La Piccolina

Being Italian, I typically will not eat Italian food out. When I left this place last evening I vowed never again to do. We should of known by the salad which was drenched in dressing. I ordered Gnocchi, if they are homemade… I’ll gladly teach you how to make. These tasted as if a lump of flower and potato. Size does matter they were huge something you would never see in a real Italian restaurant. Gnocchi should melt in your mouth! These were heavy and thick made by someone with out any love for good food. My son had the Seafood risotto, it was a far cry from risotto and was more like a rice pilaf. The bread, extremely disappointing, I can not even describe as it is a far cry from something you would want again. I will say my wife the smartest of us all with just having the Calamari appetizer, which was not bad.
For three people at $ 80.00 I do believe you need to think about new cooks. I so wanted to send it back and not eat however my family asked me to let it go.
I was hoping for a nice meal with my son after his hockey game and traveling over 100 miles to enjoy. The only thing we remembered was how horrible the meal was.
Good Italian food should be cooked with love, I think your cooks hate their jobs

Small cozy place with very friendly staff, me and my husband ordered the two types of gnocchi, my was delicious, I loved the sauce, his was delicious as well! We are definitely coming back next time we are in this area!

We went here recently for dinner. Family owned and run. They were very friendly with very good service. The pasta was freshly made. We had the burrata appetizer was very good. Portions were european sized not american sized. It is actually welcoming to not always have twice as much as a normal person can eat lopped onto their plate. If in the area again I would go back.

Stumbled on a «gem» and will return. The service and caring cannot be better, willing to accommodate and make adjustments to meet requests… just like it should be, but often isn’t. Homemade pasta offerings are a treat, portion size is more than ample, and value is above and beyond. Old world atmosphere, the attentiveness is a treat that adds to the experience. Veal, shrimp, and «lamb» /​past ragu (excellent) are winners. The intimacy and charm created by the staff and owner drives me to return soon.

Boston native, visiting my girlfriend and decided to do a random date among the restaurant s in the area. Luck of the draw, La Piccolina was the winner. We are glad it was!
First time coming here so asked the waitress couple of questions in regards to style of food/​portion and was quite informed on the size and was shareable. We decided to get an app and the one our waitress recommended was the Avocado warm Shrimp mixture. I would recommend that to anyone who can’t decide. Our entrée (Alfredo Penne with prosciutto, chicken park) were flavorful and delicious. The Apple tart with vanilla gelato was nice and warm.
After I try the other restaurants on bank st, I will surely come back!

Just went back with two friends a everyone’s meal was subpar. Thing’s change, too bad.

Okay, I’ve been back a couple of times because I want to like this place. In the past I found that the food was inconsistent, sometimes I loved it, especially the lunch menu, but dinner was often disappointing. Unfortunately my most recent visit will be my last. Unforgivably bad. Time to hire a new cook and redo the menu. The wait staff is nice enough, but service can’t make up for bad food. The pasta was terrible, barely edible. Everyone in our party felt the same way… just badly made. Sad.

Myself and some other wine reps were invited here for dinner after an event in New Milford. 9:30pm and I hadn’t had dinner, and I’m being offered fresh, homemade Italian food? No need to twist my arm!
The staff were so kind to accommodate us at such a late hour, as they were already closed and we were the only party in the restaurant. Despite this the service was still fantastic.
Highlights of the meal for me were the Calamari a la Griglia: fresh grilled squid in a lemon basil pesto sauce, no breading, and perfectly tender — and the Burrata: bufala mozzarella served w/​grilled zucchini, yellow squash, tomato & homemade flatbread. My lasagna was ok, but a bit small and smothered in cheese. Like, so much cheese I couldn’t see the pasta! Wished there was a little more filling — almost felt like all I was eating was cheese.
Dessert was great — I tried a few bites of the tiramisu and crepes, which were both delicious. My espresso was perfect. But no cannolis? IN AN ITALIAN RESTAURANT? I mean, I know the filling takes a lot of work, and they have to be made fresh every day, but c’mon… cannolis are an absolute staple at an Italian Restaurant.
Overall, this place was great and I will definitely make it a point to stop in the next time I’m looking for a great dinner in New Milford. Truly an underrated gem in this town!

One of our favorite restaurants. Consistently.
Consistency is key because, while we frequent many good restaurants, almost every one fails to keep up, and eventually we walk away after some unforeseen bad experience, disappointed. BUT NOT THIS PLACE! WE LOVE THIS RESTAURANT! At La Piccolina you can be guaranteed an amazing meal every single time. Tried and true. Always delicious, and the owner is first class.

I wish that La Piccolina made up for its lack of ambiance and décor with its cuisine, but sadly, it does not.
Friendly service, but the food is mediocre. We ordered a beet salad with Gorgonzola cheese and walnuts – what arrived were large chunks of cold beets with a tiny bit of mixed greens, and a skittish spattering of walnut and cheese crumbles with too much vinaigrette. Salad would have been much better with warmed beets than cold.
Homemade gnocchi was okay. The sauce was good, but the gnocchi themselves were enormous and mealy.
Dessert was nicely presented: profiteroles with warm chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream. But the chocolate sauce was ice cold. When we let the waiter know, he apologized and said that maybe it was because «it was the last one of the night.» What??? So that means that the last one of the night doesn’t matter as much as the first, second, or third one of the night? Don’t make me get all Gordon Ramsay up on you!
There were only two other tables there on a Saturday night. For the same price, we could have dined at a much nicer place. I don’t think we will be going back, which is a shame because there aren’t that many restaurants in the area.

I really liked this place. In fact, it is the first Italian restaurant I have been to in CT that I like. The portions were just the right size, and everything was homemade. Extremely friendly staff; the owner even came around to see how we liked the food a few times.
The décor could be a little bit nicer, and I wish they gave a little more bread to the table, but otherwise I would definitely recommend this place.

This place is excellent, only critique I have is the bread they give you. There is no flavor! You are an incredible restaurant but the first thing people eat doesn’t showcase your amazing talent. Throw a little salt into the dough and it will make a world of difference!

I used to really love this place and frequented here often until last time I was there a few months back and haven’t been back since. The sangria, which is usually really good, was literally all juice/​fruit. I couldn’t even detect the taste of wine. We got the mussels fra diavolo, which we’ve gotten before, but this time they were just terrible. They were VERY fishy, to the point of being almost inedible. To make matters worse, I found an extremely long black hair (not mine) which was already in my mouth when I discovered it. This made me lose my appetite almost completely. For dinner I ordered mushroom ravioli from the specials menu. It was bland and flavorless. Everything about the whole dish tasted frozen and store-​bought.
I’m really disappointed this place has gone down hill because it used to be one of my favorite Italian places to eat in the area.

We were one of the first in for lunch on a Saturday. The service was a bit slow to start but it picked up and they we very nice and accommodating. The food was excellent! My daughter had spaghetti with sauce, my son had lasagna, I had the homemade gnocchi, and my husband had the veal Marsala. All of it excellent!

Absolutely fantastic, can’t say enough good things about this restaurant. My husband got the bruschetta and lobster ravioli with shrimp sauce and I got the house salad with wonderful balsamic vinaigrette and the tagliatelle special with chicken meatballs. We both agreed it was the best Italian we’ve had in the states. What sets this place apart is that they make their own pasta which really makes a difference in the dishes. An all around great experience. Make sure you make a reservation, it’s very popular especially on weekends.

Good food, lacks ambience, do yourself a favor and walk around the corner if you want excellent food with atmosphere, in my humble opinion.

Be aware, no longer accepts
gift certificate even though there is a
sticker in the front door and no expiration date. Very peculiar. The manager suggested we attempt to get a refund from the company. When we informed her it was a gift she suggested we contact that person and they attempt to get a refund. This could have been handled better in my opinion and instead took away from our experience. It was a distraction.
At one point the manager asked if I could pull my chair in. She came back to tell me it wasn’t my fault but that it was her fault because she was fat. It was extremely awkward and took away from our dining experience.
The mussel appetizer was disappointing. The mussels were very small and chewy. The white wine sauce didn’t have much flavor.
The spinach ravioli was good. I enjoyed the butter sage sauce. The potion size was good.
We were offered grated cheese with dinner. It was a container of pre grated cheese. Disappointing because that’s usually dry and tasteless so we skipped it.
For dessert I was hoping for a cannoli but unfortunately this Italian restaurant doesn’t have them.
I hope our experience was unique. The other reviews seem positive. I did enjoy the pasta. I probably won’t be going back. The manager took away from our dining experience and made it very awkward. There are other places I enjoy much more.

What a wonderful surprise! After reading the Unilocal reviews I was optimistic but really nothing prepared me for what I experienced last night!
A quiet, snow blanketed Sunday found us walking in to this unassuming treasure around 5:00. We were greeted very warmly by well-​groomed, personable employees and made to feel very comfortable with any seat we chose.
The dining room was very warm feeling with classic, rustic Italian characteristics and very well maintained.
Service was impeccably deliver by Andres who was not only helpful and gracious with our menu choices and wine request but also very knowledgeable and engaging regarding the details and history of the restaurant.
Being in the restaurant business myself, I always try to thank the chef personally and a quick trip to the kitchen revealed exactly what I had suspected: an absolutely spotlessly clean kitchen and a enthusiastically welcoming chef.
Back out at our table, chef/​owner Carlos shared a few stories and even divulged the identity of a few of his regular, celebrity customers… sometimes fresh from the red carpet they drive straight to the authentic cuisine, hospitality and un-​hurried lifestyle of Northern Italy located right here in New Milford. Carlos also revealed that he is a fellow New Yorker with a thorough history in both classic and creative kitchens including work with Sardis on 44^th
and Malatesta
on Washington St. (You can taste the knowledge and experience in every bite!)
Returning home, I read and article here
about Carlos and why he and Sandra, his wife and business partner, named the restaurant La Piccolina. You can actually taste his passion for his cooking in each dish Carlos sends out to you, delivered by his gracious staff who have nothing but good things to say about the chef, the restaurant and even the surrounding restaurants in this Rockwellesque village, passing my ultimate test of professionalism and hospitality.
Two thumbs up for this exceptional eatery! Make reservations Wed., Thurs., Fri., or you will find yourself being directed to «another fine eatery» who can’t hold a candle or if you are like me, eat when no one else is for the absolute best service and a table visit from the chef! (Sundays and Tuesdays or any day around 5:00)
Be sure to ask for Andres and tip him well for his superior service. (You will want to come back and he is that type of restaurant professional who will remember your preferences & hold your favorite table for you, even call you if you have to wait somewhere else for your table to open up!)
Do yourself a favor and make reservations for important dates before you even leave the restaurant… I have a feeling they are going to book up fast!
More reviews from LeeAnne Homsey:

This is my first official review (from a teenager’s standpoint), and I thought that La Piccolina would be a great place to start.
My family and I went to this restaurant on our way back home to New York, after spending a few days in Massachusetts. We sat outside, though it was terribly hot, even as the sun went down.
We started with bruschetta, which had very fresh tomatoes and a nice drizzle of olive oil and some pesto. We also ordered melon and prosciutto, but I do not like melon that much, and I did not try any.
My brother and I both wanted something a little less complex for our entrees than what they had to offer, and the kitchen was very accommodating.
No, we didn’t have dessert, even though the dessert options were very mouthwatering as the waitress tried to coax us into ordering some.
Overall, I really enjoyed my meal at La Piccolina, and I wish that I lived in the area, so I could return in the future.

HAD MORE TENDER GRILLED CALAMARI AT STREET STALL’S iN SOUTH EAST ASIA
Ryan the waitress was Attentive, Helpful, and Just Great.
Appetizer, tasty but to tough (grilled calamari)
Main, Al Dente Pappadelle, with a Lamb Ragu makes this dish A OK
Bread, don’t try house baking you can’t, Order from a profesional bread baker.
Desert, poor textured crêpe’s with mild flavored peaches, needing some fresh whip cream, like in Peaches n Cream!