L’Oca d’Oro Reviews

One of the best HHs in Austin. We tried all four of the HH appetizers. Absolutely delicious and the presentation was top drawer. I liked the shrimp best as the seasoning was unique but the shrimp were still tasty. The HH wine selection was quite limited but great stuff for the price. We'll definitely be back to check out the dinners. Oh yes, one down side: parking is a challenge. Plan to walk a block or so and very likely use pay to park.

Great service. Delicious food. But the portions are very small. They are more for sharing. You will need at least 2 dishes per person to have a full meal. We were only here for dinner but we will most likely go back for brunch and give that a try too.

What I really loved about this place was the freshly made pastas some of the best I have tasted and also the Wood Grilled Entree´s. Here you can find some really good Italian cuisine and enjoy the friendly atmosphere.

I'm not sure what all the buzz is about. We shared a charred spinach salad that tasted like lawn clippings, I had a mushroom lasagna that arrived on a small plate with a tiny smear of something green (it looked lonely), my husband had a very salty rendition of carbonara and we shared a dessert. I was drinking water while he had a very short pour of red wine and a TINY, over sweet old fashioned, and our bill was $105. The server was very nice, but I don't see myself hurrying back.

If you are visiting Austin be sure to check out this new restaurant with Italian cuisine. So many unusual choices all set up for all ages. One of the owners has restaurant experience from some of New York City's finest. You will find a friendly atmosphere with beautiful presentations and a new spin on some Italian favorites. We had eggplant parmigiana that was one of the finest I have ever eaten. No breaded filler for this restaurant! Also a new take on mushroom lasagna which was obviously homemade. The appetizer menu is delicious and well thought out. Be sure to leave room for dessert as a special pastry chef has created some amazing choices. Have a great time in Austin and while visiting the Mueller district check out this new offering.

This place serves good unique food. It's upscale & the prices reflect that. They say dishes that are family style serves 2-4.....well, they are quite pricey for even 2-4, which really serves 2. We did 1 dish that was a sharing dish - double cut pork chop. Then we did some individual dishes - pumpkin tortellini & eggplant parm. All were good, but pricey. The service was very good. They charge a service charge on all checks with is mandatory. I'm not a fan of this. If I like the service I'll tip well. The fact that it's what THEY feel it should be is a turnoff.

Have now eaten here twice and both experiences were excellent. The homemade pasta and Italian dishes were creative and tasty. Service was also excellent - in fact on my last visit one of the owners checked in on us, answered questions regarding their menu and thanked us for coming. Highly recommend!

We loved everything we ordered. The peperocini pasta was a top 10 things we've ever eaten. Also had some kind of crispy balls, carrots and a marvelous chicken dish. Very vegetarian friendly. Great wine selection. Don't go if you are in a rush.

Today I had the pleasure of having brunch at our favorite Mueller place! Wow! Everything was superb! Let's start with the service, because let's face it, the people who take care of you can really set the tone. Everyone is so friendly, inviting, knowledgeable and patient. I never feel rushed there, not when ordering, dining or sipping coffee afterwards. My friend and I had several questions about the menu, and our servers and the manager explained in detail the composition of each dish we had in mind. You can tell that everyone here *really* loves the food they offer, knows a lot about it and is willing to tailor their recommendations around the patron's desires, not their own biases. I chose the kale Caesar prepared skillfully with delicious roasted green beans. Yum! My friend had the brioche French toast replete with apple compote, almonds and a scoop of gelato on top. A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. Excellent mix of textures and not as sweet as you'd imagine. She loved it and fortunately left a few bites for me. I now believe that is the perfect yin and yang: share the two dishes and satisfy the health nut and sweet tooth in one sitting. I can't wait to bring my husband and do just that! I love this place, and each time I go there, I can't wait to go back. Mueller is growing with many dining choices, and we will make the rounds to support all. However, my heart will always belong to L'Oca d'Oro, and we'll head over there as often as possible.

Lackluster service at this hip and extremely loud Italian restaurant. Took over 20 minutes just to receive drinks and place an order. Too many tables jammed into the space. Fresh mozzarella cheese was nice. Chicken milanesa - crispy and you couldn't get over the burnt char to find the other flavors. Gelato had more ice chunks crystals and make it hard to eat. Left wishing that i had 4 ibuprofen handy. Enjoy.

This place was listed on the Eater's 38 Essential Austin Restaurants so we had to try it for our Ladies Night Out. It did not disappoint! It's Italian cuisine and they make the bread, pasta, cheese, etc. all in-house. The attention to detail shows. From the appetizers (glazed carrots with pistachio butter, zucchini fries - yes, please!, and the fresh mozzarella salad with peaches) to the main courses (polenta, lasagna, and mafaldine w/ shrimp) to the desserts (tiramisu and cannoli), everything was deliciously executed. The dishes are small but very rich (a smidge oily, even) and sharing is definitely encouraged. On the drinks side, highly recommend you order one of the spritzes. It was cool, light, refreshing. They do add 20% surcharge to all bills since they're committed to the fair wage pay, an effort I can certainly get behind. It's on the pricier side so keep that in mind. The restaurant is located smack in the middle of the up-and-coming Mueller neighborhood (same area as the Alamo & The Thinkery) so lots of paid street parking available (free after 8pm). You can also park in the garage and walk over. We have definite plans to come back and try their pasta tasting menu 🍴🍝

The high is the price for such small plates of food. The other high is the grilled smoked ocra, simple but delicious!! The low is the new trend of trying to shove too many different items into one dish. Wines are pricey. The cantaloupe sorbet is spectacular, the cream corn sorbet was meh... 3 small plates a $44 bottle of wine total bill $128. Service is good and should be as the restaurant policy is to add 20% to every bill and also has a tip line for even higher tipping.

We ran the gamut from a very interesting dish and one that was traditional comfort food to duck breast that was almost too tough to eat. I'm giving it a rating of 4 because the highs were really nice and the service was great, although 3.5 would be more accurate. While most of the dishes we tried were tapas sized, some, like the Casarecce, were really filling. Our favorite dishes were the exceptional house burrata with pickled Jimmy Nardello peppers and a pine nut romesco and a more traditional Casarecce with house made sausage that was comforting and filling. These dishes typified L'oca D'oro at its best, composing several strong flavors and textures into a wonderful whole. The lasagna Bolognese did the same by inserting the strong presence of preserved lemon that enhanced the rest of the dish without any competition. I'd also recommend the ricotta gnocchi pomodoro; its flavors were traditional, but the texture of the gnocchi with a soft outside and a very cheesy inside simply made the dish fun to eat. I also recommend the grilled zucchini without reservation. I can't adequately describe the construction of this architectural dish, but the interest of it is equal to the flavors. The speckled sea trout crudo was the prettiest dish, and the trout and its accompaniments was wonderflul. The roasted carrots with pistachio honey butter were tasty, but the carrot flavor did not shine through. We got this dish because a previous dish here had the flavor of the most marvelous carrots in the world. These carrots came from the same farm, but they were overwhelmed by the other flavors in the dish. And then we come to the duck breast. The breast looked perfectly cooked, but it was way past tough. The fried green tomatoes were OK, but I've had many that were as good or better, so they certainly didn't make up for the bad duck. I mentioned the tough duck to the owner, and he said this was unusual, but I don't know if this was the case. We will come back; the good points far outweighed the bad. The tip is included in the base price of the dishes, which I like. The service was excellent. This is definitely a restaurant where you want to go with a group so you get to try as many things as possible. Our dinner for 5 people (only one beer as far as drinks go) came to a little over $200.

Be careful! Shady, bad meal, bad service. Did not inform of a 20% upcharge on solo meal in advance - NOT before I ate, like a decent place does, NOT in reservation clickstream, terms, "what you should know before you go", payments, etc. They ADDED FOOD I SAID NO to, overcharged vs menu too. But the BAD FOOD & SERVICE, READ ON. It gets worse. 1. Pasta dish was bad - drizzled with spicy hot MOUTH BURNING oil I could NOT taste any flavor. I've eaten Italian all over the world and in NYC, Boston, etc. This was JUST BAD, inedible, weird. I was starving, so I ate HALF the pasta with spicy oil drizzle, little slivers of meat. I would've let it go to support locals. BUT... 2. I told the server NO I did not want bread, we discussed it. I said JUST PASTA AND THE ORANGE NON-ALCOHOLIC DRINK. * DINING ROOM WAS EMPTY so I thought comp'd 2 little pieces of BLAND bread they brought. They charged + MARKED UP 20%. I had a few small bites to cut the terrible heat. 3. I had to ask 3x for orange drink ordered 1st. Brought AFTER the miserably hot noodles with garnish came. 4. OVERCHARGED $6 for non alcoholic drink 5. AFTER I ate part, I got the bill ON THEIR COMPUTER with MULTIPLE extra fees that SERVER MISINFORMED me about when he finally told me AFTER the meal. He WRONGLY said we have a small service fee added of about 3% (it's 20%) & a 2.5 % credit card fee. NO PRINTED CHECK. **I said you only got a few dollars tip in service fee of 3% that goes to you? He said yes so I added on more. FALSE INFO. ** I OBJECTED when he showed me computer price without clear info on 20% upcharge. HE SAID I'm explaining it to you NOW AND DID NOT. He gave misinfo. ** I ADDED $ ON TOP for him based on mis-info he gave when I questioned all ** I got home & EMAIL RECEIPT SAYS 20% SERVICE FEE ON ALL PLUS MY ADDED TIP. See other TripAdvior reviews about this too. 6. $65 for a BAD experience...for noodles main w bad mouth burning oil. 7. I PAY 2-3x THAT FOR GOOD FOOD, SERVICE. * I TIP 20-40+% USUALLY. It was the whole shady situation and all the rest. 8. I would've given another try but all was SO BAD. I could not even order dessert. ** BAD tasting food, overcharges, shady, bad service, ignored complaints.** 9. Starving, I ATE FOOD AFTER AT HOME. Try at your own risk. Inconsistent at best. ** ******* UPDATE 1 ******** 1. They have the nerve to answer my complaint to fix the bill by saying I wish you had told us about all of this. WHAT WAS UNCLEAR? I OBJECTED AT THE BILL TIME TOO, TOLD THEM CLEARLY, and was misinformed on top of it. See #2... 2. I TOLD THE SERVER: "I WOULD NOT ORDER THAT MEAL AGAIN" and joked if I was sick to clear my sinuses maybe, I TOLD HIM "I DIDN'T LIKE IT " and on and on. 3. EMAIL RECEIPT SAYS THE UPCHARGE PART ALONE IS 20%. SERVER WRONGLY told me 3% when he MISINFORMED ME AFTER the meal. THIS CAUSED ME TO ADD EVEN MORE TIP on an INFLATED bill 4. They claim its online. IT IS NOT in reservation clickstream, terms, payments, "What you should know before you go" etc. PLUS misinfo after I ate. I see NOW its buried at end of long paragraph after paragraphs somewhere. THEY ARE ADDING IT. 5. NO PRINTED BILL given. THEY NOW CLAIM ITS ON THAT. 6. MGMT didn't address ALL ISSUES where they are padding the bill, etc. and THE FOOD WAS WORSE & SERVICE! SO SHADY on several aspects. 7. I TIP 20 - 40% NORMALLY. It was NOT the fee itself. It's how badly it was handled, AND EVERYTHING since too. I TOLD them in person. I would've let it go without MORE stress, had I not seen the email receipt showing the waiter's false info after the meal that had made me tip EVEN MORE. 8. STRESSFUL HASSLE. STARVING, I WENT HOME TO EAT THERE -- after money on Uber, a terrible overcharged experience for noodles and spicy oil, all of it. 9. I didn't take any of it home, at 1/2 of the pasta, a few little bites of the bread TO CUT THE BURNING IN MY MOUTH from the bad pasta -- of bread I DID NOT ORDER AND SAID NO TO. 10. NOW THEY WANT ME TO BEG for a credit to fix this. NO ACCOUNTABILITY. THEY RESPONDED AFTER YET ANOTHER WRITTEN COMPLAINT... that if it was truly bad food AFTER I was clear MANY times... I said it to the server's face as kindly and direct as I could & took my time to write them first when I got the email bill. RECAP: POORLY RUN with alot of potential so it's too bad. I LOVE neighborhood places. I also like spicy food, just not BAD so hot you can't taste flavor MOUTH BURNING inedible food. THEY SHOULD PUT THEIR EFFORT INTO COOKING DELICIOUS, HIGH VALUE FOOD CONSISTENTLY instead of overcharging at every turn. MAYBE their restaurant dining room would not be empty at dinner and loyal foodies like me would LOVE to come back. I spend a lot per meal solo, even more with friends / clients -- and eat out often -- but this was awful all around. I won't be referring or dining here. Try at your own risk, as mentioned, as it is inconsistent at best. Also VERY limited menu. **** UPDATE 2 ***** Management was even worse when I complained again after I got the email receipt with factual info. They say they finally handled the bill part -- I am waiting to see the credit now. It all was bad. Not sincere., a hassle with several stressful points, and ignore their service failures on top of all. You couldn't pay me to go back in or take in friends or business colleagues which is why I was there solo first. No wonder the dining room was EMPTY. A GREAT restaurant grows on rep and its leadership, and doesn't resort to all of this.

All I really want to say is ... WOW! This is no ordinary Italian restaurant. The space itself is gorgeous. From the local pecan bar and table tops to the cool wallpaper... The Food: Chef Fiore Tedesco is a very talented, creative cook. The dishes are sumptuous . The pasta is all made in house, you can actually see them making it. The 100 layer eggplant parmesan is so very good. Nothing like you have ever had before. The salumi and cheese are all house made and great to have with a glass of wine. They have some wines on tap, and as local Mueller residents, we love to come by and see what s on special for that evening. Very friendly and welcoming. Specialty cocktails are also very creative and fun. We have dined as a couple at the bar and with family at a table. So happy to have them here is our neighborhood!

I was lucky enough to come here with a group of work friends during a conference in Austin. We ordered a ton of food and split all of the dishes, as recommended by our waiter. I got a limeade to drink and it was pretty good. Here are some of the things we tried: Grilled Foccaccia with cultured honey butter- this was delicious. I wanted a pile of the butter to eat. Fresh mozzarella with castelvetrano olives, pea shoots, broccoli puree- this was pretty good. The flavors weren't very strong. I didn't love the pea shoot pairing. Roasted JBG Rainbow Carrots with pistachio honey butter- This was a huge hit at our table. The pistachio honey butter was incredible. Spaghetti Aglio, Olio e Pepperoncino with garlic, olive oil, chiles- This was pretty good, but I found it a little too hot. Gnocchi alla Sagrantino with pancetta, marinara, fried onion- This was my least favorite. The gnocchi was a bit mushy\had a weird texture. It wasn't bad, but wasn't my favorite dish. Kabocha Squash Triangoli with sage brown butter, polenta cookies- very good. Beet & short rib risotto with pickeled apple, ginger mascarpone- This was probably my favorite dish. The meat was melting in our mouths. I think we also got a few more dishes, but I can't recall what they were. For dessert we had some kind of s'mores tower that they had gotten rid of, and then had to bring back because it was so popular. It was delicious--everyone was raving about it at the table. I would totally recommend this place.

It was a Friday night, and this was clearly a popular spot. We decided on the Tasting menu. The food was very good, a dish or two had a bit too much salt but overall we enjoyed the tasting very much. The thing that made the evening a bit difficult was the noise level. We paid a pretty penny for the tasting, which was enjoyable but the noisy atmosphere felt more like a cafeteria. Also there was a lot of lag time between the courses that felt like it could be a bit more consistent. I would return to this restaurant but not on a busy Friday night.

Despite having a reservation, we were seated 30 minutes later. Food/drink service was very slow. We still had to pay a mandatory 20% gratuity (for two people), and given some sanctimonious reason as far as fair wage for employees. Food wasn’t bad but won’t be returning.

Small gathering of friends went to try the tasting menu. Tasting menu requires everyone in the group to participate, which we had all agreed prior to going. Variety was good, portions were small, even for a tasting (example: one shrimp!). Pricey for the items served. Note: No Bread is served with this meal! :( Service was great.

Disappointingly limited menu, extremely noisy. Condescending wait staff. Beware: 20% tip automatically added to bill.

Interesting place with an interesting menu, although a bit on the pricey side. Shared appetizer charcuterie plates and another appetizer with blueberries and cheese on toasted baguettes. Interesting drink selection-try the one with gin and celery soda! Two of us had what was basically eggplant parmiagana, very thin slices stacked into a lasagna pan which resulted in a bit too much breaking. Interestingly the serving sizes were not equal, not a good thing when being served to the same table. Another diner had rabbit that they enjoyed, but another diner felt her meal was too salty- don't remember what it was. Would give them another try though.

The menu is a little limited but all the choices that we had were delicious. I don't know if I would go as far as saying they are family style. The "house" wine were great choices. I enjoyed it as did my guests

Recommended by a friend, after checking the menu we knew we wanted to visit! Of course, due to COVID we hadn’t’ been home for awhile but when we called, we were able to visit—Rah Rah! The menu was a bit limited but that in no way negatively impacted our meal. Elaine helped us select a lovely Sangiovese and we started with the green goddess romaine, panisse and artichoke hearts but quickly added the focaccia because the sauces were too wonderful to waste. Our entrees of swordfish and creste de Gallo were delicious. Service from Lily and Elaine and their colleagues ensured a perfect evening. As we were leaving, we learned this was their first full fledged outdoor service following their third forced closing! Game on!

This is the first time we came here. Visiting family. We had Polpette as an appetizer. Wagyu meatball. Very good. I had the lasagna - also good. My wife had Casarecce - ok. Service was good. Prices are high. Overpriced. Not a fan of 20% gratuity added to bill. If service is very good I would normally tip more.

New restaurant with creative named pasta dishes. Pasta made on site should melt in your mouth but was chewy & undercooked. I like pasta “al dente” but this just wasn’t well prepared. Sauces were tasty. Salume plate with some unusual items like brisket not found in most Italian antepasti & not very appetizing. Excellent dolcetto d’alba wine. Very pleasant & accommodating waitstaff.

We've been here multiple times and have always left feeling satisfied with our visit. I saw some of the negative reviews, and need to point out this isn't ghetto Italian food like Olive Garden. The price point is higher, with fresh ingredients crafted into amazing dishes. Last time we went for brunch, and we may have had the best burger of our life. The service is great...the food is great...you get what you pay for (and no, it's not that expensive).

We love trying new restaurants frequently. And Italian food is our favorite cuisine! So we were happy to see this new establishment in Austin. The menu was interesting with three or four choices in most categories. Sadly, fresh greens were missing and the only salad on the menu was a kale Caesar salad which was not appealing. We shared the meatball appetizer which was good, although the meatballs were a little bit too tight. Three of us had the mushroom lasagna which was very good but would have been improved with the addition of some more cheese. The chicken was also a very good choice. The restaurant had an extensive wine menu put in an interesting dessert menu. Dinner for two cost around $150. One thing to note is that the restaurant applies an 18% service charge automatically in lieu of a discretionary tip.

We had a nice first dinner at this relatively new place and found some interesting dishes and wines. Overall it was good but pretty pricey for the quality and volume of food. The best dishes we had were desserts which we rarely order but had room for given the small serving sizes of entrees.

They're particularly good with vegetables, but we enjoyed everything we tried. One of our servers was the owner, who was very nice. Pastas were standouts.

I want to like this place. They have fresh local cuisine and pay their staff a living wage. The service is very attentive. I would give the service 5 stars and the food three. While it may be fresh, it just isn't that interesting, and the pasta tasting menu for $75 per person is a ripoff. The tasting menu was all carbs - hardly any veggies - and the main course consisted of spaghetti noodles on top of bread. It was a $35 value at best. Some of the courses were good, some not so good. The food needs a bit more "Elvis" in it to be charging those kind of prices. While this is a nice neighborhood restaurant, order selectively, or it is not a good value for the money.

My wife and I had the Valentines fixed menu here tonight and it was simply disappointing. The food was disappointing, the service was disappointing and the kitchen was incredibly slow. The first course was not that bad- roasted Carrots and fresh made Mozzarella. Both were tasty and warm. Quite small for two people though. The second and main course was a complete joke- two types of pastas, one of which had a few bites (maybe three small bites) of shredded rib meat over it. One of the pasta's was tough and chewy and neither had much flavor. Both were quite small. The desert round was also disappointing. The two dishes served were small and had too much sweetened stuff vs the amount of fruit they were covering. I felt as though I could have gotten more satisfied just eating a spoon full of sugar. Service started out slow and remained slow. First they couldn't get the heater next to our outdoor table to light, then they changed the propane canister, next they took away one of the two outside heaters warming our cold table and finally our waiter showed up. Once we ordered we waited prob 20 minutes for our first course. After our first course they twice tried to deliver an additional first course. I believe it was 45 minutes until the second course came and we also had a significant wait for the desert round. They have a mandatory 20% tip that they add to the bill. I believe that may be hurting the quality of their service. I'm guessing if you don't have to hustle for a tip you don't really hustle. At $85 a head for 6 shared very small dishes, $34 in tip and $14.03 in taxes this was maybe the worst value meal I've ever paid for. I can't recommend and I won't return

The location is an incredible surprise for anyone who has lived in or visited Austin for many years. It is on the EAST SIDE of I 35! For years, this has been a very scary part of town, but not any more! The entire site is built on the old Austin Airport footprint, and it is really nice--a very popular location for all demographic groups. It was crawling with people when we arrived at 6 PM on a Saturday eventing. I look forward to seeing this area grow and develop (they have many acres left) over the years. The structures are beautiful--the landscaping with water is excellent.... The only downside is that parking is very competitive! Hard to find spots, but I really like the model of paying for a time slot (too brief) and putting the ticket on the dashboard--no matter what slot you are in. We had a very special meal prepared for us, but the portions were very small--I left hungry. My wife (who rarely says anything negative about portion size) even complained about his aspect of the meal! The wine pairings were decent, but not enough reds. The food was very good--well prepared. Service was excellent and the staff knowledgeable. Ambiance is good (very modern and sleek), but not at all traditional Italian. All in all, a good solid experience that we enjoyed, but it did not blow us away--as many others in Austin have done. I had been told to expect more, but the small portions really left me cold. This is not an inexpensive experience. Austin is a real "foodie" town--there are too many great options available at far more reasonable prices (for what you receive) for you to experience. After you have done the really great ones, you may want to give this one a shot.

I've been to my share of good Italian restaurants, and I did not like this one. Several things. I ordered a vegetarian pasta dish. For $24. And it wasn't very good. Zero taste. Needed salt badly. There was no salt to be found. Initially, when I had asked the waiter what exactly the dish was (menu in Italian?), he seemed a little offended by me asking the question, not sure. They also don't have Chianti on the wine list. Too high brow for that. There were only 4 red wines that I could purchase by the glass -- I could not find a Cabernet among them (?) -- or maybe again, I just don't know Italian. The real kicker for me was that they added a 20% tip to a meal with only 2 diners -- without my permission. I read later on their website that this is what they do -- I didn't like it even though I usually tip at least 20%. It implies that I was going to stiff them (which i wouldn't have done, despite the questionable menu, food and service).

The food is outstanding and very subtle in that the flavors evolve as you chew the food.. Also, the deserts are excellent.

Quite good Italian-cuisine, particularly good for Austin, but definitely a bit of a hit-or-miss affair. Their heart is certainly in the right place though, and between that and the reasonable prices, a lot of the "miss"es are made up for. Hits - Excellent wines on tap, at *very* reasonable prices - An exceptionally good wine list, with "by the glass" selections that are actually worth getting :-) - Good salumi and formaggi (yes, the sopresatta is more like nduja, but whatever) - A bunch of really good antipasti, long on vegetables, and most of which taste fresh (and thats a good thing) - Some of the mains are excellent (the sausage, the lasgna, and the bone-marrow pasta, for example) - The cookies, and the "leaning tower of s'mores" are *excellent* - The staff is *extremely* friendly and helpful, Misses - The pastas are long on "red-sauce" selections. Thankfully, no "alla vodka" around, but they all taste, well, the same - The porchetta should be retired. Its dry, chewy, and, well, bland. (Heck, it should be retired in America - i've *never* had acceptable porchetta here...) - The 'trenette' (in a pink sauce of some kind. meh) were actually something else - wide and flat (sagnarelli perhaps?). You gots to be able to name things correctly :-) - The blueberry crostata dessert (with the pepper creme-fraiche) *really* should be retired. Just Didn't Work. - Loud. Oh lords it's loud. The echo-chamber effect means you, literally, can't hear people across the table... The bottom line, i'll probably be going back. its early days, and I expect it'll get better...

Went in our first visit and ordered the pasta tasting menu and a bottle of Malvasia. We started with spectacular fried zucchini blossoms stuffed with doctored house made ricotta. Then four very good to excellent pasta courses. And finally a huge dessert cannoli gelato whipped cream sundae with gold foil. We ordered excellent focaccia to wipe up the sauces and were glad we did for the sauces were consistently outstanding. The pasta plates are small, but well done IMO but my wife found the pasta too al dente. Based on my experience I would say the kitchen staff is very competent. Service was good. This is not inexpensive. The ingredients are excellent. A 20 % "living wage" gratuity is included in the bill. Wine prices seem to range from 2X to 3X retail. Happy hour offers an opportunity to save significantly. We will definitely go back.

And they were proven true. We had great service and a great meal. We started with the beet/cashew passata dip as an appetizer. It was unlike anything I’ve ever had and had a beautiful presentation. We are every single bite. My dining partner had the blue fin tuna as an entree. I had the Casarecce. Once again, we each ate every single bite of our individual entrees. Staff was very informative when asked questions. Overall, a fantastic experience.

This is a small plate, sharing restaurant. The menu offers a wide variety. The food and service were both excellent. A 20% gratuity is automatically added to your bill.

Fabulous on all levels! The homemade pasta, sausage, cheese was next level. The meatball appetizer was awesome. The sauce was spiced with oregano and had the best flavor I’ve ever tasted. My husband is Italian and cook amazing food but this is the best I’ve ever had. The severs. Bartenders, and hostess were very attentive. The dress code is Austin casual. Loved this place.

We've walked by this neighborhood spot several times but hadn't eaten there so we decided to try it out. We were delighted. We received friendly service from our greeting at the door until the thank-you when we left. Our server, Dylan, was professional yet friendly, helpful and informative but not pushy, attentive but not hovering. The restaurant has a nice, creative cocktail selection and my cocktail we delicious. They have a good wine list with many wines by the glass, mostly (but not entirely) Italian varieties. We received excellent advice on which wines to pair with which dishes which were spot on. The food offerings were interesting and varied enough to make choosing just one difficult--a great situation to be in. The presentation of the food was well done. We found our dishes to be generous, but not overly so, and very tasty with interesting flavors and textures. I finished with one of their home-made amaros finding it nicely balanced and enjoyable. The sound level was moderate allowing conversation but not comfortably, though better than many restaurants these days. They have a team approach to service and everyone we encountered were friendly and helped make the meal flow smoothly. The combination of great service, great food and a good beverage selection make this a restaurant we will return to for another meal, hopefully soon.

I must start with the service, it was outstanding! Our server was very friendly, knowledgeable and very attentive. The quality of the food was good, the taste was good, just the size of the dishes was tiny for the price. We had the meatballs which were delicious but $14 for 3 meatballs? I had the squid ink with calamari it too was good but it was in the $20 range for about 5 bites. One of our friends has the mushroom lasagna also good but was about 3 inches squared. My wife and friend shared the fire roasted chicken it was good and the biggest of all the dishes we got but hard to believe a $52 chicken dish. Overall we liked the restaurant and the dishes were good, the average rating comes from the price to quantity ratio. Had their prices been about half I would be giving a very good to excellent rating. In comparison North Italia in the Domain has a meatball appetizer and it's also delicious, you get 6 meatballs for $10 or $1.66 a meatball compared to L'Oca d'Oro's 3 meatballs for $14 or $4.66 each. The squid ink dish at North which is very similar to L'Oca d'Oro's is basically the same price but at North you receive triple the amount. We ended up spending $300 for 4 people, now $100 of that was on bottles of wine so the food portion was $200 or about $50 a person.

Picked this venue for my wife's birthday dinner. Had pretty much every appetizer. All get a thumbs up rating. Family style sea bass was a big winner. All pasta dishes were great too. Tasty bread. Everyone enjoyed their meal. Wine choices nice, as were the cocktails. Forgot our waiters name, which I regret, as he was really wonderful. Really good meal. Somewhat pricey for the portion size, but go for the tasty food!

The location is great and the ambiance is nice. We had a drink at the bar, and then dinner in the main dining room. The service at the bar was excellent. Our server was attentive and knowledgeable. The menu was limited, and really lacking a vegetable selection. I am not a vegetarian, but I like a vegetable or two when dining out. We ordered several items including dessert and it was all mediocre, with the exception of the meatballs.

My husband and I went to L'Oca d'Oro to celebrate our anniversary and had a great night! We arrived a few minutes early for our reservation but got seated right away with a choice between indoor seating and patio seating and the hostesses were very friendly. Within minutes of sitting down, we were brought two small glasses of wine to celebrate our anniversary which was very appreciated. Our server was EXTREMELY attentive the entire meal... he was constantly dropping by the table to refill our water glasses and made sure we had everything we needed. Rosemary Sourdough Focaccia (8/10) - Delicious! The bread wasn't overly oily or buttery but the honey butter that comes with it is INCREDIBLE! A little pricey though at $10 for 2 small squares of focaccia. Spaghetti Carbonara (9/10) - This was a fantastic carbonara! The pancetta cubes were crispy and flavorful, the spaghetti was cooked perfectly, the sauce was creamy and thick, and the chili crisp on top added a slight heat that balanced the flavors nicely. Beef Cheek Pappardelle (7/10) - Very good but the portion size seemed a little on the smaller side compared to the carbonara (especially considering it was $2 more). The flavor was good but didn't blow me away and the pappardelle was pretty al dente. Tiramisu (9/10) - Loved this! It wasn't overly sweet and the espresso taste was strong which is exactly how I love my tiramisu! It was the perfect size to split at the end of a meal. Overall, L'Oca d'Oro was a wonderful meal in a nicely decorated space with fantastic service. I can appreciate a paired down menu because it makes it easier to decide what you want to eat, but I don't think I'd be in a hurry to go back unless there was a new menu item that really excited me.

This sweet little restaurant in the Mueller area looks so unassuming but the food is outstanding. We shared the chef's pasta tasting and were absolutely enchanted as each dish came out. Staff is knowledgeable and friendly without being intrusive, and it was so delightful to get fresh utensils each time you used for a course without having to put them down on the table or plate. Oh, and the dessert! Heavenly! Go there, go there now!

Having moved from the Northeast several years ago I have been watching several new "(faux) Italian restaurants" open in Austin for the last year or two. Not a fan of chilies in my pasta, thank you. This place is different and while it may not be exclusively a "red sauce" type of restaurant it is serves wonderfully prepared Italian dishes, some with a different twist. Dined with several friends and we had five different dishes between us and every one was very good. Also enjoyed the desserts. Waitstaff was friendly and efficient. Will be back often.

This restaurant tucked away in the Mueller development across from the Lake Park is a great weekend brunch spot. The food is as good as you'll find anywhere in Austin and there are never any waits. The duck confit hash topped with a perfectly cooked duck egg is delicious and filling, as are all of the brunch options. Fiore Tedesco, the chef, loves to play with his food, creating inventive, delicious dishes.

So many in Austin have tried to do Italian, they all failed and this one too. There is nothing Italian about this place. Only a few Italian words in the menu don't make it Italian. It's frequented by lots of newbies in town in a new but cheaper part of the exploding, traffic-killed town, the "I-just-moved-here-and-still-find-everything-cool" crowd. The waitresses explain "Italian" food like what is Rigatoni and what is Spaghetti to a totally unsophisticated clientele. Good thing: It's so loud that you barely can hear it. And hot (temperature) it is also. Then: the salami is totally tasteless ham, the cheese tastes like it comes from a factory (Kraft), the bread is stale, the butter is laced with honey (yes, honey!). The carbonara is not carbonara, the eggplant is replaced by tomato juice from a can and then killed with too much cheese. It's "No-cuisine" with Italian names. (IINO) Italian-in-Name-Only. Go to Torchy Tacos around the corner, that's more Italian than this place. Taco is also better for the clientele. Brrrr

Creative menu, not your typical Italian flair. Server led us to try multiple appetizers and entrees that we shared at the table and made a great recommendation for the wine that pared well with the food. Service was outstanding with owner and chef stopping by to ensure we were pleased. Will go again.

For an austin foodie, whenever you hear a new comer is on the scene generating as much buzz as this place you come in optimistic skepticism. Came to L'Oca d'Oro with family after having heard great things and it exceeded all expectations. The brisket meatballs were unique and exceptional and complemented the freshness of the eclectic omnivore plate that included in house meats, cheeses, and pickled veggies. For the main course my ink pasta was delicious with just enough spice to give me the kick I desired. We splurged on the deserts (see the pic) and they were delicious. The olive oil cake was one of the best deserts I've ever had. Wait staff was friendly, ambiance was fantastic. What's left to say other than I can't wait to come back! Ps. The yasztremski (go sox) is dank

L'Oca is one of my favorite restaurants anywhere in the world. The food is superb, the service is friendly and attentive and the vibe is great. I eat here as often as I can when I am in Austin.

Nice venue. Décor was pleasant. Service was a bit over-attentive, yet not engaging. We chose the Pasta Tasting and to do so, the whole table had to participate. You assume that this rule is because if some members of your table don’t join in, they will be left out of the wonderfulness. By the end of the meal, it was evident that it the opposite. They have trapped ALL of you into the horrible, overpriced experience. So, here we go: The food was edible, but gross. I am basing this off the fact that we were able to get our meal down, but nothing was good and a lot of it was disappointing. It was a 6-course Pasta Tasting. Every pasta dish was meager and weird. Flavors and composition was over-reaching, not great, but OK. In most of the pasta dishes, the pasta consistency was dense and gummy, as if you ate a clump of noodles that had stuck together. Every course was only a few bites. The meal took 2.5 hours. So you do the math. This was a lot of time drinking water, which was always promptly refilled, and staring at an empty table. Dessert was a carrot cake for two which must’ve been built by the chef’s 3 year old: small cake, flat-tipped pastry bag of icing, candied pecans jabbed on top. Oh! It’s your birthday, let us jam and light a candle into your cake AFTER you have started eating it! (The only real failure in the service.) We sat next to a window to the kitchen and could see that other entrees were appealing and abundant. We were sat there to torture us, I’m sure. The ride home was filled with hungry and angry silence, coated in a buttery sauce of disappointment. Thus, if the a la carte dishes on the menu were as yummy as they looked, we will never know. We will not go back.

The service was good and I liked the casual feel of the restaurant. I felt like everything was overpriced. The food was all good, but nothing was great. The pasta noodles were freshly made and were made perfectly, but everything else about the pasta dish I ordered was boring. I like that they include a 20% gratuity. Don't think ill go back.

Celebrating our anniversary at L'Oca D'Oro was an excellent choice this past fall...and opting for the pasta tasting? Even better. We were so impressed with the care given to something often seen as the base of a dish and not much more - one of the few places in Austin that really gets how to do pasta. We ended up adding to our tasting by selecting an additional pasta (the gnocchi) as we just couldn't resist. The standout of the night was the lasagna - truly wonderful!

One of the other couples suggested we try this new restaurant. I was concerned after reading the other reviews but went anyway. They were dead on. The food is very expensive when you consider the small portions. $14 for three small meatballs or three raviolis is outrageous. You also have to consider that they add on 20% automatically regardless of the service to every check to pay a living wage to their employees. That quickly turns an $80 bottle of wine into $100 bottle of wine. My personal opinion is it's their job to see their employees get a living wage, not mine. The noise level was also extremely high. Although there were only three couples we literally had to shout across the table to be heard from one corner to another. If you go, I believe the best value is the pork chop for $34 +20% or the crispy red snapper for about the same price. Both were very good. The red snapper is served whole. No one like the polenta. 3 couples and two bottles of wine with no other drinks $566.