Fausto’s Bistro

What in the world has happened to Fausto’s? Over the years, it has been a consistently decent place where you could count on decent Italian food. Tonight earned them a spot on my permanent restaurant time out list. First, the breadsticks – Costco breadsticks – two cut in half, sprinkled with butter and a little Italian cheese. The food – I ordered the chicken marsala. I took one bite and almost spit it out. The sauce was lighter than it should be, way too much wine, and it left a metallic taste in my mouth. My husband saw the look on my face (I come from a long line of excellent Sicilian cooks, and this was the worst food I have ever tasted from an Italian restaurant). I really wanted to send it back because it was inedible, but instead, my husband took mine and ate it but was not enjoying it. The side of angel hair with red gravy – the sauce was grossly undercooked. In fact, it tasted as though they opened a CAN (not even a jar) of cheap spaghetti sauce and dumped it over the top of the pasta. Husband ordered the fried soft shell crab, served over crawfish pasta in a cream sauce with tomatoes and green onions, which was listed as one of the daily specials. This had no flavor, whatsoever. I asked for lemon, and I squeezed about 6 slices of lemon over the pasta and crab, and then poured a lot of Italian cheese on top – still no flavor. Almost $ 60 later, I am not happy. At all. Please think twice before you dine at this place. Occasionally, restaurants have a bad night. That’s fair. A little off is one thing – inedible, undercooked, leaving a bad taste in your mouth is unacceptable. Someone needs to do a quality check on the food quickly. Fausto’s has many regular diners. Maybe they are coasting on past reputation. My advice – fix it or people will stop coming, and they will tell their friends. There are way too many good placed to eat in the city to have to dine on food like this. Ew, ew, ew!

I barely even know where to begin with Fausto’s. There was so much going on and everything was so delicious, it’s hard to put it into words.
We were in a big group, so we ordered a few appetizers for the table. We decided on the fried eggplant and the calamari. The eggplant was lightly fried and cut into «sticks». There was marinara sauce for dipping and it was beyond good. The calamari was out of this world. I’m pretty picky when it comes to calamari, because some places overcook it or serve you pieces that are way too chewy. This calamari was just perfect with a nice flaky crust that just melted in my mouth.
For my entrée I got the Fettuccine Carciofo. This was a pile of delicious fettuccine mixed with olives, artichoke hearts, and large shrimp in a tasty olive oil based sauce. The sauce was garlicky and perfect and was dripping off of every bite. The shrimp were fat and juicy and cooked perfectly and the serving was so large that I took home probably half of it. This dish was so full of flavor that it made the entire meal an experience.
I was wishing that I had room for desert, but it wasn’t meant to be on this particular day. Our waitress was Mindy and she was a total pro in getting everyone’s orders in a timely manner. She was really sweet and patient with our large group and she made sure that our water and teas stayed full and that everyone was happy. She was a gem and made our experience perfect.
I will absolutely be returning to Fausto’s for delicious food and an all star experience.

Dinner with husband and son. Having just come from a mid-​day party, we all just ordered an entrée each. No appetizers, no drinks. The elderly, male waiter didn’t like that at all. We all felt unwelcome. Food was not bad. Place too small could hardly move. Had a cannoli and an espresso to assuage the waiter’s sensibilities.
Won’t go back. New Orleans has other more charming, less snobby, Italian restaurants. I’ll take my business elsewhere.

Clam pasta was amazing! Its our Metairie italian place go to for weekends!!! Service is always great and feels like being at home with friends. Food is good, not great but does the job of not cooking at home lol

This was such a delicious lunch! My fiancé and I went on a Monday for lunch, and were warmly greeted and seated promptly. We ordered the Aranchini appetizer– which was amazing! The red sauce was so delicious and the Aranchini itself was such a treat. We also each got a lunch plate– I got chicken limon and he got chicken piccata. They were both delicious! Even the bleu cheese salad dressing was a standout. I can’t wait to go back!

Came in on a day off to take advantage of the weekday lunch specials. Started off with the arancini appetizer. The rice ball is big enough to share and was quite good. The red sauce complimented it perfectly. For entrees, my fiancé and I shared the chicken Limone with angel hair and the Paneed chicken with penne. Each came with salad and bread. We each got blue cheese dressing, which we thought was good. The other choices were Italian or ranch. The bread was also nicely toasted and tasted of butter and garlic. The limone had our preferred sauce; it was thick and lemony and delicious. The Paneed was our preferred chicken; nice and crisp, yet thin and delicate. We decided next time, we would get the Limone, but ask for the chicken to be Paneed.
Only negatives from the meal is the place is small and though it wasn’t full, you would be sitting really close to other people if it was. You can hear everyone else’s conversations.

Went here for dinner last night. I never think to go here, but it is one of the rares open on Mondays. We shared the eggplant sticks which were lightly fried and served with a robust marinara. I had the lemon caper chicken, served panned with a butter lemon sauce and capers.
Everything was delicious with generous portions including the warm Parmesan breadsticks!
My husband had the Veal Picatta which was very tender. He opted to have it panned instead of sautéed. He ate every last bite!
Cozy atmosphere and good service.
Maybe our new Monday spot!

I was craving some good Italian food being that I haven’t had it in forever. I decided on this place based on the reviews. Got the manicotti to go. It tasted okay but the thing that was most disappointing was the portion size. I thought Italian food was suppose to be filling but this just left me feeling like I ate a snack.

Very nice local restaurant. Went for lunch. The food was very good, nice lunch menu selection, reasonable portions, good prices. Will go back again.

Got the spaghetti/​meatball, $ 16. It was ok. Really nothing special about the food. The breadsticks were terrible. It was the frozen pillsbury doughboy stuff. And the waiter kept on sweating, then wipe his forehead with his hands, and handle our food. Someone should give him a towel.
It’s a nice cozy place to hang out if you can afford it.

Real Italian. The red sauce is so delicious. I had a great salads and a side of pasta and split some lasagna with my wife. Together with a glass of wine it totally satisfied me. Service is right on too.

If you want EXCELLENT Italian, go here! Definitely THE BEST marinara sauce/​red gravy that I’ve ever had. It’s chunky with lots of garlic and Italian goodness. Homemade for sure. Everything I’ve had here has been ‘off the chart’ good! Portions are large.
Get the arancini appetizer for sure; but it can be a meal in itself, so save room for your entrée! The lasagna is full of ricotta cheese, which I love.
The service is always great.
PROS: marinara sauce, arancini, meatballs, lasagna, breadsticks, lots of fresh, homemade items
CONS: very tiny place, parking might be an issue during peak times, not open for lunch on weekends

Typical Italian neighborhood restaurant. Well executed dishes, decent red sauce, killer meatball! The inside is a bit claustrophobic… especially when you add people and this place is reliably full.

Five stars spaghetti and meatballs yea it’s that insanely good! I would never order that just cause spaghetti and meatballs doesn’t sound like something I’d waste money for in a restaurant but man oh man is it worth it here and now because of it I try it other places and it’s never even close! You can put that red sauce on a mound of dirt and I’ll eat it. I finally tried the Alfredo and it was good but once I added the red sauce to it it turned into greatness. Love this place for real. All of it is made from scratch and it’s just awesome. Do yourself a favor and get it but then I’m sorry cause you won’t find anything better and none of the other places will make do. I have seriously drove 2 hours to get it.

Very tasty, authentic Italian food for a reasonable price. Most entrees were between 15 to 20 dollars.
We got the lasagna and manicotti and both were great. The stuffed mushrooms as an appetizer were underwhelming but that was the only bad part. Authentic Italian feel and food and very good service! I’ll be going back

You get a little visit to Italy when you eat at Fausto’s. The seating is tight and that is my only negative comment. I picked the Veal Picatta and my waiter picked the wine. Delicious! The veal was so tender it cut with the side of my fork and the lemon butter sauce was done perfectly. Everyone in my party was delighted. Next time I get to Metairie I’ll make another visit.

My favorite Italian restaurant in Metairie. Food is always delicious and service is good as well and don’t forget to ask for extra bread sticks. Yummooo!

This place is very cosy and the staff is very friendly. The prices are really good and the food is amazing. I ordered the eggplant appetizer, shrimp ravioli and my guest ordered the manicotti. All of these items were amazing along with the tiramisu. I will be returning to this place very soon.

Our favorite Italian restaurant. Everything on the menu is great but my favorite is the chicken Louisiana with the side of fettuccine Alfredo instead of the red sauce because the dish has a cream sauce base. The Sicilian antipasto salad is large enough for the table to split. The service is top notch and
Very friendly. You won’t go wrong giving this restaurant a try you will go back many times I promise.

Such a great local Italian establishment.
I’ve always admired the New Orleans Italian culture and this is certainly a mom and pop restaurant with recipes stemming from decades of family tradition.
I was hesitant about the environment based on other Unilocal reviews, but I found the small intimate candlelit atmosphere romantic and appealing. The service was great with the owner visiting each table and even offering deserts on the house.
Overall, a great experience.
I highly recommend the crème brûlée. Decadent.