Iavarone Cafe Italian Kitchen & Pizzeria
“Ivarones has, what they refer to as an upscale, specialty food market next door to the café, which sells a lot of fresh organic items.”
“I like to visit their store next door for all my Italian specialty, like cannoli or coffee.”
“Great service and good place for a quick slice while shopping.”
Iavarone Cafe Italian Kitchen & Pizzeria
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Good for Working: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Great little cafe to pick up pizza or grab a bite to eat after shopping.
I really dislike giving bad reviews but in this case, it had to be done!
Read on if you will…
So, for starters, there's the parking situation… If you're on a limited lunch break, this is definitely NOT the place to go. Be forewarned, parking is a bit of a nightmare. But I can't blame the establishment for that! Right?? Parking at the Lake Success Shopping Center seems to be a nightmare almost anytime of the day. It's like Christmastime year round… Next…
The pizzeria setup kinda sucks! Upon entering, you have to work your way down the counter to place your order & pay. Here's the problem: As the customers place their orders in front of you & wait, you may not really be able to scan the whole pizza spread in advance & decide what you want by the time they get you. It's also a little hard to squeeze past people to check things out without the possibility of losing your place in line. It's a little awkward. Trying to get out of the place can be challenging as well. I experienced customers deciding to "group" together in front of the counter near the entrance/exit totally blocking the whole area with no regard for the people trying to walk past to get out. After several tries at "excuse me" (getting louder as I went), to no avail… I found myself having to push through the crowd to get out the door. They never even seemed to notice me at all! UGH!! Since people are generally getting dumber these days, or just bask in glow of being inconsiderate (or both), maybe there should be one of those "enter here" ropes (like in the DMV or Dunkin Donuts) put in place to guide them. It also might clear a path for people to be able to exit without having to maneuver through an obstacle course! Bottom line, a little organization would be nice is all. Next…
… The pizza…
I paid a little under $6 bucks for 2 slices & a small drink. I thought this was a bargain compared to Alessio's around the block which is closer to $7.00 for the same. Not the case. This pizza was pretty terrible! Iavorone claims to be brick oven pizza but to me it was like a pizza pastry. The dough was on the thick side & almost a bit sweet? The sauce also was on the sweet side (too sweet for pizza) & the cheese was pretty tasteless! You want brick oven check out New Park Pizza on Crossbay Blvd. Best brick oven pizza & true to it's name (in my opinon)! This pizza was bland & undercooked. I've heard people raving about Iavarone's for years… I don't get it… Sorry, maybe it's a Long Island thing but this ain't no New York pizza like in the boros. It just ain't the same…
Quick business lunch & left quite satisfied! I have to admit, up until my visit, I had not tasted broccoli rabe. I ordered a chicken wrap with it & was delited by how wonderful it was.
Service was great & I amagine the rest of the food is, too! Nice interior, very authentic with the bakery next door. Everything smelled and looked delicious!
I would visit again, for sure.
Best mushroom pizza I have ever had. Has a hint of garlic and the tomato sauce is so fresh. Got a pie for $18.
Their customer service needs some work.
Nice family-friendly atmosphere. They have a restaurant section, a bar with tv's, and some tables in the front. It's got a Grimaldi's feel to it.
We came here because we were in the mood for pasta. We've been here before but I've never done as review. So here goes. The Iavarone Cafe is where you go after shipping in their market next door and you get hungry after looking at all the good food. Note you can enjoy instant gratification of having a fully prepared meal without having to wait to drive home and cook over yourself after you finished grocery shopping. Towards the back they have a bar and a full service sit down restaurant.
Inside was clean and neat. We were seated right away. They gave us some warm bread and… hummus. I thought it was a little weird because we are used to getting butter or Olive oil at an Italian restaurant. But it didn't taste bad so we went with it, though we would have preferred butter. After looking at the menu we started with the walnut salad. Our server offered to split our salad on two plates which was very thoughtful. We didn't have to ask. Kudos, to that. I like my salad week dressed, my wife likes dressing on the side. The salad was great by the way. The combination of the Gorgonzola cheese, walnut and dried cranberries is very satisfying. Next we got the mussels Luciano (white wine and butter sauce). That was delicious. After finishing the mussels, we sopped up the left over sauce with our left over bread. Yum. For our entrees she got the linguine with carbonara sauce and I got papardelle with tomatoes scallions crumbled sausage and fresh mozzarella. Both were great. The pasta was well sauces and cookies nicely. Good sized portions allowed us to bring some home and enjoy it later. Overall this was a very good experience. I would recommend giving this place a try.
Nothing out of the ordinary pizzerias. Ok service no accommodating for kids. The pizza was delicious, juicy, fresh. Got a regular slice for the kids and a vodka sauce pasta with grilled chicken and a Cesar salad. Overall the food was good. Good enough for you when your starving. Won't be my place to go but if I get hungry will deft get a regular slice, they are Delish!!
Stopped in for a quick bite with the kids. Love their pizza…always fresh and always perfect! I went shopping next door at their Iavarone Market shortly after. A fresh selection of cooked foods, huge baked goods section and deli. Both are very good establishments.
BTW, the Café has been renovated so the space looks more brightly lit and welcoming. All the seating is new and the place looks larger than before even though the size didn't change. What a difference.
I come here every Sunday with my family and look forward to doing so. As someone in bodybuilding show season, I require a strict and bland diet and the waiters always accommodate my needs.
The bread they bring out is excellent, but I miss the hummus spread as an option (who says an Italian restaurant can't serve hummus. Ask for butter if you have an issue.)
A few of my favorites off the entree menu are: filet of sol, chicken primavera, branzino and the NY sirloin steak.
If I am hitting a refeed cheat meal, I go for their quality grass fed burger and get bacon and sauteed onions added on. It comes with fries and does the trick.
The waiters are friendly, professional and know the menu well. Nick and Diego are the two we usually have regularly and they provide exceptional service.