Maggiano's Little Italy — Restaurant in Overland Park

Aaaahhhh.

You know that satisfying feeling you get after you completely fill up on a feast with your family?

That's what this experience felt like!

My wife and I decided to do something amazing for our anniversary and we booked a day here just for the occasion.

We got in really quickly which was super nice.

We ordered the appetizer sapling dish, eggplant parmesan, fettuccine Alfredo, chicken parmesan, mashed potatoes, and topped it off with the desert sampler!

From the appetizers I loved the fried zucchini so much! It was crispy on the outside and melted like a sauce in my mouth. It was surprisingly my favorite food of the night, which is saying something!

The flavor of the chicken parmesan was perfect and so was the spaghetti it was served on. I ate some of the chicken with the mashed potatoes and the garlic added a powerful blast of flavor that just blew me away, it was so delicious! With good portion sizes it also meant more for later too!

I'm not a fish person but the calamari was alright too. The breading was light and just barely crispy and the fishy flavor wasn't overpowering, so all together it was pretty good.

The fried mozzarella was like crispy pillows filled with cheese, super satisfying to bite into and I like that it felt thicker than my normal cheese stick too. I tried it with the ranch, marinara, and the salsa. I love the power behind that salsa too, strong flavors but they work so well!

The Alfredo was creamy and cheesy, as I ate it, it seemed like there were some small chunks of cheese that hadn't fully melted, but they dissolve like cheesy bombs in my mouth!

And of course we can't forget these delicious desserts!

Let's start from my least favorite.

My least favorite of the night really surprised me! It was the New York style cheesecake. Personally it was too bitter for my taste. Maybe there was too much chocolate in the base or maybe that amazingly creamy cheese wasn't quite enough for me to balance the bitterness with the sweetness.

Next was the creme brulee. It was perfectly cooked, I'm just of the opinion that it's too plain. It was just barely sweet with a nice crispy candied top, cooked perfectly just like everything else. If you like creme brulee I'd definitely recommend trying it!

The tiramisu was so fantastic, I was in awe of just how smooth it was. I could cut through the whole cake with a spoon like it was my mashed potatoes! The flavor of the alcohol gives it a nice little kick but not too strong, delicious!

The warm apple crostada was absolutely amazing as well! It was beautifully crispy and the flavors of the pastry with the cinnamon apple insides and the little bit of ice cream on top, it was like they took the best apple pie I have ever had and fit all the flavor of the entire pie into a pastry a tenth of the size, another gold winner here!

And finally was the butter cake. This was my first experience with butter cake and I'll be honest, the mellow sweetness combined with the soft but firm cake was perfect!

All in all I'd highly recommend eating here, the staff was friendly and fun to be around as well.

Thank you for the amazing service Andi! (Sorry if I...

Long review but you can skip to the bottom for the summary I'm not sure if the night was just a bad night for the restaurant or if it was just us. My wife and I were celebrating our 2 year wedding anniversary and we wanted a romantic and dressy place to dine. I had hoped that Maggiano's had a dress code. I was disappointed to see some people in sweat pants, hoodies, baseball caps on backwards, and even one person in what seemed to be fleece pajamas. We had reservations but we still had to wait about 10 to 15 minutes after we arrived at our reservation time to be seated.

The hostess took us to a section that was very loud and crowded; where you could hear the neighboring table's conversations clearly. Once seated we were asked what we'd like to drink immediately, which was nice. We asked for water while we looked at the wine list. (One glass of Apothic Red is the same price as the same wine bottle at the store.) Our glasses of water were delivered and the waitress asked us if we'd made our decisions, which we had.

We ordered the calamari appetizer while we looked for what we wanted for dinner. I know it's a small thing but when we got our calamari, there was no lemon to squeeze over it. I guess it's just an expectation we had from every other place we've ever eaten Italian food. It also seemed like a long time after we ordered the calamari that the waitress came back to get our main course order. I ordered a seafood meal with oysters, clams, lobster and shrimp which was delicious. My wife ordered chicken piccata which she thought was just "okay."

I also noticed what I assume was a manager walking around making sure the guests were comfortable and happy with their service. Each time she passed our table I felt like she saw us waiting for something, either our drinks, appetizer, or dinner. I half smiled at her each time. She never stopped to say hello or ask how our experience had been thus far; but we saw her visit other tables. Perhaps she would not have wanted to hear our input.

At the end of dinner the waitress dropped off our check and I immediately slid my card into the server folder. It sat on the table for about 5 minutes before another manager came by with 2 champagne glasses with Maraschino Cherries in the champagne. (We wished we would have gotten them towards the beginning of the dinner if we would have known we'd get them.) He also asked how everything was and we wish we would have told him all of this but we said it was fine. He recognized it was our anniversary and thanked us for choosing Maggiano's as the place to celebrate.

Summary: All in all for the prices of the wine, appetizer, and dinner we hoped it'd be a classier dress code, more intimate, and better service. There was nothing significant about Maggiano's that will make this anniversary memorable besides the mediocre time we had. I'd pass on this restaurant; there are better places to go...

Wow, wow, wow! This was only my 2nd time visiting; however, it has easily become my favorite place. Not only was the food and the drinks to die for, the customer service from Emily was impeccable. She literally went above and beyond to make sure I had the perfect entree and drink based on my likes and dislikes. She was so professional, sweet, and kind. She was very personable and likeable. I won't hesitate to request to be seated in her section on my next visit. Simply a 10/10! Money well spent!

Update: 2/1/25

Maggiano's remains my absolute favorite dining destination, and I make it a tradition to celebrate my birthday there every year. This year was exceptional, thanks to our incredible waitress, Emily, who elevated our dining experience to new heights. She went above and beyond to make our birthday dinner truly memorable, providing service that was both attentive and heartwarming.

Emily's warmth, enthusiasm, and genuine care were remarkable. Her vibrant personality and exceptional hospitality made us feel genuinely special. Her kindness was so profound that the generous tip I left seemed insufficient to express my gratitude for her outstanding service.

The culinary experience matched the stellar service. The food was nothing short of perfection, with each dish beautifully presented and utterly delicious. The cocktails were equally impressive, complementing our meal beautifully. Every aspect of our evening demonstrated Maggiano's commitment to creating an exceptional dining experience.

I am committed to continuing my birthday tradition at this location, where the staff consistently aims to please and make customers feel valued. My only suggestion would be to bring back their previous add-on options, which were not only cost-effective but also significantly enhanced the overall...