Cosi Cucina Italian Grill — Restaurant in Clive

It's been a few years since I've visited Cosi Cucina Italian Grill...which really doesn't make sense since I literally live two block away. In fact I don't know if I've been inside since Peter Renzo took over the business in 2017...

It had been so long that I almost forgot the business' main entrance is in the rear of the building... The parking lot is HUGE with spaces to the West and East of the restaurant as well as more along the South side. We were a party of 12 with a 4:45 PM reservation on a Sunday evening.

Our meal was flawless (in my humble opinion) from being seated to when we walked back to our vehicles at the end of the night... Everything was great! Our meal consisted of shared appetizers, our entrees, a shared pizza, and shared desserts...a few fountain drinks and A LOT of $4 glasses of house wine (one of the happy hour specials).

We have a great group! Almost extended family at this point so we tend to share a lot across the table...

Appetizers I tried: Onion rings, calamari strips, and the artisan stuffed mushrooms My entree: Ziti Cucina made into the "Pasta Special" with two meatballs and additional Diana sauce Shared pizza: Zesty honey garlic chicken alfredo Shared desserts: Cheesecake and the hot apple cake

I could try to describe the food, but you're really better off to use the menu links, read the item descriptions, and then let your imagination do the rest of the work. That being said your imagination will probably fall short of reality. I couldn't have believed the food would taste as good as it did... Definitely not what I remember from my last visit, but the company might have had something to do with that.

The atmosphere is classic. Subtle lighting. A balance that makes you think casual and upscale all at the same time. A perfect spot to grab lunch or dinner and an excellent choice for a date night. Seating is a combination of booths and tables and chairs.

Our service (Ethan) was top shelf from the minute we sat down, to when our bills were finalized, and the "see you again soon"s were said as we headed to the door.

I'm not a big dessert guy. Usually I could take it or leave it... But if I could make one suggestion for Cosi Cucina and have it stick with you... Save some room in your budget and appetite to try at least one of the desserts. If I left here again without trying something off the dessert menu I think I'd be kicking myself shortly after leaving... The items on the dessert menu are well constructed, aesthetically pleasing, and truly decadent!

If you haven't been to Cosi Cucina yet you really need to check this place off your list. Or... If, like me, you haven't been to Cosi Cucina in a while... It's time to remedy that mistake and get back there... Life is too...

We had looked at eating at two other restaurants that were closed so we decided to try Cosi Cucina. Wow! Am I thankful the other restaurants were closed. They are great restaurants but not as awesome as Cosi Cucina! The moment we walked in the "back door," we were impressed by the aromas, cleanliness, friendliness and comfortable atmosphere! They were VERY busy but we were still waited on in a timely manner, less than 10 minutes, by the owner, Peter! We found out later that this was our waitresses second shift at Cosi. She had come over to introduce herself and apologize. Such a gracious soul! The owner also took our drink and food order. Anyone who has been a server totally understands having a hard time getting to all the tables when busy. The fact that the owner waited on us blew our minds! We have both been servers and have never had an owner jump in for us like that!

Nikki did an amazing job of waiting on us the rest of the night!

All the staff were very friendly and sincere. It feels like family! The food was the best we've ever tasted! The owner ran out a brownie as we were leaving to thank us for coming. They knocked it out of the park!

We couldn't wait to go back so went back again less than a week later. Again, we had amazing service because Nikki was our waitress again! 😍

Their Bruschetta comes loaded with tomatoes, perfectly seasoned and cooked to perfection. You have to try their pizza, crispy and amazing flavor.

The gorgonzola salad is light but full of flavor. The lobster Farfelle, we added shrimp, was wonderful! We split the meal and it was still more than we could eat.

The cannolis are the best I've ever had! The Italian Margarita is generous and very yummy! You will only need one ☺️

The teamwork is amazing, the owner was helping out again! Not just visiting with patrons but bringing the food to the tables.

Don't worry about the average price, the portions are huge! You will be taking food home. Even if the portions were smaller, the food is so worth the price!

We've eaten there three times now and had stellar food and service! We will definitely be regulars! I can't believe that we missed this great restaurant for so many years!

Don't miss out...

My mom is in town from Florida, and when she lived here she would get Cosi Cucina on her way home from work at least once a week. I would always steal her bread. When we were talking about where to go for dinner, she really wanted Cosi.... I'm not a huge fan of italian food. I'm a really picky eater... I don't like vegetables or too much red sauce. I begrudgingly said yes. On our way there, I looked through the menu and found two things I'd be willing to try. When we got there, we were greeted and seated by the owner. The bread was soft and warm and just a little crusty on the bottom, perfection. My mom ordered her favorite, a chicken calzone. We actually got to see it baking in the wood fire oven. I ordered the Potato Ravioli. I have never tasted something so delicious in my life. My mom got her calzone, and the cheese wasn't melted, so they re-fired it. She got through most if it, but noticed the knot on one end of the calzone was still dough. She asked for a manager and the owner came over and introduced himself. He was super friendly, and way more accommodating than we could have hoped. Everybody at our table, except for the 1-year old, has worked in food service. We weren't looking for anything special by calling the manager. We were just looking to let him know about it. He had the cook make her another calzone, gave us our dessert for free, and put the employee discount on our check. He had to work really hard to convince my mom to let him make another calzone. As many times as she reassured him that he didn't need to, he insisted and said that he wants to make sure that every single person who walks into his restaurant, leaves happy. We left very pleased. I will certainly be stopping by when I'm on that side of town so that I can grab some to-go...