Malibu Of Surfside Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Surfside Beach

Tips on making the most out of your visit from a reviewer who outlines several years worth of dining experiences here.

I am giving this review a four, based on several visits. It remains one of our stops every time we come to the beach, but the visits have had their ups and downs. It’s always related to service, never to the food! Read on for a very detailed review.

The atmosphere is wonderful. Cozy tables in the back, and tables for larger groups in the front. Tip: if you like it warmer, sit toward the back; if you’d like it a little bit cooler, sit in the big room at the front near the windows.

The food is solid. We have never had anything here that we don’t like.

Tip: the bread that comes to the table is wonderful, and they are generous with the refills. We find that every time we order an appetizer, we are a bit disappointed, because we usually just don’t need it. This entrée servings are big and the bread is filling.

The first few times we came we started with our regulars such as chicken Parm and a puttanesca, but recently we have moved on to the other house specials and those have been excellent as well. Recently (January of 2025) my husband tried the chicken bruschetta, I thought this was such an odd idea, but it was delicious. The tanginess of the bruschetta really complimented the chicken. I had the veal special, and it was also excellent. The eggplant on top of it was really beautiful. The veal was tender and beautifully cooked. Never a complaint on any of the food.

So this leads me to service. Sometimes the service is excellent. They are certainly checking on you and everything is fine, and sometimes some odd things happen. Cons: A year ago when we came there was a very drunk, very loud table. They had clearly been overserved. It got to the point where people were asking to switch out of the cozy area and sit someplace else. While I understand that it is very difficult for a server or a manager to tell a table that they need to be quiet, this was really a time when it should’ve happened. And nothing was said. Patrons continued to leave or to stare back at the rude table or to get their food to-go, and management and servers never came out to tell them to be quiet. They were swearing. And I’m fine with language, but I cannot imagine what would happen with the amount of really loud F bombs that were being dropped if children were present. This is something management should’ve handled.

Recently we came and it was starting to snow outside, and although we did not see our server for quite a while, when it was time to go, we saw half a dozen people. I know they were trying to leave because of the storm, but literally we had a rotation of people coming to the table every minute. Asking if they could clear something, asking if we needed anything, at some point we recognized that we were really being rushed out. We did not want them to feel uncomfortable driving in the snow, and every person who came to the table said, “boy it’s really coming down out there.“ I think it would’ve been fine if they told us they were closing and just brought us the containers to-go. And told us about safety concerns, Instead, it was just a rotating assemblage of people coming by the table every 60 seconds. It was bizarre. We did pack up, and told them to please be careful and drive carefully and we just ate the rest of our food at the house. But the way that was handled was odd. I think a manager should’ve come out and told us that they really needed us to go, because they were worried about the safety and driving.

Sometimes we come there’s not a real bartender there, it’s one of the servers, and so things like making a dirty martini come out just as a martini glass filled with vodka. No olives, no olive juice, just glass with vodka. So that’s a bit unusual from a service point of view.

Pros: There are times when the service is is seamless. The servers really know the menu and recommend items and are quick to redeliver the bread. So you can see that it’s a bit of a mixed bag. That’s why four...

This place is a hidden gem. We randomly came across it after walking by during our first vacation to Surfside Beach. When we called, we were encouraged to make reservations,. We had a big group, 5 adults and 4 kids (including two 1st generation snobby Italians who are very picky about Italian restaurants). We were met with Giovanni who told us all about the beautiful history of this place (his mother is from Italy, all the recipes are hers, and the name is because of the popularity of their family's "Malibu" restaurants in Italy). My father, who is 100% Italian, immediately fell in love with Giovanni and the food - and he usually hates everything. Flash forward two years later when we came back here for his 80th birthday. We were immediately treated with the same hospitality by Giovanni. Sadly, my father now has a touch of dementia and didn't remember his first visit. Happily, his experience was exactly the same! Giovanni treated us like family. My dad, and all of his picky Italian family, absolutely loved everything we were served. We all tried something different and it was all fantastic. It was the perfect dinner to celebrate his 80th birthday and we will never forget it. Giovanni also said that my youngest son, Hudson, looked just like his brother. We met him while leaving and I understand why! We are so proud that our son can look like someone from such a wonderful family. I know this post is long, but I read some negative reviews and think it's important to know why they are there. This is a family who clearly wants to give you a perfect dining experience through and through. They ask for reservations for a reason. Yes, you may see an empty table here and there if you walk in announced and cant' be seated, but I guarantee you it's because they don't want to overcrowd the restaurant and under-deliver on service and food. If you come, PLEASE make sure to make a reservation first. They are busy for a reason! Don't be angry if you are a walk-in and you are turned away. Come back...

As someone that has been in the restaurant industry for over ten years, I never leave bad reviews because I know how much they matter to a business. With that being said, my family and I had a very poor experience, so for the first time, I feel the need to share. I am visiting my parents from out of town for my birthday, so my mom was so excited to bring me to Malibu since she had such a positive experience the last time she was there. She ensured me that it was even better than my favorite Italian place in the area (Sole Italian Restaurant- highly recommend for food and service). The support staff that brought us bread and water was wonderful! Then our server came and spoke so fast that I couldn’t even understand him. He also could only make eye contact with my dad, not my mom or me. Once we ordered, we got our appetizer and it was delicious. Then my salad came and had a piece of plastic in it. The support staff replaced my salad (server didn’t check in, so I had to ask the staff member walking by). Mistakes happen, I wasn’t bothered. Then when our entrees were delivered, the chicken for my pasta was put on my moms dish. Again, our server didn’t check in so I had to get the support staff (they deserve the 20% tip we gave the server). They took my dish back and brought it back out with chicken, but it had clearly been cooked quickly and was way more underdone than the chicken that was put on my moms dish. I ended up just picking it off and bringing it home to cook more for lunch the next day. The last part that was upsetting to me was that they turned the music off and started shutting down the restaurant while we were sitting there. There were still other tables sitting at the restaurant. But as someone in the industry, I got nervous that we were staying past closing. Nope! it was about 9:15 and y’all are open until 10. I get a soft shut, but to completely turn the music off and change the atmosphere is really not okay. Super disappointing...