Da Nicola

Hubby took me here for Valentine’s Day. I’m giving them a little grace on this review due to this. Since it was an extremely busy night for them I’m certain this could be the reason it didn’t live up to the previous reviews. We had a reservation and still had to wait over 20 mins to be seated. It was Vday so I get it, they were packed to capacity so I tried not to let it annoy me too much. Service was also pretty slow and not very attentive, our table barely got checked on. Again, extremely busy night so I get it. Finally, the food and drinks were just ok. The best item we had for the night was their crab cake. Everything else we had left us underwhelmed. Again, I’m sure the kitchen was super busy and burnt out and it probably wasn’t their best work. Not sure if I’ll be back, but if do return I’ll be sure to go on a less busy night to see if I have a better experience.

We are frequent diners.. which is why we were stunned that the "Manager" of the restaurant was hostile when questioned as to why 20% glass of the cocktail ordered was left not full. He began with a statement "We had a meeting with the boss last night". and among other things said "We can`t give away alcohol for free" stated in an accusatory way.The interpretation being "You want to steal alcohol from the restaurant."! Yes ,the manager of Da Nicola is now accusing patrons of wanting to steal from the restaurant !! The "cocktail " itself was very poorly prepared more like warm lemon juice with a touch of alcohol. Hopefully this was an aberration and the "Manager" gets some hospitality training, and and the bartender learns how to prepare a drink.As of now beware.

Da Nicola absolutely exceeded every expectation. From the moment we walked in, the atmosphere felt warm, polished, and authentically Italian, the perfect balance of upscale and welcoming. We ordered a variety of dishes and every single one was exceptional. The halibut with butter lemon sauce was perfectly cooked ,flaky, delicate, and incredibly fresh. The sauce was light yet flavorful, enhancing the fish without overpowering it. It was elegant and balanced. The grilled branzino over broccoli rabe was another standout. The branzino had a beautiful char and crisp skin, while staying tender and moist inside. Paired with the slightly bitter, perfectly sautéed broccoli rabe, it was a flawless combination. The pasta with short ribs was pure comfort food in the best way. The short ribs were melt in your mouth tender, and the sauce was rich, deep, and clearly slow cooked with care. You can taste the love and time that went into it. And the chicken calabrese had just the right kick …bold, flavorful, and perfectly executed without being overwhelming. What truly sets Da Nicola apart, though, is the hospitality. The service was attentive, professional, and genuinely warm. The pacing of the meal was perfect, and every plate came out beautifully presented. This wasn’t just dinner, it was an experience. Da Nicola is the kind of place you look forward to returning to before you’ve even left the table. Highly, highly recommend.

This was a surprisingly great place. The atmosphere was nice, the staff was super friendly, the food was delicious and prices were very reasonable. I'll definitely be coming back here when i'm looking for good italian dinner.

The bread!!! When the bread is this good, you know everything else is going to be good. Wood-fired pizza—you can see the split logs piled in the back. The wine list—extensive. The pasta: perfectly dunked. Pasta fagioli will make you cry. No wonder people get addicted to this place.

Great food great service great bar from the moment you walk in you’ll feel like you’re home. My birthday celebration was the best with the best friends you could ever have.

Our meal was just scrumptious! The grilled chicken is off the chart and the roasted potatoes, just like my Nana's!! Thank you so much for a delicious dinner!

Visited for the second time in the last two weeks. Food was delicious and service was good. Definitely a place to visit.

Came with reservation and waited 30 minutes for table. Restaurant was over crowded and very loud ! Food was disappointing !

The portions are bigger than usual and very delicious. Our waiter, André was very attentive and accommodating.

Came here around 9pm for dinner on a Friday. It was crowded but we were able to get a table. The specials sounded phenomenal, but unfortunately they ran out of what we wanted because it was right before close. Regardless, our meals were delicious! I ordered the halibut with sautéed spinach in lemon caper sauce. The dish comes with mashed potatoes but I swapped that for spinach to be a little healthier. That plan went out the window when I started dipping the whole loaf of bread in the sauce. But it was soooo good. My friend ordered fussili with braised short rib. He really liked it, but I'm not a big short rib person. For our appetizer we had fried calamari, which was cooked perfectly. So light and crispy! it's well lit and can get kind of loud but I didn't find it overstimulating. Overall, would definitely come back! Hoping to try the ahi tuna and lamb chops when they have the specials again

Hubby took me here for Valentine's Day. I'm giving them a little grace on this review due to this. Since it was an extremely busy night for them I'm certain this could be the reason it didn't live up to the previous reviews. We had a reservation and still had to wait over 20 mins to be seated. It was Vday so I get it, they were packed to capacity so I tried not to let it annoy me too much. Service was also pretty slow and not very attentive, our table barely got checked on. Again, extremely busy night so I get it. Finally, the food and drinks were just ok. The best item we had for the night was their crab cake. Everything else we had left us underwhelmed. Again, I'm sure the kitchen was super busy and burnt out and it probably wasn't their best work. Not sure if I'll be back, but if do return I'll be sure to go on a less busy night to see if I have a better experience.

We arrived at 6:15 when the restaurant was about 20% full, by the time we left it was packed. Everything was delicious as always. Service by Daniella was accommodating and friendly. Portions of the fish were very big so we decided to take half home along with another order of pasta for a meal the next day. I'm so glad I live 5 minutes from DaNicola.

I'm not crazy about Italian because I love spicy foods BUT..... the dishes we had were sooo freakin good. My kids loved it and we loved it. Cons: no cons Pros: clean bathroom Great food Great drinks Great service The chef came walking around and even sang happy birthday a couple of times. He did not like that my hubs ordered zoodles haha but he made it anyway. I did have the pasta and it was so dang good. Will definitely dine again and try other dishes. Between the food and service, that alone made it feel like a comfy and kind atmosphere

Love Da. But this was a new one worth mentioning. Family cele - I'm usually a chicken Scarp, Franchese or Paul's pork Chop fan, went whole hog for the Boneless Ribeye. Freaking AWESOME!!!! Huge portion, steakhouse quality and a very reasonable price. Loved!!!!!

I heard this place had good alla vodka so it was on my list. One night we finally ventured on over to this area just to come here (okay it wasn't that long of a drive lol) one of the best alla vodka's ever. My hubs loved his food too and our son loved his. Service was amazing and nice ambiance. I only wish it was closer because we'd for sure be regulars. We will be back though :P highly recommend.

The food here is always fresh and delicious. This is my 3rd time eating at this establishment and the ambiance is always lively and crowded. Service was a bit slow, but it was a Friday night so it was super busy.

Truly an amazing meal! We ordered Da Nicola for delivery after a flight into NY. The food came fast, and fresh. The pasta was delicious, even my Italian husband was impressed. My favorite was the pasta with vodka sauce. My dad loved the chicken parmigiana. We're a picky family but we loved this! Thank you for a great start to a family vacation!

Best Veal parm for miles around. Classic Italian specialties as well as house specials. Avocado salad and fried artichokes stand out with generous portions. Never had a bad meal here.

Walked in on a Friday night around 7pm and the place was packed. Took a lot longer to be seated than the quoted time. The hostesses were very friendly, manager came over once we were finally seated to check on us. They had to move our table to accommodate a larger party, sent over a round of drinks for the inconvenience. For appetizers we had the tomato & mozzarella and baked clams, both were good. Entrees - if you want a lighter dish go with the spicy shrimp, it's a small portion, would have been better if served with pasta. Chicken arabiatta was underwhelming, lacked spice and needed more sauce. My friend enjoyed the salmon oreganata. We skipped on dessert because all of the items we would have tried were unavailable. There was some issues with our bill at the end but Alberto the manager resolved everything and was very attentive throughout the night.

Great food it was so delicious I went with all my friends and my friends father paid the bill. He is a class act. We ordered everything and I have to tell you this was the best Italian restaurant I've ever been to. Everything was amazing. I can't wait to go back with my family because, they are going to love everything on the menu. If you live on long island this is your little Italy. Go enjoy! Joey

DaNicola is really the only game in town. Now I understand why this place gets 4.5 stars. The food is consistently mediocre at best and terribly overpriced. Ordered pizza which was burnt and served lukewarm. App was served with the main course. It was impossible to find the server after food came. Bathroom was filthy and in need of a good scrubbing. Lots of choices in nearby Rockville Centre. I'll def go there next time.

Took a drive to Da Nicola Friday night on Broadway in Hewlett to meet some friends who live in the area. The place has an identity crisis. When you first see Da Nicola from the outside, after street parking, or parking at the municipal lot around the corner, you're convinced it's a pub. Step inside, and yea, it's a bar. A rowdy bar, that's too crowded, and some awfully unruly angry patrons if you dare try to order a drink over them. There isn't any host stand when you first walk in or anyone welcoming a party coming in to eat. Suppose the locals know you need to walk in past the bar to discover a very large dining room and a host stand - and I would guess this place is mostly locals. I'm not sure I would try this place based on a first impression.... However, get past all of that. Eventually you will be seated in a cozy, comfortable dining room that also feels like a pub. And finally, you see a beautiful elegant looking menu, extensive with appetizers, salads, soups, sides, pastas, entrees, some "Italian" specials, grilled meat and seafood. The menus were stacked on the table, like a pub, not handed to you. At this point, the establishment turns from a pub to a restaurant. A very good one. We had an awesome server who knew the menu inside and out, shared the specials with us, and helped us order. We ordered a special from the pizza oven- soppressata, olives and oinions (no pizza orders after 9:00, suppose the wood needs to burn down?), shrimp cocktail, calamari arrabiata, mozzarella- tomato - roasted peppers, baked clams oreganata. The calamari was standout it's a gigantic portion, it has a nice char taste, cooked perfectly, and the sauce and cherry peppers were great. Between our apps and the entrees, new silverware was placed on the linen tablecloth. I ordered the special grilled veal chop with spinach and subbed that gnocchi for the potato. The dish was plated very well, and tasted amazing - especially the cap of the chop. Others did the chicken parm - again, giant!, grilled pork chops and fresh pastas. Coffee, espresso and cappuccinos were very good, as were the deserts. I thought I was going to explode, otherwise I would have ordered that brownie with ice cream. Instead, I took a spoonful of the delicious fruit tart and ice cream. Very good. Everyone was thrilled with the food, and the prices were very reasonable. I would go back, and you could consider hosting an event here - baptism, communion, family birthday, graduation, etc.

We love Da Nicola. It's very comfortable and the food is consistently great with huge portions. Wanted to mention a new favorite add - had the lamb chops with spinach and mashed special. Great portion (I'm a big guy), perfectly cooked and extremely well priced. It is a special but it seems to be on the menu pretty often. Give it a try!!!

This restaurant serves amazing food is always so fresh and delicious the service is amazing everytime we come in our waiter always treats us so nice if you come in on a Sunday ask for havier he's very friendly and always make good recommendations on drinks and food the bartender makes a great sangria

This is the place to go for great Italian food. The service is excellent and the ambiance is a lot of fun. The best place for real food!!!!!

OMG, so we are not from the area and we were craving Italian. At first we were a little turned off at how loud it was, but then soon realized how comfortable everyone was. Everyone was having a great time and it was apparent. People knew people from other tables and the music was nice. Our server was also super sweet. Service was a bit slow, but the chef was hard at work pumping out these dishes! This time allowed us to enjoy our drinks and people watch. I highly recommend if you want authentic and delicious Italian food. Oh, and we were told the chef doesn't make soups after June....big mistake! I know they are made to order, but so delicious. Next time we're in NY, this place is on our list. We were also told about the pizza, but that will have to wait!

It's New York. It's Long Island. It's South Shore. Wow, another Italian Restaurant. Actually, Yes WOW!!!!! A Post Covid restaurant that: WELCOME's You That appreciates You That respects your money Employees that know it's their career, not just another job. Truly enjoyed this place and look forward to returning again and again. Oh Yeah.... Food is great too!!!

This is our Go To Place when we want to be assured of a great Italian mean. The service is exceptional, the Bartenders are Great, and the Prices are reasonable. Do yourselves a favor and give it a try.

This place was recommended for a date night. I don't eat clams , but these were amazing. Highly recommend . My date had rib eye medium rare very good mashed potatoes amazing. I did the little happy dance. the calamari is a little chewy. shrimp cocktail Very fresh. The bartender knows how to make good drinks . The restaurant isn't that big. So it's not really alot of social distancing. The service is good. I would definitely go back. & I highly recommend . It's not a diverse restaurant, if you are a minority you may be the only one there... but it's great vibes. The people are very nice and the food and drinks are great.

Not very easy to find, however, once you do *chefs kiss* such amazing food! Italian done right. Parking is municipal and you have to walk less than a block. It's dark inside and packed with people on a Wednesday night. We started with the burrata and stuffed clams. Delicious. Burrata and arugula were fresh and the drizzle of balsamic and evoo really topped it off. The clams were small but packed with flavor! My friend told me about a special she once had and raves about it. It's not on the menu, neither was it on the specials board, however, they accommodated us and made the halibut on a bed of mashed with a lemony caper sauce. Halibut was perfectly cooked, sauce was out of this world. Tangy, salty and oh so delicious. Finished our plates clean. 10/10 recommend. They are all about pleasing their customers. Yum. Will be back for more!

Busy, noisy restaurant with average food for the price. Seating area tight makes you feel the tables are nearly on top of you. Staff works hard but tend to be masking an attitude at times. Your likely find yourself requiring to remind the staff one of the dishes you ordered wasn't brought to the as well as nearly have to plead for fresh ground pepper or grated cheese. Bar also could be better if they brought drinks out on time. It's a busy place surprisingly which just means mediocrity is often rewarded.

Easily the best local italian food created by a local self taught chef. Would give most places in the city a good run for their money. Notable standouts include the Chicken Parmigiano, Rigatoni a la Vodka, Fusilli with braised short rib. Pizzas when available are the best on the island.

Food was amazing. I had the whole wheat penne with chicken meatballs. It was a bit salty but not overbearing. Service was good as well.

Solid family owned business who seems to be thriving based on my last few visits. Good atmosphere, good food and the wait staff is great. Highly recommend.

The best restaurant in town! Delicious food, great service! Very friendly staff! Gem of the neighborhood.

I came in today with some friends is not my first time here in this establishment the food never disappoints I just didn't like how I heard the bartender and the manger arguing about their issues and blaming each other about their issues about their personal life and blaming each other about alcohol and marijuana. But Besides that everything was great hope to come back soon.

Wow. I cannot tell you how many hours I spent here when it was Rafters. The spot has been numerous offerings over the years nothing which stood out. I came in for a visit from Florida and my friend suggested this restaurant. Our server was super nice and he appreciated my sarcastic humor. We ordered a bottle of wine and a baked clams oregenata. The clams were good sized, not like the tiny ones you get at other Italian joints . They had a great flavor and were perfectly cooked. We used the bread to soak up the extra sauce. Yummy!!! My friend got her usual chicken meatballs with whole wheat pasta. The meatballs were really good, nice flavor and juicy. I'm not a fan of whole wheat pasta. The texture just doesn't work for me. But the sauce and meatballs were top notch. I ordered the chicken montecassino which has baked eggplant, mozzarella, and mushrooms with a sherry wine sauce. It was delicious. The entrees came with a side of veggies which were cooked and seasoned perfectly. We were too full for dessert. There is valet parking and a free parking lot behind the block. The bar was very lively and a Halloween costume party broke out as we were leaving. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Pretty good Italian place. Very crowed, and very loud. As for the food it was very good, as was the service. Prices also good, and the drinks were a nice size. We go here often

The food in this place is superb very cute little restaurant cozy perfect for a romantic dinner Service was outstanding

A pretty good Italian with a big following of regulars, the food and the service were excellent. as were the prices.

Love it...see Albert! Always making you feel right at home...great food, comfortable and easy...

We had an open table reservation booked for 7:45 PM. The restaurant confirmed our reservation upon arrival and said it would be about a five minute wait to sit. They had us wait for 45+ minutes and it was obvious there was no table for us. They were continuously promising another five minutes as tables were getting up. There were other people coming in and sitting within minutes, obviously locals or regulars that they were catering to. We had a drink at the bar while waiting and which they comped knowing they had no idea when they would be able to sit us. We wound up leaving the restaurant after almost an hour. This restaurant is not honoring open table reservations, and has no business being on open table at all. They should be removed! We will never return to this restaurant. Absolutely awful customer service and ignoring their open table status.. Also, the inside of the restaurant is extremely old and needs a renovation. The restaurant clearly did not have enough staff as well it was complete chaos watching the staff, trying to order drinks and serve tables.

I've never heard of this spot before, but went there on a date and the food was outstanding! Maybe more than I'm used to spending , but the quality of the dishes are very much worth it. The specials listed by the chef also had my mouth watering! Took me longer than usual to order and now this is on my list of places to go back to

My friend and I wanted some Italian food, and found this spot nearby. We were seated almost immediately when we arrived, which was great because we didn't make any reservations. I ordered the Handmade Fusilli with Braised Short Rib and was pleasantly surprised by meal. It was my first time ever trying fusilli and it was really really good. I love that it was handmade because you taste the quality of it being authentic/homemade like which I reallyy enjoyed. The short rib was a bit on the dry side, I expected it to be a lot more tender but it was still good though. I also wish the broth was a bit thicker to pair with the fusilli but overall my meal was enjoyable. The ambiance was really nice as well, but the tables are pretty close to each other so you do hear everyone's conversations next to you.

Delicious food every time!! New favorite local spot. Can't wait to go back. Fresh food and good service make for a great time. The avocado salad is simply delicious!

Went to Da Nicola tonight. Food was excellent. Service, horrible. We had a 7pm reservation, and at 7:10 was told by the hostess that a table just paid and we would be seated. 7:20 - they seated another party there. We asked the hostess what's up, and she said that "she forgot" about this group. BS. Obviously these were friends are regulars and were given priority. We were finally seated at 7:40. The 4 water glasses had "floaters", and had them taken away. The waiter (who was really nice) took our order promptly. 20 minutes to get our salads (still no water). After asking 3 times, we finally got our water. We ordered a 2nd round of drinks (1st round was while waiting for the table), and then waited an hour for our main course to be served. The waiter said they would comp us a round of drinks due to the delay. We finished our dishes, so I figured they would just take the round of drinks off the bill. When they bussed the table, we asked for the bill - AND GOT THE COMPED DRINKS! They went untouched. We paid, and left. The food was excellent, but the service was horrendous. We asked for bread 3x during the main course, and are still waiting.

Yesterday we gonto this Italian restarant. And first of all I loved the singer its add alot. The food I order penne Alfredo with mushrooms it wasn't in the menu but it was delicious!!!! I loved it!!! Why 4 starts! Well they need to clean little more I whoud say. My friend spill some water on the table no one clean it, the dishes we finish just there forever, the forks that they give us was dirty so I whoud definitely take one star out for all this cleaning issues. But the food taste great, and in general it's fun place.

I wish that I could rate Da Nicola's food and service as two separate entities, but, since I can't, that is the reasoning behind the three stars. The service was truly awful-one star at best. Thankfully, the food was delicious or this would have been a total fail in my book! Upon arriving, with three other friends for a birthday dinner, and I told the guy that I had a reservation for 5 people at 7. He told me ok and that he would be right back and then disappeared for ten mins. It is VERY evident that this place overbooks reservations because at all times of the night, we always saw multiple people standing around waiting for a table. We were seated outside at around 7:10, so that isn't terrible. We asked for a drink menu in which we were abruptly told they do not have. Our waitress seemed like waiting on tables was the last thing on Earth she wanted to be doing. We then asked if we could put in our appetizer orders before placing dinner orders, and were told we couldn't-that it all had to be done at once. Never been somewhere where this was the case, but whatever. Appetizers, which included one order of calamari and one order of burrata, took about 40 minutes to come out. Our dinner arrived shortly after the appetizers, yet our appetizer plates were still on the table. Everyone enjoyed dinner-there was chicken parm, penne vodka, salmo, filet of sole, shrimp oreganata, and gnocchi on the table, and everyone agreed that the food was great, especially the vodka sauce. Very good. Not once throughout the meal did anyone come check and see if we needed anything or what not. Being that we were here for a birthday, we asked to see the dessert menu, in which we were then told that if we wanted dessert we would have to get a table inside since we were seated outside. Never in my life have I heard something like this...you can bring dinner entrees outside but you can't bring dessert? Made zero sense, and caused us to skip out on dessert. Whole thing was bizarre. Sad to say, because the food was so good, but because of the service, I probably would not want to come back here.

Our all time favorite Italian restaurant. The service here can not be beat, and the menu selection is very vast, also if it's not on the menu, they will make it for you anyway. They have Friday night specials at the bar that is the Greatest deal in town. The Portions are large, and their Prices are reasonable. PS they also provide Valet Parking.

The wait was horrific and they certainly had more people inside h to en they should have, so shame on them for that. BUT the food is so outrageously delicious that it was worth it! 6 of us started with a small pizza, baked clams, arugula salad, another type salad and the special capellini cakes. Everything was delicious and so filling. My favorite was the capellini cake with the a la vodka sauce on the side. We had the pork chop with roasted peppers- outrageous! Halibut - outstanding! 3 had rib eye steaks which were great! Orecchiette with sausage and broccoli rabe- great! Can't wait to go back! The waiter was great but the busboy was out of this world!

Long time favorite. Consistently good. My standard for Italian food. Large portions. Reasonable prices. Specials always surprise. Great and imaginative salads. Fish specials worth trying. Can be noisy but food and service remain excellent.

Everything they make is excellent. My two favorites are the Fried Calamari Arabiatta and the Artichoke Oreganata - well done.

Excellent Italian that is never bad, the food and serves is great, the prices are reasonable. A very good choice

Fresh tasty food , portions was good. price was on the higher end. service was great and parking is available in the back .

I love this place. Such a great vibe, family oriented and amazing food every time. Doesn't matter what we order. It Never disappoints.

tl;dr: fast service, warm bread, excellent pasta, overcooked/bland chicken i came here with my family. it's been here for years and this is the first time i've been inside. it was good - the pasta was on par with other long island italian joints and the chicken wasn't that great. the portions were large and the bread/side roast veg was appreciated. prices were fair.