Marina Restaurant

I brought my mom here for her 66th birthday dinner this evening, and the food we ordered was all delicious. We began with the wild arugula nectarine salad (yum!), shared the Bianca (truffle mushroom) pizza, and she had the steak frites, while I opted for the bucatini. All was tastefully executed. We also had a passion fruit marg and the “I Don’t Give a Fig” cocktail. Both quite good. Our server was Danny, and though he began pretty strong, we felt he could have been a little more attentive. He didn’t ask if we wanted more cocktails when we had finished our drinks, and he didn’t bother upselling us on anything else. He did bring my mother a bowl of vanilla ice cream with a candle and sang her happy birthday, but with the amount of food + drinks we had ordered, a small bowl of ice cream at a pretty high-end restaurant felt kind of cheap. We’ve been to other restaurants on our birthdays where the server was thoughtful enough to bring us a slice of cheesecake or something a little more exciting than just ice cream. Ice cream felt like we were at a Denny’s or an IHOP. This is no deal breaker; it’s simply an observation. Something else to note: parking in the adjacent underground lot cost $12. It would be great if the restaurant and the garage had some sort of deal where the restaurant could validate patrons’ parking, or at least discount it.

Marina did not disappoint! The fresh seasonal menu uses local ingredients sourced from the Pasadena Farmeds Market. You can taste the quality — every dish is amazing! We also met Gustavo, one of the owners, who was so warm and welcoming and had fantastic dish recommendations. We also saw that they had pasta options for gluten-free diners. We tried and loved: Persimmon Salad (a surprising favorite, these tangy fresh flavors contrasted perfectly against the ricotta cheese, and the persimmons were SO sweet and delicious) Butternut Squash Agnolotto (incredible flavors with the sage and brown butter, and perfect for fall) Truffle Cavatelli (the actual favorite — mouthwatering flavors and very generous on the truffle!) Wagyu Flat Iron Steak (juicy and flavorful) We also got the Salvavita, Bourbon & I Don’t Give a Fig cocktails. They were delicious and beautifully presented. We’ll be back to try more dishes soon!

Sooooo good! Definitely was added to our list of favorite restaurants in Pasadena! Beautiful interior, great service, and very tasty food. We visited in a group of 4 and shared the following dishes: - Blistered bread & ricotta: 5/5 AMAZING, freshly baked and soooo tasty - White Nectarine Salad: 5/5 very refreshing and flavorful - 24 Month Prosciutto San Daniele: 5/5 definitely recommended! - Prosciutto San Daniele & Burrata Pizza: 4.9/5, excellent taste, but the dough could have been slightly better - Rabbit Bolognese: 5/5 couldn’t have been better! - Truffle Cavatelli: 4.5/5 pretty good, but not as good as the other dishes - Branzino alla Griglia: 4/5 pretty good as well, but was a bit too oily and wasn’t sure of the combination with eggplant.

Had such a great experience with my best friend here! Started off with a matcha cocktail and passion fruit cocktail! Both were so delicious we ended up sharing both! The watermelon salad was very refreshing and super light. We shared the butternut squash pasta, cod and margarita pizza. The cod was so flaky, just the perfect texture! The veggies complimented it super well! The squash pasta was a close second favorite. Perfect for fall! Just sweet enough and so creamy. Danny, our server was very accommodating and welcoming. Definitely looking forward to eating here again soon!

Five star for the pastas and Caesar salad. We had the truffle pasta which was really great and Al Dante texture is perfect, the mushroom pasta was also pretty good. Caesar salad was the bomb. The dessert of tiramisu and the other one was just so so because I was expecting more liquor on my tiramisu which I can't find there. Make reservation it get packed.

Another Pasadena dinner meetup with friend for a belated birthday meal. Even though it wasn't too packed, reservations are recommended if you can! It was a cool early evening so we sat outside in the patio area. We split the Mushroom Linguini ($27), Carbonara ($24), and dessert. Both pastas were rich and perfect for sharing to get the different flavors from each one. Dessert was slightly tangy from the lemon, but yummy. Metered street parking or parking in nearby structures.

Casual, great vibe, excellent service The sweetbread salad was lovely, the pizzas were solid, and the cider-glazed cod was delicious. The fresh pastas were decent. They were not executed very well, tasted rushed, but the flavors were there.Definitely not my favorite. My friends enjoyed the pasta, though. It is a good place to dine with friends but also, good for kids.

Food was ok. I saw lots of 5 star reviews here so my expectations were high. Homemade pasta is good but tastes is ok not impressive. Grill mushroom with avocado sauce $22 its nothing special with small portion. Lamp chop is good. Pizza and fish stew with squod ink pasta were just ok taste. Good service and good vibes here.