Assaggio Italian Restaurant
354 Uluniu St,Ste 101, Kailua, HI, 96734
Assaggio Italian Restaurant Menu
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Address :
354 Uluniu St,Ste 101
Kailua, HI, 96734 - Phone (808) 261-2772
- Website https://www.assaggiohawaii.com
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Mon :11:30 am - 2:00pm
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : Yes
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Accepts Bitcoin : No
Good For : Dinner
Parking : Garage, Street
Bike Parking : Yes
Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Casual
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : Full Bar
Outdoor Seating : Yes
Wi-Fi : No
Has TV : Yes
Dogs Allowed : No
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : Yes
Categories
Italian Cuisine
The immense popularity of Italian cuisine globally isn't unknown. You can find an Italian Pizzeria around every corner of almost every city in the United States. Not to forget that in every house, people enjoy mac and cheese as comfort food. But it would be wrong to believe that Italian food starts with pizza and ends with good pasta as this Mediterranean country has much more to offer other than these two dishes. In Italian Cuisine, there is a high use of fresh tomatoes, all kinds of herbs, great quality of cheese, all types of meat, seafood and fresh handmade pasta. Many find it hard to believe that Italians have been making noodles long back.
Italian and Greek cuisines are always mistaken to be same, but they are poles apart. The primary difference between the two cuisines is the use of cheese in most of the Italian dishes. Italians love to cultivate their own cheese and process them as per their food requirement. It is believed that some cheese is so expensive that cheese producers secure them in lockers.
If you are bored eating the same old pasta or pizza, you can try some of the authentic Italian dishes like Risotto, Polenta, Ribollita, Lasagna, Fiorentina Steak, Bottarga, Ossobuco, Carbonara, Focaccia, Arancini and Supplì. Another item which Italians love to relish every morning is a good cup of Italian Coffee. Once you taste a freshly brewed cup of Italian Coffee, you might not visit Starbucks ever again. Authentic Italian food is made with heart and soul, so go find a restaurant where you can relish Italian cuisine in your city.
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Victor B.
Nice atmosphere, friendly service, but mediocre food.
(2)Mike D.
I've been eating at this restaurant for the last 20 years or so every time we visit the islands. Depending on how long we're staying in Kailua, we'll eat here the night we get here then again on the night we leave. I ALWAYS get the Chicken Anchovy Olio. The pasta is cooked to perfection and the garlic roasted to a golden brown. Along with 5 boneless chicken thighs pan fried and crispy, you won't go away hungry....
(5)James A.
I come here on a semi regular basis for take-out food. It's good food, it's tasty, and the portion sizes are big - a small dish is nearly always big enough. BUT, the last four times I've ordered, there's been a problem with my order, and they've waited until I get there to tell me. They have my number...what's the deal. Wait times can be between 20 and 45 minutes, I get here, and they'll say, "oh I'm sorry, we ran out of chicken, can I get you something else?"...The something else entails another 45 minute wait. There's a pretty meaningless apology, no offer of a complimentary drink while you wait, no comped food, nothing. Basically, if you're a take-our customer, you're low priority. I ran restaurants and bars for several years, and I think this amounts to VERY poor service. I gave them 4 stars because the food is good, and for the same reason I will come back. It won't be in a hurry though, and any recommendation I might give to a friend of colleague will always come with a caveat.
(3)Megan W.
We were excited to see so many easy to prepare pasta and choose sauce and proteins but the resulting meal wasn't as good as the ten page menu suggested. As vegans, we hope to find an Italian restaurant that doesn't put cheese in everything and normally we can ask for something to be taken off but their red sauce has cheese in it. Every single one. Ugh. I guess it should have been a clue that it wouldn't be vegan friendly since they have veal on the menu. We didn't know the sauce had cheese in it when we ordered until our waitress came back and so we had to quickly change our order before everyone's food came out. We got an oil and garlic dish and they fried the garlic to a brown crisp! It was nearly burned! A bit overdone for my taste. The garlic and broccoli was the same way. Dishes come in either small or large and we were able to split a large pasta dish without vegetables or protein for two people and they split it in the back (and charged $1-2 extra for this) but it was helpful. But it just wasn't the vegans who were unhappy with their dinner. The marinara was too plain, the pesto was bland and one item wasn't made "because it was the last item on the ticket and was overlooked" so that was unfortunate. Also, it was really chilly inside nearly 65 degrees or below and one of the kids in our group had to go back outside to warm up! It also took us a long time to find parking even though there is a covered public parking but we didn't have any change for the meter. It was too much trouble getting there and the food wasn't even that good for the price we paid.
(2)Malia A.
YUM!!! First time for dinner at this location on Friday night and I must say...I had such a good dinner. We ordered their Caesar Salad and it was sooooo good, make sure you love garlic though because it is really garlicky! I also ordered the Chicken Saltimbocca which was DDDDD licios! My husband had the Clams Casino (of course his fav). I would highly recommend Assagio :) I took one star off because we waited forever for our food to come out. I'd say we waited nearly an hour for our food to come out.
(4)Kelli I.
My favorite restaurant. YES, it is a little pricey, but you get what you pay for..at least I do. I take-out from this location once every 1-2 weeks. Sometimes, when I call to order, the hostess/waitress who takes my order addresses me by name or my fiance's name (I guess they saved us to their caller ID). If you like it as much as I do, then you will pay. I have been ordering the same thing for the past 10 years. I order the linguine with meatballs (original, I know). There is something about the meatballs and sauce that I just love. They always give a good portion of noodles, and the sauce is never overkill. Yes, there are only two meatballs, but they are huge. Always ask for parmesan cheese if you are a cheese lover, it is always fresh and very flavorful. They even give it to you when you do take-out orders. I recently tried their gluten-free pasta - which is a rigatoni, and it is really good! They give a good amount. There is a fee for it, but that is understandable. I also order the Caesar salad, which I just love! Sometimes, they do go a little heavy on the tabasco sauce (dressing-wise), and I am sensitive to spice, but I will still eat it! If you order 2 orders and eat in, they will prepare it table-side. It really is a neat thing, because they wheel out this cart, prepare the dressing, and toss the salad in front of you. They add all ingredients to it right there!. The fried mozzarella is also very good. They serve it over a bed of lettuce with marinara sauce on the side. If I'm really REALLY hungry, I will get these as an appetizer. I have tried the chicken parmesan, and many other dishes (steak and potato dishes), and they are all very tasteful. However, I will definitely stick to my favorite. One thing I really liked about this restaurant is that they really are nice people. It was raining and I had my infant daughter in the car and had ordered a lot of food. The hostess brought the food out to me when I pulled in front of their restaurant. I tipped her (of COURSE!), but I really thought that was a nice gesture. I know that they don't have to do those kinds of things...or it could be a liability to them, etc., but she did it out of goodwill. I don't remember her name, but I wish I did just so her actions reflect on this review.
(5)Cella S.
I have had dinner here several times and each time I have been impressed and very satisfied. The food is great, service is on point, Andre atmosphere is relaxing. They have street parking, they also have a outdoor lanai seating on the makai side of the building. They offer take out. I love practically everything on their menu, although my favorite is the Chicken Anchovy Olio and the Chicken Putanesca. If your looking for a great Italian restaurant on the windward side I highly recommend Assaggio.
(5)India R.
This was the first time I've been to this location... I'd say the portions are huge, just like the other locations and Paesano's in Manoa, which I found out are the same owners! Great food, However the menu reads like a phone book so that can take awhile to decide. The attentive service is a plus, I would just update the decore a little bit but that won't kill my vibe! :)
(4)Andrew N.
During our meal I actually had a great time. The wait staff was pretty unattentive, but that's not a big deal for me. What was annoying about that whole experience was the interactions I had with our particular waitress and the manager after our meal was over. Prior to ordering our food, I had a somewhat lengthy discussion with our waitress regarding the pasta's mushroom sauce and the size of the dish itself. I asked her the difference in sizes and made it very clear I wanted the small dish. After the meal arrived, I asked again saying, "This is the small? Wow. It's really big." and she simply chuckled and said "Yep. I know right?" Then I immediately followed with, "Well, I'm glad I got the small then." She didn't correct me or anything, she just laughed and wandered off on her merry way. Time passes. I eat about half of it, because it was humongous, and I see the bill. I've been charged for the large one. I go up to the front and attempt to talk to my waitress saying, "Do you remember that conversation we had? I asked for the small one." She denied the conversation ever happened and said, "Oh, I must have thought you meant the regular, which is our large." When I asked her to take the difference off the bill, she said "Well, you ordered the regular." I assured her AGAIN that we had a conversation just a few minutes prior about the size difference, again which she simply did not believe transpired. Neat. So she said, "Let me talk to my manager." then wandered off into the back. She disappears for an inappropriate amount of time. The manager never shows his/her face to me to discuss the matter, then says, "You have the food, so we're not going to change it." Just be warned. They're shysters and they'll overcharge you. I did not tip and they will not get my business again. Go to the restaurant next door. Save yourself the hassle. They're better anyway.
(1)Cts S.
If your looking for a great Italian dinner , look no further. The pasta was great , the seafood was fresh and the service great . the desserts are awesome. It authentic style New York cuisine. The plate sizes are half size and full size . I wish I ate less during the day so I could have eaten more .
(5)Kelli S.
I only went to this Assaggio's once to celebrate a close friend's birthday. We had dinner around 6 p.m., and we had a large party--I think there was about 10 people--and I remember we were seated at a super long table. Fortunately, the restaurant was super accommodating for our large group and it didn't take an extreme amount of time to get all of our orders taken and for our food to come out. Since this was the only time I visited this Kailua Assaggio--and that was a few years ago--I can't remember much about the entire dining experience, except for the fact that the food was AMAZING. This location was definitely less busy than the Ala Moana location that I usually go to (if I'm dining at Assaggio), so if you live east-side, I would go to this Kailua location instead. Here's what I would recommend: "Fettucini Alfredo": This is the more traditional entree that I got for dinner that night. It includes broccoli and a cream and cheese sauce. The noodles were buttery and positively drenched with that creamy, cheesy sauce, which was ideal for a cheese lover like me! "Lasagna": Lasagna is definitely one of my favorite Italian dishes to date, and I don't really get to eat it very often (it's hard to make a whole pan of lasagna at home when you live alone!). But this Assaggio's version includes hearty tomato meat sauce with ricotta and melted mozzarella cheeses. I haven't tried this version yet, but my dad ordered it once (he's a fellow lasagna lover like me) and really enjoyed it. I would definitely want to try the Assaggio's lasagna one day, but I would probably just have to order it with light tomato meat sauce and extra cheese. "Garlic Bread Pesto": I don't recall ordering any apps during our Assaggio visits, but this garlic bread would be at the top of my list if we did. It features garlic bread topped with pesto and sundried tomatoes. I could do without the tomatoes, but I'm sure to love the combo since pesto's one of my favorite spreads. "Crispy Roasted Potatoes": This almost sounds like the Italian version of American potato skins ... at least, on paper. But I do want to try these potatoes roasted in olive oil one day. "Carbonara": I've already established this carbonara as my favorite dish. I still believe it's the best carbonara I've had from any Italian eatery. It features bacon and ham pan-fried in olive oil and mixed with onions, egg and parmesan cheese. I always get my carbonara sans the onions, but everything else results in a savory medley when combined. The bacon and ham are tasty--they always provide a good amount of bacon--and I love the buttery flavor of the garlic and olive oil as well. "Pesto Sauce": Because I love pesto, I'm sure I would love this creamy, green-hued sauce spread all over my pasta dish. "Pork Sausage": I recently discovered my love for pork sausage--I now probably like sausage almost as much as I like bacon--so I would be so down to get my pasta with this preferred meat. I bet it tastes super savory and it's bursting with flavor. "Alla Parmigiana Style": My cousin loves chicken parmesan, so he often goes for this entrée. It features boneless chicken breast that's lightly breaded and pan fried then topped with tomato sauce and melted mozzarella cheese. The chicken breast is served over a bed of fresh linguine. My cousin's dish always looks appetizing, and one day I'll just have to deviate from my favorite order to try it. "Milanese Style": I want to get this entrée one day because it features some of my favorite ingredients -- chicken breast that's pan fried in olive oil, garlic and fresh basil, and served over a bed of linguine. I really do like linguine-style pasta, and I prefer cream sauce/olive oil instead of marinara or tomato sauce. "Alla Scampi": If I'm ever craving a seafood dish, this would be one of my top choices. It entails lightly floured jumbo shrimp that's pan fried in olive oil and garlic and served with in a white wine butter sauce. This concoction sounds garlicky, buttery and savory all at the same time. I want in! "Alla Francese": This entrée differs slightly from the one above it that I want to try because you get your choice of jumbo shrimp or boneless chicken pan fried in egg batter, garlic and lemon and served in a white wine butter sauce. I guess the only thing that's really different is if I opt for the egg batter-fried chicken, which sounds just as tempting as that garlicky shrimp.
(4)Sweetz M.
Ok guys this is my very first time going there and eating at assagios period!!! I gotta say the setup there is just amazing!!! The customer service is awesome!! On top of that there is always someone around to help you, refill your drinks or take your finished plates away!!! I went there with my boyfriend and his family and they loved it as well!!! The food was fast and was served HOT!! I had the chef special and it was to die for!!! I totally recommend this place and I can say this is totally not gonna be last!!!
(5)Travis C.
Both times we have eaten here the wait staff service has been quite poor. While there are many choices the food is sadly bland and uninspired. With so many wonderful choices all over Kailua I recommend that you don't waste your time or money here.
(1)Dani T.
I am so disappointed that after my experience today and the way the rude manager handled it I will no longer be going to Assagios after years of being a loyal customer. Their prices continue to go up to the point its ridiculous. Let us just put it this way. Bacis Bistro who has better food, is $16 for Chicken Picatte. Assagios is now approaching $30!!!! Tonight we went to order takeout and the prices were $2 more for everything than what was on the menu online. I called the manager to ask why and they said the prices changed 6 months ago. I told him that I understand the need to up prices but this is like the 3rd or 4th time and the last time was already too much. I told him we were disappointed that this keeps happening and he was very rude. He kept telling me its a deal for the type of food that its fine dining (it is not fine dining) and that I can't expect the prices to be cheap because they have to pay employees, that its the price of doing business. First of all if they are so high caliber why cant' they keep their online menus updated?? Secondly there are other restaurants on the windward side who are managing just fine at half the cost. Something is very wrong there. This is not price of doing business its a rip off. My family has been eating at Assagios for as long as I can remember. We used to eat there weekly. As a small business owner and also coming from a family in the business, I completely understand the struggles and when price changes are appropriate and necessary. But 2 people to have 2 meals and appetizer and drink at over $100, that is completely absurd. There are way better values to be had. You can have Lobster for a family of 4 for $100. And the manager is very rude and made the whole thing worse. When I remarked that he clearly wasn't going to listen to my concerns he was like "OKAAYYY anything else?" I said no thank you, I guess you can afford to lose customers and we just wont eat there anymore. His response was a sarcastic "Yes Ok have a nice day." Far from a fine dining customer service experience. But I guess with those price increases they can afford to lose their longtime regular customers.
(1)Janelle D.
We've been to this location a few times and the food has always been delicious. The service is average with the wait staff checking in minimally. The food has always arrived in a decent amount of time. However we were never offered refills on our drinks even though it comes with one free refill. After our meal we were never offered a dessert menu. It is a bit pricey compared to other restaurants with the same caliber of food. There was nothing special that would draw us back here- we are probably more inclined to try someplace new just to see if there is better service and a better deal.
(4)Chris M.
It's a good thing the service was poor because the food was really bad. The servers did a good job but no follow thru. The food was the worst. Store bought mozzarella fried cheese?? Really?? Meatballs straight off the truck from Costco. The red wine was hot...not worm but hot. And the pasta...I wonder how long it sat in the water before they plated it. Soft and bad. For an Italian place, there red sauce was so watery that it didn't stick to the pasta. I wouldn't waste your time.
(1)Kristi T.
Don't get me wrong, I still love this place.. But my last visit left me a bit disappointed. It was Sunday night, and the restaurant was relatively busy. There were twelve of us at my table, and I can assure you we were all sweating at least fifteen minutes into dinner. Apparently a multitude of people were complaining about the heat and asking to turn up the air conditioning, as our server explained to us while also telling us that the air conditioner was as high as it could go. My grandpa swears they were just being cheap and could have turned up the A.C. Besides this, the service wasn't up to par as usual. Not to blame anyone, but our server seemed uncomfortable and didn't check on us as much as the other servers have before. Maybe she was new. I hope so, at least. Our dishes took a while to come out. Seemed like fifteen minutes between courses. Is that normal? Anyways, my grandpa didn't care for his food. He claimed there was "no taste", and he's a great cook /avid cook so he knows his stuff. My food was great, as usual. Alla Saltimbocca Romana with chicken breast, if you were wondering. I also had a cup of their special soup of the day, clam chowder, and ordered their mint chocolate cheesecake dessert. I really enjoyed both. I lived in Italy for nearly a year but I still probably wouldn't be able to tell if anything were bad. Also a plus are their new menus, however they might be a bit confusing when you first look at them. They got rid of the separate sections for seafood, chicken, veal, etc.. But it's quite a nice menu otherwise. Also giving a shoutout to the water guy, who came around more times than I can count, and to the bread. It was warm, fluffy, and magical. My first review was five stars. I'm docking you two. Get back on your feet, Assaggio! I'm rooting for you.
(3)Marhia A.
Probably wouldn't eat here again... Had the Eggplant Alla Parmigiana, Creme Brulee, and an order of garlic bread. Eggplant was rather watery and flavorless, linguine (came with the eggplant) wasn't my favorite either. Garlic bread and Creme Brulee were okay. Waste of a $50.
(2)Judy B.
Fabulous dinner. We had eaten here 5 years ago and swore not to come back. But we git a gift cert so went back 6 months ago. And it was really good. So got another gift cert and went back yesterday and it was fantastic. Veal saltimboca was awesome. Antipasto was amazing crispy and fresh with a light dressing. Hot bread was crunchy. Clam chowder also really good. So we will surely go again. Pleasant surprise!
(5)Maryann C.
Every time we visit Kailua we eat here. Ono, delicious, yummy. Chicken saltimbocca is one of our favorites. We also enjoy the sausage and peppers. My husband always gets the Calimari steak. We have eaten ate the Kapolei and Millilani sites, too. All very flavorful and consistent.
(5)Abby S.
The service was impeccable. From the host to the busser to the server. The food was good and we loved the fine dining atmosphere. The decor was good but the paintings were amazing. We will definitely be coming back for another special occasion.
(4)Marlo M.
My husband and went here recently on a Saturday night. We had tried to get into a nearby restaurant that had a 1.5 hour wait and so tried this one. They said 15 minutes for a table outside. It was more like 30, but I know that's hard to estimate sometimes; also then they seated us inside when we saw tables available outside, but we didn't' say anything since we were just happy they got us in. We called ahead since we are gluten free to see if they had gluten free pasta and they did. We told our server we were gluten free and don't eat meat asked some questions about the menu. She forgot the questions we asked up front and then brought us bread anyway and obviously made up the answer about the minestrone since she forgot to ask. Small thing, but it was sort of a theme of the evening. We got the broccoli, which was excellent. The wine list for by the glass wasn't good and most of the wines were from California which is a bit weird for an Italian restaurant. We ordered 4 different wines throughout the course of the evening (including both the house wines) and none of them were good. The cabernet I got (not the house) wine was syrupy and the featured red (not house either) wasn't good either. Italian restaurants should always have good wine, even the house wine and especially the featured wine! The server, by the way, knew that I wasn't excited about the wine and didn't offer to swap it out or give me a taste of others like most good restaurants do. (I had my first glass sitting there full and I just couldn't drink it so ordered another different one.) Our meals came about 45 minutes after we ordered them. The stuffed eggplant they made GF for me, which was nice, but it was semi-warm and our pasta was only about 1/2-2/3 cooked. I didn't mind the wait that much since at least we got our broccoli and wine quickly; but our pasta was SO undercooked. I appreciate that they have GF pasta, but you'd think the cook would make sure it was done before they served it. Also, since our dish was meatless, we asked for some mushrooms or something in it. The server of course forgot, so our dish was about $20 for some undercooked pasta and sauce. I made a comment then that "for next time", the pasta should be cooked longer. Otherwise I didn't complain right then but probably should have. At the end, my husband saw that they charged us the full price (for a pasta with meat) plus extra for the GF pasta. He explained that the pasta was undercooked and it was just sauce, she forgot even to add the mushrooms. They wouldn't take anything off the bill at first. She brought the manager came over (apparently their servers aren't empowered to make adjustments to the bill) and ended up just taking something like $2 off our bill. That is SO pathetic. We should have said something up front but still - any good restaurant would just comp you the meal ($1-2 off a $20 plate?). My husband was so irritated that he left $0 tip. The server actually then followed him outside and questioned him about why he didn't leave a tip. I missed the exchange since I had left a few minutes before to get to the store before it closed. I felt a little bad for her since she was at least nice, although ineffective, but he really had a point. A tip isn't a given, it's for good service! I would call this a very marginal Italian restaurant.
(2)Lai T.
I was told by someone (I can't remember who) that the Kailua location is the best Assaggio's. Well, it definitely didn't disappoint :) We arrived a little earlier than our actual reservation time but were promptly seated. I was a little thrown off by our server because when she asked us if we wanted drinks other than water, we told her we needed a few minutes and yet she took away the drink menus. It worked out okay though since she brought them back to us when we asked. She also gave me a small tasting of the two red wines which she had suggested so that I could make a better decision. We ordered the crab meat & corn chowder (only available at this location), the ceasar salad, the osso buco with the scallop/shrimp alla bolla, some chicken w/eggplant and pasta dish (the chicken alla sorrentino), and then also the creme brulee...and a bottle of wine! Let me just say that the portion sizes here are quite generous. I'm glad we shared the bowl of soup. It was actually pretty good and I was surprised that the crabmeat was easily identifiable. The ceasar salad was prepared tableside, which was interesting because I always thought there was more involved to making ceasar salad...hmm, must try at home. I thought the salad was okay (heavy on garlic and anchovies), but i'm not usually a big ceasar salad fan. My bf really enjoyed it and helped me finish up my plate. For the price, it is really not a bad deal! Because I'm trying to limit my intake of carbs, I opted for the vegetables for my meal. It was a good balance since my scallops/shrimp were swimming in a vat of white wine butter sauce. Also, there was amble bone marrow with the osso buco-which was a nice treat :) I had a bite of my bf's entree and it was also pretty tasty. I skipped dessert, but from the looks of how quickly my bf devoured his creme brulee-I'd say it was a hit. One interesting thing about it was that there isn't any custard (which is actually my favorite part of the creme brulees)...instead, there is a custard flavored ice cream. My bf didn't seem to mind as he inhaled his dessert :p We had a really lovely meal at Assaggio's and were genuinely surprised at how busy it gets! Not a bad place for a date night ;) Bring your appetites. We both brought home leftovers.
(4)Kalai F.
Osso bucco n caesar salad! Yummmm! Would give it five stars if I he prices were reasonable. Kinda hard on the wallet.
(4)Mark T.
I'm having my favorite here the seafood combination with linguine. David is having Lasagna (I'm going to steal some) and Rhiannon is having her favorite chicken carbonara I'll steal some of that too. Fantastic once again. Everything was great including the service and servers.
(5)Les R.
We think this is one of the best restaurants in Kailua. The food is excellent, it's quiet enough we can talk to each other, they operate on time and answer their phone. You won't be disappointed !
(5)Patricia H.
Food and service excellent been there now 4 times and very satisfied . Last time we had a screaming child beside our table, screamed and cried our whole dinner sure wish the staff would have asked that the child go outside until parents had them under control. Lovely quaint place....not a place for a screaming child. Will still go back though....
(5)Nazarene A.
I know its Saturday night but waiting 40 minutes for pasta is really unacceptable. We waited 35 minutes for a seat and we are now going on 1 hr 15min and nothing. We will think twice before choosing to eat here again. Hopefully the food will be good.
(2)Jordan G.
Tasty food, nice ambiance, and large menu selection. I had the caesar salad, artichoke peperonata, and chicken saltimbocca. All were very flavorful and good portions. Only complaint is that the sodas come in small glasses and only one refill is free. Given the prices, refills should definitely be free.
(4)Mari K.
I've had a gift card to Assaggio for over a year that I've been holding on to and debating on using because of a disappointing experience I had previously at the Ala Moana location. But $50 gift card was too much to throw away so we decided to make a date night of it, hoping that things would go well. Overall I have to say we really enjoyed our meal. We ordered the caprese salad, calamari legs (legs! two thumbs up for them on offering just legs from a girl who just lovess the legs) and a scallop dish. Overall everything was delicious and well seasoned (a problem I had with a previous experience). That being said I do have to say that I think the price point is actually high. With my gift card between the two of us with no alcohol or dessert and tip we paid about $70. For that price, and for Italian in Kailua I'd prefer Bueno Sera, which would be more affordable and more cozy.
(3)K N.
Our server Merit was great! Some of the food was a little disappointing tho. The garlic on the chicken anchovy olio was a little too burnt. The Caesar salad made Tableside was yummy :)
(3)Lea G.
Alas, in spite of my enduring love for my childhood town, I don't give Kailua much credit for pricing food proportionately to quality. Assagio's is fairly pricey and pretentious for the terrible food and drinks, considering Zia's is way cheaper, much tastier, and easier on the eyes. My husband has an MA in winemaking from France, so he more or less knows his stuff, and was so dismayed by the wine menu we decided to go with cocktails. We had to send them back they were so bad :( Then our pastas seemed to just be thrown together with no cooking skills what-so-ever-. Slimy chicken skin on randomly cut chicken chunks, watery sauces, and a depressingly slimy carbonara. But! The waiter was exceptionally nice. That helped. But unless thats your one and only criteria for a place to eat, definitely give this place a pass.
(1)John S.
Disgusting I think everything's from a can!! Soaked in butter and oil! Buca de beppo is better then this place
(1)Mike P.
Tried this place the first time the other day. I had the vegetable/shrimp with Garlic sauce. The vegetables and shrimp were cooked ok, but the pasta was dry. Just not enough sauce or garlic. I had to add olive oil to it. My parents ate with me and ordered the fish that they said was dry. Overall I am disappointed with the meal. Service was great and that is why I give them three stars.
(3)Jeannanicole D.
To be fair, i'm not a fan of Italian main dishes. Appetizers, yes. Ingredients, yes. Red sauce, no. Cream sauce, never. Garlic, preferably in pill form. I had the homemade cold antipasto. A reasonably pickled, fairly priced salad consisting of, prosciutto, salami, cheese, anchovies, marinated vegetables and olives over a bed of romaine lettuce with home made vinaigrette dressing. Coupled with warm bread and enough fish and cheese to raise suspicion, this is definitely worth repeating.
(4)Lisa K.
Good place to go for a scallop salad and have spirited conversation with gal pals. Great wine.
(4)Lyn L.
Always enjoy Assagio's...I have eaten at the Ala Moana, Hawaii Kai, Kahala and now the Kailua locations....all very good. Kailua's bread seemed a little different to me...maybe just a bit underbaked. Scallop salad was goo with generous portions of scallops. Service was nice and we really enjoyed it here....
(4)Kuulei A.
Good food but they keep raising the prices. My god it is just pasta!! Italian food is everyday food on the maineland but in hawaii they charge out the butt for pasta! Wake up people stop paying so much!
(4)Juliann C.
The Good: *Service was cherry blue berry -- everyone was so nice.... all of them! *Atmosphere was nice, romantic-ish The Bad: *Too much selection on the menu! Hard to choose what to eat... *Nothing was too special about the food... typical italian restaurant I guess you'd say The Weird: *He put wayyy too much fresh parmesan on my food -- EASY MAN!!! STOP TRYIN' TO MAKE ME FAT! He placed a good SOUP spoon full on my plate!. sheesh. *I ordered a combination plate of Meat Ball and Sausage. If you look at my photos of this restaurant.... they weren't Kidding. I literally got ONE meat ball and ONE sausage. It looked a bit weird on my plate. I don't know what exactly to expect my plate to look like..... but def. not that. hahah.
(3)Jonathan N.
Pricey. Low quality mains. Bread was very good however. Ice water was plentiful and the best part of the meal. I guess we should have eaten in.
(1)Frank S.
Enjoy this restaurant when visiting Kailua. Table prepared caesar is excellent and the veal dishes are very good.
(4)Brandi C.
We eat here for Anniversaries, Valentines, and any special occasion that needs lingering conversation filled with great wine and good food. My favorite dish: Pasta Putanesca with Shrimp. It is spicy as all Putanesca should be, but I love it with the house Merlot. We usually order the Cesar's salad for two which they prepare at your table. The ambiance is romantic, very clean and crisp, there is also a bar for cocktails. Overall I've not been disappointed with the food or the service.
(4)Ashlee E.
Will NOT be going back to this Assagios. Ever. This branch of Assagios has to be the worst. The worst customer service. The worst attitude. This has to do with the menu and our server. Upon walking in, I read the specials on the board and decided that I would try the lobster ravioli. As my friend decided what to eat, our waitress came over and asked if we would like drinks. Fine with water, friend wanted a beer. We also ordered the calamari. After bringing the drinks, she takes our order. I ask for the lobster ravioli and she apologizes saying they're out, but they have everything else. Suggested they should probably stop advertising it if they're out. As I don't eat beef, pork, or chicken, I skim the fish menu and decide on the fish piccata. Our waitress comes over again and I tell her my order. Then she says "sorry, we have no fish"!!!!!! I don't know if it's just me, but the waitress should have mentioned when we were seated the items that they were out of. Especially after they were out of the first item, it would've been nice to mention that they were also out of all fish. All. Fish. What?! I ended up getting boring ol' shrimp scampi. I felt really disappointed with the Kailua Assagios. Since this isn't my first time having an unpleasant visit, it'll definitely be my last time there.
(1)Lou L.
Improved! More sauce now, the noodles were a little dry for a while there! Best Caesar salad with fresh garlic , egg yolk and anchovies! Been on 20 cruises and not one has a Caesar salad that can touch theirs....even in the specialty restaurants. They could give more lettuce tho for. $9 salad, they're giving less lettuce and lettuce is so cheap. Light tiramisu. Delicious. They have a very pleasant atmosphere . Nice leisurely place to dine. One of the better restaurants in Kailua
(5)Rachelle C.
Love this place!!!! I can never go there without ordering their caesar salad which they make tableside! YUMMY!!!
(5)Sandy B.
Service was attentive start to end! Large and small portions choices. I have an Italian grandma so felt dishes were authentic and flavorful. Their homemade salad dressing is excellent. Wonderful atmosphere with white linens and wait staff in white shirts and bow ties.
(5)Doris D.
The food's just alright, it's what you would expect from a chain restaurant. The pastas and appetizers are run of the mill - neither disgusting nor spectacular. If you're looking for authentic Italian, this is not it, so I wouldn't get my hopes up!
(3)Matthew K.
When I went to this establishment with my long time girlfriend at the time and now fiance for our 3rd year anniversary. We were ignored and treated horribly because we didn't dress like we were rich. So because of this we have told every one of our friends not to go to this place not because the food is bad but because they stereo type people and are rude. They wouldn't give us water we had to ask our server 4 times and still didn't get water.
(1)Quijana B.
3.5, but not really worth rounding up. The food was fine, the service was friendly, and the atmosphere was a-ok. Kailua is a funny place. I live on the Leeward side, where the food is slightly more diverse. A friend lives in Kailua, and we wanted to meet for dinner, but faced a serious problem. She prefers national chains. I prefer small, local hole in the walls. Add to this the oddity that half of Kailua's restaurants close after lunch and we end up at Assaggio. She ordered ravioli in meat sauce. I ordered the special, which had shrimp, scallops, cayenne pepper, and veggies. See--somewhat hard to make us both happy at the same table. My men ordered the seafood combination and spaghetti with meat sauce. All in all a good blend of possibilities. I'll start with the pasta. It was ok, but had no bite and nothing to truly recommend it above other places. When the waitress came to clear our table and noticed that my husband and I had eaten the tops of our meals and left huge piles of nondescript linguine she apologized and told us that we could have had the dishes prepared with vegetables or roast potatoes instead. This is useful information. I'd have preferred to hear it as we ordered, but now know it for next time. Our actual meals (beyond the pasta) were good. We both ordered spicy dishes, and were happy enough with the "kick". My dish was a bit too greasy, and my husband left some of his seafood uneaten, but neither of us had anything to complain about, and were happy enough. My friend ate all of her ravioli, and was very happy. My son took two bites of his spaghetti with meat sauce, and then pushed the plate away. The sauce was too sweet for his taste, and the meat was without flavor. My friend took it home with her, as it was the same sauce she had had and enjoyed. Lucky for us, we know that the star for any meal my child eats will be the salad. Assaggio creates their Caesar salad as you watch, so we were able to tweak the recipe as she went. Next time we will ask for more pepper and less parmesean cheese, but we were happy with the portions and with the salad in general. It isn't that we won't be back, but that this will never be a "destination" restaurant. We will eat here again someday, and will remember to avoid the pasta and concentrate on the salad.
(3)Miss D.
This is one of my favorite places to eat. I've been going there for over 10 years & never had a bad experience. Their wait staff is totally professional & the food has always been excellent. My favorite items as of late are the cold antipasto which is a salad with pickled veggies & cuts of prosciutto, cheese & anchovies with a vinaigrette. Also the hot antipasto which is on the cover of their menu. It's a mix of seafood all cooked to perfection & I sop it up with the warm bread they always serve with your meals. For my main course, I have always been a chicken or eggplant Parmesan type of person, until one of the managers suggested I try the veal sorrentino. It is a thin slice if breaded veal, with eggplant & cheese on top served with a Marsala sauce. I would definitely work here just to eat.
(5)Boki C.
i actually really enjoyed it here. i thought it would be an ito-american place like buca de bepo, but i think it's better. it's still ito-american =) i had a seafood pasta (can't remember the name), but their scallops were better than a MARIPOSA's!!! i couldn't believe it! their poritons were generous, service was pretty good. we were a party of 10, food came at a decent time (it was feb 13th - so lotsa early valentines people there). will return when i have ito-american food craving.
(4)Douglas B.
Where do I begin. The first thing was we wanted to sit inside and I don't think they liked that. They told us it would be 10 minutes for a table. We asked if we could wait at the bar. I think we were invisible because it took the person there 10 minutes to even say hello to us. Keep in mind that we're only six positions at the bar. 30 minutes later and after watching a couple that was came in after us seated before we were I began to get up from the bar and they finally came over to us and told us they had a table. We set down and they waiting on us fairly quickly but it took a long time for us to get our meal. When the meal finally came both of our meals were at room temperature even though the menu suggested something else.We complained and it went back to the kitchen and about five minutes later it came out pretty much the same temperature so we just gave up. The food was okay nothing spectacular. When we were ready to leave the table next to us was just sitting down and the waiter, our waiter, provided them with a full list of specials. This was news to us because we never received any information about any specials. All in all a very forgettable experience experience.
(2)Francis C.
Had birthday dinner for my wife and family...party of 7. We got an excellent waitress...her name is Jamie. She was so busy with so many tables that she did not skip a beat in servicing our table. She was on top of everything, more water, coffee etc., she was there. My sons who work for a restaurant said that she was incredible in taking care of so many tables. Thanks for a great and memorable evening.
(5)Julia O.
Visited last night - without reservation - only 2 of us, so that was fine. Overall everything about service fine however the food is just meh. I am wary of multi paged menus with many pages. I just can't help thinking of how much food is getting microwaved. I found the prices for entrees to be pricey but it is a quiet ambience with cloth table clothes and napkins so maybe that is warranted. On the plus side parking free and there is plenty of it.
(2)Mailani M.
As sad as I am about the owner possibly going to prison soon for on line gambling, I gotta say the food and service here is always tops. My favorite location is in Kailua. Staff is friendly, service is always top notch, & the food is great! Anytime I know I'm going to spend about $50 on a date or night out, a place I can always be sure I will get my money's worth hands down is Assagio's.
(5)Randy M.
On our way out of town my Uncle took us to Assaggio in Kailua, the best Assaggio according to him. We were in a slight rush and our server met all our needs. They have a very large menu and most of the items have a large portion for an additional price. I settled on the veal marsala and my wife had the lasagna. The veal was excellent, lightly fried and served with linguini. I had a bite of the lasagna and it was amazing, made me wish I had ordered it. Again it was on the lighter side and almost airy, something that lasagna usually isnt.
(4)Cindy L.
I eish they had zero stars ! Came in today may 7 at 8pm. Walked in was not busy at all ! Had 5 tables taken. Waited 5 mins for the damn hostess to acknowledge us. Our server came and I started off aSking our server which I dont want to mention names! "do yu guys have any specials for bdays ? Its my moms bday today:)" he was like oh yes ill give yu guys the list after. So then we ordered. The food was whatever I didnt care for it. Finished eating then they boxed up our food and gave us the check. wheres my moms little dessert. I mean we dont care for it but it's cute and fun for someones bday ! We didnt remind them because we didnt care about it ! But would of made her night with it . Worst service. Worst food. KAHALA has better service. & were just good tippers on the daily. So he got 30% tip. Youre welcome ! & thanks for effing up her bday and making her happy.
(1)Joanne R.
I have been coming to Assaggios Kailua off and on for 18 years, and may have visited for the last time. The meals are good, but being treated like a peasant for a walk in dinner is unacceptable. Why in heavens name can't you folks join the 21st century and add Assaggios to Open Table? Most people are using this great tool to get to you and other restaurants. We tried 2-3 times during the day to get a call in for a reservation and we're unsuccessful. Historically, getting someone to answer the phone is hit or miss. Love the food, service is good (we like Bernice), but if you try to come in, even at 5 pm on a weeknight, without a reservation, be prepared to get shoved next to either the bathroom or the swinging side entrance doors, with the place nearly empty. Me, I've sat in both spots and you should hold out for the seats near the loo. Nearby Kalapawai Cafe is as busy on weekends (the food is epic!) and they don't even take reservations!
(2)Janelle L.
I've tried Assaggio twice and both times have been disappointed. The first, they ran out of the dish I wanted and it was only 6 pm. It's not that the food isn't good it's just not great..
(2)Andy N.
Phenomenal service, excellent food, what a wonderful family-owned establishment! Had the New York steak and the beef carpaccio. Also tried some of the calamari. Everything blended excellently; all the dishes are presented wonderfully and the staff is super friendly. My water glass was never empty for more than a minute and the food was prompt as well. Highly recommended!
(5)Emily M.
I gave this restaurant one star because after eating the WAY overpriced OK italian we got kicked out because they needed the table and they were so rude about it.
(1)Jocelyn L.
"Really not that great....overrated in all locations"
(2)Nancy V.
We went to Assaggio's with a large party, 11 adults, 5 kids. Made reservations and were seated immediately. Bernice was our server, and did a good job. I had the seafood special, scallops and prawns in a vodka cream sauce. Delightful! Sservice was good, 1 plate took a little longer to come out. Everyone loved their meal. Great food for the price.
(4)Cleaner T.
Sorry this is so long, but it is important to understand the over-all twisted mentality of the ownership and the management. I went with a 20-person birthday dinner. I ordered the Scampi. The four large prawns showed up WAY over-cooked. I told the young waiter "I'm really sorry. For everyone's sake I would love to 'roll with it' and eat this, but I can't. These are so severely over-cooked. I just have to ask you to help me fix this. Maybe you could just bring me a new set of shrimp?" He said, "ok" and reached for my plate. I stopped him and asked that he just leave my plate so I could work on the other food. No sense him stopping my entire meal. (I don't know why so many eateries don't understand this concept) He said, "oh, I have to take it back to the kitchen." I did not want to cause any more distraction to the party. Up to this point I was quiet and quick enough so that I didn't cause a scene, but now it was going on a bit long so I let him go with my plate. 3 mins later he returned and set the plate in front of me. He said, "the chef said they should be ok". Excited, I said, "oh you got me new ones!". He quickly corrected me, "No, these are the same ones. The chef said these are not over-cooked. They should be fine" OMG!!!! I couldn't believe my ears! Actually, I remember laughing out loud and with a big smile and said, "ok thanks!". The poor kid clearly knew this made no sense, and didn't know what to do, so I let him go. Also, my behavior made people around the table think we were joking around about something and being light-hearted. After all, this was a friend's birthday dinner. Then I got up as if to use the restroom and caught this kid by the register. I said, "Hey, I didn't want to get into it more at the table but, I have to ask. Are you guys serious? The chef wants to argue with me about the Shrimp? Dude, I need to make absolutely sure that this is the decision this establishment wants to make about this. Please check with your manager about this. He agreed and came back later to tell me that they would take $1.00 per shrimp off the meal. That's $4.00 total. OMG! they clearly were not going to give me any properly cooked shrimp. I chuckle again and ask, "After you discount the $4.00, may I purchase four more shrimp for $4.00?" He explained more clearly my choices: 1. I could let them remove the shrimp and they would discount $4.00. OR 2. I could pay the original purchase price and add more shrimp for $4.00. There was no choice to discount the $4 and then purchase $4 more so that I net-out even and have new shrimp. They wanted to make sure of two things: 1. That if they HAD to give me a deduct for the shrimp they wanted to ensure that I was deprived of shrimp. 2. If I wanted more shrimp I had to pay double for them. Because I could not support this type of operation at all, I chose door number three: Take the whole plate away and don't dare charge me for any of it. I'm more of a drinker anyway ;) These people are out of their minds! Also, from what I have seen, tasted and heard, this is CAFE food with a CAFE cook. If you want real Italian food prepared by an actual Italian from Italy (not cooked by Koreans) go to Baci Bistro.
(1)Brenn F.
I went in for lunch and got seated quickly. The server was very nice and attentive. He offered us the specials, they all sounded amazing. So amazing I ordered one. I forgot exactly what it was called but it had: bacon, shrimp, eggplant, in a light sauce served over linguine. All those flavors just have a party on your tongue! Im pretty picky when it comes to italian food but this hit the bulls-eye. SO INCREDIBLY TASTY!!!! I had to come back home but if I ever visit again Im going here and to Cinnamon's across the street! :)
(5)Bret T.
I've been coming to Assagios over the past 15 years, when visiting Kailua, because a particular family member who lives in Kailua, really likes it. I have had decent experiences with the food and service. My final visit to Assagios was DEFINITELY my last. We has a family reunion dinner there (20+ people). Our one server was totally overwhelmed, with no help, but doing her best. I ordered a bottle of Geyser Peak SB. I stepped out to use the restroom and when I returned a bottle of Ecco Domaine SB was open and poured to our table. If you have ever tried Ecco SB, its like acidic and unpalatable. Huh? Why did they pour without showing me the wine first? Why did they bring the wrong bottle? I asked her for the correct bottle and she said she would not as they other bottle was already poured. WOW! Being in the restaurant biz, I could not believe her response. I asked her to bring the manager over. The manager/OWNER came over with a PUPU face and serious attitude says "Is there a problem"?...like he did not know already. I explained the situation and he said "Well the best I can do is bring you two glasses of Geyser SB". I said "But I did not order the other wine, she opened and poured it without asking or showing me and now we are forced to drink this?" He said "well if you want the Geyser Peak I will have to charge your server." In disbelief and told him no thank you. I could not do that to here, even though it was her mistake. Yelp Readers - Smart N Final Ecco Domaine SB = $9. As I said my family member comes here all of the time with his friends and colleagues. The owner acknowledged he knew my family member and he still has the audacity to make such a poor decision. Good luck with that one!
(1)Heather S.
This place is great. Very friendly and attentive staff. The homemade lobster ravioli was awesome. Cold antipasto was great as well as the gelato. So yummy! Will definitely go back again.
(5)Janet Y.
My friends went on their first date...It was supposed to be a nice, romantic dinner for the two of them. Service was absolutely horrible. Their waiter, Trevor, was inattentive and even rude. They had to ask others to find our waiter to take our order. They had to ask others to fill our water glasses and worse of all, when my girlfriend asked Trevor for a wine recommendation his incredibly rude response was, "I don't know, I'm not a wino." Holy smacks. I am sure that this isn't appropriate anywhere in the food service industry. Where was the service. Trevor is a lucky boy: my friend's girlfriend calmed her down and said that it was okay and that she didn't need to report it to the manager. Trevor should have been fired. Such a bummer of an experience...I really love their Chicken Anchovy Olio...I guess its takeout only at Assaggio's Kailua, and if you get Trevor, ask to be reseated in someone else's section.
(1)Jolynn Q.
For a Monday night this place was poppin. We have been meaning to try this place out for quite sometime. Glad we finally did. Our server was Merit who greeted right away with a warm basket of bread and shared the nightly specials. We had the sautéed mushrooms and caprese salad to start. Our appetizers and meals were all wonderful. We enjoyed our "date night" away from the kids greatly. The service is really what made it all the more pleasant. We will be back very soon.
(5)Foo D.
Just came back from dinner, the food was OK, the service was DUMB! The guy seemed overwhelmed, just kinda plopt the food and silverware onto our table. we had to basically beg for some olive oil and balsamic vinegar that was brought to that alll mighty table behind us. my dad asked for just olive oil and parmesan cheese on his pasta that came with this steak.. and when his dish came out it was a pile, of clumped up DRY pasta on his plate... no fresh cracked pepper on the Caesar salad when it finally came out, but the table behind us got offered some on theirs???? and messed up my order but i didnt say anything because it was still delicious!!! i ordered the shrimp scampi which came out in a creamy alfredo like sauce? i guess the chef decided to just do what ever he wanted with my dish back there, because what i got was clearly NOT what i Ordered. Will definitely NEVER come back to dine in...take out maaaaaybe... NOT for a $160 bucks i will definitely give our business somewhere else! maybe we arent kailua enough for this place....
(1)Keegan G.
Excellent service and even better food!
(5)Stephanie T.
My husband and I just returned from dinner and we both agreed this was the best customer service we've received ever. Our server was very sweet and it seemed like the staff really knew about team work. Our drinks were always filled and it wasn't bad for the price. The food had absolutely the perfect amount of spice. We will DEFINITELY be returning.
(5)Tara S.
Wonderful pasta!! Rigatoni arrabriata eggplant parmigiana. Great service. Perfect Saturday night.
(5)Jessyca M.
Caesar Salad. If I could get you to order one thing here, I would choose the Caesar Salad! They make it right in front of you and it is FANTASTIC! I usually sop of the left over dressing with my bread! Chicken Anchovy Olio is one of my favorite entrees here! The chicken is crispy on the outside, but still incredibly juicy on the inside. The noodles can get a bit oily though, so I usually ask for the vegetables instead. For dessert, I usually have seasonal fruit with the rum sauce. Refreshing and not too sweet!
(4)Cindy M.
Delicious food and great service! We ate here on our recent trip to Kailua. We were a party of 5 on a Wednesday night and they were extremely busy. They seated us promptly and brought us our drinks within minutes. We all ordered something different from the menu and everything was high quality and cooked to order. I had the shrimp fettuccine, my Husband had the Lasagna , Son in law had the steak, our daughter had the carbonara and our Grandson had the Ravioli. Nobody had any complaints. It's a little on the pricey side, but we'll worth it! We'll go back on our next trip to Oahu.
(5)Travis P.
Nice atmosphere. Friendly and cute staff. Food was good and would recommend. Pasta is cooked perfectly and chicken is tender
(3)Samantha V.
(this review is only for the food, as I ordered my dish to go) I usually got to Baci bistro up the street but they were closed, so I decided to try this place. I ordered chicken Alfredo to go. My mistake was not checking the dish before heading home! The dish was $16, and I was very shocked to see that they use cheap dark meat gristly chicken... just like a bad Chinese restaurant. For $16 they should be using actual chicken breast! If I had seen the LACK of quality I would have asked for my money back... I threw out the gross chicken and gave the rest of the meal (pasta) a try. Pasta- good, as should be expected... How hard is it to boil pasta? Sauce- eeh ok, but not very Italian... I won't be back, any restaurant claiming to be Italian should stick with Italian ingredients... keep the gristly dark meat chicken to the low budget Chinese restaurants. I am AMAZED that people give this place 5 stars! I'm guessing they don't know what REAL Italian food is supposed to taste like. If you want Authentic Italian cuisine go up the street to Baci Bistro... their food is amazing!!!
(1)David S.
Assaggio's Kailua has long been a family favorite of ours but we just tried their their take out and I'm more than impressed! The portions are just as generous as if we dined in the restaurant and the quality is to their same high standards! What a treat to have fine dining in Kailua but at home on a weekend night! We'll be doing this again soon!!!
(5)Kathryn D.
Really disappointed that they didn't make my Caesar salad at the table.
(2)Kat M.
Ahhhh Assagio's.....what can I say? A decent Italian joint on the Windward side. Better than most restaurants in the area. I have been here a couple of times and every time we had to sit at the bar due to lack of reservations. Trust me, they are not full because of the food, it's just a small restaurant, maybe 25 tables? Bar service is quick. My wine glass remained full, always a good thing!! Ordered calamari strips for an appetizer. Not bad, but in desperate need of salt on the strips and the marinara sauce. -1 stars because entrees came out with the appetizer! I hate this! I know its Friday night and you want to move tables, but DAMN! Let me enjoy my appetizer FIRST!! -1 star for my chicken piccata. Overall good dish, chicken breast was moist and pasta was cooked perfect. My issue was that the chef musta dumped a whole bottle of olive oil on that bad boy! I'm glad we had some bread left over so I could slop up the gallon of oil all over my plate! Food was good though after some surgery was done to the dish. BF had the salmon special and no major issues except all dishes needed salt. I would go here again. Assagio's satisfies my itai craving, but def is not the best itai food i have ever had.
(3)Karen T.
I always enjoy eating here. They use to be a bit heavy handed at times with the olive oil and butter.... but they seem to have corrected that. The food and the flavors are great! My favorites are fresh fish oragenatta and chicken assaggio. I never say no when any one suggests going here for dinner.
(4)Billiam S.
Great food, atmosphere and friendly staff
(5)Bryson C.
Assaggio's is a very nice place and the service is excellent, but to me the food is somewhat average. One of the cool things they do is have the servers prepare their caesar salad right in front of you and it's actually very delicious, but as far as their pasta dishes go, I think they're just okay. Their simple dishes like their alfredos are decent, but their slightly more complex dishes are hit or miss. Recently I tried their veal saltimbocca romana and while the veal was prepared well, the linguine that accompanied it seemed a little like an afterthought as it wasn't flavored particularly well. Overall, though, I think it's a good place to go for a birthday or something because it's not too expensive and the service is excellent.
(3)Grace S.
I've been dining at this Assagio's since it opened over 20 years ago (owners have changed) and BEFORE all the other locations opened on Oahu. What I've found is that each restaurant is run and managed differently which is NOT conducive to a chain sharing the same name; Hawaii Kai is more consistent, Ala Moana more crowded, Mililani has great servers and service and Kailua still serves good food. The night we were there was last Saturday night and we were a party of 7 w. one child around 8:30pm and while I partially agree w. some past posts (the servers are NOT polished) the food came out great! I always get the chicken anchovy oilio and it was superb; the chicken was crispy, linguine was al dente and topped w. tons of anchovy garlic oil - a garlic lovers delight! Salads were made with fresh romaine, fresh cheese and dressing and NOT sitting around pre-made in the back. Bread was hot and fresh. The ravioli was also very good as was the linguine w. meat sauce (the kids had one of each so I tasted both) my sister was very happy with her entree of Fettucine Alfredo as was my husband with his pasta Bolognese. All is all I'd say they're very good! I'm sure they have their off nights but I can't remember ever getting a bad meal at any Assagio's.
(3)Henry S.
Food and service was great , I have been eating here for 20 years
(4)Josh M.
It sucks to give this place a sub-par review since the staff was johnny-on-the-spot and courteous. The look of the restaurant cramped and stuffy and since it is in a place that was previously an office of some kind, it makes, sense. I think it threw me off as soon as soon as I walked in and got a good look. It looks as if they jammed as many tables in there as they could without the foresight of how people will move around and feel sitting in the restaurant. The food was not worth the 45 minute wait and my linguine was undercooked. I could've easily sent it back but for a restaurant that rest it's laurels on Italian cuisine and the ability to cook the various dishes on their menu, that shouldn't happen, right? Everyone at my table was very underwhelmed with what came to our table. It was a big portion but it wasn't flavorful at all. Maybe they had a bad night but I won't be making plans to go back.
(2)Kastriot K.
Food was great, not overly pricey. Our waitress seemed to be on another planet though; went missing, forgot our drinks, didn't tell us what the special was etc.
(3)Brent K.
I like all their food. It's great. Trust me on this one!
(5)kelly w.
I went to assagios on a Monday night around hmm 8:30? The host was happy to seat us, which was very nice. she noticed we were cold so she tried to seat us in a "warmer" part of the restaurant. The waitress was super nice, she helped us on our menu choices. My friend got some mussel pasta thing with white wine sauce? very good. but when my eggplant stupid pasta came out, it was friggin dry. no sauce like the nice waitress told me about. Which was suppose to be the same sauce as my friends. nope no sauce just dry noodles. with eggplant and a lot of garlic. I think if the sauce was there it would have been wayyyyyyy better. But i was hungry so i ate it. Over all ok. nice lady server. and they were prompt on giving me water when it was low. i woulda went 2 star, but because of the lady and water guy i boosted to a 3. :)
(3)Tracie F.
This location is by far the best! Wait staff is attentive and the food is delicious. The tables are a little close to one another but other than that the ambiance is great. Try the filet mignon. It is better than a steak house!!!!
(5)Deborah M.
Consistently delicious and good service to boot. Say no more!
(4)Jodi P.
My family and I had a very disappointing dinner here a few weeks ago. The restaurant was very busy, but we had made reservations so I was surprised by the 10-15 minute wait to be seated. Once we were seated our waiter, Jay (maybe), swung after a while to see if we needed drinks. We had been waiting a while, so were ready to place our entire orders. The entrees come it two different sizes, large and small, and it was nice to be able to select a portion size. Our young waiter mumbled his way through the endless list of choices for each entree -- way too many options for pasta, and side dishes. I appreciate variety, but this felt more like Olive Garden. We had difficulty understanding what he was saying, but managed to order successfully. My wine came along with the bread. And after a while, our entrees came out as well. By this time, I was ready for a second glass and subtly placed my empty glass at the edge of the table. Making what I thought was the universal sign for more... this was completely lost on the staff at Assaggio and my wine glass sat empty for the duration of the meal. Based on the prices, and the past reviews I was expecting so much more than we got. My grandmother ordered the filet mignon, but we aren't convinced that we received that particular cut of meat. And in fact are pretty sure it was a much cheaper cut. Needless to say, she didn't enjoy it and left most on the plate. The rest of us ordered pasta, and while it didn't suck, it certainly wasn't great. The food was mediocre and the service appalling - they definitely need some work, but based on the crowds not sure it will ever happen. Kailua is a small town and there aren't many options for dinner. Assaggio is overpriced for the quality of food and service they deliver. My advice would be to skip Assaggio's and spend your money at Formaggio or Kalapawai Cafe & Deli.
(1)Shelly C.
Steak with mushroom and onions is really good and the filet is excellent. We love the Caesar salad and the house salad has a yummy dressing with crisp pickled & spicy carrots and celery. I enjoy most of the food here and the atmosphere is pleasant.
(4)Kendal T.
We usually come here on special occasions like birthdays and such. It's really good to go during the week the place.is not that crowded and the waiters on always on it. The food there is exellenct and if oh have any questions the waiters will help you decide what you might like. The last time I went there I needed help deciding what I wanted. The waiter suggested the sicilian chicken. I was glad that the waiter helped me it was really good. Other things in the menu is fabulous like the appetizers are always good. All in all I give this place a good rating all around.
(5)Dave M.
Not good. I can take frozen italian food out of my freezer and it'll taste about the same.
(1)Shelly S.
Me, my two boys, and friend visited Assaggio Italian Restaurant on January 22, 2011. We went on yelp looking for a good Italian place to eat at. It was either Assaggio or Baci Bistro. Well Assaggio won only because they opened at 5pm and Baci Bistro opened at 5:30pm. We really wished we would have waited but our hunger got the best of us. We made reservations for 5pm. When we arrived at the restaurant we were a little shocked on how great it looked inside it. We felt a little too dress downed for the occassion. Anywho the hostess was very friendly. We were seated very quickly. Our server was very friendly as well. He kept coming to our table asking if we alright, if the food was good, and etc. As for the food, well the presentation of the food was quite good, but the taste of it was quite the opposite. The food lacked flavor all around. I ordered a cup of the New England Clam Chowder and the Spicy Seafood Combination plate with tomato sauce. The New England Clam Chowder was alright. It tasted more like a potato soup. It also was not as creamy as most Clam Chowders that I have eaten. It also lacked seasoning. The Spicy Seafood Combination was very interesting to say the least. It was not spicy at all. The only thing on my plate that had any type of heat was the noodles. No matter how many times I blew them, it was still too hot to eat. The Calmari was way to tough and chewy. The Shrimp tasted very watery like they were boiled in water first and then put on the plate. The sauce on my plate was also too watered down. The plate overall lacked flavor all in all. Tasted very watered down. My son ordered the Fettucini Alfredo with Chicken. His plate was better than mine but not by much. His Alfredo sauce tasted like they just added some Parmesan Cheese and water to the noodles. The chicken gave off a lot of flavor though since it was grilled. My friend ordered the 6 piece Cheesy Ravoili with Meat Sauce. Her meal tasted like a fresh opened can of Chef Boyardee. We definitely should have waited until 5:30 to eat at Baci Bistro.
(2)Jan O.
I ordered the large seafood combination with garlic and linguine and was surprised by how much garlic they put in it. If you love garlic and seafood then you'll enjoy this dish. (There's enough garlic in there to make you smell like garlic for days.) There was enough seafood (shrimp, clams, mussels and calamari) to my liking and the sauce was just enough to coat the pasta. For dessert, I had the Neapolitan gelato (chocolate, strawberry, & pistachio) and that was divine. It's definitely a place to have a nice dinner with friends or family.
(4)Ronnie M.
Best Italian I've had in a while. One of the best places we ate on the island during our vacation.
(5)Brian B.
Easily the best Italian food we had while living in Hawaii. We always had good service, but since we knew our waitress, maybe we are a little biased :) We ate there quite a bit and never had a bad meal. It is a little expensive, but a nice treat on occasion.
(4)Eunice C.
I would give this place no stars if I could. We actually have been here many times and are always satisfied. Tonight though was HORRIBLE to say the least! It is my 12 year anniversary and I have 5 children so you can imagine that my husband and I only get out once a year for dinner by ourselves. The night started out fabulously. Our waiter, David was awesome. It started to turn bad when I ordered the large portion filet mignon medium rare. (husband ordered Osso Bucco which is always good) the filet came back more along the lines of medium well-well done so I sent it back asking for medium rare. The waiter came back with the plate and told me that the "chef" said that it is med-rare. Uhhh...no! So, they fired up another plate. This time I told him to make it rare figuring it would probably be perfect then. Got the second plate, took a bite and the meat was ICE COLD. I told the waiter to touch my meat & he also agreed it was ice cold. So I sent it back & told him I would order something else. The waiter came back & said the "chef" claimed that rare is supposed to be cold??? WTF? I don't think so. Oh and further more, I could order something else but I would also have to pay for the filet on top of that. I was so frazzled and my husband was about to have a chat with the "chef" out back. The waiter also added that he was responsible to pay for the the first filet that got sent back. Are you kidding me? So I just took the filet, wrapped it up and wanted to get the hell out of there. The waiter asked if we wanted dessert on him. No thank you. I gave him a great tip because it wasn't his fault the chef was being a you know what. The whole time this was transpiring not one manager came to see the problem. After googling Assagio's owner. I realized why. The so-called "chef" was the owner!! Unbelievable! Thank you Assagio's for ruining my only nite out and trying to poison a pregnant women with ice cold raw meat!
(1)Monica B.
DO NOT EAT HERE!!!... I met my husband here for lunch wanting to enjoy some Italian food... We were very dissapointed in the service and the food.. I arrived sat down and our waitress came straight over and asked me if I was ready to order.. WTF?? No! I just got here!.. She had an attitude and walked away.. Then she came back and I asked her what she recommended as far as chicken.. She responded "Everything is good.. There are like 100 good chicken dishes! It would take forever to tell you.".. Talk about horrible service.. So not knowing what to really order I went with the chicken marsala and husband ordered the seafood combination.. Our food came out and my chicken marsala looked like a piece of fried chicken doused with oil/ butter.. My linguine was completely soaked with butter, as well.. I tasted my food and it tasted like pure butter and zero Marsala.. yuck!.. The waitress came around and I told here that the food was not good and she insisted that "The chef did use Marsala wine".. Yeah right!!!!... The manager came over and said he would have some sauce on the side sent over.. They brought over my sauce and I poured it on top but everything just tasted so greasy.. My husbands food was very bland and had little flavor.. Overall, we had a terrible experience.. Our waitress skinny/ young Oriental girl was a complete BITCH and the food did not make up for it... WE WILL NEVER EAT HERE AGAIN!!!!!!
(1)Jeff S.
Good service. Large portions. I thought the food was pretty mediocre. I ordered pasta alfredo with chicken. Was surprised to find the chicken was dark meat. Wife ordered eggplant parm. It was good. The prices are $16-20 for simple pasta dishes. Portions are very large but they charge $2 for splitting dishes (drives me crazy). It wasn't bad, but I didn't think it was worth the $$$.
(3)Charlie D.
Yummy! This is one of the best italiano restaurants you can find when you've gotten into kailua, thou not cheap worth the extra money. Their made in front of you caesar salads are so ono!
(4)C C.
Food is great! Service is average to slightly above. Steak, Osobucco and chicken picatta are delicious! Good job and keep striving to do better Assagios.
(4)Meg M.
This is some of the best Italian you can get around here! The atmosphere includes dim lights, candles and privacy. The menu is pages long and there is a lot to choose from including entrees from the sea, a variety of pastas, different means and plenty of vegitarian selections. It is a must try!
(4)