Cafe Italia

Fellow pizza addicts, this is what we call heaven. This is probably going to be my shortest review, only due to the fact that not much is needed to be said. Settling for Dominos, or any other chain, will be out of the question, in regards to where you’ll get your next pizza fix.
It’s easy to fall in love with this place. So much so, that you find yourself finishing off the entire pizza on your own.

The bbq restaurant we planned on visiting hasn’t opened yet so my group of friends and I scrambled for an option b to save our dinner plans. In comes Café Italia. The restaurant, from the outside, leaves much to be desired but the atmosphere on the inside makes up for it. With a very wide open space, Café Italia created a seating arrangement that leads into the prep area and brick oven. Very nice.
Our party of five was seated and we ordered two loaves of bread, roasted veggies, and a caprese salad as appetizers. They knocked all three out of the park. The bread is prepped and baked perfectly; served with a garlic butter. The salad and roasted veggies were very healthy servings for the price and the table ran through these dishes fairly quickly.
Onto the main dishes, I was somewhat let down by the spaghetti and meatballs. More by the sauce used and less by the delicious meatballs. Those saved the dish. We shared bites with each other so I can say their pizzas are stellar and their linguini with shrimp is next level. I’ll definitely go that pasta route next time.
Lastly, I ordered a latte that was well worth investing in. I’m a bit of a coffee snob so seeing the machine on one end of the room really got me a bit giddy. Prices are fair and the staff was beyond friendly. The kicker was, because we dined there right before closing, the owner approached our table to ask our opinions on everything. As a token of appreciation to us conversing with him about their meals/​service, he offered us chocolate cake made from scratch. It was delicious. It wasn’t too sweet so it lent to the flavor of the cacao. The owner was knowledgable and explained to us about all the items they make from scratch and more insight to the care and progress of baking their bread.
Overall, it was a great experience and the stellar customer service overshadowed any qualms I may have had with the spaghetti and meatballs. I’ll definitely be going back for the lasagna (which was sold out). Thank you for a great dining experience, Café Italia. See you soon!

everyone needs to try their breakfast pizza its a must!!! like your missing out on life if you don’t try it honestly… and don’t forget to try any of the desserts

Ummm Chef Ed the baker and pizza master just made me a loaf of sourdough bread that rivaled San Fran sourdough. This place rocks!
Margherita pizza and cheesecake– Winning!

Today I had the linguine and shrimp. I’ve heard good things about this place so wanted to try it out. At first it tasted a bit bland but was told they make everything hand made. So I guess my pallet is used to American made pasta. After. Few more bites it just kept getting better and better. The only thing that I would say about it is that it was a bit salty. Also I wasn’t aware that is was BYOB which it would have been nice to have a nice glass of Merlot but I guess for next time.

Gracies pizza was good, but was received colder then expected. service appeared to be rushed. They were very polite. My buddy got the shrimp linguine and he stated it was good but tasted on the salty side.

I thought the food was ok:-(it almost pains me write this because there had been so much hype from my fiancé and fellow Unilocalers. The first and main issue not much of a meat selection. Mostly pork and I took my sister who doesn’t eat that. I thought she was being difficult at first but after a closer look at the menu I realized that she didn’t see anything other than pork on the menu. They said they typically save the chicken for lunch. The pasta was good, but honestly nothing I couldn’t have made at home. It was a very Italy type environment. The pricing was ok. The bread they brought to the table was delicious!!! The staff was nice there are two locations one on the Far East joe battle area and one on the west side la Mesa area. Solid three and a half stars

The most delicious, fresh and exquisite food! Everything, even the cheese is made there. I love that the owner is there making sure every table has everything it needs. Their lemon cheesecake is also made there and it is soooo good!
You really get your money’s worth.
I ordered spaghetti and meatballs, amazing and a very well served portion.
The staff was my favorite part, they were very attentive and inviting.
I will definitely come back.

Stopped in so ready to satisfy the cravings of wine and brick oven pizza…/ stop. No wine/​stop/​no alcohol. … /​we left until next time. …boooo

I’d only been to café Italia on the west side and it was my first time trying this one. I loved it. I loved that it has a huge parking lot as this place is sharing the parking lot with other businesses. Not like café Italia on the west side, you’ll never come here and wonder where to park. I loved how quiet the place was. When we went there on a Wednesday night a little after 7pm, we had the entire place only for us. And I loved the service and their food as always.
I ordered Alfred pasta with shrimp as its my most favorite meal at café Italia and it was good as always, however, it definitely tasted different than the one at the west side location. This one was very good too but I prefer the west side one.
After dinner, we ordered cheesecake and chocolate cake. Oh my gosh they were so delicious. Like I got so upset at myself that this whole time I didn’t know about their deserts. The cheesecake was so mild and berry sauce went perfect with it.
We came out with satisfied smiles on our face. This one is so close to my office so I already know I’m gonna be calling my husband a lot to come meet me for dinner here from now on.

So we hit up the Café Italia on the east side. We have been to Café Italia Downtown, and while it was small, parking is non existent and gets busy, the food was good enough that we were willing to try it again.
Perhaps we were lucky? Perhaps it was a slow Wednesday night? Whatever the circumstances were, we were the ONLY people on the entire place… Which is much bigger than the downtown location by by way, and much more parking as it’s located in a shopping area. Same parking lot as Koze to be exact.
Nice huge pictures on the walls of Italian food. TVs located at front and back so no matter where you sit, you can watch. Outside seating available. The TVs were playing a live concert dvd of Adele at a suitable volume. After that as live concert of Andre Bochelli, which was very fitting.
My wife ordered the shrimp pasta and loved it. I had the pizza bianco… Hand made, brick oven pizza with ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. No sauce. Also asked them to top it with prosciutto… Absolutely delicious.
We finished it off with a piece of chocolate cake and cheesecake that had a red wine and berries sauce. Both were amazing.
Bring your own bottle of wine, they’ll put it on Ice and serve it for you.
Café Italia (regardless of location) is a great spot… But this east side one will now be our go to place.
Das It Mayne

I was way excited to try this place being an Italian food/​pasta lover! I got the shrimp linguine pasta like others had suggested and it was DELICIOUS. Seriously couldn’t ask for much better. My husband ordered a pizza and they brought it out wrong. We sent it back to be fixed (he won’t eat green stuff aka arugula lol) and they brought it back in fairly good time made correctly. He said it wasn’t awesome but it was good. I’m pretty sure it would’ve been better to most people how they had it originally haha. The best part was the manager or owner! He heard that our order had been made incorrectly and had us pick out a desert on him! We’d already ordered a Nutella Calizoni (chocolate/​Nutella lovers rejoice and unite!!!) it came out and was MASSIVE lol. Ooey gooey melty Nutella goodness on top AND inside and dusted with powdered sugar. The service was excellent, the food was GREAT and I can’t wait to go back.

Me and muh lady decided to give this place a Check-​a-​roo* yesterday for din-​din. We went right after work and it was nice because it was virtually empty of other patrons, which is great for us because we find that dining with other patrons stifles the process of food being cooked and moved into our mouths for our digesting enjoyment. So, we shared the Linguine & Shrimp plate/​bowl and split a pepperoni and mushroom pizza.
Dude — That pasta was ridiculous. It was so freakin’ tasty that I just couldn’t humanly express how much joy I got from every bite. I was moaning, laughing, crying and occasionally howling. Somehow Café Italia managed to create the whole human experience in a bowl. However, I was so HANGRY* when I finished my bowl (since we split it I got half the amount, no one told me marriage was going to be this hard) and that left me pining for more. And… it didn’t help that they included the freshest, softest, most irresistible tasting bread this side of the Mighty Mississippi. Dang man. So good.
The pizza was more than half decent. I liked it… not my most fav’, but I liked it. I did indeed commit the most original sin known to man by asking for a side of ranch dressing, to accompany my so-​so-​ish pizza, at an Italian restaurant and I got shot down. They never heard of Ranch dressing at Café Italia. That’s alright by me. To the chef/​artist/​life coach/​inspration who dared to satisfy a missing void in my life (Linguine & Shrimp Passsssta)… Thank you. Simply, Thank you.
*Check-​a-​roo — When you decide to check out a place you are unfamiliar with
*Hangry — So hungry, you are angry

Awesome just awesome! Pizza reminds me of NY and the caprese salad is delicious. Just wish you served wine or beer! But you can bring your own. Excellent food

Seriously some of the BEST Italian food I’ve ever had. It’s the real deal. Nothing like pizza out of wood burning oven and fresh ingredients. I’m so happy we gave it a try when we did. The location is a bit interesting… as are the hours. It often seems closed. Still, I feel like it’s a bit of a best kept secret right now and so I’m hoping they aren’t going anywhere because the taste is amazing. A thousand times better than the Italian food chain nearby. I look forward to eating there as often as I can.

I’ve been hosting a banquet for the past nine years. I need to find a place that can accommodate close to 50 people but feel warm and intimate. We’ve tried anything from the Vista Hills Country Club to BJ’s Brewhouse to Logan’s. We knew Café Italia was new to the area so I was hoping I can make something work with them.
Enter Daniel.
When I went to speak with him, he knew exactly what I was looking for. It also helps their food is amazing. When the banquet began, he kept on looking at me to give him the «we are too full» sign. He kept the food coming until WE said we are done. The pizzas are unbelievable. It was difficult to pick between the spaghetti and meatballs or linguini with shrimp. To top off the evening he made a Nutella pizza for dessert.
The price was reasonable. The ambiance was great. I never want to go to another place to host a banquet.

So happy this place has an east side location! Top notch service. Bring your own wine & beer. My favorites are the spaghetti & meatballs and the caprese salad. The owner grows fresh herbs and is always generous with the basil. The freshest ingredients every time! Save room for dessert – their Nutella calzone is rich and satisfying! Comfortable dining experience all around.

The food makes up for their inexperienced service. The strip mall is very new so there’s little to no foot traffic at the restaurant. Saturday just after 3pm. We were the only one’s in the restaurant. Greeted by our waiter. He brought us our drinks and took our two dish order.
They no longer offer LUNCH and don’t have a KIDS MENU. I split the spaghetti and meatballs dish while my hubby and our son split the pizza.
Everything came out fresh and at the perfect temperature. For those of you looking for a kick to to your drink, this establishment honors BYOB.
Slightly on the $$$ we enjoyed our first dining experience.

Best pizza in el paso hands down. Better then grimaldis. Awesome service and amazing pizzas. It’s expensive but you get what you pay for. If you want cheap ingredients then go to domino’s.

Being the lone establishment in a brand new strip mall on the East, is a building with a sign NOW OPEN, that little place is Café Italia (East) as I will call it.
Pros
–Staff was excellent from the waitress to the manager
–Complimentary glass of wine
–Freshly made mozzarella
–Fantastic Rustic Bread
–Fantastic Caprese Salad
–Pizza was fresh, hot, and delish
Cons
–Expensive (2 pizzas, caprese salad, 3 teas) came to $ 56 bucks
-$ 16 for a pizza that can feed 1 – 2
–the prices match the ambiance of the west-​side location, where on the east i feel cheated that I am paying full price for the not full experience
–TVs