Italian 101

The most amazing part of the evening was our waiter Joe D
The food was really delicious and very fresh. The portions are huge– so you must share-​perfect because we got a chance to try different things that were all delicious … We can not wait to return for another great dinner.

Great food, nice atmosphere and service! Can’t go wrong! Thanks for being in the neighborhood

We had a double date night here. We came on a recommendation. Reservations are recommended and so we did. The place is an up scale Italian restaurant and it was bustling! The décor was very nice and inviting.
Our waiter was straight from New York. He was a no nonsense guy but very helpful. He was respectful and made it known he was there to help us and pour our wine. I really liked him!
The food is family style and pasta isn’t included, it is also a la carte. We made the mistake in ordering each a small plate which could have easily served 2 people. Each plate was about 25. A small plate pasta also $ 20.Next time we will order differently.
We started out with the mussels, which were amazing ! We also had a small antipasto plate (meh) and the couple shared a shrimp cocktail, the shrimp were huge but served 3@ $ 25.
The food was delicious but it is a bit pricy. I don’t care for the family style because my tastes are different than my husband.
If you go, I strongly urge you to figure out a common plate and share the dish.
Dessert was good. The Italian cheese cake was good. It was made with ricotta cheese.

11 of us on Christmas Day for dinner and interested to try this always busy New Sunny Isles Beach Dining destination. In place where many have failed the old Christine’s Lee’s location in RK Shopping plaza is the home of this family style somewhat upscale layout of Mateo’s Clone and previous partners now called Italian 101.
Greeted and seated quickly as it’s 5PM and we are some of the 1^st to arrive today. plenty of shopping center parking and valet available as well.
Decent wine list with some good moderately priced wines and good value Pino Grigio. Unfortunately they ran out of the Pino after the 1^st bottle so it was either their house wine after that or substantial uptick to Santa Margarita. House Bread was homemade and off the charts good. Provided some specials and also outline of how many orders of each appetizer and or pastas and entrees to cover everyone in the family style dining way.
Appetizers:
Special Fresh Buffalo Mozzerella with Roasted peppers and Procuitto de Parma was excellent.
Fried Calamari according to the table patrons who ate it claimed it was some of the best they have ever had while marinara sauce that went with it was underwhelming it was still very good.
Baked Clams Oregenato were excellent as well very small which made them tender and flavorful with bread crumb and stuffing.
Shrimp Oreganato were clean fresh, lightly topped with breadcrumb mix and spices while their sauce to go with it had just the right amount of garlic, lemon and butter.
Ceasar Salad was a bit of a failure.
Entrees:
Veal Marsala was probably one the only things that didn’t get high marks here… Veal was not pounded thin enough and sauce lacked any type of good Marsala and Mushroom taste at all.
Veal Franchese on the flip side was absolutely perfect with delicious with generous lemon and garlic flavor with perfectly sauteed veal.
Both Pastas were excellent the Pene Ala Vodka and the Bolognese.
Country Chicken was not very good at all VERY DRY pieces of chicken with almost no sauce with peppers, onions and potatoes and broccoli Could have done without this dish.
Side of Broccoli Rabe was good
Coffee hot & fresh and service was second to none with owner Ryan stopping by to unsure everything was ok, while servers made sure to split up and serve the family style portions making it easier on the group.
All and all probably 3.5 to 4 stars but service was outstanding and they were quite pleasant people so I’ll give them the ½ star up charge :)
Being my final review of 2015… I hope all of Unilocal Land has Very Safe and Happy — Healthy & Prosperous New Years!

Went to happy hour. You must sit at bar, not just in the bar. Nice bar and bar area. Dining room nice. Good drinks good price. Food portions inconsistent. Meatballs on happy hour large portion. Good value at $ 8. Pasta portion embarrassingly small. Both were very good. Bread very good. Large place and very nice décor. Good for large parties. If pasta portion was larger, and it should have been twice the size considering it was $ 12 without a salad, I would give the place 3.5−4 stars. Female bartender extremely unfriendly and the male bartender extremely friendly and pleasant. I would do happy hour again but forgo the pasta.

AMAZING food and huge portions! I love good italian food and this place was great!

Best Italian restaurant in Aventura, and perhaps Miami. Try pasta a la minna and you wil be convinced. Stay healthy with grilled chicken parm.

Ate here while on vacation from NY… and was so happy we went here. The service was spot on and everything we ordered was fantastic;even down to the bread on the table. Cant wait to come back here on our next vacation…

Everything we had was delicious. Pasta fagiolli, Caesar salad, veal marsala. Penne ala vodka and garlic and oil. Too full for dessert even the half portions are enough for 2 – 3. Shrimp Oreaganta was the best I ever had. Wait staff is excellent. Only down side is it very noisy.

Delizioso! Best Italian restaurant in South Florida! Everything is fresh and authentic. Warm and friendly atmosphere. Customer service is number one here. No better than Italian 101!

Exemplary service! We came here with a group of 5 girls and it was the perfect Italian evening. It’s family style which made it perfect for a group setting and the food was delicious. Our waiter was so great and very attentive. Best service we’ve gotten during our stay in Miami. The owner personally came to check on our table to make sure everything was going great and at the end of the evening we received a free bottle of prosecco to celebrate the bride to be! Gianluca was the best!

Fantastic: Food, service, location, and atmosphere. Top notch, must visit ! We ordered wine, salad, and shared 2 meats and 2 (HALF) pastas for 5 of us with leftovers so needless to say, their portions are extremely generous. From beginning to end, we enjoyed great customer service and were extremely satisfied. Glad to see an Italian place in sunny isles since the one at Sole closed :)

I’m not quite sure what just happened.
I visited the restaurant with a large party at about 6 pm for happy hour. Perhaps they were not prepared for us. The manager and staff were friendly and welcoming. We were offered one round of free drinks. I ordered a draft beer that had just ran out. Hmmmm. No problem, it’s a free drink. It’s beer, not wine or grappa. I ordered a different one.
Anyhoo, I tried the meatball marinara, penne pasta alla vodka and tiramisu from their happy hour menu (Interestingly, the regular menu prices are similar to South Beach Italian restaurant prices). I like my pasta al dente and the pasta was not quite al dente, but the sauce was delicious. The meatball marinara was disappointing — where was the seasoning? The two meatballs were huge, but absolutely bland and very disappointing. The tiramisu was heaven, definitely fresh and not frozen, a must-​try.
Our server was a very friendly. The restaurant may have been understaffed the night we went, or perhaps not prepared for the large crowd, because it took us 30 minutes to get our bill from the time we asked for it to the time we got it. Then, it took a bit longer since we asked for the bill to be split up and that caused another delay in that the check-​out system is not automated, but is rather old school carbon copy paper. Thankfully we weren’t in a rush to be somewhere afterwards.
There is plenty of free surface parking in the strip mall in which the restaurant is located.

If you like Mateo’s, you will love Italian 101!
The food was delicious and the portions are huge.
What was especially nice for this diner is that they were
extremely helpful in catering to my allergies and special
requests.
The staff was pleasant and professional. The ambiance is lovely.
We had the specialty chicken dish for two and it could have served four.
The recipes are original to this family and they do it best!
If you want an excellent Italian meal that blends the best of old fashioned family cooking with
the expertise of gourmet dining, try Italian 101!

The eggplant was good. The service… typical Italian:-) like back in Roma. I’m not sure about this restaurant yet. It’s good comfort but don’t come looking for sparks.

Hard to decide between 4 & 5 (can you say ‘4 ½’? Opted for ‘5’ based on service and the fact that they’ve been open a very short time. Excellent authentic Italian food with great service from Sergio. My wife and I arrived late, just before close. We were not rushed other than to get our order in before the kitchen closed. The stuffed mushrooms were a great start leading in to a well prepared, juicy chicken parm. We followed this with a succulent shrimp dish and a mushroom pasta with vodka sauce. HUGE portions, good wine list, attentive waiter in a quiet understated ambiance made for a great evening for two at a mere $ 130.

Dinner was great!
Quality of food very good. Short rip entrée is delicious and huge!
All plates are made to share.
$ 20-​$ 22 pasta will feed 3 people.
Paid $ 100 for 3 people including a bottle of wine.
Everything was 5 out of 5! Highly recommend!
Very nice ambiance as well.

Went for dinner with a friend, had the calamari and clams over linguine in white sauce.
Amazing meal. Great calamari, you can tell that it is fresh and great quality. Staff was very attentive and welcoming. Will return for more.

Love this new restaurant! It is in a great location and it is something Sunny Isles needed. The food is AMAZING and we really enjoyed the family style. it gave everyone a chance to have a little bit of everything. went back for a 2^nd time with just one other person and the half order was the perfect amount of food for two people. The seafood is fresh and all of the sauces are delicious. The pasta was cooked to perfection every time. I want to try everything on the menu! So far every single dish has been perfect. And they also have a great drink and wine list that pairs perfect with their menu. staff is very friendly and professional. They all worked as a team. I really enjoyed the fabulous service. You don’t find service like this in Florida. This place is a true gem. I will be enjoying many meals here!!!

Had the broccoli rabe and it was almost perfect maybe a little less oil in the presentation. Chicken was tasty even smothered in a great sauce with mushrooms. Rigatoni was firm and meat sauce could have been a meal itself. Very reasonably priced for excellent atmosphere and food. Comfortable seating added with attentive staff great desserts all around an excellent place for dinner.