La Dolce Vita

Seriously, the pizzas here are the worst! We got a pizza margarita and it was undoubtedly the worst I could have ever imagined. The crust was topped with a very thick layer of salty cheese (that was nothing close to mozzarella) and very small amounts of the margarita sauce. Since we were super hungry, we didn’t want to throw it away. We scraped off all the cheese and just had the bread (which was also very salty).
Just thinking about it has made me lose my appetite now. Please stay away from this place!

We had an excellent experience at Dolce Vita. Our group of 7 dined there recently during the holidays. I wasn’t expecting very good service since it’s off the Malecon so I figured it must be your typical tourist place but I was mistaken. The service was top notch and they anticipated all of our needs! For appetizers we had the calamari (very good) and shared a Margarita pizza. Everyone seemed happy with their entrees. I had the fish in white wine sauce and it was delicious! Highly recommend this place!

I would probably leave a –5 stars. This used to be a Vallarta must-​go, but now its a total must not go. The food is so so but the service is for the most part horrible. Theres nothing worse than a well established restaurant loosing their etiquette and attention to details. This review won’t affect them but perhaps it can help you. If you want to try la dolce go to the Nuevo Vallarta one, their waiters aren’t actual sailors.
Sad sad sad.

Gran restaurante de comida italiana.
Siempre que venimos a Pto. Vallarta es una de nuestras paradas obligadas.
Tiene varias sucursales pero la mejor es la del malecón.
Recomendar un platillo es súper difícil, lo que puedo decir es que TODO es recomendable.
Por lo general empezamos con un carpaccio de res, calamari friti y ensalada capri.
Para los segundos, las pastas son excelsas y las pizzas aún mejores, esta vez probamos la milanesa y es una de las mejores que he probado.
Buena carta de vinos, excelente atención, gran relación precio-​calidad.
Si quieres un lugar para ver el atardecer, no dudes en elegir este restaurante para disfrutarlo, debes llegar con tiempo, ya que son pocas mesas en el balcón y es difícil encontrar lugar ahí, si llegas con tiempo alcanzarás a ver ponerse el sol.

Italian food in Mexico. It was familiar but not too spectacular. The service was superb and super friendly! Food was mediocre. We started with calamari which had a great crust to it! Super thick crust but the squid itself was a little chewy. They brought out Tabasco along with the lemon and aioli which I thought was a nice touch! I had the gnocchi bolognese and my boyfriend customized the ravioli to an Alfredo sauce and added salmon which they happily obliged! The gnocchi was very fluffy and the sauce was nice, very traditional tasting bolognese. The salmon Alfredo came out super warm but a bit salty. And the salmon pieces made it even saltier I thought but he finished the entire dish!
Overall a nice experience on the boardwalk. Super sweet wait staff :)

This restaurant came highly recommended by a few friends in addition to fellow Unilocalers.
It was raining and a bit chilly do J ordered the minestrone. I think they may have made it fresh because it lacked that rich simmered flavor and depth, but nothing a few spoons of Parmesan couldn’t remedy!
The Chicken Parm came out dry with a marinara sauce on the side. The chicken was cooked to perfection, but the sauce was extremely bland. Potatoes were good.
I ordered the Carbonara which was rich and sinful (as it should be). I brought most of it home along with a prosciutto pizza to go.
Next day… pizza was fantastic.
We will return next trip.
Service was excellent, could not have been better.
Mucho kudos to the entire staff!!!

The service was great & the food was even better. If you’re looking for something other than Mexican food in Puerto Vallarta, this is the place!

Absolutely delicious! And they actually had gluten-​free pasta. This place was a god send for my friends and I who got tired of eating Spanish cuisine. Get the seafood pasta it’s fresh and delicious. Oh and the wine selection is awesome.

While I have loved this restaurant for years, food, ambience, locale, I find it rather ridiculous that lunch cost me 300 pesos not including tip for a caprese salad, small plate of gnocchi, and a limonada. While the food is delicious here, I KNOW the costs of food and imported food items in Vallarta and this is just another situation of Vallarta taking advantage of the unsuspecting gringos! Good food, just not great.

We started with the bruschetta and then I had the gnocchi with bolognese sauce and my friend had the chicken parm. The bruschetta was good and I also enjoyed my gnocchi! The pasta was soft and the bolognese sauce complemented it nicely. On the other hand, my friends chicken parm was below average. There’s really no way to describe it other than lackluster, it didn’t even look like a regular chicken parm. Would not recommend it. Overall, the rest of the meal and service was very enjoyable!

Local establishment right off the boardwalk with friendly staff and all tables facing the ocean view from inside.
Lots of fans to stay cool and even a wood burning pizza oven serving up thin crusted charred neapolitan style. Nice cozy place to relax and also chill at the bar. Not many bar stools but still comfortable enough to chat with the local bartender who speaks English.

Good place right on the Malecon. Perfect for an after-​dinner stroll. If this were located in San Francisco, California, it would be just so-so…but for here, it’ll do the trick. Good for groups… we had our family of 20 here last year and they had no problem accomodating us.

Very nice Italian on the boardwalk. The seafood pasta was excellent. The tuna steak was well cooked, but cut like it was tenderized with a mallet.
Service was quick and attentive.

The best pizza in Vallarta — no questions asked!!!

Recommended by locals and the place certainly impressed! Service was excellent, attention to detail. Food was delicious and served hot in a timely manner. Presentation was nice. The location is perfect, right on the heart of the malecón and ambiance is pleasant. Lots of open tables on a Saturday afternoon for lunch.
I ordered a salad which was a good size, great greens and just the right amount of dressing. My vegetarian pizza came on a crisp thin crust loaded with spinach, onions, olives, and tasty mozzarella cheese.
Prices are reasonable and I would gladly pay more to repeat the experience.

Great food but my debit card was compromised and this is the only place I used it. My debit card was duplicated and cash was withdrawn after I left Mexico. Be careful. Pay cash.

Very good Italian food and a cool vibe.
We split the Dolce Vida pizza after grazing on the Antipasti and bread. Everything was very good. The fresh bread was excellent-​with a semi flaky crust and was dense and moist. The stone oven-​baked pizza is a thin crust and was well loaded with green peppers and a red sausage that had a chorizo-​type of taste to it.
After a week and a half of seafood, we were jonesing for some good Italian and La Dulce Vida nailed it.

I love this place! Always quality food n service! If u want great pizza or Italian dish or even good seafood I highly recommend this place. Whenever I come to Puerto Vallarta I always stop for a pizza here!

The owners here are amazing! It’s extremely difficult to find a table, but if you’re a local, or come in often enough, they will make room for you. The best tables are along the front of the restaurant with big open windows so you can people watch and look at the malecon and the ocean. The cocktails are amazing here, and there is some special steak dish that isn’t on the menu and my dad and I get it every time. Great place!

Old favorite never disappoints had my first meal there 20 years ago, still great, probably the best Italian in PV.
Wood burning Oven, makes outstanding pizza homemade Papardelle with fresh seafood, carpaccio di polipo outstanding, FEDERICO, went above and beyond to make sure dinner was perfect, well worth the price.

Vallarta actually has a surprising number of decent Italian restaurants and I think this is definitely in the top five as the swarm of tourists and locals alike waiting a long time for a table will attest. I have never been here when there wasn’t a line even in slow season. It’s just that good plus it’s quite charming. The lovely second floor dining room is open to the Malecon and if you manage to score a table upfront you’ll have a lovely view of the people passing and the waves crashing onto the rock wall just yards away. There is always a festive buzz and everyone seems to be having such a great time.
The food is very dependable representations of the classic Italian (actually Italian American more than authentic Italian) repertoire — good salads, pizza, pasta, some meat and seafood dishes, plenty of wine, often live entertainment. It’s just a very good time. Down side is that they know they’ve got a winner and price their menu accordingly. We’d probably go more often but most of my friends are not keen on waiting in line. Part of the reason it’s crowded is that it is really about the only decent place to eat along the central part of the Malecon anymore. So, you put your name on the list and browse around and watch people for an hour or so. Worth it? Yeah, maybe not all the time, but I try to make it every season at least once.