Best Italian Restaurants in South Philly

Great food, ambience, and service. Alexis took great care of us. The chicken Milanese and poblano peppers were a hit. Drinks were excellent. A nice early Christmas treat for our family!

The service was amazing. All the severs were very attentive. The octopus was nice a charred but it was a bit on the salty side. The beef carpaccio was a bit too sour problem too much lemon juice. The squid ink rigatoni was very flavorful and we also really enjoyed the bread it was nice and chewy and the sun dried tomatoes dip was the bread was also really good.

Wow! This was an awesome experience! As a fan of the Rocky film series, I knew about this place from the Rocky Balboa and Creed films. It is so much more than that, though. As the founder was a major player in early 20th century opera recordings, The Victor Cafe has an opera theme permeating its soul. The walls are adorned with photos of the opera greats, opera music plays softly in the background, and, most importantly, the waitstaff are all classically-trained opera performers. Every half hour or so, they gather everyone’s attention to perform a selection from a popular opera, complete with a synopsis of the story they’re about to tell through their performance. Every performer was wonderful and this made for a unique, joyful and memorable experience for my family. I grew up on Italian cuisine, and this was among the best I’ve had in a long time. We shared the Calamari Fritti, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that we could have substituted Smelts for the calamari. This was a staple of our Christmas Eve dinners when I was young. My Veal Saltimbocca was perfect, as was my Daughter’s Prince Igor (penne with a vodka blush, salmon, tomato, and Asparagus). We enjoyed our cannolis while watching our last performance of the evening. Breathtaking! Special shout out to our server, Brenna, who took our dessert order mere seconds after completing her duet! Remarkable! I can’t say enough about The Victor Cafe; if you’re looking for a classic South Philly Italian Restaurant, paired with one of the most wonderful and unique experiences you’ll find today, then this is the place for you.

I have had the pleasure of dining at Fiorella's several times before, both in the downstairs dining area and with their pasta club dinner series. This was the first time, however, we visited with an 8 month old. Friends of ours were in town from California, and we really wanted to show them an example of a dinner that makes us appreciate Philadelphia so much. The staff was incredibly patient and accommodating with our young pasta lover. The noise level and other diners that evening made our experience feel simply like you were eating in a friend's living room. We're grateful for Fiorella's in many ways, and always suggest this restaurant for smaller, more intimate gatherings for friends and family.

Excellent restaurant! Always a great meal in the heart of South Philly!