Great food & awesome service from Javier!

Our server Javier was such a doll. Very attentive and a wonderful personality to match. Great food and service, all-around. Would recommend to anyone looking for a great spot to eat and enjoy the local ambiance of Downtown Merced. Thank you.

I have been going to Deatino’s for many years. At first when I went I didn’t really know what to order. I tried the spaghetti squash with pink sauce and it is amazing! Their grilled cheese is a classic! The pizza and bruschetta are also really good. They use to have gelato which I really liked but they didn’t last time I was there. I use to go here every other week for lunch but since the pandemic I now go when I’m in Merced. Love their service, staff, food and everything is top notch!

Food is great. Had the Chicken Parme and it was 🔥 Drinks were good and service was top notch. See you again soon.

Best pizza ever!! Epic pizza! Seriously. And the service is awesome. Great atmosphere too. Date night special.

This was an awesome restaurant. The service and the quality of the food was remarkable.

Went to have drinks with some friends and loved it! Staff was great and the drinks are worth it! Guys watched baseball as us girls talked and had a good time drinking. Will be back really soon because the food smelt great.

We drive almost 2 hours to visit and eat because the shrimp scampi is just that good! I've tried about half the menu and it's all delicious. Never had a bad plate while eating there. I wish they would bring the muscles back!

The three of us arrived for dinner a little after 7 on a Monday night. Our waitress was very attentive and let us make several changes to our order without a problem. All our dishes were perfectly prepared and delicious. Even though we were still enjoying our dinner and talking past their 8pm closing time, no effort was made to rush us into leaving. Even better, when I reheated my leftovers the following day, my pasta was still tasty!

Great service, food was really good except the garlic fries, sorry, but those were not garlic fries. Besides that everything worked out great here.

Came here because my daughter wanted Alfredo. Was expecting something ordinary, but man were we blown away!!! I can't believe how good this place is! Wish we lived closer

It was good service and good food. The waiter was courteous kind and seemed to know what to do. Food came out hot and he made regular visits to see how we were doing and if we needed anything. Cons it's a loud place so if you're going there for peace and quiet this isn't the place for that. Food that we had was amazing and big portions. We split a pizza and that filled us up

No food photos but the pastrami sandwich and wedge salad were excellent. Price was also ridiculously good. Will definitely be on my regular restaurant list. A quality spot in Merced 👏🏼

This spot has delicious Italian food, a nice atmosphere, and friendly promt service. Since the first time my wife and I found it we have returned several times. Every time we are pleased we stopped. Something important in the restaurant world is consistency, you expect the same quality each time you go. Destino's always delivers. We will continue to dine here without a doubt.

The pizza did not let me down. Great combinations of flavor and good presentation.

Visited here for the first but definitely not the last time. The red lasagna and Make Your Own Pizza was delicious. My wife and I were looking for somewhere to get both a delicious pizza and lasagna at the same place and Destino's did not disappoint. We will definitely be coming back again.

Great food and good service. Really good prices and portions

Crunchy but tender flavorful calamari. Loaded Verona pizza fresh toppings a plenty of them with perfectly cooked crust! Warm welcoming family run restaurant!

Very mellow.Was seated promptly and drinks served in a timely manner.Server was professional and friendly.Had a delicious sandwich.The fries are so crispy and tasty.

Fantastic drinks & great atmosphere. I love mixed drinks so I ordered the Malibu Sunset & then I had ordered Cheese Rigatoni with half white & half red sauce to-go & it was phenomenal 😋

Service was impeccable and the food delicious! Thank you Cassidy for your wonderful service

Food was great!! The waiter was super helpful and even split the dishes for us. Drinks from the bar tasted amazing and made me feel great!

The food is so good here. Everything we ordered came out perfect. We had great customer service and the owner is very nice and humble. We can’t wait to go back.

Great atmosphere, staff were excellent, very attentive and the food was good. Definitely recommend when visiting the merced area.

Family run, service is impeccable, food was fast, delicious, no fuss, just good food done right. If you're passing through, this is the place to stop

Family environment, great service. The food was excellent. Not too crowded.

+1

Amazing food! Great staff! Everything was perfect! Plus the owners are amazing! Thanks drew and Tess! I never leave here disappointed 😊

Good assortment of drinks and happy hour choices.

Sat quickly and waitress took our order timely. Food was tasty and service was great.

What a wonderful experience! The service was awesome the food was delicious and the drinks were perfect. The owner was so charming and welcoming this was just the perfect ending to an outpatient surgery day!!

We love this place! The beer is always ice cold. Even on the triple digit days. The food is great. The staff are awesome and friendly. They really give you that "Cheers" vibe.

Really nice and large portions, as pricey as everyone else around but really nice. Lovely music

Great atmosphere and food. Friendly wait staff, especiallyJimmy. Great daily specials. We had pizza and was delicious.

The Meatball Sandwich has always been my favorite but we got a pizza today. OMG! It was superb. We ordered the J Law pizza. Chefs kiss all the way. Tess was our server and sweet as always. Keep up the great work!

First thing the first restaurant opens for dine in Second thing the food amazing And really nice staff

i really enjoy this restaurant, my fathers a minestrone lover and this is his fave soup spot..me..well i do work all over the menu..i love the meatballs whilst sitting at the bar..well truth be told i love the meatballs no matter where i sit..i do work on the sandwiches as well👍🏻 dig it...

Ann Saldate

The food was amazing and the service was great

S “Devyn”

We have been 3 times and it’s fantastic each time. Incredibly consistent, and as a food service worker myself that’s super important to me. Pizza is so good, meatballs are perfect, and I want to be buried with a pint of their pink sauce. You can tell everything is house made and they have wonderful standards for taste and consistency. Even ordering Togo, it’s well packaged and fresh. Service has always been wonderful. It’s a bit loud inside, but not so much so it would keep me away. I’ve only lived in Merced about a year, but I’m an avid restaurant goer and have tried many of the local joints already. I would easily rate this one in my top 3.

A “AG4LIFE” G

The meat lovers pizza is the bomb. The staff always friendly, perfect place to hang out with friends or family and have good food. I also love their 🥗 salads as well.

Mario Jaimes

Food was absolutely delicious. Had the lobster ravioli and was honestly one of the best dishes I have ever had. The homemade pink wine sauce is absolutely incredible. Highly recommend.

Sophie Negi

We LOVED every aspect of our lunch at Destino’s. The food was as delicious as it was beautiful and the owner was so accommodating to both our dog and toddler on their patio. The patio and inside of the restaurant were both decorated with such warm charm and coziness. The owner even took extra time to reccomend local activities for us to do with our toddler. I would highly recommend this resturant for anyone looking for a yummy family outing.

Christopher

Destino's is a culinary gem that excels in creating a delightful dining experience. The atmosphere is warm and inviting, with a cozy ambiance that immediately puts you at ease. The staff is friendly and attentive, always ready to accommodate your needs with a smile. The restaurant's selection of alcoholic drinks is impressive, offering a variety of options to complement your meal. Whether you're in the mood for a classic cocktail or a glass of wine, Destino's has you covered. The food at Destino's is nothing short of spectacular. The appetizers, such as the beer-battered cheese bites and fried calamari, are cooked to perfection, crispy on the outside and deliciously gooey on the inside. But the real star of the show is the Mama Mia pizza. This mouthwatering creation features a perfect crust, flavorful sauce, and a generous topping of cheese and toppings. It's truly a culinary masterpiece that will leave you craving more. Overall, Destino's is a must-visit for anyone looking for a fantastic dining experience. From the atmosphere to the food, it checks every box and leaves you wanting more.

Rudy N

Casual Italian American with a selection of traditional dishes and appetizers. The Grande Bianco Lasagna is a must try. Pizzas is delicious too. The breaded chicken wings were really meaty and seasoned well.

ab6485

I really enjoyed my visit here. The food is on point with all the Italian Flavors you can expect! I ordered The White Lasagna made with chicken and mushrooms. It came with two pieces of garlic bread. I had a very delicious chocolate chip cookie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream in a hot skillet that satisfied my sweet tooth. For my beverages, I had strawberry lemonade and ice water. I highly recommend coming here. Just be patient because really good food takes time to make.

+4

Bennett Widyolar

Came here for lunch and ate outside on the patio! Got the house salad and mama mia pizza which was super delicious (pictured). Came back and got the meatball sandwich with a house salad and side of fries (pictured). Came back the Friday before Halloween and got the Chicken & Broccoli Rigatoni and Parmesan Cheese Bread appetizer (pictured). Both tasty!

+1

Jessica Hinman

Delicious food and great service. Always enjoy eating out at Destino's. I usually order their sausage zucchini soup with my meal. Their fried calamari is another go to. It is unlikely that you'll be unhappy with anything from Destino's. Everything I've had here is delicious.

Jim Bonstein

Great Italian restaurant with lots of choices for both food and drink in Merced. We started with an appetizer of delicious coconut shrimp. For our main meal we had the spaghetti squash with red sauce and a meatball and a Margarita pizza. A nice glass of Zinfandel rounded out the meal quite well. Service was prompt and friendly. We will be back soon.

Shjuana West

It was great! Service was great! Javier, was our waiter and he was awesome! His service was impeccable. If you want great, excellent and above and beyond service, Javier, is the man.

+6

CHARLES JAMES

Took the wife here today. Great food great service great price. We come here for the steak and potatoes dinner, which is excellent perfectly seasoned and cooked to our liking. Oh and the coconut shrimp is to die for.

+6

Stopped here foe a late lunch with friends. Had our meal al fresco which is always great. I wasn't particularly impressed with my shrimp scampi linguini. I make this better at home tbh. Pasta cooked al dente however Shrimp was overcooked and pasta had no flavor. Needed salt, pepper, lemon zest - something to give it flavor. The reason that I give them four stars was two reasons: pizza and customer service. Pizza was really good. It didn't need the herbs on top would have been just as good. Staff checked on us frequently and were very friendly.

Staff was very nice. Wait was not too long. Food was awesome.

My wife and i love eating here. There food is great and always friendly staff. The main issue we have is that there open hrs are absolutely horrible. Its almost like they are hardly open. At first i thought it was because everything has shorter hrs because of the ridiculous so called " pandemic". But things are open now and nope they have the worst hrs a restaurant could have. I mean if you work and want to have dinner after its a no go because they shut down crazy early. I hope they fix there hrs so we can actually enjoy there business again.

I came with a group of friends on a Friday evening and were seated right away. Even though the name has changed, I don't see much difference from the old restaurant. The menu seems the same also. We ordered pizza and some specialty drinks. Pizza is always good here. Service was a little slow, but friendly. We had to wait awhile for the food, but we did order 3 pizzas. Overall, I would go back.

Great lobster ravioli and my friend loved the chicken and vegetables. Their gelato is a great little meal finisher. Good service! Active bar on weekends. Only thing that reduces star rating is most seating is booths.

Service excellent, love the pizzas here! Great happy hour!

I have only eaten here twice. The items I have tried have been great. May update review if I eat there again and try more items! Service was great waitress was polite and attentive. Atmosphere is nice at lunch. Have not experienced it at dinner yet.

My waitress was so nice the food was yummy

The food was great. The waitress was very friendly. It was busy last night ,so that would explain why it took so long to take our order. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone.

Great meal, pizza was delicious, I would go back for the pizza. We had an issue with their online payment system, but it all got figured out. Overall a good eating experience at this restaurant. We were part of a large group and all the food came out promptly and hot.

Food at this place is good but price is just little expensive but definitely I recommend this place if someone want a good food here is the best choice

Food was good. My husband got the white lasagna and it was bomb!

Laurie Rice

There was one waitress the bar was full the tables were full and she was on point. My grandson ordered pepperoni pizza, yummy, my daughter ordered a sandwich with Garlic fries, not for the weak. I ordered A Blue moon,it was nice and cold.

Juanita Calvillo

Great place to eat with the family and even to go out for a date night. Food was great👍! Service was good. The only reason why I give it a 4 is cause it was very pricey I don't think they should charge extra for sauce (creamy pesto) in pastas. Also no toilet paper in restroom 😬 wine was good but of course like most restaurants they charge 7 for a glass when you can get the bottle for 8 at target. But I would come back.

Música RP

Coworker gave us gift cards so we took the kids. Had a very nice time; ate good food in a very pleasant atmosphere. We had a couple of appetizers and three meals. It has a bar, clean bathrooms, fun decor, and a comfortable atmosphere as a whole. Our server and host were both excellent. I promised the kids to take them for Gelato and Cheesecake after school on the last day before summer vacation begins! We can't wait!

+4

It's ok! The hours always seem odd to me, almost like they close too early or something. Everytime I've gone in they are about to close...but the food is decent and the wait staff is super nice! They do have homemade ice cream, which is really good! Definitely worth trying!

I've only been here once, and the meal was bland and kind of expensive. I feel like it may be the dish I ordered, because the appetizers were killer and so was the desert. I'll probably give it another shot. It had a pretty nice atmosphere and my server was very friendly.

We had very good service and the food was very good. However, it was so cold in there you could hang meat.

Had a good experience with the staff. The atmosphere is pleasant. Nice upstairs section to sit, no elevator (that i saw) I had the white lasagna, never had tried such a thing, but I took a chance and although I ate it and tasted ok, reminiscent of a pollo e fungi pasta. The pizza I had high hopes for. They did say brick oven after all. What a dissapoitment. I wanted to like it, but no. Crust was crunchy on the bottom, yet underdone on top, so the crunch from the bottom melded with the chewy top and it was edible. Tm Where it really took a dive: the sauce. It seemed like the sauce was equal parts tomato:dried parsley. The kids kept complaining and what kid complains about pizza. I kept wondering what that taste was kind of like they had poured olive juice in the sauce. I don't know. Maybe someone dropped an entire container of parsley or basil flakes in the sauce and they didn't wanna throw away the sauce so they fished out what they could. The kid that got the kids pasta was very happy. It was very good. I will try again another time on the off chance my palette was off that day. Give it a shot, maybe it's just me.

Pros: Good food, fast and attentive service, good bar selections, portion sizes are good. Cons: Higher prices than expected, tables and menus need to be cleaned, loud environment and not recommended to couples who want a dining experience where they have to raise their voice over the table next to them. Suggestion: Menu needs more selection for pasta.

Food was good, service was ok, quantities were less than expected and we were surprised not to have sides offered with dinner entrees. And maybe we're old - not taking off stars for this because it's a personal preference, just be aware that this place is LOUD. Not "cozy". Don't plan on having a conversation in here.

GREAT FOOD but still a order out for me. For my party we had to wait for drinks well over 15 minutes. (Food isn't everything a person looks for when eating at a restaurant.) AFTER being talked to by a NICE lady that's probably the owner or general manager. Unfortunately she's not the ones serving food... THAT was a feeling of being forgotten and not sure if they remembered my party upstairs. Till I got the attention of the waitress.They forgot to bring us FORKS TO EAT WITH until we asked for them of course...which took her another 3 minutes AFTER BEING SERVED! And had to wait more for extra napkins. This is why I prefer to order take out instead of dine in. The cooks are AMAZING AT THE FOOD ....SERVICE is a ? For me,HOPEFULLY your experience is better than mine was but overall a great eat.

Nice afternoon with outside seating, however the waitress miss understood my husband's order. They reordered and my dinner got cold. No drink comp or food comp for their mistake. My husband eventually got his order when I had already finished my dinner. My dish was ok, just no flavor and charged me extra for sauce on my raviolis. An early dinner that was dissatisfying and expensive. No recommendation from me.

The pizza was delicious. However, the spaghetti and sliders were extremely bland. For once I had to ask for salt packets at a restaurant. I felt like I was eating hospital food. Service was great though. Our waitress was very attentive and sweet.

The seating is nice and staff friendly. The pizza tastes fine but was sub-par for price. The salad looked old when we got it and lacked dressing and was pricey of course we still ate what we paid for but probably won’t be returning.

Tom Kelly

We are in Merced to visit Yosemite the next three days. The desk clerk at our hotel recommended Destino’s. It wasn’t bad, but not great either. Started with bruschetta. Taste was excellent, but the bread was not crisp like we’ve had at other Italian restaurants. We think it’s because the tomato topping was very “wet”. I had chicken parm, the chicken was very good, but the red sauce on the side spaghetti was somewhat spicy. I wish the server had told me that; maybe that’s why she asked if I wanted the pink sauce, but never having been there before, who knew? My wife got the shrimp scampi. The shrimp was very good, but the linguine was extremely bland. No taste of garlic and it REALLY needed salt. It’s a bit pricey, too, IMO. If we lived here, it would not be our go-to Italian restaurant.

Ellen Corene Jones

We had dinner to celebrate my Grandaughters 18th birthday. For an Italian restaurant, I was expecting a difference ambiance, however... We were seated at a downstairs table. These are situated around the room with the bar taking center stage upon coming in the front door. And an upper floor we didn't visit. Kind of reminded me of a hofbra restaurant & bar. I was surprised at how simple my dish & several others I tasted were. The red sauce w/o meat served on most of the pasta meals we ordered ( Beef Raviolis/ spagetti, etc. ) was plain, I was hoping to get a really tasty meal! The raviolis tasted like the large refridgerated ones at the market. The garlic bread also was nothing special. We were not offered Parmesan , In a shaker or grated by our server. I also tried the Chicken Alfredo my daughter ordered, I had to taste it as it is her favorite dish. The flavor was mild, and lacked any memorable taste for me. We ordered a side order of cheese bread, and it was also bland. For the price, I was totally unhappy with the food we ordered. I live alone and eat frozen pre-made meals too often & my taste has gotten extremely sensitive this year, food doesn't have to be highly seasoned for me to find favor or have garlic or pepper seasons taste like I have bitten into chili in my mouth, and I can't eat after tasting. However these sauces lacked any savory flavor or seasoning. Super mild. The food was prepared properly,they steralize the glsses at the bar, the place was very clean, & waiter was nice...

Ordered my first pizza today. Pretty good but not great. Unusual crust. Only one size pizza available which makes me think they use frozen crust. Adequate amount of toppings but almost no red sauce. Not a lot of flavor. Not your classic Italian style pie. Better than the junk pizzas from the likes of pizza hut or dominos. Might go back and ask for extra sauce. A long way from what I used to get in San Francisco. My quest for a really good pie in Merced will continue. Didn't try anything else so maybe the other food is better. To answer owner response. I will not be back for your pizza. If you mix your crust dough every morning all I can say is you need a new receipt. Might try some of the other food.....maybe

Service is good. However the food here tastes like preschool paste. It’s literally awful. It isn’t a thriving city but honestly I’ve eaten all over the US and the world, and had very good meals. Cooking in this valley should be farm to table easy. My salad was plain nasty. Lasagne was like soup and no flavor. This one is a radioactive avoid. Draft beer and bar service were excellent. Hence the 2nd star

Poor value. $14 for an uninspiring cold roast beef sandwich. Get a better sandwich at Jimmy John's for 1/2 the price. My friend received 1.5 meatballs on his sandwich with no sauce or peppers for $13. It was totally weak. Staff was friendly throughout at least and service was good despite the subpar meal. Avoid. Response to owner: Just to set the record straight; I absolutely did not say the sandwich was delicious. You walked by and said the typical "how are you doing?" or equivalent; I nodded, saying nothing. I did eat the entire sandwich. 1) After hiking all day in Yosemite, I was hungry. 2) I was raised to not waste food. There was nothing "wrong" with the sandwich but there was nothing special about it either. For $14, a cold roast beef sandwich should be great. Let me also state for the audience that the sandwich came with a salad or cup of soup. The soup tasted very good but it was also the smallest cup of soup I have ever seen or received from a restaurant. Not the normal soup cup size. Everything about my review is valid. You can still get a better sandwich at Jimmy Johns. Sorry. If you want a good review, provide better value to your customer.

Had a family dinner the other night. It was Friday evening. Waited 45 min plus ..only received half of order . 10 min later the rest of us got our orders Still missing several sides. Had to ask for silverware .one orde4 was not correct . Received it a second time..still not right. Not planning to go back anytime soon..

Marilyn Gtz

The food looked good, and it tasted ok (the lasagna pasta was hard). Then we found, not 1 but 2 hairs in our food. 😖 The manager didn't charge us for the food with hair, which was the sliders and garlic fries. I'm not sure if we will be back. That did gross me out.

+1

After spending money at this place for years I will not be going back. I spent nearly $50 tonight on 2 salads and an appetizer. After getting home to a different town I realized my salads did not come with the dressings. They were dry. I called and explained I was in a different town and we couldn’t eat the salads like this. They promised to call me back which they never did. I called back four hours later and asked if they would refund me or allow me to pick up the salads on a different day. They explained they would only refund me $5 as the dressing did not make the whole meal. Well, I think it does. It’s like asking for spaghetti and having to eat it without the sauce . I will not be going back to this business. I don’t appreciate their condescending tone and their terrible customer service

I took my son here for his birthday. He wanted a steak but they said they couldn't make it because it was too early. His chicken parm was soggy and the noodles were cold. I asked them to add chicken to my dish, they added what looked like slices of lunch meat and explained after that their grill wasn't turned on yet so they were limited in what they could cook. I had to refill my own drinks as the server showed no attention to our table. It was quite obvious that I was upset at the terrible quality food and even worse service yet instead of asking what they could do to make it better they tried to upsale me on a dessert for my sons birthday instead of offering a complimentary one for being so terrible. Another observation, I noticed that all the good service was going to elderly Caucasian people who looked to be the usual patronage. Anybody of color was not getting the same attention. The manager was aware of my complaints yet never bothered to engage me in any way. I was very polite when I informed them of my displeasure. The bill was way overpriced for a chicken patty with cold tomato sauce and lunchmeat. My advice is to stay away unless you're white in which case you might be ok.

We had horrible service. Initially we had a waitress take our drink order and our toddler meal request. She offered to give us a few minute to think. 10 minutes later we asked another waiter to ask her to come and he offered to take the order and pass it on. An hour later, no food, asked the original waitress if she knew about our food, she rolled her eyes at us and told us she was not our server and that she would have to find him. It finally came and the food was not worth the wait. We should have waited and gone to Bella Luna, their food is good.

I had a less than ideal experience at this place. The service was deplorable. The food was ok. It took forever to get our food and it wasn’t that busy. We dined in on a Monday evening, wasn’t that busy! Terrible place!!

Apparently the coconut shrimp thry had an pic is nowhere near whats served. Used to be good food now it tastes like a line cook made it....drowning in bland sauce so pasta is wide an overcooked fromm all the sauce....Orderd the more expensive dinner an didnt even get white meat breast chicken. I got sNdwich pieces? Oh the nice fresh chesse they used to grate on top ..noopppe.. i asked an got handed pizza packets. Spaghetti was terrible. Tasted like salt an litterally spent 80 bucs. Ate 3 bits paid the check an walked accross to pizza place....If i was the owner id be pissed that the standard slipped that hard for those pric3s,,, even the plating looks sloppy.....u should hire a chef again....it shows in your quality of food.....glad u got to keep a free 80 bucs....never ever will i return.....this buisnees lost good food an hired the wrong people for thier kitchen. Have them taste somw of the dishes or at least have them look at what your food used to look like so the standards dont fall so hard

I ordered a pizza and it was overpriced and the cheese smelt like throw up 🤮

Honestly the worst service I have experienced in a really long time. I called ahead and asked about dropping off a cake for our son's birthday. We brought the cake early and dropped it off. Came later to the restaurant and got seated and no one ever came to take our order. Finally, got up and went to the bar to order drinks, iced tea and asked if they could send a server. Finally we ordered food, then we asked for another plate, refill on iced tea and a side of dressing. Never came. We finally ate and our server never came back, to top it off the cake never came out either. Our server was completely non existent and careless. We even asked for help from on other person and he also never came back. The only one that seemed to have a clue was the female bartender. Food is mediocre , the drinks are good- service is pretty bad.

$30 with tip included for some rigatoni without chicken is a total joke.

Catherine Gregory

Service here was the worst I’ve had EVER! My food was warm not hot, I asked for a margarita with no salt and 16 minutes later she brings me a margarita loaded with salt and then when the correct drink came they gave it to someone else at our table. I promise you I will never go back to this restaurant again.