Breakfast Menu "Cafe Carolina" Encino
Cozy trattoria serving homestyle Italian fare, with vegetarian, vegan & gluten-free options.
Cafe Carolina, 17934 Ventura Blvd, Encino, CA 91316
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We’ve been coming to Cafe Carolina for years (since before they had a liquor license) and always have a good experience. Our stop this time was on a Friday night and it was unusually not so busy for a Friday night. (So please go there people…we need artfully prepared healthy restaurants to stick around!) My wife had the pasta a-la checca made with gluten-free pasta which she thought was great. (Gluten free pasta options are hit or miss so well done here.) I had the homemade pappardelle (made from special mushroom pasta) with just a tomato sauce. The sauce was great but the noodles were slightly under-done (a shame when ordering house made pasta.) The bread as always was a yummy appetizer. Though I didn’t have it on this visit, I heartily recommend their signature dish, the Ravioli Cremaschi. This is an authentic regional (from where they’re form in Italy) homemade ravioli stuffed with a sweet filling of amaretti, raisins, citron and parmesan cheese, served in a sage-brown butter sauce. I’ve had this many times and it’s a to-die for unique, tasty crave-worthy dish. Also notable for vegetarians: they offer Vegetarian Tuesdays with vegan options (including vegan cheese on pizzas). And their full menu is available on these days as well. One last kudos to them for being an organic restaurant. Serving all organic isn’t the easiest path to financial success…but it’s better for everyone. Thank you Cafe Carolina!
This place is amazing. Took my favorite person(fiance) cause she was looking for some gnocchi and it turned out to be the best she and I have ever had(trust me, gnocchi is a really hard dish to make well). This was the Gorgonzola Gnocchi and it was cooked to melt-in-your-mouth-perfection. I had the Tagliatelle alla Thomas and the chicken meatballs were scrumptious. All in all and unbelievable home-style Italian restaurant right across the street!
We took my sister-in-law to dinner here for her birthday and it was amazing. The lasagna had melt in your mouth pasta noodles and the meat sauce was unbelievable. My mother-in-law had the vegan pizza and she ate all of it (and she never finishes anything.) The service was awesome and we were even treated to the chef singing in Italian while he cooked!!
We went for date night a few months back and I really liked it. I think the pizza for my sig other was a little "wet" meaning the dough got more wet and less structured as you went from the crust to the tip but the taste was great. I had the pasta with sausage and yeah, that was a home run! I highly suggest getting reservations on open table. We walked in around 7.45 and would have had a wait if we didn't have reservations. I had no problem finding street parking near the restaurant-- though they do have a few spots in back. I also had friends who dined here for the first time a couple of weeks ago and they loved it!
After our recent trip to Italy we decided to find a local place with authentic Italian food. Cafe Carolina do just that, every plate is tasteful and delightful- It take us back to our trip. Great restaurant to savor homemade authentic italian food.
For many years I lived in Italy so when Cafe Carolina was recommended to me I was thrilled now several year back, about two years ago, I went to Cafe Carolina on Mother's Day with family and it was the worst meal I have had in years! The food was oily and the owner sat in the open kitchen at the back of the restaurant with the chef completely ignoring the customers. This was a true disappointment and when I reported back to my Italian friends they were so embarrassed.
Great service and wonderful food. The Ravioli Cremaschi was so lovely! The other guest at my table ordered a Farfalle alla Piemontese. It was quite good. The place has great decor and good lighting for a dinner date.
The food is okay. Not impressive. The waitress was nice and the food came pretty quickly. I had the Rigatoni Apollo. The portion was decent. Not enough flavors.