Piccolo Mondo Italian Restaurant

Ok, so I found this place while I was stopping off at Whole Foods for a snack. I thought it looked like a reasonable place, maybe a little old school. Reminded me a little of il Sorrento. Perhaps it would have some standard upper end Italian food. I worried a little about whether it would be just bland. So I made a note to suggest it as a side jaunt when we couldn’t hit on the right spot in Dallas. A week later, that time came. I suggested we try it and my wife agreed but then I almost tried to talk her out of it. So glad I didn’t! First thing in the door, they had a piano player. Then a saxaphone too and music books scattered all over the top of the piano. Mostly older crowd, including a table of fifteen ladies celebrating a birthday. The bread comes out. Perfect. The butter. Even more perfect. The details that could have been just good were great. I’m not a food critic so you’ll just have to stomach the basic descriptions. The waiter slapped my wife’s salad down on the table and the glob of dressing in the center quivered, looking for all the world like it was going to overwhelm the salad with a heavy sweetness. It looked like it might have come from a hotel buffet. Not at all. It too was perfect. Everything was super clean and super fresh. We’d only had two things — bread and salad — and they were so 100% that I had no qualms about ordering the most basic dish; spaghetti with garlic and oil. I was actually looking forward to how good it would be. It didn’t disappoint. Squeezing a little lime really brought out the garlic and oil flavors. My wife’s fish (I don’t remember what kind) with capers… incredible. I absolutely loved my entrée but was still envious of her filet. She took half home and I had to fight the urge to eat it. Five solid stars. Clearly this place is run by somebody who knows what they’re doing. Service was excellent too. Will go back over and over and over.

BLAND. OVERPRICED. Piano player is nice as well as service but im going for good food. Won’t return. White sauce taste like oil. No flavor

Was so looking forward to eating here.
Met up with friends who have known the staff for years. They love it here. Me, not so much. Felt like the décor, dishes, table setting, menu was from 1980.
Ordered veal-​no flavor, no tenderness, sides were more than disappointing as well.
Wayyyy over priced even if I did like the food.
Sad

There actually are real Italians cooking Italian food here, which is one of the only places in the metroplex that exists! Had the linguine with clams. Very very good. Closest I’ve had to little Italy living in Dallas most of my life. Recommend it to anyone who understands good traditional Italian cooking.

Excellent service but pricy. Stuffed chicken was adequate and salad was OK. Older décor appeals to older crowd.

Whatever you do, start out with the homemade (everything is homemade) Italian lentil Soup. It is just the right thing to get you taste buds going and one of the best soups I have had at a restaurant of any type.
As far as main courses, i have ordered something different almost every time I have been and can comfortably say, whether your taste is for red sauce or any other sauce, you are in for a treat with whatever you order.
Dessert wise, I am a fan of their flan, although they do offer other traditional Italian desserts as well.

When you are here, you are like family. I have been coming here since I was a little kid. They have the best Italian food around. They practice quality control with all their food. It always has the amazing great taste every time. I give it a 5-​STAR any day.

Oh My! We got mad at Salt Grass Steak House and found Piccolo Mondo just down the road. I am SO happy we left the other place. We had two service dogs with us. They gave us a table where there was room for the dogs and 5 people. The setting would probably put young people off. It was extremely pleasant, live piano, saxophone, and strong/​sound singing. Linens on the tables, fresh flowers, perfect for conversations. The bread was to kill for. Drinks were perfect. The salads and minestrone soup (made from scratch) were amazing. Our entrees were delicious. As far as dessert goes I can only vouch for the lemon sorbet. I almost cried because I was too full to eat all of it. One of the ladies with us hated spinach. She actually tried the spinach and ate over half of it. She probably would have eaten all of it but we were so full it was almost painful. The wait staff was amazing. The gentleman at the front desk checked on us several times. When we arrived I was extremely cranky. When we left (well after they closed) I was relaxed and happy. No one rushed us after they closed. We weren’t even aware it was after closing.

This was a tremendous meal from start to finish. I started with the escargot appetizer. The red sauce these beautiful little delicacies are cooked in is one of the best things to cross my tongue. The regular Italian salad comes with a creamy Italian dressing that is a great balance of vinegar and sweet creaminess.
So with a little apprehension I went against what the bartender suggested and orders the lobster tail and filet. Once again the sauce was amazing. The lobster was cooked perfectly with a nice tenderness. The filet was «ok». I’ve had better filets but it wasn’t bad by any stretch.
Great food + great service = 5*s. How anyone rates this less than 4*s is beyond me.

I am not the biggest fan of Italian food however this place made me fall in love with authentic Italian food. My husband & his family introduced me to this place because they have been coming here before my husband was born. The food is always amazing & have never had bad food. All their food are home made. The owner of this place is form itali and he brought back family’s recipe. I will never get enough of their delicious food.

We made a reservation, showed early and were seated right away. Waiter was really great, food was simply awesome. Dessert was the best! Live piano a plus! Definitely coming back to try more dishes… could not ask for a better evening…

This one of the best Italian restaurants around. The service is professional, the food is very good. The diners are mature. this is a nice place to avoid the «family» style restaurants with loud, unruly children.

Called and made a reservation for 7:30pm at 7:00pm. Showed up at 7:30pm, was told that it would be a 30 minute wait, and that the hostess shouldn’t have made the reservation. If that’s how they treat the customer at the door, I’m concerned how they treat your food behind closed doors… I won’t be back.

My husband is from Rome and this is one of the «closest to home» restaurants we have been to. Just moved to Arlington and just happened upon it. Prices are a little high but we would rather pay more for authentic Italian than less for crap. Gnocchi is truly handmade and it shows. Tiramisu was to die for and we have had the real thing so high praise for my hubby to say that. Def worth the visit and we will be back.

This is one of our favorites and worth the hour drive for us to get there and back. Yes it’s part of a strip mall. You only think about that when you park your car. It’s also hard to miss the enormous spaceship/​shrine for worshippers of Jerry’s kids. Just go in and sit down. Leave all that outside, along with your other stress sources. Listen as the piano (and maybe sax if you are lucky) serenades you.
We’ve always enjoyed our meals, and the staff. Sure, the décor is not current. Instead of looking at is a «dated», think of it as taking a step back into the romantic past, and you will enjoy your dinner much more.
Some of you all need to look for the good in things and enjoy life a little more. If you are going to whine about his place, you need to get a life, or get a job as a restaurant critic (which means you still need to get a life).

Décor was outdated. Waiter recommended the lasagna bologna over the manicotti. The lasagna was bland and the noodles were rubbery. Pasta fagioli was overcooked. Salads were meh. Bread wasn’t too bad and the wait staff was attentive. For the price you get better food and better atmosphere at Moni’s.

The service is good here. The piano was ok too. Playing the titanic music seemed like overkill. Then again, this is Arlington. If you’ve ever been on a cruise, imagine Italian night.
The service is good. The food is fine. My friends chose, but I wouldn’t choose it again.
I went with the spinach ravioli because it was on the specials board at the door. It was good and pretty inexpensive maybe about $ 14.
The salad was pretty bland. It didn’t really have a taste? The red sauce on the ravioli was ok too.
(my friends ordered the lasagna and gnocchi and raved)

The entire time I was here, I felt like I was in the dining hall of the Titanic. The interior was decorated in such a manner, and it didn’t help that the pianist played ‘My Heart Will Go On’. The crowd here is definitely more mature. I went with a group of my girlfriends and we were definitely the only «kids» in the room. However, the restaurant is very romantic and I can see why older couples like coming here. There is a pianist playing the entire night and a small bar to sit at if you wanted to drink (classy of course).
Service was excellent from the start to the end. I definitely applaud the restaurant on that. The menu isn’t as extensive as I wanted it to be, and items on the menu are pretty pricey in my opinion. I ordered the Lasagna alla Bolognese per recommendation from our waiter. Portion size is somewhat small, but looks can be a little deceiving since it did fill me up (unless I just downed too much bread beforehand). The lasagna was pretty good, but it wasn’t mind blowing.
I didn’t have a bad experience, but there are other cheaper and better Italian options I would chose. However, this is a great option for anyone wanting a romantic date night!

Bippity boppy? Boppity boopee. Peter, what are you doing? Boopity bappaabeedeebadda beepee boopee. I’ve got a mustache, so I know how to speak Italian.
Just kidding, that was Family Guy. It was close though.
I had the pasta with grilled chicken and a slice of cheesecake. The pasta wasn’t served al dente, which for any Italian restaurant is a cardinal sin in my book. The sauce also extremely watery, I could tell that the dish was made for quantity over quality. The cheesecake had the texture of a defrosted and refrigerated, not quite homemade, dessert dish. With a gritty texture and the raspberry sauce topping too sweet, it didn’t turn out as something to look forward to.
I wouldn’t trek out here to visit again. It’s not the most appealing Italian restaurant I’ve had the pleasure of dining in; but it’s ok if you’re in the area.
Also, based on their website, the awards and accolades are dated circa 1996. Perhaps, if the recognition is that old, it could be time for a refresh?
I have a certain intuition that over the course of 18 years maybe things are slipping.

Ambiance wasn’t as dated as prior reviews, but they were former hotel meeting room chairs! Piano player and sax played in the bar provided nice background music. Our waiter, Alfonso, was the only reason I gave this two whole stars!
We had reservations for 8:15 pm and arrived about 30 minutes early, intending to have a drink in the bar. No need, as our corner table for two was available. Seated immediately and were greeted by our waiter. Boring white bread tasted slightly freezer-​burned and was served in a plastic woven basket with a cloth napkin. Odd considering the price point of this place.
We opted for the bruschetta appetizer, which was four half-​sliced of thin bread, dressed with fresh tomato, basil, maybe oregano or something that gave it a little kick. Good but not really worth the $ 9 extra.
Hubby had shrimp and mushroom in cream sauce for an appetizer. It was bland, lacking any discernible spices and the cream sauce was about the consistency of skim milk… didn’t even soak into the bread I tried dipping it with!
I had the Carpaccio, which was thinly sliced beef with vinaigrette stuff on top, with capers, red cabbage looking stuff and shaved Parmesan cheese. Good but too heavy on the lemon and oil. not sure how to eat it either. A prior reviewer mentioned the beef was ‘brown on the outside’ as was mine, but I believe that’s intentional to give the very rare center the spotlight. Meh.
Dinner salad with creamy Italian dressing (tasted homemade but again lacked flavor) over iceberg lettuce, 1 slice of cucumber and 1 grape tomato. Meh!
Hubby got the pasta with clams, shrimp and calamari… the crab was still attached to the claw (singular) and the clams (3) were still in the shell. 2 shrimp and it was coated in a bland, ragu-​like tomato sauce. Moni’s in Arlington blows this dish away!
I had the chicken rollatini which was drenched in some weird chicken fried type batter. Minimal cheese, no discernible ham presence and the Madeira sauce was thin and relatively tasteless. I ate about ¹⁄₃ of it and called it quits. I was served with boring green. Beans and potato wedges that were cooked within about 1 minute of being mashed! Meh!
Chocolate cake for dessert turned out to be chocolate mousse cake that could easily have come directly from the freezer at Sam’s club. Meh!
Hubby had spumoni, which was cherry, maybe vanilla and pistachio. Not bad but certainly not enough to save the dinner.
One of my dear friends raved about this place for the last 20 years and I am tempted to send him the bill! 2 rum and cokes and ½ carafe of house wine, plus one appetizer and 2 Restaurant Week dinners set us back $ 111 before tip. Not even close to worth it! Stick with Olive Garden for mass produced consistent food or drop by Moni’s for awesome local mom and pop Italian! You have been Unilocal-​warned!
Lauren