The Meatball Cafe #MadeFromScratch

Flat price for delicious lunch specials, including the appetizer bread, the salad and the main course. The appetizer bread is freshly baked and tasted good. The Spaghetti Meatball tastes very authentic. No over seasoned spice. The taste is very balanced. We also tried their Tiramisu. It is also made to a good taste. Not too sweet, not too bitter. Balanced, again. Great food and desserts here.

Our first time visiting South Padre, my family and I set out to find a good spot for lunch. With the high reviews, we expected great food. What we didn’t expect was for this restaurant to exceed those expectations so completely. The service, the warm ambiance, and the incredible authenticity of the Italian cuisine impressed us so much that we ended up returning three times, for lunch, dinner, and breakfast. Josie, our server, took exceptional care of us each visit. She made sure every dish was prepared exactly to our liking and checked in without ever being intrusive. Her attention to detail and welcoming personality truly elevated our experience. As we get ready to leave the island, one of my favorite memories will be the time my family and I spent gathered around the table here, enjoying three wonderful meals back-to-back. This restaurant didn’t just impress us, but instead became a highlight of our trip

The service is great. My husband and I have been there few times and we have been with family as well. The lasagna is to die for. The spaghetti meat balls, delicious. Great spaghetti and sauce. However I recommend for the price at least double the meat or make it 3. 2 small ones seems too cheap. Delicious soups. Great value for my money except for the pasta meat balls

Wow. This place is an absolute gem!!! Admittedly, I was a bit hesitant to eat Italian food on the beach but The Meatball Cafe was phenomenal! If you're going back and forth on eating at this place, let this review be what you need to give it a try! I promise it will not disappoint. THE ATMOSPHERE/SERVICE: Beautiful. Very romantic with a great noise level for conversation, and the second you walk in the door the smell is out of this world good!!! Not to mention, the staff is absolutely phenomenal. They knew when to check in without hovering or overstaying their welcome. Very knowledgeable with the menu and had great recommendations! Very polite, very friendly, extremely personable. I really wish I would have gotten our waitress' name to mention her here because she was lovely! (The Meatball Cafe is also pet friendly on their patio as of 10/17/2025) THE FOOD: After reading a few Google reviews that mentioned how perfectly the scallops were cooked, I decided to order the scallop toscana. Let me tell you, those reviews were spot on! The scallops were cooked to perfection and the pesto toscana sauce was to die for! Very rich, very filling, and a phenomenal portion size. They also make all their pasta, bread, and pizza dough from scratch every day, and you can really taste the difference there. Some of the best pasta I've ever had!!! My husband ordered the lasagna and it was mind blowing. He said it's the best lasagna he's ever had in his life, hands down. You can really taste the love this place puts into every single dish. As for the appetizer, we ordered the fried cheese ravioli. I forgot to get a picture of it, I was so hungry, but man was it good and the raviolis were HUGE! Easily the size of my hand. The flavor was phenomenal and the Marinara sauce it came with was extraordinary! The salads that came with our entrees were excellent as well. I got the balsamic vinaigrette dressing and it was very very good. As for the appetizer bread, oil and vinegar... It was out of this world, truly! I believe the olive oil they used was slow simmered with garlic beforehand so it was packed with great flavor! EASILY the best olive oil balsamic mix I've ever had. There were a good number of delicious vegetarian options as well, so this would be a great place to bring your vegetarian friends and family! The chefs are also VERY willing to work with your preferences and needs so that you get the dish that's best for your tastes! THE DRINKS: If I'm being honest, the drinks were good but not great. They definitely pour heavy-handed, which is nice if you're not a lightweight! We got a Moscow mule that was pretty standard in flavor and quality. The Italian margarita was good but not amazing! It just tasted like a standard tropical/fruity margarita. The old fashioned was way too sweet for our liking, but everyone is unique in their old fashioned preference! Overall, I cannot talk about this place enough! EVERYTHING was perfect (aside from the drinks just being good but not great). The atmosphere, the service, the food, just an incredible experience, and very walkable, too! It was a bit on the pricey side, but anyone who is a true foodie knows when good food and service is worth the price. This will be a regular spot we visit while in SPI from here on out. You absolutely HAVE to try The Meatball Cafe while in SPI!

We enjoyed this place greatly. The service was top notch. Our server Luis was very helpful and patient with us as it was our first time there. He made suggestions and very knowledgeable of the food and wine served. Definitely will be coming back. Omgeee the lasagna 🫠 and the Salmon dish!

The Meatball Cafe is the top choice for me when craving Italian. It’s consistently a hit every time without missing. The food is always great and never a disappoint on every single visit, making it a go-to spot for my “cannelloni alfredo cravings” and when I have fresh Ling filets (sea photo 8-6-25).

The food was delicious. My wife had the spaghetti and meatballs, I had the salmon with a special topping and for appetizer we had a steak that melted in your mouth 😋 will definitely back

Off the to-do list. I've been wanting to come to this place for years. The wife got out of work early and we finally made it for lunch. Perfect timing around 1:00 p.m. low light nice and quiet very romantic ish. We started with calamari as an appetizer. It wasn't as great as we expected it to. It was cooked golden brown but very dry and chewy. We were brought bread which was good with the oil and herb. Wife ordered fettuccine alfredo with chicken. She enjoyed it very much and it had good flavor. I wanted the Best of both worlds so I ordered the lunch special of chicken parmigiana and then I ordered the lasagna. The main course was absolutely delicious, everything was cooked perfectly well served and had great flavor. The only negative thing I can say is the option to substitute. These meals both came with salad and I was hoping to trade them both in for the wedding soup without the upcharge but they wouldn't allow it. So I ended up with the wedding soup and a caesar salad. I'm not a Caesar salad kind of guy but it was actually pretty good. The wedding soup was not that great, it tasted like Mexican soup. service was okay, no one was rude they just didn't check on us very often. Would we go back, most likely yes.