Location: Lexington
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Most Popular Italian food in Lexington, Kentucky, United States
Reviews on Italian food in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Welcome to Bluegrass Country, the "Horse Capital of the World." But you don't have to be an avid racehorse fan to enjoy the natural beauty, culture and history that this exciting city has to offer. At the Raven Run Nature Sanctuary, for example, hiking trails wend their way through forests, meadows and gentle creeks, taking you past historic landmarks; there's even a nighttime guided walk for stargazing. The best place in the world for raising thoroughbred horses, Lexington has over 500 horse farms. The Kentucky Horse Park features films, horse shows and exhibits. Be sure to tour the American Saddle Horse Museum, dedicated to the native Kentucky breed, and watch races at the lovely Keeneland Race Course in season. Historic sites are plentiful here, including the Waveland State Historic Site, the childhood home of Mary Todd Lincoln and the Ashland estate of famed Kentucky statesman Henry Clay.
Things to do in Lexington
10. Johnny Carino's Italian
Overall Ratings
4 based on 204 reviews
From our signature Handmade Lasagna to our famous Spicy Shrimp and Chicken, Carino's offers Italian
Reviewed By Michael R
Went with a group of 20, and they were able to accommodate us with a reservation in advance. For a more normal size party a reservation might not be necessary. The menu offers a reasonable selection of Italian style entrees, as well as a few pizza options. A salad comes with an entree. Our table ordered stuffed mushrooms and breaded calamari appetizers. Both were a bit greasy and the mushrooms tasted quite salty. I had the angel hair pasta with artichokes, tomatoes, capers, and olives, and with additional grilled chicken pieces, and a house salad. Everything tasted OK though rather ordinary and a bit salty. I had not eaten at this restaurant before came away with the impression that it was a large chain cooking to a mass market, and that turns out to be the case. It is more like Olive Garden, not your mama's or grandma's homemade. Service was good especially considering the size of our group. Expect to spend $20-$30 per person.
9. Pasta Garage Italian Cafe
Overall Ratings
4 based on 94 reviews
Lexington Pasta and Pasta Garage under one roof! Fast-Casual Italian Concept Café!. We make all pastas and sauces daily in house from scratch! Two options 1, Build your own pasta bowl or 2. Choose from our Chef's Picks. It is that simple. All natural, Fre
Reviewed By KristineR820
If you are a pasta junkie this place might be for you. The handmade pastas are wonderful. That being said, the sauce that accompanied the pasta could use a little sprucing up. My son had the bolognese sauce. It was a bit bland. We also had the spinach and Parmesan dip. Again, bland. I wonât even mention the Caesar salad. But I will rave about the bruschetta. We could have eaten that until we were seeing red. It was delightful and was served on a stiffer bread but not like a crostini or something so hard that it would break your teeth. This bruschetta is something to write home about. We just loved it. The best part of the meal!
8. Carrabba's Italian Grill
Overall Ratings
4 based on 163 reviews
Reviewed By WA2world
We were in Lexington on business and stayed to the nearby Holiday Inn-Hamburg. My wife didnât feel like going out for dinner and wanted to munch on some things weâd brought with us.I rarely get to watch one of the evening NFL games, as I get up so early to go to work. I decided that since I did not have to get up as early the next day, Iâd get to watch the whole Sunday Night game. And what goes better with football than pizza and beer?I checked TripAdvisor for a local takeout pizza place and found a Pizza Hut (Express) a few blocks away. The problem is the Express only had micro pizzas that are far below their usually standards; no thanks. There was a Carrabba's very nearby and I knew that they offered takeout food. I entered their pick-up door and placed my order with the nice young lady running the takeout pick-up counter.Given an approximate time to prepare the pizza, I just waited in my car. It wasnât too long for a quality thin crust pizza and my hot dinner was ready to take back to the hotel and crack those beers. Nice employees, prompt service, good pizza; all winners in my book.
7. Portofino
Overall Ratings
4 based on 225 reviews
Portofino features an inventive menu of Italian and American cuisine. Located in a beautifully renovated building on Main Street in downtown Lexington, KY, Portofino has an elegant interior design, a menu with the highest quality ingredients, and an exten
Reviewed By Jasmine38Chichester
We had an excellent meal here. Little more upmarket than your regular Italian restaurant and slightly pricier too, although several bottles of wine were available for around $26. Most diners were relatively smartly dressed.The strawberry and feta salad I had as an appetiser was really good. Ditto my husbands clam chowder. Warm cuabatta and garlic butter was provided complimentary. We both had pasta main courses. Pasta is made fresh and our dishes were very tasty. We didn't have room for dessert.Service was friendly and prompt. In fact my only criticism was that it was too quick as our entrees were served literally as we laid down our cutlery after finishing our appetisers.We paid $110 for two including bottle wine and service. Worth booking ahead as place was full on Friday evening. Nice screened outdoor seating if weather is warm.
6. Sutton's Italian Restaurant
Overall Ratings
4 based on 199 reviews
Local family owned an operated Italian restaurant with an American Pub. Made from scratch, local, organic family recipes. Open for lunch and dinner. We serve food and alcohol very late 7 days a week. We also deliver alcohol and food until midnight daily!
Reviewed By jerryg729
Lunch should be easy... while the location isnât near downtown, you can meet friends or colleagues at Suttons and get a good size salad for a fair price. They wonât rush you either. I probably eat here once a month. So should you.Hi Jerry. I couldn't agree with you more! Our lunch menu has some really great deals for $8 and as you know our full menu is always available. Thanks for being a regular guest and I appreciate your feedback! We will look forward to serving you again soon! Sincerely, Gordon
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5. Giuseppe's Ristorante Italiano
Overall Ratings
4 based on 203 reviews
Fine Italian restaurant with live jazz in the lounge. Dinner 7 nights a week and Sunday brunch. Private dining room. Special occasions and large parties. Romantic intimate tables. Fresh fish and seafood, hand cut steaks, pasta, homemade desserts.
Reviewed By Avelave
This local Lexington restaurant has been around for a long time. It is hidden away off busy Nicholasville Rd outside Man o War but before you get to South Point. The pasta fagioli soup here is excellent. We were here for a special dinner. I also had Scallops Rockefeller. The scallops were tender and sweet. It was delicious and I took half home. My husband really likes lasagna so that's what he had and he thought it was very good. I also ordered a tiramisu which was a bit of a disappointment as it didn't have coffee flavor but chocolate. Traditional tiramisu has espresso. I don't know if it was made in house or purchased elsewhere, but espresso was definitely missing and disappointing. It was a busy Saturday night and a too noisy for me. I wish restaurants would do more to dampen noise. Our waiter did a good job taking care of our order and checking on us altho' he was busy with several other tables. I've had lunch here several times in the past and it was also very good. However, I don't think they are open for lunch anymore. I hope they'll reopen for lunch in warmer months?
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4. Bella Forno
Overall Ratings
4 based on 155 reviews
What's in a name? A love of authentic Tuscan cooking. A family tradition. A chefâs inspiration. A fiery edge. Thereâs way more to our wood-fired oven than just pizza. Now you can enjoy some of Bella Notteâs best loved dishes as well. Welcome to Bella Forn
Reviewed By travelgirlkw01
A bunch of us stopped in here one night for pizza while on a work trip. The pizza was really good and they had a really nice house wine that was extremely reasonable! The staff were very accommodating - attentive but not hovering! Would definitely return!
3. Pies and Pints
Overall Ratings
4 based on 398 reviews
Reviewed By kathariner574
Really enjoyed the pizza. We had two large pizzas and both were great. Iâm a very tough pizza critic having lived in NYC. Would have been five stars except the service was really slow and the chips and salsa app was lame. Chips were straight from a bag and salsa tasted like it was from a jar. Would definitely go back because pizza was so good!Thanks for the 4 stars, Katharine! Please contact us via piesandpints.net/contact with your suggestions on how we can better your experience. We hope to see you back :)
2. Joe Bologna's Restaurant and Pizzeria
Overall Ratings
4 based on 591 reviews
Reviewed By CarrieD1979
We were visiting Lexington and liked the unique feel of Joe Bologna's. The menu is amazing and we were really torn on whether to get pizza or pasta. We all ended up going with the pasta. The salads were decent and the giant breadsticks were awesome! My pasta was just OK. I got it at the recommendation of the waitress and I was a little disappointed. I had the baked penne marinara. The flavor was good, but it was a ton of sauce and cheese and not too many noodles. The noodles were actually hard to find in the sauce. Also, it was incredibly messy because of all of the sauce. Others in my group had the zuchinni parmesan and the vegetable lasagna and they were both pleased with their meals. The atmosphere of Joe Bologna's was cool--it's in an old church and still has the stained glass windows. It was a game day at UK, so it was packed inside, but that only really added to the fun. Overall, it was OK. I'd probably go back and try something else if I was in the Lexington area again!
1. Bella Notte
Overall Ratings
4 based on 575 reviews
Reviewed By Jeric D
Every time we take a family trip to Lexington my girls (12,11,6 years old) want Bella Notte. It is a great family restaurant with enough variety to satisfy any age pallet. My daughters love spaghetti and meatballs, penne kalamata, and tomato basil soup. My favorite is off seasonal menu, Pom Pom Salmon. Great restaurant, with great staff!!
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