Monzu Fresh Pasta

First time visiting this place. Enjoyed everything from the modest yet professional setting. Staff works together to choreograph a fun and tasty experience. Antonio was delightful, funny and kindly educated us on the details of our meal. We ordered the signature Cestino and the Amatriciana pasta dishes both made with their in house bucatini. Flavorful and delicious! We also had the artichoke salad which was served fresh arugula- was dressed with a bright (I think) lemony dressing. Ended with the Prosecco/strawberry tiramisu. I braved a single espresso which was lovely with no sugar. Good wine list. Went home with a pound of bucatini. I highly recommend! 😉

Such an intimate incredible experience. Everything from the finessed wine selection to the handmade pastas is just absolutely perfection. Our waiter Alberto was absolutely fantastic and personable. Made our dining experience such a fun experience. His food recommendations were on point! And the seasonal winter squash ravioli with the blue cheese sauce was delightful, if I wasn’t so full I could eat them forever 🥰

We had Alberto as our server, and he was so friendly and and sweet! He politely asked us if we could switch tables before we ordered to accommodate another larger party that had just come in, which was no problem for us — and he offered a free dessert as thanks! Prices are fair especially considering how they put a big portion of pasta on your plate, and flavors are all great.

This is the first time I've eaten at a restaurant. I want to say that the place is of a very high standard. The food was excellent and delicious, wonderful and unusual flavors, exceptional quality, Antonio served us and was above all expectations, and the guy who made our evening without a doubt was Gianloca the general manager simply exceptional, took care of everything for us and paid attention to every little thing that would be in the place.

Always great service, came back a year later and the food and service is still as great. Justin was an excellent server! Appreciate how he described the house special, it was a very hearty meal and the plating always gets you excited to eat it. I would recommend this place, it is a bit farther out than more tourist heavy areas and you should reserve ahead of time. The pasta has a nice chew to it and the saucing is full of flavor!

We had an excellent dinner at Monzu! Reservations were easy to book and our server, Daniel, was excellent from beginning to end. He was very attentive and even took the time to explain the history of the restaurant name. The environment was very casual and lowkey, with quiet-medium level music in the background. The decor is simple, with cute graphic designs throughout the menu and walls. As for food, we started with the Summer Burrata Salad, which was very refreshing and on the saltier side of other burratas we have tried. Then, ordered the Carbonara and Amatriciana. You can tell from the first bite that they put a lot of care into the noodle quality as the texture was just right, perfectly al dente. Lastly, we finished our meal with the Chocolate Mousse, which was delectable and had an interesting mouthfeel as well. I'd highly recommend Monzu for those in San Diego!

This place gave me the impression that it was quite authentic Italian. The pasta is made fresh which really makes a huge difference in taste. We got the basciaola and and carbonara as our mains. The basciaola was my favorite as it had a very rich and flavorful sauce with very umami Italian sausage. The service their is also amazing.

Me and my 5 girlies just ate at this restaurant. The food was absolutely amazing probably the best pasta I’ve ever had. We wanted to go get some authentic Italian food and I stumbled upon this restaurant on Google, it did not disappoint. The service was impeccable and the atmosphere truly made the night. When I come back to San Diego I will definitely be paying this restaurant a visit! Thank you! (The truffle chips are SO GOOD)

Went for date night and food was fantastic, Alberto was super attentive and had great recommendations. Will be back again to try more items on the menu!

Alberto was great! Wonderful service and food! I highly recommend the affogato for dessert.

The food was great, and the service was amazing. Our favorite was the Short Rib Ravioli & the chocolate mousse! Alberto, our server, was so kind and helpful. We will definitely be back. :)

Let me tell you about a little slice of heaven I found in San Diego: Monzu. This isn't just dinner--it's a love letter to Italian cuisine, handwritten by people who truly care. Our maestro for the evening, Alberto, was the kind of waiter you dream of: engaging, passionate, and laser-focused on making your night unforgettable. We started with the house-made focaccia, warm and tender, and a burrata salad so fresh and creamy it could make grown men weep. But then came the main event, the dish that now may haunt my dreams in a very good way: winter squash ricotta ravioli swimming in a gorgonzola cream sauce, crowned with crispy guanciale and toasted walnuts. Sweet, salty, nutty, rich--it was a symphony of flavors that left me speechless. Of course, no Italian meal is complete without wine, and Monzu delivered. The pairing was perfection, the kind of bottle you savor with every sip, knowing you're in exactly the right place at exactly the right time. To Alberto and the Monzu team: grazie mille for the kind of meal that reminds you why food matters. This isn't just a restaurant; it's a destination. Go! Eat! Thank me later...

We had an excellent dinner at Monzu! Reservations were easy to book and our server, Daniel, was excellent from beginning to end. He was very attentive and even took the time to explain the history of the restaurant name. The environment was very casual and lowkey, with quiet-medium level music in the background. The decor is simple, with cute graphic designs throughout the menu and walls. As for food, we started with the Summer Burrata Salad, which was very refreshing and on the saltier side of other burratas we have tried. Then, ordered the Carbonara and Amatriciana. You can tell from the first bite that they put a lot of care into the noodle quality as the texture was just right, perfectly al dente. Lastly, we finished our meal with the Chocolate Mousse, which was delectable and had an interesting mouthfeel as well. I'd highly recommend Monzu for those in San Diego!

A small place but packs a punch for that fresh pasta! I came to eat here one night and I can say that this is great spot if you are craving some delicious pasta! This is a small place but they do have a combination of indoor and outdoor seating. I am sure the menu changes here and there for the main dishes, and I was fortunate enough to the their Bosaciola, which had fusilli pasta with sausage, mushroom, pecorino, and parmesan cheese. This dish was recommended to me by the server and I am glad it was! The star of it was definitely the sausage and pasta! Having that taste of the Italian sausage in this dish with the cheese and pasta was definitely devine! I would be down to eat this pasta often! For starters, I had the truffle chips which were delicious, though I was expecting them to be a little bit crisper. The ones that I had which were crispy tasted perfect and wish there were a little more of those! For dessert, I had the tiramisu, and that was very good. It was a great way to end the meal. As a note, with this place being near Petco Park, parking is difficult especially during games. Try to go here on an off night or walk here right after a game if it's early!

This was the cutest little Italian spot! The food was amazing! The service was a bit slow, but everyone was still friendly. My only complaint was about the focaccia bread, it did not necessarily taste fresh. The raviolis and meatballs were incredible, and held up very well in terms of leftovers as well.

This is a great place! It's pretty small inside, but very cute and cozy. All the dishes were delicious especially the gnocchi and ravioli. They only have beer and wine, but good wine selection!

Absolutely delicious food. Wonderful service. It was our anniversary and they made the night feel really special. It's a small place, but super quaint and cozy. Spinach ravioli and short rib ravioli were delicious. Must start with the truffle chips. Our server, Alberto, was so attentive and fun. Would definitely recommend this place.

Really good food here! You can tell they take a lot of time and care into making their food. Our server was excellent and was very knowledge and walked us through the menu. The interior is quaint and really well laid out.

Excellent, fresh, homemade pasta. Owner and waiter were SO nice and seemed to genuinely care about our experience. They were also very accommodating with our 3 year old. They even stepped out of the restaurant after we left to thank us again as we walked away. Loved those guys! Also, best tiramisu I've ever had.

We walked by this quaint restaurant one night. We took a quick scan at the menu before getting a table for two. We had the bolognese with a meatball and a truffle pasta. There was supposed to be a Parmesan crisp bowl with the truffle pasta, so they served it without. I wished there was Parmesan crisp bowl or some other similar kind of cheese bowl or crisps that would have been served with it. It would have brought the flavors more. Overall, service was great and food was delicious.

Pasta is great very authentic. All the food is homemade and the service on point as well.

As a boy who's lived in the northeast for over a decade, this was without a doubt the best meal I've had in SD

Gnocchi marinara sauce with shrimp! This was out of this world AND the server was so sweet and cute - Cozy place - Parking is forever just downtown - Perfect for an intimate date night! @neeks93

I was sold when most reviews mentioned fresh pasta. However, I was shocked to see that the prices for most pastas ranged from $25-$30! So I had to take a pic of the most recent menu so that all my fellow yelpers know of the price increase. For a party of two, we shared a porcini and sausage pasta dish and an appetizer. The fried rice balls were bland and had zero flavor. I would not recommend. The pasta I really wanted to try was the trapanese sauce one but they ran out! I felt like I would've justified paying $30 for a pesto with shrimp type of pasta. The porcini and sausage pasta was fine. It was good but I just felt like it wasn't unique enough for the price. The service was also below average because there was 1 server trying to serve the entire restaurant plus outside! The seats to the right were super uncomfortable as you're sitting on a wooden bench. Although they have pillows to try to negate the fact that it's wooden benches, it still was uncomfortable.

Without a doubt the best Italian food we have ever had in San Diego..... even better than all the restaurants we have tried in Little Italy. The service (Daniel our Server), atmosphere and food quality were all outstanding! We will definitely be back very soon!

Thank you Alberto for the great service and recommendations! The food and ambiance was fun and delicious after the Petco Park Holiday Market!

Pesto gnocchi was perfect! Michelle was super accommodating for our big group and the birthday we were celebrating.

Monzú really is a little piece of Italy tucked away in San Diego! Hands down the best Italian spot I've been to. Alberto was super friendly and made sure everything was perfect for us. I had the short rib ravioli--so good--and my lady had the lobster ravioli, which she absolutely loved. We started with the meatball appetizer, and honestly, I could eat ten bowls of that sauce--it was amazing. The place has such a cozy vibe, like a hidden gem. Huge thanks to Alberto and the team at Monzú for making it such a great night. We'll definitely be back!

AMAZING staff and food. Server was kind and knowledgeable, best Italian we've had in San Diego. Would highly recommend

One of the more refreshing Italian places I've been to here in San Diego. The combination of excellent service(super friendly) by the waitstaff and the freshness of the dishes was exactly what I was looking for. The quiet and more intimate feeling of the location was surprisingly nice(I guess it's post Comicon slow down). We definitely carb loaded, starting with arancini and focaccia. While I had busiate trapanese, delicious and refreshingly light for a nutty pesto type sauce, my friend got the Pasta carbonara, delicious with larger pieces of guanciale. Finished it off with the amaretti cake. Thank you guys for a great all round dinner experience.

Amazing authentic Italian restaurant in San Diego! Top quality food that reminds me of the best places I've been to in Italy. Every dish is packed with flavor. When the plate arrives at the table you can almost taste the dish based on the smells alone-they don't skimp on flavors-whether it's black truffle, Parmesan, pistachio, or fresh tomatoes. They have a cozy space inside but we always opt for dining on the sidewalk patio to take advantage of the lovely California weather. The staff -especially Alberto-are super friendly and attentive. I've bought fresh pasta here to cook a Christmas meal for my extended family and they were super thrilled to be a part of it and gave me cooking tips. If you're looking for the best Italian meal in San Diego skip little Italy and come to Monzu.

This is a really cute restaurant with very fresh pasta. I truly enjoyed the cheese ravioli and the Cesar salad. It's not that big of a place but it does have candle light for romantic vibes. If you sit outside they have heat lamps too. Service was good and pretty fast. I really enjoyed eating here on our date night out.

So good!!! Friendly service and delicious pasta = win-win. We came here for the first time trying to eat a quick dinner before the Padres game. It is conveniently located. Their focaccia bread was fresh and warm. I tried their short rib ravioli and it was delicious. I had to try and finish up the sauce with the focaccia bread at the end, but was so full!! Paired it with a glass of red wine to top it off. :)

We came here for my husband's birthday. It's been on my list after a mention in San Diego Magazine, and it was worth the wait. Together our table ordered the Arancini Siciliani, Homemade Focaccia, Short Ribs Ravioli, Bolognese, Porcini & Sausage, and the Rigatoni Carbonara. Each dish was delicious. The arancini was for sure the star of the show. We really liked all of our dishes, but we loved the arancini. The restaurant itself is quaint and sweet. It almost feels like you're somewhere in Italy. The service was great as well. They seem to change aspects of the menu often, such as which pasta a dish is served with. It's nice that they are always switching things up to keep them menu fresh and exciting.

Amazing food and service ! We love coming here for some made from scratch pasta ! Daniel and the rest of the team are very attentive and the food is always fresh!

Visited this restaurant for dinner on a weekday evening. Wanted to try something Italian outside Little Italy. This place is conveniently located close to Petco Park and easy to find. The ambiance was unique. It immediately transported me to Santorini, with the blue white theme. I got the special pesto pasta topped with burrata, along with their famous garlic bread appetizer. The garlic bread was yummy! It was not overly cheesy and was roasted perfectly! The pasta was delicious and seasoned well. Initially I was skeptical about the portion size being too small. But the portion size was more than adequate, infact I ended up boxing some of the food. I would highly recommend this restaurant. The food is authentic and the people here are very warm and welcoming!

DO NOT GO ANYWHERE ELSE. La pasta e buona da morire! (The pasta is to DIE for!) After taking my first bite of the Ragout de Agnello, I swear, if someone had shot me right then and there I would've been happy. Great beauty lies within simplicity...and Monzu takes its food and service beyond what any other Italian restaurant has been able to do in San Diego. From the moment you step inside to the moment you walk out, Gianluca & Alberto give the most attentive, charming, and caring service one could ever receive. It was a Monday night when my friend and I went...and now Mondays are something to look forward to! Don't get Taco Bell on a Monday...make it a MONZU MONDAY. You can tell that the owner, Gianluca, and the server, Alberto, actually care about their patrons and want them to have an amazing experience. Our wine and water glasses were always filled, our food came out in a timely manner, and there were plenty of laughs to go around! APPETIZER: We chose the homemade foccacia and added the Italian prosciutto. Wow. The bread-to-meat ratio was perfect, along with the olive oil, arugula, and a savory dipping sauce. ENTREE: As mentioned, I chose the Mafalde de Agnello, and my friend ordered the Amatriciana- Homemade Bucatini noodles, tomato sauce, crispy guanciale, & pecorino. He also added sausage. As soon as we took a bite of our pasta, we both looked at each other at the same time, equally impressed and pleased. The QUANTITY and the QUALITY of our dishes matched the price. Not only that, but the service that Gianluca & Alberto gave have turned us from first-time patrons to loyal customers. DESSERT: Gianluca surprised us with his take on a Chantilly cake, which we paired with an Afogato that he procured himself. Every bite just melted in our mouths We also ordered the cannolis...let me tell you, I NEVER liked cannolis until I had them here. I swear. Man oh man...they were a perfectly textured array of creaminess and crunch that made love to my taste buds. Last but not least, I took home one of their shirts, and wore it to work today. It was made of a very comfortable material, and is definitely going to be one of my "regular" shirts to wear. I am proud to wear it, because I get to represent one of the best Italian restaurants in San Diego This is my first ever, written Yelp review. I am not one to write them, and usually just go in and enjoy the experience of any place I dine in. BUT everything was just so amazing here, I felt like I had to share my experience with the rest of you. Please...when looking for FRESH Italian pasta, and service where you can feel as if you are more than just a customer, look nowhere else. Come HERE. I used to only go to Cesarina for fresh, homemade pasta. But now Monzu Fresh Pasta is up there in my list. Thank you, Monzu, Gianluca, Alberto, and the rest of the team at Monzu Fresh Pasta...you have ruined pasta for me and now I don't want it from anywhere else.

Amazing service, thank you Daniel! Ambiance was very cozy and the food was absolutely incredible! Highly recommend this place!!!

Food amazing the real fresh Italian pasta....you need to try.....the best Italian restaurant in Downtown

Pastas and salads were very fresh and tasted good-will be coming back if in town :) great service as well. Surprised this place wasn't packed on a Friday night

It was my first time here and my boyfriends second time here. I am sooo happy he chose this restaurant during our short weekend here. Michelle was absolutely amazing! She recommended the best appetizers, main dishes and even local spots to visit. Service and quality of food was 10/10! Would recommend this place and will be back k here again.

The food and service was great I would try everything off the menu! Michelle was a great server and was very attentive to our table!

I was in town for a conference and staying right by the Convention Center, and I found this place on Yelp when seeking some good food in the area. I was in the mood for some pasta, and this place hit the spot. I got the Amatriciana per the recommendation of my waiter, and it was excellent. The texture of the bucatini was perfectly al dente, the flavor was great, and it was just the right amount of food to feel satiated.

I like to walk around and try one item per spot sometimes so I asked for their most popular dishes and this was a recommendation: Porcini and sausage fettuccine. The service was relatively fast. The ambience is casual and there is music playing in the background. I was extremely disappointed with the plate: The pasta is well done, the sausage was probably the best ingredient in the pasta, the sauce was a bit lacking. I believe that if you make pasta and especially house made, then I expect that the place gets the cooking time correct, not over cook the pasta! Can't judge the rest of the place though!

Pasta was amazing! I also ordered their meatballs and truffles chips which were both super tasty! Very cute cozy spot with amazing service!

It is unbelievable to me that this tiny restaurant within walking distance of the San Diego convention center isn't sold out every single night of the week. But my disbelief is great for you, since you can actually get a reservation (OpenTable). We shared an Eggplant Parmigiana appetizer, and I ordered the Pappardelle with Bolognese sauce. Both featured sauces with intense depth of flavor. The fresh-made pasta was cooked al dente, the way only a real Italian chef does it. We also had the truffle fries, lol, which were good too. I didn't try it, but my compatriots love their Ravioli filled with butternut squash and ricotta cheese. For dessert I had pistachio & ricotta cheesecake, which was light and airy and delicious. The wine list is small, but we had a very nice Amarone (good glasses). Service was excellent. They also have outdoor seating on the sidewalk. If you are in town for a convention, you could easily eat here every night (although you might gain a few pounds!).

Delicious house made pasta. Huge portions. And our server Alberto was awesome. Made us feel very welcomed.

Love that there is a solid Italian spot downtown, even though there's a row of them in Little Italy, this is probably one of my favorites near me. The staff is always great (thanks Alberto) for the 10/10 customer centric service provided as well as recs given, food always hits the spot. Their wine selection is good but definitely make reseys beforehand because it can get packed on a weekend. Overall recommend!

Alberto was an AMAZING server! The amatriciana was so good and cooked to perfection. We also loved chatting with Alberto and his recommendations

Excellent service, Alberto was amazing and very accommodating! Excellent pasta, the winter ravioli was excellent and some red pasta my wife had was great too.

If you're looking for fresh pasta, you've come to the right place! Monzu serves up the freshest pasta in town and the sauces are amazing! We came here on a Friday night with a reservation and surprisingly, it wasn't crowded. The service was quick and the restaurant itself had a small interior but has patio seating. I love it and I'll be back for more!

We had a SD trip planned and wanted to eat at Monzu since it has amazing reviews. We are soooo glad we went! Food was amazing, our server Michele was so nice and sat us down within minutes (we were starving!!) so we were really happy about that. Love the vibe and atmosphere! Look forward to trying more of their items!

Went down to SD a few weeks ago for Comic Con and we were tired after our second or third day it's a blur Hahaa but we were super hungry by dinner time and we wanted something good, something sit down, and something close to the hotel And we found this place and boy did it not disappoint! The owner was great and fun and friendly and all our dishes tasted great and we left feeling stuffed Definitely some great fresh pasta with fresh burrata cheese and breads with our cocktail spritzers we enjoying a relaxing delicious meal Let me tell you I have a friend who has Italian background and she super super particular and picky and never wants to try Italian places because it never meets her authentic standards but this is rated as her favorite place Yup! And she has eaten in nyc many many times

Run don't walk- it is amazing!! Monzu is the charming local restaurant that dreams are made of! They were so welcoming when we walked in. Alberto was wonderful and helped us every step of the way from tie breaking on dinner options to recommending (and having us sample) wines for the perfect pairing. I had the short rib ravioli which was a large portion and every bite was sublime. My husband (who considers himself an expert) had the carbonara and said it was the best he had in years. I am only sad that we don't live in San Diego so we can make this a weekly stop!!

Puttanesca had great texture and short rib ravioli had a nice meaty flavor. Servers were attentive and knowledgeable about the menu. Outdoor seating was heated and we called in advance to reserve seating. side note: bathroom sauna experience was quite unique

I've been wanting to check this place out for so long and it absolutely delivered! The fish was SO fresh and probably my favorite part of the meal. I also want to give a special shoutout to Michelle who did a phenomenal job serving us.

I stopped by on a Thursday night, 6/29/2023 at around 7:35 PM. My friend and I were greeted by the owner (?), who was very kind and welcomed us with a huge smile in even though we didn't have reservations. The restaurant is cute with not too many seating. I wish I had taken a picture but let's just say, it was aesthetically pleasing haha. We wanted to have a light dinner so we ordered and split the following: ++Fusilli Alla Boscaiola - $25 Fennel sausage, button mushroom, cream sauce, black pepper and grated Parmesan cheese - It was quite delicious. I enjoyed the chewy, al dente pasta, which is made fresh in house from scratch with semolina flour and water according to their menu! You can def tell that it is of quality and not store bought and I just loved that texture. - They were generous with the mushroom pieces and the sausage + Parmesan just meshed all the flavors together into a cohesive savory dish. ++Arancini Siciliani - $16 Deep-fried saffron rice ball stuffed with tomatoes sauce and mozzarella, served with marinara sauce -This was good as well but one of the balls came out a little bit cold and the cheese did not melt inside - The balls that were warmer were good. There were two balls stuck together along with another one. The ones stuck together tasted a little different from the one separate. - I was not as impressed with this dish due to the unmelted colder cheese. :( Customer service: The owner(?) or person who welcomed and took our order was very warm. He did not rush us when we checked out the menu and he was open to sharing his favorites with us. He also didn't pressure us too much to order more when we wanted that light dinner... Or pressure us to pack up and leave when we caught up and chatted in the restaurant. I sincerely appreciated their warmth and hospitality. Honestly, I was debating between 4 and 5 but the arancini siciliani seriously threw me off a bit haha. However, overall, I'd come back and would recommend this quaint Italian restaurant. I'd want to try their other pastas and wish them continued success and business!