Trattoria Alla Costiera

I was really pulling for this place — cute, local BYO. The place has big windows, beautiful paintings on the wall, great decorations.
But… we went at 8pm on a Friday and were the only table there to start (eventually two more came in). The owner and a couple kids were sitting at the front desk with the TV on — a very low volume, but still very odd. They had Italian music in the kitchen — I was almost hoping they’d turn it louder since it was so quiet in the place.
We had the calamari appetizer, which was good, and the chicken with pancetta entrée which was very tasty. The side dish of polenta was burnt. We also had a salad and the snapper special, a large portion, and though it was covered with sauce, was pretty tasteless.
One pet peeve: we asked for the salmon, they were out, so offered the snapper special. Not a big deal at all — except when the special is $ 12 more than the entrée requested, I feel that deserves a mention while ordering. Most entrees were in the $ 15 – 18 range, so a $ 30 piece of (bland) fish was a bit of a shock.
Perhaps if the restaurant was busier, the ambiance wouldn’t feel so awkward. Food is inconsistent, but has potential.

For the most part the food was good, no, actually very good, but two things really made you wonder what was going on in the kitchen. The chicken with panchetta (hope I spelled that right) was very tasty, however the panchetta could have been made of rubber bands. My wife gave it to me since she is not a fan of anything with fat in it and it was terrible. Sliced far to thick and filled with gristle. Also, we chose to have polenta as a side dish instead of pasta on three of our dishes. It came as a small wedge and was actually burnt on the bottom. It was pushed to the side on all three plates. All four dinners were actually very good with the exceptions noted above. Salmon with pasta, Chicken, Tilapia and another chicken dish. Not sure we will be back since there are so many great BYOB’s in Phila, but who knows? Can’t quite give it two stars, but I’m tempted.

I wanted to like it. I wanted to just prove wrong all those two-​stars-​givers. I really tried.
We went there on a Friday at 8.30 and there was only us and a table of two that was wrapping up. So by appetizers we were alone in the whole restaurant. …which is so pretty decorated, by the way.
I got the calamari and the shrimp as appetizers. Never in my life have I tasted something so bland and overcooked. I swear they just took a can of the worst store-​brand tomato sauce, dumped it on calamari, put in the microwave and then served it. My bf got chicken… whatever that was. He ate it. I got chicken too. Whatever that was. I had to scrape the sauce off it to at least try to eat the meat– brine brine brine. I ended leaving the chicken there, and just got 2 desserts; the limoncello tart.
I wonder what the woman thought, seeing the chicken almost wiped clean of the sauce!
The dessert was good, really was.
We left her a big tip, we felt so sorry for the restaurant being empty on a Friday… I know its a family business and the grandfather was there, starring at a computer screen, such a sad look on his face, so sad. I wish them all the best. Im sorry I will not go back, but why would I? The food-​Im sorry-​is horrendous. (And I remember on a table in a corner they left a bucket and cleaning stuff and gloves, just hangin out there in plain sight; thats reckless).

This is an excellent BYOB establishment. I brought my friend from outside of the country for her last meal. We took a bottle of wine from the government store, which the waitress corked at no extra cost. Everything on the menu sounded fantastic and the specials also seemed hard to resist. The appetizer special was a crêpe stuffed with mushrooms and cheese swimming in a cream sauce. We could not resist ordering it. We both agreed it was amazing. I had the bow-​tie pasta with salmon in a vodka cream sauce and my friend had pasta with vegetables and olives tossed in olive oil. The meal comes with complimentary home baked bread (at least I think it is because of how good it was). The wait staff was quite friendly, and nobody seemed to mind as we finished our bottle of wine slowly while having nice conversation. It was a good place for an intimate meal in a nice neighborhood.

I went to Trattoria Alla Costiera for my 24^th birthday this August 2010. I love to try BYOBs in the city and this was one that I hadn’t tried yet. As some of the reviews sad, this place was mostly empty during dinner hours. However, we did go on a Sunday night at 7:30, which really isn’t the most busy of times for a restaurant.
The restaurant is on the corner and when you walk in, you will notice statues of friars and huge painting of scenes from Italy. Even though the place was empty aside from our party of 5 and a party of 3 by the door, the restaurant was surprisingly loud, which I had also read in reviews before making the reservation, so I was prepared. Also, the lighting in the place was very dark, so if you need glasses to read, definitely bring them because its difficult to read the menu even when you don’t typically need reading glasses.
We had the Caprese salad to start, which was yummy. I ordered the farfalle alla vodka with salmon. I was really in the mood for shrimp and pasta though, so I asked the waitress if she could substitute the shrimp for the salmon. She said that since it wasn’t busy in the kitchen it wouldn’t be a problem, but that usually they didn’t do substitutions on busier nights. I got what I wanted, though, so I was happy. My dad went with the cheese gnocchi special in the cheese sauce (as recommended by the waitress). My mom and my boyfriend had the chicken with prosciutto and cheese which came with zucchini and potatoes and farfalle pasta, which they both ordered with the blush sauce. My brother had the potato gnocchi in a blush which he devoured in addition to the other half of my dad’s cheese gnocchi, which my dad said tasted great, but was too filling to eat in one sitting. They served big portions and my boyfriend was able to bring home a good amount of leftovers for lunch the next day.
For desert, we all had the gelato, which was Neapolitan with strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. The waitress must have heard it was my birthday and put a candle in my gelato for me which was a nice touch.
As a gift from the owner, we were each served a shot of limoncello which was delicious and also surprising, since the restaurant is a BYOB.
Overall, the service was great and the food was good (although I’ve had better Italian the waitstaff made the food worth it) and I would like to go back to try Trattoria Alla Costiera again.

My husband and I have lived in the area for a year and often walked by this restaurant, telling ourselves we would try it. Finally we did and we loved it! It’s a BYOB which is fantastic, plus the food is very reasonable priced and is delicious. We go a special salad as an appetizer and we were pleasantly surprised at how big and tasty it was. As entrees we got the Tilapia and a Lemon Chicken dish that were fabulous. The restaurant is under new management and it is very obvious they are working hard to make it a fabulous dining experience. Definitely recommend!

My opinion of this place has gotten steadily better over the years. Been to many Italian BYOs and I have to say that the quality and consistency of the food and service at Trattoria Alla Costiera has improved to the point where the place is… well. pretty darn good.
We last went with a fairly large group and weren’t expecting much and we were all quite happy, especially when the very reasonable check came!
The atmosphere is a bit kitschy, but our friends dining with us who had just come back from two weeks in Italy were impressed by the authenticity of the kitsch!
Minor suggestion for improvement: Play better music!

My experience at Trattoria Alla Costiera was easily the poorest I’ve had in the city. It started off with a blaring loud television inside of the suspiciously empty restaurant. It’s nice to support local, family-​owned businesses as well but it’s not OK to run a business where people are sitting down to have dinner together when the family’s children are running around the restaurant and repeatedly screaming into the kitchen area. We spoke to the waiter and very clearly emphasized that we are both vegetarians and that my girlfriend could have a negative reaction if there there is meat in our food. He pointed out the few things on the menu that were safe for us and assured us they were 100% vegetarian with complete confidence. As another reviewer pointed out, the salad that claims to have strawberries in it doesn’t actually have them included. After the abnormally long wait for it (in a non-​busy, empty restaurant??), we pointed out the lack of advertised ingredients and it was taken back. Before it was returned to us, we received our appetizer which was a portabella mushroom dish over greens with a smoked mozzarella melted on top. It sounded delicious. Unfortunately, we had both taken bites before we realized they had hidden slices of sausage under the melted cheese. We called the staff over and told them we were absolutely assured none of our food would have meat in it. Instead of an outright apology, we were given an excuse that there was a miscommunication in the back because the waiter who had taken our order had to leave to go to the hospital because he had been punched in the head. No, I am not making that up. While my girlfriend was explaining how serious a mistake like that can be for a restaurant, the waitress actually raised her voice back. That was when we simply got up and walked out the door.
Loud environment, loud children allowed to cause a commotion, food not prepared as advertised, meat included in dishes where it is assured there will be none, and waiters who apparently get into fist fights during business hours. I wish there was a rating below 1-​star.

If you succumb to an $ 8 salad because it features strawberries, then tuck it under your arm, walk it home after an ass-​chappingly long day at work, and tease it open excitedly to accompany your phone therapy session — not that this exactly mirrors my lived experience, it’s only a scenario — and then you discover the salad has 0% strawberries, you feel gypped, defrauded, and a little mad.
If you order the special of essentially spaghetti and meat sauce and it ends up costing double the standard entrée, and this surprises you because no known math algorithm produces a dollar amount that high for as I said, spaghetti and meat sauce, you also will feel gypped, defrauded, and mad.
And finally if you really want to like a place because it’s adorable, exceptionally well located, and run by a charming family and you’re eager to support local business at all costs, and you end up with a sort of a flatliner box pasta inaccurately described as bolognese but in fact is an unrequested and unwanted meaty creamy vodka sauce, you will feel for your wallet, close it, and walk out the door.

will never go back! food was good, however ask for the prices of the specials, they are about 2x the cost of the typical entrée. now it turns ugly…
We tried the place out VIA
promotion, as i did with salt and pepper and others in the area. I brought in a 25 $ gift card from
. I gave it to them after presenting the bill and they actually increased the cost of the bill by adding a 14 $ corking fee when the bill was returned to me. So they only took 10 $ off the bill. VERY VERY VERY dishonest. how many BYOB’s in town with a 14 $ corking fee, that came from thin air and you would go back to???

This place was great. Went here for dinner last night and it exceeded my expectations. It’s super cute inside and even though it’s small you still get a lot of privacy at your table. They give you bread and olive oil with hunks of garlic, rosemary and crushed red pepper mixed in and it’s delicious. My mouth actually still tastes like garlic, which I love. We got the insalata caprese for an appetizer, which was average. For dinner I got the the tammaro chicken which was delicious. Usually I’ll order pasta and seafood when I go out but I’m really glad I switched it up for this. The restaurant is byob which is awesome and you can get a
gift certificate before you go which saves $ 25 off your bill. Two of us ate for $ 11/​person with 20% tip. The only negative was that our waitress was kind of a spaz.

So I read some of the other reviews that said the food was bland but still wanted to try this place since I live so close. As a disclaimer I am not Italian so can’t compare the food here to «real home cooking» but I loved it! When I go out to eat, how good the food is is just part of the experience so here’s the rest:
1) Service was perfect, everyone that worked there was extremely friendly and not pretentious. The server was Italian and could pronounce all the menu items authentically (not a deal breaker if he couldn’t but I noticed)
2) The restaurant is as nice on the inside as it is on the outside. It’s not a tiny crowded restaurant where the tables are piled on top of each other and needs updating. Definitely spacious enough for groups.
3) It’s inexpensive. my mom and I got appetizers and entrees and it was under $ 50, that’s hard to beat especially in this neighborhood!
4) It’s a BYOB!

We’d never heard of this restaurant before eating there this past Halloween. What a gem this little place is! Service was impeccable and the décor made us feel like we were dining in a small trattoria somewhere in Italy. We decided to share an appetizer and I’m glad we did. We ordered the mozzarella ball, which was all soft and creamy inside and served atop mixed greens with the most delicious balsamic olive oil dressing. It was more than enough for the two of us as the mozzarella ball was the size of a baseball! The balsamic dressing on the greens was so good, I was mopping it up with the delicious soft and warm bread that was immediately placed on our table when we arrived. After eating that, our server who was, I believe, the owner brought us a slice of margherita pizza on the house. What a lovely delicious surprise. For dinner, DH ordered the farfelle al salmone alla vodka, and I ordered one of the specials, a very thick frenched pork chop stuffed with proscuitto, herbs and thinly sliced cheese with a white wine rosemary reduction. DH loved his pasta dish, and could have eaten more. My pork chop was very good, although slightly overcooked. Snow peas and polenta were served on the side. After dinner, we shared tiramisu and it just vanished… it was so good. All in all, I’d say we had a lovely evening, great conversation with the owner as he and DH were speaking Italian to each other and a wonderful dinner. We’ve definitely added Trattoria Alla Costiera to our list of favorite places to eat.

I’ve lived in this neighborhood for five years and only eaten here once. Just doesn’t seem to stand out from its competitor/​neighbors Cochon and Little Fish.
I stumbled upon here with a cheap bottle of wine and my fiancée. We were surprised to find an Italian restaurant in the neighborhood with no South Philly influence. We sat by the big window and had the place to ourselves. You also have the option to eat outside, which is big in my book.
Food was good, and the menu was small but I believe it changes frequently. They need to step up their pr or marketing because it can give its neighbors a run for their money.
(Inside tip, I heard they’ve been fighting with the neighbors and/​or neighboring restaurants because their kids play outside the restaurant on scooters zipping by and disturbing other residents…)
The location is PERFECT for a pre-​South Street night, or even an alternative to the hard to get a table at Dmitris on 3^rd.

We went for walk and stumbled across this pleasant looking trattoria in Queen village. The service was spotty but the waiter was very pleasant when available.
The sign posted outside said it was pizza night so we thought it would be a nice way to get a lite bite. We selected the Positano pizza which had carmelized onions, mushrooms and chicken in a light tomato sauce. What a mistake.
The pizza was dry, the chicken was bland, the onions weren’t carmelized and the dough tasted like it came from Shoprite.
Although our taste for pizza revolves around Taccanellis, Mara’s and Mam Palma’s, which are the best of the best, this place is a far cry and ranks with the pizza at the Wachovia Center. Awful!

Bring your favorite bottle and an appetite for authentic Italian to this hidden cozy corner spot in Queen Village/​Bella Vista. Classic recipes combine with neighboring Mediterranean influences to add just the right amount of spice and interest to please the palate. Start with one of the salads to share. I recommend the simple yet delicious tomato and mixed greens with balsamic — the creamy, smooth mozzarella melts in your mouth and kicks this classic up a knotch. The pastas are handmade, cooked al dente and combined with all fresh ingredients. I devoured the Orecchiette with shrimp, cannellinis and broccoli rabe in a light lemony herb sauce. My plate was mopped clean with the rest of the crusty and warm table bread, which is brought promptly upon seating for dipping. The simple hodgepodge of faux décor in this small and quaint space serves its purpose to create an old world feeling, while the open air side in warmer months creates a casual yet romantic ambiance that almost invokes breezes from across the Atlantic… which is amazing for a spot just a stone’s throw from South Street.

A hidden byob gem for sure! If you are looking for an authentic italian dinner this is the place to go. The restaurant is family run and the entire staff is friendly and knowledgable. I have eaten here numerous times and I simply cannot get enough of their Spaghetti alla puttanesca (fresh pasta with gaeta olives, capers, basil & marinara sauce). The pasta is freshly made and the sauce is out of this world– I’m italian and have been eating this food all my life. Some of the best I’ve ever had. My boyfriend had the Spaghetti alle erbe on one occasion, and the Farfalle al salmone alla vodka another time. Both dishes were top notch. Highly Recommended!

Authentic Napolitan Italian cuisine. Family run, very friendly and excellent, real authentic itallian cuisine. Owners, who are originally from S. Philly, spent 8 years living in Naples where they ran another family restaurant and perfected their cuisine.
Not to be missed!