Carmine's Ristorante & Pizzeria

03/27/09

Great meal and atmosphere for the price!

by dukedarling at Citysearch

I have enjoyed Italian restaurants in Cary (eg, Biaggi's, Vespa, Bella Napoli), and Casalinga in Raleigh. This was by far the best Italian meal for the price of any I have tried in the Triangle.! The atmosphere was clean and modern. I expected more of a modern day pizzeria meal, but felt the meal quality far exceeded my expectations. The ingredients were fresh, the cheeses, the tomatoes, the pasta was well prepared. The owners were warm and hospitable. My only suggestion is more warmth on entry. You won't be disappointed and once the word gets out, this place will be packing them in!

• Pros: Food was wonderful!
• Cons: Waiter was slow to get to table but great once arriving

03/25/09

Used to be good--But NO MORE! Never again!

by comfortandjoy at Citysearch

We were impressed by our first visit to Carmine's and I mistakenly raved about it to many people--including my boss. After receiving two shockingly negative reports back about it in a row, we went a third time and experienced what my boss and another friend had. The service was shockingly horrible. As another person on here reports--food is delivered to other tables but wasn't to ours. We were there for lunch and it took over 50 minutes to receive our food. Once it arrived, it was cold and not at ALL like it had been the first two times we had tried Carmine's. My dish was so so so salty it was inedible. The waitress NEVER came to check on us (clearly because she knew the food she delivered up to us was substandard), never once got a refill on any of our drinks (after it took 33 minutes just to receive our drinks in the first place), another 18 minutes for the bill to arrive after we asked for it....and then it was WRONG! The manager (??? I use this loosely--the guy who rings the bills) came over to acknowledge that it was taking long and yet he didn't check with the waitress, check with the kitchen or do anything about it. Even more disturbing is that when I contacted Carmine's about our experience, they simply did not care! . . . a $50 lunch and it was horrendous. Yes, we had two good experiences before, but between the feedback coming back to me from those I recommended the place to, and our last experience, I would seriously recommend you dine ANYWHERE BUT CARMINE'S Trust me, you'll be thankful you did.

• Pros: Easy to get a table
• Cons: HORRIBLE service, Inconsistent quality

03/20/09

Best Italian Food in Chapel Hill

by Italianfoodcritic5865 at Citysearch

My husband and I have been to Carmine's several times because of the homemade Italian sauce. I know GOOD SAUCE because I make my own. The key to Italian cooking is "THE SAUCE". The pasta, seafood dishes are superb. The thin crust pizza was also very good and they deliver which is an extra plus.

The service is very good, and the waiters are always looking to help you.

My husband and I recommend Carmine's Restaurant, it's the BEST ITALIAN FOOD IN TOWN.

by Mary and Buddy Giordano - Chapel Hill

• Pros: The atmosphere and the music the was very delightful.
• Cons: none