Parma – Cucina Italiana

It has been a while that a restaurant has given me the motivation to log into Unilocal and write a review. This place is AMAZING beyond words. But let me try. Truly authentic Italian cuisine with incredible service that made me feel like I was in Italy. Though not an extensive list of wines, the ones available were top notch. Had a glass of the Maddalena Cabernet that was spectacular. Shared the Polenta appetizer with sausage ragu. Homerun for sure. Moved on to the main course. Chose a special of the night, pork shoulder with porcini mushrooms. So tender it just fell apart. The flavors were so rounded and deep, I almost licked the plate. Decided I needed to try a regular dish, so I order the lasagna to go for lunch the next day. Made with béchamel sauce, this was THE BEST LASAGNA ever! My only regret was being to full to try what looked to be a truly inspired Tiramisu. Next time! RUN, don’t walk, to this Hillcrest GEM!

I love Italian food and I haven’t explored San Diego enough for its Italian offerings, but Unilocal lead me to finding this gem! It’s no wonder it has 4.5 stars; while the restaurant small it is comforting and authentic. The food was delicious, best lasagna I ever had and the risotto was wonderful. Way too full for dessert but maybe another time! Definitely coming back to this place.

Absolutely delicious! I’ve been dreaming about the pasta that I had here. I would recommend this place to anyone that is looking for some delicious Italian pasta. Can’t wait to go back.

WOW! Excellent service, delicious food and relaxing atmosphere. We arrived without a reservation and we were welcomed and seated rapidly. The server was friendly and recommend several dishes.

What a charming little place. Very welcoming ambiance and cute for date night. We walked by after a movie and decided to try it on a whim… the staff (Italian folks) was attentive, lively and friendly. We sat on the corner couch with pillows near the window. We both had the same thing (we both craved that) which was a generous serving of polenta with sausage ragu’ with a nice Gallo Classico Chianti wine. We were full after that plate… the ragu’ was very tasty and it covered the polenta abundantly… we cleaned up our plates and went home happy. We will be back… place is updated but not stuffy, genuine and warm… and you eat well at very reasonable prices.

This place was a surprise for me, as I’m definitely not a San Diego native in the slightest.
When my friend and I stopped by here, someone (I’m thinking the manager) was working on the flowers. He greeted us very kindly, helped us in, and found us a seat. Our waiters came by almost immediately afterwards and they were very friendly and attentive.
I ordered the lasagna, which is one of my favorite dishes, and I’m generally picky about my lasagna. Sometimes it’s undercooked/​overcooked, or the portions are all off. Parma blew me away by how creamy their lasagna was; it was the best lasagna I’ve ever had! They made too much for me to handle, so I’d recommend to share this and an appetizer between two people.
I’d definitely come back here in the future if I’m in the area, and I recommend everyone to try this place at least once!

Small little place in a wonderful city. Great outdoor seating and also cute interior décor as well. Greeted with an friendly smile and authentic Italian accent as soon as we walked through the doors. Made me really feel like I was in Italy.
Service:
The customer service here was outstanding! This is a huge rare to find in our busy Californian lives today. They were all extremely professional, attentive, friendly, and amazing people. Absolutely wonderful!
Food:
Lasagna — I’m not usually a huge fan of Lasagna, but their lasagna was amazing! The ratios were perfect. I didn’t feel like the cheese or the meat was too overpowering. The pasta was al dente. The sauce was creamy yet acidic. Absolutely must try!
Special of the day (Pappardelle with sausage, mushroom, peas in a meat sauce.) — This dish really blew me away. The Pappardelle (although not homemade) was cooked to perfection. The porcini mushroom was slightly overcooked, but still good. The sauce was the real winner of the dish. It was acidic so it cut through the starchiness of the pasta, but not acidic where your tastebuds were thrown off.
Overall:
I would definitely recommend this restaurant without any hesitation!
*SIDE NOTE: It’s a small place, so it’s good to make reservations ahead of time especially if you have a large party!

The most PERFECT lasagna that I have ever eaten!!! We were in disbelief of how amazing this place was. The veal tortellini was sooo amazing as well. And they serve freshly baked bread which is always a plus. The staff was cordial which can be a rarity in some San Diego small businesses. But they were kind and attentive.
The atmosphere is cute little restaurant. Very comfortably elegant décor. It is extremely small so make reservations if you are above a party of two. Also it is very hard to find because their logo is small and written in black and white cursive. The table next to us said they had difficulty finding it as well.
But don’t let that deter you from experiencing this amazing Italian restaurant. I’d walk miles for that lasagna and I hate walking haha

Wonderful small friendly trattoria.
Great pastas and nice wine list.
Moderate prices and everyone who works here is Italian.

I’m not Italian but I have seen the Godfather like. a hundred times and I grew up on Spaghetti-​Os, so I know good Italian food.
I normally find Italian food to be pretty plain. I mean its 50 names for noodles with sauce right? Well this place changed my mind. The food there is amazing! The staff is super nice and very patient with my egregious use of a fake Italian accent. I have been there several times since and have yet to be disappointed.
Plus everyone there sounds like Mario so thats fun.

Came here last night! Luckily it was early so didn’t need a reservation 5 pm (but recommend making reservation).
Small establishment — very home like feeling; my two buddies and I had a variety of pastas. It was extremely good, did feel like the prices were a little high – .
Also had the lemon pie for dessert and it was excellent!

I’ve found a delicious Italian since my favorite in pasadena!
Really cute décor. It’s more well lit than other Italian places I’ve been to but I still think it’s a great place for date night.
Here for a table of 6, we shared 2 apps:
Salmone Affumicato: smoked salmon and arugula in a light dressing. The smoked salmon is not overly salty, fresh, and delicious with arugula!
Polenta con Salsiccia: the ragu is delicious, polenta is soft and serviced in slices.
All the main and pasta dishes were beyond expectations. A caveat was that each dish could be overwhelming just by itself, so we almost shared with each other, to freshen up our palettes from these flavor-​bursting dishes!
1. Tortellini Panna e Prosciutto: I was battling ordering this one too, and it was pretty delicious especially with prosciutto! It is surprisingly not as heavy as I thought.
2. Tortellini Pasticciati: delicious tortellini of pork and veal in a ragu type of sauce. So much flavors and umami taste. Unbelievable.
3. Papadelle with mushroom and truffle oil: just scrumptious. Noodles are al dente, though I would have liked it a tad bit more al dente. The flavors are super savory and meaty without any sorts of meat! The flavors can be overwhelmingly rich.
4. Brasato con Polenta: braised beef in wine reduction with polenta. There is so much sauce in this dish you could literally get more bread to finish it.
Dessert: having saved room for this course, we ordered like royalty: 1, 2, and 6!
Profiteroles alla Nutella: holy nutella!!! I didn’t realize this was covered in nutella cream like the meringue in baked Alaska. The cream inside the profiterole and whipped cream was really great complements of the dessert. Truly unforgettable.
Tiramisu: for the average American, this is probably not sweet enough. However, this was just perfect, the ladyfingers soaked in coffee really add more depth!
Torta della Nonna: I didn’t taste too much of lemon at all. The crust is flaky and delicious. However, this was actually my least favorite, if only the custard is more heavy in lemon.
Service staff was helpful and enthusiastic. He kept goading us to finish our last bites!!!

I have wanted to try Parma for quite some time now and we finally did! I am so excited, what a charming little place! The service was on point, in fact, I ordered a decaf cappuccino, my server made sure that it was decaf when he gave my order to the barista. I really appreciate that very much as I suffer from insomnia and it would have been a disaster to get caffeine at 8:00pm.
My real regret was that I didn’t take advantage of their specials! They had a gnocchi dish that I almost ordered but for some silly reason, I talked myself out of it! I will try it next time. I enjoyed my pasta with sausage, a very basic dish but I love marinara sauce and their sauce was very well prepared and it paired nicely with their Montepulciano. My husband had the pasta arriabata, he let me have a taste, the sauce was nice and spicy.
I love the fact that they don’t go crazy on the portion sizes here, I had the right amount of food, in fact, I had to give most of it to my husband to eat. You won’t leave here hungry but you won’t leave feeling stuffed either.
Highlight of the night however was their nutella dessert! I am not a dessert person but oh man… this one was worth the calories. You will definitely need to split it, it’s too much for one person!
The only draw back I have to say is that it is similar to Piacere Mio in my neighborhood which has become so hyped that it is constantly packed out at dinner time. The noise level is deafening so not a place to have a romantic dinner. What made it worse for us is that there was a table full of loud mouth drunks sitting near us, they obviously were drinking before they got to Parma because I didn’t see them being over served here. My husband and I basically didn’t talk to each other because we could not hear what the other was saying. Most of the people there were couples of various generations trying to have an intimate dinner. If you can deal with the noise, you will 100% love this place and give it five stars.
We will be back because my husband and I like to walk from South Park to Hillcrest sometimes on weekends. It’s a nice 4.25 miles from our house. Definitely a charming place to visit once in a while.

The best Italian I’ve ever had! Such amazing service and the ambiance can’t be beat! All of us in our party loved the food so much we all cleared our plates! Next time I’m in San Diego I will be coming here! Don’t miss out on amazing service and delicious Italian food!!!

A woman pleasantly took us in 20 minutes before closing time. The service was, still, wonderful!
The Burrata Fiore Di Parma as a starter was delightful. It’s a touch of balsamic vinegar on arugula leaves combined with an creamier version of mozzarella and long thin slices of prosciutto all on bread.
For our entrée, we chose from the specials. We had the Truffle Tortellini and the Gnocchi with Bolognese sauce– both cooked to perfection. I believe the pasta is home made.
I would highly recommend this restaurant to someone who wants to be in a more intimate setting.
Pricing for food is fair.

Celebrated my birthday here with a dear
Girlfriend and I am wowed by the authentic Italian fare and jovial service.
Giana is half Italian and I lived for three years in Italy, this restaurant by far is the best in San Diego.
Why?
1. Intimate, small and I feel like I am in my friends home in Italy
2. Welcoming and warm smiling faces greet you. They also bring home made warm bread on the table. I ask for oil and vinegar. The olive oil is exceptional, taste like the olive oil I would buy from
My neighboring olive oil mill. Oozing with intense flavor.
3. The chef does Not speak English thou he is warm and friendly and is passionate about cooking Italian good and ensuring its the highest quality and fresh;
4. Food is exceptional taste and quality. I had the special homemade ravioli with mushrooms In a truffle cream sauce. I am
Petite, I ate everything on my plate. I had to really slow down to eat rah morsel allowing the cheese and flavored to
Melt on my tongue. While doing this I had to breathe to allow my entire body to experience the intricate pairing of spices and enjoy with profound pleasure.
5. If you have room, their variety of deserts is impressive. They have so many to choose from.
I am returning back here soon.
Buon appetito!
Mangia mangia mangi

We walked into this restaurant about 40 minutes before closing and they were so joyous and didnt event care about the time. They have adorable seating and its a very intimate restaurant. The menu is slim but it seems like they change it according to season and whats available.
We ended up ordering the burrata fiore de parma which is essentially a huge chunk of burrata with prosciutto over a bed of arugala. The burrata was insane. This dish is exactly as everyone descripes. Freaking amazingly good. You have to get a bite of all three ingredients to really get the feel of this dish. Yummers!
I ordered Tortellini Panna E Prosciutto (Veal tortellini with prosciutto in a white cream sauce). The tortellini itself was absolutely delicious! And the cream sauce is exactly the way i like it. A bit heavy on the prosciutto for my personal taste but you really get some bang for your buck.
My boyfriend got the Tagliatelle AL Ragu (egg noodle pasta with homemade meat ragu). Soooo much meat in the sauce but the star really is the fresh egg noodle.
Overall an amazing experience and they didnt even try to rush us out considering we were the last ones there. Highly recommended!

**A very homey, relaxing Italian eatery staffed by honest & genuinely good-​natured people**
I came to Parma after Google led me to a list of some of SD’s best places to eat. Being an out-​of-​towner visiting for the Patriots/​Chargers game, I walked in pretty much completely blind in terms of what to expect. Thankfully, my research ended up paying off quite a bit! The food served at Parma wasn’t exactly life-​altering, but it was nonetheless pretty good. Where the restaurant really shined, however, was through the impeccable service offered by its employees — who all seemed to be genuinely committed to delivering as outstanding of a customer service experience as possible.
— To start things off, we ordered a Caprese di Burrata, which was delicate yet flavorful. The burrata itself was delicious & creamy, and the mildness of the dish was a welcome contrast to the bold flavors of our entrée courses. I enjoyed the fact that diners are provided with their own balsamic vinegar, and you can thus play around with the flavors of the dish to suit your liking.
— I ordered a Gnocchi with Ragu Sauce for my entrée course. The portion size was reasonable (albeit not massive). The ragu sauce was well seasoned and had a good, balanced consistency; it wasn’t overly soupy in texture and featured a nice blend of cooked-​down tomatoes and ground meat. The gnocchi themselves were fluffy & fork-​tender. All in all, a very solid entrée.
— As I mentioned before — for as great as the food was, what really set Parma over the top for me was the degree to which the restaurant’s servers went above and beyond in their efforts to put a smile on customers’ faces.
Case in point: my girlfriend and I had ordered a bottle of prosecco at $ 29, but were mistakenly quoted on our receipt as having ordered a higher-​priced bottle ($ 35 or something like that). After having noticed this mistake on our receipt, I brought the matter to our server’s attention. Without discussing the matter further, he brought back a new copy of our receipt, saying that we would find the newly adjusted price «to our liking.»
He was right, and then some — our final bill was modified so that we were given a full bottle — for the price of a single glass! Needless to say, I happily strolled out of Parma with a grin on my face (and a bit more money left over in my wallet than what I had initially expected!). Moments like these are really and truly what make a restaurant stand out to me.
(Moral of the story? It always pays to double-​check your receipts.)
If I ever find myself back in the area, I’ll certainly be making a return trip to Parma. Its relaxed, romantic vibe, homey cuisine, and stellar service all earn high marks in my book.

The food is good — really good. Italian waiters gives it authenticity. I guess I would rate it 4.0 stars, but overall, I was underwhelmed by my experience. A small place, more of a café feel.
½ — Mixed Salad ($ 6) & Caprese Mozzarella ($ 10) — both nice portions and presentations (4.5 stars)
3. Gnochi & Meat Sauce ($ 16) — nice flavor of the ragu. (4.0 stars)
4. Afogato ($ 8) — A total waste of time and space. Cold coffee poured over icy ice cream. Ate two bites, and left it. (1.5 stars)
Decent wine list. It’s more of a neighborhood place rather than a destination. If your in the Hillcrest area, worth a try.

We dropped in on a chilly Sunday night to enjoy some Italian food. The atmosphere is very warm, with small tables for 2 and 4, and plenty of wine bottles showing. My wife and I ordered a salad to split, and I got the lasagna and she got the tortelloni rosa. The presentation was superb. The salad was a good size with a fresh balsamic vinaigrette dressing. The entrees were similarly tasty and sizeable, although the wife was disappointed that the parmesan was grated instead of shredded.
The lasagna was very flavorful, although I suppose it’s hard to mess up. The tortelloni was filled with spinach and cheese, and the pasta was cooked to perfection. I wasn’t a fan of the sauce, which was a bit sour for my taste, but the wife approved.
For dessert, we splurged for the homemade tiramisu. Like most restaurant desserts, the price ($ 8) was inflated, but it was really, really good.
Price-​wise, this restaurant is a tad higher than I would have liked (~16 per entrée), especially for Italian, which I always feel should be inexpensive to prepare — you’re paying for the atmosphere and location — but the food is good, the atmosphere is lovely, and the serivce is quick.