Caffe Pinguini Italian Restaurant

After driving by this place for a year, we finally made a reservation. It was a-​ma-​zing.
Why did we wait so long? We are early diners (5:30−6:00pm) so we enjoyed the place to ourselves for a bit until it really started filling up. It truly is a beloved neighborhood place. Lots of carry out orders and locals running into friends. The waitstaff knew them all. Good vibes.
The food was fantastic. We got the specials; appetizer of homemade burrata, veal scaloppini and the spaghetti with lobster & creamy tomato sauce. Everything was great. It was hot, tasty, did not take too long, and the proportions were right on. Thank you Caffe Pinguini!

Very delicious Italian food. We went early on a Saturday because we have a 3.5 year old and it wasn’t too crowded. The service was spectacular and the food was very delicious. My mom and I can’t eat gluten and our waiter (who also can’t eat gluten) was incredibly knowledgeable and super helpful when it came to pick dishes. They even had gluten free pasta! I had the sea bass (no flour) with lemon, caper sauce — so good! My mom had GF pasta and bolognese which was super hearty and very yummy. My dad had the mushroom risotto which he really enjoyed. We did a special appetizer that we all enjoyed and my daughter loved the buttery noodles! The wine list was very nice. We will absolutely be back.

Outstanding experience from the heated patio under the stars on a chilly winter night (I recommend sitting outside as it gets rather noisy indoors), to the attentive wait staff, with excellent food (the spaghetti with shrimp was amazing), generous wine pours by the glass, and an overall terrific value. I’d be back in a heartbeat if we weren’t living in Carlsbad. Looking forward to a return trip to LA and another great dinner at Caffe Pinguini!

Very impressed with the service and the food. The pizza was just perfect not too thick and artfully topped; we had the mushroom and prosciutto. I had the rigatoni bolognese perhaps a bit over sauced but delicious. Wine by the glass is generous.

Romantic, cozy little establishment in Playa. Came here for dinner on Thursday night, not too crowded but not too dead either. No parking lot so you have to find street parking.
B: Trio Di Bruschetta — the tomato and mozzarella is very straight forward, the olive spread was very rich in flavor, a little too much for my palate. And I just didn’t care for the bell peppers on the third spread. You can skip this dish.
B+: Rigatoni Gorgonzola — the gorgonzola cheese was rich in flavor and I enjoy the texture of the pasta, not too soft, not too hard, and the semi-​thickness of the sauce. Only problem was it was too salty
A-​: Filetto al Porto — So we asked for medium rare and the first time it came out, it was more like medium well, I had a few bites and can tell the wine was reduced to this rich red color. We sent it back and the second time it came out, the wine sauce was not as reduced. I guess it doesn’t really matter because it was very tasty. I would say hold back on the sauce a bit because everything was drenched in the sauce so masked the flavor of the steak.
I know this review is so unlike me who’s the sodium queen and drench all her food in sauces but this place took it to another level for me.
Overall, this place would be a good date night place. Apparently they have amazing tiramisu but they ran out so we had to go down the street. Remember to check in because you get free dessert!

I’m a big fan of this joint. The seafood salad is the best thing on the menu. Loads of clams, mussels, shrimp, calamari. They have some very nice Italian wines. The sautéed spinach is excellent. So is the bread. Great service.

Always a treat to eat at Pinguini. I have ate at some of the finest Italian resturants throughout LA and Pinguini is as good as it gets. From there authentic staff to their authentic dishes. Located in Playa del Rey right next to the beach! #Penguiniandchill

Every year for our wedding anniversary we stay at the Inn at Playa del Rey. It’s become our tradition to walk to one of the nearby restaurants for dinner. This year we chose Caffe Pinguini.
We were warmly greeted when we arrived for our 7pm reservation. The restaurant was not crowded when we arrived but was pretty full when we left. We sat inside but next time we visit we will probably sit outside because the inside was rather loud.
We started with a little round loaf of bread (seemed kind of like foccacia) which came with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It was pretty good, but I think I may have liked the bread more with butter.
We ordered the caesar salad to share, I ordered penne Siciliana arriabiata with eggplant and peppers, and my hubby ordered veal parmesan. The caesar was excellent. It was very garlicky and not overly creamy. My penne was good but I have had better. The sauce could have had more heat and maybe even more garlic. My hubby’s veal came with potatoes that were perfect — soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. I would love to know how they do this. It also came with steamed broccoli and eggplant, but he ordered the eggplant on the side so that I could have it.
The service was excellent. There were two men who made sure our waters were full at all times. We appreciated the attentiveness.
We would definitely return.

Caffe Pinguini is one of my favorite places. The atmosphere is great and food is delicious. It’s also very reasonably priced. Not sure what else you could ask for. Highly recommend.

Been coming to this place since 2006 and I can say it is going down in a free fall… The food is still ok, but that is about it!
First things first… No parking and valet is $ 5.5 + tip! Plates are overpriced and portions are mediocre, but again this is not all. Read on for the one star review…
The attitude is terrible, terrible, terrible!
On our last visit we got there right after they opened at 5:30 pm with a small group. The place was still empty except for a couple of tables inside and a few outside. They asked if we have reservation and made a big deal that they accommodated us! We sat inside. The service was ok. The food was good, but again the attitude!!! We had a 10 months old baby girl in our party. She did not crying at all but was trying to be a part of our conversation in her own way… Yes she was a bit loud, but not louder than the next door table with a bunch of «adults» getting drunk at 6:30 pm! Apparently they complained to the hostess who had the audacity to come and ask us to take the baby outside!!! We got up, paid and left and will never set a foot nor recommend this place to anyone anymore. There are plenty of other friendly Italian restaurant in town. We promised Pinguini a Unilocal review to let the people know… And here it is!
Last but not least the waiters can barely speak English… Yea they have a cute Italian accent, but I need to know what they are saying!

Love the food, staff & ambience!
We stopped there on a busy Saturday night on a whim.
We didn’t have reservations but warmly welcomed by the Owner.
And what an experience… it was almost like we had been transported back to Italy.
It’s on the repeat list:))

Food was excellent based on what my group of 5 ordered (risotto, lobster spaghetti, chicken piccata, and two steaks). Service was pretty decent as well, we didn’t have to wait long at all to order or have wine refills. As a resident of Playa I will be back.

Best risotto I have ever had. I went a year ago, and have been craving to go back ever since. Very quaint and romantic. I will be back shortly :)

I have been walking by this place for years and finally went for dinner with the husband for a date night.
I look over the wine by the glass list and was disappointed by the lack of selection and quality of wine. The most expensive glass of white wine was a blend called Conundrum for like $ 10.50. Thinking of bringing your own bottle? Corkage fee is $ 24/​bottle, 2 bottles per table max. I ended up getting a glass of sauvignon blanc and husband got a glass of pinot. Both were eh.
The bread was crunchy and served warm.
For dinner, husband ordered the linguine with pesto added chicken and I ordered the fresh salmon special with veggies and potatoes. The linguine with pesto had too much pesto but overall was good but my salmon and veggies were so bland. The veggies has no seasoning or flavor and overcooked. The tiny roasted potato was mushy. Our waiter never came by until the very end to see if we wanted anything else and I told him my food was bland and that he never came by to check on us otherwise I would have told him then. He said he appreciated the feedback and ignored the part about him never checking on our table.
Based on the reviews, I expected more from Caffe Pinguini. Our bill ended up being $ 80 for two glasses of wine and two entrees. Eh. Will not be back.

By far the best Italian that I’ve had in the South Bay. Their wine selection is huge and their bread is served fresh and warm. Their dishes are perfectly cooked and their sauces are perfectly home made. If you’re in the Playa del Rey area and are looking for Italian; look no further.

I love the patio here. Being 1 block from both the beach and the lagoon, it is a cool spot to go for a walk after dinner.
A group of six of us had a fantastic dinner here a couple of weeks ago. Everything we had was excellent. That said, I have been here before for an anniversary celebration and received off service where they forgot my appetizer and then tried to replace it with something else. It was some kind of fish and it was not good. For the price the service should be better than that. Oddly the couple of times I’ve been here in groups I’ve had fantastic food and solid service so I’m going to stay with 4 stars and assume they had an off night once.
I had a pasta and jumbo shrimp special and it was very good. If you are not getting pasta or pizza, the portions are on the smaller side for the other dinners.
Wine and beer only.

Exceptionally authentic and charming Italian restaurant in Los Angeles, great for a business lunch or a dinner with friends as well as for a romantic date night!
The Chilean seabass is very juicy and moist, hard to find nowadays…
Definitely the best restaurant near LAX, the place is located by the beach but just 10 minutes away from the airport.
Classy and casual at the same time, this place it’s a cool hidden gem in Playa del Rey!
Thumbs up!

The best Italian food we have ever had hands down
Great customer service and atmosphere

Rare five star experience. Found this on Unilocal. Took 3 family members who live in LA and had a blast. Authentic Italian, awesome wine list with some very good Italian bargains of course, above average service. We tried many different appetizers and entrees. All of them were impressive.
The food was delicious. Best veal scaloppini with lemon sauce west of the Mississippi River after you get out of west St. Louis. I guess it would be the Missouri River.
Valet parking is the way to go. Make reservations or go really early, this place rocks.
Good price/​value for LA and the overall quality is excellent.

This was my first time at Caffe Pinguini. Its Not likely I’ll be back soon. I found most of the food to be way too salty for my taste. I felt as if our waiter wanted to build up the tab for his own tipping purposes. The prices are a bit high for the area when you consider exactly what you’re receiving, quality (super salty) and the service.