Maxi’s Ristorante in Cleveland, OH

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Telephone:	+1 216-421-1500
Address:	12113 Mayfield Rd, Cleveland, OH, 44106
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:	670 ftLittle Italy Station 0.7 miCedar Rapid Station 0.7 miUniversity Circle Station‎
Categories:	Italian Pizza

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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations	Yes
Delivery	No
Take-out	Yes
Accepts Credit Cards	Yes
Good For	Dinner
Parking	Valet, Street
Bike Parking	Yes
Wheelchair Accessible	Yes
Good for Kids	No
Good for Groups	Yes

Attire	Casual
Ambience	Casual
Noise Level	Average
Alcohol	Full Bar
Outdoor Seating	Yes
Wi-Fi	Free
Has TV	Yes
Waiter Service	Yes
Caters	Yes

Today

Today	11:00 am – 10:00 pm Open now
Local time (Cleveland)	2:02 PM Wednesday, April 23, 2025

Business hours

Monday	11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Tuesday	11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Wednesday	11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Thursday	11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Friday	11:00 am – 12:00 am
Saturday	11:00 am – 12:00 am
Sunday	11:00 am – 11:00 pm

Description

Specialties

Taste the best of Little Italy. We offer gourmet selections of food, cocktails/martinis, wine, beer, coffee and desserts. Don’t forget to ask about our specials and family style meals. Please let us know of your catering needs, and your pickup orders.

Starting on November 14^th, 2013 we will start delivering to your office. Every Monday-Friday from 11am-5pm. This is for office only, and it covers a 6 mile radius with $ 100 minimum. Let us know about your office parties/events. Servings can be in group trays or individual orders. Call us for more information.

History

Established in 1998.

Nestled in the heart of Cleveland’s Historic Little Italy, Maxi’s embodies a vibrant atmosphere and a welcoming ambiance. We are open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner.

Our main level offers guests the opportunity to interact in a casual and upbeat setting or to partake in the dynamic liveliness of the bar. The cozy and intimate upstairs level seats 50 people comfortably and can be booked for events such as meetings, rehearsal dinners, birthdays, graduations, presentations and more. Our garden patio provides a relaxed and comfortable dining experience while the sidewalk tables allow for a most spectacular view of Little Italy.

Whether you are looking for a place to dine before going to The Cleveland Orchestra concert or searching for the perfect location to share a conversation, Maxi’s welcomes you to enjoy dinner, an appetizer, a glass of wine at the bar, a Peroni while the game is going on, or even an espresso with a San Pellegrino for a caffeine push.

Meet the Manager

Fatian M.

Manager

I have been in the food and wine industry since 1999. Joined Maxi’s team in August of 2011. Getting to know so many wonderful people, has been the favorite part of my job. Love traveling, wine tastings, food, sports, and creating a cocktail on the spot. Love working with guests, setting up their parties, and making sure they get what they want! See you at Maxi’s!

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21 reviews of Maxi’s Ristorante

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Mister T.

Place rating: 5
Western Springs, IL

Great service from RJ! The calamari flash fried was outstanding. Even the special olive oil dip for the bread was extraordinary. Fun atmosphere on the first floor. Veal piccata, goat cheese ravioli highly recommended. You can pass on the frog legs however.

Steve A.

Place rating: 5
Willowbrook, IL

Had dinner while visiting Little Italy.
They sat us upstairs which is much quieter and relaxing than the ground level.
The calamari is very good as it’s tossed in a garlic sauce after frying. Cooked just right not tough at all.
My wife had the veal chop and wholly cow (no pun intended) it’s huge and served on the bone. Cooked as ordered and she said the flavor was amazing. We also ordered the linguini with clams in white wine sauce and the chicken catcciatore. Linguini was excellent and so was the chicken. Wish there was more chicken though.
Overall I would go back again in a heartbeat.
Sorry — no dessert. Had too many cookies at the Italian bakery down the street!

Anthony L.

Place rating: 5
Mentor, OH

Great food, one of the best frog legs I have ever had. The escargot and clams are always phenomenal! The martinis are always spot on!

Toni L.

Place rating: 4
Delray Beach, FL

Four of us went here for lunch yesterday. We ate on the outside patio and it was fun to people watch. We ordered The little Italy pizza pie and The Gilberts Pizza with no proschiutto which were delicious. The little Italy pizza had a nice kick to it and The Gilberts had lots of ricotta cheese. These pizzas were enough to serve four hungry appetites. Would definitely recommend.

Amy G.

Place rating: 4
Cleveland, OH

Maxi’s is right up the street from me, so I often go because «it’s there.» But, I have a lot to choose from in that neighborhood and Maxi’s is consistently good. Their calamari is fried in the best batter! If you like dough-y pizza, then you will LOVE Maxi’s pizza. I personally prefer crispier crust, but their’s is still good. I think I’ve had every one of their pasta dishes, but the goat cheese raviolis are my favorite. You won’t be disappointed here.

Rachel H.

Place rating: 5
Cleveland, OH

My favorite spot in Little Italy. The food reminds me of what my mom cooked.
My family and I have been making it out meeting place for Christmas Eve dinner for the past few years, and have a great time every year. We walk out of there full of food and drinks, and will talk about it for the next year.
My favorite dishes are the bruschetta, the pizzas and the cavatelli and meatballs. I have heard they have great frog legs and calamari.

Sheena M.

Place rating: 5
Brook Park, OH

My favorite place in Little Italy. Always friendly staff and great service and back patio. Not to mention the pizza

Natt A.

Place rating: 4
Nashville, TN

My housemate, his brother, and I were in the mood for some pizza and we stopped by Maxi’s because of their solid reviews. We ordered the Funghi pizza and pepperoni pizza to share and boy were they delicious! The first was light, not really greasy, and very well seasoned. The latter was well seasoned as well and all you want in a pepperoni pizza! We’ll definitely have to come back to try the pasta and their dishes! Defiantly check it out!
Btw. The sangria (white wine) was quite delicious! Not too sweet and full of flavors!

Grace S.

Place rating: 5
Cleveland, OH

Absolutely fabulous! We stopped in for happy hour specials and were pleasantly surprised by the best calamari EVER. Plus a creative pizza menu and great atmosphere.

Stephen S.

Place rating: 4
Philadelphia, PA

Checked out Maxi’s today for dinner with a group of friends. Quite impressed! Nice ambiance, with options to dine in front, inside, and in the back patio. Pretty casual place too, so don’t be self-conscious if you’re not dressed up to the nines (or even the fives, really). Happy Hour until 6:30pm Monday through Thursday, with some pretty awesome deals: $ 3 beers, $ 6 wines/sangria, $ 10 all pizzas (14″ and large enough for 2 – 3 hungry people), $ 10 mussels, and $ 10 calamari. We all had a drink and a pizza to ourselves, with none of us finishing more than four of our eight slices – leftovers anyone?
Pizza was fresh and hot, crust nice and chewy, with some intriguing toppings. I opted for Gilbert’s pizza, with tomato sauce, ricotta cheese, proscuitto, and kalamata olives which was pretty darn tasty. Other combinations sounded great too, from traditional margherita to a smoked salmon pizza (might be more of a flatbread kind of thing at this point, but let’s not get hung up on semantics). Service was attentive, refilled our waters frequently, and was very accommodating, readily splitting our check five ways.
Bottom line: tasty pizza, thrifty happy hour, spectacular service.

David C.

Place rating: 1
Greenville, SC

We came here with a party of 6, we got one refill on our drinks the entire time, way overpriced and it looked like someone poured water on my spaghetti. Save the time and go elsewhere in little Italy.

Meredith W.

Place rating: 5
North Royalton, OH

The food was fresh and full of flavor. Bread was delicious and fresh as well, with a tasty Parmesan oil. They made a nice martini. The staff was really friendly. Loved my first experience at Maxi’s.

A Ly M.

Place rating: 4
Pittsburgh, PA

We stopped in here because the initial restaurant we wanted to go to wasn’t opened yet. We were seated right away. I noticed seating in the front outside, within the bar area, as well as an outdoor patio area outside. It was an odd time during the week, like 3:00 pm, so the place wasn’t too busy. We decided to eat outside. All items are a la carte, but we did get a basket of fresh warm bread. We ordered the stuffed banana peppers which were perfect. You get two peppers for $ 12, maybe a little pricey, but they were tasty. I ordered the carbonara, DELISH! A perfect blend of spices and prosciutto, the peas popped in your mouth. The other items ordered were the spinach ravioli, they were served in a vodka sauce and every bite was good. However, this dish is served with only 4 ravioli’s, priced at $ 16 – 18, that’s $ 4+ per ravioli. The other dish was the Farfalle with the sausage and onions. Once again, extremely tasty. Our waitress was excellent and very attentive. I would definitely go back.

Erin B.

Place rating: 4
Lakewood, OH

I was craving Italian and an inviting atmosphere so I decided on Maxi’s because I wanted to try somewhere I hadn’t been in Little Italy. The place is pretty small and a bit more casual than most in that area but still very cute and clean inside. Parking around there is a cluster but they have valet for $ 7 which isn’t bad. We got seated right up front with a window seat which I loved too.
Let’s get to the good stuff. The food was just what I needed and so good. We decided to split a salad, Darcy’s pizza, and Cavatelli w meatballs. Everything was delicious and loved the butter garlic sauce on the pizza combined with the spicy banana peppers. Portions are large so that’s why we split everything. Our waitress was nice and attentive as well. Pricing isn’t cheap but not too expensive especially for the portions you receive. If I wasn’t a west sider I would frequent more often but will be back and recommend.

Sheree K.

Place rating: 4
Beachwood, OH

In typical Little Italy style, this place is perfect for dates and pizza and pasta. It’s dark and quiet, but could spice up the romance with some candles on the tables. With many Italians working there, it gives it more of an authentic feel and their menu stays true to form.
Really great pizza! Friendly staff too! I got the fresh mozzarella — Delicious! I’d highly recommend.

Sara N.

Place rating: 4
Newport Beach, CA

This place is delicious, authentic, and awesome for Italian food! I had a chocolate espresso martini to start off with and it was heavenly. The appetizers I tried were fried cheese, caprese salad, and calamari. All of them were ridiculously good. For dinner, I had lobster pasta, which was really rich and tasty. This place is also known for its pizza, but sadly I was too full to try any. Love the location in little Italy too!

Rosita C.

Place rating: 4
Washington, DC

Excellent food and service. Authentic Italian fare. Had the shrimp and pasta and it was excellent. Impressed me with the use of capers and fresh basil. Gave 4 stars because the décor was too boring and lighting was too bright. Dim it down a little.

Lin H.

Place rating: 4
Cleveland, OH

MMMMMMMM! Finally got to go back to Maxi’s at a time that wasn’t during The Feast! Calamari Pasta and Funghi Pizza were just as I remembered… So delicious! My sister and I were able to sit outside in the front, which is great for people watching if you don’t mind the traffic.
Service was okay, and the outdoor seating is a little squished. But all that was forgotten considering the heavenly food we were eating.

Mike V.

Place rating: 3
Cleveland, OH

Stopped in here for a late dinner with a date. This seems like a very old style family run place to eat. Not fancy or pretentious at all. Service was attentive but in a homey way and not as crisply professional as other places very near by.
Had the calamari ap based on other reviews. Wonderful. Worth it. Large portion for two people.
Asked about the tomatoes with buffalo mozzarella. We were worried the tomatoes wouldn’t be good in late May. We were told they were «amazing.» Well, no they weren’t. They were just like you’d expecting the end of a May in Cleveland, hot house bland. The mozzarella didn’t appear house made or especially good either. And there was a shortage of small balls of it in my opinion.
We ordered spaghetti and meatballs to split as an entrée. The balls were bland and the spaghetti was overcooked and mushy. In an Italian place, in this part of town, that’s inexcusable. There are better choices on the menu.

Faith A.

Place rating: 3
Boston, MA

I used to love Maxi’s when I lived in Cleveland. I was never disappointed in the food or the service. I have to say that our experience here yesterday was not as positive as my past ones.
Although it was a beautiful day and we were able to secure a great little table out front, the rest of our experience was underwhelming. I will say that our wine, and apps (mussels and bruschetta rustica) were great, everything else, not so much, and especially for the cost. Our server even took my order and ran away without taking my husbands — very odd. We had to flag him down to get the rest of the order placed. The margherita pizza was not as appetizing as I would have hoped for somewhere in Little Italy. The ravioli that my husband ordered also was comprised of just 4 little pieces. Not exactly filing.
I remember being able to rave about this place before. Not anymore. Will I be back to hope for a better experience? Probably. I am hoping that this was just a less favorable one time experience only.

Sandrine C.

Place rating: 2
Gary, États-Unis

I was very disappointed by this restaurant. Service was not good pizzas were coming one after an other with 10mins between each, I ordered pasta and the sauce was salty and watery. They were out of meatballs because they had not been delivered which means meatballs are not home made, to bad for an Italian restaurant.

Maxi’s Ristorante

Cleveland, United States