Carmelo's

It's an interesting place... sit down, order the bruchetta from the menu and a meatlovers pizza. The bruchetta came out and looked very sad. Looked like wonderbread slices piled high with tomatoes and onion and a hunk of cheese. Zero basil. No pesto. The smallest amount of olive oil, with lettuce in the middle of the 4 wonderbread looking slices. Very much not what the description says about bruchetta. I expected the worst for the pizza after the bruchetta. Pizza is actually awesome! Piled high with toppings, crispy, and great flavor! All that was quickly turned upside when I look up at the soccer game on the screen and see a live ROACH crawling around!! 😑 that's pretty disgusting! Wish I was making it up! Right after the cockroach, I watched the kitchen staff arguing with the guy behind the counter about non-payment? Kitchen staff kept asking for pay and guy behind the counter said after work. Once you're done. Back to work....

For a casual dining place, the people working in here do an amazing job at providing high quality service and food. I got the lasagna and my boyfriend got a cheesesteak sub. Everything was very delicious and even if it wasn't, the staff made the trip worth it. Will be returning again.

Pizza is delicious! Staff is always very friendly and welcoming. Have deals that make me come back during the week

The gentleman at the front could do better with customer service and less on his personal phone. The guys cooking were very nice. The pizza needed a lot more sauce, it was bland.

The white pizza was delicious! They certainly didn’t skimp on the cheese and I really liked the crust. Much better pizza than the national chains.

Delicious pizza! Would have preferred to have a bit more ham. But, overall a great little nook for your Italian cravings. Would definitely be back!

I’ve been coming here for years . And it has gotten worse . As to being so hot in there. You can not sit in there and relax n enjoy the good food without sweating through your shirt, I feel sorry for the staff working in that place knowing pay isn’t worth the heat . The food is good n people are nice. If had air in there one time . Too bad they don’t seem like they want to send the money to keep business going . That place always was busy

First time ordering from this place. It was recommended by friends. Blandest fettuccine Alfredo I've ever had. Didn't even taste good. My bf got baked ziti and it hardly had any sauce and too much ricotta cheese. Less than 8 hours later, we were both on the toilet. Stick to Romanos and Primo, y'all.

Went across the river yesterday to pay a couple of friends back for helping us move a month ago. Since I can't get into their house (darn you steps!), we decided to meet up for pizza. Carmelo's was at the top of their list for favorite spots near Glen Burnie. Jeremy and I arrived early because we weren't sure how long the trip would take now that the Key Bridge is no longer an option. So we got an order of wings and some meatballs. The wings were delightful. They come unsauced (sauce on the side), so they're super crispy. Jeremy said they're right up there with his all-time favorite wings (Pippo's in Middle River). The wings came with fries, which were perfect, though unsalted. The meatballs seem to be homemade. Tender and swimming in a bowl of delicious marinara. When our friends arrived, we ordered a large pepperoni pizza, and Jeremy ordered a cheeseteak. The pizza was incredible. I thought that the amount of grease was going to cause the slice to be soggy, but my slice remained crisp. Jeremy said the second slice he had was a bit more limp, but that was fine since the flavor was so satisfying. While the food was wonderful, the service was a little rude. There was a table of older people in the dining room with us. They had called ahead with their orders and seemed satisfied with their experience. What I'm trying to say is that they weren't any trouble at all, and neither were we, but our server (who is perhaps also the owner/manager) acted like he was being run ragged by customers. Perhaps there were a lot of take-away orders. I think that should be seen as a blessing, but we were rushed to order on our servers timeline while he "had the time." He also spent a great deal of time telling an employee every little task that needed to be accomplished. This is just my imagination at work, but I got the feeling that the employee was the owners/manager's nephew or someone in his family who needs constant supervision. This person sat in the dining room, with a buddy, the entire time, waiting to be told to help customers, clean stuff, take out the trash. The owner's patience with this person suggests the familial relationship, as other yelp reviews also mention this employee lounging in the dining room. I do not like being treated as if I'm a hassle for having the nerve to eat in the dining room, but the pizza was REALLY good.

They were out of fountain beverages. Guy did a nice job but kept saying how he was by himself and running all around. Didn't seem very clean inside like other times we had been. Chicken tenders were piping hot though so that was a plus. Something's changed though here and it's not the same

The bread was so hard - it literally hurt my teeth. I'm so disappointed that I added a side order of this hard bread. Delivery arrived quickly, but not as warm as I would expect. Packaged carefully. The eggplant Parmesan tasted ok; I added seasoning and warmed it in microwave. The add-on "entree salad" is really more of a side salad sized. No inclined to return. I wouldn't stay it was disgusting, but I am questioning the freshness of some of their ingredients.

I purchased a salad it was wilted the cucumbers were rotted they served it anyway. This is under a different ownership than originally and has gone down hill ! The old owner was gracious and kind. This ownership not do much. Save yourself the heartbreak cause this ain't the same anymore.

Could have been better. First time in 7 weekly orders that they really fell down. Granted it was Mother's Day. However, if a restaurant cannot provide it's food when promised, and still cannot provide truthful updates as to when the delivery will be made wouldn't it be better to just call the customer and say we cannot get you your order hot (or at least very warm) then send something that is ice cold, and part of it has become so soggy it's no longer edible? I find it extremely annoying when I contact the 3rd party app Slice and I get back some BS time frame 3 different times. I blame the owners. Ice cold onion rings ($5.99), the fries that I didn't order were ice cold and the Italian Cold cut ($7.49) sandwich sat so long in it own juice it became a sponge. I tip well for a reason and the usual delivery driver gets it here hot and fresh. Epic fail into the trash can. Lovely.

Find a different pizza place. The food is delicious but the manager Joe is rude. I wrote the management about my experience so maybe there'll be some retraining for Joe. I may go back if I see an "Under New Management" sign, but feel the story should be shared to hold management accountable. The following is the email sent to management there: I ordered pizza and pasta dish for the first time at your Linthicum location. I was helped by Joe (name he gave, a white guy looked too old to be working there). First of all he was rushing me to order, found out afterwards he was on his lunch break when I came in. Well I told him that I needed to look at the menu before I ordered. I was looking at the menu taped to the countertop. He hurriedly said that prices had gone up since the menu was printed, pointing to the menu on the countertop. By heading me a new menu it was implied that that one had current prices. I paid, $40 and some change so when I added the total up based on the new menu it was higher than what was printed so I asked him about it. He got defensive with his tone and said, "I already told you that prices had changed!" I explained how I must have misunderstood him and thought that the new menu I was given had the new prices. He continued to be defensive, cutting me off mid sentence. I told him that it's over and let's move on. I understand what he had meant but reminded him why I got confused. I said, " let's move on." Him grumbled something under his breath that sounded like "asshole." When my food came out he said he was sorry and that it's hard all by himself there. He's a man who's I assume has had or still has a drinking/substance abuse problem. He's in debt or can't pay his bills. This is one of probably a few jobs he has. I doubt he values it as much as you or I would. It's only a possible scenario, or maybe life dealt him a bad hand. Either way his bad attitude hurts your business and he needs some retraining. I hope the food is good this time because I won't be back until I see an "Under New Management" sign.

We have only ordered delivery from Carmelo's. Carmelo's has some of my favorite pizza around here: the New York style pizza. It is really good. However, everything else we have tried has been so-so- the calzones, the appetizers, Chicago-style pizza, etc. We will still add on some staples like mozzarella sticks, but their pizza is really why we keep coming back. Delivery is always punctual, and staff is always friendly. If you're looking for some delicious pizza in the area, I strongly recommend!

They're open for dine in for Covid! I went with my coworkers for lunch since it's a nice casual restaurant and is reasonable priced. I got the margherita pizza & it was really good! The crust was crispy and the cheese & toppings were amazing. It was a good portion size for the price as well! I'll definitely be going back!

We were looking for a pizza delivery spot near our hotel, and wanted to try something local that wasn't a chain. We opted for Carmelo's, and the pizza was good. The group ordered some of the wings as well, which were reported as "okay" but not great. The pizza was good and had a very yummy pizza sauce to it. I always appreciate when I can actually taste the sauce versus the pizza being mostly a mound of cheese. Carmelo's had a nice balance. I just got the cheese pizza, and the others in the group had something with meat on it, which was reported to be good. Delivery was quick and easy, and Carmelo's certainly satisfied the pizza craving.

You can buy a pizza by a slice here, no problem. I also ordered seafood pasta to go. Carmelo is a male name and Carmille is a female name. Carmelo reminds me of Carmille in NYC. Carmille serves a big portion that is called family style while this Carmelo serves dishes that cater for 1-2 people.

This was a favorite restaurant of my organization since 2009. Carmelo was a personable owner and the food was always top notch and fresh. Unfortunately, COVID has not been good for many restaurants and when I stopped in to get a quick bite I quickly realized things had changed a lot in the past two years. No more table service and very unpleasant caustic personnel with ZERO customer service potential. I can't comment on the food, their rude demeanor and aggressive attitude when I asked about table service had me heading for the door never to return. Shame, it used to be a nice family owned restaurant.

This is definitely one of our favorite pizza spots. They never disappoint! Pizza is always fresh and delicious! The best veggie pizza we've tried!!! Definitely a fav!!! The way these flavors are bouncing off of each other is insane. Omgaaawd, sooooo good!

This is an $8 Italian sub. Barely any meat a very small amount of tomatoes. Not worth the money. The chicken bites are a bit better but overall this place has gone down a little in terms of quality.

We ordered here for our work lunch and we decided on pepperoni pizza, cheese pizza, fries with gravy and house salad with house dressing and everything was delicious. Even with delivery, the fries were crispy and the pizza was hot. We will definitely be ordering from this place again and I want to try the sandwiches and subs.

First time here I enjoyed this quaint little neighborhood pizza/diner establishment. You can get pizza for the takeout by the slice. But I sat in there dining area. Of course I had to order the eggplant Parmesan sub because that's how you judge a place at least in my opinion. The sub was quite good not great although it should've been, the roll was good and the eggplant was well cooked. But there wasn't enough flavor in the sauce and the cheese looked like it had been put on by the bean counters at a Subway sub shop. In other words way too little cheese. Sidenote I asked for the fries to be cooked extra crispy and they were and they were quite good. And they had a friendly attentive staff. I will have to go back again and try more items on the menu.

I miss Squisito's!!! :( Have been going here for years. I wouldn't 1 star them if it wasn't a clear and good reason for it. Majority of our meals are carry out, but when in the building we've come across some big issues, one time I pointed out to a cashier that their was moldy cake in the dessert fridge and he blew off my comment and said well, do you want a piece or not? Another visit, my hubby saw a cook thru the kitchen window giving himself and good ball scratching before going RIGHT back in to things to make our pizza. We have continued to come back here sporadically, gluttons for punishment I guess, mostly because kitchen/wait staff can come and go. We didn't want to give up on support of a local business. However the food that used to overlook some of this issues now doesn't hold up. They keep getting orders wrong, and the food just doesn't taste as good as it used too, nor is it worth the cost. ( I empathize & appreciate the struggle of pandemic restaurants) It wasn't any better pre- Covid tho. I really hope someone takes over that puts the love back into this place. [In the picture I've added- this is seafood alla chef, that was supposed to be over angel hair pasta. I picked the seafood out of it- tossed the rest and now I've got a majorly upset stomach]

Simple version. Food is better than average. They forgot the drink when delivering I'm out of working out of town with some coworkers. We bought the Monday special. 2 large 1 topping pizza's, and 15 wings, with a 2 liter of soda. The quality of the food is better than average, and they forgot my soda. Giving me a 20oz to share with everyone for dinner. So some ran down the street to get one because it was easy then arguing with the staff about it.

I've only ever gotten the Bistro Steak Salad here but I love it. It used to had pine nuts on it but now toasted almonds. I miss the pine nuts but the almonds work. The pizza looks amazing and one day I'll have to try it. This place is pretty popular with local workers it seems so around lunch time it gets pretty crowded with small groups. Tables are close, so try to go early or after the lunch rush if you don't want to wait for a seat. Carryout service is available.

A nice place to get a slice, in the HOCO/AA area. They have a great deal of two slices and a soda. Not sure if their whole pies are as good as their slices, many places have big disconnect between slices, and whole pies.

We ordered curbside pickup through GrubHub on a Sunday night during the Covid-19 stay at home order. It was a very easy process and the food was ready when I got there. This was our first time here and the quality of food was so-so. Important to note, we did NOT get pizza, maybe next time we'll try it and see if it's worth coming back for. We ordered subs with fries and mozzarella sticks. My boyfriend got the Italian Cheesesteak and it wasn't anything to write home about. I got the Italian Combo. The meats were disappointing, they weren't fresh "italian-deli" meats, they were the prepackaged processed kind. Otherwise the sandwiches were huge and very filling. The fries were warm, but unsalted, making them tasteless. I enjoyed the (6) mozzarella sticks, my only complaint was they could have been hotter, but it was takeout, what do you expect? I just popped them in the microwave. I'll come back and try the pizza next time.

The staff was super friendly and the place is clean, but the food is so-so. I ordered the calamari and wished it was a little more crispy. It was also very bland, they must have forgotten the salt. After dipping it in the marinara, it tasted ok. The calzone had a nice chewy dough, but it was all cheese even after adding pepperoni. I wish it all tasted better because, the food wasn't bad, but it certainly wasn't great either.

Had the special of two slices of pizza and a drink for $5.99. It's was very good. Best deal in town!!

When ordering takeout check before you leave that your order was prepared as ordered. Staff is friendly but not as focused on a satisfied customer.

This place is friendly and yummy food. Yesterday I stopped in and got 2 slices with a drink for 5.99! U can never find slices so I loved that. Quick hot and tasty. Today I was in the mood for seafood my coworker ordered the chicken princespessa (unsure spelling I'll update what she says) I got mussels in garlic sauce and calamari . It was delivery it got here in 30 mins ! Calamari good and plentiful and mussels fresh and tasty in the garlic sauce.

Sad review to write after many years of supporting this local business. Extremely disappointed with customer service received tonight. We ordered a large half veggie and half plain pizza for carryout, after picking up the pizza and returning home we realized the pizza was entirely vegetable. Honest mistake, normally I wouldn't care but we were feeding a mix of kids and adults and kids want their cheese pizza so I called back to see if we can rectify the mistake. The woman answering the phone was very polite, when I told her our issue she said that if I brought back and "returned" the incorrect pizza, they would be "willing" to correct the order and make the pizza we originally ordered. I told her that we had already touched the incorrect pizza (we were feeding a group and a slice had already been taken before realizing the mistake) and do they really need us, the customer, to make the effort to drive back and return them an un-servable pizza and wait another 25 minutes for them to correct their mistake? She said yes that was their policy. When I asked if maybe we could just receive a small cheese pizza to satisfy the original order (and the hungry kids) she said she would "ask a manager" and after being placed on hold was told, per the manager, that the only way we could receive the correct original order would be to scrape together the sullied pizza in our possession and bring it back to them and let them remake the correct pizza. Being a group of hungry people under a time constraint I declined the "offer" and we made do picking toppings off for the kids. From a restaurant management and customer service standpoint this was too ridiculous a proposition to engage with, if you make a mistake, you fix it and try to satisfy the customer without forcing them to wait double the time and travel double the distance to get a slightly above average product to begin with. We have been going to Carmelos for many years (back to when it was Squisitoos) solely because it isn't a chain pizza establishment and to support local businesses, but the product isn't good enough and the rapidly declining customer service in recent years is now the end of that. I am not someone who normally goes online to bash businesses, but I just want "the management" to know that their desire to avoid shelling out $2-4 dollars in ingredients to make a small cheese pizza to correct their mistake has cost them a longtime customer.

One Liner: Satisfying Italian fare when my stomach is grumbling but service is always lacking. I work around the corner so Carmelo's is on my lunch rotation. Sometimes I order ahead for pick up and other times I will eat there with coworkers. Regardless of whether I get it to go or eat in my experience has been consistent - the food is good but the service is lacking. For example, the veggie calzone is very good with lots of oooey gooey cheese. Its sizeable like most calzones and for me is perfect for two meals. Also, the garlic bread hits the spot although its not the highest quality bread. Regarding service, last time I ate in the waitress was sitting at a table with some other customers and not focused on her other tables. I guess she knew the other customers and got caught up in conversation. My take-our experience isn't much better. The last time I went in to get food to go I went to the register to pay but the guy standing at the counter said nothing. I guess he wasn't working the register or something, but it would have been nice if he had said something like, "Hi, __(name)__ will be right with you." It was definitely awkward. At least Carmelo's is consistent so I always know what I am getting - good food, mediocre to poor service, large portions and a very fairly priced meal.

My boyfriend & I met a friend here for lunch recently. I was encouraged by the positive Yelp reviews & was definitely in the mood for a good, solid Italian meal. I chose the Chicken Marsala for lunch. (Sadly, I forgot what my companions had. I know that my boyfriend also had a pasta dish.) The food arrived with a basket of garlic bread. I immediately grabbed a piece of bread, because, like any good Italian girl, I was craving garlic in the worst way. One bite and -- what? This is not garlic bread! It didn't taste like garlic. It was yellow, but I'm guessing it was some kind of garlic oil, with a few scattered herbs on it. There were also red bits - I'm not sure how they roll in Baltimore, but I can't remember ever having garlic bread with what I'm guessing was red pepper on it. And no garlic! And now for my Chicken Marsala: the food *tasted* good, with fresh mushrooms, tender chicken, & perfectly-cooked spaghetti. But I couldn't get over how much oily greasy sauce was left in my plate! I've never seen a marsala sauce with that much oil. So, it was tasty, but I was left with an uneasy feeling when I saw my "empty" plate. My boyfriend felt the same way - his dish was good & filling, but he was also left with a swirly plate of oily red sauce. The price is right, the pasta is perfect ... but I can't say that I would be rushing back for a meal here any time soon.

Not great, not even good. We ordered takeout through the Eat24 app for Carmelo's and were pretty disappointed with one item, and felt meh about the rest of our food. Firstly, we ordered chicken strips, and while they did call us to let us know they were out. Great - thank you for calling, I appreciate that. I tried to solve the problem by asking if they had chicken parmesan and if we could just do that dry, with no sauce or anything so it would be like one big chicken strip. They said yes, they could do that. They did put the sauce on the side, but they left the cheese on top and cut up the chicken parmesan and put it on a sandwich (???), and it was completely over cooked and gross. The person who ordered it couldn't even eat it. Everything else was just ok, (side salad, burger, spaghetti, ravioli). Really disappointing. In addition, I requested silverware and napkins through the Eat24 app, and the driver brought none of those things for us so we had to go scavenge those things from downstairs in the hotel lobby instead. For what we paid, plus tip, ($53) this was totally not worth it. I cannot recommend Carmelo's. I will probably never mind myself in Lithicum Heights again, so it doesn't really matter to me necessarily, but I figured I'd let everyone else know.

Super sad, I've been coming here for years and loved this place! Now that the owner died and is under new management it is AWFUL! The staff is rude and have the air about them that they hate their jobs. I ordered a pizza with FRESH mushrooms and the server said no problem, she hates canned mushrooms as well. Well the pizza came out with canned mushrooms. I said something and she assured me they were fresh, turned to the cook and another server who happened to be sitting behind us eating lunch and asked if they were fresh. All of them spoke up and said they were fresh- obviously with a "yeah lady whatever" attitude. So I'm here again and the staff is rude, our food is cold, the two tables next to us are angry at the staff. It's sad. Maybe they just hate their new manager and have stopped caring? Carmelo is definitely rolling in his grave. :(

Shame it's a little restaurant thought it had potential. Food was ice cold and we started with one server and ended with a second server. Our original server left I guess she figured her shift is over and I'll transfer the table. The food was not correct. We never go t any refills the bathroom was dirty. And I saw a cockroach. They need to spray for bugs. Totally unclean. The manager didnt do anything other then call me a liar her name was julie. Unprofessional! I will never come back !!

My job is a long time customer of Carmelo's. The food and service has gone down hill. Since we started ordering from them Our last few meetings that we have had. We call a day before place our order and give the time needed by, explain that it is for a meeting and we need the food on time. In the past this hasn't been a problem, but now yes it is a problem. Late, like super late. We've had to call several times, every time they say it's on the way. There was no way possible that the driver could have been on their way. At some point we were offered a 20%discount. But the fact remains there were hungry people in the meeting. And please understand that it just wasn't once that this happened. I mean the most order was an easy $230.00, that's a lot of money for the order to be extremely late Today we placed a pick up order. One of the items placed was a Italian sub, now it was mine but I saw it. And this was thee driest, saddest, limp Italian sub I've ever seen. Where was all of the traditional meat that belong on an Italian. Anyway, I think we are done with Carmelo's 2 stars because the pizza is good

This place! This is the best of the bad local options. I have a love/ hate relationship with this place. I LOVE their Caesar salad and soups. The prosciutto foccacie, and Italian subs are pretty good. But I can NOT begin to understand the inconsistency. Sometimes subs come hot, sometimes they come cold, sometimes they come with fries, sometimes not. I enjoy the tortellini soup, but sometimes they send garlic bread, sometimes they don't, and if I request I get charged for it?! Fries are usually terrible! Salt is the key... I ordered 2 slices of (veggie) pizza at lunchtime. They called to tell me they didn't have any right now?! What? It's pizza... make 1! After hearing my other options I decided to do 2 slices of the "Carmelos" pizza... well, they only had 1 slice available... WHAT?! How are you "out" of 2 kinds of pizza when YOU'RE A PIZZA PLACE? MAKE 1!!! Like, really?! Wtf? Delivery always takes forever! This place has soo much potential, but in dire need of a good manager and cooks that care about food!

Stopped in here for lunch. Really good pizza and a great price. 2 slices and a drink for $5.99. Waitress attending the dining room was wet friendly, attentive and quick.

I eat here all the time. Great pizzas and calzones. I stick to those items because that's what I like and they do it right. Great $5.99 lunch special everyday which includes any two slices and a drink for carry out only. Friendly staff and nice clean restaurant.

I like buying pizza and subs from local places rather than chains if I have a choice. Not only because it's supporting local community but because the food is usually better and this can for sure be said for Carmelo's. The pizza is far better than your average chain and they have really delicious subs. If a good salad is your thing, give them a try. Not bad prices either, they deliver and never have gotten the order wrong.

The pizza is good but I hate the services. Customer service is very shithead in Carmelo's pizza.

Had a groupon and tried this place. It was amazing. I had the create your own pasta with roasted garlic olive oil, chicken, and angel hair pasta. My boyfriend had a dish I cant pronounce but had spinach, sausage, spiral pasta, and marinara. We also had calamari. Everything was delicious and was very fresh. It was actual calamari and not the fake stuff. The service was impeccable. It was only her second week but she was extremely professional and polite. She checked on us regularly and made sure our experience was a nice one. We will definitely be coming back!!!

Food was good! Staff was friendly and accomodating! Loved the Seafood Alla Chef...yum! Our server, Kim, was terrific! Served us a slice of Strawberry Shortcake Cheesecake for our anniversary!

I decided to try Carmelo's for the first time and I ordered a pizza for delivery. It arrived half baked. The cheese was barely melted and the crust was a soggy mess. I had to fire up my oven and continue cooking it for 15 minutes more. Won't be ordering from Carmelo's again.

Super friendly staff! Waitress was more than willing to answer any questions and make recommendations. Cozy little place. Great food. Ordered pizza and caesar salad. You get a lot for a small. Will be going back again! Only recommendation is they should have restaurant menus for the tables instead of using paper menus that they use for carryout. It would look better and cleaner. :)

Ordered 2 large pizzas for delivery, time for delivery was supposed to be 30-45 minutes but was delivered in about 25mins, still hot and very good!

I ordered a crab meat pizza and the whole bottom of the crust was burnt! I called to see if they would replace it and they said that's how they make it and wouldn't make another pizza! I wouldn't recommend them to anyone, especially if they couldn't even make it right!! The app is making me give them a minimum of 1 star and they don't even deserve that!!!! You tell me if it's burnt!!

Great food service and very clean place. We enjoyed antipasto, lasagna and veal Marcella. Will definitely be back with my own welcomed bottle of wine!

I ordered catering for my wedding day prep and had someone wait for the delivery at the front desk on the agreed upon time. After 4+ phone exchanges and them already and your late I had to cancel the order and get food elsewhere for my bridal party as we were getting ready. A huge disappointment. I only received excuse after excuse but the woman on the phone did not take responsibility for the mess, which made it even more upsetting. The delivery location was within minutes from the restaurant, and they couldn't figure it out. I verified the delivery location and the phone numbers and did not receive information until it was too late and I had to call them. Just a mess.

Great Italian food, family owned, named Carmelo's now to pay tribute to their late father. Pizza is one of the best in the areas. Prices are good. Great lunch specials.

Holy moly! If you want some good A Italian food then Go here. !!!!! I wish I lived closer because I'd be there daily! Gosh dang

Our church is just a few blocks away, and after a recent weeknight service my husband and I were starving. A friend recommended Carmelos: "No frills, but the price is right." That perfectly describes this tacky-cute cafe with delicious, homemade food. The entrance is a little odd -- there are 4 or 5 doors on two sides of the restaurant, but only one is unlocked. Once inside, you pass the takeout counter and come to a makeshift hostess stand; she seats you at a plastic-covered table with plastic-covered chairs and plastic-covered menus. Hey, it's all scrubbable. :) The menu is rather extensive, but we played it safe and went with two Italian classics: Lasagna Bolognese and Chicken Parmigano. Both were outstanding. My husband's chicken was a large breast, split and sauteed expertly so it was still crispy, served with a huge pile of angel hair pasta and marinara sauce. The pasta was cooked perfectly al dente, and the sauce had excellent flavor and depth. Meanwhile, I laughed out loud when they brought my lasagna: it was the equivalent of four normal-sized pieces, served in a T-shape. The pasta was, again, al dente, a lovely contrast with the creamy ricotta and tender ground beef. Oregano and red pepper were on the table, and I added both, but the seasoning was quite good as served. When it came time to leave, I asked for a box to transport the 3/4 of my lasagna I hadn't been able to finish. I also asked for another side of marinara to take home, as I'd eaten all mine with the lasagna (did I mention it was delicious?) The server brought me a whole soup container full, and I enjoyed several more wonderful meals out of the same dinner, which cost me all of $16. The atmosphere isn't great, and there are some slightly sketchy patrons, but wow, what value for delicious Italian food. They brought garlic bread with the meal, which wasn't the highest quality, but there's something to be said for warm and buttery! The only real miss were the side salads: one or two pieces of green amid a sea of tired iceberg lettuce and pink tomatoes. Have a salad some other time, and order pasta when you come here!

Love the cheesesteak and also the pizza slice lunch special. Service is awesome and environment is laid back and casual.

One of the better Italian takeout places I've been to - the quality of the food is actually really good. The service is great, and we usually end up with our favorite waitress (a young looking Peg Bundy?). For the service and quality of food, the prices are pretty low - I usually spend around $10 for coke, tons of fries, and an enormous sandwich. There are always tables available, the environment is nice, quiet and clean, and there are high definition TVs up for news and sports. There's plenty of parking, too.