Emilia’s Restaurant

Really nice experience and great food in a charming and authentic old-​world Italian restaurant in the heart of Arthur Avenue. The menu, filled with classic Italian dishes and an extensive list of specials, made for a difficult choice. The service was gracious and professional, and complimentary warm bread, served with a bowl of tomato wedges, mozzarella chunks, and olives in olive oil really set a nice tone. Rice balls, usually not my favorite, was a delicious appetizer, and the tri-​color salad with house Italian dressing was crisp and fresh. Veal marsala and veal cutlet parm really stood out among the entrees we ordered. The grilled veal chops with sweet and hot peppers was also excellent, but beware… it’s spicy. We got a carafe of surprisingly good house red wine, and for dessert ordered the homemade brownie with vanilla ice cream. Really, really good. Can’t wait to return to try other dishes.

I’ve been coming here since 2007, and have never had a bad meal. Their penne alla vodka is fantastic — probably the best I’ve had at any restaurant ever. Also really like their chicken parmigiana and linguine alla vongole. You really can’t go wrong with any of the traditional Italian favorites here. The warm bread before the meal has a great crust, and is accompanied with a bowl of fresh tomatoes, olive oil, and mozzerella. So much better than just spreading butter on your bread.
The desserts here also standout. I’m especially a fan of the black forest cake. Also tried a new chocolate brownie over vanilla ice cream and whipped cream dessert last night — the vanilla ice cream was some of the best I’ve ever tasted, and the whipped cream was so much better than the mass produced stuff you’re used to. Brownie was slightly on the hard side, but it was tasty all the same.

Plus:
The marinara sauce was good
The service was good
Negative:
Out of alot of foods (they had no lamb shank or wild boar)
The lobster ravioli had no lobster
The arancini had pretty much no mozzarella.
Overall: Don’t bother, there’s better.

Have been coming here for many years and it always gets a 5 star rating from me and my husband. The eggplant rollatini is the best of any I’ve had anywhere. The owners are always observing and talking to customers and jump in to help the staff when needed. The waiters are very good at what they do. Very professional polite and give great advice on recommended dishes. No need to go anywhere in Manhattan for fabulous Italian food. Don’t cross the bridge, go to Arthur avenue’s famous Emilia’s!!!

Went here last night on a whim. So happy we did. Awesome everything! Love the coziness of the place. Apps were great. Main course fantastic and the entire staff couldn’t have been more pleasing! Loved it and cant wait to go back! Thank you Emelia’s!

The service was great. The bread was great! The sausage stuffed mushrooms were excellent! husband’s lobster ravioli was a bit fishy. My bucotini al’amatriciana was good. The Nutella brownie was stale. The Italian cheesecake was overdone.

Arthur Avenue has a number of eateries to choose from, and Emilia’s is a classic example of authentic Italian food in the heart of the Bronx’s Little Italy.
The feeling Emilia’s exudes is typical of a neighborhood restaurant — it’s not big (though there is a nice outdoor patio in the back), the décor is no frills, and the staff is friendly. The menu was impressive — there were a number of classic Italian dishes plus a few with modern twists on them.
Everything sounded so good I struggled to choose what to eat. I decided to start of with the burrata — it was delicious, everything you want out of a burrata. The mozzarella was smooth, the filling was creamy, and it was sitting in a nest of prosciutto which complimented the cheese nicely. For my main I had the chicken breast which was breaded and stuffed with shrimp, spinach, and sun-​dried tomatoes; it came in a mushroom sauce with veggies on the side.
I really enjoyed my experience at Emilia’s. The food, décor, and ambiance give off a rustic, neighborhood feel that not many restaurants can pull off — definitely the real deal!

Had a lovely dinner on the patio, until a soccer ball came flying over the fence, hit my friend in the face leaving a mark, knocked down our wine, and destroyed some desserts. All the waiter and owner could say was «what do you want me to do?» no apologies, no ice for her sore cheek, nothing. Although the food is decent, there are many places in New York that offer delicious food-​with exceptional service. Owner finally apologized after we asked him to. We will not go again!

We dined on the back outdoor garden. The house red was just dry enough and served in a generous carafe. From the parchment baked fish, the ravioli and Caesar salad the meal unfolded slowly by our Italian waiter. Bön appetite!

Ate there yesterday. The food was mediocre– I had a pork bracciola and cavatelli with red sauce, she had a vegetable fettucine with white wine sauce. The red sauce tasted basically like tomatoes, nothing in the way of a flavorful herbs, garlic, etc. The pork was very dry. The gf’s pasta sauce had no taste whatsoever, it was like eating greasy pasta. The service was super slow. It wasn’t busy. The waiter took forever to bring our wine, and when he did bring it, it wasn’t what we asked for – they were out and didn’t have anything similar, so he just brought us a random bottle that had a similar price point. Not awful but I wouldn’t go back.

Visited today second time, with friends. Beef, lamb, fish all cooked fine.
desserts are very good too. Highly recommend this place.

I’ve been to several restaurants on Arthur Avenue over the years, but Emilia’s is and always has been my hands-​down favorite. While I’ve found some other restaurants in the neighborhood to be hit-​or-​miss, I’ve never had anything even close to a bad meal here. You’ll start with some delicious, crusty bread served with a bowl of tomatoes, olives, and mozzarella in olive oil — perfect to get you excited for dinner as you peruse the menu full of old school Italian favorites. I especially love the penne vodka and the eggplant parmesan, but anything I’ve had here was great. If you have a big sweet tooth (and aren’t already too full!) be sure to check out their desserts as well. Their black forest cake makes anything feel like a special occasion.
It does get crowded sometimes, especially after an event at Fordham, but you’ll find it’s worth the wait. Emilia’s isn’t fancy and it isn’t trendy, but if you’re in the mood for some classic Italian, this is the place for you.

We had a great dinner at Emilia’s. The pasta is fresh and the toppings are very flavorful. The menu is standard Italian fare, nothing particularly creative, but they use high quality ingredients and produce very tasty and fresh food. The service is typical NY brusque but overall a fun experience. We particularly enjoyed the pasta vongole (clams) and pappardelle cingale (wild boar). The espresso, cappuccino (lots of foam) and desserts we tried (tiramisu and cannoli) were excellent.

I love Arthur Avenue and my wife and I love this restaurant. Stopped in for lunch during a recent visit to New York area to see the Chew. We were seated quickly and were given a nice window table. Even though it was 3:15 they still allowed us to order from the lunch special menu. We were given a basket of bread, excellent crusty outside with nice dough inside. The was accompanied by fresh tomatoes with chunks of cheese in olive oil. An excellent start. We shared a stuffed artichoke which was just like our mother’s made, stuffed with bread crumbs with just a touch of anchovies in olive oil. I had a perfectly prepared chicken cutlet with arugula, and my wife really loved the pene pasta with stuffed pork loin. The gravy as we call tomato sauce on Philadelphia was outstanding again duplicating the one our moms made. Our water was always refilled as was our bread basket. The portions were large, so no room for sweets. Will stop in again next time we are up.

Delicious, authentic, and a pleasure to deal with. I catered my daughter’s first birthday and was very happy with the quality, price and ease with which Nunzio took care of me. Also a nice atmosphere for eating there which I’ve done several times in the past. I highly recommend this Arthur Ave. gem!

This is a nice family-​style spot right on Arthur Avenue. First we ordered apps — the burratta with prosciutto was quite good, but the pork in the stuffed mushrooms was a bit dry. They accommodated my off-​the-​menu request of linguine pescatore fra diavolo and it was delicious. We also ordered the pork brasciola with caviatelli and it was very good, albeit also a tad dry. I will say that we arrived at 9:30 and they were not exactly thrilled to see us. As a result, the service was far from attentive or gracious. But all in all a nice evening. The owners were there til closing and bade us a warm thanks and farewell.

Over priced for small portions. Service wasn’t impressive. $ 15 for 2 small manicotti is insane. (can get more from a mom/​pop Italian pizza place). Would not recommend. Others on party ordered Chicken Parm and Grilled Swordfish. Chicken was half of a beast (decent size). Swordfish was tiny (approx $ 4 – 5 piece from a fish store). Stingy with the bread and olive oil. Frank Sinatra on constant repeat. Pass Pass Oh god PASS!

The story of us finding a COCKROACH, getting TERRIBLE SERVICE, and stiffing a waitress for the first time ever ON MY BIRTHDAY…
We have eaten at many places on Arthur Avenue for over a decade and always enjoyed the experience. On August 9, 2014, we came to Emilia’s for the first time for my birthday dinner. We got a corner table and ordered an appetizer. The food was pretty tasty and my glass of prosecco was nice.
Then he ordered a vodka tonic and found a BABY COCKROACH in it. Relax, I said. These things happen. Maybe it’s a gnat. They got an A grade. The bar isn’t near the kitchen. I’ll handle it. Then I saw it really was a baby roach, as you can tell if you look closely. It took at least 10 mins for her to come back to the table and by then we were done eating our food. I showed her the bug, calling it a «bug» to be more polite. She was very embarrassed and apologetic and said she’d bring a new one.
We were quite put off when she sent the bus boy to bring the new drink with no apology. She then disappeared for about 15 minutes. The owner was around, but she obviously didn’t tell him what happened as he didn’t come over. She finally came and asked if we wanted to see a dessert menu and we declined. We asked for the check and it took about another 10 minutes to get it. On the check, was the drink with the COCKROACH! Not only did they not offer to comp the apps or a dessert, we paid $ 6.50 for the cocktail.
For the first time in our lives, we did not tip a wait person and I felt we were completely justified. The food was fine and I understand restaurants sometimes get roaches, but the way this was handled was unacceptable.
I recommend Dominick’s, Giovanni’s Pizza, and many of the others but don’t go here!

Emilia’s is worth the trip. Dominick’s is our go to… but since it was a Tuesday which is the day that Dominick’s is closed, we chose Emilia’s. Great service. Food was delious.
Pork osso buco and the frutta di mare were excellant. Long lingering lunch with interesting characters at the other tables.

Dominiks had a wait of an hour so we arrived here.
Friendly service, seven of us seated in the back near the kitchen. Sparsely decorated but a packed place. Daily specials are inserted in the menus.
Quick service.
Bread and marinated olives and tomatoes are set upon the table.
The calamari is flavorless and unmemorable. The mozzarella sticks are the same.
The mussels in a rich garlic tomato broth are the highlight of the meal. Large specimens are plump and meaty.
The veal Marsala provides three thinly pounded pieces of meat breaded and fried. A rich brown wine sauce and sauteed mushrooms are poured over the top.
The side of ziti in a rich, fresh and sweet red sauce is served just perfectly firm. Fresh grated Parmesan completes the pasta.
Beef lasagna is a deep bowl of rich noodle, meat, sauce and melted mozzarella.
Pork brasciolla, spaghetti and meatballs and chicken Parmesan were all well prepared.