Lido's Italian Foods — Restaurant in Lemon Grove

Lido's is better than a franchise but it's probably Italian that you could make better at home. Staff was courteous and fast; food is as generic as one would expect Italian food to be but they're served in generous portions. Note: Menu states you'll receive a free complementary pasta if you finish your (own) entree. So, I took them up on that offer- finished my serving, asked for the complementary; it wasn't offered by our waiter, and was served a small serving of plain spaghetti and house marinara. Apparently, you're not served what you just had- it's a bit misleading but free is free; no complaints.

My date ordered the Lasagna and I had the "house burgundy" (French, anyone?) and Spaghetti with Olive oil and Garlic; otherwise known as the 'Spaghetti aglio e olio'. A favorite of mine and a "go-to" when the menu is in-doubt. It's easy to make, hearty and is a fine indicator of what you're going to expect the rest of the menu to be like; flavors, ingredients, seasoning, etc. Again, aglio e olio is one of the easiest dishes you can make and like an establishment's house marinara: you should be able to gauge how much attention they pay to their seasoning. And, I'll tell you just that!

A generous portion of Spaghetti with parsley was delivered along with my date's lasagna. The lasagna being served in a small casserole dish it was baked to death in cheese. Just mountains of it. Sure, that's not a bad thing- the more cheese the better, I say! When I asked about what they thought about the lasagna I was answered with an despondent reply regarding the cheese,... On to my plate, a generous serving of spaghetti- with nary seasoning soaked in olive oil.

"Now, now," I thought to myself, "You know the garlic gets sifted down to the bottom." So I dug down, spun it up and gobbled a mouthful of more olive oiled spaghetti and minced garlic. Okay, so that was pretty disappointing. Minced garlic is probably the laziest way to do it but I've had some pretty successful results and interesting flavors at other places but when you're making 'Spaghetti with Olive oil and Garlic' you don't deserve it literally. I can probably estimate it was a teaspoon of garlic and barley enough to flavor the olive oil. The minced garlic hadn't even goldened (meaning they didn't simmer them long enough to extract the flavor before dousing) and I was literally eating small kernels of soggy minced garlic with A LOT of pasta.

I came based on the high reviews of this place. Most I can see myself agreeing with but it's definitely not better than half the hole-in-the-walls or up-scaled Italian eats I've been to and I can guarantee that you can cook this stuff better at home. I think the only reason I'd take people to Lido's is- well, I probably wouldn't. It's not a bad place but it's not a good place either. It's just above par and if you spent have a decent time with prep you could do better. And, that's what I expected: to experience something better than what I could make- I came, tasted, knew I could cook it better and left; I'm not returning to a place and paying for something that I can make on my own with better ingredients and probably less than...

I experienced the worst customer service from a restaurant here ,I ordered almost $100 worth of food thru ubereats (including taxes,tip,del.) when my order arrived I was missing two meals plus the salads and bread ,of course right away we called the restaurant to let them know and a girl answered the phone ,very dry and not friendly at all. She said well yea you can come pick up the missing items and btw your food wasn’t $100 it was $85 (what was the point of that comment?) she was trying to be smart and was very defensive. I made my way to the restaurant and I let her know I was the one who called with the Uber eats missing items. Again not friendly at all with an ugly tone in her voice (that’s how I knew it was her) ,she said ok hold on. She brings me one meal and I asked where is the other?? She said oh yea we’re not making the other one because the kitchen said they’re sure they packed it into the bag so we’re only replacing the one we admit forgot to make you. I said wth you made me drive all this way and you couldn’t call me? I said okay so I paid for something and I’m just not going to get it? She said yea idk call ubereats that’s not our problem. I told her look idk who’s fault it was ,not sure if you forgot or if the driver took my food but the point is I didn’t receive it and I was actually respectful the whole time until she said “we’re not making it”. I said absolutely not call the manager or owner ,right away a man who was clearly working the kitchen came out and said he yea no problem we will make it for you. Meaning this girl just took it upon herself to make that call,cause a whole debate for no reason? I ended up getting both meals and honestly the taste of the food doesn’t matter to me,I will never return here because of that disgusting customer service I received from the girl with pony tails and braces. Her attitude was absolutely disgusting and the whole time I was waiting I was hearing her talk to other customers and that made it clear she is just an ugly human being in general. She has no customer service skills and an ugly attitude that makes her ugly inside and out. People like that don’t progress in life unfortunately. Thank you to Andres for taking care of my situation at the end! He was helping someone while trying to step into our debate so I appreciate...

Ah, Lido's. The name evokes visions of candlelit dinners, flowing Chianti, and the soothing strains of Italian music in the background. What do you actually get? A gastro-adventure straight to the snack aisle of your nearest convenience store.

Let's start with the hors d'oeuvres, or as Lido's likes to call it, "a chef's journey into the heart of the '90s lunchroom." Picture this: a plastic ramekin filled with precisely seven Cheez-It crackers (yes, I counted) and a square of Lunchables cheddar. No garnish. No flair. Just the unapologetic crunch of nostalgia and the slightly sweaty texture of processed cheese. Très magnifique!

The waiter presented it with such flourish you'd think he'd just handed us the Mona Lisa of appetizers. "Our finest pairing," he said, without a hint of irony. I half expected him to pull out a Capri Sun and pierce it for us tableside. I politely asked if this was a joke. His response? “That’s how we keep it casual here.” Casual? Sir, this isn’t casual; this is culinary gaslighting.

The rest of the meal wasn’t even worth salvaging. The breadsticks were cold, the pasta was overcooked and drowning in bland marinara, and the tiramisu was a soggy mess that tasted like someone spilled coffee on a sponge. But honestly, after the snack attack that was the starter, everything else just felt like a backdrop.

The only redeeming part of the evening was the exit, where I got to share a knowing, pity-filled glance with another couple clearly wondering if they’d accidentally wandered into the wrong restaurant.

In summary, if you’re looking for a unique dining experience that will have you laughing, crying, and questioning your life choices all at once, Lido’s is your spot. Just be sure to BYOP—Bring Your Own Pepperoni. Apparently, that costs extra. Lido’s isn’t...