Top 20 Italian Restaurants in Austin Texas
Austin’s culinary scene is fast evolving to the extent that it is now cooking up Italian and Mediterranean fare as explained at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. This article will look to point you in the right direction when looking for such by listing the top 20 Italian restaurants in Austin, Texas.
- Andiamo Ristorante
Hidden in a strip mall this North Burnet Restaurant serves rich Italian dishes like gnocchi in prosciutto cream sauce, veal, polenta, and more as articulated at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Try not to fill up on the fantastic homemade bread. To-go orders can be placed online; there are indoor and outdoor dine-in services.
- L’oca D’oro
When it comes to Italian food, chef-owner Fiore Tedesco learned from the best: the Italian immigrant grandparents he grew up cooking and eating alongside in upstate New York. At his Mueller district restaurant, he and his team not only bake several types of bread and churn out homemade pasta in a variety of shapes, but they also make their own cheese, salami, vermouth, amaro, and various preserves and fermentations.
- Bufalina Due
For over a decade, Bufalina Due has been Austin’s go-to for Neapolitan pizza, from classic Margherita to creations like a vodka arrabbiata pizza. Don’t miss the extensive list of natural wines. To-go orders can be placed online; there are indoor and outdoor dine-in services according to RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com.
- Pasta | Bar
Pasta | Bar isn’t just pasta; it’s an experience. Behind a front-facing speakeasy, Jazz Box, lies a 10-seater dining room helmed by Michelin-starred chefs Phillip Frankland Lee and Margarita Kallas-Lee (of the acclaimed Sushi Bar ATX). After a welcome cocktail, you’ll witness chefs prepare an exquisite 11-course tasting menu before your eyes. Each course is delivered with theatrics and a story, from the chef’s Southern influences on the chicken and crawfish to the pepper jam poured over black grouper with a glass teapot.
- Olive & June
Olive & June’s emphasis is on handmade pasta like the campanelle, ravioli, and bucatini. Pair dishes with a glass of wine from the diverse wine list and enjoy on the adorable patio. The restaurant is open for indoor and outdoor dine-in services.
- Revue
As per RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com, Chef Blake Ransom’s Revue is one of downtown’s coolest concepts: it’s part Italian, part Asian. Revue’s Italian offerings are top-notch. The Cacio e Pepe is the creamiest concoction and the pea and asparagus risotto bursts with flavor at every spoonful. End the Italian feast with their Ube Brûlées matcha dessert, and you’ll have a newfound love for combining Italian and Asian cuisine.
- Asti Trattoria
This longtime Hyde Park Restaurant has a sampling of all the Italian favorites, from polpette to pizza to handmade pasta to risotto. Asti has a great casually elegant atmosphere and a breezy patio. To-go orders can be placed online; there are indoor and outdoor dine-in services.
- Patrizi’s
Some of the city’s most unexpectedly authentic Italian cuisine comes from a little trailer in the backyard of Manor Road’s Vortex Theatre and the attached Butterfly Bar captured at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Patrizi’s has developed a following for its toothsome fresh pasta, house ricotta, giant meatballs, and gluten-free offerings.
- Cipollina
This restaurant in the heart of Clarksville focuses on Italian cuisine with an Austin twist. For lunch, try a soup and salad combo or a meatball sandwich served on Easy Tiger bread. For dinner, opt for a crispy thin-crust pizza or the Bolognese, made with brisket, bacon, tomato, and tagliatelle, and topped with grana Padano.
- Juliet
This Barton Springs Road eatery specializes in elegant Italian dishes for lunch and dinner, plus a creative Italian-inspired brunch on the weekend. Choose to sit on the expansive patio or opt for a table indoors and be sure to catch the happy hour, cocktails, small plates, salami and cheeses are greatly discounted.
- Sammie’s Italian
This Jersey-proud red sauce joint from local hospitality stars McGuire Moorman Lambert offers Italian-American classics in an upscale atmosphere as covered at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Look for dishes like chicken parmigiana, linguine vongole, and smothered pork chops.
- Asti
Owners Lisa and Emmett Fox opened this Italian trattoria almost two decades ago. It has been a favorite of Hyde Park locals ever since. In addition to the fresh pasta and wood-fired pizza (including gluten-free options), expect seasonal specials with plenty of seafood menu items, all served in an airy, modern dining room.
- The Heel of the Boot
Located at Wanderlust Wine Company, this truck focuses on cuisine from Puglia, in the south of Italy. That means orecchiette with nduja chorizo. To-go orders can be placed online; there are indoor and outdoor dining areas as described at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com.
- North Italia
North Italia’s menu encompasses everything from beef carpaccio to chicken parmesan, but their fresh handmade pasta really stands out. The squid ink Mafaldine with white shrimp and calamari is out of this world—especially the big tentacle-style black noodles, while the signature Bolognese’s slim tagliatelle noodles also slurp wonderfully with their traditional rich meat sauce.
- Red Ash Italia
Locally sourced meats and an assortment of seafood are roasted to perfection on this downtown restaurant’s custom-built wood-burning grill and oven. Red Ash offers a variety of handmade pasta, as well.
- Vespaio
As discussed at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com, this Austin institution has called South Congress home for decades, serving refined Italian entrees—like Vitello saltimbocca and Pollo Alla valdostana—in an upscale atmosphere. Pastries, coffee, charcuterie, and cheeses are available for takeout in the adjoined Enoteca Vespaio, which also serves more casual fare (paninis, salads, and pizzas) for lunch.
- II Brutto
East Austin’s Il Brutto boasts a classic Italian menu with fresh salads, meat and cheese appetizers, wood-fired pizzas, handmade pasta, and creative, decadent desserts. The twinkle-lit outdoor patio is the perfect backdrop for any occasion.
- Quattro Gatti
Growing up in a restaurant family and spending summers with relatives in Italy left Gianfranco Mastrangelo well-prepared to open his own Italian restaurant in Austin as revealed at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. In addition to fresh pasta and gnocchi, wood-fired focaccia and Neapolitan-style pies are the highlights of this trattoria, located just a stone’s throw from the Capitol.
- Intero
East Austin restaurant Intero strives for zero waste, which means using all parts of ingredients in cooking. The menu includes handmade pasta like a raviolo with red wine braised beef, slow-roasted pork neck, and lots of seasonal local vegetable plates.
- Southside Flying Pizza
The Austin-born pizza legend has amassed such a dedicated following that it now has five locations around town (plus one in Houston, in case you will ever find yourselves west and in need of some quality dough). It is all made from scratch, and the crust is delectable. Popular options include the Flyin’ Hawaiian made with BBQ sauce, chicken, ham, red onions, pineapple, jalapenos, mozzarella, parmesan, and romano, and the Southsider with all the meats, bell peppers, and mushrooms.
These are some of the best French restaurants in Austin, Texas, with more on this topic, and much more, to be found over at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com.