Cafe Italia — Restaurant in Bowling Green

My husband and I walked in for lunch at 11:30 on a Saturday and got seated immediately as there was no wait. We were led to a booth on the right side of the restaurant and greeted by a very friendly waitress.

Appetizer: we shared the fried cheese, which is an order of mozzarella sticks, served with a marinara dipping sauce. What we enjoyed about these were they were not greasy at all, so they really did not feel like they were sitting heavily on our stomach.

Bread service: All tables receive bread service, and ours came with three rolls. The bread was good, and although it was seasoned well enough, I think they could up the ante by serving it alongside olive oil for dipping.

Entrées: Most of the entrées come with your choice of either a side salad or a soup of the day. I chose the side salad with the house dressing, And the dressing was a pleasant surprise. It is thicker than any dressing I am used to, and it is tomato-based. It heavily reminds me of marinara sauce, but that’s not exactly what it is. I loved it, and I will probably stick to ordering this dressing in the future.

My main dish was the pasta combo, which is tortellini, ziti, manicotti, and lasagna with meat sauce. This comes all baked together and covered with cheese, served in the same bowl. My preference would have been for this to be separated out and served as a pasta sampler, however, I did clarify before I ordered how it would be served so that’s not something I’m going to hold against the restaurant. The lasagna with meat sauce was the clear winner for me, the flavor was so robust and delightful. My second choice would be the manicotti, which is filled with a rich and salty ricotta cheese that I’m still thinking about.

My husband got the Tortellini Michaelangelo, which is a tricolored tortellini served in a thick and creamy mushroom sauce. He enjoyed the flavors of the dish, but it was rich enough that he decided to eat a small portion there and take the rest home to enjoy at a later time. For him, the star of his meal was the tomato basil “soup of the day,” which is made with a cream base. We both agreed that this is the soup that we will crave this upcoming winter!

Dessert: we shared the house made tiramisu and we got the last piece only 30 minutes after they had opened so it is either very popular or was left over from the previous day. It was a large portion, which was nice for sharing. We loved the espresso and cacao flavors and how they dusted the top of the dessert and plate.

What kept it from being Five Stars for us was the seating arrangement.

The booth that we sat in was set for four people, but it was small enough that I’m not sure how anyone would be comfortable trying to fit four adults there. Our knees were touching the whole time, and we stepped on one another’s toes under the table several times. I have a small frame and I’m only 5’2, but average sized people would be uncomfortable. The booths are actually made so that they are the opposing side of the table behind you, so when that guest moves around it shoves your booth around as well. This is also the reason that they can’t move the booth any further back from the table to give you more room, which makes it feel quite squished. We will ask for a table the next time and try that out!

Service: Our waitress was absolutely lovely and so attentive. She answered our questions and we were served in a timely manner.

Overall we had a lovely lunch, and we are rooting for Cafe Italia to remain on River Street for many...

Update 2: Third time is still a charm! We went for one of my best friend's birthday, and she absolutely loved her Shrimp and Scallop scampi. I had Veal Florentine this time, and tomato bisque. It was absolutely divine. I don't even like tomato based soups most of the time! But I could eat the tomato bisque forever. We also had the calamari, and it was perfectly seasoned and crisp. Everyone at the table enjoyed their food.

Update: I went back with a friend, who tried the restaurant for the first time. And it only got even better! There's a bright and shining new star in Bowling Green Restaurant culture, and their name is Café Italia. I've been privileged to go to Italy twice in my life, and I think this is one of the best and most authentic Italian restaurants I've ever been to. The owners are SO kind. We tried the crab stuffed mushrooms, I had Salmon Piccata, my friend had the Chicken Romano, and we both tried the last tiny bit of the potato roasted red pepper soup (which was to die for), and the Tiramisu.

I say with all seriousness, that there are a few restaurants I've been to in Bowling Green which I feel would deserve a Michelin Star, and this is one of them.

Thank you to August for once again being an amazing server! Please be patient when waiting as they are still building the staffing and the demand for their food is already very high. It's worth the wait.

Cafe Italia has only been open 5 days, and already it's a hit! We got there just in time, because people were lined up out the door after we got seated. August was a fantastic server.

I will say have some patience with them because they are still getting staffing set up, and I think the positive response was overwhelming. However, this positive response is well deserved.

We tried the bread knots, the garlic bread, and the pasta sampler. I got the cream of Broccoli soup as well. Every single item was fresh made and made from scratch. The pasta sauce was a sugar based American style sauce. I asked the owner if she would consider going to an olive oil based sauce. She said that the feedback she received was that people didn't like the olive oil based sauce. Whoever said that, I am not happy with you. That is the most signature thing about true Italian food and you basically ruined it for the rest of us.

However, regardless of the pasta sauce being American or Italian, the food was divine. I seriously almost cried over the Broccoli soup. When something really is exceptional, my emotions come out.

Thank you for a wonderful experience and I hope you have great success for at minimum...

From the moment you walk in it smells delicious in there! My husband ordered an Italian beer. I ordered a glass of Riunite and my daughter had a Coke zero. For appetizers, we ordered the garlic, cheesy bread and the bruschetta plus our waitress brought over a basket of homemade garlic knots! I highly recommend the bruschetta. It was so delicious. I could eat that dish all by myself. The garlic cheesy bread was garlic. Cheesy bread. You can’t go wrong with that.. My daughter ordered the manicotti with a side of meatballs, my husband ordered the chicken Capparelli and I ordered linguine with red clam sauce. Let me tell you I am a New York Italian and I also graduated top of my classes as a Chef at the Niagara Falls culinary Institute. This pasta was fresh and made to order you could tell when it came out. You don’t get boxed pasta here. It was a very authentic Italian meal Delicious and our server from Rhode Island. I’m sorry I can’t remember her name was amazing. She told us the specials was very friendly and was attentive, but not too attentive if you know what I mean. We had to take food home you got so much and we ended up ordering desserts to go. I ordered the Italian cream cake. My daughter ordered the tiramisu and my husband got the lemon cake. All three cakes were totally delicious. Very authentic Italian again if you’re looking for a big dessert, the tiramisu was the largest, the Italian cream cake was perfect, but my husband thought his lemon cake was cut a bit small. With the food, the desserts, the drinks I think our bill came to about $120 which is a great for three people!!! We will definitely be back!!! Praying we get the same waitress again. I’m gonna...