Giuseppe Italian Ristorante

My fiancé and I recently moved into town and had family visiting. My family wanted to go out for Italian. I found Giuseppe’s online and was impressed by the high reviews. We went on a Saturday night. The placed was packed which we took as a good sign. They only had two tables that could sit 6, so we had to wait but that was fine. After being seated, service was slow. We ordered appetizers. The calamari was rubbery and chewy. The waitress then came to tell us they ran out of bread for the bread baskets that accompany the meal. This shocked us all. We received our soups and the tortellini alfredo was a big bowl of mealy, bland base with 2 – 3 pieces of pasta. For entrée, I ordered the gnocchi. The dumplings arrived grey in color and musty in taste. I could not eat more than two or three bites. The general theme of the food was bland, chewy, and gave a pre frozen taste. All in all we will not be back as the quality of food was very low.

Just blocks from my home. Small and intimate place but still family friendly. Went with my family including two children, five and under. Enjoyed the lasagna, Italian beef sandwich (would have been better with some onions and peppers with it), fettuccini bolognese was bland but okay, but with a little salt and pepper the Lauren Alla Rosa (chicken, pasta, garlic, spinach, and white and red sauce) was super yum. Bread basket had an assortment of breads which were good but would have been better warmed. The dressing for the salad was delicious. I’ll be calling up there soon to see if I can purchase their creamy italian to bring home. Yes, it was that good. The service was friendly but wasn’t very knowledgable on some of the items on the menu although offered to get the cooks to explain. It got busy fairly quickly around 4−6pm which meant a slight delay in the waiting staff for service. Also, there was no official «kid’s menu» but they made a smaller serving of the lasagna (it was a lot actually) and charged less. Sounds like they can do that with some of the other dishes as well. Overall, I enjoyed and will be returning soon.

pasta was overcooked (and not homemade) and the sauce was really bland.
waitress was forgetful.
nice breads in the bread basket, though!

We had two entrée’s and a salad.
The Giuseppe’s special is listed as follows:
Chicken breast, and shrimp; organic baby spinach, and roasted red pepper in a creamy garlic Parmesan sauce served over multicolored ricotta cheese tortellini.
Overly heavy plate of cream sauce with bland flavor-​basic noodles, not multicolored and chicken and shrimp were flavorless.-shrimp was actually not overcooked and I was surprised, couldn’t see the spinach or red pepper in the dish at all.
Next we had Pollo alla Marsala-​another flavorless heavy crème sauce laden dish-​you could barely tell the two dish’s were different.
Highlight was the bread-​sorry to say that was it!
We’ve lived in the area now for over three years-​tried it once and was not impressed, but thought we would give it another shot-​sorry we did.

Oh gosh… What can I say about Giuseppe… First. I am going to return. But lets go back a bit and let me lay down the facts so you know why. It all started on a cold stormy night… No no. Cold, but not stormy. It was snowing! HELLO! My long distance lover and I decided that we should have a Skype date. And what better way to enjoy the moment together; and dinner, most importantly, than with some delicious Italian food.
Now. I have a particular taste… My favorite pasta dish… is… *drumroll* Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo… With mushrooms and broccoli. Now… You’re probably thinking either: EW… Or… That seems simple enough.
I cannot tell you how many times I have run into situation where either they do not have one ingredient, like mushrooms, or broccoli.
So on a whim, I called Giuseppe, (On black Friday I might add) and simply asked, if I could order said dish. With not even a minute hesitation, I was informed, «Yes.» Yes… That glorious word yes. My eyes lit up and I wanted to cry. I never thought in my wildest dreams that this would come true, unless if I cooked myself, yes?
Anywho, I put in my to-​go order and the person on the other line also asked if I wanted to add a soup or salad to that, I decided to go with soup since it was snowing and I cannot deny my love for Clam Chowder soup.
When I approached the Ristorante, I was intrigued by its location. It is slightly tucked away in a smaller building, connected to a coffee shop. There is ample parking, and is close by. When walking inside you immediately see all the bread. Right in front of you, and as a bread.devourer. I would consider this an adventure. I was greeted promptly, and was told to wait. I sat down, and before I knew it my order was handed to me and I was told the total. $ 14.95… For pasta… and soup… and bread! THEY GAVE ME BREAD!
Am I not the only one applauded by that great price?! I received SO much pasta, that when I came home and ate it, I had to stop eating this delicious dish; that I didn’t want to stop eating, by the way. And… bum bum bum… come back to it… My gosh. My room smelt like the great aromas of cheese, garlic and pasta… (I LOVE garlic… So this didn’t bother me… just made my full stomach hungry.
So. Case and point. I will be going back to Giuseppe. Why? The price… The quality of food, and that bread… I was given not just 1 type of bread, but a mixture. 4 different kinds of bread. Like a sampler. Which I consider to be great and actually someone innovative; I don’t know of many places where they give you a variety of options in terms of bread, like… bread sticks… Not saying I don’t love bread sticks! Its just nice to have something different for a change.
Bottom Line: I like this place, they are different compared to other chains out there and I can’t wait to try it again.

On a whim, we decided to stop in. I found the atmosphere was decent, with wine bottles lining the walls.
However, I feel that the food was lacking. The sauces were bland, bread was dense and dry, and the meat tasted old.
I’m sure they were trying their hardest, but for the price, I’d expect better than mom can make. This was not it.

Little and out of the way location.
Chianti DaVinci
Lauren Allah rosa good but slightly on the bland side
Penni pasta with spinach Parnassians cheese Mixture of Alfaro and marinara sauce. Different to have them mixed and worked well.
Bread used to be warn. But this time it was not also the butter was hard. Given olive oil but no vinegar. I like both
Bread pudding was wonderful. Large piece. Lots of whipped cream. Hot and sweet.
Service is always good here. Small size means you can always get the attention of someone.

A friend recently took me to Giuseppe’s for dinner, and I’m so glad he did. Why this place isn’t rated higher, I don’t know. It’s a small family-​owned Italian restaurant. There’s a lot to like. You’ll like the tasteful décor. You’ll love the Italian-​inspired American music (Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, etc.) You’ll love the homemade breads (Italian, pepperoni-​cheese, basil, and breadsticks) that are served before your meal. You’ll like the friendly service. Best of all, you’ll love the Italian food. I had a spinach lasagna that was a great portion size and tasted excellent. My friend had sausage pasta pockets that were spicy, but delicious. I really enjoyed Giuseppe’s and would easily return here if I had the chance. The prices were similar to what you’ll find elsewhere. All in all, a great little restaurant hidden away in New Brighton. Try it.

In North Minneapolis on business and had a craving for some Italian food… Found this place after searching on Unilocal!Rolled into a pretty non-​descript strip mall and found Guiseppe’s.
They have a pretty good lunch menu (most pastas and sandwiches under $ 10). I opted for a chicken parm lunch special, which came with salad and one of their signature breadbasket a for $ 12.95. I thought the salad was good (they make their own homemade dressings). The bread basket would have been great if they’d make the bread the day of/​before (I think it was from last week… Pretty much a bunch of varieties of white bread, and a poor rendition of an Italian loaf of bread). The chicken parm was great and came with a side of spaghetti. Both were covered with a sauce that if I didn’t know better was Prego.
Regardless, food was filling, service super friendly and I can now say I had lunch with Frank Sinatra (Best Of playing in background!)
Here’s the rundown:
Satisfied? Yes
Return? Yes
Advocate? Yes

Nondescript strip mall location but really worth the visit. Bread basket had pepperoni bread, garlic twists, pesto bread and plain bread for dipping in olive oil or the sauce. The spinach & chicken stuffed cannelloni was tasty. Desserts — tiramisu, Nanna’s bread pudding, cannoli and pistachio flavored spumoni ice cream — all yummy! Nancy our server was fun and gracious. We highly recommend a visit!

I went the first time last week and I have to say I just loved this little place. The atmosphere is just great and I had the special which was Like Ravioli only it looked like wrapped presents stuffed with Sausage and cheeses and spices. It was to die for. and so good with the Cabernet. I plan on going back again to try their Pizza. the service was superb and the bread basket was great. I have never been to a place that there was such a variety of different breads for the basket, which was awesome. i recommend anyone to go there and give it a try.

My parents have been taking me here since I was young. I’ve never had a bad experience. Last time I was there I got a tortellini with Alfredo/​pesto and it was to die for!

I just had their Veggie Pizza! It was the best Veggie ever! The crust was hand tossed and fresh. The tomato sauce was perfect and the veggies were fire roasted and wonderful and topped with the perfect amount of cheese. I have always lived near a Pizza Luce and thought when I moved to New Brighton that I was in pizza he!!. I have now found the best pizza ever. Better than P L.

Took my husband there for a meal and he ordered the manicotti. When the dish came to the table there were two small pieces and we told the server it was a small portion which she agreed, she said there wasn’t a manager there so there wasn’t anything she could do. Thd dish was $ 12.95 l was very unhappy about the portion size so I called to speak to a manager two days later, I got the owner on the phone and explained what happened. She said to me «do you want your money back.» I said YES I want my money back, well she than told me «I can’t give you your money back, you ate the meal,»
and this is how the owner handles and unhappy customer! They should be ashamed of them selves.
Extremely unhappy with the way this was handled

A nice little place to get dinner. Friendly, competent service and good food. If you’re on a low-​carb diet, Italian food as a whole isn’t for you.
If you aren’t counting carbs, however, this is worth the time. The bread pudding makes me want to cry, it’s so good.
Definitely making a return visit.

Had dinner with two friends today. The special of the day was Spinach Lasagna for $ 12.95 accompanied by either soup or salad. The salad was little disappointing, rather run of the mill iceberg/​carrot/​Roma tomato mix. My companions opted for the mushroom soup, which had the consistency of clam chowder, very thick and heavy on the flour.
The bread basket was nice, but if the bread had been warmed a bit, it would of been better. We asked for more bread and were informed that the restaurant had run out of bread…
The lasagna was well portioned and quite tasty. One of the better renditions I’ve had in the Twin Cities. Copious amounts of ricotta cheese abound in this dish. Could of used more spinach, and kudos the chef for using fresh spinach. Not a bad neighborhood choice. Would consider returning there if in the vicinity.

One of our favorite spots. The world needs more places like this. The owner is in the kitchen making the food. It always tastes good the prices are right.
Try it — you’ll like it it.

In the north burbs you don’t find many places worth a return visit, but this hidden gem proves you can’t judge a book by the cover. Inside is an Italian delight. A real neighborhood restaurant in a strip mall.

It’s kind of an off the path strip mall, so they did what they could with the simple décor. It’s divided on 2 sides. I got the baked mostacholli with a meatball. Not the most memorable but pretty good. Served in an au gratin dish on top of a plate. Dump it out because it gets wobbly and cools it down. The sauce is thinner and sweeter than most others, but not bad at all. I love the homemade salad dressings. I was scraping the bowl to get the last of a rare creamy Italian. The bread bowl is everything They say it is. Including a wedge of pepperoni bread. Speaking of bread, don’t skip mama’s bread pudding when available, it’s awesome. If you live in the surrounding area, do give it a try once in awhile.

Under-​appreciated and under-​utilized Italian restaurant close to (my) home. I keep forgetting that this place is here. It doesn’t help that their kitchen closes at 8:54pm most nights and with our hectic lifestyle, we are usually looking for a place to eat right near their closing time.
When we do get there, we find attentive service, a FABULOUS bread basket and comfortable Italian food made with fresh ingredients.
Last night I had the Ziti and the gals I was with both had seafood linguine. We were all very pleased with our meals (The 2007 Rancho Zabaco zin didn’t hurt).
We keep hearing from friends and neighbors that the pizza is fabulous, but still have not tried it. Next review, I guess …