Best Italian Restaurants in Virginia

We’ve enjoyed Christmas Eve dinner at Azzurro’s for many years. Great food and great service, especially for a holiday evening. Terrific wine list and speciality cocktails. Enjoyed so much!

We have mixed feelings about Portico. On the positive side, it is a gorgeous setting, especially the outside patio. Even the inside area is cozy and welcoming. We ate here several times during the pandemic, and it felt so great to be outside in this beautiful environment. BUT we haven't been back in quite some time because we had some reservations about returning, and, sadly, they still exist after last night's visit. Our number one issue is their longtime refusal to charge corkage so that we can enjoy our own wine, which is more suited to us than the wine on their very expensive wine list. We don't know of any other upscale restaurant in Richmond that does not allow corkage, which is very important to us. So we reluctantly paid $60 for a $20 Italian Russo when we have such great wine at home. We would have been happy to pay the $10 - 35 corkage charge that we pay at other restaurants, but they were firm. That alone makes us reluctant to return. BUT onto the service and food! The service was great - Billy very attentive. My husband's wedge salad was great. My caprese salad didn't need that huge amount of lettuce that was added when the caprese part was all that was needed, but I love Caprese, so it was great. My husband absolutely LOVED his lamb risotto dish! For fun, I ordered the baked spaghetti with sausage, which was great, but again, a HUGE serving that will be lunch for the next few days. We ran into trouble when we ordered cappuccinos. My husband was just OK with his, but mine was so incredibly runny with no real taste. I've never had anything like it before and really didn't like it. The server, to his credit, offered a new one, but that seemed a waste of time when my husband's was also weak and runny. It was a disappointment when we got the bill and were still charged for 2 cappuccinos instead of one. Any sort of gesture towards recognizing my dissatisfaction would have been appreciated, but nothing was offered. Not sure if we'll be back.

The menu seems to have been reworked and the new additions were delicious. The server however was the star. David was warm and welcoming he got everything exactly right, very efficient he made the experience that much better.

Incredible as always. Arctic Char was outstanding and the Fondue starter was fun.

This has been our anniversary spot. I also have celiac and some other allergies and the staff is very knowledgeable and careful. also want to give and honorable mention to the fries that are gluten free and probably the best waffle fries (my partner and I agree). we love this little spot!