Trattoria Carina Reviews

While visiting family in Philly this restaurant was highly recommended and it didn’t disappoint. Cozy outdoor dining, BYO so we brought 3 bottles for the 4 of us and proceeded to have a delightful meal. Eden was a very personable and accommodating server. The pastas are perfection especially the pesto and the spicy crab. If I lived in Philly I would be a regular.

We ate here in March - service was outstanding. Food was delicious and very large portions. The atmosphere is charming and the place was very busy, but it made it more fun. It is tight and can be a little loud but it is a lot of fun. You sort of feel like you are at a party. We look forward to a return!

Really nice small but great Italian menu and restaurant. Service was friendly and attentive. Love the open kitchen too-can’t wait to return

I changed my review after I tried the food. Very good - Pasta was al dente and tasty but unfortunatelly the service was so slowwwww (45 min waiting for a pasta) that I can not score this rest as a good one. Also pricy. 35+ for a plate of pasta - will not come back. Comida italiana muy buena pero preparense para esperar un buen tiempo. Sercicio lento y caro para lo sirven

small friendly restaurant in a great neighborhood; went with two other couples. The service was excellent and they pride themselves on making their own pasta daily. I had the crab with pasta and it was obviously more pasta than crab but what i had was good. My wife had pesto pasta which was dry and not special, an average dish. The meat ball appetizer was good...it is a byob restaurant, small and pleasant. Would i go back? There are other small italian restaurants in the neighborhood that are equally as good so i would think twice...seth koch

We enjoyed a lovely al fresco meal here. Service was quite attentive and food was fresh and originally prepared. Although the meatballs and pasta were some of the best I’ve ever had this place is so much more than that. I Felt like I was traveling in Italy. Great wine suggestions. Server practiced safety measure. We will be back!

Ate there a week ago today and still thinking about sharing an evening at Trattoria Carina with four long time friends. Most creative, delicious food I have eaten in the city or burbs.Tables inside and out, restaurant with a corner location. Bright, sparkling clean, upbeat vibe and really nice servers. Chose the meatballs and octopus for starters and glad we did. Both dishes prepared with an ingredient or two to elevate it above the expected...scrumptious! Four different entrees which we shared for tasting and the verdict in..can't wait to return! For a Tuesday evening, it was packed. Get a reservation in advance or just try your luck but don't miss this dining experience. Maura Mc

We lived right around the corner from Trattoria and it was our go to during and after the pandemic. Their bolognese is my favorite I’ve ever had and what I compare all other bolognese to! Their pasta is delicious and the sauce is even better. Love sitting outside!

El vino, Pinot Grillo de 9 en $52. Mi primer plato un spaghetti con más sal que el mar y el segundo (de remplazo) una pasta con cangrejo sin sentido. No me cobraron los platos. El servicio fue bueno The wine a $9 Pinot Grillo for 52. My first plate was a spaghetti with more salt than the sea and the replacement was a lot of things put together with no cense. They did not charge for that. The service was good

This little spot is a gem! We were lucky enough to snag a table outdoors on a lovely spring evening. We chose several items to share--a great chopped salad, two pastas (cacio e pepe, spicy crab), chicken parmesan, and broccoli rabe--and were delighted with each dish. The chicken in particular was perfectly breaded and crisp, and the pastas were perfectly al dente. The focaccia that accompanied the meal was wonderful as well. The only "complaint" (hardly a complaint) was that the service was a bit rushed--we didn't have much time to enjoy our Aperol Spritzes before the food began to be served. I'd definitely return on a future visit to the city.

I'm 1st generation Italian, and am very picky about my Italian food. We went to this delightful little trattoria near our daughter's place in Philly, and were amazed that a tiny kitchen could churn out some of the best homemade pasta and Italian American dishes we've ever had. The meatballs were perfect, with the right texture and flavor. The pastas were all perfectly al dented, even the side of spaghetti with the chicken parm. And the chicken parm was heavenly. Crispy, moist, with a tangy tomato sauce.

We reserved our table, and it worked out great as the restaurant was packed. We sat inside and our waitress was really nice, and very helpful. Everything we ordered was delish: the broccoli I, artichokes, burrata and olives to start off, followed by a pasta Bolognese, pasta a la vodka, chicken parmesan and the gnocchi special. Finished off by a tiramisu which was right on. Don't miss out!!!

We enjoyed the chicken parmesan and the freshmade pasta. Nice atmosphere and service. Dine outside if possible. Con: Prosecco at $12 a glass. I have heard that many places in PA charge as much due taxes, however, we were not expecting this price.

Sam is fantastic and always is warm and hospitable. Treats us like family. No matter who is cooking their food is always consistent, flavorful and treated with lots of love. The menu has remained very similar and we have been enjoying the specials which are creative, seasonal and have great depth of flavor.

I visited during restaurant week on a Sunday night and it was packet, walk ins only. We had a prix fine meal of three courses and a delicious bottle of wine. My food was outstanding, the service was professional and helpful. My main dish was perfectly cooked and the dessert was also delightful. I will definitely return. It is neither a bargain nor over the top expensive. Pasta dishes were incredibly good. You can bring the kids but feel it is a bit of a lost experience on them.

Enticing creative menu, delicious food & friendly service in an intimate corner bistro, this is trendy Philadelphia cuisine at its best. From the choice of appetizers three giant meatballs smothered in fresh tomato sauce with a dollop of cream, accompanied by an arugula salad with fennel & pine nuts were a most satisfying supper, while my date's branzino was grilled to perfection.

They do not take reservations but we arrived at 6:30 on a weeknight we were told to wait 40 minutes even though they had multiple seats empty. You either take reservations or you don't. We were seated (3 people) at a long table with 8 empty spots--and told we had to eat and leave by 8:30 pm. During the time we were seated, many patrons git up and left; new patrons arrived and were seated at tables.Left us with a bad taste in our mouthes. Food was good; prices are high; place is noisy; but the reservations/no reservation policy makes the place look unprofessional and not too smart.

We were very disappointed. I had mussels which had too much garlic, overwhelming. Two friends both got the Chicken Parmesan which came out in ten minutes. It looked overcooked and was very dry. Neither of them ate much of their meal. Water dripped from the ceiling onto my friend's head. We made the server aware but didn't notify management as we were getting ready to leave.

Each dish was better the the previous one. We were 10 guys so we ordered basically one of everything and shared family style. All I can say is wow. From the great octopus app to all the various dinner items to the delectable desserts. Truly amazing. Highly recommend trying this gem

over priced, poorly managed with terrible food. With heavy metal music blasting from the kitchen, right from the beginning we were iff to a bad start. the waitstaff could have cared less about serving us. the meat balls were ice cold. the portions were minuscule for the price. The bread was cheap. Their posted hours say the open for diner at 5:00. We arrived at 5:15 and the acted like we were bothering them. they were clearly not ready. One of the worst meals I can recall.

We LOVED our dinner at Trattoria Carina. We sat outside at one of the tables on the sidewalk and we were happy to see the heaters were still out as it was still a little chilly as we went into the evening. We also loved that they had an alcohol selection but also allowed you to bring your own. They’ll even open it for you for no extra fee. There were a lot of great choices for food on the menu. We settled for the burrata as an appetizer and it was a great taste of what was to come. I got the chicken parm while my boyfriend got the special of that night. They were brought out in a timely manner which we were happy about since we came very hungry. The portion for chicken parm was very large and can definitely be spread over multiple meals. For the special, we weren’t told it would have meat (it was going to a vegetarian who made that known). We alerted the waitress who was very apologetic and brought something else for him right away and took the special off our bill. Mistakes happen and we were very happy with the way the situation was remedied. We overall had a great experience here and will definitely be recommending to others and will be coming back.

Went with friends a week ago and the weather was so nice we ate outside. Each item we tried was delicious and the homemade pasta was fantastic. It is BYOB, so brought a nice wine to go with dinner. Parking is a little tricky, with parking lots being several blocks away. Would definitely go back again.

Formerly the Fitler Dining Room, this has now been converted into a great little trattoria with friendly service, excellent food with very nice prices and portions. Limited but very executed pasta dishes. Chefs are friendly and engaging in an open kitchen. They have limited bar and wine service, but yet allowed us to bring our own bottle of wine. Nice touch.

We got seated right away. Hostess was pleasant. We chose to sit at the chef’s table. Nice weather so it was relatively cooler though we were sitting closer to the kitchen. We ordered Gemilli and Shell Granchio Arrabbiato - both dishes were delicious. The cheese board with fresh mozzarella with eggplant topping was very tasty. Our server (Christine) was very patient with explaining the menu and helped with our picks. This place has an amazing vibe and energy. Chefs (Zach, Beau) were very welcoming and engaged with us while they were cooking. It was like being in our own private kitchen with amazing chefs cooking for us! We will definitely come back to try their brunch soon.

The food here was so delicious. We were fortunate to try it during Restaurant Week, which was an amazing deal, but the prices on the regular menu were fair, if a bit on the high end. The quality was fantastic. We had the meatball starter (three huge wonderful meat balls, plenty to share--too much for one person, even as a main course), the carbonara was also a stand out. The restaurant is pretty. It is small, so I recommend reserving ahead (though there is also outdoor seating--it was just too warm outside) and the service was great.

From the iced glass for my beer, to the perfectly plated heirloom tomatoe salad, to the best branzino our meal was nicely served and enjoyed. And, kudos to our servers especially Travis who was knowledgeable and gave just the right level of attention.

Trattoria Carina is a very special place with kind and helpful service, a gregarious and friendly chef, and a lovely setting that can transport you straight to mother Italy. Everything we ate was delicious - the bruscetta (I could eat a loaf of this), the octopus (perfectly cooked and paired), the stone fruit salad (on special, could've used a fresh garnish just for aesthetic but so original we scooped it right up), the pork ragu (also on special, very delicate but rich with just the right amount of heat). Favor the butterscotch budino (light, creamy, bursting with flavor) over the chocolate cake which was rich and dense but needed Gelato instead of cream and did not seem fittingly special in context. Byob is always a plus, they brought us a wine chiller and kept our water glasses full, which was key in the summer heat. This is one of our favorites, we will definitely be back.

GREAT covid precautions. We sat outside under a heater as there was no indoor seating options. Decided to do a shared meal with our table mates and we were all so glad we did. Beet salad (multiple types of beets), meatballs, and burrata were all amazing - nothing I wouldn't order again. Spaghetti and meatballs and lasagna for mains. I must say, the lasagna was cooked and served quite uniquely. It was cooked in a cast iron skillet making it seem almost "pie like". Oh yummm. We somehow still have room for dessert which we ordered and glad we did. Bombolinos - never had them before but unique and enjoyable. Little balls of donut (fried, because doesn't frying something make it even better) with a cream inside. More yum Mary Beth was our server and we were so fortunate to have her be so perfect.

We had not been in the space since it was Fitler Dining Room when we came out for brunch on a recent rainy Sunday. The room is bright and the service was pleasant and efficient. The menu is limited. The portions for the mains are on the small side. My partner’s shaksuka was particularly small. My bacon and eggs were fine and the breakfast potatoes were well done as requested. The winner of the dishes was the artichokes and eggs our friend ordered. Nice enough. Prices are not unreasonable, if a little high. There are just lots of options in the neighborhood and not a lot of reason to go back.