders!! When they finally answer I was told to call back in 1 hour & that they were not taking dinner orders until 1 hr!! So, so unprofessional & ubsurd! Never have we heard this when calling a to go order at a restaurant!!! read more

Nice selection of specials at a fair price. Haven't been in a couple of months. Last time I picked up a the cafe salad and the pasta special. Was a fair amount for the price I paid. The staff was very friendly and helpful. read more

Great day with dog lovers merced group enjoyed donuts and iced coffee then hung out in the dog park then exploring trails and then lunch at Strings Italian restaurant in merced. We had lunch on the patio with our dogs. It was wonderful. The dogs got a grilled chicken patty they thoroughly enjoyed & we had wonderful pasta dishes and wine with wonderful friendly staff that took care of us and our dogs. Thanks for the hospitality!! That pasta siena was probably the best pasta I've ever had. Most diverse and unbelievable flavor‼ read more

Mamma Mia I love this place! Their bread..fantastic! The service...fantastic! The fire sauce...fantastic! Only downside is I don't like their Italian sodas but then again..I don't like them too much anyway. Highly recommend! Yum yum read more

Server was great, and food was delicious. One of my favorite spots in town. Definitely recommend. read more

Strings Italian Cafe - Ricotta Pesto Chicken - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

The service was good . Or at least the girl that helped me. The amount of food is terrible! It was like they gave me half of what regular pasta places give me. I'm not a big guy! I weigh 160 and walked away hungry and cost me $23 for just pasta no meat ! Sigh! I will not go back, what a bummer. read more

The food was actually pretty good! I was reluctant to eat here due to the reviews, but me and my s/o decided to eat here. To our surprise, the food was actually very very good. I liked the service as well. Some may call them uninvolved, but i enjoy when the waiters don't visit so often. It saves room for conversation. The ambience was immaculate. The lighting and overall decor was very nice and welcoming. The employees were also very kind and welcoming!! read more

Strings Italian Cafe - Fettuccine Alfredo w/ a Meatball and Chicken Pesto Sandwich with a Cesar Salad! - Italian Near Me - Merced, California

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Service was beyond excellent. Special shout-out to Albert who made our night spectacular. Food was pretty good. Pepperoni stuffed shells were very tasty, Alfredo sauce was slightly bland but nothing some salt couldn't fix. read more

Looking for an Italian restaurant near by with reasonable prices. Went here, got the lasagna fettuccine Alfredo ( wonderfully cheesy, fresh tasting tomatoes and piping hot), and cup of seafood bisque (creamy smooth and just the right amount of spices). The bread alone is worth the reason to come back. read more

Not a big chain restaurant but I still love their pastas!! The parking lot is a mess bc it's so small with so many other businesses and the parking space is quite small...Menu is easy to understand and I love how they tell you the dish with items in them so I get a better picture of what your ordering. One thing I love about Strings is their salad and bread--not the best but it's up there high there with the other rest! Pasta Siena: 5/5 that's probably why it's their best seller both of my sisters order the same dish! I was hoping they would order different dishes so I could get to taste and rate them... Tortellini Alla Panna: 4.5/5 still one of my favorite dish there so creamy and delicious! House Salad: 5/5 bomb.com House bread: 4/5 nice soft warm delicious! House service was okay she was serving other tables so I don't blame her. read more

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