We were looking for a new pizza place and found this one on Yelp. I like the Pizza, I can see the comparison to Zio's and agree it's comparable if not better. I'll need to have a few more pies to make sure. You can order a slice which is really a personal size pizza, or a VERY large pizza. The topping selection is somewhat limited. We wanted a decent salad and got one. The fries are to die for and I don't typically eat fries... Try any flavor!
(3)
Mark C.
Walked in on a Saturday evening after our reservation fell through at another nearby restaurant location. Greeted warmly by the receptionist/manager and asked if it was possible to get a table at the last minute. Manager was exceptionally helpful, friendly and understanding (5 Stars). Escorted to the bar where we were asked to wait a few minutes until a table came available and enjoyed a nice glass of wine. Bar has a decent selection of wine by the glass at a reasonable price ($8-10 dollars per glass). Once seated, our server was informative and knowledgeable as to the menu and specials of the night. Started with the combination appetizer which consisted of tomato caprese, roasted peppers, fried calamari, artichoke hearts and marinated olives. Olives, artichoke hearts and peppers were good, caprese was acceptable and the calamari lacked seasoning - quite plain even. The portion size was very good and could easily serve 2-3 people. Entrees were Pasta Combination (A pasta combination of cannelloni, lasagne, ravioli and tortellini in cream sauce with bacon) and Linguine Garibaldi (Linguine pasta cooked just right, then topped with fresh tomatoes, garlic, basil, olive oil and green olives.) Both entrees tasted good. (3 Stars) Entrees also come with a house salad and warm bread. Dessert was Tirami Su and Cannoli. Both were very good. (4 Stars) Pasta Amore is also the location where a mystery dinner theater is held regularly called Murder Amore. It is an interactive murder mystery dinner theatre production that takes place in the Party Room of Pasta Amore.
(3)
Anna F.
This is absolutely one of the best Italian restaurants in Omaha. Chef Leo is from Italy, and frequently makes the rounds during dinner time to make sure that everyone is well taken care of. Ambiance is romantic but family friendly, typical of Italian decor. Order the tortellini with cream sauce (with bacon - to die for) and if you don't order the ricotta cannoli for dessert you're missing out.
(5)
Martha J.
I've been here for birthdays and a girls nite out. If your coming with your BFF or special someone, expect to pay at least a $100, entrees, wine & dessert. I find the food to be good , I will get the spinach ravioli & My BFF, gets the chicken special of the evening, we both like the meal, wine per glass $8, better to get the bottle. Attentive service & chef can prepare, whatever or however you may like your food. The chef makes entrees you won't find elsewhere. Private & cozy. I recommend going at least once, try it out.
(5)
Chad K.
I tried their special which I don't remember the name of, but which was essentially angel hair (capellini), with a Bolognese sauce, and an Italian sausage link. The pasta was fine and wasn't overcooked or gummy or anything else I hate pasta being. The Bolognese sauces was okay. Overall it had a decent flavor, but it was really heavy on the oil. I'm not sure if they drizzle some EVOO in their sauce and the chef got a little heavy handed with it or if they didn't drain the fat off of the meat before adding it to the sauce. Either way, there was a very high oil content to the Bolognese sauce. The Italian sausage link was good. Overall, just an okay meal. Nothing spectacular. My wife ordered the Chicken Piccata. She didn't go into detail, but she wasn't terribly impressed with it. Service was poor. It didn't seem to be a systemic problem as other tables with different waitresses were getting great service. Our waitress only had two tables and she seemed to struggle with it. Our waitress was absent-minded, inattentive, forgetting basic table waiting procedures (forgot to tell us the specials, we had to ask for the complimentary bread, etc.), and so forth. Nice location in Rockbrook Village. We dined outside for a Summer lunch and the temperatures were great and there was just enough of a breeze to keep any flying insects away. They do have a lunch menu and prices are about 30% less than their dinner menu. Overall, I expect more at this price point. The food could have more wow factor (mostly as it applies to taste as textures and appearance were fine). Service could be better. A manager should have noted we weren't getting the service we should have been getting and made appropriate adjustments, but there was no manager to be seen. We'll probably give it another try, but I am not in any hurry to do so.
(2)
Niccole M.
Placed a take out order for the Firm I work for. Arrived to pick it up and rather than be greeted, the server jerked her head in my general direction and told another server, "its here for the to go". What the hell? It? Amazingly inappropriate. My food was good. One of the attorney's lunch, however, was inedible. The grease from the meat was pooled all over. It was probably the nastiest Bolo I have ever seen. She ate about three bites and declared it undesirable. Pretentious and snotty (are those the same descriptive words??). Next time the other attorney wants this for lunch, I will be sure to bring leftovers from home.
(1)
Amy M.
It was my birthday and decided to try someplace new. This was lacking in so many areas. There was more wait staff than customers on a Saturday night. That was the first flag. We ordered the tomato bread, Two pieces, once piece per for $5. Not worth the price. Second flag. We ordered the Eggplant Parmesan and the Tortellini with cream sauce. The Tortellini had good flavor but could have used some additional cooking time. The Eggplant Parmesan came out on a big "warm" plate and had not cuts of eggplant but rather six thin slices of eggplant covered thickly with a tomato sauce. I literally had to scrape the sauce off to try and find the eggplant. Cooked any longer and it would have been a treasure hunt. The waitress was very nice but extremely slow when getting things to us including the bill. We were told they did not have a computer so it took some time. Confusing and sad. We should have left when we had the chance. This is definitely not a repeat place. Very over rated.
(1)
George S.
Family gathering recommended for their steak. I had the Veal a la Parmigiana and it was wonderful. Served with pasta and a very tasty red sauce, the veal was tender and flavorful with a light crispy breading. I dove in and ate half before I thought of taking a photo. Excellent! (I tasted my wife's filet and it was great too!)
(5)
Abbie L.
Good food and great service but definitely not worth the money. Spaghetti works, old Chicago, etc all have comparable food at half the price. The one thing pasta amore does well is cucumber vodka and lemonade!
(2)
Christina P.
We went here for my husband's sister's birthday. This is her favorite restaurant, so I guess I had a little bit higher expectations than normal. The restaurant was nicely set up, definitely the fine dining atmosphere. The price range was around $15-$25 per item. Going to this restaurant, I was expecting it to be about this price range. After eating my dinner, I was disappointed in the quality of food compared to the price. I have eaten at Spaghetti Works many times. The food at Pasta Amore, in my opinion, was poorer quality and double the price. I got chicken parmesan. The breading was soggy, as if it were sitting too long in the sauce before they served it to me. My food was also room temperature, if not less when they served it to me. I am not sure if I would go back here just because I don't know if I could justify paying $15-$25 on one plate when I could get the same kind of food at Spaghetti Works for half the price.
(3)
Nicholas H.
The fettucine Alfredo is one of the best in omaha. I hate tomatoes but the tomatoe bread here opened my eyes to tomatoes again....crispy bread and great flavor. Pasta more was catered in for my brothers wedding and it was a hit.
(4)
George S.
Worst food I have ever had. I had just a salad and it was just lettuce. With tomato and the dressing was olive oil and lemon juice for 10.00 dollars and was terrible. Drinks are very over priced. SAVE YOURSELF FROM A BAD MEAL AND GO TO A REAL ITALIAN RESTAURANT CAUSE THIS PLACE IS NOT IT!!!!!!!!!
(1)
Dan K.
Came across this by accident driving through Omaha and nearby meeting. Glad I didn't read the negative reviews-lunch was very good. Grilled chicken, asparagus over Angel hair with side salad. Great taste, nice lunch size portion, quiet setting.
(4)
Michelle P.
Mediocre, at best. I ordered shrimp scampi over capellini: the crudely chopped garlic was raw, the white wine used in the sauce was not reduced or incorporated at all, the shrimp was over cooked, there were 3 random chunks of russet potatoes and a terrible slice of green bell pepper and a slice of red bell pepper (mostly pepper skin) that they tried to grill (I think). It makes me ill remembering the meal. I would not go back. It was by far the worst place I have experienced in quite some time. I do not recommend it!
I really hate writing bad reviews. Makes me sad inside. But this place really was that sad and bad. Ate there tonight. Party of 3. Busser came by and filled up 2 ice waters about 2/3 full. Yes, 2 waters. A few minutes later we flagged him down and got a third. Ok I can get over it, they forgot a water. Except the problems just added on from there. (Just a preface, It took almost 10 minutes for the server to acknowledge us.) We started with two small salads, a bowl of soup and salami and cheese plate. It took 25 minutes for the salami and cheese, 30 minutes for the salads and 35 for the soup. All of these dishes should be prepped in the back and ready to go. The cheese and salami was just sliced meat and cheese! How long does this take? Food came out 50 minutes after being ordered and was mediocre at best. Calamari was cold so I sent it back. The artichoke hearts were out of a can, along with the roasted red peppers. Overall I was really bummed. Slow and lacking service, as well as bad food. It does make me sad to write these unhappy reviews, but for $65 I should be happy. Also, I hope the restaurant reads these and takes my thoughts into consideration. I'm all for helping people improve!
(2)
Tracy M.
I went back for a girl's night. I got the sampler again because I knew I really liked the lasagna last time. This time even that wasn't great. Nobody in my group was impressed with their meal. Especially for the price. I probably won't try this again.
(2)
Wendy C.
This place was fine. Overpriced for what it is. My dish did not have much flavor. A member of our group got the angel hair with clams in white sauce which was pretty good. The ambiance is nice but the food is really not much better than Spaghetti Works for twice the price, and I wouldn't pay regular price for that...
(2)
Pamela R.
My husband and I loved the food here. The salad was fantastic. I've lived in NE for 3 years and this was the best salad i've had outside of the Wholefoods salad bar. It was very fresh and had more to it than just iceberg lettuce and carrots. Our entrees (salmon for him & stuffed peppers for me) were very much to our liking. I was quite pleased with the fact that the entrees were not HUGE portions, but enough to be satisfied. The hostess was not the friendliest, but our waitress was. Overall it was a very enjoyable experience. We went for lunch which was more of the business suit crowd. We will return.
(4)
Tess R.
Sooooooo disappointing! I really don't know how this place has such good reviews! I was looking for a decent Italian restaurant, non-chain, and read the reviews online and decided to try Pasta Amore. I really wish I had not! To start out nice, the restaurant is clean and has a good ambiance. Our party decided to sit on the patio since it was a nice evening. Our server was nice at first and suggested a few items after we asked. We ordered fried mozzarella and it was pretty gross. You could buy better cheese sticks from the freezer section of the grocery store. These were definitely not homemade, probably the cheapest frozen cheese sticks they could find. They also gave us rolls on the table, these were pretty bland, but ok, come to find out that they are not homemade either since they gave us the bread bag to take our leftovers in. For my main dish, I tried the combination plate of 4 different pastas since our server suggested it and said that all the pasta was made fresh. That could not have been further from the truth, the pasta did not taste homemade and was overcooked. None of the food made me gag, but I felt like I was force feeding myself because it was not good. My bf ordered the seafood pasta which he said was ok. My brother ordered the flattened meatballs special (another suggestion from the server) and was not impressed either. The red sauce was very bland, I would say that Prego is better. None of us finished our food, and that is saying a lot because the portions were not very big and the guys I went with always finish their plates. At the end of the meal, our server brought boxes for our leftovers and offered dessert. We said no and asked for the check. After 15 minutes and her coming out to another table several times, we had to ask for our check again. Another 15 minutes passed before we actually got the check. We were going to pay for it on a credit card, but we quickly paid in cash just so we could get out of there! I'm a little sad because I really wanted to find a good, local Italian restaurant, and this place was not even ok. A few of us even felt sick after the meal. I don't really like Olive Garden, but I would say that Olive Garden is 100 times better than this place. Another disappointment was the prices. The prices were SUPER high which did not correlate to the small plates and poor, poor food quality. I will never go back to this restaurant.
(1)
Dianne M.
Went once, had no reservations was told it would be a 2 hour wait. Made a reservation, went back, still waited almost 30 minutes for our table. Calimari appetizer was very bland, would not order it again. Soup was good, lasagna was very good. Bread was warm. Husband said the marinara was watery but the meatballs in his spaghetti were good. Service started out very slow, but got better as the night went on. It is a very small, crowded restaurant. I doubt we will return. I would say Vivace's in Old Market is way better!!
(2)
Lori R.
I've eaten here just a couple of times and frankly, I can make better "authentic Italian" food at home and I am 3/4 German. The service on all occasions was horrific and the wait staff in genereal just a shade off from outright rude. Haven't been back and never intend to.
(1)
James U.
What can I say, I like to experiment. Man, I wanted a cannoli so bad - quick, yelp, where can I get a cannoli? Oh this place is right by me, but look at those mixed reviews... I guess it will be an adventure! Adventures aren't always a success. To begin, we made reservations and arrived promptly. It was nice, so we asked to sit outside, but there were exactly 0 available tables inside that would have been ready in the next 20 minutes, so I'm not sure what the hostess was planning to do if we said we wanted sit inside. No big crisis, but makes me leery of making reservations again and expecting to sit down on time. Next point, my guess is that tables are assigned to wait staff 'round robin' style rather than by section. We were our waitresses only table outside, and the service reflected that fact quite clearly. Our drinks were consistently empty, we saw our waitress for orders and food delivery only. She did take the time to try and make small talk right when she brought the check though. I think we talked about the weather but all I heard was "I know I was a terrible waitress all night, I hope this 30 second investment pays big dividends on my tip". It was transparent and made me want to tip less. On the food. All I can really say is that for the money we spent I would have rather had the $5 buffet at cici's. Between the table we had a sampler plate, ravioli, and cesar salad. All of our food appeared to be the pre-made frozen stuff you get from Sam's club. The ravioli stuffing is some sort of spinach/cheese concoction that was dry and stringy, the cannelloni was mostly shell, and the Cesar dressing appeared to be ranch dressing with some dijon mustard stirred in. This leaves two things we ate uncovered: the lasagna (which got some good reviews here) and the tortellini. The tortellini was adequate, by far the best thing we ate that night but not entirely what I would call 'flavorful'. The lasagna, oh man. It was the worst lasagna I've ever had. It was literally slimy - every single layer of it - which made it all smoosh apart and impossible to eat. I highly suspect it was some kind of Stoffer's knock off that was poorly cooked - the ricotta had an 'mcdonalds egg slab' consistency to it that I've never seen in anything cooked from scratch and the sauce was mostly water - all in all it was terrible. At this point we were considering just not getting cannoli, even though it's the whole reason we came, I mean, we were already $50 deep on food alone and had nothing even remotely satisfactory to show for it, but we soldiered on. When came it was good, not great, but wholly satisfying to a cannoli craving so I guess... mission accomplished? In short, don't ever eat here - but get a cannoli on carryout if you're in the mood and don't want to drive really far.
(2)
Sarah I.
We stopped in for dinner on a Saturday night and regretted not making reservations; we put our name in and came back an hour or so later. This place gets busy. They have a full bar and carry Italian beer, so you do have something to do while you wait. The bread at the table was warm and delicious. I ordered the gnocchi with bolognese sauce---it was great. Pillowy gnocchi smothered in a nice sauce. I saved room for dessert but regretted it. I could not taste the actual panna cotta because it was suffocating under an overpowering berry syrup/sauce that was too sweet to eat. I'd definitely have the gnocchi again but would try something else for dessert.
(3)
Sylvie S.
After reading the positive review in the World Herald, we came here for a birthday dinner. This is definitely a family run restaurant for good and bad. Service was a bit slow and noticeably preferential to "regulars", but the pasta was wonderful. We started with the calamari appetizer. Though tender and lightly breaded, the dish lacked seasoning. Salt and some acidity, a lemon wedge perhaps, would've improved it tremendously. I had the gnocchi with bolognese sauce. The savory meat sauce was a nice compliment to the tender gnocchi. The gnocchi had no hint of starchiness, a sign that the kitchen knows their stuff. We split the panna cotta for dessert. It was a little runny, but still a delicious finish to the meal. Bottom line - skip the appetizers, stick with the pastas, and always have dessert.
(3)
Colin S.
Finally got to eat here. Very good, legit Midwestern Italian food. Very meaty, very hearty, very filling. I LOVED the Moscato wine on their menu. I ordered the combination platter of lasagna, ravioli, cannelloni, and tortellini con panna. The lasagna was the highlight of the meal and would strongly recommend it. The ricotta cheese was very flavorful and the tomato sauce wasn't overpowering the meal trying to cover something up. The cannelloni (stuffed pasta shells) were the biggest surprise (in a good way) and were on par taste-wise with the lasagna. The ravioli was homemade, but nothing special. The tortellini con panna (with cream) seemed odd. The tortellini was served with a white sauce, while everything else on the plate was served with red sauce. However, it actually 'went' with the other 3 offerings and didn't detract from the overall meal. For dessert I ordered a cannoli. Pasta Amore scored big points in my book with their cannolis. I felt like I was back in New York City. I had two big quips with this place. The first was the olive oil. You judge a lot about an Italian joint by the quality of their olive oil. Unfortunately, the olive oil they use here is some generic store brand. The second flaw was the price. All in all this a cozy intimate place that would be great for a date. The food is better than your typical Italian restaurant. However, the price is too high relative to the quality of food. There are better Italian restaurants in Omaha that serve better food for the same price. That said, make sure you stop in here at least once and give Pasta Amore a fair shake.
(4)
Amanda R.
Went here with three friends for dinner last night. My meal was good, but not great. One of my friends ordered fettuccine alfredo, and sent it back because it was more like pasta in a thin cream soup. Our server got very snarky and gave us nasty looks for the rest of the evening. She asked if we wanted separate checks, and failed to mention the automatic 20% gratuity for splitting checks.
(3)
Luis M.
I paid $12 for a $9 salad. My wife paid $17 (I think) for a $11 bowl of pasta. 'Nuff said.
(2)
Jane K.
Most of the dishes are delicious. The owners go to Italy each year and pickup a couple new recipes that they bring back. Sometimes the service can be hit or miss.
(4)
Matt J.
First time going... I ordered the special for that night, shrimp risotto. It literally was minute rice soup. Not creamy, not tasty , not arborio rice...Hell it wasn't even real rice. I couldn't even eat it I was so dissappointed. $20 and I got a bland minute rice dish with 5 shrimp on top. There wasn't even any flavor to any part of the dish. Will not be returning.
(1)
Tom D.
Our family regularly dines at Pasta Amore. The food is generally good and reasonably priced. But we do have a couple of minor complaints that really should be addressed by the owners of the establishment. Without exception, we have been forced to wait for at least 20-30 minutes after the time that we had made reservations. It is clearly obvious that they overbook when taking reservations. Last Saturday, we waited 45 minutes and finally decided to leave. After telling the hostess of our intentions, she said that our table was almost ready and even wanted to show it to me. I told her that we had waited long enough and we proceeded to the door. She literally grabbed me by the arm and directed me to the table. Not a good start. The other complaint is that they clearly do not have enough wait staff for the number of tables. Getting good service is a hit or miss. This past weekend, it was clearly a miss. While we enjoy the food, our patience is growing thin with the wait times to be seated and the erratic service.
(3)
Mike J.
I was introduced to Pasta Amore by a coworker about five years. On the very first visit it didn't take long to decide what I wanted. Tortellini with cream sauce and bacon! How could that be bad? Well it wasn't. Not the first time, the second time, and all of the times up to now, many. There are a multitude of Italian restaurants in Omaha to chose from and it is hard to say that many of them are bad. What is easy to do is to say which ones stand out at the top. Pasta Amore does that. It is not a small place but with the divided dining areas it gives the feel of a small Italian eatery. Crisp white linen table cloths, sparkling table ware, and stylish deco along with the quality of the food make you feel like you should be paying far more than what the actual bill comes out to be. I mainly frequent them for business lunches since it is close to work but it works just fine for a nice evening out as well. The staff have always been fully attentive and many times the owner will come over and bring a smile to your face and make you feel like she has known you for years.
(4)
Joe T.
I've eaten here a number of times. It's a locally owned Italian restaurant. Food is always good, sometimes even great. Prices are slightly on the high side for Omaha but they are not too bad. Overall, this is a very nice restaurant.
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : No Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Classy Noise Level : Loud Alcohol : Full Bar Outdoor Seating : Yes Wi-Fi : Free Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : Yes
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.
Vicki S.
We were looking for a new pizza place and found this one on Yelp. I like the Pizza, I can see the comparison to Zio's and agree it's comparable if not better. I'll need to have a few more pies to make sure. You can order a slice which is really a personal size pizza, or a VERY large pizza. The topping selection is somewhat limited. We wanted a decent salad and got one. The fries are to die for and I don't typically eat fries... Try any flavor!
(3)Mark C.
Walked in on a Saturday evening after our reservation fell through at another nearby restaurant location. Greeted warmly by the receptionist/manager and asked if it was possible to get a table at the last minute. Manager was exceptionally helpful, friendly and understanding (5 Stars). Escorted to the bar where we were asked to wait a few minutes until a table came available and enjoyed a nice glass of wine. Bar has a decent selection of wine by the glass at a reasonable price ($8-10 dollars per glass). Once seated, our server was informative and knowledgeable as to the menu and specials of the night. Started with the combination appetizer which consisted of tomato caprese, roasted peppers, fried calamari, artichoke hearts and marinated olives. Olives, artichoke hearts and peppers were good, caprese was acceptable and the calamari lacked seasoning - quite plain even. The portion size was very good and could easily serve 2-3 people. Entrees were Pasta Combination (A pasta combination of cannelloni, lasagne, ravioli and tortellini in cream sauce with bacon) and Linguine Garibaldi (Linguine pasta cooked just right, then topped with fresh tomatoes, garlic, basil, olive oil and green olives.) Both entrees tasted good. (3 Stars) Entrees also come with a house salad and warm bread. Dessert was Tirami Su and Cannoli. Both were very good. (4 Stars) Pasta Amore is also the location where a mystery dinner theater is held regularly called Murder Amore. It is an interactive murder mystery dinner theatre production that takes place in the Party Room of Pasta Amore.
(3)Anna F.
This is absolutely one of the best Italian restaurants in Omaha. Chef Leo is from Italy, and frequently makes the rounds during dinner time to make sure that everyone is well taken care of. Ambiance is romantic but family friendly, typical of Italian decor. Order the tortellini with cream sauce (with bacon - to die for) and if you don't order the ricotta cannoli for dessert you're missing out.
(5)Martha J.
I've been here for birthdays and a girls nite out. If your coming with your BFF or special someone, expect to pay at least a $100, entrees, wine & dessert. I find the food to be good , I will get the spinach ravioli & My BFF, gets the chicken special of the evening, we both like the meal, wine per glass $8, better to get the bottle. Attentive service & chef can prepare, whatever or however you may like your food. The chef makes entrees you won't find elsewhere. Private & cozy. I recommend going at least once, try it out.
(5)Chad K.
I tried their special which I don't remember the name of, but which was essentially angel hair (capellini), with a Bolognese sauce, and an Italian sausage link. The pasta was fine and wasn't overcooked or gummy or anything else I hate pasta being. The Bolognese sauces was okay. Overall it had a decent flavor, but it was really heavy on the oil. I'm not sure if they drizzle some EVOO in their sauce and the chef got a little heavy handed with it or if they didn't drain the fat off of the meat before adding it to the sauce. Either way, there was a very high oil content to the Bolognese sauce. The Italian sausage link was good. Overall, just an okay meal. Nothing spectacular. My wife ordered the Chicken Piccata. She didn't go into detail, but she wasn't terribly impressed with it. Service was poor. It didn't seem to be a systemic problem as other tables with different waitresses were getting great service. Our waitress only had two tables and she seemed to struggle with it. Our waitress was absent-minded, inattentive, forgetting basic table waiting procedures (forgot to tell us the specials, we had to ask for the complimentary bread, etc.), and so forth. Nice location in Rockbrook Village. We dined outside for a Summer lunch and the temperatures were great and there was just enough of a breeze to keep any flying insects away. They do have a lunch menu and prices are about 30% less than their dinner menu. Overall, I expect more at this price point. The food could have more wow factor (mostly as it applies to taste as textures and appearance were fine). Service could be better. A manager should have noted we weren't getting the service we should have been getting and made appropriate adjustments, but there was no manager to be seen. We'll probably give it another try, but I am not in any hurry to do so.
(2)Niccole M.
Placed a take out order for the Firm I work for. Arrived to pick it up and rather than be greeted, the server jerked her head in my general direction and told another server, "its here for the to go". What the hell? It? Amazingly inappropriate. My food was good. One of the attorney's lunch, however, was inedible. The grease from the meat was pooled all over. It was probably the nastiest Bolo I have ever seen. She ate about three bites and declared it undesirable. Pretentious and snotty (are those the same descriptive words??). Next time the other attorney wants this for lunch, I will be sure to bring leftovers from home.
(1)Amy M.
It was my birthday and decided to try someplace new. This was lacking in so many areas. There was more wait staff than customers on a Saturday night. That was the first flag. We ordered the tomato bread, Two pieces, once piece per for $5. Not worth the price. Second flag. We ordered the Eggplant Parmesan and the Tortellini with cream sauce. The Tortellini had good flavor but could have used some additional cooking time. The Eggplant Parmesan came out on a big "warm" plate and had not cuts of eggplant but rather six thin slices of eggplant covered thickly with a tomato sauce. I literally had to scrape the sauce off to try and find the eggplant. Cooked any longer and it would have been a treasure hunt. The waitress was very nice but extremely slow when getting things to us including the bill. We were told they did not have a computer so it took some time. Confusing and sad. We should have left when we had the chance. This is definitely not a repeat place. Very over rated.
(1)George S.
Family gathering recommended for their steak. I had the Veal a la Parmigiana and it was wonderful. Served with pasta and a very tasty red sauce, the veal was tender and flavorful with a light crispy breading. I dove in and ate half before I thought of taking a photo. Excellent! (I tasted my wife's filet and it was great too!)
(5)Abbie L.
Good food and great service but definitely not worth the money. Spaghetti works, old Chicago, etc all have comparable food at half the price. The one thing pasta amore does well is cucumber vodka and lemonade!
(2)Christina P.
We went here for my husband's sister's birthday. This is her favorite restaurant, so I guess I had a little bit higher expectations than normal. The restaurant was nicely set up, definitely the fine dining atmosphere. The price range was around $15-$25 per item. Going to this restaurant, I was expecting it to be about this price range. After eating my dinner, I was disappointed in the quality of food compared to the price. I have eaten at Spaghetti Works many times. The food at Pasta Amore, in my opinion, was poorer quality and double the price. I got chicken parmesan. The breading was soggy, as if it were sitting too long in the sauce before they served it to me. My food was also room temperature, if not less when they served it to me. I am not sure if I would go back here just because I don't know if I could justify paying $15-$25 on one plate when I could get the same kind of food at Spaghetti Works for half the price.
(3)Nicholas H.
The fettucine Alfredo is one of the best in omaha. I hate tomatoes but the tomatoe bread here opened my eyes to tomatoes again....crispy bread and great flavor. Pasta more was catered in for my brothers wedding and it was a hit.
(4)George S.
Worst food I have ever had. I had just a salad and it was just lettuce. With tomato and the dressing was olive oil and lemon juice for 10.00 dollars and was terrible. Drinks are very over priced. SAVE YOURSELF FROM A BAD MEAL AND GO TO A REAL ITALIAN RESTAURANT CAUSE THIS PLACE IS NOT IT!!!!!!!!!
(1)Dan K.
Came across this by accident driving through Omaha and nearby meeting. Glad I didn't read the negative reviews-lunch was very good. Grilled chicken, asparagus over Angel hair with side salad. Great taste, nice lunch size portion, quiet setting.
(4)Michelle P.
Mediocre, at best. I ordered shrimp scampi over capellini: the crudely chopped garlic was raw, the white wine used in the sauce was not reduced or incorporated at all, the shrimp was over cooked, there were 3 random chunks of russet potatoes and a terrible slice of green bell pepper and a slice of red bell pepper (mostly pepper skin) that they tried to grill (I think). It makes me ill remembering the meal. I would not go back. It was by far the worst place I have experienced in quite some time. I do not recommend it!
(1)Josh H.
I really wish I would have checked out the yelp reviews before I spent money and my time at this place.. Anyways I had lunch here today with my buddy and I ordered the lasagna with the house salad. We were served our salads before the bread and the bread finally arrived halfway through the salad and the server delivered us two small rolls which were clearly frozen at one time. The salad was exactly as if you would go to Wal-Mart and buy a pre packaged mix except for at wal-mart you may actually get fresh lettuce. The house dressing was essentially tasteless and for the first time in my life I actually put salt on my salad in attempt to get some taste... Then came the lasagna which was also,dry and tasteless. So clearly the owner and or chef are cutting corners and trying to save money by sacrificing the quality of food by not serving fresh food. The décor is something straight out of 1990 and the cheap framed posters were even difficult to look at...
(1)Nate W.
I really hate writing bad reviews. Makes me sad inside. But this place really was that sad and bad. Ate there tonight. Party of 3. Busser came by and filled up 2 ice waters about 2/3 full. Yes, 2 waters. A few minutes later we flagged him down and got a third. Ok I can get over it, they forgot a water. Except the problems just added on from there. (Just a preface, It took almost 10 minutes for the server to acknowledge us.) We started with two small salads, a bowl of soup and salami and cheese plate. It took 25 minutes for the salami and cheese, 30 minutes for the salads and 35 for the soup. All of these dishes should be prepped in the back and ready to go. The cheese and salami was just sliced meat and cheese! How long does this take? Food came out 50 minutes after being ordered and was mediocre at best. Calamari was cold so I sent it back. The artichoke hearts were out of a can, along with the roasted red peppers. Overall I was really bummed. Slow and lacking service, as well as bad food. It does make me sad to write these unhappy reviews, but for $65 I should be happy. Also, I hope the restaurant reads these and takes my thoughts into consideration. I'm all for helping people improve!
(2)Tracy M.
I went back for a girl's night. I got the sampler again because I knew I really liked the lasagna last time. This time even that wasn't great. Nobody in my group was impressed with their meal. Especially for the price. I probably won't try this again.
(2)Wendy C.
This place was fine. Overpriced for what it is. My dish did not have much flavor. A member of our group got the angel hair with clams in white sauce which was pretty good. The ambiance is nice but the food is really not much better than Spaghetti Works for twice the price, and I wouldn't pay regular price for that...
(2)Pamela R.
My husband and I loved the food here. The salad was fantastic. I've lived in NE for 3 years and this was the best salad i've had outside of the Wholefoods salad bar. It was very fresh and had more to it than just iceberg lettuce and carrots. Our entrees (salmon for him & stuffed peppers for me) were very much to our liking. I was quite pleased with the fact that the entrees were not HUGE portions, but enough to be satisfied. The hostess was not the friendliest, but our waitress was. Overall it was a very enjoyable experience. We went for lunch which was more of the business suit crowd. We will return.
(4)Tess R.
Sooooooo disappointing! I really don't know how this place has such good reviews! I was looking for a decent Italian restaurant, non-chain, and read the reviews online and decided to try Pasta Amore. I really wish I had not! To start out nice, the restaurant is clean and has a good ambiance. Our party decided to sit on the patio since it was a nice evening. Our server was nice at first and suggested a few items after we asked. We ordered fried mozzarella and it was pretty gross. You could buy better cheese sticks from the freezer section of the grocery store. These were definitely not homemade, probably the cheapest frozen cheese sticks they could find. They also gave us rolls on the table, these were pretty bland, but ok, come to find out that they are not homemade either since they gave us the bread bag to take our leftovers in. For my main dish, I tried the combination plate of 4 different pastas since our server suggested it and said that all the pasta was made fresh. That could not have been further from the truth, the pasta did not taste homemade and was overcooked. None of the food made me gag, but I felt like I was force feeding myself because it was not good. My bf ordered the seafood pasta which he said was ok. My brother ordered the flattened meatballs special (another suggestion from the server) and was not impressed either. The red sauce was very bland, I would say that Prego is better. None of us finished our food, and that is saying a lot because the portions were not very big and the guys I went with always finish their plates. At the end of the meal, our server brought boxes for our leftovers and offered dessert. We said no and asked for the check. After 15 minutes and her coming out to another table several times, we had to ask for our check again. Another 15 minutes passed before we actually got the check. We were going to pay for it on a credit card, but we quickly paid in cash just so we could get out of there! I'm a little sad because I really wanted to find a good, local Italian restaurant, and this place was not even ok. A few of us even felt sick after the meal. I don't really like Olive Garden, but I would say that Olive Garden is 100 times better than this place. Another disappointment was the prices. The prices were SUPER high which did not correlate to the small plates and poor, poor food quality. I will never go back to this restaurant.
(1)Dianne M.
Went once, had no reservations was told it would be a 2 hour wait. Made a reservation, went back, still waited almost 30 minutes for our table. Calimari appetizer was very bland, would not order it again. Soup was good, lasagna was very good. Bread was warm. Husband said the marinara was watery but the meatballs in his spaghetti were good. Service started out very slow, but got better as the night went on. It is a very small, crowded restaurant. I doubt we will return. I would say Vivace's in Old Market is way better!!
(2)Lori R.
I've eaten here just a couple of times and frankly, I can make better "authentic Italian" food at home and I am 3/4 German. The service on all occasions was horrific and the wait staff in genereal just a shade off from outright rude. Haven't been back and never intend to.
(1)James U.
What can I say, I like to experiment. Man, I wanted a cannoli so bad - quick, yelp, where can I get a cannoli? Oh this place is right by me, but look at those mixed reviews... I guess it will be an adventure! Adventures aren't always a success. To begin, we made reservations and arrived promptly. It was nice, so we asked to sit outside, but there were exactly 0 available tables inside that would have been ready in the next 20 minutes, so I'm not sure what the hostess was planning to do if we said we wanted sit inside. No big crisis, but makes me leery of making reservations again and expecting to sit down on time. Next point, my guess is that tables are assigned to wait staff 'round robin' style rather than by section. We were our waitresses only table outside, and the service reflected that fact quite clearly. Our drinks were consistently empty, we saw our waitress for orders and food delivery only. She did take the time to try and make small talk right when she brought the check though. I think we talked about the weather but all I heard was "I know I was a terrible waitress all night, I hope this 30 second investment pays big dividends on my tip". It was transparent and made me want to tip less. On the food. All I can really say is that for the money we spent I would have rather had the $5 buffet at cici's. Between the table we had a sampler plate, ravioli, and cesar salad. All of our food appeared to be the pre-made frozen stuff you get from Sam's club. The ravioli stuffing is some sort of spinach/cheese concoction that was dry and stringy, the cannelloni was mostly shell, and the Cesar dressing appeared to be ranch dressing with some dijon mustard stirred in. This leaves two things we ate uncovered: the lasagna (which got some good reviews here) and the tortellini. The tortellini was adequate, by far the best thing we ate that night but not entirely what I would call 'flavorful'. The lasagna, oh man. It was the worst lasagna I've ever had. It was literally slimy - every single layer of it - which made it all smoosh apart and impossible to eat. I highly suspect it was some kind of Stoffer's knock off that was poorly cooked - the ricotta had an 'mcdonalds egg slab' consistency to it that I've never seen in anything cooked from scratch and the sauce was mostly water - all in all it was terrible. At this point we were considering just not getting cannoli, even though it's the whole reason we came, I mean, we were already $50 deep on food alone and had nothing even remotely satisfactory to show for it, but we soldiered on. When came it was good, not great, but wholly satisfying to a cannoli craving so I guess... mission accomplished? In short, don't ever eat here - but get a cannoli on carryout if you're in the mood and don't want to drive really far.
(2)Sarah I.
We stopped in for dinner on a Saturday night and regretted not making reservations; we put our name in and came back an hour or so later. This place gets busy. They have a full bar and carry Italian beer, so you do have something to do while you wait. The bread at the table was warm and delicious. I ordered the gnocchi with bolognese sauce---it was great. Pillowy gnocchi smothered in a nice sauce. I saved room for dessert but regretted it. I could not taste the actual panna cotta because it was suffocating under an overpowering berry syrup/sauce that was too sweet to eat. I'd definitely have the gnocchi again but would try something else for dessert.
(3)Sylvie S.
After reading the positive review in the World Herald, we came here for a birthday dinner. This is definitely a family run restaurant for good and bad. Service was a bit slow and noticeably preferential to "regulars", but the pasta was wonderful. We started with the calamari appetizer. Though tender and lightly breaded, the dish lacked seasoning. Salt and some acidity, a lemon wedge perhaps, would've improved it tremendously. I had the gnocchi with bolognese sauce. The savory meat sauce was a nice compliment to the tender gnocchi. The gnocchi had no hint of starchiness, a sign that the kitchen knows their stuff. We split the panna cotta for dessert. It was a little runny, but still a delicious finish to the meal. Bottom line - skip the appetizers, stick with the pastas, and always have dessert.
(3)Colin S.
Finally got to eat here. Very good, legit Midwestern Italian food. Very meaty, very hearty, very filling. I LOVED the Moscato wine on their menu. I ordered the combination platter of lasagna, ravioli, cannelloni, and tortellini con panna. The lasagna was the highlight of the meal and would strongly recommend it. The ricotta cheese was very flavorful and the tomato sauce wasn't overpowering the meal trying to cover something up. The cannelloni (stuffed pasta shells) were the biggest surprise (in a good way) and were on par taste-wise with the lasagna. The ravioli was homemade, but nothing special. The tortellini con panna (with cream) seemed odd. The tortellini was served with a white sauce, while everything else on the plate was served with red sauce. However, it actually 'went' with the other 3 offerings and didn't detract from the overall meal. For dessert I ordered a cannoli. Pasta Amore scored big points in my book with their cannolis. I felt like I was back in New York City. I had two big quips with this place. The first was the olive oil. You judge a lot about an Italian joint by the quality of their olive oil. Unfortunately, the olive oil they use here is some generic store brand. The second flaw was the price. All in all this a cozy intimate place that would be great for a date. The food is better than your typical Italian restaurant. However, the price is too high relative to the quality of food. There are better Italian restaurants in Omaha that serve better food for the same price. That said, make sure you stop in here at least once and give Pasta Amore a fair shake.
(4)Amanda R.
Went here with three friends for dinner last night. My meal was good, but not great. One of my friends ordered fettuccine alfredo, and sent it back because it was more like pasta in a thin cream soup. Our server got very snarky and gave us nasty looks for the rest of the evening. She asked if we wanted separate checks, and failed to mention the automatic 20% gratuity for splitting checks.
(3)Luis M.
I paid $12 for a $9 salad. My wife paid $17 (I think) for a $11 bowl of pasta. 'Nuff said.
(2)Jane K.
Most of the dishes are delicious. The owners go to Italy each year and pickup a couple new recipes that they bring back. Sometimes the service can be hit or miss.
(4)Matt J.
First time going... I ordered the special for that night, shrimp risotto. It literally was minute rice soup. Not creamy, not tasty , not arborio rice...Hell it wasn't even real rice. I couldn't even eat it I was so dissappointed. $20 and I got a bland minute rice dish with 5 shrimp on top. There wasn't even any flavor to any part of the dish. Will not be returning.
(1)Tom D.
Our family regularly dines at Pasta Amore. The food is generally good and reasonably priced. But we do have a couple of minor complaints that really should be addressed by the owners of the establishment. Without exception, we have been forced to wait for at least 20-30 minutes after the time that we had made reservations. It is clearly obvious that they overbook when taking reservations. Last Saturday, we waited 45 minutes and finally decided to leave. After telling the hostess of our intentions, she said that our table was almost ready and even wanted to show it to me. I told her that we had waited long enough and we proceeded to the door. She literally grabbed me by the arm and directed me to the table. Not a good start. The other complaint is that they clearly do not have enough wait staff for the number of tables. Getting good service is a hit or miss. This past weekend, it was clearly a miss. While we enjoy the food, our patience is growing thin with the wait times to be seated and the erratic service.
(3)Mike J.
I was introduced to Pasta Amore by a coworker about five years. On the very first visit it didn't take long to decide what I wanted. Tortellini with cream sauce and bacon! How could that be bad? Well it wasn't. Not the first time, the second time, and all of the times up to now, many. There are a multitude of Italian restaurants in Omaha to chose from and it is hard to say that many of them are bad. What is easy to do is to say which ones stand out at the top. Pasta Amore does that. It is not a small place but with the divided dining areas it gives the feel of a small Italian eatery. Crisp white linen table cloths, sparkling table ware, and stylish deco along with the quality of the food make you feel like you should be paying far more than what the actual bill comes out to be. I mainly frequent them for business lunches since it is close to work but it works just fine for a nice evening out as well. The staff have always been fully attentive and many times the owner will come over and bring a smile to your face and make you feel like she has known you for years.
(4)Joe T.
I've eaten here a number of times. It's a locally owned Italian restaurant. Food is always good, sometimes even great. Prices are slightly on the high side for Omaha but they are not too bad. Overall, this is a very nice restaurant.
(4)