Peppino’s Italian Family Restaurant

I will not waste your time on the quality of the food. We can vouch for the Pasta with white clam sauce and alla pesto. It was actually very tasty, my rant is based on the business side of Peppino’s.
We order lunch from many businesses in the area for our small office nearly everyday. And to those we enjoy, we frequent quite often (Wow Bento, Yasai, Johnny Rockets, Diho Siam, Tula Market, Denny’s, Chef Yen’s, etc). Most of these businesses understand the lunch crowd has options; and are always looking for a fair deal.
Yesterday we ordered around noon as we did the week before. They have a lunch menu online, but they do not offer it unless the customer requests it. Yes the portions are large, but we were not looking for left overs for tomorrow. Our 2GoLunch set us back $ 66 for (4) lunches, no salads or drinks.
Today I spoke to the manager and he stated that the customer must state «From the Lunch Menu» to get the deal. I asked if he understood my concern and he replied he did, «It’s just the way we do business».
So just a reminder if you plan on ordering online, be sure to specify if you are looking for the lunch special.

Gotta be honest. For being in a strip mall off a street, this place is WAY over priced. I mean we’re talking over $ 75 for dinner 2 with drinks. For being a small family business you have to relate to the neighborhood and the prices are just ridiculous. Everything was damn near $ 20 a plate. And A La Carte as well. The service is great but the prices are close to a high end restaurant in downtown LA. Let me remind you; you are in suburban town in a strip mall. In closing if you want to pay a ton of money for some «good» food then by all means go. But you can spend the same amount of money on some amazing food other than a strip mall Italian restaurant.

A customer of mine had recommended me this restaurant as being a great Italian place that was family owned. Anything family owned, I’m there! Why you ask? Generally anything family owned means they put a lot more love and time aka family recipes passes down by generations.
To start things off, the restaurant was crazy crowded which always is a good sign when entering a restaurant! Luckily, my family and I only waited a few minutes while before getting seated.
Environment:
A wee bit cramped but definitely get that old school Italian vibe. Green plaid table tops gives it a very homey comfort vibe.
Right as we sat down they gave us a basket of free bread! Free bread, huge plus. Free bread, THAT ISN’T STALE… Well that’s just hands down a hitting the lottery my family. Bread basket (1^st basket) consisted of ciabatta bread and a focciacia looking bread that had marinara baked I top of it (imagine a pizza with no cheese). Really nice warm bread that came with all the essentials (olive oil, balsamic, pepper, salt, chili flakes, parm, AND whipped BUTTAH *shout out to the Paula Deen fans out there) .
So being that we were starving we scarfed down all the bread while we waited for our main entrees. In amidst of waiting, the owner comes out and walks by our table asking how everything was. Definitely makes you feel special if you’re shaking hands with the owner and that he’s actually asking how everything is going so far!
Really nice man!
Now back to us waiting. As we waited for our orders, we couldn’t help but pretty much gawk at all the plates being brought out to our neighboring tables. We eyed down a nice big healthy portion of a salad. Instantly, we agreed as a table to get it! It was a Caesar salad w/​added onions, tomatoes, and olives. Really yummy salad. The romaine was nice and crisp. Aesthetically it wasn’t as pleasing as our neighboring tables salad, but still tasted great. I’m pretty sure that their Caesar dressing is homemade and that’s what I loved about it. Nice and garlicky, creamy, but yet light on the palette!
Right as we finished our salad, we received our main entrees: Fried Peppers & Sausage w/​spaghetti (meat sauce), Eggplant Rollatini (?) w/​spaghetti (marinara), Eggplant Parm w/​spaghetti (marinara), and my dish which was the fresh clams and linguini (white sauce). Oh and we got our second basket of bread, in which had French bread that replaced the ciabatta!
Out of all the dishes, I’d have to say the Eggplant Rollatini was the most unique. What is it you ask? Basically it’s just eggplant that’s rolled with ricotta cheese, salami, & prosciutto (I think), covered with a generous portion of marinara and mozzarella cheese, and then baked to perfection.
Fresh clams with linguini had a great garlicky white wine sauce. A bit too greasy, but what the heck, it’s Italian food! Clams were a good portion and a huge portion of pasta. ALL THE PLATES WERE HUGE PORTIONS, so a bang for your buck!
Overall price for the food was great for what you get! I don’t know where some of the Unilocalers that complained about the prices even usually go out to eat at, because prices were very fair!
Service was great. Our waitress constantly checked on us and everyone was very hospitable!
Peppino’s definitely got a new customer tonight! Even though it’s 45 mins away from where I live, I’ll definitely be driving out for the food!
Oh and the ONE negative thing I have to say about the food is, don’t get dessert because we got a slice of cheesecake ($ 6.95), and for that price it was a rip. SMALLEST sliver (I should say because I wouldn’t consider it a slice at all) I’ve ever seen. Skip on the dessert!
Definitely try the food out though! HUGE menu selection on food and drinks!

This has been a wonderful spot for my family and I for as long as I can remember. This particular location is the original, I believe, and it’s lovely to see photos of the entire family and all the generations on the walls. It really stands out to see the owners there every night. It is so heartwarming to receive the great hospitality of family and owners like «Grandpa,» who will go around and actually shake your hand. They have a wide selection of Italian food and pizza and they bring hot fresh bread straight from the oven, what more can you ask for? My all time favorite dish is the Rigatoni Alla Pesto and their pizzas are amazing. I recommend the meatball mushroom combination. Service is great. It feels like home, and I always leave satisfied not only in my stomach but in my heart as well.

Always get the Lina’s rolls.
Doesn’t matter what else you do, just make sure you get an order of Lina’s rolls and you’ll be fine.
Once you get that taken care of then here are some other ideas:
Carbonara — Yes its a nightmare for your waistline… this will single-​handedly turn cheat day into cheat-​week, but that being said if I am gonna throw myself in front of the fat bus then this is it.
Baked shells casserole w/​extra meat sauce… comfort food like mom used to make… if my mom cooked… or was italian.

Peppino’s might be closer to a four star, but nothing really had a wow factor. We did enjoy everything, but I can’t say there was a real standout.
Garlic bread: $ 3.95. Basic, but all around old school Italian restaurant garlic bread. This was free with a Unilocal check-​in.
Bread basket: This was nice. A small variety of breads, all fine, and better dipped into our spicy marinara that came with the calamari.
Calamari: $ 14.95. Light and crispy, the calamari was enjoyed by all of us. No complaints at all. The marinara was nice and spicy, and went well with it. It had a nice texture, not being rubbery or soft. I’d get this again.
Eggplant rollantini: $ 14.95. As a type II diabetic, this was a nice option. Eggplant with cheeses, prosciutto, salami, and a side of spaghetti. My wife had the spaghetti. I liked this a lot, and would order it again. It came with three fried eggplant rolls. Plenty of food. It sort of had the texture and flavor profile of a pastaless lasagne.
Cheese ravioli with marinara: My daughter ordered this, and said it was just okay. The portion wasn’t large, and for $ 16 was no value at all. I tried it, and agreed it wasn’t horrible, but was a basic, kind of boring ravioli.
Pastrami sandwich: $ 10.70. My son ordered this, and had no trouble finishing it. He said it was enough though. His only suggestion was that it would have been better with more pastrami, as it was a little stingy there. It came with pickles and peppers on the side.
Steak sandwich: $ 11. This was pretty good, with plenty of shaved beef, cheese, tomato, lettuce, pickles, and tomatoes. The portion was enough, but not too much.
Soda or Iced tea: $ 2.75
My impression overall is that Peppino’s is a basic Italian family restaurant. I’ve been there many times, but it’s never on the short list of places I think about. I like that it has a full bar, but I don’t care much for the prices. This goes for everything there. Peppino’s is simply overpriced for what you get for most items on the menu.

Great food. Quick good service
Food is very fresh and tastes amazing
Every time we come here, the service is excellent

Our go to place for traditional Italian food. Been going there since we moved to Irvine 30 years ago and have yet to find a better place in Orange County.
My favorite dish is probably the shrimp parmigiana but I also enjoy the ravioli and chicken primavera a lot. The prices might seem a little high but the portions are huge.
If you’re a snob and looking for gourmet Italian this is not the place for you. If you want old school, friendly staff and funky atmosphere then try it.

Traditional Italian food at reasonable price.
My go to spot in hurry, with excellent antipasto salad, asparagus and artichoke salad; grilled halibut salad; eggplant parmigiana; our favorite Chicken Marsala. House wines have always been good.

Was nearby at a dealership shopping for cars when we had a craving for an Italian dinner. Did a quick search on Unilocal and came across Peppino’s. The wait was about 30 minutes for a Sunday evening which was average. I had the meat sauce with rigatoni and it was so delicious! The tomato based sauce was not too sour and not too sweet, just perfect. Also liked how it was not overly full of meat in the sauce, just how I like it! Rigatoni was perfectly al dente as well. I will definitely be back for more when I’m in the area, delicious!!!
Note: We also saw the owner walking around and sitting during our meal, it was nice to see how much he cares for his restaurant :)

Tonight was a take out night. I’ve been coming here for a few years now, and I’ve had so many different things on their menu. Tonight, I was lazy and just having been Thanksgiving, I couldn’t take another plate of leftovers. I called it in and by the time I got there, it was all ready to go. I ordered the veal parmigiana with a side of sausage. It comes with spaghetti and meat sauce. My wife always keeps it simple and gets the Peppino’s bread. The veal is perfectly cooked as always. It has tons of flavor, their tomato sauce is always very flavorful. The portion size of the veal is actually pretty big. The sausage is very good too, a bit spicy with lots of flavor. I had to (as always) try my wife’s Peppino’s bread. It’s super yummy too. Basically it’s a cheese pizza rolled up and baked. It’s soooo good too. The spaghetti is good as well. I got mine with the meat sauce. Dinner comes with a couple pieces of bread. It’s just really good Italian food at a decent price. Always a go to when I’m either craving some Italian or just feeling lazy and wanting to call and pick up! Great place to eat at as well, really good atmosphere. Staff are all super nice and very helpful.

My Italian food staple which all restaurants mat live by. They set the bar extremely high.
Fabulous service. You never leave the table empty handed as you get what you bargain for with large portions. I have dinner already made for tomorrow night.
The mushroom sauce is sweet just like me. They have the best food.

Why have I not been here before?! Went in this week due to seeing a discount in the Lake Forest Shop and Dine Week brochure and immediately thought «This is my kind of place!»
We went in for an early dinner (just after 5 pm) and it was pretty quiet — a few tables in use and a few more in the bar. A gentleman brought a basket of bread within 3 minutes which was great — a couple of pieces of pizza bread, a couple of pieces of Italian bread and some rolls with butter. Very nice and turned out to be very appreciated as it took a little longer than I expected to have the waiter come back to take our order (10 minutes+), but it was not a big deal and that was the only even slight complaint I might have. Our meals were brought quickly and beautifully presented.
Mom went with the alfredo and it was delicious and an abundant portion — had to take some home. Hubby had the lasagna and elected to have marinara sauce as opposed to meat sauce. For him, the portion was not as plentiful as he would have liked… probably should have eaten more of that bread or added the green salad that comes as an entrée option for about 3 bucks more.
I selected the minestrone and a small green salad and both were spot on! The minestrone is like stew (without the meat or a thick sauce). By that I mean it has large chunks of vegetables and a savory broth that is extraordinary. It was a generous bowl. The green salad was very fresh and had delicious vegetables added to it. The balsamic was typical. Since I was minding my calories and carbs so well I opted to go for a glass of the house Chianti which perfected the meal.
The service, after the delay of the order-​taking, was flawless. Peppino’s is being added to my list of regular places!

YUM YUM YUM
My family has been coming here for twenty years. It’s truly the best, but you have to know what to order:
Chicken cacciatore is AMAZING. warning: pricey but HUGE. Order with RED SAUCE (not brown!) Splitting size.
$ 8 pizza special on Wednesdays
Salad: order with cheese and diced tomatoes, your salad will be much bigger! Their house oil and vinegar is my fav.
Soup: minestrone– always great! Lots of veggies and the flavor of the broth is great. If you are sick order this! It makes you feel better.
Soup and salad lunch specials
Meatballs: I’m a sausage person when it comes to Italian food, but I like their meatballs better than their sausage.
Noodles: I like their angel hair pasta.

Yay for Peppino’s! Although Peppino’s may be a bit of a hike (South County, what’s up!), it’s totally worth the drive just for their food, ambiance, friendly service, and TV’s. Like most Italian restaurants, Peppino’s is family run. I have it in my head that one of their earliest ancestors was Michael Cera, AKA Scott Pilgrim, AKA Paulie Bleeker, AKA George-​Michael Bluth, AKA Michael Cera. Don’t believe me? Look up at the family portrait by the door next time and tell me it isn’t so.
They always like to start you off with a nice complimentary basket of warm bread with butter. Oil and vinegar are on the table for dipping. I like to order a cup of soup since I’m always feeling gluttonous, but when I’m not, I’m perfectly OK with just a bowl of pasta. My favorite is the primavera pasta dish with a red cream sauce. It doesn’t matter what type of pasta, but I normally like to order the rigatoni or linguine. If not that dish, then something super veggie heavy, like the rigatoni alla gina or the veggie lasagna. Their meatballs are great so if you can, order a side of those (unless you’re vegetarian, then I recommend you don’t).
Drinks…I’ve had a martini here once. Blegh. I’ll never understand the appeal; however, they are quite strong! If that’s your sort of thing, order one.
If you’re here to watch a game and it’s closing time in the restaurant, box your meal up and take five steps next door to Joe’s Place, the adjoining bar. Grab a seat, a drink, and finish up the game.