Santa Barbara Italian Cafe

This place is an absolute Italian comfort-food dream. The chicken Parmesan was perfectly crispy and cheesy, and the chicken Alfredo was rich, creamy, and wildly comforting in the best way. The table bread alone deserves a fan club--warm, fluffy, and impossible to stop eating. We were welcomed with a very generous Caesar starter salad (not one of those sad little ones), the tomato soup was also a delicious starter option and it was honestly so good I would've happily ordered it as a meal. Fresh, flavorful, and perfectly dressed. Top it all off with genuinely great service--friendly, attentive, and super cozy ambiance that made the whole experience feel extra special. Big portions, big flavors, super happy with the experience. Will 100% be back with stretchy pants.

Finally some authentic amazing Italian food! Reminds me of being back home in the Northeast. Everything we tried was incredible from the seafood pasta to the chicken Verona and even the cannolis. The chicken Verona was a favorite, the chicken cutlet was made perfectly the raviolis were excellent and the sauce was incredible, took me right back home with each bite. The seafood pasta was fantastic the shrimp and scallops were made exactly right not overcooked and lots of delicious cream sauce and fettuccine. The cannolis were on point, so hard to find places that know how to make a decent cannoli. Definitely recommended for Italian.

I had long been awaiting to trying this place after it being spoken of very highly by my Pearland local friends. So we made a night out of it with said Pearland friends and it absolutely did not disappoint! The restaurant is unassumingly tucked inside a suburban strip mall - parking is not an issue at all. Upon walking inside, the restaurant itself is very spacious and was pretty busy on a Saturday night. Our server was Kelly, who was knowledgeable and attentive. When we threw her specific questions about the menu, she was immediately able to provide recommendations by heart. For my entree, I ordered the Chicken Santa Barbara. Note that all entrees come with garlic bread and a side salad (caesar or house) or tomato soup. The garlic bread came out hot & aplenty for the table to share and was full of butter & garlic. For my side, I went for the caesar salad - it was a generous portion and by the time I finished my salad, I was almost full and could barely touch my entree. The Chicken Santa Barbara is a breaded chicken breast topped with a creamy spinach bacon cheese sauce and accompanied by penne pasta topped with pesto. The portion was HUGE; as mentioned I barely made a dent and took home about 2 meals worth of leftovers. The chicken itself came out piping hot, the breading was crispy, and I really liked the creamy sauce it was topped with. The pesto tasted fresh and homemade and I wish I could have bought this by the jar to take home. My tablemates ordered the Chicken Saltimbocca alla Parmigiana, Veal Parmigiana, and Ravioli Calabrese with blackened chicken. I was able to try a little bit of each and everything was just as delicious and came out in similarly giant portion sizes. Next time I want to try a full serving of the Chicken Saltimbocca - the way they stuffed the chicken with ham & mozzarella was one of a kind. Don't sleep on the BYOB! Corkage fee is just paid for based on how many are drinking and was just over $3/person. This is really reasonable, especially if you're dining with a bigger group and are bringing in multiple bottles, as most restaurants charge by the bottle. The pricing on their menu is interesting, as all of the items end in 8 cents, even the corkage fee. Not sure what the reason is for that: whether it's to make prices even after sales tax or otherwise. I'm really glad to have found a quality casual Italian restaurant in the greater Houston area, as most of the ones I know of are a bit more upscale. Additionally, I'm glad to add another restaurant to the Pearland rotation. We'll definitely be back to try more items on the menu that will last us 3+ meals after leftovers!

I happen to be in the area driving around to different stores looking to buy a used vacuum cleaner. Went to two stores couldn't find anything by the time I got to the third store finally found something. At this point I had a angry little lady in my car who is getting ready to start her period and was not in the best mood and all she wanted was some Alfredo and a vacuum cleaner. Me panicking I decide to look up local Italian restaurants in the area and happen to stumble upon this gem. I walk inside and ordered the Alfredo and pasta carbonara needless to say angry girl in the car was no longer angry and was very satisfied. Pasta was delicious two thumbs up five stars.

Food was mid they double charged us and when made them aware about it LAWRANCE was not helpful and rude about it arguing saying it wasn't true 0/10 stars for the experience.

Some of the best Italian food in the area, we visit once a year and make a point to stop and eat here.

Northern Italy style. Great tasting everything. Been going for nearly 10 years. Service is normally great and they are caring about different items. Has the look of a restaurant in Central California. Suggest the bread as it is fresh and comes with oil and spices. Not had dissatisfaction with any of the items.

My mom and I went here while visiting Santa Barbara for the first time. We asked to be seated outside near the beach. The table was perfect. Cute little restaurant. We even saw dolphins peak out the water. Food was absolutely amazing!

I will always remember, truly love and really miss how incredibly amazing the Bolognese Pasta from here used to be when the original owner whom many called "Mama" ran it. I felt the exact same about the tiramisu for dessert here when it used to be made n sold in a glass chalice back then. I haven't seen it in some years now. Thankfully, the Chicken Verona, Chicken Mama Mia, Chicken Torino, Parmesan meal and Lasagna are still very tasty entrees to this day though. They don't skimp on the fat, butter, salt, etc. I picked up a takeout of the Chicken Mama Mia recently and it was super rich, really flavorful in every bite and really delicious in the chicken and pasta aspects. The chicken had that slightly bitter grill taste for some extra flavor. It was very tasty on its own, easy to cut and had a really good spinach cream filling. The fettuccine was really tasty with a lot of heavy cream, butter and spinach notes. That complimentary garlic bread is always so fresh and tasty here as well as some of their desserts. The service was good. It's also convenient to know they are open on Sundays in recent years to present.

Really enjoy this place. The restaurant is cute and I love that they have a lot of Italian inspired decor. Food is really good and the service is good. I've had the seafood pasta, which was delicious and the penne pasta with chicken, all quite good. They do not have liquor, but you can bring your own drink. I believe they have a cork fee. I like it and will definitely return.

Food was excellent so was service. Classic chicken parmigiana with fettuccini pasta was perfect. first time trying Italian beer was Ok. Food much better then beer

Excellent food ! We had a family meal served on large platter Chicken parmigianas and fettuccini Alfredos all with soup , salad and garlic bread. Lots of food we had to take some home Server was good and kept our glasses full and garlic bread coming

Warning, *rating is based on their pizza only* I always come here for pasta (good enough to split with two) & subs it's always delicious but today I decided to be adventurous and ordered the pizza.... The pizza was bad. The pizza tasted frozen, like Tony's. Definitely never ordering pizza here, but still recommend the pasta and subs here. The waiter was great, and super relaxed atmosphere.

The Parmesan chicken sub was excellent. Big enough to share for two. I've fettuccine Alfredo with chicken out of this world. Big enough to share too. We're just wonderful Service was excellent . Great little Italian Restaurant worth the drive !!!

We love this place! Always great service! We never had a negative experience, portions are big and enough for two people.

This place is always a favorite of mine I try to bring everyone i know here. First off the portions are HUGE! And everything I've ever tried here has been nothing short of amazing. Service is good and love the quiet little Cafe style. But usually pretty busy on the weekends so come early. I love the tomato basil soup, the ceaser salad, the mama mia, and my all time favorite the chicken marsala. But again, the portions are huge!

The food was extremely salty. The music was too loud. They brought out the wrong dish for me, but kindly swapped it out for the correct item. Unfortunately, both dishes were much too salty. The only food that was reasonably enjoyable was their pizza go for the pizza and nothing else.

I was really appreciative that the waitress took us in even though they were closing soon! On top of that she gave GREAT service! She gave suggestions on what to eat and led us in the right direction for yummy food! The food that we ordered was all so delicious! The bread was so good I forgot to take photos of it before eating it! It was one of the recommendations that she gave and I thought it was so yummy! Honestly I think it could serve as a meal within itself. I also really like the feel of the place, we came close to closing so it wasn't busy but it seems like a very chill spot.

I've been in Pearland for many years and feel like I've been a bad local because I just now got around to checking out Santa Barbara Italian Café. It's was around before I got here and is a favorite amongst the people of Pearland. It is located in "old" Pearland in a shopping strip shared with other eateries and a movie theater which also means lots of parking. My family and I came for dinner and were seated immediately. Jarret was our server and he did a fantastic job taking care of us all night. First off, they bring you some bread for the table. This wasn't just plain bread, it was a mound of fresh garlic bread and an olive oil mix to dip your bread in. Any restaurant that served garlic bread and oil is a winner in my book as garlic bread is one of my favorite foods. While we munched on that, we perused the pretty extensive menu. It's extensive in that they have certain dishes served in a variety of different ways. They have appetizers, pizza, pasta, as well as other varieties of proteins made in different ways. What stood out to me is that they had spicy options as well. From my understanding, the owner/chef cooks with a little French and Croatian twist. From what I saw, it looked like they threw in a little Cajun flare as well with blackened chicken in some of their dishes. I ordered a ravioli in a spicy, creamy tomato sauce and topped with lots of blackened chicken. It came with a delicious Caesar salad as well. This pasta dish was not only huge, but it was also absolutely delicious. The ravioli was stuffed with a delicious cheese mixture and the sauce was very flavorful. The sauce and perfectly cooked blackened chicken gave the dish a nice kick that I usually crave at every meal. I tried bites of the fam's food too and I liked almost everything. There was a few that were slight misses. The good outweighed the bad big time though. I'm sad I slept on this place for so long. It's close to home and away from the hustle and bustle of Pearland near 288. I will definitely be coming back here.

Soup and salad were good. Lasagna was Ok. Shrimp and scallops in alfredo sauce were disgustingly horrible. The seafood had some strong off flavor and the alfredo was like grainy wallpaper paste. No parmesan cheese was offered with the meal as is common in most italian restaurants. Service was barely adequate and we had a waiter who griped at us about his other customers. The meal was just south of $50, including tip, for two people. I would describe this as over priced garbage and would give a zero if I could.

Truly an unpleasant experience. First time to visit. Positives: *Server was pleasant. *My husband's dinner salad was fresh and tasted good. *Iced sweet tea was good. Negatives: Service was slow, took awhile for entrees to arrive. (Kitchen issue not server) *Proseca, individual split, was flat and sour tasting and served in a wine glass. They did open a different batch but it was the same. *No limes for beer just lemons. *Cesar salad with grilled chicken - chicken was served cold, salad was over dressed which would have been great had the dressing had any flavor. *Seafood Pasta - sauce was watery, scallops were rubbery and tasted like old fish, shrimp were over cooked.

It is so good great atmosphere and reasonably priced great for a family or date I looked like I had gone going there going back for lunch today

Yes. This place has great food and huge portions. If you have a big family, you can share portions. You can bring your own wine as well.

We finally tried their food. The complimentary flaky bread and oil was good. The salad that came with our entree and the bruschetta were okay. The tomato basil soup was delicious and not as creamy as we are used to with other restaurants. The entrees are huge portions so we have another meal out of them. The Italian pork chops was salty. The scallops in the seafood pasta were huge. The blackened salmon was a dry and risotto wasn't creamy, but the grilled vegetables were delicious. Our waitress was awesome!

i've been here several times and the food and service are always excellent! Also one of the best Caesar salad salads I've ever had!

Food was average, but servers had an amazing, and up-beat attitude which made the experience way better. As well, everything about the restaurant is fine, except the owner's horrible attitude, what I mean by this is that the owner didn't greet anybody, and straight up ignored everyone. Which ruined my night, and discouraged me from coming back. If the owner read's this please for the love of God, help your employees and fix the way you talk, and treat them!!!

This place is good! Best Italian food in this area for my money. I've had delivery from here 3 times and every single thing I get is flavorful and delicious. I just got Chicken Piccata, the appetizer meatballs, and a side of tomato soup. All of them are great. Delivery food can be hit and miss, but I have to give props to them for a consistent product. And I've tried new stuff every time I've been there. Crab Risotto is delicious as well. Definitely going to go sit down and eat there soon.

My husband and I are here on Father's Day. While the jazz music wasn't what we were expecting and the decor is a bit dated, the food was delicious and plentiful! Priced right for the amount of food they serve. We had Chicken Parm and Veal Parm. Dinner is served with a salad or soup and bread with dipping oil. The house salad had lots of veggies, not just lettuce and tomato. The lettuce was fresh, not from a bag, and the tomatoes were delicious. Both meals were excellent and we have enough for at least another meal or two each. Our server was a red haired girl and she was very friendly and helpful. This was a nice find - we are from the northeast and used to good Italian food - Santa Barbara fits the bill!

Everything from bread to house salad to entree was excellent. Nothing fancy about this place, very casual atmosphere but food was excellent. I've been thinking about trying this place for years but don't know what took me so long. I'll be back. I had the Lasagna for lunch. Not a lot of seating, though if weather was nice they do have outdoor seating but could see it getting packed on occasion but was plenty of seating when I went on a Friday for lunch. Would be perfect place to go to dinner and then go to movie theater next door

They over filed my drink and now I looks like I peed my pants and the service Is ok .

Asia was awesome. We were greeted right away. She was attentive, information and approachable. Great way to start. Then, the food...the bread is off the chain. Large portions and homemade at a decent cost. We will be going back (and asking for Asia's section) for sure.

This is genuinely one of my fav restaurants in Pearland. The penne calabrese with blackened chicken is soooo good. And they have the best bread ever. I love the local family vibe of the place. However, in regards to the service, there usually seems to be a bit of confusion and lack of experience. It feels like they get flustered pretty easily despite seeming to have small sections. And that's not a huge critique for me, especially because the servers here are very kind but seem young and just in need of a bit more training/more experience. Just something to keep in mind while dining here. I still really adore this place and recommend it to everyone I know! Five stars from me.

Stumbled upon this gem. The salad house salad was fantastic! Had the Parmesan chicken chicken with spaghetti and it was absolutely great portions were huge. Had to take some in to go box. Even the water was great along with superb service. Highly suggest this fantastic, great ambience, soothing music and savory food.

The service was so good, all of the servers were kind and checked in on us frequently. My issue was the manager or owner, he kept staring at us while we ate and I could hear him talking bad to some of the servers. It made the environment uncomfortable.

My hubby was excited about trying this place, so we finally decided to order Togo. I chose the Chicken Genova, which is breaded chicken in a cream sauce topped with mushrooms & served with cheese Ravioli. My husband opted for the seafood risotto. He stated that everything was cooked well, but lacked flavor. Risotto was not as creamy as we prefer it. After I doctored it up with; red pepper flakes, truffle salt, Italian seasoning and balsamic sautéed bell peppers & onions, he approved. As for my dish, it had good flavor. Yet, I'm a visual eater & I couldn't understand why breaded chicken was smothered under sauce & ravioli, which left it a soggy mess. Also we ordered a Caesar Side Salad & Tomato Basil Soup, no words, look at the pictures. But I will say the soup looked like hummus. We make sure that we order togo at least once a week to support restaurants during this era of social distancing & apprehension that prompts most couples to cook at home. For this reason, these establishments need to be mindful of making changes as they plate food togo to make sure the same quality is achieved. Simply put, if it is meant to be crispy when you eat it, serve those sauces on the side in a separate container to maintain the integrity of the dish. We have all had to make adjustments based on our New Normal, so doing things the same way just won't cut it. I plan on giving them another try, but I will definitely call it in to request my sauces on the side. ENTER AT UOUR OWN RISK, YOUVE BEEN WARNED

I have left multiple messages and sent emails for Lawrence (Owner/manager) with no response Veal parmigiana Horrible taste (old meat), meat was tough Chicken parmigiana Meat was tough Seafood risotto Scallops undercooked Shrimp overcooked Chicken fettuccini alfredo Meat was tough Chicken Caesar salad Meat was tough Huge pieces of dark leafy lettuce rather than mixture of iceberg Dressing has no taste and made of pure mayonnaise

Stopped in to celebrate my sister's birthday. It was a first time visit for all of our party (3 people). The bread and dip was wonderful. Each of ordered a different entree and we all enjoyed them thoroughly. I had the spinach fettuccine Alfredo, my sister had the chicken Torino and her friend had lasagna. The portions are big so each of us had enough to take home for a meal the next day. We shared a slice of the Italian Crème cake. Will definitely return again when I'm in the area. We had no issues with our service as discussed in other reviews. The restaurant is a nice casual place for an evening out.

This is by far the best takeout meal I've had since I've moved to Pearland four years ago. The seafood risotto is out of this world, and I recommend it without hesitation.

We came to this place exactly one week ago. We really enjoyed the food and service so we decided to return! Again, we ordered the Calamari, Tuscan Feast and added some Blackened Shrimp(to mix into our Fetuchini Alfredo). Again, we were served plenty enough for dining and for leftovers!

Friend paid for my food that I went to pick up. I arrived and stood there for 10 minutes in front of my food after I told them I was there to pick up. I didn't know it was my food and they told me to wait. After 10 minutes I asked if my food was ready or if there was an issue. The food sitting in front if me getting colder and soggier was mine. They had thrown out the receipt I was supposed to sign. The people at the desk were just chatting amongst themselves. There was one seated customer and 6 employees. When I spoke up they said '"oh my bad" and reprinted my receipt. Also see the photo. Does that look like $40 worth of food..38.49 for not spaghetti i doubt was made in house, 3 meatballs, and a salad small enough I could swallow it in two bites? Yea I'd rather eat a spaghetti MRE

For starters the service was slow and incorrect food was sent out 3 times. Once a Cesar salad we never ordered and twice was a chicken parmesan that still didn't come out correctly the second time. Next the food portions were very large however the fettuccine Alfredos way too salty and unbearable to eat. Then to top it off we had roaches climbing on tables beside us that were not cleared. They are probably their most loyal customers. Not to mention once we told the server our issues the manager came over embarrassed whispering about the problems with the vacant space next door and the manager also added they fumigate twice a week. On top of all of this it was a birthday dinner with no compensation.

My first time here in a very long time. Still good food, service and ambience! I'm glad to come back and will definitely return.

OMG! What a surprise! Just driving by we would not have chosen this restaurant, however it was recommended by someone who has been ordering delivery for several weeks. We ordered the shrimp and scallops risotto, the shrimp ravioli and the lasagna. The portions were HUGE and everything was delicious! The tomato basil soup and the salads were both great as well. We haven't had good scallops in years, but these did not disappoint! Go hungry and plan on having plenty of leftovers for the next day. The server was polite, friedly and accommodating. We highly recommend this place!

Food was amazing and waitress took care of us. However we arrive 1 hour and 15 min prior to closing and the staff was already placing chairs on tables and sweeping around where we we eating.

waitress brought me the wrong plate, very bland pasta and there was a roach by our booth. Manager didn't apologize.. just came by and killed it. Didn't clean the spot after... offered no discount or anything.

We love the food and the boys in the family especially love the portion sizes which are huge. I ordered the carbonara this last time and was not crazy about it although over a two day period I managed to finish it. lol. We had a family dinner there to celebrate my son's 25th birthday that was really fun and everyone loved their food. Try this place out!

This place was extremely disappointing. Portions are truly HUGE. Like a single dish can serve 3-4 normal people. It's excessive. What's sadder is that the place must be trying to make up for a lack of quality with quantity. The whole place would be better off trying to improve the quality of its food, from ingredients to Presentation. For what you pay, you should be getting quality food, not a pile of mediocre food at best. I ordered the Verona Chicken. It is a breaded chicken cutlet and spicy penne in a cream and mushroom sauce. I kid you not, I got a large plate full of penne pasta and sauce from edge to edge. There was a knife stuck in the side and I kept wondering why it was there. I completely forgot this dish had a chicken until I dug into the mound of penne and found the formerly crispy cutlet drowned at the bottom of this mountain of pasta, now sad and soggy. Literally do not order Thai unless you have 2 or more people eating off of it and ask for the chicken on top of the mound. The calamari was ordinary but again is enough for 4 people. My wife got the chicken parm. It was too much food as well. Unless you're a glutton, split a dish. I literally asked the waiter when the food came out if this was a family style eatery. In all, the eating experience here disappointing. It has the feel of a cook who just doesn't care about his craft. We will not be going back. Wait staff was fine.

Had this place for the first time and everything I ate was delicious!!! Highly recommended! Service was superb

Nikki by server was amazing!!!!! as.a former server I could spot a great one.. She is it!! very customer service oriented and friendly. food was great with hefty portions! as someone who travels alot for work I always look for local places to eat. this does not disappoint! I will be back !