Sammy’s Authentic Italian Restaurant

Wonderful Experience. The Veal Ala Sammy was delightful. The cream sauce was light, decadent, and full of flavor. The dish is normally served with a side of pasta with a red sauce but I got the pasta under the cream sauce instead (highly recommend). The Mozzarella and Roasted Red Pepper Appetizer was fresh and delicious. Our server was attentive and the service was quick, especially for 615 PM on a Saturday. Perfect date night spot!

If this review was based on quality of food alone, it’d be a 1. However, our waiter was very attentive but not overbearing so the service quality bumped it up a bit. The food, though, left a lot to be desired. I had pasta e fagioli and the beans were hard. The bread was grocery store quality at best. The buffet was just not good. Salad was straight out of a bag. Just straight lettuce and shredded carrots. Maybe a piece or two of purple cabbage. There was a cucumber salad that had some great fresh herbs on it but otherwise was pretty watery and bland, pasta salad with no flavor. I skipped the rice pudding and the fruit. Fruit looked like it was dumped out of a can. Then the hot part of the buffet — 6 or 8 dishes. Rice pilaf which tasted like chicken broth and was severely overcooked, mixed vegetables also overcooked and no real flavor. Skipped the pastas (2 pans of those) and went for the meatballs and garlic mashed potatoes. My husband and I both had meatballs and they were pink inside. Looked totally store-​bought, definitely not homemade, and the sauce they were in was water. The garlic mashed potatoes appeared like they had been sitting out for a long time and had a gluey, very unappetizing consistency. I’d heard so many people say this place was so good, but honestly, I’d rather eat at Macaroni Grill or Olive Garden any day over here! So disappointed.

We had a table of five right next to the window. The waiter was very tentative to our needs. The pasta was fresh, the bread was fresh and the sauce homemade. My wife and daughter had the lobster ravioli which came out hot. My son had plan pasta with marinara sauce. This was the largest portion plate. My mother and I had veal and chicken saltilbucca. Both dishes were excellent. The portion sizes were on the smaller side which I would rather because you don’t feel stuffed at the end of your meal. The bill for a table of 5 with 4 orders of water and 1 Coke was 117 plus tip. We had no apps or desert. The prices are a little out of line for the area and the portion sizes but that would never prevent me from visiting Sammy’s across from our state capital.

Been here over a year and a half and never heard great things about this place but wanted some Italian food. Lack of choices in this area, unlike my hometown of Philadelphia.
The good is that it is BYO. Bring a great bottle and it’s a nice small dining area with friendly, efficient staff.
The food. Basically a Macaroni Grill and that’s being kind. The pasta has been partially cooked then is reboiled, which leads to mushy pasta. Unacceptable.
The shellfish in the past was sandy and was not well cleansed.
The pasta with the veal has the blandest red sauce I have had in a long time.
The veal milanese was actually serviceable. Not too greasy, very thin cut and pan fried.
When you only can seat around 30 people the menu can’t look like a NJ diner with endless choices. There’s just no way of pulling it off. Stick to some basics and do them well!

I’ve been to Sammy’s several times and always leave happy. The restaurant is cozy – the tables are all pretty close together. It is byob, which I love. I had the calamari, which you can get in your choice of 3 sauces. I got the sweet sauce, which was delicious and tasted very fresh. The calamari was cooked perfectly and practically melted in the mouth. The lobster ravioli is superb! The shrimp sauce is so rich and the filling in the ravioli is decadent and heavy on the lobster. The veal Sorrentino is a great combination of veal, eggplant, and mozzarella. The veal is pounded thin and then lightly breaded and pan fried. This was one of the best veal dishes I’ve had in this area. This is the perfect place for a romantic dinner, but they can so accommodate groups if you call ahead. There’s a separate large room downstairs that’s great for groups. We had our work Christmas party in there last year and Sammy was amazing in helping to make it a special evening. We had about 30 people and NO ONE had a bad thing to say about anything they ordered. Enough said :-)

Over-​priced for Harrisburg, PA ! Food was very average! I eat out a lot in the Harrisburg and there are much better choices of dining establishments in the Harrisburg area. It was very hard to park and hard to get into the restaurant if you are with a handicap person. (steps into restaurant and narrow spaces for walker/​wheelchair once in the restaurant.) The waiter acted as though he was on staff at Rao’s in New York, not Sammy’s in Harrisburg! (He could have been a little nicer and not as snooty.)

I’ve lived in Harrisburg for over a year and decided to eat here with my husband. Walking in it has a very nice decorative environment. When we went to go sit down I felt very crowded. There was only about 6 other tables with people at them but the table and chairs are very close together. There was only 1 server on, which was fine and he was very nice but he was rushed and not attentive to us because he had 6 other tables. Now, when it came to prices I didn’t think much only because Italian is a little pricey. When we got our plates I was very disappointed and price and portion. I had gotten Veal Marsala, I never had my pasta on the side and in Marina. Veal pieces were small, mushrooms were not portobella or big and the Marina was bland. I’m used to Veal Marsala being over top of pasta. The food taste was just okay. I’ve defiantly have had better, bigger and cheaper food. I don think we will be returning.

Best Italian in town. Little small and outdated but the food is fantastic.
The specials are always delicious. It’s a fabulous BYOB so you can bring your favorite bottle. Beautiful view of the capital and I always try and get the window seat.

I went during Harrisburg restaurant week and it was great. We had a table by the window with a full view of the Capitol. We did one of the 3 courses for $ 30 and then a seafood pasta special that was another $ 30. The food was also served piping hot which almost never happens. We got:
Bruschetta: Perfectly ripe tomatoes. Really good.
Caesar Salad: Good, nothing out of the ordinary.
Shrimp and Scallops in Creamy Pesto: Big portion, delicious fresh tasting sauce. Seafood was perfectly cooked and not chewy or overdone at all.
Shrimp marinara: Really flavorful sauce, well cooked shrimp, large plate as well.
Chocolate cake: Really well done, yummy and not overly sweet.
The best part was our server. He was stellar. We had everything we needed with no additional asks. He knew all about the menu and special and was charming without being over the top.
BYOB is a definite plus.

The notion that this place has a 2.5 rating is a sin. This place is very good… and nothing, NOTHING beats their lunch buffet. This is my first check-​in here somehow, but I’ve been here at least 40 times. That speaks for itself.

I’ve eaten here for many years but last night was probably the last. Sammy is a great guy but the décor is old, the bill came in a holder that was taped together, and the portions were way smaller than they used to be. Add in the outrageous parking fees and harried waitstaff and you can see it is time to head down to Home 231 and enter the 21^st century of dining experiences.

Haven’t been here in a while. Was not impressed at all. Food was pre made and finished up in the microwave. I know this because part of my lasagna was boiling hot on some parts and cool on the other. My mother got eggplant parmigiana and the pasta was cold.
Our waiter was excellent and his coustomer service skills were second to none. This and the cozy décor were the only positive points I have.
$ 40 for two VERY easy routine itatlian meals was outrageous.

Absolutely 4 stars for the food. My date had the veal and I had the flounder. Both were presented nicely and the pasta that accompanied my flounder was perfect… A light garlic and butter toss. Didn’t take away from the flavor of the flounder. We had the portobello mushroom appetizer and I would go back again just for that dish. So very very good.
But alas, the service was poor at best. Our waiter (whomever he was since we had 4 throughout the evening)…was never to be found. Took forever to even get water, let alone our bottle of wine opened… which was displayed on our table so it wasn’t like he couldn’t see it! He/​they passed by us at least ¾ times before stopping to see if we were ready to order and then we had to ask about the specials. He hurried through them but didn’t mention those that were displayed outside on the board.
The food was terrific… absolutely wonderful. Worth going back just for the food but ONLY if Sammy’s staff gets some much needed customer service training!

Far and away my FAVORITE Italian spot in Harrisburg… can it be pricey? sure, but the food is delicious. everything i’ve ever had i’ve raved about. from the intimate décor, to the fact that it’s BYOB (i bring multiple bottles), to the lunch buffet which i always pass up b/​c the special board always has something that makes my mouth drool, oh to my favorite the rice pudding for dessert. totally, and unequivocally, in love with Sammy’s

I had the grilled salmon with capers. The salmon was ok. I wasn’t really feeling the carrots and the lemon sauce. The service was pretty good. Oh, the bread, the bread was terrible! It was some cheap bargain bread that appeared to have come from like the dollar store. Awful. Not home made and not delicious and dense. The silverware and plates looked and felt like they came from the dollar store as well. So cheap and flimsy. So not upscale. We ate in the basement and it was cold.

FANTASTIC FOOD!
Great Service…
But WAY over priced.
Ordered New Year’s Eve special of Seafood Pesto Pasta w/​Shrimp and (not bay) scallops. The pasta dish was fantastic… but really surprised that they skimped a bit on the pasta itself. they could’ve added ¹⁄₃ to ½ more pasta and it would not have detracted from the quality of the food. It would’ve also been a more satisfying meal. Or should i say, closer to being worth the price. Either way I didn’t consider the dish to be $ 44 amazing. Esp as the night’s special. And while I understand that was NYE, you will see that their seafood pasta normally runs $ 29.
It was crowded and there was a seemingly pretentious frou frou vibe in the crowd that nite (which i guess goes hand in hand with the prices) which I didn’t love.
So yes, fantastic food, but I probably wont be going back.

small place, overrated but still GREAT food! serviced by people who dont care about you really. but honestly great bread and pasta. BYOB!

A wide variety of classic and contemporary Italian dishes to choose from. Dishes were carefully prepared and the service was attentive. Only thing I think could be better is more homemade items like pasta and sausage. I ordered a dish that had sausage and could tell from the taste it was mass prepared (ie Johnsonville). Will go back again next time I’m in town.

I’ve eaten here twice now, once about a year and a half ago and then last night. Both were good experiences. The waitstaff were helpful and pleasant. I consider BYOB a plus as well. The menu is full of classic Italian dishes and the specials board has some tempting offerings. We had the tomato and mozz salad for an appetizer and complimentary bread was offered with a dip of their house balsamic vinaigrette. I ordered the Lobster Ravioli with a smoked salmon cream sauce. The ravioli were ok. They didn’t seem home made or up to the price tag but the sauce was amazing. I don’t want to think about how good FOR me it wasn’t! My BF had the filet over mashed potatoes with peppercorn cream sauce. Wow. The steak was really tender and the whole thing had great flavor. Impressive. Both portions were substantial as well. We were too full for dessert. The check was a little high in my opinion but not too terrible for the overall quality and experience. Well be back I think.

Sammy’s is by far the WORST resturant I have ever been too. The resturant itself is small and just has a greasy feel to it. The décor… I can’t even begin to imagine what direction they are trying to go in, but it looks as if it was just thrown together.
The food was horrid! Before we even got in the resturant, glasses of ice water where at the tables with dust collecting in them. The appetizers, which was escarole and artichoke hearts was swimming in oil. The bread they brought to the table was stale and instead of olive oil and herbs to dip it in, they gave you balsamic vinger.
My friedn and I each ordered the chicken parmaesan. First of all chicken parm is susposed to come with spaghetti or angel hair pasta… not bow-​ties! The chicken was burned crispy on the edges and looked like it sat in the fryer way too long. And the marinara sauce tasted and looked like ketchup. My other friend had the eggplant rollatini and he said it was bland and chewy.
Not to mention the soda was flat and had no flavor!
I don’t know how this resturant stays open, but if you are looking for real Italian food, this is not the place to eat. You would be better off at the Olive Garden!