Pasta Express

Was here for a business luncheon. Not bad, not great. I know it was not their regular menu, so I’ll cut them some slack. Not sure if I would want to pay retail if this is what they push as pasta. They should use these events to promote themselves, not move you down the line to the plastic spork and your chips ahoy cookie. One lady (obviously a manager or supervisor) was very pleasant and courteous. Other attendants had no hospitality, and seemed dis-​interested until the supervisor pointed to do something, then it wasn’t very gracious. I knowthey’re kids, but hey, your getting paid, your indoors, not making frys, and not pushing shopping carts in the rain.

Good food for the price and the fact that it’s a quick-​service restaurant. Obviously you shouldn’t expect authentic Italian food (for starters, there’s a lot of Provel cheese on the menu!) but they have a nice variety. I can see how some people could find the portions a bit small; however, I think the portion sizes are perfect compared to the oversized portions you find in most American restaurants. I think the side salad portions are actually quite large, especially if you get takeout (they pack the container full!) — the small antipasto salad with the accompanying rolls makes a great light meal. My personal favorite is the manicotti. My 3 yo loves the kids mac and cheese (one of the better kids menu mac and cheeses I’ve tasted!) and my 1 yo inhales the kids mostaccioli (penne with marinara).
However, service and business practices are questionable. They always ask if you want tomato and cheese on your salad; however, they never tell you that it costs 50 cents each ($ 1 total). I finally found this fact hidden in the paper menu, but I’m not sure if it’s on the drive-​thru menu. The service when we eat in the restaurant has been fine (except for the cheese and tomato issue), but we’ve had several issues with the drive through. It is often very slow — don’t bother if there’s more than one car in line. I’m actually not sure why they even have a drive through when it’s so slow. One time they somehow lost our order in between ordering it at the speaker and picking it up at the window, where they tried to give us someone else’s order and couldn’t even find our order in their system. Fortunately I noticed the food was wrong, so they made us the correct order and gave us the entire meal for free which was great! But another time, my husband drove through and didn’t realize they forgot one of the entrees until he got home. He actually went back to the restaurant to get it, and they did not offer him any sort of discount, coupon, or free food — I thought that was pretty poor service.
We still go here since its on my commute and the kids like it, but now I always carefully inspect the receipt and food before leaving the drive through…

Love pasta express as it is, and their salads are usually pretty good… but the last one had was excellent! Perfect dressing and cheese. I’ll be back!

This one only gets a BLAH! They have multiethnic locations and this one just doesn’t make you want to come back. They don’t really enjoy what they’re doing and it shows in the BLAH service and BLAH food. Very disappointing. I’d rather drive 5 – 10 miles to another location than waste my time on this one.

Nice place. Good service. Food way below. Par. Had seafood pasta and menu said Jumbo Shrimp and to say the shrimp weren’t Jumbo is an understatement. I think maybe I had 4 shrimp in the whole thing. Very disappointing. Won’t go back. Ed went on my wife’s recommendation and even she felt bad

I called in an order last night, when i arrived I was given the wrong order. Unfortunately I drove all the way home before I realized this. When I returned to get the right order, I waited for over 5 minutes (I was the only person at the counter) when they finally helped me and gave me the entrees I ordered I checked the order myself and found that they didn’t give me any salads! Unbelievable! At no point during this entire ordeal did anyone apologize! Horrible customer service!

I’m giving 3 stars for the prices. Not for the quality of the food.
First of all, we had never been to Pasta Express before. So when we walked in through the enter door, we were confused. We didn’t know if we should seat ourselves or wait to be seated so we just followed the random half-​wall to the front where the registers are. There, a server asked if we were dining in and would we like a booth or table.
We ordered our drinks immediately from the paper menu and within seconds it seemed our drinks came out. The sweet tea was perfectly sweet and we assumed we were off to a good start.
We looked over the menu and the prices and everything seemed fine. I ordered the 8″ cheese pizza with green peppers and tomatoes and my husband ordered the canneloni. Let me tell you about the canneloni. Two canneloni shells. Two. That’s it. For $ 7. It was the size of a personal appetizer. The complimentary rolls were more filling for him than the canneloni.
My pizza was good. But the «tomato slices» were cherry tomatoes cut in half and set on top of the pizza. And there was not nearly enough cheese on it. I ordered a side house salad to go with it and she asked «tomato and cheese on top?» and of course I said yes because what is a salad without tomato and cheese? The salad was delicious. Their house dressing is this perfect oil and vinegar blend that I cannot recreate. When we got the bill though, to my surprise, the tomato and cheese cost me an extra dollar. 50 cents for each. I was completely unaware there would be an extra charge for that. Maybe I overlooked it on the menu but I’d have thought the server would mention it instead of asking the way she did.
Overall, we spent $ 18 on food that was not worth $ 18. I’m half surprised that they didn’t charge us for the extra rolls she brought out. Bizarre way of doing business.

For those of us who miss the old J Parrino’s of our youth and crave their signature house salad, give Pasta Express a go. Order it with the creamy slightly sweet Parisian dressing and make sure you ask them to add Provelone. Request the greenest part of the iceberg lettuce as I too, like another reviewer, had way too much of the white root end. The Manicotti I enjoyed was total comfort food! The ricotta filling was smooth, creamy and well-​seasoned. I do prefer to feel the curd texture of the ricotta but it’s not a deal breaker as the pasta had an al dente bite. Their red sauce is sweet and acidic in a balanced manner which meshed with the richness nicely. The breaded chicken in the Chicken Parmigiana was a standout! Too many times the breast is flattened like a pancake and then fried to a dry crisp. Not this chick-​she was nicely proportioned, golden crispy outside and flavorfully juicy within! I’ll def ask for a second date! They are now open on Sundays from 11a to 8 p. They cater business lunches, family reunions and wedding receptions. I believe they have 3 locations throughout SGF with private rooms for meetings available. This is not a high end Italian joint but neither is it a fast food dive like I had thought. You may order take out at the counter but, if you’re eating in the restaurant, sit down at a table or booth and a server will bring menus and take your order table-​side. The beauty here is in the subtle details of the fresh, seasoned ingredients like you’d find in any Italian Mama’s Osteria around Rome!

Good service & friendly staff. Mediocre food. Love antipasto salad & toasted ravioli!

We give Pasta Express 5 stars because they have accomplished their goal of serving Italian meals at budget prices. Where else can you get a plate of spaghetti for $ 3.99? Their menu is full of the items you would expect, such as toasted ravioli, manicotti, lasagna, and pizza. The best item on the menu is «Mama’s favorite» and it also the most expensive, around $ 7.49, I believe. It combines linguine, breaded chicken, artichoke hearts, and all sorts of seasonings in a cream sauce. They make their own meatballs every morning, and they are very good!
The Republic Road location has a large room for private functions, at no cost.

Pasta not so Express.
I’ve never had any issue eating here. I love it. But tonight the service was non existent. Not once did any of the staff stop by our table to take our order. We did finally order from the front counter while overhearing the staff in back arguing. Very disappointed and now we are late to our next event.

For what it is (cheap, fast, provel-​slinging Italian food) it’s great. Don’t come here looking for authentic or inventive items. It’s awesome, cheap, Americanized, St. Louis style Italian.

Matt and his staff are always amazing! Not only are they great about getting yummy food to the table or drive-​thru quickly, but they can accommodate your dietary needs without an attitude or a long wait.
They have two side rooms that are perfect for any size meeting or event. The smart board works well for presentations and slide shows — because everyone loves a good power point. :)
As if that weren’t enough they have a catering division that can do anything from soup, salad and sandwich trays up to beef medallions with cheesy garlic mashed potatoes and asparagus for a plated dinner.
Pasta Express is more than pasta — and the staff is AMAZING!