Giovanni’s Italian Restaurant & Pizza

Read all the mediocre reviews but decided to go anyway. The sauce was thick and flavorful. Portions size just right.
Went to the location on balboa. It was defiantly worth getting off the couch.

Ordered a pizza for delivery and they did not have it delivered. I called back to check the status of the pizza delivery and they told me, «sorry, don’t know what to tell you.» The order was never placed and the employee was extremely rude. Will never go there again.

Not bad :) we went here with a groupon the server was nice but not the most attentive to a group of 6 people, needed to ask for refills many times. And there was no recommendations given for the sizing of the pizza, but we ordered a medium and individual and both were adequate size! You could probably split an individual between 2 people. The pasta was good not great, the sauces for all the pastas were very thin like they needed time to thicken before being served or too much of a certain ingredient but the flavor was good. All in all I’d return but given the area and competition for good food that’s why I gave it 3 stars. Their pizzas were great I’d give those 4 stars very fresh!

Great food and service is great. I just put my empty drink down and the guy grabbed it and refilled it! That’s what I’m looking for it service. Every server out the pay attention this is how you get a great tip!

Very good food! We had pizza, salad, fettuccini and spaghetti with sausage, the fettuccini was great! I didn’t give 5 stars because the restroom was in bad shape, one stall inoperable and no seat covers oh and the door didn’t lock. I would come back

Since the bad service experience i have just ordered delivery. We have had a lot of different things off the menu amd almost everything is great. Their pizza is yummy

Not a very good place. I walked in and it looked dirty and pretty underwhelming, but there were lots of people eating so I figured how bad could it be? We stayed, it was mediocre at best. Service was good so we they get a star for that. This restaurant is in need of some cleaning, painting, and better ingredients!

A walk in and make yourself at home kind of place. Before you seat yourself you will be greeted by the wait staff, everyone is up front and truly make you feel welcomed.
Service? Spot on and very accommodating, our drinks remained full. The restaurant is clean and well organized, a great local place to eat.
Food? Outstanding portions and dang is the food great! We had the special for the day, ravioli and my better half chicken Parmesan, while the crumb snatcher enjoyed the standard grilled cheese. Everything is well prepared and presented to the table well!
The crowd on this night was teenager to mature folks leaving a very chill environment. This is a must visit in the area. Kudos to the staff working tonight, you set the example for others to follow!

I have lived in the area almost my whole life and giovannis has been there the whole time. Food is amazing but the place isn’t much to look at from the outside. Which kind of adds to the appeal. Fun place to watch sports up stairs if you don’t mind the regulars always hanging out. Food is great but a little pricey. Try the giovannis special.

Been here multiple times and the food has always been okay. This past weekend we ordered food for delivery. FOOD WAS GARBAGE, and when we called to speak to a manager, The Manager (Howard) continued to let us know they have no manager working and they were too busy to handle this issue. After calling the other rest. and speaking to their manager she assured me that Howard was the manager. This situation blew up into something that it didn’t need to be. Not a customer any longer. I can also See that Sharon C., Christina P. & Malsr D. had a few similar complaints. Hmmmmmm???

Arrived here got to say i was speculative but once my food hit the table i could tell i was in for a treat awesome food must try

The pizza here used to be very good! But the last 5 times we have eaten here, the pizza has been doughy and not cooked fully. This makes meow sad as I love pizza. After tonight I may go elsewhere after years of patronage. Too bad.

Used to love coming here to grab to go and have a beer but the super torpedoes last time out have been lacking any meat. It’s supposed to be twice the normal torpedo. Since it’s take out I never know until I get home. Not worth the gamble. They used to be trustworthy. Someone else can have this dukedom.

Don’t even waste your time with this joke of a restaurant. Ordered delivery, we live just a few minutes away & after an hour & a half wait our pizza was cold when it arrived. I called to complain & was told sometimes the driver takes 5 orders at the same time & if I’m the last stop. may be cold?!? WTF?! How about telling me that ahead of time or better yet, fixing the problem?!!
After arguing with the idiots they employ there, I came to realize these people have no common sense nor do they give a flying you know what about the fact that they messed up. Reason I know is I stupidly tried to order again. This time I ordered take out… the pizza was so doughy I had to cook it longer myself. They also forgot the extra toppings I had ordered (and paid extra for). Other toppings looked old & dried out.
Bottom line it’s never been worth it. Both times was over 2 hours before we got to eat & both times we had to cook the pizza ourselves. Why spend more, when you’re getting less?! One word for this place. PATHETIC!

Keep in mind we have been eating here for 25 – 30 years! The last two times we ordered it was gross. I did t say anything the last time…
Ordered a pizza today and decided it’s holiday and we wouldn’t use the coupons and we tipped the driver well.
This pizza was the worst pizza ever! We were left wishing we had ordered Dominos. The crust was raw and when we called here was nothing they could do?! Ok so we won’t be ordering here anymore.

It was my first visit when a friend. First of all, it was kinda difficult to find the store. It is located in a plaza but it’s hidden to the side. It has their dinning area on the first floor and bar on the 2^nd floor. The restaurant is quite large actually. Although my friend told me that people have reviewed that their pizza is better here, I decided to try their clam spaghetti while he tried the pizza. Well, I should have listened to him because the spaghetti was below average. The sauce was very salty without other flavors and cooked with frozen clams. Spaghetti was average. I rarely say this but I can for sure cook better then they do on this dish. It was a total disappointment. On the other hand, the pizza was much better. Certainly better than their spaghetti. Overall, I am unlikely to return to this restaurant.

OMG! I love love love the pizza! So far we’ve tried several ones and never have been disappointed!
Place is a bit tiny but they do have an upstairs bar like area if you’d like. We normally just hang out downstairs but it is available.
P. S. PLEASE fix the door bathroom stalls! The locks don’t lock!

I have mixed feelings about Giovanni’s. This is one of the best places for a steak and cheese sub. I always have to ask for provolone cheese rather than the standard yellow cheese which is not a problem. This is always delicious.
My problem is with the combo plates which have been inconsistent. Last week I ordered to go meat lasagna and spaghetti combination. What I got was meatless lasagna and the worse spaghetti ever. I took a few bites and threw the rest out. Normally this dish is flavorful in a wonderful red sauce with bubbly cheese on top. This was not the case and I paid extra for the meat lasagna.
I like the discount coupons however if the food continues to be inconsistent I will have to find a new place to dine.

I just have to say amazing. This place has to have the best happy hour in the area.
Pool Table, arcade games, pin ball machine, and Pacifico 32 oz. As an option for the beer on happy hour.

Whenever I’m in my old neighborhood where I grew up I like to eat here. It feels very nostalgic and I really like the pizza. The pizza tastes very good. I just love the rich cheese and their crust is the bomb! But do not ever dine here expecting a nice dining experience. This place is bammer. They play the radio and you end up hearing commercials 40% of the time. Then tonight the cooks freaking cranked up their Mexican radio station in the kitchen and started passionately singing along. It was not relaxing. I think he noticed I was annoyed because of my wtf look on my face as I was dining downstairs and so he turned the music off.