Cantina Cafe Review

Great place, dinner takes time because they cook just for you. This is real food and great service

I am giving this place 1 star not because of the food. The food is very good. I will never return to this place because when we arrived for our 7:00 reservation on a Saturday night, they didn't have a place for us. They claimed we did not have a reservation. I made it with the owner the day before. We had friends coming from Massachusetts and I knew they would love the food. The 'hostess' implied that I was lying and that I didn't make a reservation, she did not appear to care in the least that we were disappointed and made no effort to accommodate us. We walked down the street to Amici's and had a wonderful dinner.

It's best if you don't eat for two days because the food is spectacular and the portions are hugh

I've always loved this restaurant nice staff and the best italian food heeeey there on the early dinner hour

Great food and very accomidanting for people's good allergies. Would recommend to anyone.

The best food anywhere, great service, great atmosphere.

Huge portions, I was full and took my leftovers home which fed both myself and my son the next day for lunch. Not to mention DELICIOUS. I had chicken caprese, I can tell you it will be the only of a craving in the future. Also, calm environment so I didn't have to yell across the table to have a nice conversation with my cousin. Overall an excellent experience and I will be back.

My husband and I and another couple ate there recently and all entrees were delicious....its worth the wait. We didn't feel rushed. They don't push the food at you to rush you out the door. Yes we did have to wait but our waitress was WONDERFUL. We will be regulars. The portions are large. The salad was fresh and delicious. Looking forward to our next dining experience at Cantina!

The best Italian in CT, hands down. Get the stuffed porkchop

Pasta for shrimp alfredo was under cook and needed more taste .We ask for a Coke he brought out a kids size cup.Portion was big but had no meaning if it didn't taste good.i can make alfredo sauce better than this place and I'm not even Italian..I never go there again

I went with my family to eat dinner here for my first time and was beyond impressed with the food and service. Not only was the portions large but the quality of food was spot on. From the appetizers to main course to dessert everything was on point. The server who was the owner/owners son went out of his way every turn to ensure we had a great experience and had great food. 10/10 experience!!

Authentic Italian restaurant. Great atmosphere,and service
Portions are very large extremely delicious. Definitely need a canoli so save room.

If you're going to the Cantina, you're going for the extra large portions. Italian food is decent; very good bread and salad. Service is friendly. Worth going once in awhile.

Unbelievable experience food was marvelous and I love the grandfather

It's a nice Authentic Italain Resturant across from the court house, its kinda in the cut. you have to go and check it out.

Took the family this past Friday... Wonderful! from our waitress, to the service to the food. Very relaxing and fun evening to spend with my family!! Thank You Cantina!!

Awesome veal special, service and an outstanding capuchino. Giant portions.

Perfect, everything is perfect... food, staff, atmosphere. Bravo!

The best Italian food anywhere!!! You will not be disappointed!!!!

I love Cantina's. We are an Italian household and usually cook Italian food at home. When we discovered Cantina's, we could not believe how authentic, tasty and freshly prepared the food is. Tomas is a wonderful chef and he prepares every order as if it was for his family. We have brought many of our friends to Cantina's and they loved it.

Cozy ambiance and friendly service. Great Italian food and large portions. Shared a "football" (veal, eggplant, and cheese rollatini) with salad and bread with house oil. Phenomenal!

The portions are HUGE. the veal and eggplant sorrentino was AMAZING. I did take out and went to pick up. I ordered two entree and I have enough to feed soooo many people. They came in catering tins lol. Also was given salad and bread. We weren't very impressed with the shrimp and clam fra diavolo though. Only 6 shrimp in a catering tin full of pasta, no whole clams was obviously canned chopped clams. But thats my ONLY complaint. I will be coming back to try other dishes but likely not any seafood ones.

Fantastic authentic Italian food and huge portions. My favorite Italian restaurant.

Food Good and Plenty of it. 1 dinner equals two dinners

Service was great. Had enough in my bowl for three people. Not kidding

Even though inside dining is open again. We chose to order food to go. We heard about this place from a friend. She was spot on! The food here was amazing! The Veal Tommy melted in my mouth. My wife had the Veal Parm and said exactly the same. Do yourself a favor and seek out this hidden gem.

Great food large plates and you have dinner for the next day.

Cantinas is easily my favorite Italian restaurant. The veal special is AMAZING! You won t walk/waddle out of cantinas unsatisfied.

Ok, not the best, but not the worst. When you walk, in it takes a few minutes for anyone working there to even know you are there and seat you. The area I sat in was full of nats or fruit flies and you can see them all over the wall. The bread they bring you can be a bit more like Italian bread than French bread. The calamari I ordered was good, but saturated w oil because they need to let it sit and drain before it's served. Had a pasta dish and it was very good and had to take home most of it because the servings are huge.. They need to address their insect problem and a few little thing. Also, all they serve is bottled beer and it was a bit warm..

My sister went there at 8:10 for dinner the waiter said you need to order fast the kitchen is closing my sister said I thought you were opened until 11:00 PM she ordered pasta with meat sauce and they said we only have plain sauce she said it didn't taste very good and was over priced. Waiter was rude.

Food is served family style, huge plates and bowls of everything and the quality and quantity are extraordinary. Service is very nice but don't be in a hurry when you come here. This place runs on a wonderful slow pace. For a relaxing, enjoyable and highly flavorful meal, take a break from the pace of life and have a meal here. You'll get today's meal and enough for tomorrow too. Tops in my book.

Restaurant is located in a basement.
When being seated we noticed ALL of the dishes on the table were filthy. Booth seating was tight , asked to move. The dishes on that table were also dirty. Salt and pepper were empty and dirty soo right off the bat , not impressed .
Ordered an app of fried mozzarella. Recieved an old block of cheese wrapped in bread..
Salad was a bag salad mix with too much balsamic dressing and random items thrown in, like oranges.
The main course , chicken marsala.
Waitress came back and said , they have no mushrooms... do you want asparagus? Sure!
Wow! Never in my life would I eat canned asparagus and that's what I got. With a tough peice of chicken.
The food tastes dirty. Assuming the kitchen was just as dirty as the plates on the table.
Save yourself a trip , eat somewhere else...

If you want real Italian food there is no better place !

A true Hidden gem. Went there only because my wife won a gift certificate. Will definitely be going back. Food was amazing and portions huge, service was excellent. Drinks were good and all pricing was reasonable. I rated only 4 stars due to the salad leaving something to be desired.

One of the BEST Italian restaurants in Middletown, CT hands down. Great service and great prices.. Always make you feel like family.. Clean and very presentable. Just like being in Italy itself..been going for years!

So, this is our 2nd time here and we truly enjoined our meals and service! Excellent portions and quality food items and choices abundant. Not a fancy place and definitely a bit dated- but we go for the terrific food not to nibble on the decor. Lol-

Authentic meals, attentive staff, and a comfortable environment.

Best Italian food in town! The atmosphere is so relaxing and the staff is phenomenal especially Colleen. You will never leave hungry and you will even have leftovers for the next day. You won't be disappointed!

This place always delivers the best meal. Thanks Tomas

My all time favorite restaurant. It's always a treat to go to Cantina. Start your meal off with an antipasto, the most delicious fresh meats, cheeses, house roasted peppers and olives with a piece of Italian bread for dipping. Meals are all served family style, so pick a few to share. We usually do a meat and a pasta and that's more than enough for 4 people to share. I highly recommend it, and make reservations if it's Friday or Saturday for sure.

Be sure you come hungry because the portions are enough to feed entire communities!

Food like my Italian grandmother made. Amazingly good; just go!

Last visit fell short from their normal excellent food. Disappointed. Will try again?

This is by far the best traditional "family style" Italian restaurant in the area. It reminds me of Sunday dinners at my grandmother's house. The portions are huge, and the service is the right pace (relaxed) for groups looking to sit down and enjoy a long meal over the course of a bottle of chianti or two.

Good food, huge portions. I would check them
out.
Tip- no to go on weekends

5 star restaurant. Friendly people and we went home with leftovers. Everyone has to try this restaurant, the portions were huge

After many recommendations i decided to try not once but twice. First time we arrived fairly early and seated. 20 minutes later still no server so we left and went to fiores. Great btw. Second time seated quickly, with relatively quick diner style service. Dont expect fine dining. Details are clearly unimportant. The wine list is absolutely terrible. The only wine by the glass is a choice of the lowest common denominator label of cab. chard. Pg. And white zin. AWFUL. You cant get a Chianti by the glass in an Italian cantina? I AM LOCAL AND WILL NEVER RETURN despute generous portions. I can get better quality from the frozen section at stop and shop. I don't understand the hype....

Went to a private party there the other day had a great time food was good servers were polite downstairs room was great

Great restaurant great service servers were very polite and more than happy to help the food was fresh and they were more than willing to accommodate me in any way possible the bathrooms were also very clean I would recommend this place for family or just to grab a quick bite to eat

Look at the picture. The table is FULL of food. All of it delicious. My god, this is amazing.

Recently ate at Cantina with my husband and another couple. This was our first time at this restaurant which had great reviews. But, I will only speak on behalf of my husband when I say we will never go back or recommend this restaurant due More

In Middletown a little over 2 years, never tried this place. Was told by family that it was very good. Well! My boyfriend and I ordered from there tonight and it was EXCEPTIONAL! The entree was delivered in a catering style tray (that's how big the cutlet of veal was!) It was smothered in mozzarella and delicious tomato sauce. Everything also comes with a pasta and salad on the side which also were amazing! This place is a truly delicious little Italian gem! It should be in Little Italy LOL

Ate here last night for a friends bday dinner. The food was absolutely amazing, friendly staff and a really good price. You have to come eat here for yourself.

Holy cats was this good food! I was here with a large group of over 30 (work) and they were not only able to accommodate us, they even served us family style.
My only complaint were the portion sizes. Most of us were from out of state and flying home the next day and so unable to take leftovers....of which there was a ton. Thankfully a couple in our group were local and could take what was left. Otherwise it would have been a sad waste of food.

Very nice and cozy mom & pop Italian restaurant. Portions are huge and have complimentary salad and pasta with them (hence the price for the food). Unfortunately, they don't have outdoor sitting area yet (for COVID 19 purposes), so expect to have mask less people around you.

Great Atmosphere and the food was absolutely delicious so much food cant wait to have dinner there again!!!!

This is one of the best Italian restaurant I have ever been to, the food is great and the service is outstanding

I've been here many times and it is always a great meal. The staff works very hard to make it a pleasant experience

Great food and service. A hidden little gem in the heart of Middletown.

My family always rents out the big room for parties and they do a fantastic job every time

Always great food. Colleen a great waitress very attentive very friendly