Lotsa Pasta

This place makes me question Unilocal reviews. Was starving & couldn’t get the food down. Both of us sent our food back & the lady was so rude we just left. And went to Primo’s & had a fantastic meal.

I went to this restaurant with my friend and upon arrival, the rude old woman at the counter just looked at us like she expected to talk. She didn’t indicate that she was ready for us, and when we were done placing our order, she didn’t make it clear that we were supposed to find our own seat. We did not feel welcomed at all. However, the young waitress was very kind and brought the waters and garlic bread almost immediately. When the food arrived, it was very unsatisfactory. It lacked salt, pepper, and seasoning in general. There was a random tomato in my fettuccine alfredo and there was so much nutmeg that it was visible to the naked eye. Then, we decided we needed more bread to drown out the flavor of the pasta. On many Unilocal reviews, we read that garlic bread was bottomless. However, on the menu it said that it was $ 1.75 for extra bread. That being said, it wasn’t a problem for us because we were willing to spend money on this delicious bread. When we went to the counter and asked the lady (Diane) for more bread, she simply said, «no, we do not serve bread here.» I was shocked and surprised. We decided to give it another shot and ask the waitress explaining that on the menu it was $ 1.75 and we could just pay her from our table She looked confused and said, «you know the garlic bread is complimentary, right?» This was the last straw. At this point we quickly finished our garlic bread and left. We will never go back. All in all, don’t go here if you don’t enjoy rude old women. The only thing that earned it a star, and the only redeeming factor was the bread and the fact that it isn’t possible to give a restaurant a review of zero stars.

This place is great. Reminds me of a true home cooked pasta meal down to the authentic marinara. The meatballs are to die for.

Tonight was our second attempt at eating here. The first time, we were so offended by the rude woman taking orders at the counter (from reading other reviews, must have been Diane, the owner’s wife) that we didn’t think we’d go back. She was so snarky, rude and unhelpful. We felt like we were massively annoying her by wanting to order food from her restaurant. But tonight, we were desperate for something quick that didn’t require a reservation and found ourselves back there, at least this time we knew what to expect from the order taker.
We walked in the door and there she was again. No, «hello», no, «welcome», no «may I take your order». She just stands there with a pen and a pad of paper and stares at you. You have to do ALL the talking and she offers no help and no information. I asked, «Do you have angel hair pasta?» She said yes. I said, «I’d like angel hair pasta with meatballs.» She said, «that doesn’t come with meatballs». OOOH KAY,… well what are my options? May I have a side of meatballs?
Then my husband says, «what do you recommend for an appetizer» and she literally says, «what are you talking about?» My husband responds, «Something to eat before we get our food… an appetizer.» She says rudely, «We don’t do that.» Weird. I’ve never been in a restaurant that didn’t have a single appetizer.
The reason I’m writing the review is that on top of having to suffer through Diane to get our order placed, the food was awful. I ordered lasagna and it came in an oval chaffing dish, topped with cheese with a giant puddle all the way across of oil. The top was burning hot but the inside of the lasagna was cold. The lasagna was a hodge podge of pasta, ricotta, sliced sausage (what?) and probably the generic meat sauce they put on everything. There didn’t seem to be any «layers» like you’d expect in lasagna– it seemed like it was all thrown in the dish and covered with cheese to hide the fact that it wasn’t composed like lasagna is supposed to be. It was no better than Chef Boy Ar Dee canned ravioli — I’m not kidding.
I’m shocked at the number of people that say the food is good. Maybe they don’t get out much.
The gal who served our food to us was attentive and friendly. I feel sorry for her that she has to work with Diane. And this «Tom» that many of the other reviewers mentioned, not to be seen either time we visited.

Best meatballs in the Bay Area. For sure. The garlic bread which comes with every order is really good. Salad is good too. That’s what I normally get anyways. Has a really family owned feel. Seriously though, the meatballs and the sauce that they’re in is awesome!

Lotsa Pasta is my absolute favorite restaurant!
Their Italian food Is consistently delicious and they get it to me quickly!
I like the family atmosphere and the casual and comfortable «vibe» in the restaurant.
Located right on my way home to my house, I find parking is easy and I often get takeout.
The restaurant owners Tom and Diane greet me by name with a smile.
Yum!

The food served to me was some of the worst Italian food I have ever tried to eat. The chicken parm was a piece of dried out chicken buried in a heavy red sauce that was just awful. The Gnocchi was inedible and had to have been frozen. Stay away until the chef learns how to cook.

Lotsa Pasta is one of my favorite restaurants in the East Bay. I grew up getting pasta from here, and now make the drive from Walnut Creek to Danville for spaghetti and meatballs (even with at least 15 other places between here and there serving the same dish). The meat sauce is out of this world good. The linguine with clams is also delicious and filling. My dad swears by the lasagna, which has meatballs and sausage in it. All around a delicious, amazing, little place.

Terrible food. I ordered to go a Caesar chicken salad and their meat soup. The Caesar dressing was thick and tasteless. The meat soup was heated thick tomato paste with a horrible tangy taste with some grit added that may have been hamburger. I threw both of them out.
How can this place have 3.5 stars. I won’t be back.

If you are craving the worst dinner and the worst service ever, this is your place. The lady in the front «helping» people was the rudest woman our party has ever dealt with! Not only was she not helpful in any way, she was condescending and impatient. Never ever will we eat there again. Only one of us finished our food, and probably because he was in the Army and is used to crappy food…

I have been coming to Lotsa Pasta since I was a little kid. It is such a cute little place! The service is fast, the food is REALLY good, they give free garlic bread, the price is very reasonable, and the owner is always very friendly! I don’t live in the area anymore, but try to eat here whenever I visit my family in Alamo. Tom and Diane the owners are super nice, and always remember me. I highly recommend Lotsa Pasta if looking for a casual family dinner with high quality food!

If I could give it zero stars I would in a heart beat. Worst service we have ever had. The old woman that runs the place is extremely rude and looks as though she hates life. She seems miserable working here at lotsa pasta. Her disgust with life shows and she treated us with her nasty attitude.
The food is good, but needed salt and pepper.

The food is the great, the owner is a character, the price is reasonable, it’s a great location, need I say more?

I love their clam pasta and you should eat there for the constant garlic bread. It’s in a bit of a strange location but has a really welcoming feel when you go in.

Horrible service! I called in today (September 15, 2015) to make an order for pick up, and an older man who picked up on the other end, was being super rude. I was being very patient with him, but I had enough of his attitude. I had previously ordered from here before, and the girl who helped me out was very polite.
The first time I’ve tried the food, it wasn’t all that great. I was craving pasta and work nearby so I wanted to give this place another try, but after what I dealt with this morning, I’m never coming back!

Pros: This is a family owned joint with really friendly staff making some authentic Italian goodness! If you like pasta, you will love this place! There is a large selection of pasta dishes at really good prices! The meat sauces in the spaghetti are thick and meaty. The linguni has a great texture and chewiness along with their delicious sauces.
Cons: The place is a bit dark and did not feel super clean (though it may be very clean I just couldn’t tell because of the lighting). It has that old diner feel which is good but wasn’t quite the atmosphere for me.
Overall: Definitely recommended if you like pasta because their food and prices are good!

If you are looking for an elegant dining experience, fancy food, atmosphere, and great servers, then this is not the place for you. This is a small mom and pop operation. The food is good, service is fast, the prices are relatively inexpensive, and the place is clean, but not fancy.
The owner take you order at the counter, and the food, bread, and drinks are delivered to my high school students. Not many places employ kids any more, I respect the places that do.
We have been going here for over 10 years. I never had to wait long for a meal, and never sent a meal back to the kitchen. I like their spaghetti with meat sauce. Yes there are places that make better food in this town, but they charge a lot more money.

Have to agree with several other recent posts. The young lady was nice and helpful. Woman behind the counter did not seem to want to be there. My daughter had the garlic cream while she enjoyed however it was quite rich. I went with their signature meat sauce dish. A little too runny for my taste.
We may be back but did not blow me away. If you specialize in one type of food I am looking for great not just slightly above average.
As I wrote this review the nice young girl quickly bused my table. I guess it is time to leave.

Great local Italian joint!
Found them on Unilocal as we were craving Italian and driving this direction.
There are a few spaces in front of the restaurant but plenty of free street parking nearby.
Ordered the following:
Cesar salad — very good dressing and fresh lettuce.
Fettuccini Alfredo with chicken — Delicious! Very creamy and generous portions of grilled chicken.
Gluten-​free pasta with marinara sauce — the noodles were great but the sauce wasn’t what I expected. It was a bit on the watery side. The flavor was just OK
Kids cheese french bread pizza — the kids loved it!
Complimentary garlic bread. So buttery and toasted! We went through 2 baskets.
Did I mention how fast the food comes out?! Literally 5 minutes.
The gentleman at the front who I assumed was the owner was great! Super friendly, engaging and personal, and spent time getting to know the customers. What blew me away was his honesty. I ordered two kids cheese pizzas and he told me that one order would be enough for my young kids.
I can’t wait to go back to try their other items. Their garlic bread is addicting!

I stopped by for lunch while strolling around downtown Danville on a Friday afternoon. The place looked real small and casual, but it did have some interesting pasta combinations on the menu.
I ordered the spinach linguine (or was it fettuccine?) with Parmesan and chicken. It came with an order of toasted garlic bread that was pretty good — almost like a small cheese pizza. Pasta was cooked perfectly (al dente) and the chicken well seasoned. I especially liked how the sauce was light and didn’t overwhelm everything.
It’s a good place for a quick bite to eat — fast food but very quality ingredients. Would definitely come back!