Cariera's Cucina Italiana — Restaurant in Dearborn Heights

I wrote the 5 star review for this restaurant below 3 years ago and have never felt compelled to change it until today. Unfortunately today one of my closest friends was treated badly, and screamed at irately by, who we we were eventually were told, was one of the owners. We came in this evening expecting to have a nice late dinner. We ordered a couple of glasses of wine. Her's unfortunately was not the correct one and she sent it back, mine had a long piece of lint and I requested a new pour. Our waiter graciously returned with new glasses, an appetizer, along with my child's dinner. We were seated outside. I had to take a call but noticed my friend get up and head back in. Moments later she arrives back at the table followed by the very apologetic waiter. Her words to him were "I did not deserved to be talked to and treated that way."

I found out that the moment she walked in, she was not greeted with a hello or asked what she needed. She was confronted angrily by the lady behind the bar (who was still helping another customer at the time). The woman immediately began to yell at her about the wine without even asking why she was inside or what her inquiry was about. She snapped "This IS Reisling, that is what you wanted, RIGHT!!" Yes it was, but that was not her concern. The Lady: Then WHAT IS IT???" She was simply there to request another glass since there was a gnat in her glass. Now, she wasn't asking for it to be free or there to complain about being outside. She was simply there to get another glass, adding to the bill would have been just fine. The glass was not replaced, she walked back to the table. The waiter came back and told us that he was told by her that we were no longer to be served. We were told by the waiter that she was stressed. We paid for what we were served and the entire table left.

To the Owner...what was it about this person, who merely stood there, that compelled you to act this way? Why were we all no longer to be served at your restaurant?

I've come here countless number of times. I supported this restaurant during the pandemic as well as encouraged friends, co-workers and family to do the same. I recognize the value in supporting a restaurant that has been in the community for years. It is unfortunate that it has to end this way

3 years ago... Great Italian Food, honestly the best Italian food I’ve had in a long time. Each dish was made to order and you could tell everything was fresh. Portion size was good, prices were great. Our waiter Jeff was excellent and provided good suggestions. I had the tiramisu for dessert and it was great as well (made in house I believe). They also have a good selection of wines and they had a fully stocked bar. I will...

This place continues to outdo themselves.

Starting off with the bread, imagine crazy bread but 100x better. ThatI may not sound like everyones cup of tea, but trust me. It is incredibly soft and somehow seasoned to perfection with just the right amount of parm right on top.

Next up I had the option of soup or salad. After hearing they had a loaded potato with bacon soup or a minnestrone I opted for the potato soup. It had just enough bacon in it that resulted in a very subtle but undeniable smokey flavor. It also included some veggies and the potato chunks were perfect size. I would like to state that I proceeded to dip the bread into the soup and it was absolutely excellent - that being the soup on its own as well as in tandem with the bread. Even with the bacon, the soup was a perfect creamy and cheesy and salty trio and not one of those tones overpowered the others. The occasional carrot in the soup also helped cut through the thoroughly inherent hearty-ness of the soup to potentially convince yourself that this cup of soup isn't likely 600 calories.

So we now move on to "the big enchilada" being my veal parm. They offer multiple different variations of combination plates where you can essentially combo 2 items but you also have the option of pairing any single item with a side of fettuccine alfredo.

In my case I opted for the veal parm and fettuccine combo, I know, not the most typical pairing but there is something special about being able to enjoy the veal parm which is a dish served with red sauce, in conjunction with the butter garlic cream base of the alfredo rather than just red on red.

The breaded veal itself was tender and cooked to perfection topped with a healthy serving of gooey melted mozzarella and finished with a red sauce that has the perfect amount of sweetness, seasoning, and acidic notes. Pair that with the fettuccine and alfredo that is clearly home made and made with love, it found a delicate balance of cream and cheese. Alfredo from a can or from an olive garden tends to be way too much of "cheese forward" take on a classic, however, this sauce perfectly complimented the veal parm and the perfectly cooked al dente noodles.

While I did sit at the bar and enjoy two glasses of cabernet sauvignon while waiting for my order to be prepared for carry out, the bill was incredibly reasonable. Given it was new years eve the restaurant was packed and carry out orders were flying out the door, however, that did not hinder the excellent service that I received at the bar while drinking my red and waiting for the food to come out.

I highly recommend this restaurant for anyone in the area, and for anyone who isn't, it is...

Visited this lovely restaurant with my sister and brother in law. We were seated quickly despite a crowded room. Waiter was good at getting our drink order but got somewhat busy after that resulting in slower service than I'd have liked. We waited about 5 minutes to place our order (after ordering appetizers). We had bruschetta, spinach and artichoke dip with mini garlic toast and shrimp cacciatore to begin. As the servings were substantial, we opted for only two main course items for the three of us.

The bruschetta was just right with fresh bread, tomatoes and mozzarella. Spinach and artichoke dip was all win with toast crackers and the bread we were brought to complement the fantastic dip. The shrimp cacciatore was excellent with my brother in law and I enjoying the last of the plentiful peppers and onions that came with it. All was just as it should be.

She ordered the linguini carbonara with shrimp, he got the daily special of strozzapretti, learning from the owner who had stopped by to check on us the correct pronunciation for the delectable sausage, pasta and palomino sauce dish. I was fortunate to get good portions of each meal. Both were wonderful, loaded with flavor and texture.

If forced to choose, I'd have to say I preferred the strozzapretti, if only because it was out of my usual range of selections. The sausage had a mildly spicy and wonderful taste to it, melding perfectly with the pasta and sauce. The linguini with shrimp was exceedingly tasty, one of the best I've ever had. Largely because of the excellent carbonara sauce and plentiful shrimp. A fabulous meld of pasta, shrimp and sauce, it was extremely satisfying.

I was so glad I had opted not to order an entree as that allowed me to try both of them, likely eating more than I would have had I ordered a separate entree.

As noted, service caused us to slow down, talk and thoroughly enjoy the meal, which ended up being very much a good thing as it had been a rush rush day and taking that time to slow down and savor the food was the right thing to do. I'd love to go back as there was nothing I didn't enjoy as part...