Bistro Pazzo

We loved this place. Located in downtown la jolla, this place is a quietly hidden gem. The food and service were excellent, and the place is not busy. Definitely recommend for Italian food.

We were hanging around La Jolla today and we’re looking for some dinner. Unilocaling a few places we found this place and once again Unilocal didn’t let us down.
Great place off the main streets, comfortable and quaint. The owner was great and made our dining experience even better.
The food was very good. The sauces were light and had excellent flavor. Everything was fresh and well prepared.

This was a great little find that we searched on Unilocal for dinner. It was a cute restaurant on one of the quiet side streets. The owner was also our waiter, from Italy. He’s owned this restaurant for 8 years. Food was amazing. We had the clams & muscles for apps, and if you check in on Unilocal,you get 50% off your appetizer. I had the eggplant penne pasta with a spicy marinara sauce, he put the fresh Parmesan on the side for me. It was soooo good! Just the perfect amount of spice to it! The bread was fresh & served with a pesto/​olive oil mix. The ambiance was nice, as we sat out on the patio, not too much foot traffic going by, but it’s always interesting to people watch. I’m so happy we decided on this place, left feeling satisfied, but not Overly full. Thumbs up for me!

Authentic Italian food at its finest! This adorable little bistro has a vibe like when you go visit relatives. I love the Fettuccine alla Pescatora & the hubs had lasagna. Every single bite was AMAZING! You won’t be disappointed! I can’t wait to go back!

Most delicious Italian food I’ve had in a while. Very fresh and authentic! Highly recommend the penne al pollo.

Reviews here lived up to the hype! Honestly had some of the most solid Italian food in recent memory. Shared the rigatoni and sausage with a spicy red sauce, and the penne al pollo with a creamy white sauce. Amazing combination of the two. Sito was a great host! Fresh food, Fresh bread, great service, two thumbs up!

Very good food. Great atmosphere. Great staff. The basil risotto and the 4 cheeses penne were excellent.

Spent a couple weeks in La Jolla in Feb. While walking around the town, we discovered this place. Small, a shot gun restaurant with the BOSS taking your order, making suggestions and serving same. Not your typical La Jolla restaurant. EXCELLENT food, service and wine. Highly recommended.

First time eats… If your not looking to break the bank while in La Jolla and have a good italian dish, this is a good choice. We went for lunch and for $ 12. $ 14. you can pick b/​w a panini sandwich or full entry. Small place, but offers additional seating outside. Our server was very good. If you have to use the restroom you have to go through the kitchen, lol, which I actually liked ! I was very surprised to taste the turkey burger my wife had ordered which was Amazing, and Im not turkey burger guy. Very jucy and tender. Nice place !

Bistro Pazzo…
Your spaghetti and meatballs was calling my name. I ordered an order to go and the owner, Seto said it would be just 5 minutes. I was both excited and well interested how fast it could take… I only hoped it tastes as good as it was priced ($ 17).
The prices are a bit steep, and portions are okay. I usually never finish all my Italian meals but I ate all of this but one meatball (it came with three). The restaurant looked nice inside — it was mix between trendy and casual. There was a small bar as well. There was one party and one person at the bar.
Spaghetti noodles were al dente and meatballs were delicious. I do think if they were priced a bit lower, this would be a jamming place.
P.s I should have asked but the bread that came with it had no butter or dip :(

Fantastic food in a warm and intimate atmosphere. The food melts in your mouth from the homemade croutons and crispy Caesar salad to the delectable special, butternut squash ravioli. The girls had fresh trout and salmon and ate every delectable morsel with a smile of joy.

We were on vacation in LaJolla, San Diego. We did a lot of exploring/​walking endlessly, exhausted, and hungry. Since it’s our last day there, we decided to try this authentic Italian Restuarant Bistro Pazzo (found on Unilocal) and were greeted promptly by this friendly owner name Seto. We ordered this light crispy Calamari (50% off on any appetizers w/​Yelp). My husband ordered spaghetti with meatballs
” meat-​ta-​balls ” as Seto humorously corrected us. My husband’s cousin had lasagna and I had garlic shrimp scampi with pasta noodles. All were perfectly prepared, generous size and very delizioso ! We were so satisfied /​happy and full that we had no room for desert… on our nxt visit for sure !
We’ll recommend this restaurant to all of our friends .
Grazie mille for serving us Seto and making us feel special on our last day there
Linda

Bisque was too salty fetuccini undersalted. Clams and mussels were barely passable. They can’t get basics right.

Absolutely delicious… we ordered the lobster bisque, a caesar, and chicken parm! Thanks so much for making our last night a great one! A wonderful La Jolla find!

This was a true gem of a find. Nice family atmosphere and good service. They have an extensive menu with special items on certain days. We loved the clam and oysters! Great service and great food, will be back.

What a great find in La Jolla! My bf and I were looking for a new Italian place and I’m so happy we gave this one a try even though there were only 71 reviews on Unilocal.I highly recommend this place if you’re looking for a great restaurant that’s off the beaten path yet oh so close to Prospect Street.
Was the experience perfect? No. So I could not give it a full 5 stars. I wish I could give this place 4.5 stars though cause the food was very, very good.
They served us a warm, freshly baked Italian loaf with a very tasty olive oil, parsley, and red pepper dip. I give the bread A+ and the dip A. My bf and I shared a caesar salad. The restaurant was kind enough to split the salad for us. The salad itself was just ok. I give it a B+. Not the best Caesar salad I’ve ever had. However, the croutons were delicious. They must make the croutons in-​house because I’ve never tasted croutons like these before.
My bf ordered one of the day’s specials… Veal tortellini with red sauce. He raved about the veal tortellini. He gave the dish an A– because he wished he ordered the meat sauce with it. I tasted the sauce. It was rich with tomatoes and garlic… flavors that they balanced so right I wanted to finish the sauce. I thought it worked but I don’t eat red meat so I don’t know how much the meat could have added to it.
I ordered the cioppino, which is my go-​to seafood dish. I loved the portion. It was just right. Too many restaurants try to compensate for poor flavor with large portions. This one was definitely not big in size but the flavors and ingredients were spot on. The tomato broth was so good – it was light yet rich – I wish I had a second loaf of bread to sop it all up. I give it a solid A.
Overall, the only so-​so part of the meal was the Caesar salad and that wasn’t really bad.

Nice and quiet, Italian family style dishes, decent price.

Authentic and delicious, but a bit pricey for what it is. I had the roasted beets as an appetizer and then the seared halibut, which came with fresh pasta tossed in a wonderful tomato sauce on the side, as my entrée. Total came to $ 50 after tip, for one person. The beets were roasted well, and the balsamic glaze it was tossed in was the perfect level of acidity. The halibut tasted fresh, although I wish the sear was a bit more prominent. The pasta, or more specifically the sauce, was delicious and simple. Good taste, great service, but not sure it was worth the price tag.

This place have friendly staff and the owner is nice. We come here for our Italian and pasta cravings. The portions are pretty good size and are so delicious that I always finish my plate. This restaurant is in walking distance from our place of business and we bring our staffs to eat here. I love the idea that you can dine in fresco style. I highly recommend them. Try them out when you’re in the area.

The generous calamari appetizer was tasty, and I barely made a dent in it. My pizza was light and healthy with artichokes, mozzarella and goat cheese. It’s called the Pazzo pizza. While I enjoyed the pizza, I’d have loved it even more with more aggressive flavors, as it was a little bland for my taste. The crust was thin and crunchy.
Bistro Pazzo is a cute little café with 5 tables on the sidewalk across the street from a church on a little side street in La Jolla, and down the street then around the corner from Mission Coffee Cup and Whisknladle.
With my Unilocal check-​in deal I get 50% off an appetizer with entrée purchase. I ordered the calamari appetizer and a pizza called «Pazzo» with artichoke, garlic, diced tomato, mozzarella, goat cheese, basil, and EVOO (extra virgin olive oil).
This place was deserted when I arrived, and so I trusted in the Unilocal reviews and gave it a chance. Another customer who seems to be a regular arrived while I was dining at an outside table. Then 4 more customers strolled in.
They make your food to order so you gotta wait a little, but the waiting time was reasonable. My food arrived before I finished my cappuccino.
I recommend Bistro Pazzo, and I hope to stop by again, although there’s a lot of competition in the area, so I might be tempted to dine elsewhere. The service was attentive. My pizza was a little pricey at $ 14 for a vegetarian pizza that feeds 1 or 2 people. Next time I’ll try the fettuccini with seafood and marinara sauce for $ 15 or the margarita pizza which is actually cheaper at $ 11.
My bill was higher than I expected. The cappuccino was a little pricey at $ 4.95. Even with the Unilocal discount on the appetizer, my lunch came to just over $ 25, which is more than I usually spend. But if you don’t mind the prices, this is a friendly and low-​key café if you want to escape from the crowds and enjoy a quiet meal.