La Vita E' Bella Ristorante Italiano — Restaurant in Virginia

My family and friends ate here last Wednesday evening.

We started with appetizers brushetta and fried ravioli.  Wasn't blown away but they were fine.

We then order several different entree dishes including the moneybags, chicken with artichoke, tortellini with alfredo sauce, and spaghetti with meat ball (kids). The food ranged from underwhelming to gross. The chicken in the chicken with artichoke dish was not edible. The texture was as if it had been soaking in liquid and sitting out for hours and had a weird taste. The meatball in the kids spaghetti and meatball dish also had a very weird taste. The moneybags were comparable to hamburger helper. The tortellini tasted exactly like frozen ones you buy in a store and I'll bet that's exactly what they were.

Frankly, the food was so bad that I was compelled to write my first review. My wife and I agreed this was overall the worst meal we've eaten at a restaurant ... ever. I can only assume the positive reviews were paid for, friends of the owners, or were people lucky enough to have an actual chef in the kitchen.

Potential Customers: Don't waste your money. There are many other (great) options for Italian food in Glen Allen. Even if this places food is sometimes good, why bother taking a chance?

Owners: Who ever was in charge of the kitchen on the night of 11/10/21 needs to go. They either don't know how to cook or decided to let the worst meal I've ever had come out of the kitchen. Unacceptable. The greek restaurant in that same location before you served over priced mediocre food and went out of business rather quickly. You're serving over priced bad food...

If I could give this place six stars, I would.

This is easily one of the best restaurants in the area if not the state and to say I recommend them is an understatement. Before you try Italian food from any restaurant in the area, try this place and I will guarantee no other place will come close. My fiancee and I ordered from here through Seamless on a night when we wanted to try authentic Italian for a change. We ordered calamari, fries and two pasta dishes (Shrimp scampi for my fiancee and Pasta carbonara for myself) that came with salad and bread.

The calamari was fresh and tender and probably the best we've ever had, the fresh taste alone was well worth the price. The shrimp scampi was incredible with the shrimp being perfectly cooked and all of the flavors coming through in perfect combination. The carbonara was absolutely breathtakingly; rich, creamy and satisfying to a great degree The price of $46 was quite good but it was the amount of food we received and the quality made every penny worth it.

The pasta dishes alone gave us two portions each; top that off with salad and bread and its almost a steal. I am telling you that if you are thinking about trying any other Italian restaurant in the area or any chain restaurant, order here first and you will be blown away like we both are right now from not just the quality but the value.

This place is incredible and I hope they remain a staple in the area for many...

Im from up north and a good pizza when your sick goes a long way.. Anyway, I just moved into the area and was too sick to cook, and that was when I decided to try out the italian restaurant across from the cvs. I placed my order online as I waited for my Rx 1st mistake.. because I did not see a menu option to create your own, small pizza with sausage and pepperoni I went with the meat lovers but only selected the two meats that I wanted (which I thought was correct).

After getting my Rx. and eager to get home as I was in major pain... I arrived and picked up my order... I DID NOT CHECK THE ORDER BEFORE LEAVING 2nd mistake.

It was totally my fault.

When I got home, there were several types of meats on this small pizza. Smh... I called because I wanted to know how that happened.

I was informed by the owner that I submitted my order incorrectly :-(

he was nice about it.. but what a bad time to learn a valuable lesson. No comment on the food, for my experience was the main disappointment.

Always check your order before leaving the store, and be careful when ordering at a place you've never eaten at or ordered from...