Cafe Dodici

I have never eaten in their restaurant because I don’t have transportation for my power chair at night. My nephew was in town said he would go and see if they did carry out. He ordered Asiago Shrimp, Duck, Tortellini, an artichoke dip and bread. All of it was hot and delicious. Lorraine visited with my nephew while he waited. He lives in New York and said it was as good as what he gets there a lot cheaper. I loved that Asiago Shrimp, fantastic. Wish they delivered.

I moved to small town Iowa from Las Vegas a couple years ago and was afraid I would have to drive all the way to Iowa City for a nice dinner out. Thankfully, Café Dodici is close and one of the best restaurants you will find. Simply walking in the door is an experience. The décor is worldly and beautiful combined with interesting but enjoyable music that plays in the background .From my understanding this is a family restaurant. You are greeted by a lovely hostess who is always smiling and friendly. The servers are also excellent.
Now on to the food, I almost always get the caprese. I am not sure how or where they get their ingredients (my guess would be heaven). It is remarkable. I try to not order the filet every time but they always have such awesome preparations (bacon, cheeses, spices, strawberries) basically whatever you want! It is always cooked perfectly. Additionally, I would recommend the chicken roulades. I usually shy away from ordering chicken from restaurants but this is the exception. If you are ever in this establishment. Do yourself a favor and get this dish! The gnocchi is always impeccable. Basically, you could close your eyes and point at the menu and you’ll end up with something delicious. I am not going to go in to detail about their special concoctions or I’ll be here all night… just make sure you check those out too! They are usually pretty good at telling you about the specials but sometimes there is a new employee and they forget (just ask).
The owner of this place is also extremely friendly. Every time I have seen her she is making someone feel welcome and making sure everything was perfectly executed. She makes you want to come back. This really is a gem in a small town.

Had a Caesar salad, asparagus and chicken soup with Swiss and ham grilled sandwich. Very good and great service.
Owner stopped to talk with me too. Nice atmosphere.

The food here is terrific; the service even better.
The drawbacks for me are the heavy-​handed prices and the wait. We have never had to wait for a table, yet the order will take upwards of 45 minutes to be brought out.
There is a friendly feel here, too. The owner (?) will come and sit with you for a chat – very sincere.
This restaurant is a nice place to go if you want a diversion from typical small-​town Iowa.

by far THE BEST food & cocktails i’ve had in/​around these towns/​cities of IA (i hope i’ve not seen it all yet!). Super cozy, inviting atmosphere. Professional, friendly & prompt customer service. The food has been fresh & tasty every time i eat here!

Salmon was good. Gnocchi was awesome. Chocolate almond torte is spectacular. Pastas are fresh… great polenta lasagna.

When in Iowa, DO NOT miss this amazing place. Though it is 1 ¼ hours away from home, we NEVER hesitate to make the drive. Café Dodici stimulates so many of the senses. The food is incredibly delicious, beautifully presented, and is of the highest quality.
The atmosphere envelopes you with it’s old world charm, eclectic genres of art, and an understated elegance.
The staff is knowledgeable, attentive, but not overbearing.
My partner and I had one of our first dates at the Café and it continues to be one of our favorite spots to enjoy a true dining experience. In this fast food world, it is a lovely respite to enjoy the luxury of attentive, professional servers and exceptional food.
An added bonus is the spacious and comfortable Dodici Suite. On very special occassions, we reserve the suite and extend our stay for a night or two. What a treat to step out the door of the suite to grab a cup of coffee and scone from the Dodici Shop the next morning. Why debate who has to be the designated driver if you can just walk up one flight of stairs to such beautiful accommodations???
As a seasoned business traveler and fan of fine dining, Café Dodici is one of my very favorites!
P. S. May I also suggest the Limoncello Martini? It is marvellous!!!

We had an incredible dining experience. The food was delicious, ambience was romantic, but not stuffy, the service was wonderful. We will definitely return again and again.

A true gem in southern Iowa. They are a big city restaurant in a very small town. The Spinach ravioli were amazing, also tried the bruschetta and filet that also were awesome.. I really like everything about this place, the service, atmosphere, menu, food. This is one of the best places in Iowa, please drive and try for some real Italian.

We come to Washington a couple times a year usually… visiting friends and my Husband preaches at Marion Avenue Baptist Church. We love to stay at the Dodici Suite while in town and frequent the coffee shop but had not made it to the restaurant until this last visit. Delicious… And not just because it’s in a town with nothing but fast food, pizza and misc Chinese and Mexican restaurants… but because it really is good! We made it in for Sunday brunch. There were 6 adults and 4 kids… probably not a table of patrons that would make you jump for joy but our kids were well behaved and they bent over backwards to accommodate us (even made some apple sauce on a whim for one of the babies because his mom forgot his food at home). The service was great! Lorraine, the owner, was making rounds, checking on tables, as friendly as can be (even noticed me holding my friends baby while she ate her salad and came and carried him around for a few mins when my food came… so sweet). The restaurant had great atmosphere and was clean. Good menu selection for brunch. I ordered the eggs alla Loraine… eggs Benedict with mozzarella and prosciutto and it came with roasted potatoes. It was delicious. Only complaint was that my poached eggs were overdone (but that may have been from confusion… when ordering eggs for my 2yr old the waitress might have gotten requested cooking mixed up). They didn’t skimp on the hollandaise (pet peeve) and it was yummy. My husband got the tortellini… he said it was cooked well and good quality but a smidge bland. The Crossaint French toast was yummy… light and not too rich and sweet. Ordered the chocolate almond torte for dessert with a mocha latte. DELICIOUS! The whipped cream tasted like it might have had some mascarpone whipped in maybe?.. something was a little different/​special about it. I feel like the serving size was a little too small though compared to the serving size of the other desserts I’ve seen and had from there. (My friend got the tiramisu and loved it. I’ve had their crème brûlée to-​go before… flavor is good but not custardy/​creamy enough for me? A little closer to flan-​like consistency) Latte was yummers. A wonderful gem for Washington locals and visitors. Sure wish the small town I live in had something of this caliber.

Summer dinner on a Wednesday night. Super efficient server and hostess seemed to handle the evening’s clientele with skill and charm. There is an outside dining area overlooking the lovely town square and fountain. Wednesday is «Pasta Night» and in addition to the menu, four pasta specials are offered. We tried two different pastas: Carbonara with an egg, cream and butter sauce and lots of crisp bacon; and a chicken filled ravioli with a spicy tomato based sauce. Both were hot, delicious and served promptly. Also enjoyed a well mixed Caesar Salad and for dessert a luscious Pannacotta with raspberry coulis.
Excellent meal and we are eager to make another trip to Washington Iowa to enjoy such a quality restaurant.

Such a great dining experience. Went on Halloween with my friends and the wait staff was dressed up. Very accommodating waitress, the service was amazing.
Ordered:
Chianti — delicious and served from an aerating dispenser. They recork the bottle if you need also
Eggplant Parmesan — mind blowing with the gnocchi, fried crisp. Calorie-​wise it’d be better grilled and cheeseless but tastewise it was worth the calories.
Birthday dessert — Flourless chocolate torte if you go with friends or are yourself gluten intolerant is a great option. Not overly sweet with homemade whip ontop.
They also gave me a chocolate covered hazelnut wrapped in a box. And the owners seemed like they’d jump through hoops for you. Fantastic restaurant and worth the drive from IC.

Don’t miss it! This is the golden treasure of Washington. Lots of great atmosphere and the food has always been wonderful. Wander around the square. Sit by the fountain. Then, sit down for a great meal at Café Dodici. The Chocolate Kahlua Cake is… well, just don’t miss it!

Without question, one of the best Italian restaurants I’ve ever eaten. My wife and thought so much of this restaurant that we hosted our wedding reception at there. The owner and wait staff are absolutely wonderful. The meal was near perfection! As a resident of the Washington DC area we have lots of opportunities for great restaurants, but this restaurant in Washington, Iowa stands its own. We will be return again and I would strongly suggest that if you are in the area to make this a meal destination!

We finally made it down for a dinner with friends and per usual, we were thoroughly impressed with the ambiance, service and food.
We came with a few friends from IC who had been meaning to try the place and they were as excited as we were by the experience. The appetizer we shared was a goat cheese torta. A lovely mix of goat cheese and sun dried tomatoes with Crostini — it was delicous. A bowl of swiss onion ale soup and a bowl of carrot ginger soup were shared amongst the table and both are worth trying. The swiss onion ale soup was effectively french onion, but with a little gusto. The carrot ginger was spectacular and marked the first time I enjoyed such a dish!
For dinner we enjoyed the spinach ravioli with Rossini sauce (meated red and white sauce) and the Chicken Roulades. The ravioli was delicious with a good amount of cheese. The Chicken Roulades may have been one of the best things I’ve ever tasted. For the lay person (me prior to reading the menu), this is similar to Chicken Courdon Bleu, but multipled by Awesome. If an unpretentious French chicken and an Italian chicken gave birth to a meal, this would be it. Incredibly flavorful and with a very nice gold crust on the outside. Pair all this with a nice bottle of wine served in a super fun decanter and you got yourself an evening!
The décor, as previously described, is largely that of Italy, but with a lot of far east flare. The owners dine here often and walk around chatting most weekends. They’ve really put a lot of though into the place, both with décor and food. The atmosphere is a nice mix of classy casual. People in jeans and tee shirts to those in a formal ware dine here and there’s no feeling that one is preferred over the other — everyone just feels at home and enjoys the place!
Café Dodici is one of a few restaurants in the area that, if given the chance, will blow you away. The experience created by the combination of décor, lighting, service and food is rivaled only by a few restaurants in the greater IC area. Dining here provides a memorable experience will make you simultaneously forget and remember that you’re in a small town in Iowa. A great place that anyone looking for a memorable night out or Sunday brunch should try.

I wish this was closer than it is to my Coralville home. Although if it were, it probably wouldn’t be good for either my waistline or my wallet. My husband and I were talking about going back on another birthday on the way home from this place. The food is an excellent value: good quality food at a reasonable price. That’s especially if you go for «Cena Presto,» between 5−6pm Wed-​Sat. There was a special on that day,
too. The atmosphere is fabulous, the service is good. Also, let your server know if it is a special occasion: there will be a little extra for you.

GREAT food, AMAZING staff.. .never a disappointment EVER!!!

Wonderful little treasure in southern Iowa. Atmosphere intimate and upscale. Menu varied yet accessible. Soups incredible. Pasta del mare was delicious, although the calamari was a little tough. We need to come back again when we have more time, and can try the desserts. Worth the side trip if you are on the road.

This little restaurant is a diamond in the rough. It has a nice relaxing atmosphere where the guests are welcome to savor both the food and the beautiful décor. The attention to detail is evident in every dish.
This is NOT the type of place where the server is eager to get you out of the door, but rather, the waitstaff are a part of the experience. They are courteous and knowledgeable and take their profession seriously.
During our visit, we had the opportunity to meet the owners, who came out to every table to visit with their guests.
Lastly, yet most importantly, I would like to touch on the food. Our party ordered the mussels on tagliatelle and the spaghetti with meatballs. Each dinner comes with a fresh mixed greens salad, and a dessert. Both the menu selection was wonderful, and the cuisine was so good that I could not believe I was eating in Washington, IA and not in an Italian restaurant in New York or Chicago! I will definitely go again.

Heard that this is the place to go for good Italian food in the cultured town of IC.
Went there with the wife as the spring was thawing its grip on the long snowed in winter. We showed up to try the sunday brunch and was so dissapointed at the service and the quality of food.
Maybe because we were not ordering the right food, but we noticed that the manager went to greet everybody except for our table. Having dined at multiple Michelin rated restaurants from coast to coast, I don’t think that my partner and I are poor diners.
Either way, my guest and I had better breakfast at the Amanas. It’s not as long of a drive and they have friendlier service. Also, another perk is that there are things to do in the Amanas, where as there is nothing to do in Washington, IA!