Piccola Bussola Ristorante

My favorite Italian restaurant on Long Island. The food is always amazing and the staff is warm and accommodating. Their cuisine is comparable to many of the great meals I had in Italy.
From their specials (like a sole francese that blew my mind) to Italian classics like chicken parmigiana, Piccolo Bussolo delivers.

don’t know where to start. «bland and boring» (in a review by Dan M) hardly begins
to describe it. at the top of the list has to be the octopus that seemed so unhappy to be there
that it tried crawling off my plate.
Overlit, crowded atmosphere. Bet a fortune McDonald reject cooks were in the
kitchen. Be warned.

Bland boring food. Super slow service. Dreary dated décor. I ordered the gnocchi and it was undercooked and tasted like mush. Not one person at my table was happy with their food. The place is very small and super cramped and packed with elderly people, not a good place.

Went there with a party of 12. Out of many menu items and liquors. Service was slow and entrees served at different times. Waited for 20 minutes for the check. Would not return.

We waited over 2 hours to be served with little to no apologies from the staff. We made reservations weeks in advance, so they knew we had a table of 10. What a horror! We will never return or recommend this restaurant again. And by. The way, the food was mediocre.

Best family style Italian food! The service is outstanding and professional. Perfect place to come for a family gathering or a relaxing night out. My favorite dishes are the Arugula Salad, Salmon Arreganati, and Rigatoni Vodkah.

Very nice Italian restaurant with valet parking. Very nice ambiance, friendly staff, fast service, and great food. Took my family here on mothers day and we had a great time. And i learnt theres other locations. Will definitely visit them.

My girlfriend chose this restaurant for her birthday dinner based on the favorable reviews. She’s decided to move in a different direction next year.
Firstly, they serve «family style» which means if there are only two of you, you both better want the same thing as all items are doubled.
We started with the fried calamari which was tough and chewy. We chose one of the evening’s specials, a pork chop stuffed with broccoli rabe, prosciutto and mozzarella. It should have read, «stuffed with 98% broccoli rabe with a hint of prosciutto and a strand of mozzarella.» In addition, it was overcooked and dry. The potato croquettes, however, were excellent.
The one bright spot which saved them from a 1 star rating was their service. Our waiter, Galileo, was superb. He was attentive without being overbearing. Food was served promptly, wine glasses were replenished and he was apologetic regarding the quality of the meal.
To be fair, they took the calamari off our bill and the manager offered us a dessert or after dinner drink. We politely declined but it was a nice gesture.

I don’t know what happen to this place, I have gone to the other location, so much better! I ordered penne al vodka with chicken and spinach and linguine with white clam sauce! It really was tasteless ! I felt like they just broiled some pasta and threw some jar sauce on top! La Parma next store is hands down the best around! They are ten times better!

Coming back to LI for business and as friends always raved about this place, I wanted to try it and was really looking forward to it. Well the food was mediocre at best. We had the rigatoni vodka, which tasted like jar sauce — no meat, no embellishments, nothing. It was of a consistency like a cheese sauce. We also shared a chicken parm dish — bland and very ordinary. A most disappointing dinner, and I will never go back there… Even Virginia has better Italian than this.

There’s a saying for travelers that says «when you’re looking for the best local food, go where the locals do.» Piccola Bussola is that kind of restaurant– not the fanciest or the most obtrusive, but on a Friday night, it’s stuffed with locals who just want good food at decent prices.
My family and I used to come to this restaurant all the time, but we hadn’t been back in awhile up until last night. My husband and I decided to have our anniversary dinner here, and were very happy we did.
Cons:
The parking lot is not large and the valets were overwhelmed when we were coming in and again when we were leaving.
The bar tender were surly and we didn’t seem welcome to sit at the bar while we waited for our table.
When we ordered some sangria with the meal, we were told they were «all out of sangria.»
Pros:
Everything else!
Our server was pleasant but not obtrusive. He kept the water/​soda glasses full.
Food was searing hot and fresh.
Portion size was very large, and worth the price.
Quality was great and everything was grade A delicious.
We ordered the fried mozzarella for an appetizer, which was delicious as always. It is small mozzarella balls, made very crunchy on the outside. We barely put a dent into it and wrapped the rest for home. For entrees, we ordered a rigatoni a la vodka and halibut orreganata. The pasta was also a large portion, with plenty of sauce. The fish– WOW. I might have thought about making this a four star review, but the fish put it over the top. It was three large pieces of halibut in a delicious lemon/​garlic sauce with a Parmesan crust. The fish was amazing. Most of our entrees also came home with us, and I know what I’ll be eating for dinner tonight.
The dining room could probably use an update– new carpets, but I am nitpicking. Everything was very clean and the restaurant was packed. Tables were cleared immediately and new people ushered right in. The crowd at this restaurant is older, and the tables are very close together, so it may not be the most romantic place if you’re looking for an intimate conversation. We enjoyed listening to the tables around us though, especially since the conversations reminded me of my late grandfather (who I miss terribly).
This was not a «cheap» dinner, but I consider it a very good value. We could have easily fed four people on what we ordered instead of just the two of us, and the quality was superb. The halibut, alone, would have cost me about the same in raw ingredients as it did at the restaurant, and I could not prepare it that well.
It will not be another few years before we return again. We’ll be back much sooner!

One of the warmest, friendliest and best tasting family style restaurants in America. Fantastic food, big portions and reasonable prices. The deserts are the best and the house wine is always terrific. We have never been disappointed.

Food was truly delicious. We had fried calamari, pear, arugula salad with shaved parmesan, pork chops stuffed with brocolirabe and bronzino — one more bite more delicious than the next. Service was excellent despite it being very crowded on Saturday night.
The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars are that tables are very close together. Not that big on ambience, but food and value were top notch.

A sentimental family-​favorite. This place serves up some real italian, family-​style food. Absolutely love their fried mozzarella (balls). House salad is also good. This place has some of the best chicken Parm on the island. Overall, a great, old-​school italian place. Great for a family get-​together.

An Italian restaurant at the same location and same owner on LI for 20 says it all. We have been dinning there for 20 years and probably had at least 250 — 300 meals.
I have tried dishes that weren’t my favorite but I can honestly say I never had a meal that wouldn’t rate at least 4 stars.
It’s worth the try, you won’t regret it

Guys night out and 5 of us came here for dinner. Started with appetizers of fried zuchini and fried calamari. The zuchini was fresh and not too greasy. Both dishes come with some great red sauce. Next came a large chopped salad.
Main dishes included shrimp oreganota, linguini with clam sauce and a rolled chicken dish. Everything tasted great!
Would have added an extra star if the service had been a little quicker. It was a Tuesday night and not crowded. Expected more speed.

Great food, and always consistent. Wonderful Service and presentation.
I have been coming here for 14years and have never had a bad meal.
Highly recommended !!

I went to Piccola Bussola a week or so ago with friends and family, For a friends birthday party.
There was about 12 of us in total.
Piccola Bussola is a family style restaurant.
The portions are huge so order less than you would normally as 2 dishes easily feed 3 – 4.
We ordered about 5 main courses and a i think 5 appetizers.
I tried several of the appetizers, Fried Mozzarella was delicious.
I also had the chicken ptarmigan which was also very good.
i tried most of the dishes and everything was good.
Sorry dont remember half the dishes i ate.
All I can remember is being totally stuffed when they rolled me out the door.
Piccola Bussola is definitely worth a trip.
The prices are reasonable and the food is good

Always great food and service. Family style so a party of four can share 2 or 3 entrees. I make the trip from Wantagh because i am never dissapointed

Love this place!!! Best Italian food on long island. Well priced and the staff is great!
I didn’t give it 5 stars bc it’s needs a little update in the dining room but as far as food goes it gets a 5.