The Old Spaghetti Factory

My monthly networking group had a wonderful separate room for lunch and great wait staff who served on time and provided individual checks. I had a Caprese Panini that I didn’t want to end… it was so good! I got the ½ Panini with a salad and that was more than ample for lunch. I am ready to go back.

For what this its it gets 5 starts., Good pasta at a bargain price. Basically you get spaghetti (they have other pasta dishes like lasagna, cannelloni, and chicken dishes and salads) with a variety of sauce options, a salad or soup, bread and ice cream.
Food and service are consistently good, and predictable. Typically two people can get meals and wine for $ 40 or less. If fancy cocktails are your thing it will be a little more.
Favorites are the Spaghetti with Mzithra cheese and brown butter, Spaghetti with meat sauce, Ranch dressing and the Italian Cream Sodas.
The kid’s menu is $ 5.50 and includes their drink, food and ice cream.
If you have kids, call ahead and request seating in the trolley.
If you’re on a date or don’t like kids — do NOT sit in the trolley or near the trolley.
If you’re on your own sit in the bar, they have booths in there if you don’t want to actually sit at the bar.
Last but not least, this is a very good place for groups because everything is basically the same price and so splitting the tab is easy. They have very reasonable prices on cocktails and wine — so if you have a drinking group you won’t be freaked out by the bill.

They are always busy. Always.
That said, I am a big fan of their Spaghetti with Myzithra cheese. I would eat it every day.
They don’t have the BEST Italian food in the world, but it’s pretty darn good for the price you pay. Especially because it comes with salad, bread and ice cream. Can’t beat that.

the kids love this place. While it’s not exactly the authentic NYC style Italian food I’m used to, but it’s pretty good for a chain. It’s a cute ambiance, they are kid friendly. and it’s in a cute neighborhood. Service was good.

Completely unimpressed. This isn’t a bad place but there are many, better options.
I came here for a group party. When you walk into your sectioned off banquet area, there’s a menu with three options. I chose the chicken Marsala. Everyone at my table was served before me. I had to remind three different waiters before I got my food 20 mins later.
Salad was eh. Food was eh. Ice cream was eh. The bread was good (but then again, I’ve never had bad bread).
Will not be back here unless I get dragged out for another group event.

Why are restaurants like this still in business? It seems like a vestige of the cookie cutter 90s era places like Olive Garden.
On the surface, the décor is charming. Nothing else is good here. From greasy stained menus, to a merry-​go-​round of waiters who will serve your table to canned and frozen food, this place is an anachronism of a time when restaurant corporations felt they could replicate a good dining experience across the country with no sacrifice in quality.
Cail, our waiter, was one three people who haphazardly waited on our table. He was truly disinterested in working food service. You could see the glazed over look in his eyes of aspiring to his next great calling in life – that of a grey suit accountant.
The food was particularly uninspiring and bland and straight out of a Cisco foods-​type packaging.
Stay home, save money, make your own pasta and maybe, together, we can let places like this fall into bankruptcy.

Horrible service tonight! I’ve been here many times and have had mediocre service. I only come back because I like the food! Our waiter was an idiot, slow and so unresponsive with our requests. I ended up having to ask for another waiter, which probably wasn’t the best choice because they could have spit in our food! Hahaha But seriously, they need to step their customer service skills waaaaay up!!! Next time I’m going to save myself the frustration and just order to go.

Worst customer service
We nearly sat for 30 mins before we got service.
But an elder man sit for 5 mins and got service.

For a chain, this place is good! It’s not exactly authentic Italian food, but it is really good!
We come here often when we’re in the area, and we usually have a good experience which is why I’m giving 4 stars. There was a bad experience though, which I will address.
My husband usually gets Meat Lover’s Plate and I get the Mizithra Cheese Plate with a side of the Italian Sausage. Everything is so good! The complimentary bread and garlic butter, the salad with the pesto dressing, the entrée, and the scoop of ice cream that comes with your meal at the end is well worth your money! The Italian Sodas are also good. You get a free glass if you order one too! I like the cherry flavor. Hubs likes the strawberry.
Our bad experience:
We came in an hour before they closed, and our waiter was awful. He was so rude! He rushed us to order, we had to ask for our bread, he made uncalled for comments about us walking in an hour before closing (sorry, but that means you’re still open buddy). We overheard him talking to a co-​worker about us. If you’re going to do that, at least be out of earshot from your customer a$$hole. At the end, he said, I don’t have anymore ice cream, sorry. And guess what, as we were paying for the bill, we saw a waiter bringing out 2 scoops of ice cream for the table next to us. LOVELY. I hope this guy doesn’t work here anymore. That was the first time – EVER I didn’t leave a tip.
Other than that, they have all been great experiences with great staff and friendly service!

Chicken Parm it tastes so good (I concur with Peyton Manning-​please see his insurance commercial if you are unfamiliar with the reference).
I met up with my sister and her friends the other night here for dinner before a Barracudas game. I took an Über over so I could enjoy the dranks worry free and found them waiting in line to get the table. This place is always packed! Not to worry though, we called ahead and made a reservation so all we had to do was check in and wait a few minutes for the table.
The hostess walked us to our table and looked like she was going to seat us in the highly coveted train car… but then she quickly turned left and we were in a booth for our dinner. It’s okay, the train car is probably best appreciated on a special occasion!
The menu is simple but extensive enough for everyone to enjoy. This is one of my sister’s favorite restaurants. She is a vegan and has confirmed the noodles are egg free and the sauce is butter and dairy free. Apparently this is hard to find nowadays so if you have a loved one that is a vegan, take them here! I am usually eating sans carbs which you would think would be difficult at a place with spaghetti in the name but it is surprisingly easy.
All the dinners come as a 3 course meal– salad or soup, entrée and spumoni or other ice cream flavors. You also get bread and can get a garlic butter if you ask nicely. Order a drink from the specialty menu or name your own poison– I tried the blackberry long island and it was slightly sweet but not overpowering.
Dishes I love:
–Side salad with the creamy pesto dressing. The dressing is smooth and tasty.
–Chicken Parm– you can order a single breast of chicken parm on the side for something like 5 bucks. This is super cool if you do not want the carbs involved with ordering the meal. It is not breaded so you don’t have to worry about it weighing you down.
–Side of broccoli– the large is huge and it comes with cheese and a brown butter sauce that melts in your mouth.
–Fettuccini Alfredo– Okay, this one if definitely reserved for special occasions or the days where you have burned 2000 calories on the treadmill, but it is a nice treat for the days you are craving comfort food.
–Spaghetti Marinara– This is my sister’s favorite dish. She seriously drives from Fremont to any Old Spaghetti Factory location… I mean any location… when she is craving pasta.
I am still surprised at how this place keeps the prices low in comparison to other restaurants, while still producing a great product that people wait in line to enjoy. My only gripe is that the bathrooms are up the stairs… So hard to climb after a long meal =)
The service here is great. Über rates have gone down and my desire for the amazing chicken parm here has gone up. My New Years resolution is to eat here more often!

Location: This place is right next to San Pedro Square in downtown San Jose. It’s a very lively area with many restaurants, bars, and clubs around. Free parking with validation in the garage is usually available, except on days with special events. It can be tough to find street parking during games. Since there was a Sharks game today, I didn’t want to battle through street parking. I then settled on paying $ 7 for the parking garage across from the restaurant.
Service: We were able to RSVP for a large party of 13 around dinner time, and was quickly seated upstairs in a timely manner. Being a weeknight with the Sharks game going on, it was fairly quiet. The server was very attentive and helpful, making recommendations from the menu and refilling our drinks when the glasses were empty.
Food: The mizithra, a type of cheese, makes this place super unique. I ordered the garlic mizithra with mushrooms and bacon, and loved the taste. I felt there was a good proportion of noodles versus mushroom/​bacon. The meal came with either soup/​salad. I was pretty satisfied with the salad as I needed more veggies in my life. At the end of the meal, they brought out complimentary ice cream. You can choose either vanilla or spumoni. I highly encourage getting the spumoni!!! It’s sooooooooo good. Spumoni is a mix of cherry, pistachio, and chocolate/​vanilla flavored ice cream. If you want to try a variety of pasta, get the pot pourri for a sample of mizithra cheese, & browned butter, meat, clam, and marinara sauces — essentially a party on a plate.

Came here for a friend’s 21^st! #turnup
This was my first time here, so I was amazed by how huge The Old Spaghetti factory was. We were a group of 16 and had reservations prior so seating was fairly quickly. It was pretty busy this night so it was a bit noisy.
My friend and I shared a meal and man, for $ 12 – 17, you can get soup or salad, bread, your meal AND ice cream? Talk about the most bang for your buck! If you’re on a budget and want to get fed, this is your spot.
I order the garlic shrimp fettuccine and got the strawberry basil drink. Ok so I’m pretty weak sauce and I couldn’t really taste the alcohol in my drink, WHICH I LIKE, but just letting those of you who like 5 shots in your drink, this isn’t what you’re looking for.
As for the pasta, I thought it was ok. I liked that the hint of garlic flavor and the pasta and shrimp was good. I didn’t think it was anything EXTRAORDINARY, but wasn’t bad either.
The waiters were very nice, but I don’t think I ever got my water refilled once. :(we were a big party so… What I really appreciated was that they billed all 16 of us separately and looked HAPPY doing so! Unheard of! So that was a great positive.
Overall, I think it was a pleasant experience and would be a nice place, budget friendly, place for dinner, but I don’t know if it was memorable to come back :)

Don’t know about their spaghetti, but I like their chicken sandwich. The free bread is also nice and warm.

I love the idea and ambiance of this place, but when you go at peak times it’s a toss up on the experience you are going to have. Consistency is this place’s biggest problem.
Our group of four had a reservation, and we arrived promptly at 5:30 right as a big rush was starting and the line to see the host was out the door. After about 15 min of waiting to get through the line it took about 10 more minutes to be seated. Something good to know is that many of their booths are on the small side compared to other restaurants– it was a tight squeeze for larger folks. Our sever took a while to get to us but afterward was extremely fast and efficient.
Our food tasted great, two of us ordered the spinach tortellini that was cooked al dente, but served with Alfredo that was not hot, in fact it almost seemed cold so the pasta was chewy and undercooked in the end (leftovers heated up really well since it could finish cooking). Everyone else enjoyed their meal well, my dad couldn’t help but give everyone samples of the chicken Marsala which was delicious. While we weren’t left waiting long for our food, we never received our dinner bread. Fortunately we had ordered the garlic cheese bread which is always amazing (I recommend a side of ranch).
It costs about $ 75 for four including appetizer, food and drinks. I’m likely to come back again but I’ve found I only have good experiences with food during off peak hours. My best experiences have been late lunch during the week.
I’m giving two stars because I have trouble recommending a place with such terrible consistency and lack of attention to details for good service. I also think they should have a separate line at peak times for folks with reservations, or even allow check-​in on the phone.

I am here all of the time. As a regular, I can say that Old Spaghetti Factory is great for crowds and events. Believe it or not, I have been here for a wedding dinner, bridal shower, baby shower, and the usually large party birthday. Spaghetti Factory is use to accommodating large parties and have options where the host pays, and as a guest, you can chose up to three meals. The house salad is great (creamy pesto sauce), and the bread is fresh, served hot. I also enjoy that after dinner, you an enjoy the cup of ice cream served of spumoni ice cream or vanilla ice cream. The pasta options are «ok» (I make better pasta at home).
The downtown location is great and you can get your parking validated if you park across the street in the San Pedro garage. I enjoy the décor, large chairs, bar area, and the playroom/​few video games upstairs. This restaurant is definitely family friendly.
I have been here for lunch and their lunch options do not impress me. Sandwiches are «ok», and pasta for lunch knocks me out for the rest of the day (too heavy). I would recommend only for dinner.

Came to eat here for my birthday back in September, food was ok service was ok, but next day when we looked at our bank account we noticed they charged us twice
For the tip, I called the next day and spoke with a man, don’t remember his name, who was the manager working at the time, I gave him my information and he said he was going to call me back In a few minutes, while he investigated and looked for my receipt, he never called.
I called back a week later spoke to a women who was the manager that day, she did the same thing, I told her it was my second time calling and I needed this problem resolved ASAP, she never called me back.
Spaghetti factory used to be my favorite restaurant, that’s why I choose to eat there
For my birthday, but after this experience I don’t think we will be returning!

Spaghetti Factory is a very family-​oriented style restaurant. The fact that this restaurant had withstood the test of time is a testament to the way the business is ran! You go inside and it feels like an old Italian restaurant I used to hang out at in Rome, Venice, and Florence (Spaghetti Factory is only bigger of course haha). The food is not bad either… a lot of pasta based food, so I got no problem with that. I love pasta… well hell, I love food period! The happy hour is the best too… they have it from 4 – 6 pm Monday thru Thursday, and you can’t beat $ 3 draft beers! Stella Artois anyone!?!
Indulged on — spaghetti and meatball… and a pint of beer!

Been coming here literally for decades. I have never been overlooked/​mistreated like this ever here… I asked for Coke to drink and she sent out some kind of strawberry lemonade? WHAT THE!!! Then, the breads came with sauce but no plates, so we double and triple dipped… And no straws for the drinks –we had to ask multiple times before we got them. The balsamic dressing (a strong vinegar) had no flavor, it was water… We had a a lot leftover and the thew the smallest boxes I have ever seen onto our table!
So, this ladies and gentlemen is THE DEFINITION OF THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING TIP!!!
We will come back in about a year or so. Hopefully, the management and wait staff will have changed by then

My friends and I really enjoyed our dinner here! The food was great, the service excellent, and the dinning décor lovely! As soon as you step into the place, you will feel like you have just traveled at least a century back in time! Really, I loved loved loved the classy and old fashion vibe they’ve got going on. Not only did I love the atmosphere of the place, but the service lived up to my expectations as well! Our server was attentive, quick, and very friendly; just the service you would expect when dinning out! As for the food, I would give it 4.5÷5. I came here with 4 other friends, so we each ordered something different. I tried a bite of each, and most of the dishes were excellent! Some were a bit too creamy or cheesy for my taste (coming from an Asian who hardly eats dairy), but for the most part, I enjoyed everything!

Used to come here all the time as a kid and today I revisited my childhood memory and it was the same old spaghetti factory I remember.
Food isn’t to die for, but it’s still pretty good. The atmosphere is cool, furniture is mid evil feeling, dining in the little trolley is neat, restrooms and arcade games upstairs. Nice décor all around.
I called a month ago and spoke to Kelsey to book a reservation for 20 people at 4:00 PM, she was so sweet and helpful and explained how we can create a fixed menu for the party and answered all my questions. Although when we arrived a little before 4:00 PM, we were told it would be a little bit of a wait because they were still cleaning up after another party in the reserved room we had. It took about 15 minutes after 4:00 PM for them to get everything ready for us, which isn’t to bad. The service was excellent and they served everything swiftly and didn’t forget anything. We brought in a cake and they cut it up for us as well. I would definitely come back here to enjoy the food and atmosphere of the old spaghetti factory!