Nicola's Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Wilmington

Well, we have been going to this restaurant since they opened. We stopped going for a while because they got rid of their good wines clearly to save money. We went back last year and have enjoyed the wonderful bartender/manager Shelby, because she is so sweet. We have always liked Chrissy (sp?) one of the owners, but we're disappointed about the lack of wine selection and told her so.

At Christmas we even made Chrissy one of our special pies. When we walked in the door last night, a Wednesday night, 1/2 price wine night, Shelby immediately apologized for having sold the last bottle of the wine we like. We arrived a little after 7:00 PM. How do you run out of one of your wines on special at 7:00 PM? It is not like they were full by any means.

Shelby knew this would be a problem because she was aware we are not partial to most of their wines. We looked through their list and found a half bottle we liked very much which we were willing to pay over twice the amount we usually pay for a full bottle if the management would comp the second 1/2 bottle to make up for the difference. The answer was a responding NO. In fact, Chrissy came out and selected a bottle she knew we did not like, because we refused to order it before, and told Shelby we could have that for half price. Please note we were sitting at the bar and this was all done in front of us. Chrissy did not even have the decency to tell us herself.

Poor Shelby was mortified and said if Nick had been there this would not have happened. Because we like Shelby and like to tip her very, very well each night, we did not want to punish her so we stayed.

We never saw Chrissy concerning this issue the rest of the night and usually she spends a big part of the evening with us.

Needless to say we will not be back. Poor Shelby will loose about $100 a month in tips. I have never seen such appealing management in my life. Not surprised, in over 10'years, they have not so much as offered a glass of wine.

Food is great, Shelby is amazing but owners have much to learn about...

My girlfriend and I ate at Nicola's for the first time before Christmas. We found the atmosphere to be quite pleasant and our server was quite attentive. At no point were we disappointed in any part of our experience there and we found the quality of the food, and portion size, commensurate with the price of the dishes.

Our meals were fantastic. She had the Mahi piccata, which I believe was a special that night. I'm not much of a piccata fan but I even liked the taste as it did not have an overwhelming lemon flavor, which has been my experience with piccata dishes in the past.

I had the manicotti and it was the best manicotti I've ever had in a restaurant outside of New York state and only second to my mother's. Three things made this an excellent dish. First, they're made in crepes, not in pasta tubes. Second, the blend of the three cheeses makes for a smooth and consistent texture and flavor. The filling was firm enough not to be sloppy but viscous enough not to be chewy. Third, and most importantly, and the part many places struggle with, it had an even temperature all the way through.

And then we had dessert. My girlfriend ordered the tiramasu and I ordered the chocolate bread pudding. The bread pudding was better than I expected but the tiramasu was excellent! And the portion was huge - easily enough for at least 2 people!

This is one restaurant on our "repeat list", and as 10+ year residents of this area we're wondering why it took us so long to go there in the...

This place was decent. Not great though, but decent. First, let me say this: the enjoyment of Italian food is extremely subjective; so please; go and try this place yourself. You may find it's amazing, or you may hate it: but you should definitely try it yourself.

I thought it was good. But, in my opinion, the food was kind of bland.

We got there around 8:30 pm and waited a few minutes before we saw a hostess: it was long enough to where we were unsure if we were supposed to seat ourselves or wait; it was kind of awkward. It also took a long time for our server to first arrive to the table; like close to 10 minutes, but once she showed up she was really great. So she may have been on a break or something when we arrived... but... 10 minutes feels like a long wait in the moment for that initial interaction.

It's hard to describe the ambiance... the vibe hit me as a mash up of a K&W Cafeteria dining room and an episode of Golden Girls.

Kinda pricey - We got an appetizer, two sodas and water; my wife and I split an entree and my daughter got Chicken Alfredo, and the bill was over $80 dollars (after the tip).

Will we go again? I wouldn't be against it. I'd be down to try something else on the menu. But with so many great options in the Wilmington area, we may not feel the pull to come back for a good long time. I found Nicola's to be fairly forgettable.

Again, this is my subjective opinion; try it for yourself. I hope...