DeNicola's Italian Restaurant

Calzone is 10/10 and could feed more than one person. It’s huge! You get to choose three toppings for the filling. I ordered the special and was not disappointed. Cheese filled ravioli with tomato cream sauce with spinach and Italian sausage? Yum. Two types of pizza were also ordered and enjoyed in our group. We loved that our meal came with a complimentary bread basket and butter. Portions are large and the food is so comforting. Love the Italian interior and friendly service. Been here 3+ times and enjoyed every visit. Even though it’s off of a busy road, the parking lot is pretty big and not too hard to get in and out of. The history of the DiNicola family is very interesting if you ask a waiter/waitress! Highly recommend.

Delicious, they mean it when they say authentic Italian food. The chicken parm was absolutely humongous! Im stuffed. Cheap aswell, $60 for lasagna, chicken parm, 2 salads, antipasta, bread, and a cream soda. The anti pasta is kinda ugly lol but that doesn't matter.

My Sicilian grandmother would approve of this place if she was still with us. Their service, portions, flavor was outstanding. Their special of the day was cheese and spinach ravioli with Italian sausage and the best sauce I’ve had in a very long time. Felt like home, just what this Italian boy needed while missing his gran. Thank you so much!

The aroma hits you when you first walk in and you know you’re walking out stuffed! All the smells and flavors you expect from family run Italian restaurant. The bread, salad, homemade dressing, rich sauces, fresh pasta… all of it!

Absolutely great Italian restaurant. The atmosphere feels cozy. I've been here many times and DeNicola's does not disappoint. I ordered the nocchi and tortellini plate mezza mezza style. So good. The portion was huge! I definitely had leftovers. I recommend this place for anyone looking for an authentic Italian restaurant.

This spot delivered a classic, comforting Italian-American dining experience. The meal began with warm, buttery garlic bread and a hearty vegetable soup full of rustic flavor. The fettuccine Alfredo was creamy, rich, and generously portioned—simple but satisfying. For dessert, both the tiramisu and cannoli were delightful finishes, with the tiramisu offering a balanced coffee and cocoa profile, and the cannoli adding a fun crunch with a pistachio-dusted shell and sweet ricotta filling. The whole experience felt like a cozy trip to a vintage Italian kitchen.

DeNicola’s has been our go-to since my teen years. We had our rehearsal dinner there and our kids have grown up going as well. On this visit we introduced our friends to the amazing food while celebrating a landmark in their life. It was a huge hit and plenty of leftovers to take home. I had the gluten-free spaghetti with homemade sausages, and soup. The pizza was shared and they loved it too. The food is always delicious homestyle Italian food. Sooo good!

Absolutely horrible and indescribably disappointing. The picture represents $27.00 chicken piccata; which is supposed to be a house special. Rubbery chicken in a greasy lemon/butter sauce that is almost nonexistent and capers thrown on the side. How in the world would a restaurant justify that as a house special and worth the money?!? I rarely have an experience this disappointing and cannot figure out how they expect this to be an excepted dining experience.

Updates for East Side long running restaurants - 1 of 2 I'm glad that this restaurant, DeNicola's, is a constant. It truly anchors the generous, tasty, and filling Italian restaurant niche when so many newer Italian locales are going trendy, expensive, and skimpy. (I'm looking at all you pissy, self-regarding bistros that pop up where the cool people who think they are discerning tend to live.) In fact, their sandwich board outside mentions that, if you like 'East Coast Italian food,' you're a shoo-in for DeNicola's. The interior continues unchanged and they keep it in nice shape. Take note that the restaurant has been handed down a generation and you will see a portrait of the proprietress in addition to photos of the founding generation. Here, the clientele is down to earth and so are the employees. I ordered one of the things I often get - the tortellini filled with meat in a white sauce. The portion size was to my liking since I can almost inhale filled pastas. With it came a dinner salad, some antipasto items, and a bread basket. They are sticking to their good things and one of them is the delicious pesto salad dressing. I'm going from 4 to 5 stars because, on the last visit, the young lady who was the server for my table did an outstanding job and was very amicable and enthusiastic. Since I've been here a number of times, I still look back at the one-off time that there was this really friendly hostess who reminded me of Judith Light. You remember her, right? She was the female lead in "Who's the Boss?" That celebrity lookalike was the hostess, hence she got you seated and such, but she didn't take your order ... but she had this great vibe. So, both that hostess and now this energetic young lady really ratcheted up the quality of the visit and I'm going with 5 stars. So, in closing, I'm coming full circle. It's this 'East Coast Italian food' characterized by good taste, good portions, and good value where DeNicola's delivers and I'm very glad I dropped in to have dinner.

Three may be rough but this could also be a case of ordering the wrong thing. I grew up in the area. I've always seen this but never have been. I got the chicken parm with ravioli. The chicken was awful. Overcooked and tough. The breading on the chicken was under seasoned and didn't adhere very well. The temperature on the cheese was off. The very top was cold. The red sauce was actually very good. I wanted some more of this. If I ever came back I'd probably go simple like spaghetti and meatballs. Maybe it's been a long time since I've had Italian but the prices were a little steep. Yeah the portions were decent but I wasn't impressed with the quality. The upcharge for soup or salad to complete the meal seemed a little silly to me. Service was very good. They had that going for them.

Food: spagetti with italian sausage. Sausage delicious. Spagetti sauce not worth the trip. Cheap white french bread (which was awful) three small 3" pieces of focaccia bread delicious. Green salad good with excellent blue cheese dressing. Sangria was good. Service: very poor. Took forever to get menus. Forever to take our order. Long wait for spagetti and fettuccine. Ambiance: old Italian restaurant but very clean. Much too noisy to hear your dining guests. Not a place to take a date or to visit.

It used to be excellent. Maybe about ten years ago. The denicolas special isn't special because it's dry. We had to add our own extras at home to make it edible. The crust flavorless, lack of cheese. The black olives also dry. The cheese was practically non existent, we're going to doctor up our left overs by adding sauce cheese and Green peppers. They Asked for a tip through presentation of The debit machines suggested too of "$7 83 would be so Easy to select when paying because of where in the scree it's located. I don't think a tip is appropriate When The pizza has shrunk in size and quality is not what it used to be Denicolas special Used to be the BEST pizza in Portland in The past. Someone New must be in the kitchen and doesn't know how to make a great pizza or they're told to skimp on ingredients. Back to the tipping, I have a difficult time with balance and the person could see me having a difficult time opening the door to leave with one hand on The pizza and The other hand door to balance while using my right hip to open The door. The person that Took my order and gave me the pizza looked But didn't assist. The cashier at Papa Murphy's asks "ma'am do you need help?" Tips are given when a person goes above and beyond! Tip make denicolas special with more sauce, I asked for extras sauce But they charge $3.50. Papa Murphy's doesn't charge for extra sauce. Sadly I remember When the regular people ran The Business as being the best ever saucey pizza. Now there's a slightly spread of sauce. Is sauce that expensive you can't make it Better? There was just not enough on The pizza for... it to be worth $38.00 we could buy four dominoes for that price!!!

We've driven by 1 million times and we finally stopped in! (that's also what their sign outside used to say!) This is one of those places where you know exactly what you're gonna get! You're always gonna get mom's home cooked taste! I was torn between three types of pizza and the server said "it's a pretty slow night so you can get all three on one pizza if you'd like." And that's what we did! We also got a combination ravioli plate as well as the kids spaghetti and meatball plate. The complementary bread and anti-pasta plates were a nice touch! The food was definitely as expected. I ordered more than me and my kids could eat because I knew I wanted leftovers the next day! The cherry on top of this place was the extreme kindness of the servers! Will definitely be back and expect the same quality of food!

Sunday night family dinner at one of our favorite Portland restaurants. We live in San Diego and we are up here for our oldest son's wedding. We gathered the bride to be and her family who are up from Southern California also. We had a delicious dinner with lots of favorites. Great service. It was a busy Sunday night and with 7 of us and we had made reservations thankfully. I am never disappointed. Everyone loved their dishes and with their generous portions we came home with some great leftovers. My favorite is Spaghetti Aglio Oglio. I can't not order it every time we come. If you are a garlic lover it should not be passed by.

We ordered take out. When the food arrived it was still warm which was nice. We ordered two lasagnas that came with bread. The lasagna was pretty oily, had larger pieces of sausage throughout the inside but all in all it tasted good to me. My spouse thought the lasagna was a too spicy and didn't end up eating it due to the spice level and how much oil there was. The to go container was leaking oil outside so the bag was oily and they didn't provide utensils or napkins but we were at home so that was okay. The bread was fresh and soft which we did like. I won't cross DeNicola's off the list yet - while we wouldn't order the lasagna again we do want to give them a fair shot at the restaurant to see if better!

Frank Sinatra music, wine bottles lining shelves, wood lattice, strings of lights, candles on the tables, red checkered tablecloths and the old Italia placemats. This place screams the old East Coast Italian restaurants I grew up eating at in New Jersey. DeNicola's is a piece of old Portland that's been around since 1978 and they don't need to change anything about it. I was with the kiddo and wanted old school Italian food. Yes, there are plenty of the fancier places across PDX and I do enjoy many of them but, it's not what we were looking for. Spaghetti, gnocchi, fettuccine, manicotti, shells, lasagna. The menu wasn't large, but they had the essentials. I was surprised that there wasn't any fried calamari on the menu, but there was garlic cheese bread and a really good salad for two. We probably could have done well with just that and the Italian cream soda my daughter has, but pasta was up next. Fettuccine Alfredo with chicken for her and lasagna with meat sauce for me. Both were really good and nostalgic because no one does just simple items like this. The portions were big and the kiddo was stuffed. No room for tiramisu this visit. I've known about DeNicola's for a long time and I'm glad we finally got to go to enjoy some good old school Italian cuisine. Enjoy and support local!

Old school Italian restaurant (just like when I was a kid) with all the right foods. Great staff, very courteous, pleasant interior and wonderful food. I've driven by this place for forever (on Powell Blvd) and never stopped, what a crime! By way, if you leave without having a cannoli, you messed up.

Saturday evening about 6 pm. Craving Italian. I always passed DeNicola's never gave it much thought too busy looking for the top end. But today, could they have a good red sauce. I enter someone held the door. Several people in line to be seated the person behind me that held the door was there to pick up a to go order. The menu is old school. Meatballs are marked as a special item. I had to try... with some chianti. The meat sauce sweet a little spicy maybe creamy and smooth. The meatballs are are moist but dry enough to be breakable. Perfect texture and the flavors...I found myself savoring the bites. Sipping on the wine wanting it to last. There is a nice collection of chianti, sangiovese and abruzzo. The decor, yes, I caught a couple of pictures. The wait staff that greeted me upon entering and taking care of me to the numerous pleasant attendants stopping by to make sure I had what I needed. I admit one of the better old school Italian places in Portland, a classic.

We went here with family who used to dine here back in the day. It was my first experience. The ambience is charming and definitely old school. The service was great. The food was disappointing. The garlic cheese bead didn't have any garlic flavor and the bread was barely toasted. The minestrone soup was very watery and the vegetable chunks were huge like too big to bite without cutting. All of our meals were drowning is red sauce that tasted like it was from a jar. The veal was very thin over cooked and heavily breaded. Don't think I'd repeat the experience.

What a cute restaurant. The food was authentic. The sauce was made with so much love. They gave us just enough food to feel full and satisfied. The customer service was top notch. It felt like home. We definitely will come back here again when we come back to Portland.

Another fabulous dinner at DeNicola's! I had Chicken Parm and my husband had the Panzerotti (Calzone) - which was HUGE! Both meals were delicious. Always enough food for take-home to enjoy the next day. We also had a very nice bottle of Chianti to go with it. Great Italian-American food and friendly, efficient service. Red-checkered tablecloths and Frank Sinatra music in the background. You always feel like you are part of the family when you visit.

If you love cheese stuffed anything, get the cheese tortellini. I recommend the mezza mezza sauce with it!

Best, most authentic Sicilian, family style restaurant. The menu is exactly what you want it to be and the execution is perfect. The service makes you feel like the owners daughters and sons are running the place and have made you a part of their family. I wish I could give this 10 Stars! Support them!

Arrived very early, 4:30 Friday afternoon. Place looked like Grants Tomb on Lees birthday, and by the time we left there was one other couple being seated. I'm not sure why patronage was so low, but maybe good weather and people were staying home, or maybe good weather and everyone was eating at food carts. Any way the three of us shared the Duet Salad, which consisted of 3 kinds of lettuce,mushrooms, olives, tomatoes, and onions with a great Italian dressing. There was plenty for the three of us to have 2 helpings each. We decided to order the meat lovers small pizza, thick perfectly cooked crust, with great cheese. There was more than enough for the 3 of us. Val had a small glass of red wine which she said was perfect. We've had other dishes here and they've always been good. I'm sure whatever you're looking for it will be excellent! Service was good, but why wouldn't it be, the restaurant was empty. Hopefully things picked up after we left!

This is a sweet, family-style, old-fashioned Italian restaurant. The portions are huge and the wait staff are so kind. I went here for my birthday and it was awesome. A nice, low-key, great time. My only wish is they didn't serve veal. Five stars.

First time at this restaurant with my family! Great service big portion food. Everything was very tasty. Really enjoyed the two different types of bread served. It was like a French bread and the other one was like a garlic bread really enjoyed the side of salami, meat and cheese with carrots and Peppers. Would definitely come back again.!

I am a native Portlander, and this neighborhood place has been a staple for decades. Years ago, it was one of the best Italian restaurants in the city. Now? Not so much. I've gone there a few times in recent years and it's just not the same. Most recently, my husband and I went with a group of people. We ordered a Small Pizza for ourselves, a glass of wine, a soda and 2 desserts. No side salad. The total = $74.00 with tip! For pizza...?! This is crazy. To be honest, we wouldn't have minded if the pizza was out of this world good, but it was passable at best. The crust and sauce had 0 flavor, and the toppings were on the sparse side. Not missing, just not abundant. The dessert cannoli had an off-putting bitter taste. Sadly, we've lost our taste for this place. Eating out isn't what it once was.

We arrived Sunday about 4:30 pm shortly after they'd opened. Service was excellent, friendly and efficient. Everyone enjoyed what the ordered and all brought home leftovers.

Ever had a REAL pizza? Good as it gets. Combination, small (What do you mean small!) I could barely finish three slices. The crust is fresh bread texture and their sauce is marvelous with many great toppings! This is killer pizza the way it should be!

Great family cooking as usual remember. The calzones were my go to dish, but haven't been there in years. Just trying to find a central spot to have a family dinner. Will try it again eventually.

This is a family favorite for my family. Authentic, yummy, generous portions of Italian food and the family that owns the business are always there welcoming, serving, and checking on customers. You'll see family photos and a full Italian decor. They also offer catering and do an amazing job. We eat here frequently and have used them to cater events. You will love every bite every time you eat their food and be grateful for amazing customer service

Doesn't look like much from the outside, but the inside looks nice. The restrooms look great too! Some of the portions are large while others are not; it depends what you order. The food tastes good and is presented well, but it's expensive. I appreciated that the cheesy bread was soft. But because we ordered that, the waitress didn't give us the bread that was supposed to come with our entrees. Olive Garden is still better than this place, because Olive Garden gives you unlimited soup or salad with your meal. This place was lacking in salad options. If you want a small salad with your meal, you have to pay extra.

Bad customer service , rude cooks . Poor packaging and flavorless pasta . Not only was my delivery messy but they make ordering what you want difficult . I would not recommend this place .

If you're from New York or New Jersey you'll feel right at home. This is exactly like one of those solid mom and pop Italian restaurants from my youth. Solid lasagna and managut. The cannoli too. Portland does everything just right. Service was excellent.

Website is chaotic. It makes no sense. There are two sections for pizza toppings but each section allows you to select multiple so the 2nd section is not needed. When calling the restaurant asking how to navigate the person that answers has no idea how to and leaves you on hold forever. It's frustrating! I can only hope I ordered a basic pepperoni pizza correctly. The experience in restaurant is way less stressful. All you say is what size and kind of pizza THATS IT!

DiNicola's is an old fashioned spaghetti and pizza place. The food is traditional and excellent. We ordered a calzone to-go. It takes 20-30 minutes to prepare. It was ready and wrapped in foil when I arrived. The DiNicola calzone feeds a family so be prepared to have leftovers if there are just two of you. Oh, and the calzone was great!

Old-school red sauce Italian. The food here ordered by DoorDash so am not familiar with in-store service. The food reminds me of New England which is my favorite style. Haved ordered several times and food is delicious. Seriously delicious.

We've been huge DeNicolas fans since they first opened in 1978. Fast forward 46 years, we have celebrated many happy occasions at DeNicola's! Too many birthday parties to count, anniversaries, grooms dinners, family get togethers, graduations, and many more of life's milestones. The delicious food and warm family atmosphere keep drawing us back. We highly recommend DeNicolas for your family celebrations, pizza to go, or a quiet evening for two

The service was amazing. Our server knew Paw Patrol kids show so we connected with our grandkids immediately. Food was amazing. Best Italian I have had since moving to Oregon 1.5 years ago. We are from Dallas so can't go as often as we would like. Beautiful inside decor. Went on a Thursday night and plenty of seating.

I ordered online for delivery and got a great deal on some pasta. I wonder if maybe that great deal is why the two pastas were only decent and not at the level that i have had at this place in person before. Not nearly enough sauce on the traditional spaghetti and the spaghetti aglio oglio is mostly tasteless. i can taste parm when i put it on pasta, i don't taste it see any on here just large chunks of very lightly roasted garlic with not much flavour. it's still kinda good i'll just put my own parm so 4 stars. They also gave us free bread and who doesn't love free bread. It is just plain bread tho not garlic or buttered.

Great service by Nels who made us delicious Manhattans, an antipasto platter big enough for our group of 5 with a salami rose, and even celebrated my bday with spumoni in a martini glass. Pizza was stellar as usual. Love this place and super excited they have cocktails now!

They have downsized their portions and increased the price. Also discontinued their all you can eat spaghetti promotion. Used to love this place but won't go anymore.

It has been over 40 years since I moved away, up here for some medical stuff and wanted Italian and all my old places are gone with the wind. Found this little family place snd do very happy I did. Just to watch the other customers, was plain to see why this is a favorite. Service beyond, food, value, atmosphere without question excellent. Mollie was our server and along with the staff made this a most enjoyable evening. Thank you.

If you are looking for a solid nostalgic Italian dining experience, look no further. This place takes me back to a simpler time, when restaurants took pride in the simpler dishes - focusing on quality and service. Well, DeNicolas delivered. Clearly a family owned business where you can sense that these folks actually care. Service was top notch and everyone was very kind. They even brought out a awesome bread basket with foccacia slices with sauce and tomato. Delicious. Every dish, from the eggplant parmesan to the stuffed manicotti - so good. Sauce was solid. Absolute comfort food. We were all stuffed and still had enough leftovers for another meal. Will be going back for sure!

Reminds me of the Italian I get when I visit family on the East Coast. We've always complained that Italian on the west coast never even came close to the east, and DeNicola's was the first to change my mind. Immediately upon walking into the restaurant, I knew that free bread would be delivered to our table, and a number of classic Italian dishes would be on the menu. The wait staff is fantastic, and we felt super welcome. Portions are large (as they should be), and this spot will definitely be on our regulars list. Wish I could've tried the dessert.

Sorry excuse for Itialian food. Absolutely disgusting. I will never go back. Please learn how to cook any decent food.

Loved all the good we tried ! Definitely will go back . Went with friends for the first time this week . Garlic aioli is waaaay too garlicky for me but everything else was excellent

I ordered a takeout, lasagna, garlic bread, and a salad. The lasagna was BAD. The meat was unidentifiable, mushy and grayish looking. The bread was ok. The salad was good but very expensive. Dinner for one was $36! I won't go back, but I imagine their pizza is better than their entrees.

Food was great as always I love the Meatballs! They are delicious Service was friendly and we never felt like we were forgotten the Antipasto was tasty as well this place is Family run and has been operating for decades This place is a Portland institution don't waste your time with Italian food from a cold and heartless chain of Italian wannabes After eating at Denice's you won't want to ever waste your time or money on anything else Try out the Panzerotti or another dish, you won't be leaving hungry or disappointed

When my husband and I moved to Portland about 2.5 years ago, we began looking for a "red sauce" Italian place. We soon found DeNicola's and have been there at least a half dozen times including attending two friends' wedding reception. We have yet to be disappointed. My go to's are the Lasagna and the Chicken Parm. Both are pure comfort food. The meal comes with fresh bread and for an extra $2.99, you can add on soup or salad and that also includes a little mini antipasto plate. It is well worth the upgrade. We have also had the combination plates and the manicotti. Both were filly and tasty. On occasion, they will have Spaghetti Carbonara as a special. Just get it. It is a hit and they don't skimp on the bacon (thank goodness!). The atmosphere is right out of the Sopranos with red checked tablecloths, candles (although they should get the drippy candle and pair them with used Chianti bottles), and lots of Sinatra and friends crooning over the loudspeakers. There are booths and tables and a back room for large groups. The decorations are what you would expect from a red sauce place: plastic grapes and vines, plenty of Italian kitsch, and the founding couple overlooking the place. Service has always been on target with glasses filled and bread replenished without the server being overbearing. In fact, service all around is grand. We had a mistake made on our billing to my debit card and Donna, the owner, was quick to rectify the situation and made sure we were invited back. Of course, we will be. We really enjoy DeNicola's. Good food. Great service. Kind people. Red sauce all the way!

Precisely what you expect. I stick with the spaghetti with meatballs. I always fill up on bread and antipasti and superb minestrone that is classically the scraps of veggies used in other dishes. Then I get second dinner at home with most of my pasta. Great service too.

Ordered here a few weeks ago. The gnocchi and fettucine were both catastrophically overcooked. The gnocchi was unrecognizable - complete sticky mush. The fettucine wasn't as bad, but it wasn't good. The sauces were fine, nothing to write home about but not terrible. The pasta was unforgiveable. I'm sorry, I'm Italian - that is the one thing an Italian restaurant can't be allowed to mess up and get away with. One extra star for the cannoli, which was genuinely great.

Really good family owned Italian food from the 'old school days." Don't look for fusion here. This is your awesome standard, straight up spaghetti and meatballs kinda place (mom had that - wonderful!). They start you out with tasty bread (2 types) and antipasto plates. YUM! I went with the lasagna. Nice meat and mozzarella but I prefer a bit more sauce and ricotta. The flavors were smack on though! Sauce was GREAT! Which is why I needed more. Hubby got his favorite Eggplant Parm and was super happy since he hasn't found one as good as this since moving to Portland last May. Definitely will be returning and trying out other items on the menu!

Pizza Week Review: 1 of 10 consecutive pizza slices Now I am super glad to see people stepping up and letting their normal restaurant turn into a slice shop, and this one is a nice looking place. The staff was nice, and the pizza came quick, maybe a bit too quick as the pizza was just barely warm. Letting that set aside, the slice was quite good... I think it would have been better if it were on point temp wise... The balsamic reduction was sweet and tasty, and the cheese was better than many this day. They made a traditional slice, which I appreciate. Nothing over the top, but it was done well, and appreciated. I would say this is a stop for sure on the pizza week path, I will have to review photos and their menu for future visits. Thank you for being a part of the community.

They forgot to put crab on Crab Fettuccine for takeout. When my wife called and told them, they became indignant. We asked if we could get it replaced and they said it was her fault. Rude treatment upon arrival and charged her extra. Now I have the food and am afraid to eat it after the way they acted. You just lost a weekly customer. My family will not return.

Do not recommend. French bread ala supermarket. Takeout cold, stingy on sauce. I apologized to my guest for the meal.

If you're looking for traditional East Coast Italian fare, DeNicola's will take care of you. It's not modern, it's not fancy, but it's comfort food with wonderful service. We went with 2 toddlers and the waitresses were so accommodating. The portions are sizable and the price fair. DeNicola has been around for over 50 years and one of the last hold outs on an ever changing Powell street.