Franco Trattoria

Good riddance. Over-​priced food, extremely poor people skills and customer service from the owners… I’m really not surprised they are closed. If people think THIS PLACE served good Italian food, they haven’t been to Roman Cucina (Fullerton), Bruno’s (Brea), and even Mama D’s (Newport). The only thing memorable about this place was the pork chops with the mustard cream sauce and the walnut ricotta pesto; but their menu was so inconsistent due to their «fresh» ingredients, that normally on most days, their menu just sucked. Goodbye. Sorry, Whittier — probably won’t go out of my way to visit your slightly rundown uptown.

The residents of Whittier CA don’t know what good food is. The closing of Franco’s is a testament of this. I will miss you all and your amazing cooking and the heart you put in it.

So soooo sooooo sad this restaurant closed! Best Italian food around! Anyone know what happened to it? We are here trying out the new Mexican Restaurant that took it over. Let’s hope it’s as yummy as the Angel hair pesto from Franco Trattoria. Btw, this restaurant is called Colonia Publica. We ordered soup, which is all they have on the menu right now since they have not had their grand opening yet. We shall see…

Eat here. C’mon you know you want to. And why would you? Start with the fresh ingredients that are shopped daily. Move on to the love and skill that goes into each dish as everything is prepared by hand, from scratch. Yep, you read it right. From scratch. The service is great and everyone takes pride in what they do. The kitchen is spotless (it’s open for everyone to view). Above all, the food is beyond yum.

Apparently the horrible attitudes from both owners finally got the best of this place. They are closed!!!
Too bad they couldn’t stay in the kitchen because tge food was good and original.

One of the neatest and cleanest restaurants that I have been to. It’s a gem of a find and is truly a mom and pop type of place. Service was attentive from the time we walked in to the very last second of us walking out.
The owners are great and they both took the time to come over to our table to explain the menu and check in at the very end. Their menu is on a piece of paper because it changes everyday besides the staples like spaghettini. They told us all heir ingredients were fresh and that’s why they decide what is going to be on the menu the morning of.
We started off with their minestrone and it was very tasteful. The small salad had fresh mozzarella which was great. For our entrée we had their spaghetti with sausage and it was absolutely worth every penny. Tomato sauce was on point !
For our second entrée we had the pasta al firenze and it was also very good. It came in a cream sauce that did not over power the dish and the pasta was perfectly cooked in both dishes. All in all I thought it was a great experience to be in a authentic Italian mom and pop restaurant. I would definitely recommend this place to anyone in town.

Crap food with crap prices. Might as well call yourselves Olive Garden.

Frank is a complete hollow shell when it comes to customer service and kindness. On my 4^th visit to this place I dropped by after the Los muertos festival to check if they were doing naple style pizzas. After the usual friendly greeting the answer to my question about pizza was «leave, make a right, make another right and go to the Koreans for pizza». He went on to push us towards the door. I knew exactly who he was so inappropriately referring to. I told him that pizza was crap and I was wanting a Neapolitan pizza. After he realized I knew my food and realized we were previous customers he changed his tone. His true colors came out. Rude and racist. Thought all you fans of his place should know. Even if foods good if the person behind it is a prick I’m out.

We love this place. Everything is fresh and expertly prepared. The service is beyond friendly and outstanding. Truly handmade and well thought out Italian fare. We love this dish they make with salmon in a pink cream sauce. Also the tiramisu is too die for (freshly made by one of the proprietors). Their menu changes because they buy fresh ingredients, but anything you choose you will not be disappointed. The Italian beers and sodas they have are also delicious.

Franco Trattoria really pride themselves for their cleanliness and freshness. I think I heard fresh 10x through my whole meal and this place did not disappoint at all! Every dish I tasted was delicious and it was as they say it, FRESH!
The pasta dish was cooked to al dente and perfection to taste! The owners come to your table and tell you about your restaurant. The menu changes frequently, which is a good thing because it equals to freshness (again). I was also informed as I sat down that they buy their ingredients daily in order to keep their freshness (again), which explained their paper print out menu.
Besides the pasta, I really enjoyed my baccaia alla vesuviana with fresh tomatoes. The best thing about some of the entrees is the salt cod fish with capers. making it a great dish to share. The menu changes every day.
I started the meal with bruschetta with ricotta cheese on top that I’m definitely going to order again it looked absolutely fantastic! The tiramisu was also fantastic; fluffy and balance sweetness. It was one of the best tiramisu I had in a long time… wished there was some special olive oil to pair with it. Yum!
They only service Italian beer. There’s no Bud or Coors serviced here.
Overall, I’m so happy that I found an authentic Italian restaurant. I can’t wait to return to try some of their other dishes, thumbs up!

Great food, great area, great owners, and great service.
I love this place! Everything is fresh and you can taste it. I went with 3 other ladies we all tried each other’s dish and they were all very good. I’m definitely returning.
It’s a very comfortable environment you can come casual or all dolled up for a date or a night out on the town.

Franco Trattoria really pride themselves for their cleanliness and freshness. I think I heard fresh 10x through my whole meal and this place did not disappoint at all! Every dish I tasted was delicious and it was as they say it, FRESH!
The pasta dish was cooked to al dente and perfection to taste! The menu changes frequently, which is a good thing because it equals to freshness (again). I was also informed as I sat down that they buy their ingredients daily in order to keep their freshness (again), which explained their paper print out menu.
Besides the pasta (mushroom) dish, I really enjoyed my breaded pork chop. The best thing about some of the entrees are the side of salad or pasta making it a great dish to share.
I saw another table with some bruschetta with ricotta cheese on top that I’m definitely going to order next time; it looked absolutely fantastic! The tiramisu was also fantastic; fluffy and balance sweetness. It was one of the best tiramisu I had in a long time… wished there was some special olive oil to pair with it. Yum!
Overall, I’m so happy that I found an authentic Italian restaurant. I can’t wait to return to try some of their other dishes, thumbs up!
PS corkage fee is $ 10

I had been wanting to try this place out for some time as I live in the uptown Whittier area. As soon as we entered the attention paid to us was great. It felt very casual and friendly. We ordered their mixed salad which as simple and refreshing. The bread and oil was awesome too as it had Parmesan cheese mixed in.
The manager explained the whole menu, which is of the day. She took her time and made suggestions. She did this with everyone that came in.
I ordered the orecchiette with meat, and my friend ordered the pesto. They were both awesome. Very homemade tasting. The closed with a tiramisu, which was the best I had had. It was so light and delicate in flavor.
The cute Italian chef came by to ask how everything was. He was so adorable and friendly. The environment him and the manager create is great. Definitely coming again!

Another Gem in Whittier. Food taste very fresh and delicious! Owners Franco and his Wife are absolutely wonderful people.
If you want fresh, great service, home cooking kinda place, you found the right spot. But if you want Americanized Italian go to Olive Garden.
Definitely coming back again!

first and last time we eat here
I ordered lasagna and my boyfriend ordered some other pasta dish and they were both horrible!
it tasted like canned tomatoes
over priced! I can’t believe he paid $ 60 for such a crappy dinner! Olive Garden is better and that’s generic American Italian!
the service was ok except for the gentleman refilling drinks asking «ya want more?!»
never going back

I found this little restaurant in the heart of Uptown Whittier and decided to try it out. This place is very different from your traditional Italian restaurant. Their menu was based on seasonal items they got from the local farmers market. They change the menu daily depending on what they find, which I thought was pretty cool.
Food: everything was made to order so it took a while. Complimentary bread, garlic and parsley oil was good. We ordered an appetizer, Minestrone soup, which I thought was ok. Fettuccine Putanesca – pasta marinated with bell peppers, onions, eggplant, capers, a touch of anchovy and garlic in tomato sauce. Fettuccine Giardiniera – pasta with porcini mushroom, arugula, fresh tomato, wine and garlic. Each dish was $ 20, which I thought was overly priced for a non meat dish. In addition, their Homemade tiramisu was drenched in alcohol.
Service: amazing and it had a mom and pop feel to it. Franco, chef, and his wife were very welcoming. I really liked how Chef Franco came out and asked us what we thought of our food.
Price: it can be an expensive meal.
Overall, I would not come back to this place.

I found out about this place and Unilocal and decided to try it out. I did not let any of the negative reviews impact me which I am glad I didn’t. This place is amazing and very different from your traditional americanized italian restaurant. Service was amazing and it has a very mom and pop feel. Franco and his wife are very welcoming and made sure that we were taken well care of including the other gentleman that seated us. I really like how Chef franco came out and asked us what did we think,
The food was amazing and everything is made to order so it might take a while but its worth it when you want something that has been put some time into. I ordered the rib eye steak chopped up and mixed in a creamy mustard sauce. It was something very different and very delicious. They change the menu often and I think daily which I thought it was pretty cool because it prevents boredom and redundancy. The chicken Cacciatore was very good as well and the bruschetta al pomodoro was great. I have no complaints about the food, it was all delicious.
I will definitely be returning back to eat here. I recommend trying it out.

I came to a nice lunch date here. We both liked the fact that everything has a home cooked style. Everyone is really friendly and they all take the time to make sure you’re enjoying your meal. We loved everything about this place. I know we’ll be coming here more often.
As far as the food we ordered bruschetta as an appetizer and fettuccine Putanesca for our entrée. The servings are fairly large so splitting it was perfect.
Come here and try it for yourself.

We decided to try this little joint for a department lunch. The place has a lot of character and the staff is VERY friendly. The interior is decorated in a way that you feel like you are eating outside, with clothes hangers and different walls of homes.
Their bread and dip is amazing. Their food was ok for me. All but 2 of their dishes are tomato based and I can’t have that so my choices were very limited.

«il cibo era delizioso»
Translation: The food was delicious.
I’ve been to Italy once to visit my aunt who works for the Vatican (30 yrs). She took me all over Italy and to all of her favorite food places. We always went to a small trattoria and the food was always fantastico. Franco Trattoria reminds me of those places.
You can’t miss this place, 2 Italian flags waving in front of the restaurant. It’s a small intimate place. And you’ll be warmly greeted as you enter.
Franco himself came over, talked to us about his trattoria, the menu and emphatically declared «I’m not Olive Garden, My menu changes daily» when my wife asked if he had any gnocchi (no gnocchi today).
Here’s the rundown:
Minestrone Soup: It had an assortment beans, lentils, garbanzo beans and broccoli. All fresh and cooked properly. Delicious.
Bucatini Matriciana: the menu description reads «pasta marinated in tomato sauce and pancetta» Delicious. The bucatini was perfectly al dente. The sauce and pancetta was just amazing. Even my son (mr picky eater) loved this dish. I ate half, then my plate disappeared, mother & son finished it off. It was so good, I ordered another one to-​go. A must order when it’s on the menu.
Fettuccine Putanesca: «pasta marinated in bell pepper, onion, eggplant, capers, a touch of anchovy and garlic in tomato sauce» this was also delicious. The fettuccine was perfectly cooked. The sauce was delicious. Specially the eggplant and olives (it’s not on the description) but it just married perfectly with everything else.
Spaghettini with tomato sauce: Franco saw my 2 yr old and cooked him his own dish (for free). He didn’t like this dish, because he ate mine. So, I ate his. Lol.
The tomato sauce is simply delicious. You can taste the freshness and the depth of flavor in the sauce. It was delicious, I finished it.
They also brought out a basket of fresh baked hot bread and olive oil dipping sauce when our drink orders came. I’m a sucker for fresh baked bread and this was so good. Butter would be my preference, but I’m nit picking here, olive oil dipping sauce was good.
The food was fresh, tasty and delicious.
Franco was very hospitable and cooking my son his own dish was greatly appreciated.
I don’t frequent Whittier a lot, but this place just gave me an excuse to come more often.
I’ll definitely be back.