I Bambini Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Mooresville

Yall I think I found one of the best italian restaurants in Charlotte(ish) area. Mama Ricotta’s was ranked high for a while but I fear I have a new number one spot contender now due to price point and quantity and quality.

This unassuming strip mall italian restaurant named Bambini had some of the best fettucine alla carbonara I’ve ever had and that’s coming from someone who’s been to Italy. The staff are definitely italian or resemble it and know what the hell they’re cooking in the back. The prosciutto was so tender and soft. My bf ordered some chicken, rice, and something combo from the chicken section and the chicken melted in our mouths.

Our server Marco was entertaining and hilarious. We left and forgot our leftovers but he knew how much we loved the food and saved it for us without us knowing. We were 20 mins on the road when we realized and turned around. That said a lot- because as a server myself, I’ve thrown people’s food away when they hadn’t come back in minutes.

For $15, you get a HUGE plate of pasta, salad or soup, and a drink!! We had to take leftovers home. they also have lunch buffets for $9-15 (the specific price is shown on their google map photos in other peoples pics)

Go try...

A large group of local seniors had an 8 dollar buffet. There was a large selection but the place was packed. The management required plastic gloves for the diners to serve their food. There was a group of salads on the first table. The fish salad included tiny shrimp and squid. If youve shield away from squid because it looks creepy this is a good place to try it. Large old squid tastes like cooked rubber band but these were tiny and not rubbery. Small slices of bread and butter graced each table. Service was prompt even tho I didn't see many employees. There were pieces of pot roast in sauce, strawberry cake and a delicious flan. The potato salad had no mustard. Hooray. Italians start their meals with salad. I liked the bacon and spinach. Nothing was over sauced. Strips of carrots are a lot easier to eat than chopped. There was breaded zucchini and battered fried tiny mushrooms.and what I guessed was cheese stuffed into boiled noodles. The most surprising thing was the fact I didn't see...

It's just not very good. The first time I went I did dine in, service started out fine but then forgot about us and we had to walk up to the front to ask for our check because we never had our waiter come by after the food came out. The bread is good but that is the only part of the food experience I would want again. The pastas are all over cooked to the point of being mushy, the sauces remind me more of mexican salsa (without the flavor) than an Italian sauce, and the lasagna tasted like it had stuffing inside of it(?). The salad and soup were subpar. They have a large menu, reminiscent of a Mexican restaurant where they just swap out one or two items. That could be considered good or bad but in this case it's bad because it makes all the food taste like it's mass produced in the morning and then waiting around until the evening for someone to eat. 100 times out of 100 I would choose to eat at Olive Garden if my only two Italian options were that...