Rao's

Classic Italian old school joint with incredible service. Unreal meatball. Excellent chicken parm.

Awesome experience from start to finish at Rao’s Hollywood. Service was excellent from the minute we walked through the door. We started with the Mozzarella In Carrozza which was perfection. The Caesar salad was phenomenal. For my main course, I ordered the chicken Milanese and it was excellent. My partner enjoyed the Penne Alla Vodka. Kids loved their pasta dishes. I cannot wait to return.

Quite possibly one of the best Italian meals I have ever had at a restaurant in my life. This location is cozy/small, so be sure to make a reservation! We arrived about 15 minutes early for our reservation and had a quick drink at the bar and were seated 5 minutes after we arrived. We ordered and our food arrived in about 10 minutes! We got meatball marinara, rigatoni pomodoro, bread, and a glass of red wine each. Perfect portions as well. Highly recommend

Steve Johnson

Such a treat to try a restaurant which serves our favorite store bought sauce. Great place for a meal. Well decorated with beautiful outdoor enclosed dining area. Service was friendly and prompt. Great suggestions given. Food is exceptionally. The tricolore salad and meatballs we started with were so good! Our entrees excellent.

Jeff Huang

Rao’s (pronounced RAY-oh’s) is an Italian Restaurant on a quiet street that you might not even know is there. It’s a sister restaurant to the original in New York, and you know them from their famous jarred sauce. Valet parking is $15. The first room is very dark, and contains about 15 tables and a full bar. The second room is long and skinny, and can accommodate a large party. The back patio is a covered room with heaters and about 15 more tables. Our table was a booth underneath a photo of (the late) James Gandolfini. We ordered a salad and meatballs, which arrived within about 90 seconds! We had two pasta dishes, and both were great. I would describe the food as authentic Italian, and better than a lot of places that just do spaghetti and red sauce. But this isn’t fancy (and overpriced) “California meets Italy” food. (For that, try Mother Wolf.) Portions are pretty big; you’ll probably have leftovers for lunch tomorrow. It was also relatively inexpensive; 1 appetizer, 1 salad, and 2 pasta dishes were $100 before tax and tip.

Pete Perez

Reservations are recommended, no onsite or street parking. Valet parking is $15.00. Our 1st time visiting, we we're greated at the door and were sitted instantly. We had a great server ,very friendly. We enjoyed the family style sitting in the front room. The food was tasty, we all enjoyed our meals.

Theresa_ SoCalRealty

Dining at Rao’s Hollywood is a memorable experience that combines delicious food with a warm, inviting atmosphere. It’s a place where the tradition of Italian hospitality is embraced, making every visit feel special. Whether you’re a local or visiting from out of town, Rao’s is a culinary gem that promises a taste of Italy right in the heart of Hollywood.

Jeremy Tate

What a great place to go for Italian. We had their Veal Parm, Rigatoni, and meatball. 11/10. Must try this place.

Philine

Probably the best Italian restaurant in town! We came with reservation and got a nice little booth. The staff were incredible friendly and very helpful. We ordered starters to share and jeeez - that was delicious! Also the pasta for the main course were so good!! We had a bolognese and vodka pasta. Absolutely worth a visit and we will be back, that’s for sure!

Bud Dunn

Awesome night hanging with Gabriel at the bar. Great food and atmosphere and will be back to see the king of the martini.

Tatiana Carvalho

I think the face on the first photo says it all! We came to celebrate and celebrate we did. We loved the food, service and the ambiance. We started out with a house salad and a mozzarella. We also had penne alla vodka, rigatoni and snapper. Hearty servings and it was all delicious. We finished it off with a peanut butter pie. My boyfriend asked to see a specific photo and the manager knew where it was right away so he could snap a photo with it. Highly recommend going!

Atma Khalsa

Went with a group of friends and were able to sit inside! So exciting. The food was delicious. Great pasta and sauces. The waiter was patient and helpful as we deliberated endlessly on what to eat, trying to figure out meal options for a vegan friend (they’re slim). They served pellegrino sparking water, which I always appreciate. Great service, good food, good vibes. Classic Italian joint.

John Kahwaty

Rao's is always a great place to get to get family and friends together to enjoy a great meal. The food is generally family style so you can go choose Abit of everything and share. The fried mozzarella app is amazing. They are pretty famous for the giant meatballs. All the pastas are great. And most recently we got the 40oz steak and it had a great butter/thyme flavor and was cooked very nicely. It's a bit hard to find if you aren't familiar with the area and there's a lot of construction going on out front so most of the time you'll have to valet. The waiting staff is very personable and will come around and talk to your whole party as if you were family. I like that personal touch.

Mike from LA

Classic Italian old school joint with incredible service. Unreal meatball. Excellent chicken parm.

Thomas Novelli

Awesome experience from start to finish at Rao’s Hollywood. Service was excellent from the minute we walked through the door. We started with the Mozzarella In Carrozza which was perfection. The Caesar salad was phenomenal. For my main course, I ordered the chicken Milanese and it was excellent. My partner enjoyed the Penne Alla Vodka. Kids loved their pasta dishes. I cannot wait to return.

Emmi B

Quite possibly one of the best Italian meals I have ever had at a restaurant in my life. This location is cozy/small, so be sure to make a reservation! We arrived about 15 minutes early for our reservation and had a quick drink at the bar and were seated 5 minutes after we arrived. We ordered and our food arrived in about 10 minutes! We got meatball marinara, rigatoni pomodoro, bread, and a glass of red wine each. Perfect portions as well. Highly recommend

Karen Rosenthal

Everything was absolutely amazing!! I expected the pasta Bolognese to be delish. But truly everything we ate was wonderful. We had salad, fettuccine alfredo with mushrooms, fiocchi, tiramisu and cheesecake for dessert. Oh my goodness. It was the best cheesecake I've ever had in my life. And the fiocchi was out of this world!! It was filled with pear and ricotta and other stuff and was just unreal. Also service is super professional and friendly. Love. Will definitely come back!!

This place is phenomenal, arguably the best Italian meal I've ever had. The ambiance is perfect, the service was fantastic, and the food was absolutely amazing. Do everything you can to eat here before it closes in a few weeks!

This place was amazing. Surprisingly, one of the best steaks even though it's not a steakhouse per se. We had the carbonara, the pappardelle, and the bolognese, and every plate was clean. You have to get the meatballs too. Gabriel the manager is just the best.

Mark Azurin

This place was amazing. Surprisingly, one of the best steaks even though it's not a steakhouse per se. We had the carbonara, the pappardelle, and the bolognese, and every plate was clean. You have to get the meatballs too. Gabriel the manager is just the best.

Kevin Cullen

Excellent! Fantastico! My new favorite restaurant, Los Angeles!! Authentic Italian food accentuates the warm and friendly atmosphere of this Hollywood Jewel. Our waiter, Marco, is a consummate professional and gentleman. Highest narks for professionalism and extraordinary attention to detail. Bravissimo!

Food was very good and the service staff friendly. Reservations are recommended. We were seated right away and greeted promptly by the waiter. Great looking menu with wonderful appetizers and the atmosphere makes it enjoyable for a group, couples or if dining alone. Of course Valet is available if you choose or street parking is an option.

Last week's dinner at Rao's Hollywood was so good I forgot to post. The veal chop I had was to die for. It was easily one of the best veal chops I've ever had, and I've had veal all over the country. It had the perfect amount of kick from the Italian peppers and was thick and juicy. I also had a lovely, light, refreshing, cool seafood salad with a massive lobster claw atop the crab and other seafood. The veal parmesan was a huge portion and presented beautifully. It was tasty, but the veal chop outshined it easily. To finish off, an in-house made cheesecake that was the perfect finish to a delightful meal. Service was friendly and prompt, and the inside atmosphere is cozy and intimate. I'm looking forward to going back and trying more veal dishes! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

G-Boomer

Food was very good and the service staff friendly. Reservations are recommended. We were seated right away and greeted promptly by the waiter. Great looking menu with wonderful appetizers and the atmosphere makes it enjoyable for a group, couples or if dining alone. Of course Valet is available if you choose or street parking is an option.

Aimee Wilkins

Last week's dinner at Rao's Hollywood was so good I forgot to post. The veal chop I had was to die for. It was easily one of the best veal chops I've ever had, and I've had veal all over the country. It had the perfect amount of kick from the Italian peppers and was thick and juicy. I also had a lovely, light, refreshing, cool seafood salad with a massive lobster claw atop the crab and other seafood. The veal parmesan was a huge portion and presented beautifully. It was tasty, but the veal chop outshined it easily. To finish off, an in-house made cheesecake that was the perfect finish to a delightful meal. Service was friendly and prompt, and the inside atmosphere is cozy and intimate. I'm looking forward to going back and trying more veal dishes! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Food and drinks were great. Only complaint was that we had reservations and they sat us up front in a booth where it was very loud and lacked class due to the bar-goers watching a hockey game. After expressing my concerns, the host was able to switch us to seating on the back patio where it was much nicer.

Brandon Landis

Food and drinks were great. Only complaint was that we had reservations and they sat us up front in a booth where it was very loud and lacked class due to the bar-goers watching a hockey game. After expressing my concerns, the host was able to switch us to seating on the back patio where it was much nicer.

Very sad about this one, portion sizes were really large but all the food tasted pretty mediocre. There were also flies in the dining room.

Susie Su

Very sad about this one, portion sizes were really large but all the food tasted pretty mediocre. There were also flies in the dining room.

Guess it really doesnt matter what I say about this place bc its closing. It was just fine to me. Nothing I ate would have made me come back anyway. The staff was very nice. Hostess was especially chirper. A large guy came around to each table asking how everything was, that was a nice touch. I jokingly told my bf all the black people to the back. When we got there the restaurant hadnt been open long so it was only a few folks at the bar and we were seated in the back with another black couple. It was chill back there so I was ok. Even tho it seemed weird, when we left the place was packed and indeed all the white folks were in the front, we were glad we were not seated up there because it was so loud we would not have enjoyed our meal. So black or not we were glad we werent placed there. The meatball appetizers were good. I got the lemon chicken which was just too lemony for me. I also dont know why bone in. It made it hard to eat as I was not about to pick up a piece of chicken and start gnawing on it. None of there dishes come with sides you have to order separately. I only mention this because perhaps a chef would have known what sides to go with this to cut down on the lemon. I love lemon that why I ordered it, It just needed something to cut through it a bit. My partner ordered the pork chops, he loved them I thought they cooked great but the sweet pepper kick on the back end, I did not prefer. The mashed potatoes were good. I should have asked what broccoli rabe was before ordering because I didnt enjoy. Glad I got to try before it closes. As I stated before while nothing made me want to go back, I would have gone back to try actual pasta but not in the cards.