LaScala's FIRE - Center City — Restaurant in Philadelphia

Was planning a trip to Philly and was staying in the historic district gearing up for the Penn Relays with a mix of students, parents and coaches. Was looking for a good restuarnt within walking distance from our hotel and a good friend recommended LaScala's Fire.

A few weeks before our arrival, I called to see if I could reserve a table for ten on a Friday evening and my request was fullfilled. I beleive I spoke to Sara so just wanted say thanks for assisting me with our reservation.

I will say the area around this location is filled with history. When we arrived in Philly, the forecast for the weekend was not looking good with rain most of the weekend. With a small window of no rain, I was able to walk around the area and see some incredible sights. Definitely worth exploring the area before dinner to work up an appetite or taking a leisurely stroll after dinner to work off a tasty dinner.

Fast forward to the evening of our dinner and we were faced with a wind swept rain. While our plan was to walk, this was clearly not an option. When I called to inquire about parking, was pleased there was a parking garage in the same building as thr restaurant. The icing on the cake was they even validated parking . Once there, we walked from our cars to the restaurant without even having to get wet which was a big win.

We arrived on time and our group was seated right away. The menu was vast and had many great choices to choose from. To start, we ordered some apparizers which we split. We ordered the Ricotta Board (Ricotta, Honey, Wood-Fired Piadina Bread), Wild Mushroo. Arancini (Homemade Rice Balls with Wild Mushroom & Cheese) and the Calamari Fritti (Fresh Calamari Battered & Fried in Rice Flour). All the appatizers were amazing and my favorite was the Calamari but the Ricotta Board was also a big hit as well with all the appatizers being devoured. For dinner, everyone in the group found a tasty meal, and after taking with everyone, all the meals were delicious. I had the Seafood Fra Diavalo (Shrimp, Calamari, Mussels, Clams, Crabmeat, Spicy Tomato Sauce, Linguini) and will said it was priced right and was a delicious meal. Some of the other meals ordered by thr group was the Chicken Milamese (Cutlet topped with Arugula, Fresh Mozzarella, Cherry Tomatoes, Balsamic Glaze), Eggplant Parmigoano(Seasoned Breaded Eggplant, Our Famous Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Linguini), and the Vegetrian Wood Fire Pizza )Grilled Zucchini, Grilled Eggplant, Roasted Peppers, Mushrooms, Baby Spinach, Mozzarella, White or Red) to name just a few of the dishes. Always enjoy when restaurants have vegertain meals that my daughter enjoys and this was on of those places that left us both satisfied.

All in all, this place has it all, a great location, convient parking, lots of history surrounding it, a nice dinning area, great food and drink, and of course great service. I was glad this place came recommended and my fellow dining guests were just...

What was once an amazing italian restaurant is now a glorified pizza place. I made reservations three days in advance thinking I was still visiting the restaurant I raved about a couple of years ago before the pandemic. My wife and I had tickets to the Walnut Street Theatre on Friday night. She was thrilled to know I my reservations for dinner before the show. We arrived early, a little before 6:00pm. The greeters were pleasant but I noticed the place looked a little different and all the servers were wearing tshirts. No matter, we were quickly seated and our server was at the table almost immediately. She explained the changes since our visit and presented the menus. We ordered a couple of drinks and decided on the meatball trio starter and the italian sausage bolognese to split between us. The drinks were well made with good taste. Fast forward to desserts, they were also a good experience. It was the part in between that was dissappointing. $14 for three meatballs that were ok but nothing to write home about. I've certainly had better in other italian restaurants. The italian sausage bolognese immediately had an odd scent to it. I couldn't put my finger on it, but something was off. I ate some of my share until I just couldn't do it any longer. This had to be one of worst tasting dishes I have ever had. I tried to power through it but finally gave up and hoped that dessert would save the day. Aside from that, I remember in the past that the bread they served on the table was outstanding. Currently, I didn't see anyone with bread on the table. Then again, a pizza place wouldnt' do that. I would seriously avoid the "favorites" on the menu. Maybe consider their choices of stromboli, pizza, paninis or salads. You might have a better experience than I did. For myself, I need to research other italian restaurants in the area to visit before the next show at...

It's a Saturday in March at 6pm. We had a lot of hope for a great experience, but that vanished halfway through. Our waiter never gave us his name, but he was nice. He recommended the sweet and spicy wings so we ordered them and brussel sprouts WITHOUT pancetta as our appetizer. The wings came out piping hot and they were delicious. Not long after, the brussel sprouts came out WITH pancetta. The waiter came to apologize and to let us know a new one would be coming out. They were delicious and hot too. Meanwhile, he never came to ask for our entree order. We had been done our appetizers for some time. We kept looking for him. He eventually came back. We ordered chicken parmigiano and veal parmigiano. It didn't take long to come out. A lady brought our food out and went to the wrong table. We noticed she had done that earlier with another group when she was serving outside. Two tables of guest shook their heads no and she came back in. She went back and our waiter brought it out. The presentation of all the food was nice. I was annoyed to discover that the linguini with my chicken parmigiano was so dry and I felt the noodles were not al dente. They were truly under cooked. I had to ask for additional sauce twice. The veal parmigiano came out with plenty of sauce. I was disappointed by then and ready to go. Also, the table behind us asked about the pizza and the same waiter told them it's a 40 min wait on pizza because they have a small oven and one person. That was surprising because a family came in after us and they received a pizza. It was busier when we came in than when those other two tables came in. We did get the free parking. I would recommend for quick eats, but not for...