Scardina Specialties — Restaurant in Milwaukee

You know a place is good when you go twice in 24 hours after first trying it out!! This place is the real deal… and I didn’t think anyone could be nicer and more accommodating than Damien, until you meet his mom. Everyone bends over backward to help, offer suggestions. You begin to feel like you’ve been transported to an actual Italian cafe and you’re being welcomed like you’ve been coming for years:) Authentic little Italian spot - packing more delicious food options than you can imagine!

Located at their new spot in Riverwest, easy to find. Street parking. Super clean.

The first afternoon we arrived 20 minutes before closing and ordered sandwiches to go - my husband got the house original specialty Sasizza Originale (a warm panini) - which he said was amazing and packed with flavor. I got the Cartoccio, also very good. Damien handed us these things that looked like mini cannolis while we waited for him to make our order fresh and wrap it to go - I’m not even sure what they were but they were out of this world delicious!! I’ve included a photo.

Saturday we stopped in around 11:30 to get Sicilian pie slices - if you ask questions, they are more than willing to give descriptions, advice… honestly, you can’t go wrong!

There is limited seating, or take it to go… so many options on their on the wall menu and not one thing was short of incredible - fresh, delicious - worth every bite and calorie! Pick up sandwiches, salads, pizza pie to take & bake. They offer Sicilian style on Saturday - totally worth the visit! We are definitely adding this to our “regulars list” and...

My girlfriend and I popped in here on a Saturday at the end of April to see if we could find some Sicilian food in Milwaukee that would remind us of the trip we'd just completed to Italy and Sicily. The reviews looked terrific, so we gave it a go. We found the father and son that own and operate the business to be just terrific guys, and they offered us samples of their products while we chatted about their Sicilian heritage and product offering. The canoli, Diavolo sandwich, and capocollo (spicy) were awesome! I noticed they were filling quite a number of orders of spiedini during our short visit. We hope to go back and try those, as well as their famous take-and-bake pizza. Unfortunately we were on the road for a while and couldn't have kept those refrigerated at the time. But it definitely seems like a well run operation, by authentic artisans who are experts in their craft. We look forward to trying more of their products in a couple of weeks....

The crown jewel of Riverwest. I've been going to Scardina's for years, including at their old location on Chambers, and they've always been THE best Italian deli in Milwaukee. The paninis are authentically Sicilian, the take-n-bake pizzas are the best, the fresh deli and sausages are very high quality and ever since moving to their new location on Locust, they've expanded their menu to include pasta, bakery and many other specialties.

I ordered the Diavolo panini for years. Their prosciutto is especially great and well-priced per lbs. The spiendini is heavenly. The cannoli are the best. I could go on and on. There isn't a single thing behind the deli glass I wouldn't recommend and I've tried almost everything.

Damien and the rest of the family so kind and vital members of the Riverwest community. I moved to Chicago two years ago and I've missed Scardina's ever since. They're a hidden gem that should be regarded as one of the best Italian delis in the...