Dontino's La Vita Gardens

Hadn’t been here in a decade or more, but was raised on the food with grandparents who lived on Avon Street right up the road. Mostly how I remember it, but all good. My wife loved the chicken parm, my perch dinner was excellent and the kiddo enjoyed her pizza. This is a Northside classic, and most restaurants of its type are long gone. I regret having waited so long to return.

I came for early dinner and missed the Saturday night rush. The atmosphere was nice with decor and soft music. There was a full bar separate from the dining room and more than one dining room. They had a nice offering of wine on the menu. I started with a salad with house dressing. Fresh shredded cheese topped it off. It was good. There was also a basket of Italian bread that comes fresh every morning from local Massoli bakery. It was really good. I ordered the ravioli combo which is house made every morning. The combo had 9 large ravioli, 3 meat, 3 spinach and 3 cheese. They were very good. I got a side of house made hot Italian sausage with marinara. I really liked it. I finished with a house made cannoli which was excellent. Service was great and I enjoyed the meal. They have many house made items on the menu so I would like to come back and try some more. I read that the lasagna is popular and they have daily specials. I highly recommend.

Loved lunch today! And Service too, our waitress was amazing! Prob best server we have ever had!! My grandparents have been coming here for so years so it was nice to come back while in Cuyahoga Falls!

Sauerkraut ball's and salad w/ the house dressing were honestly my favorite part of the meal. We got lasagna and a ravioli with the bolognese sauce the sampler appetizer and a newer mushroom croquette app. Prices were a bit on the higher side for the portions but ingredients were much fresher. Overall we liked it and service was great.

First time here. And definitely will be back. Im picky about my red sauce and this was very good. Italian dressing that is homemade was very good.

I had the fish and it didn't taste that great. Everyone else liked there meal especially the lasagna. This house salad dressing was the bomb and the apps where great to. Menu said the onion rings where beer batter but the where breaded. We prefer beer batter. Over all I would say it was almost a 5 star. Staff was friendly and attentive.

Paige our server was fabulous! Very attentive, and patient with us! Also friendly! Nice old school Italian restaurant that has been here 95 years with quality food and ample portions! Great lasagna and red sauce is perfect! Thank you Paige! 😊

we love dontinos so much. first, the food. homemade noodles ALWAYS. red sauce is some of the best. meatballs can't be topped. chicken parm pounded so thin, huge portion. besides spaghetti night, linguine a la norma and veal canneloni are my 2 favorite specials. i love the simple salad, too, and the soft bread with the cold butter. just perfect. service is always so so good. we have our favorite (decidedly my youngest's favorite, too!) but have never had bad service here. atmosphere is cozy, comfortable, homey. i feel like i'm home when i walk in there. the booths are really comfy. when i go out to eat, i want to sit in a comfortable booth, and this place delivers. i have nothing bad to say about this place. after over 40 years of visits, you'd think i'd have a complaint by now. ownership is friendly and you can tell they care. bringing back the WHOLE family in a couple weeks - see you then!

Dined with a party of six . We go there several time a year but this week was a little disappointing. I had the LaVita steak sandwich which is their signature meal. The sandwich was lean and tasty. My wife got the spinach raviola but was disappointed when it came with red sauce and not olive oil. It didn't specify on the menu and probably should have asked. Another got the cheese ravioli and it came with red sauce, too. The other two ladies had spaghetti and meatballs and chicken parm. Everyone got the side salad with cheese and the house dressing. All in all the meals were good and server was attentive w/o being bothersome. Now for the real disappointment. How about a Makers Mark on the rocks served in what appeared to be 2oz. glass! Now that's shamefull!

Great food, old school North Hill atmosphere, and great prices. Stop by on Thursday nights for homemade arancini! Yes the owners are Sicilian! I had the veal cutlet, my wife had the grilled chicken pomodoro. They were both excellent. The also offer homemade pasta for a small up charge. It is worth it! Thank you Anthony and team for a wonderful evening.

I stopped in just to try this spot I had the spaghetti and meatballs the restaurant was pretty nice inside but there was a long black hair in my spaghetti sauce so I told my waitress and she was actually pretty ignorant about it she pretty much snatched my plate and took it back and I waited almost 25 minutes to get another one after already sitting and waiting for my food I will not be coming back at all the service was horrible and I'm pretty sure no one wants their employees hair in their food

It's been awhile since I've been here. So I thought a fresh review. We ate here last night. It wasn't busy at 7:30p on a Monday. Which was good with us. We got seated right away. It's kinda dark in the dining areas and looks to be around 1989 decor. It's clean. They have daily specials. My partner got the baked rigatoni and it comes with a salad. She enjoyed it. Portion size is kinda small in my opinion. It's a $15 cost and it's a little baking dish. I got the meatball sub with homemade chips. It's was good as well. Chips were hot and came with ranch to dip. Super good. Everything is Ala carte. So my sub was 1 price and to add chips was $2 and cheese to the sub was $1. To add cheese to the salad was $1. So you have to watch the nickel and dimes. The server was nice. I asked a few questions and wanted a recommendation and she gave them to me. At first I thought she was kinda grumpy because I asked the about the quality of steak in the steak sandwich. I didn't want to order it and fight with chewing the steak. So I asked. I think I offended her. But she was fine after a bit. Overall it's not bad. It's a solid Italian American cuisine experience. Prices are in the middle not outrageous but food quantity could be better on the pasta. My sub came with lots of chips and it was a good size. So that's good. We would go back. Again it's just average. But if you are close you want Italian it's fine. Next time I'll get the pizza.

Pretty good food and great value. They have a wide variety of meals so there's something for everyone

I had lunch at Dontinos. The server recommended the perch. It comes with Mac and Cheese, a side salad and bread. The salad was fresh and I ordered it cheese. It was very good and came with slices of a beet. The bread was soft and good. It is served in a basket with butter. The perch was perfectly breaded and fried. There were three nice size pieces and it was delicious. The Mac and Cheese was okay but a bit too creamy for me. The service was excellent and the place looks a little dated but fits the profile of a nice older Italian restaurant. I recommend Dontinos!

Went here a few weeks ago and as an Italian I was Leary of the authentic flavor. But this place was hands down like eating in my grandmothers kitchen! I would go back every day if I could! The ingredients is great and taste amazing. The place is clean and the staff is the absolute best! You walk in a stranger and leave as family! Sadly I didn't take pics of our food! Lasagna. Chicken parm. Salads all so yummy.

We met three other couples and had dinner at this old school Italian restaurant in Cuyahoga Falls. The joint was packed so we waited a while, but our server was attentive and quick to help. As soon as I saw manicotti I knew what dinner would be. The fish tasted like home made and was a good sized portion. Dinner included bread (good) and a dinner salad. I opted for the house dressing: a simple but delicious Italian. The table shared apps that were good: fried ravioli and calamari. We were all too full for dessert. A solid option if in area.

Thursday dinner. Fried ravioli, meatball sandwich, chicken Alfredo, house salad, love the fresh potato chips. Great service, great food. Friendly atmosphere. No complaints at all. We'll be back to try all the weekly specials.

Spaghetti and sausage was ok. Spaghetti with white clam sauce was inedible. I won't be going back.

Our go to place for Italian food. Great food at a good price. Homemade noodles are outstanding.

Took the whole family here for dinner. It's extra special because I was able to have my parents there too. At 88 and 85 it's not easy for them to get out. The waitress was very nice and kept everyone happy. My parents both had to return the chicken parm because they said it was too tough. The waitress brought them out some meatball sliders and they enjoyed them. I have been going to Dontino's since I was about 8 yrs. old (I'm 65) now. It was very good back in the day. When we lived in Tallmadge 14 yrs. ago it was still very good. I guess when the old man Dontino passed things changed. This is my second visit in 5 years, and I had hoped it would be better this time. Both of my last visits I ordered the House Specialty Veal Cutlets with garlic and oil pasta. The garlic was way over cooked and almost brown in color. Nothing like it used to be.

This place smells right for an Italian restaurant. The sauces are very tasty. My favorite pasta is the spinach linguine with marinara. Hubby, a carnivore, loves the meatballs as well as the steak sandwich. The ambiance is pure neighborhood restaurant with a bar, and had pleased customers for many decades. One of our favorites

This place is great, a nice old school family restaurant. Great service and very nice inside. The food is very good, some of the best Italian food. Try the eggplant parmesan.

Been too many years since dining at Dontinos. Our company decided to host a seminar in their meeting area. BEST DECISION! Anthony, Marie, Tiff and staff made the experience absolutely perfect. Space was inviting. Parking and location easy to find. FOOD OPTIONS WERE AMAZING, and portions incredible for the price. I could not be happier with the outcome. Be sure to dine here for lunch or dinner and definitely host your events here!

Our first time here and we are hooked! We had to go with a traditional order of spaghetti and meatballs and the special of the day, ravioli and meatballs. Salads were promptly brought to us and were fresh! Loved the homemade house dressing! Bread was also good, with extras brought to us upon request with our meals. Spaghetti and meatballs were everything I expected and ravioli was point on as well. Three flavors of ravioli included in the special. A shout out to our server, who was amazing as well! Overall, we liked the "old school" decor and friendly service. We felt like we were definitely supporting a small, family owned business and not an overrated chain! We will definitely be back again for more. Wish we would have found this gem years ago.

It's a regulars, regular place to go. Never going to disappoint - Always great service - preparation with pride and integrity. Nobody's trying to be fancy with the menu. Just really good Italian by a great American Italian family. Give them your support !! I am there 3-4 times a month. Ciao !!

We were out of town visitors looking for an authentic family-owned Italian restaurant, and I felt Dontino's hit the nail on the head. We had an appetizer, 3 meals, and dessert. The food and the service were quite good, and price was very reasonable.

The food is meh, not impressed at all. I've had better pizza at local pizza shops, better pasta made at home. I'd rather drive 10 minutes for a quality pie vs 2 minutes for the opposite. No respect for the locals. Parking on East Cuyahoga Falls Ave is not permitted, yet the management ignores the problem. No Stopping on Linden, yet management ignores the problem.

Food is always good at Dontino's. It's not spectacular but we frequent often. Get the homemade noodles.

I am a big eater of perch fish. When I visit here I always eat Italian. This was my first time here on Friday and had their perch dinner I was amazed that this dinner was excellent. I wasn't expecting the dinner to be so great. Here is the recommendation get here early if you want this dinner Again the service was excellent

Dontinos is an amazing family friendly Italian restaurant. I love the family owned aspect and how Anthony the owner is so personable and makes you feel like you are a part of their family. The food is amazing, I have tried pretty much everything on the menu and love everything, especially the eggplant parm and the steak sandwich with fries, oh and the fried ravioli and wings!!!! Can't name just one thing, so many good options. It's our go to restaurant when we want carry out or to dine in!!! We will be going for years to come

Went there for the first time Saturday with my son at lunch. Portions are SMALL... 17.50 for fettuccine. We thought is was the lunch portion but it was full sized. Salad was old and included lettuce, one slice of tomato and one beet. Pizza was burnt. Total bill was 44 after tip. Very underwhelming. Recommend even the Olive Garden over it for cost and quality.

If you want to have an old school Italian night, Dontino's is the place for you. The interior is everything you would expect of a family-run Italian joint. We walked past the bar, which was large and inviting (we may have to sit here and have pizzas on our next visit). Our server, Cathy, was exceptional. We started with the stuffed shrimp, which were plump and had really tasty filling. Next were the salads. They were pretty simple, but I appreciated the house dressing and pickled beets. For my entree, I had the veal parm, which was pounded thin and crispy. I loved the house sauce. My fiance had the veal cannelloni, which was also executed perfectly. For drinks, we each had the house wine. The chianti was a perfected complement to the veal. We decided to drink our dessert and have espresso martinis, a great end to a memorable meal. I'm excited to come back here because so much of the menu sounds delicious. Dontino's is a true classic.

Great staff. Great owners. White clam sauce with homemade linguini noodles. Get a side of olive oil to dip your bread... ...and some of the cheapest cocktails in town.

One if not the best good Italian restaurants- certainly the new decor makes it even more attractive

Got a gift card from my in- laws Very friendly staff and service was good ; however, the food is below average . I ordered the Pizza hoping to discover some great pizza place but the pizza was like something from a gas station or Chucky Cheese . Very disappointing The portions are small and very ordinary tasting no where near the quality and taste of " Fine Italian " dinning

91 years old! Dontino's _akron is that "old school cool" italian place in North Hill/ Cuyahoga Falls Border. We saw someone had been there recently and had to go back after a prolonged absence. My wife had the beef ravioli. She doesn't dish praise lavishly but she said, " next time you are over this direction you have to stop and get me more!". high praise from @jillrn_17 . My son fettuccini alfredo and was silently happy stuffing his face. the homemade hot sausage sandwich was good but I wished it had been more like kielbasa rather than patties. the chicken tenders were fine out of a box ( as my youngest likes them ) fries , salad and fried mozerella all were as expected. great ambience ans great service.

Dontino's La Vita Gardens Craving the taste of Italy? Stop by this family-owned gem that's been a part of the Akron area for nearly 100 years! From the place mats and color schemes, to the vintage photographs and decor, Dontino's La Vita Gardens serves something we think is super important in dining experiences: authenticity. We absolutely loved the style of this restaurant, and want to go back just to sit at the beautifully arranged bar (which we are SO sad we weren't able to photograph). We didn't get anything to drink, but were plenty satisfied with our pre-meal bread and salads. The house-made Italian dressing was absolutely wonderful, and the bread was fresh and refilled promptly upon our request! For our main courses, we got the baked manicotti and the spaghetti with mushrooms. The spaghetti dish was very average, and we weren't too wowed by any uniqueness or flavors. But the manicotti dish was absolutely DELICIOUS, and was probably the freshest we've tasted. Additionally, Dontino's menu is large, diverse, and filled with incredibly reasonably priced items. Overall, it's likely in the cards for us to visit again and try something new!

Amazing pasta. Used to be well priced but a little expensive now. But honestly the free bread and pasta quality makes up for it.

Always nice to have some tried and true "go to" restaurants, and Dontino's Italian Restaurant in North Hill is just that for our family. I've probably eaten about half the items on the menu over the years, and was honestly shocked I had never reviewed it before. Pasta dishes are all really good, especially if you pay the up charge for their homemade noodles. The pizza is great, nothing fancy, but solid nonetheless. The Chicken and Veal Parm are delicious, thin pounded out meats, crispy fried and topped with melty cheese and served with spaghetti. Their red sauce is nice, not overly acidic or sweet,but just right! The bread they serve with the meal is tasty, chewy, and soft. I really like their homemade salad dressing, Oil and Vinegar, but just a touch of seasoning and sweetness. Delicious, and available for purchase to take with you too! The interior is what you would expect from a family owned Italian place that's been in business for almost 100 years, stucco walls, marble counter tops, old pictures on the walls. I'll say there are things that maybe aren't quite to my taste that I've ordered over the years, but never had a bad meal here if that makes sense? Anyways, check out this iconic old school Italian joint!

First visit. A slightly worn, yet comfortable, neighborhood restaurant. Wife and I both had the veal parm entrees. Served with salad and bread. Food was solid....good not great. Bread was just OK. Portion size was more than reasonable. Priced very fairly. Ordered a Manhattan as pre-dinner cocktail ($7.00) the Orange was at my request) and a glass of house Chianti ($5.50). Overall a very solid neighborhood restaurant.

Great..really good food will be going again.friendly and kid oriented. Easy to find. My number 1 go to place...

Always used to love coming here. But today was quite disappointing. I always get the white clam sauce . They say it hasn't changed, but it is not at all like I remember. The sauce was red and it was a bit spicy; not a heavy clam flavor like I remember. My husband got the linguine with stuffed shrimp. The linguine sauce (?) was tasteless. And only four small shrimp, that I bet were frozen. Over $47 for two pasta entrees and one glass of wine. We will undoubtedly not be back.

Vibrant, friendly greeting and overall atmosphere! The food was fresh, modern and yet traditional. If you are looking for an amazing local Italian restaurant this is a definite GO TO!

We thought we found a gem in Akron when we saw the menu of this restaurant online. Have a lot of choices and sounds very authentic! They even have Italian beer! Oh boy, I have to say I'm a little bit disappointed They have a large dinning rooms, the one near the bar looks nicer but they seated us the other side which seems to be a bit old and just don't feel that nice. The salad came out first and the dressing is so soo good, but the presentation was meh I ordered prosecco for drinks and fettucini alfredo for main. Loved the drink but the pasta was very creamy. I expected very fresh taste of pasta but I guess I expected too much haha! I'm not gonna lie I have tasted better one from one near my home. My boyfriend ordered veal Cannelloni and he wasn't impressed either. Tiramisu was on point, was pretty good. It has some frozen taste in the middle of the tiramisu, I guess they have put it in the freezer before? Wish they hadn't though. I like it more loose but my boyfriend loved the tiramisu :) For take out, this place would be great! Not sure about dinning in hahaa! (The waitress was nice but she didn't come and check on us during eating) Food: It was good. Solid but not great! Service: Okay Environment: fine Parking: medium size

Had late dinner at this family run restaurant. The food was Excellant as well as the service .Stephany the waitress was the best ,we have had.She does a fine job and makes sure you enjoy. Wish there were more family owed restaurant s. Like this.

They have great food, We've been here several times and always enjoy it! Plus it's a local restaurant that's not part of a huge chain, hard to find these days... the Baked Manicotti, Baked Ravioli and the Cannolis are all fantastic!

I recently had a business lunch at Dontino's restaurant, the food was wonderful and the service was friendly. we had our food less than ten minutes after we ordered, this is an Akron institution and the family takes great pride in the quality of food and service.

This is our favorite spot! We have been coming here for 20 years. The food is traditional Italian food that makes you feel like you just visited grandma's house on Sunday! The meatballs are a favorite my kids, wife and me. Family owned and it shows.

Large and busy family restaurant that makes their pasta. Six of us arrived for a 5:00 dinner. Got seated right away. Had very good service. The food was also good--the special was ravioli with sausage, spinach, cheese--yum with salad. Has full bar service.

Place was pretty good the pizza was good the wings where amazing the location is in a good area outlet waitress was very help and nice a great neighborhood spot for Italian food wine etc.

service was very poor told me a 15 minutes wait but i had to wait over an hour and portion are is small i paid $18 for cheese ravioli and received only 5 pieces and a dollop of sauce. do not recommend!

Came in on a random Thursday night for dinner. This is my second time here, the first being years ago. Nothings changed about the ambiance of the interior. I ordered an appetizer of calamari and the chicken alfredo and the missus ordered chicken parmigiana. I always take the risk of ordering calarmi, hoping it would actually be fried correctly and not greasy or soggy. This place continued that tradition. The chicken alfredo was not anything special either. The chicken was dry and under seasoned. But, I was hungry and at least the pasta and sauce were okay. She did not enjoy her meal either. During the time we waited, we were also served cold bread and packaged butter spread. Not sure what the angle is here but it was weird. In the end, I won't be returning. Food was bad, service was meh and it seems to stay open because it's the only legit family "Italian" restaurant in the area. Make the drive to a Macoroni Grille, at least you get the most bang for your buck and the food is actually good.

I am ashamed to admit that I grew up in Cuyahoga Falls and Tuesday night was my first time coming here. This is such an italian staple. My Dad told me all his stories about coming here once a week when he worked in the area. Besides the at home feel watching my Dad reminisce about the past with every bite, made this a fantastic experience. I ordered the Spinach Ravioli that is made fresh daily and my Dad ordered the Spaghetti with traditional meat sauce. Each meal comes with a salad and bread. Their house Italian is oh so amazing! When they ask you if you want cheese on your salad say "yes" - their salad channels Luigi's salads!

Yummy yummy Italian food. Hands down top three salad dressings in northeast Ohio. Stop in and grab a salad and cheese. Try their lasagna... you won't be disappointed.

Well my friend and I visited there again tonite and we weren't as happy as before. I always say consistency is the best judge as far as the restaurant world goes........ So, from the service down to the food-- it was "meh"..... Might just go on Saturdays. The waitress wasn't very accommodating or very patient. (One thing I might point out that I've been in the service industry most of my life and tips were a large part of my living.) I and my daughter always order water to drink. Maybe a sweet tea on occasion. But we don't drink pop or alcohol so that's why we don't order it. And somehow I think this puts a "stigma" into the servers minds at certain places that we won't tip well. Which cldnt be the farthest things from the truth. I always tip 20%++ normally if we get good service. Anyhow.... Just if the staff/owners read these .... Don't judge a book by its cover and give me poor service just because I'm not leaving sloppy drunk. I understand how alcohol sales up your check--- but alcohol almost destroyed me and I no longer partake in it and that's perfectly acceptable. :)) Getting back to the review. The waitress wasn't very attentive or nice. And that's a shame. I wld have tipped better than $4 for a $16 check. And when I explained that I didn't care for my noodles with "white" clam sauce--- which was tasteless and poorly done in my opinion.... No flavor and very runny....and not a traditional white clam sauce made with butter/evoo/garlic......etc....... She just kinda smirked at me and asked what I would like to replace it with. So I asked for the Lasagna. I hope they just did a rush job ...to appease me-- because based on presentation and taste--- I wouldn't order it again. So sorry for the long, drawn out post--- I just didn't really like my whole experience this evening and based solely on tonite-- I wouldn't be back. However, I think we will give it another try with Saturday evenings.... With the pleasant waitress-- Jessica I believe. And just a more pleasurable time overall. I'm sure you could care less what I have to say since u have your regulars --- but hey--- one day those old cronies are all gonna be dead and you will be left with customers like me

I crave their steak sandwhiches. Their house dressing is delicious. You can buy it by the bottle. Yumm The interior is typical Italian family-style restaurant. I have typically only seen an older crowd. You know, the older married couple that go the same day each for their special.

Dontino's is one of our favorites....wonderful atmosphere, great food, and the family treats us as we are family also. We had carry out from there this evening and it was incredibly good and the portions were generous. If you are looking for truly authentic Italian food during the quarantine, you can't go wrong with Dontino's.