Mandola's Italian Kitchen — Restaurant in Austin

This used to be a five-star review. 1 star removed for dramatic price increase.

Price Prices are somewhat reasonable. Entrees are $14-22+. and they have several house bottles of wine for around $30. This is up from $10 to $17 entrees and $20 bottles of wine not long ago. Recent menu price increase was dramatic. It's spent $97 last time going there for 2.5 people. Before tip.

Food 4 stars The actual food, good. I've had several items there, I went with classics, such as the Lasagne, Chicken parm, eggplant parm. All of which were delightful. Portions are somewhat small considering it's Italian food, except lasagna, that's still pretty big.

Service Service gets null points, because they have none. You order from a line. They share tips and don't have table service, though there are people romping about. I'm a little frustrated by places that want/encourage you to tip as you initially pay (before the meal/service.)

Deli/Market 3 star My standards are quite high -- Tiramisu is good! ...I grew up on the east cost and went to a very proper New York Itallian deli (not in NY). It's called Giacomo's Itallian Market and is amazing, they make their own sausage, salamis, olive salads, marinated zucchini, marinated everything... blah blah blah HOWEVER, THIS IS NOT THE CASE here. At a real Italian market they will cut and give you meats that are homemade. This place has tiramisu and ice cream/ gelato but certainly not a proper Italian market/deli, no homemade sausage, no homemade salamis, no hot sopresotta. They DO NOT have marinated awesomeness in the form of homemade marinated zucchini, eggplant, roasted red pepper, etc. (Take some notes here Mandola's -- would really like it if you guys started making these, there is likely a 'market' for it. Note the pun. ha!

Desserts 4.5 stars They do make some awesome desserts, gelatto, eclaires, etc. This is pretty bomb. Go Mandola's.

Venue 4 stars Parking is okay, 2 hr parking limit on the signs which is usually enough. It's in a busy-trendy shopping center. They have a nice patio outside and a large indoor area with 3 separate...

We passed by Mandola's Italian Kitchen on N. Lamar Blvd. probably a hundred times on our way to Central Market. We saw they had a nice outside patio and we needed to wait for the summer heat to die down to try it. Living in Austin that means it's almost November.

Mandola's was not was we expected, but not in a bad way. It was different in a good way. The staff of Mandola's was amazing. The micro-chain's Director of Operations, Justin Silecchia was there that night and we had a great time talking to him about, what else, Italian food and the Amalfi Coast.

The rest of the staff was on fire moving people through the ordering line, gelato station and other queues. Extra praise for the bus person team who was at peak efficiency all night.

We knew nothing about Mandola's and were expecting a sit down table service option. Instead, you order your meal at a counter and they deliver it to your table. When I saw this, my expectations for a quality meal went down. I am happy to say. The food surpasses my expectations and was an enjoyable experience.

The owner hails from Sicily which is part of Italy depending upon who you ask. His family recipes are the basis for Mandola menu.

We tried the Shrimp Scampi and the Gnocci Bolognese along with the Ceasar Salad. Both main course were very tasty and best of all were a normal person portion size. Definitely try their bread with the meal.

Justin treated us to some gelato and tiramisu for dessert. The latter was a very generous portion and could easily serve two people (I will remember to not eat it by myself next time). Gelato was of course perfect.

The patio was a great choice to eat. There were a ton of families there, with a lot of very active children. We have five and remembered the days of trying to enjoy a meal out while managing the chaos. So not a romantic dinner, but entertaining. There is a fountain nearby if you like the sound of water in the background, which we do.

I would definitely recommend Mandola's for a good Italian meal in the casual market segment of restaurants. You will enjoy their hospitality from...

First time visiting. We were a little thrown off having to stand and view a menu then order prior to being seated.

The service was friendly and very prompt. We were given focaccia bread and seasoned oil right after sitting down. Then our appetizer came out at the same time as our meal which made the experience feel very rushed. From ordering to sitting, it probably only took like 10 minutes for our order to arrive. You can tell they don't want you lingering.

I fell in love with the dipping oil for the bread. The seasoning mix was heavenly and bread was very soft with a nice crust.

I wasn't expecting much from the food bc it came out so fast but it really surprised me. The fettuccine Alfredo was perfectly done. Very simple traditional style with the best fettuccine pasta I've had. The chicken parmesan was excellent. The breading was light and crisp and the chicken breast was cooked nicely. The marinara sauce was fresh and flavorful. I really appreciate simple ingredients done well and they do a great job of that. The calamari zucchini fritte was a great appetizer. The breading was well seasoned, the zucchini was sliced thin. I loved that the calamari included rings and tentacles. They were small and perfectly bite sized which made them great for dipping in that delicious marinara sauce.

I recommend not sitting under the AC vents. The condensation was dripping on us throughout the meal and I didn't really like the idea of it getting into our food.

The atmosphere feels charming and rustic. I really love how simple and straight forward everything was.

We made sure to pick up some sweet treats to take home. We would definitely go back when we're in the area again. I'm looking forward to exploring more of the menu and...