Top Best Italian Restaurants in Tempe Town Lake

"He followed his daughter to New York, and it seemed that his charming destination for classic Italian fare might be lost forever. But in 2012, he returned to Old Town and opened up a time portal on Scottsdale Road, leading straight into a bygone era of white tablecloths, soft music, servers who know when not to talk and Italian fare that sports a little class while satisfying on a deep, visceral level. Photos of Marlon Brando and Sophia Loren line the walls; a pungent swipe of fresh garlic lines the bruschetta; and a crisp, perfectly seasoned crust lines the exterior of the orecchie elefante, Fazzuoli’s take on a juicy, thick-cut veal chop Milanese."

"In 2013, after opening a popular Greenwich Village restaurant in New York, he returned to the Valley with longtime partner Chef Steve Martin to open Franco’s Italian Cafe in Old Town Scottsdale. You’ll be tempted by the homemade pastas (also available in whole wheat and gluten-free!), and can indulge as you wish on dishes like Fettuccine Tartufo, but make sure you return to try his veal chop, which arrives to your table perfectly charred while still tender. A word of note for July through August, however, check ahead of time for summer hours of operation."

"Owner and chef Giovanni Scorzo and his team deliver hand-crafted Italian dishes at this charming Italian grocery and cafe in Scottsdale. Scorzo and team make all the bread and pastries in-house, including the house tiramisu, cannoli, and even hand-made chocolates. Daily specials include Italian specialties like rosticianna (grilled pork ribs), pasta e fave (pasta and fava bean soup), bistecca alla Fiorentina (Florentine-style T-bone steak), and other homemade specialties."

"Giovanni Scorzo was regional Italian before regional Italian was cool. When the Calabrian native tired of trying to please the white tablecloth crowd, he opened Andreoli, a casual neighborhood grocery with a few tables that serves some of the best traditional Italian fare in town. This culinary curmudgeon with an uncompromising vision is as likely to be in the front of house sipping espresso and watching soccer as he is to be in the back of house running the kitchen."

"Chris Bianco makes some of the country’s most fabled pizzas. He and his team source and mill ever-changing flour blends, hand-shape mozzarella, and top pies with tomatoes from his own California label. His style sets the focus on an intricate, shattering crust that calls to mind the ancient flatbreads predating pizza."

"This is the second location of Pane Bianco, yet this one offers breakfast, like pancakes made from Hayden Flour Mills and toast. There are of course market sandwiches, including the arrabiata, or angry, chicken sandwich. And of course, there are squares of pizza al taglio."

"Here we are, three years after I gave Tratto the only five-star review of my tenure, and far as I’m concerned it’s still the perfect restaurant. I was ready to jump out a tenth story window when I heard Anthony Andiario was skipping town but Chris Bianco has a nose for young talent, and to my delight it turns out that Cassie Shortino is a bonafide rock star. Bianco’s vision of a localized, Arizona-flecked vessel to convey the soul of Italian cuisine remains fully realized, some of the city’s best food in one of its most humbly elegant environments."

"Tratto is the new restaurant from James Beard Award-winning chef Chris Bianco, who has been instrumental in helping shine the national spotlight on the burgeoning Phoenix food scene. This time around, Bianco and company are shifting focus away from pizza with an unpretentious menu inspired by the classic Italian trattoria, with an emphasis on Arizona terroir. The menu changes with the seasons, so expect to see small plates brimming with vegetables served at the height of the season."

"Tratto is situated in Phoenix just one mile from city Pizzeria Bianco, Tratto is a restaurant by James Beard Award-winning chef Chris Bianco. The Bianco team will prepare food and drinks in collaboration with their farmers, ranchers, millers, and local artisans that will represent the intention of the desert Southwest. Their chef, Cassie Shortino, was a 2020 James Beard semifinalist for Rising Star Chef of the Year."

"While it might not be the same as your usual Monday wine night out -- you can bring Postino’s legendary bruschetta board home. We’d check out the “Date Night-In” package for you and your quarantine partner, which includes the bruschetta board, a snack and a salad. Additionally, the restaurant’s hospitality group, Upward Projects, is raising money alongside Fox Restaurant Concepts to donate tips to furloughed employees."

"A post shared by The Middle Edit (@themiddleedit) on Jan 12, 2019 at 3:01pm PST. Arcadia is home to the original Postino location (circa 2001), housed in a former U.S. post office, which put a stamp on the bruschetta-on-a-board concept (and inspired several more locations) and affordable wine selection that delivers one of the best happy hour deals in town."

"Nook evokes images of a cozy place to sit back and relax with a hearty plate of comfort food. Fortunately, that's exactly what you'll find at this Arcadia eatery, tucked away in the Gas Light shopping center. The menu has everything from light cafe fare to hearty Mediterranean dinners."

"Serving at four family-owned locations over the past sixty years, Red Devil has become a household name for those in the Phoenix area, as well as in Pinetop. This authentic taste has stuck around for generations for a reason!"

"There’s a reason Red Devil has been slinging pizzas in the Valley since 1960. The family recipe is dang good. Nah, it’s not a thin-crust, dainty pie you need to eat with a knife and fork all polite."

"Solo Trattoria is the go-to Italian spot when you want to enjoy a comfortable patio and dining experience that’s as amazing as the food. While Solo Trattoria offers a well-rounded and traditional Italian menu, there are many seasonal items that help to ensure that each dish is fresh and delicious (and that you won’t order the same dish too many times). It’s hard to go wrong with any of the entrees, but we like the classic rigatoni."

"Christo's Ristorante is a cozy and unassuming Old-world Italian eatery that serves traditional Italian cuisine in a pleasant, relaxed setting. Located in a Phoenix strip mall on 7th Street, the family-friendly restaurant serves a veal-heavy menu with classic dishes of pasta and from-scratch sauces, wood-fired pizzas, prime beef, and veal plates, homemade soups, fresh seafood, and fresh salads and vegetables sourced from local farms and producers. The cuisine is paired with easy-drinking house wine, as well as global selections, handcrafted cocktails, craft beers, and imported spirits."

"We promise you the freshest ingredients, impeccable service and outstanding food. Featured in the New York Times as one of the best places to eat in Phoenix, you’re guaranteed to have an incredible dining experience. We invite you to one of..."

"This was my first time having their pizza the toppings were plentiful and flavorful and the blueberry lemonade was AMAZING!. I want it by the gallon!"

"Camelback Mountain separates Phoenix and Scottsdale, and has two of Phoenix’s most popular hiking trails: Cholla and Echo Canyon. The Attic Ale House, an eight-minute drive from the trailhead, is the best spot in the area for that beer and burger you’ve been imagining since about 10 minutes into your hike. There’s a long list of beer and wine options to drink alongside the Ivan burger (our favorite) with a view of the mountain, while debating whether the person who was hiking in jeans and flip flops ever made it to the top."

"Mon 4:00-10:00 PM, Tue 4:00 PM-12:00 AM, Wed-Thu 4:00-11:00 PM, Fri 4:00 PM-12:00 AM, Sat 11:00 AM-12:00 AM, Sun 11:00 AM-9:00 PM"

"A wood-fired brick oven and a passion for quality make Bianco's traditional Neapolitan pizza crust a work of art. The restaurant was famously short-listed by New York critics as one of the best pizza destinations in the country. Each and every one of the masterpieces served is made from scratch with the finest ingredients."

"Located in the Union Hills Centre in Tempe, King Coffee Roastery is a pint-sized casual college-town café that serves fantastic coffee made with beans from local roaster Cortez Coffee. The small family-owned and operated coffee shop that serves a variety of freshly roasted and brewed coffee, specialty coffee drinks, such as lattes and ice-cold brews, imported teas, and other beverages. The café offers a menu of light bites such as mouthwatering pastries, sweet treats, and smoothies, and complimentary wireless Internet is available throughout the day."

"Lindsey Magee's bakery and sandwich shop on McDowell Road might just be one of the better breakfast spots in the Valley. For $8, you can snag a made-to-order breakfast sandwich served on a house-made biscuit or croissant and loaded with eggs and your choice of meat, cheese, and vegetables. And while the sandwich makes a great breakfast on the go at Ollie Vaughn's, we also love options like the pork chile verde, a succulent mound of shredded pork served over a biscuit and topped with a fried egg, and ricotta pancakes, a triple stack that comes topped with fruit compote and butter."

"This little sandwich shop on McDowell Road is cool without trying. Ollie Vaughn’s offers breakfast and lunch, sources their food locally, and has a kids’ menu that is basically a smaller version of the grown-up stuff. The tiny playhouse out back might not look like much to you, but 4-year-olds will be occupied at least as long as it takes you to have a sandwich and catch up with a friend."

"Ho hum, another little hipster coffee shop with nice-looking pastries and a smattering of breakfast and lunch dishes. But a few bites deep, Ollie Vaughn’s starts to separate itself from the pack. Flaky, buttery almond croissants, lemon poppy-seed cake with a sharply sour glaze and a light, creamy tomato quiche emerge from the pastry case."

"A touchstone of Phoenix’s community of Bosnian expats, Balkan Bakery is a charming little coffee and bakeshop with just enough tables for me to justify calling it a restaurant. The Osmic family first opened Balkan Bakery a decade ago, and while a short list of common baked goods and sweets are solid offerings, it’s the Bosnian specialties that make Balkan Bakery a destination. Aldijana prepares the cevapi, seasoning and stuffing the little sausages in preparation for the grill, where they take on a crisp char."

"Pretzels, rye bread, and kifli are some of the staple products that fly off the shelves at this north Phoenix bakery. But the Osmic family’s craft reaches its peak with hearty boureks, stuffed with meat, cheese, or spinach, coiled from phyllo dough that they shape by hand. Two make a big meal."

"Mornings, in-the-know customers trickle into Balkan Bakery, inhaling the bready fragrance of its tiny room on Bell Road. Some get French-style rolls. Some get rope-like kifli."