Spumoni Restaurant — Restaurant in Los Angeles

We've been walking or driving by Spumoni what seems like our entire lives and decided to give it a try because their website menu goes the extra mile by displaying separate vegan and vegetarian options. The staff couldn't have been friendlier...giant smiles and humor from the moment we walked in to when we left. We wish the food was as good as the smiles we got.

The place is indeed cozy and looks like it, at one point, had been updated, but feels a bit like it may need another interior design update...or maybe that's part of the charm, the old-school Italian joint, serving classic Italian dishes, by an Italian family. I can live with it.

I had the Penne Caprino which (from their menu) is small tube pasta with sun-dried tomatoes, goat cheese, and garlic in a light cream sauce. The dish was much richer than I would have expected from a "light cream sauce". It was light on the sun-dried tomatoes, and if it had goat cheese in it, it was lost in the light cream sauce. Too rich for me this evening.

They offer a nightly gluten-free pasta option. My wife ordered the primavera with this option...the vegetables were fresh and the gluten free pasta was perfectly cooked, (which if you're a gluten-free-er, you know is hard to do) but the sauce tasted like just tomatoes with not much seasoning or anything else in it.

We also ordered a plate of plain spaghetti with no butter or oil for our child who just about eats only that. It came out with oil, so order not correct, but luckily our kid enjoyed it anyway. Very reasonably priced for a generous kids serving of pasta.

At the end we were brought vanilla ice cream with a little bit of chocolate sauce on it. We hadn't ordered this and thought it was very cool that everyone seems to get a free dessert...(Another table was brought a tiramisu.) The ice cream wasn't great though...that kind of generic vanilla ice cream restaurants get in large tubs. Tasted a little stale too. If you're called "spumoni" and you're doling out free dessert...shouldn't it be spumoni? (Or give folks a choice...that tiramisu at the other table looked pretty good.)

I think we'd give it another try, order some different dishes, if only for the fact that it's a local place that could use support, and mainly because the staff seemed so incredibly accommodating...

SPUMONI RESTAURANT is intimate, delicious, and family run. We have been dining here for years. It's like a special dinner at Nonna's, with no dishes to do. (Nonna is Italian for Grandma.)

The owner and maitre d, Vasik, remembers regulars, down to details like: Who eats cooked carrots and who doesn't? Who's a vegan? Who needs gluten free? And what your guests ordered last time. Meals are prepared southern Italian style. Their dishes are full-bodied, large, and delicious.

As a starter, olive tapenade and warm cubes of house baked "country bread" are served. But, be careful, this delicious finger food can be quite filling.

Gluten-free salads, entrees, and desserts are offered.

If possible, the chef will adjust his recipes to your dietary requirements. For example: When dining with our family, we bring in a gluten-free French bread which the chef slices then heats on foil in their oven. It is served with the house made, vegan/gluten free olive tapenade.

For dinner, my wife and I usually order the Caprice Salad (sundried tomatoes, slivered almonds, leaf lettuce, light Italian dressing) and have it split. On her half, shredded Parmesan cheese is sprinkled at the table.

Her favorite is the delicious, linguine el pesto. (pine nuts, pesto, and linguine pasta)

Mine is rigatoni pasta served in their rich, vegan, garlic, marinara sauce. Often, I bring a vegan meat analog in a sealed package. Sometimes it's "meatballs, or chicken slices, or shrimp or spicy Italian sausage." The kitchen, using a separate pan, lightly fries the vegan meat analogs, with a selection of fresh vegetables. then smothers them in their elegant, delightfully garlic, marinara sauce.

For dessert, a free serving of a scrumptious tiramisu. According to my wife, it's surprisingly light and wonderful. No vegan dessert is offered.

See, just as at Nonna's: everyone is very special.

STUFF: Limited outdoor seating on the boulevard is available. Everything is wheelchair accessible. Free parking behind the restaurant is easily accessible through their rear entrance. The restrooms are located near this entrance. Metered parking is usually available on...

We've lived in the Sherman Oaks environs for many years but we've never eaten at Spumoni Italian restaurant until recently. This past week, we were taken to Spumoni by some friends who have dined here before and were welcomed by the owner with genuine open arms. Since it was an early weekday night, there was no crowd so we were seated immediately. The place is sort of a non-descriptive room with minimal decorations but clean and pleasant. The waitstaff was quick and attentive and served an unordered plate of crushed black olives, olive oil and wine vinegar along with good pieces of sour dough bread as a starter. For my dinner, I ordered Ciopino and my wife had Spaghetti and meatballs. The food came quickly, well prepared, hot and tasty. I've had Ciopino many times before and this order was average, at best. It had a fair sampling of shell fish bathed in a fairly bland red sauce (my fault-I had requested limited spiciness). The plate was of moderate size, I guess, commensurate with the high cost, these days, of the ingredients. My wife's Spaghetti and meatballs was average, also but, she enjoyed it. Our co-diners ordered wine which we only sipped since we are not drinkers. Following the main course, we were served a portion of Tiramasu as a gratis dessert and this was enjoyed by all. The owner stood by and was ready and willing to engage with his diners and was very friendly. The price for this meal with the wine was fair and, if we want an Italian style dinner again, we'd consider Spumoni. Parking, limited in amount was free and right behind the restaurant as well as on Ventura Blvd. with parking meters as on any commercial street. So, in summary, this visit was good but not superb and can act as a nice local...