Ask For Luigi

Great place for fresh, easy on your stomach, gluten free pasta! I have always been there for lunch and it definitely doesn’t make me feel like I am slipping away into a pasta coma. Would definitely recommend this place!

Love this place! Dinner or brunch, it’s always excellent. The atmosphere is very cozy, staff is extremely friendly. It is small so show up early to get a table quickly… It’s so worth it! I also love that they’re kid friendly, pretty rare for a restsurant with that caliber of food. It’s definitely the best itslian resto in town.

I fell in love with this cozy friendly space. It was like a little Italy with amazing food and lively experience. I would recommend this place to anyone looking to support local businesses and experiencing different side of Vancouver so that we get to see more of that.

We were fortunate enough to be able to come in on a thursday night and be seated right away, especially in a place that usually has a long line and wait!
Our server was great — very relatable, helped us discern what dishes would complement the other best. We ended up opting for 2 appetizers, 1 pasta and a dessert.
Meatballs (3) were good — the addition of raisins and pine nuts was great to add flavor and texture and the marinara sauce that came with it was excellent. The meat also tasted very clean, which was nice. Only one small piece of bread came with this dish though — would have been nice to have a couple more slices without needing to purchase more bread.
Fried Brussels were enjoyed — had a slight citrus flavor to it along with some cheese. Brussels were on the softer side though — would have been nice to have a more crispy edge to it.
Squid ink spaghetti with octopus was a smaller portion size, but still very good. The pasta was perfectly cooked, well flavored, and the octopus was surprisingly tender — not rubbery at all. Towards the end, it did start to feel pretty salty though — maybe due to the guanciale?
Dessert: flourless chocolate cake — it grew on us the more we ate it. Not too rich or dense — just right!
Overall, had no real complaints about the food or service. It was all pretty good. However, we found that we were still hungry at the end and the price point in many of the dishes are on the higher end for smaller portions. For example: though the meatballs were very good, $ 15 for 3 meatballs seems a bit high. I was actually surprised that all the appetizers are over $ 10 (minus the bread). So for 2 appetizers, 1 pasta and 1 dessert and no drinks, the bill was ~$ 60 before tax/​tip and then we had to eat some more when we got home. O_​o. Perhaps a better bang for the buck would be 2 pastas and 1 appetizer.

Food is a little less seasoned than I personally prefer, but not any less flavorful.
Very clear that they want you to leave as soon as your plate is nearly clear, which is not a comfortable atmosphere to dine in. No server were outright rude, but they are clearly stressed out about seating clients, since there is such a lineup outside. Gastown and Chinatown has other excellent restaurants nearby that you can actually enjoy dining in, so I will not be returning, even though the food was delicious.

We got in line before they opened, and when they did, we were one of the firsts to be seated.
The restaurant is cozy, and the service is friendly and attentive.
We had the meatballs to start — scrumptious!
I had the penne with mussels and leeks. It was tasty — I only wish there was more on my plate!
My boyfriend had the spaghetti nero with octopus. I liked his dish as much as I liked mine.
Superb.

Personall, I do not like Italian food so I did not want to go to this place when my friends picked up this place for our Sunday brunch meeting.
I have to say that everyone in my group including myself loved its own dish and we enjoyed every single bite.
This place do not take reservation, but it is so worthy to wait.
I am going to take my husband here in the near future for a brunch.
Loved stuffed eggplant & Ham bennies

Sophisticated food served in an unpretentious setting by a flock of very friendly, efficient servers. The room ia small and a little crowded but somehow still works just fine. The flour-​less cake was the best I’ve ever tasted and the tiny mints were the perfect finish.

Incredible dinner and desserts. We got in with the first people of the night, right as they opened, and were not disappointed. I would come back here time and time again.
We had the whole wheat pappardelle & wild boar ragu, the tagliatelle verde, rabbit ragu & olives, as well as the special, which was a wild boar and truffled Brussels sprouts risotto. All of them were impeccably well done, leaving us wanting more.
We also tried all three desserts, which between the 4 of us, we couldn’t decide on a favourite.
Eat here, you won’t regret it.

Amazing place! Small space that looks as if you are eating in someone’s house. food was awesome, simple, and pretty.
–Soft boiled eggs w anchovies: so simple yet so good
–bucatini: great texture of these straw like noodles, perfect sauce to noodle ratio
–saffron clam penne: great texture, good ratio, delicious flavor
–chocolate budino: decadent, dense, chocolatey, yummy
our fav pasta was the bucatini, so good!
very hip place, the menu all sounded so good!

Wooooowwwwwwwww
Ok if you’ve read any of my reviews, most will know i’m a cheapskate and am very skeptical on the price of eating out. But Luigi’s was amazing! service? top notch! food? even better! am i going to abuse my exclamation mark privileges? PROBABLY! ONTO THE FOOD!
We had the this fried cheese and pasta thing (apologies it looked too good to remember the name). it was so good. perfectly crispy on the outside, melted cheesey/​creamy goodness with just the right balance of firmness (from the pasta) on the inside. That coupled with the tomato sauce that came with it? magnificentay!!!
for the main courses we had the limited special edition (haha none for you! just kidding) ravioli stuffed with prosciutto, parmesan and other yummies in a brodo sauce… first time i’ve ever had that and i want MORE!!! the brodo especially was a eye opener on sauce/​soup combos with pasta. it tasted a little balsamic vinaigrette like but not as tangy and somewhat sweet. a MUST TRY!!! our other dish was the wild boar pasta! while it looked like a small dish it was definitely quite heavy and i would highly recommend trying it! very generous portions of boar and i love game meats!

The food here is amazing, and perfectly portioned. We stopped in for lunch and surprisingly there was no wait. The service was prompt. Because the restaurant is very small and open it can get quite loud. Aside from the noise factor, it did have a very authentic Italian feel to it.
We tried the rigatoni bolognese & the lamb sausage risotto, no complaints here! Will definitely go back for more!

I’m definitely late to the party, but I finally got around to dining at the much buzzed about and award-​winning Ask for Luigi ristorante. It already has a high reputation for a relatively new eatery with long lines and spectacular reviews. I snuck in for an early lunch to avoid the crowds.
Luigi’s notoriety and reputation for delicious fresh made pasta reached a boiling point when it swept the Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards earlier this year including wins for both Restaurant of the Year and Best New Restaurant.
To start off, the pork ciccioli (with shishito peppers and saffron aioli) was delightfully tasty and full of shredded pork goodness in a crisp fried package with a mild kick to it.
As for the pastas, the rigatoni and bolognese was quite tasty, creamy, and hearty in its meatiness. I really enjoyed its substantial flavour and easy fillingness. On the other hand, the fusilli nero and clams was also a winner with a light but delicious clam and tomato taste to it.
The spaghetti and pesto alla Genovese was a little more offbeat while still classical and still quite good with a sharp pesto flavour and texture.
For dessert, the classic panna cotta was very comforting and had a great vanilla bean flavour to it. It made for a nice cap to an overall pleasing meal.
Not much else can be said that hasn’t already about Ask for Luigi. They continue to make deliciously fresh house made pastas in all forms with relatively simple yet very welcoming ingredients of all kinds.

Delicious house made pasta and bread with a constantly changing menu. Great service, but long wait (arrived at 5:25pm on a Sunday, and got seated at 6:30pm) and very tight seating. Worth trying once.
House made bread with EVOO: mouthwatering carbs served nice and warm.
Pork fritters (I forget the name): crispy and melt-​in-​your-​mouth delicious if you like the taste and texture of pork.
Papardelle and boar ragu: nothing like fresh pasta, yum. The boar was very tender. This dish was a bit salty for my taste, however.
Chocolate budino: basically a chocolate ganache with fresh whipped cream and hazelnut. Unless you are anaphylactic to nuts or chocolate, I don’t see how you will not enjoy this dense slice of heaven.
NB: not the best place to have private conversations because the next table is 3 ft away from you on both sides.

Came here for brunch at around 11am on Sunday and we got in right away. The what’s better than a bowl of hot, fresh pasta to start your day! I had the pappardelle bolognese and my husband had the carbonara. The pasta was cooked well and I love that they make the pasta in house. Both dishes were delicious although we found the carbonara to be a bit on the salty side.
Service was really good. The staff there were friendly and attentive. We will definitely come back for dinner!

We came here for my friends 40^th birthday brunch. Based on the service we received I don’t think any of us will be returning.
Strike 1 — Our friend arrived early told the waitress she needed a table for four and was seated. The waitress let our friend know that she should not have seated her without her party and asked when they were arriving. This and the other staff scowling at her made her understandably very uncomfortable while she waited.
Strike 2 — No tea and only homo milk. «They like to keep it simple».
Strike 3 — The noise level in the restaurant is loud. A friend was playing a video on her phone and listening to it against her ear. One of the staff asked us to put her headphones on. He had to repeat it three times as we couldn’t hear him over the din of the restaurant. If this was a library or our neighbor complained I could understand. It was pretty rude.
Strike 4 — The sign at the door that says the customer is not always right. Well maybe if you listened to some of your previous customers reviews which keep mentioning the poor service I wouldn’t have to write this.
Strike 5 — The fried broccoli was so greasy it was just gross. Each piece was probably 400 calories. Way to ruin healthy food Luigi.

I love this place.
Pro tip– go a lot earlier than when you intend to eat. The wait can get up to an hour.
We tried the meatballs and cauliflower for appies. There was a red wine, as suggested by the waitress. The mains included the duck and the other, a rabbit main. We were tempted by the dessert but were too full to enjoy.
I cannot forget how good the texture of the pasta is, it is house made and so worth trying… At least twice!

We left this charming restaurant as it was closing for the night and the staff pleasantly offered to let us wait for a cab.
All I could think about was how foolish I had been not to order an additional Duck Ragu «to go» for the next day. I was FULL but already somehow craving it.
The dishes here will haunt you.
I came with friends who spoke little English and the staff was patient as we attempted to define the menu with hand signals and google translate.
The friends from Brazil could not stop passionately moaning about «childhood memories» as they devoured the olive oil cake with oranges.
This is a place for any occasion. Oh, so good!

Memento review.
Food, 5 stars. Service 5 stars. Douchey club-​like door policy, 1 star. I won’t be back, there are great Italian places that aren’t as stuck up.
I’m leaving this building and my stomach hurts. What happened? Why does my stomach hurt? Who is this dude I’m leaving with, is he a friend or is he John G?
Who is this guy across from me? I’m stuffed, that was delicious. We had 2 pastas both of which were very well done and the noodles just right, the chef’s salad with Brussels sprouts, pork belly, and sweetbreads. These meatballs are great. I have a tattoo that says «for meatballs, go to Via Tevere but if you’re in Vegas or NY go to Rao’s». Wow these are incredible… eggs and anchovies!
Who is this guy across from me? interesting but didn’t order it. Ling cod bolognese? The pastas look great and they are all unique. It would be nice to also have some meats and fish so it’s not all pasta. The menu looks great, antipastis and pastas.
Why is this guy not ordering a beer? I’ll have a beer please. Nice. This guy across from me and I are asked if we want sparkling water or still. He says sparkling. Who is this guy? Were we waiting 5 minutes? An hour? So many people are waiting outside.
This guy is telling me he’s a buddy of mine as we get seated. This place is cool. Lots of empty tables, only 5 other occupied tables. I should tattoo myself «Ask for Luigi» but that will open up a can of worms.
«I build the room, I don’t just let people in the order they are in line» says the guy leading us in. That’s kind of rude I think. Very equitable and welcoming. We were 3^rd in line and the 6^th table seated. My buddy and I were bypassed for 2 women who were a few people behind us. We waited 30 minutes for the place to open. 3^rd in line, sweet!

Not sure what the fuss is all about. Barely a 3 star. Sure the food is good but not the best of city.
Got there 20 min before opening, a line was forming already. They took our names and said we be first seating… But it took them awhile to get to us, and took a group behind us first… What? Not a great start. People who got there after everyone went in and we were the only one left waiting were told next seats would be an hour…
When we finally got in another 5 min later the place was only half filled! So wth? Why would they tell others to come back in an hour… And they don’t take reso so not like they were reserved… Sketchy… Maybe trying to make it look more busy.
The food we ordered a lot and it wasn’t cheap. Appy ranging $ 9-​$ 16
Pasta at $ 19-​$ 22
We got 4 items. Service was ok but not attentive. Really wanted to like this place. But just didn’t make the cut
Value ³⁄₅
Atmosphere ³⁄₅
Service ²⁄₅
Quality ³⁄₅
¹¹⁄₂₀