Mick Dunn

Cantina Cafe Ristorante in Middletown turned out to be a fabulous place for our Valentine’s Day celebration. They really did a wonderful job of keeping up with everything going on that night. Portions here seem to be quite sizable, and everything that came out of their kitchen looked most excellent. With atmosphere buzzing, sitting in the main dining area felt a bit like sitting on your grandparents’ farm porch; nicely decorated with wine imagery of baskets and grapes. For meals, I went with the amazingly tender Pork Loin Piccata which was loaded with the flavors of capers and artichoke hearts, while she enjoyed the Veal and Eggplant Sorrentino. Everything here was perfect and we had a lovely evening. Highly recommended.

Marisa Balletti-Lavoie

Cantina Cafe Ristorante in Middletown, CT, is a hidden gem and, in my opinion, the best restaurant in the state. Tucked away in the basement of an Italian club, this place serves up culinary masterpieces that keep me coming back. I often find myself dreaming of their chicken calabria—it's a true work of art! The cozy, authentic atmosphere and the exceptional flavors make Cantina Cafe Ristorante a must-visit for anyone who loves Italian cuisine.

+6

Alexandra D.

Very cool ambiance and extensive menu. The biggest portion sizes I have ever seen, my Nani would have been proud. Plan on having leftovers for lunch and dinner the next day.

Nellie Legrand

First valentines with my finance and boy I have to tell you this man knows his way to my heart. We had a wonderful experience at this restaurant. What an amazing place. The food was excellent, fresh and full of taste. This will be my restaurant to visit when craving a great pasta meal.

Nick Sackandy

Best Italian food I've eaten in CT. Wish they had meatballs! 😆 Stone Porkchop & the Chicken Parm are wonderful. Big portions. Expect leftovers!

Robin Hernandez

I have been wanting to try Cantina for quite some time. I finally went and was not disappointed. The host was amazing. Fresh warm rolls with olive oil..omg..I could eat just that! Salad was very fresh and delicious. My entree was amazing! My dad and my sister also enjoyed their entrees. Ambiance was very charming and rustic. I would highly recommend. Loved it!

Cara MacDonald at Cara Mac Media

WOW! The food at Cantina is absolutely amazing. This is the best meal I’ve had in a very long time. My husband had the veal parmigiana and I had the gnocchi salimbocca. The portions are huge and everything tasted so fresh. We can’t wait to go back!

Amanda T

After hearing about this place for years, I finally made it there. Amazing food, authentic atmosphere and fantastic service. If getting a pasta dish, consider getting one family style.

I had lived in Middletown for 10 years, years ago, and I've never been here, in the same building as the Italian society of Middletown. I originally liked the feel, however, relatively speaking, too many large parties in a small tight restaurant. I got the "special" Chicken Picata with angel hair pasta. It was huge (see picture) but the chicken was served as Chicken Parmesan, with mozzarella and fried, still very good, just not chicken picata. Angel hair pasta wes good, huge artichokes 😁, lots of capers and a tasty lemon sauce but too thin and too much. The salad ad salad dressing were perfect and the bread, butter, and EVO spiced perfectly were just that, perfect.

Kathleen O'Reilly

Food portions are insane - we couldn't make a dent and the second picture shows our leftovers containers. Go with the extra plate for $8 and order 1 meal and maybe another side salad. Calamari was outstanding and shrimp scampi too. Great service and vibe. Plan to find parking - it's a city after all.

Juliana Simone

Attending a popular annual event here in April 2022, cocktails and mingling traditionally began the first hour. Family style antipasto platters, salad, rolls and penne in red sauce were brought to tables by servers for the first course. A buffet dinner with multiple chafing dishes on two long banquet tables were on each side of the room. Prepared meals consisted of sausage, green pepper and roasted potatoes, a white fish topped with crabmeat stuffing and veal roulade with asparagus and cheese in brown gravy. Cannolis were brought to tables for the dessert course. Self-serve coffee was available to patrons on a rear table.

+5

Valerie B

This place came highly recommended so I had pretty high expectations when we booked our anniversary dinner here. I have to admit I'm a little disappointed. Parking was a little tough.The decor was very cluttered and dated with a ton of plastic vines,plastic and stenciled grapes on the walls and wicker baskets all over. Vinyl checkered tablecloths. I guess "homey" would be the best and kindest description.The service was good and pretty efficient. The food portions were way beyond expectation. Really huge,however the two meals that we ordered,chicken parmigiana and chicken gorgonzola were not too much beyond average in taste. So nothing too impressive here besides portion size. Probably have enough food leftover for the next 2 days. This is a good midweek family spot that will allow you to have some decent leftovers for the work week. It's really not a "special occasion" or date night restaurant though. Probably wouldn't make the drive again.

Jenny Minutillo

Portion for each entree is more than the average person can finish and, yet, they charge you $8 plate-share fee! Food was not bad but not great either. Plenty of other places to try in the area before returning.