Aldo’s Italian Restaurant

I had lunch with my husband here recently and I must say I was impressed! We recently moved to the area and have been looking for new restaurants to try out and I’m so glad I found Aldo’s! It’s on the smaller side but it’s cute and cozy and the staff were amazing! The food was so good and filing, my husband orders spaghetti and meat balls and I had the chicken fettuccine Alfredo! Both dishes were excellent, much better than Olive Garden– in my opinion! Can’t wait to go back again!

That moment when you are totally caught by surprise… THIS IS IT!
The curb appeal lacks luster. The décor makes you think you are in a very small town and this is as fancy as it gets. Lots of curtains, purple and ‘old school’ chairs.
We sat at the bar, to grab a to go order. We had a drink and ordered the Broschetta as an appetizer. To my surprise the owner, an older Perisian man, behind the bar was well versed in wine and drink mixes. This was the start of my surprise. Got a nice Red wine while the fella got a neat brown drink (I don’t know Whiskey lol).
We spoke with several servers and the owner for a bit and even made friends with a regular at the bar. We then noticed the pick up in patrons at the dinner hour. A much older crowd of 50+. But they kept pouring through the door on a Friday night.
Our Broschetta came. OMG! The fresh cut garlic, tomato, olive oil, the perfectly toasted fresh loaf bread and mozzarella. Yes it is a simple dish but this was executed perfectly. Where in the hell was I at? Ok let me simmer down and wait for our food. In this strange place that keep surprising me. Gosh… I just want to eat Broschetta from there every day!
Our to go order consisted of Lamb Shank dinner and Veal Parmigiana. These dishes were absolutely amazing. Of course I wanted to eat all of the Lamb Shank that literally was falling off the bone, but it wasn’t my plate. The Veal Parmigiana was, and it was a total winner. The cutlet breaded perfectly, tender meat and perfectly seasoned with a great meat sauce. There was so much of it left over. Maybe because of the appetizers, or the salad included or these awesome yeast rolls.
This is a hidden gem. I will be back!

I wasn’t really sure what to expect initially but once we got seated and met our server I was pleasantly surprised. The service was attentive and informative as well as quick. And the food. oh, the food. Awesome. I had the lamb shank which was so juicy and tasty. It could’ve fallen off the bone. There was a broth that came with the lamb which was delicious, especially when I ate it with the lentil rice that came with the shank. My friends had the fettuccine alfredo. One with shrimp and one with chicken. Of course I tasted both! Lol The sauce was perfect and the meats were just right. I left Aldo’s Café feeling amazing! I will definitely return and try some of the other foods they offer.

These are my thoughts on the new Aldo’s Café, which was formerly Aldo’s Italian
Restaurant in Tucker, Georgia.
First, to be fair, the good news. The entrees were actually good to very good. I had the Alballo Polo, which is a (supposedly) Persian dish of a chicken kabob (minus the stick) on a bed of yellow rice with sweet and sour cherries along with a half order of mixed vegetables. My companion had the veal parmigiana. My chicken vegetable soup had a bit of bone or gristle in it and didn’t have much taste for what, the waitress said, was homemade soup. The salads were the typical Aldo’s salads: a sliver each of tomato, beet, onion and few chickpeas all drowning in a vegetable oil based dressing. The rolls were a bit too hard. Typical things from Aldo’s. Mediocre bread and salads, no change.
Now the bad news. Aldo’s Italian Restaurant had what was probably the nicest atmosphere of any place in Tucker. That was always really the main reason to go there, that and the proximity. It was never for the food. Not so now. It’s located in a dying shopping center and the story I got from my waitress was that the new down scaled version was the result of a compromise between the owner of the shopping center and the owner of Aldo’s. The rent was going up so the owner decided that the square footage of the place would have to go down.
From outside you walk directly into the restaurant (I wouldn’t want to be the first couple of tables near the front door.) into what was the old bar of the place. The old dining room in now completely gone and the new dining room is a combination of the bar (With the old bar still in place.) and what had been the private dining room. The place is very noisy and they have added several large flat screen televisions in each corner, which gives it more of a pub-​like and less of a fine dining feel. Music was from a radio or something similar.
Service was mediocre to rude. The waitress hovered around the table only when it came time to remove dishes, once even before we were finished eating.
Sadly, I cannot recommend this place and I think that what was a last-​ditch effort to save it is not going to work. If you want good Italian food go to Dominick’s in Old Norcross. In the meantime, we in Tucker will just have to hope that a really good and authentic Italian restaurant will open here.

It was ok. Advertises as fine dining. It has white table clothes but that’s where it stops. The lobster bisque was bland and feels more Campbell Soup-​esque. The rolls came in a bowl literally soaking in butter, really, literally. The salad was very similar to hospital food salads and the ranch dressing was white and very tangy, but not ranch — and I think they put a half a cup on it. I mentioned it but the waitress just giggled and said I’m so sorry. She took the whole salad away but no new salad brought out — it was barely eaten. The filet Mignon was cooked perfectly. It was delicious. However, you get no choices for sides. You’re stuck with roasted fingerling potatoes and a typical vegetable medley. I hate squash. Yuck. I was expecting maybe polenta or at least mashed potatoes. Instead… basically large french fries. Be prepared to walk into a sportsbar at first with two tvs flanking the doors with a game on… Fine dining. No. Fine dining prices… oh my goodness yes.

I loved this place! We had a rehearsal dinner here in the month of October, 2012 for our brother. Everything was taken care of. We had the 18.95 dollar menu. They set up a cute little room for us and set up everything very elegantly. I worked with the manager ahead of time and he was very flexible with our needs. The servers Tiffany and Moi were wonderful! Food came out fast enough. Our food options were — Chicken Parm, Lasagna, Chicken Piccata and Fettucine. I had the Chicken Piccata and my husband had the Lasagna and they were absolutely wonderful. The other guests seemed to like the other options as well. They let us come in several hours earlier to fix some things and put our own rehearsal dinner touches.
When the bill came out, it was accurate. The only thing thing that they did was charge me for the plate even when a person did not show up. It was only 1 plate (1 person did not show up) but it was not a problem. They were very respectful.
I also had my rehearsal dinner here 2 years ago and it was great! We had no problems and everything went well without a hitch.
Thanks Aldos!

Aldo’s has been around for years and is a wonderful established restaurant in the Tucker area.
They server your basic Italian food which is quite delicious!
It is a lot like Provino’s in that you are served rolls in garlic butter.
The food is very good and so are the deserts to choose from!
Their wait staff is wonderful and always makes you want to come back and eat again!

Aldo’s is an old school Italian restaurant. It’s been around as long as I can remember. Located in the same shopping center as Nori Nori on the corner of Roswell Rd. and Abernathy Rd. I came here for a Saturday night dinner with family. The restaurant was busy, but we were still able to get seated immediately without a reservation. The space inside has a traditional tablecloth setup with a mixture of cushioned booths and tables. At night, the atmosphere is candlelit and romantic, though it feels a bit dated and can get loud. There’s a covered outdoor patio too.
The restaurant serves Italian comfort food from pastas to veal, chicken, steaks and seafood. They offer about a dozen selections of each type (pasta, veal, chicken, etc.) and have pizza too. Pasta entrees are anywhere from $ 10 – 15 while the meat and seafood entrees can go up to as much as $ 25 per. I tried a handful of items from their menu:
Appetizer:
Mussels — simmered in white clam sauce and served over angel hair
Entrees:
Lasagna
Eggplant Parmigiana — fried strips of eggplant baked with ricotta, mozzarella, and marinara
Salmon — blackened and served with vegetables and pasta
Overall, not bad, but also not very memorable. The mussels seemed fresh enough. No unpleasant «fishy» taste. I enjoyed the smooth angel hair pasta soaked in white clam sauce. Flavorful.
Each entrée came with a house salad and garlic bread, both of which were good. The Lasagna came baked in one of those oval-​shaped bowls with miniature handles. It was served piping hot. I had to give it several minutes to cool down. I was a little disappointed in the dish. It was very mushy and didn’t have enough cheese, especially the hardened, chewy kind that can form at the edges. I used the garlic roll to help sop up a lot of the food.
The Eggplant Parmigiana was OK. Like the Lasagna, I thought the Parmigiana could have used more cheese. It was heavy on the marinara. The ricotta was great — light and creamy and slightly sweet.
We were disappointed in the blackened Salmon. This dish was quite bland and ordinary. At least it was healthy. The veggies included broccoli, zucchini, squash, and red bell pepper. I think they were steamed. Not much flavor at all.
Service was very good. The food and drinks came out in no time and our server was friendly and attentive. If you’re in the neighborhood looking for Italian cuisine, Aldo’s is certainly worth a visit, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to come here.

I have been to Aldo’s for dinner a number of times and have never had a bad meal. As others have suggested, the interior is nothing flashy, but it isn’t awful. But one does get the sense that Aldo’s is frequented by an older clientele, probably a crowd that has been coming here for years despite the empty storefronts that now surround the restaurant. (This clientele also means you will be very underdressed if you show up wearing a nice pair of jeans and that you should anticipate an incredibly quiet dining room.)
Service has always been friendly and relatively prompt. The salad and rolls remind me of Provino’s – family-​style salad and a bowl of rolls drenched in butter and garlic. Very tasty. The menu offers an assortment of pastas and the option of adding sausage, meatballs, chicken, or shrimp for a few dollars more. My favorite entrée is the penne ala casoli (penne pasta tossed with fresh herbs, garlic, tomato, olive oil, and parmesan cheese, topped with feta cheese) with grilled chicken. The bowl always arrives heaping with enough food for two meals. I have also sampled the chicken picata (chicken tenders sautéed with onions capers in white wine lemon butter), which is my grandmother’s go-​to entrée. It is also quite good and, like most entrees, arrives with a side of spaghetti.
It seems like the restaurants and shops in this part of Tucker were hit hard by the economy, and I am always pleased to see that Aldo’s is still open. It might not be the fanciest place around but its patrons keep coming back for more.

Went here for lunch on my anniversary with my lady since it’s close to work and really the only thing ‘upscale’ nearby. I had heard good things from co-​workers so we went for it.
Parking is simple since it’s in a complex, lots of spaces, and I assume at night most everything else is closed so there’s room for days. Entrance is nice, coming in I’m reminded of a Chinese place off North Druid Hills, it’s very small but well decorated, some faux columns on one wall, tables in the center of the room and booths along the wall. It’s not huge but the tables are set up to accommodate the maximum, meaning you’re sitting next to a group of power lunchers who are within earshot. Boo.
Menu is simple, no confusion and very easy to order from, but I felt it was lacking a little, like they needed more items. Service was quick and friendly, app came out fast and was very good (cheese sticks) and salad followed and was equally good. The rolls were ripoffs of Scalini’s but a harder shell, the butter tasted a bit old.
Entrees came out and were huge, but weird. I ordered spaghetti with meatballs and sausage, the meal came out with meatballs and then a side dish of sausage soaked in it’s sauce, why not just put it all together? It was good, but nothing I’d write home about, and so much food I couldn’t finish but maybe half. Strike for not having parmesan on the table, I had to ask for it and although I got it fresh grated, I like to have extra on hand for later.
When the bill came I found an error, or so I thought, but it turned out a Caesar side salad is $ 1 more than a house side salad. Huh? Anyway, I paid it and we headed out, full but not really satisfied.

First, let me start off by saying that I used to frequent Aldo’s throughout the ‘90s and it was absolutely awesome. Sometimes, they even had live entertainment. One night, they had a majician! Aldo’s was the first place I ever took my wife out to eat when we were dating. With that in mind…
It was our anniversary a couple of weeks ago, and I thought it would be nice to have dinner there. We now live about 40 miles away from Aldo’s, but we both thought it was going to be worth the trip.
When we got there, the place looked the same from the outside, which was encouraging because this particular area of town isn’t exactly the best, anymore. When we went inside, it looked the same, too. However, the carpet seemed a bit dirty, which was my first indication that things weren’t going to be as good as they used to be.
We received excellent service from the waitstaff, but the food was absolutely terrible. I mean horrid. First, the garlic rolls. They used to be awesome. Now, they’re rock-​hard and cold. The salad was still decent, but it used to be a lot better.
I had the Seafood Combination which is shrimp, clams and calamari simmered in marinara sauce, served over linguini. The sauce was almost water, the pasta was way overcooked and the seafood was so overcooked that the shrimp were hard, the scallops fell apart and I’m pretty sure that the clams were spoiled. My wife ordered Shrimp Fra Diavolo. Again, the shrimp was overcooked and rock-​hard and the pasta was overcooked. Also, the dish was served with a mountain of fried peppers on top of it. I’ve eaten Shrimp Fra Diavolo in dozens of restaurants, including Aldo’s, and I’ve NEVER seen it served that way. We were both so disappointed with our entrees that we didn’t eat even half of it. However, we did order canolis for desert, and they are still the best damn canolis around.
We won’t be going back — the food is just too bad. I will always have fond memories of the Aldo’s of the past, but unless something changes, I’ll never go back.

This is my first 2 star review in a while so, I know I will have to be detailed.
#1 — The service
When you think of a fine Italian restaurant, your would think that the staff would be kind enough to be in uniform. Guess again. We were greeted by an older gentlemen donning a blue t-​shirt and some khakis. And then when we get to the table, we are greeted by another staff member out of uniform. A few minutes later, we are introduced to our server, who feels he has better things to do, but at least he is wearing a decent uniform. I can understand it is after the lunch hour rush, but service is service.
#2 — The Food
Ordered the filet mignon. Priced at $ 12, I received the smallest entrée I’ve ever experienced. And for future reference, If you are going to make the main piece of the plate small, make the sides smaller, as to give some type of optical illusion that the customer is receiving a large portion. Seriously, I left the restaurant with possibly a larger appetite then when I arrived. Also, It would ave been nice to taste the meet rather than have to fish it out of the gravy!
And the side order of spaghetti… the sauce was incredibly salty and watered down. The noodles were overcooked. And the bread… The four pieces that were placed on our table were drowned in a sea of melted butter and chunks of garlic. After we salvaged the bread, we were left with a medium sized puddle of garlic flavored butter in the bowl.
#3 — The Environment
I will have to agree with Alfred when he says that the place is like «your parents dining room». The bar is stuck in the corner of the welcoming area right by the restrooms. The main dining area is just an open area with outdated furniture and dim lighting. It is a great place for large parties, but I cannot see this location suited for anyone younger than the age of 40!

Spaghetti sauce was spicy. It’s a nice place but like sitting in your parents dining room.

In a seemingly hidden corner of a strip-​mall in Tucker is this pretty little gem. Inside is a semi-​formal oasis of class that transports you to a different state of mind. The tables have real cloth tablecloths. The waitstaff are mild-​mannered, soft-​spoken hosts in this world of dining.
I’ve eaten here on dates (2 people), with small groups (3 – 5 people), and with large groups (15 – 20 people). Every time I received consistently good service, consistently good food, and they didn’t look down their noses at me when I showed up wearing jeans and a t-​shirt. Clearly, I felt awkward since it is such a nice establishment — but they didn’t treat me any differently (which is something I really appreciate).
The only reason I’m not giving this place 5 stars is because it’s not some place that I would go once a week. Or even once a month. I think I have been about once a year, for the last several years. Of course some may disagree — but I’m just not a fancy kind of person, and I don’t need to go to a fancy kind of restaurant all the time.
If you haven’t been, it’s worth going.