La Scala Ristorante Italiano

My husband and I had dinner on sunday 6−19−16.
the 2waiter was unfriendly, unhelpful and tried to be intimidating!
the food was passable at best. I ordered pasta with clams, most of the clam shells were broken but still in the dish. Not appetizing1
Very disappointed and will be sure to NOT recommend this restaurant.

While their prices may make this a special occasion restaurant, it is my go to spot for a can’t miss dinner with family or out of town friends. They have a large menu, a large specials menu, but don’t be afraid to order off the menu or ask them to modify. They are very accepting and will accommodate any dietary restriction or taste. On this visit I got the pasta with old bay and shrimp. It was prepared in a garlicky olive oil, and I enjoyed every bite. Two of us tried some specials — a peppery steak, and lamb with gnocchi. The servings we generous, and both plates went back empty. If I were allowed to deduct a half star, on this occasion I would have for our waiter. He was on the edge of funny and angry. Not sure why, but he ignored requests for bread (we asked the guy that poured the water), straws (again, the water guy brought these) and twice when we asked for the string beans and potato’s that are always served and put on every table, he gave us a rushed answer the first time, and when they still didn’t come, gave me an angry «you’ll get them». We did not. But everyone is entitled to a bad night, and the food is as good as it gets, so 5 stars La Scala

I’ve tried many of the restaurants in Little Italy, and La Scala is one of my favorites: classic Italian food executed with care and fresh, top-​of-​the-​line ingredients. Since the area is endowed with tons of great restaurants, it can be hard to choose. Words of wisdom: La Scala is a good choice
A friend and I made our way here last Friday when I was suffering from a savage pasta craving. Even without a reservation, we were seated upon arrival (around 7 pm), and greeted by our waiter with menus and water. A few minutes later, an amuse bouche/​pintxo came out: blanched green beans and potatoes marinated in a light vinaigrette and dashed with olive oil and pepper. Nice, light way to wake up the taste buds. We split the grilled Caesar salad, which was delicious and more than enough for two. If you haven’t had your romaine grilled, you haven’t lived!
On to the entrees, and one of the coolest things about La Scala: you can get half-​orders of any of their classic pastas for the same price as a full order! Thus, the indecisive of us can get the best of both worlds. I chose half orders of the bolognese and carbonara. The bolognese was the best I’ve ever had! I would come back and order family sized amounts of it to freeze if I though it would keep. The acidity of the tomatoes balanced by the cream and savory beef had my friend and I fighting over last bites (we always share). My carbonara was good, but incredibly rich with a fried egg on top, and nothing to cut the creaminess. But hey, if you can’t get enough butter and cream, this dish is for you! My friend ordered the shrimp and crab alfredo, which was very, very good, with plump shrimp and tons of lump crab meat. This dish was rich, obviously, but not to the degree of the carbonara, so I would rate it second in the pasta trifecta (you take the gold bolognese!).
The service was another high point. The chef/​owner went table to table greeting and chatting with guests, pouring their wine, and overall being an excellent host. Our waiter was attentive, prompt, and quick to assist with any request. Point being, La Scala is a great dinner destination when you’re in downtown Baltimore. Don’t miss out!

Nothing to write home about. Caprese salad was pathetic. The Zappa was horrible curdled kale something or other. Even the $ 18 glass of champaign was lame. Sorry would not go there again.

This was a disaster from the beginning a waiter who talks so fast with an accent u couldn’t understand anything he said we ordered veal Parmesan and it was disgusting from the burnt batter to not melting The mozzarella cheese totally over cooked veal the whole meal was bad we asked for a dessert menu the waiter rattled off a couple of things so fast you couldn’t understand what he was saying and walked away so we paid the bill and left would not recommend this restaurant to anyone.

Fantastic Italian food. Love their bread, all great dishes. Their moscato is very smooth here

Was here for a private dinner party and was impressed by the great Italian food. Little Italy in Baltimore has many fine Italian restaurants, but La Scala may be the best. We ordered off a specially prepared menu for our party and every entrée was tried (15 attended) and enjoyed. My veal saltimbocca was delicious the veal just melted in your mouth. Several got a Filet Mignon with a balsamic reduction and the thick filet was prepared perfectly for each order from rare to medium well. You would not get a better steak at a upscale steak house. Also a shrimp marinara and swordfish entrees were terrific! Overall a delightful meal.

We had a really nice experience here. Great service and the food was delicious. My boyfriend felt that there could have been more crab and shrimp in his pasta dish but mine (Al’s Way) was perfect.

My husband and I went recently for our wedding anniversary. I would definitely recommend this for a nice date night/​romantic dinner outing.
Ambiance — romantic yet lively… we had a wonderful table upstairs in the inside balcony area overlooking the bocce court. It was intimate enough to have a nice conversation with one another but social enough that we could have some sporadic conversation with the nice people at the table next to us.
Service — I wish I remembered our servers name. He was an older gentleman and fantastic! He was super friendly, congratulated us on our anniversary, made us feel like we were the most important patrons there, and made the best suggestions on menu items we couldn’t pick between.
Food — So amazing and it was so hard to pick from all the fabulous items on the menu. We started off with the mussels in the garlic butter sauce (maybe the best mussels I have ever had) and also chose 2 cheeses/​2 meats. The cheese from the Netherlands stuck out — very good and the prosciutto and pancetta were fantastic! My husband had the shrimp and crab alfredo which was very good but I was definitely partial to shrimp fra diavolo dish that I had. Soooo good! We really didn’t leave much room for dessert but we were brought out a complimentary piece of tiramisu for our anniversary and it was yummy!

My family and I have been coming to this wonderful restaurant for years, whether I come in with my parents or by myself they are always welcoming. The food is great, I have yet to have a meal here I do not like, the grilled caesar salad and chicken parm are personal favorites, and the specials are always fresh and delicious. Anyone coming to Baltimore for a visit or even locals definitely need to give La Scala’s a try!!!

Outstanding service, atmosphere and charm. The service was exceptional. I had the veal Parmesan and Cesar salad. The server gratuitously suggested we split the salad due to the generous portion! The veal was tender and cooked to perfection. Highly recommended!

From what I’ve tried this is my favorite place to eat in Little Italy. The service is always great, they keep your water filled which is a plus for me. The calamari is really good, as is the quality of all of the seafood. The pasta is always cooked al dente. We have been 6 or 7 times now!

5 starts! Why not?
I had a great time, great meal, wine, waiter, ambiance and good «Italian style at attenzione «.
Grilled octopus to start was delicious and thank God not raw or slippery slimy.
Entrees went from pasta, chicken special stuffed with mortadella and cheese (polo Bolognese) and of course my saltimbocca with a great sauce.
I was suggested to have an espresso martini, and tried it. It was a great surprise, specially for someone like me who by tradition will have the martini at the beginning as an apéritif.
The whole meal was accompanied with a nice Barolo that got better and better with time exposure to air.
We will return and will try doing some bocci which is right in the premises.
Our waiter from Azerbaijan, did a great job suggesting the right choices.
The only thing I may not order again is the cannoli.
I guess there always some room to work on bettering at something.
I am still wondering why we did not come here before… Is right on Eastern Ave. can’t miss it!!!

Tasty fare in little Italy. Shuttle picked us up at our hotel. Wonderful food /​nice atmosphere.

This was definitely one of my favorite experiences in eating Italian food! The appetizer: gnocchi in mushroom and garlic butter sauce was decadent, and my favorite part of my meal. The veal parmesan was delicious. We had a cheese plate too and I loved them and I’m not a cheese fan. The Chianti went down with it all smoothly. The atmosphere was interesting. I’m glad we were seated upstairs, downstairs seating is a more casual, bar type atmosphere and there is an indoor bocci court. Upstairs is more fine dining in appeal. Service was excellent… The server was attentive and knowledgeable about the menu.

To be honest, in the 8 years that I’ve been living in Baltimore I’ve never had dinner in Little Italy. I’ve had plenty of Italian meals, but they’ve been from other parts of the city. In an effort to check out someplace new, a friend and I did a Foursquare search for the best place for dinner in the area and La Scala came up. The menu was full of classic Italian fare and looked great.
I have very strong loving feelings for polenta so when I saw Polenta alla Griglia on the menu, we decided to order it. The dish came with three baked polenta cakes topped with pancetta and porcini mushrooms in a cognac and porcini sauce. I wasn’t in love with the texture of the polenta, I prefer it to be either creamier or fried, but the sauce was wonderful and would probably taste great on pasta.
My friend ordered the Pollo Abbruzzese which was boneless chicken breast sautéed with sun dried tomato, basil, and in a white wine sauce. My friend enjoyed this dish, but it wasn’t anything spectacular.
I had a pasta craving, we were in Little Italy! So I ordered the Fettuccine Verdi alla Bolognese which was ground beef, in a creamy sauce over spinach fettuccine. The pasta was fresh and the sauce was creamy, it really satisfied my pasta craving!
If you’re looking for straightforward classic Italian fare (and an indoor bocce ball court), La Scala has something for you!

So this place has a bachi ball field!
Went on a Saturday night for my one year anni.
Was a lot of fun and the ambience was very lively and energetic.
We ordered the veal marsala and some chicken dish. Both were very good! The main entrees always come with a mini bowl of pasta with marinara sauce. I am giving this place a four because I thought that it would be better to serve the main entrees with a side such as asparagus or potatoes, or pasta with the entrée sauce instead of marinara. But other then that, this place is a must try!
I also ordered wine by the glass. sangiovese was delish.
The Pinot noir was good as well.
Next time, I def. Would like a pasta dish!

Update– after our last horrible experience, I called and let the manager know what happened and he was very apologetic. So, we tried again. Not nearly as bad this time. Not great — but certainly not nearly as bad. I will say that nearly everyone was incredibly friendly– always greeting, asking how things were. The host/​mgr even appeared asking if my steak was cooked to my liking (it was not-​although close and I could have sent it back but we waited long enough as it was). My wife had the shrimp pasta with cognac butter sauce– «tasteless and blah» as she says. I tried it– would have to agree. I had the filet mignon– very good. Again, undercooked and could have used fewer peppercorns. Just my taste perhaps with the peppercorns but too crunchy. Bruschetta appetizer was very good.
Word of advice to the server– much more customer friendly to have eye-​contact with the customers. Especially when you are running through the specials. Neither my wife nor I (mid 40’s– not too old) could understand a word he said with all the background noise, his looking away, and his soft tone). I would imagine your customer base is, on average, older than us and would assume that most have some presbycusis (normal age-​related hearing loss).
Actually left without dessert and coffee and went to a new place in Cockeysville– CuVina Trattoria. Much better service, better food, and better overall atmosphere.

Nino always makes you feel at home. This is on ALL accounts the #1 restaurant in little Italy. Some would say the #1 restaurant in Baltimore. Tip: get the grilled Caesar Salad and the espresso martini (even if it’s to share between the table). Love the bocci ball court, it is always fun to watch.
I am always upset because the specials are so good, but you can never get them again! If that is the worst thing about the restaurant, then I think I’m ok.
Ambiance: 10÷10− you have casual, raucous downstairs. Fancy white table cloth upstairs.
Food: ¹⁰⁄₁₀ do I even need to say more? Pasta is soft yet al dente, clearly house made.
Service: 10÷10− they always remember you, and VERY heavy wine pours.

We were in Bmore for a weekend getaway and prior to going researched places within walking distance of our hotel and found La Scala and were so impressed with it’s very high rating and extensive, authentic Italian menu (as well as the fact that they offer Happy Hour (BTW — this review site REALLY MUST add Happy Hour as a sortable category to help us find places!)) that we just had to try it out for ourselves.
Upon entering, we were quickly and enthusiastically greeted by the staff and we sat ourselves at the bar. We were greeted by an INCREDIBLE bartender who was VERY happy to serve us! He perfectly explained EVERYTHING from the wine and what grapes were used to make it to the regions the wine came from to their vast menu and all the specials. He even explained the preparation of the various dishes they serve!
We had such a great time trying so many different dishes… we stayed for well over 2 hours enjoying wine and perfectly-​prepared Italian specialties! We met the owner, Nino (what a great guy!) and chatted with him too. We also talked to other customers who raved about the food and service too.
The espresso martini was AMAZING! They told us it’s voted the best in Baltimore — we believe that!
This is a DEFINITE MUST-​TRY when you’re in the area! We can’t wait to go back!