La Grotta

We were visiting friends in Ventnor this weekend. They took us here. We were seated by the door. Every 20 seconds or so the door would slam shut with a loud bang. The noise level in the restaurant was close to shouting. I resolved to never return before I had my first bite. My wife had the trout special which was quite nice. I ordered a breaded veal dish that had some salad greens in balsamic over the veal cutlets. The dish was very attractive. The greens in balsamic were quite flavorful. But when I got down to the veal, I found the breading heavy and the meat was dry. The food did not change my mind about the place. One and done.

By far the best restaurant at the shore. Authentic homemade Italian food and the staff is incredibly friendly. Every item was prepared to perfection. My husband and I ordered the arugula salad with mango and chicken as an appetizer, which could have been a meal in itself. The portions are very generous. For dinner, we had the lobster ravioli and grilled salmon. Both entrees were exceptional. My husband is talking about the food. It was the best lobster ravioli he's ever had. Oh- and make sure to leave room for the homemade desserts, you won't be sorry.

Went a few weeks ago for my first time to this Italian BYOB. It was delicious! I would def go back. Family run. I had the calamari salad to start. It included huge chunks of grilled calamari. Followed by a shrimp pasta. Again delicious! FYI it's cash only! They also only do two seating a a night. Reservations are recommended.

5/5 for this area, 4.5/5 generally. The owner and his son-in-law cook delicious dishes which bring a taste of Italy to the shore. Everything that my table ordered was excellent, absolutely no complaints.

While I didn't review the dessert menu, the staff was attentive to allergies and had gluten free bread and pasta available upon request.

I found the service staff to be very engaging and friendly, however our (younger) server neglected to offer drinks beyond water and did only a fair job at checking in with the table. (I think this was an aberration, rather than the rule.)

FYI: CASH only & BYOB! Expect to pay $30-40 a person.

Delicious! Our group tried a variety of menu items and the consensus was unanimous: we will be back!

Personal favorite was the lobster ravioli. 4 giant ravioli topped with shrimp and in a flavorful (not heavy!) cream sauce that left me satisfied not uncomfortably stuffed.

Room for improvement: the wait time between ordering and receiving our meals. This place is small and charming. All the food is freshly made to order (yay!) They had 10 tables/groups that all arrived for their reservations between 7:30-8:30 and the tiny kitchen couldn't serve 40-50 meals in an hour. They've only been open only 2 weeks, and like their previous location had not planned on taking reservations. But for a restaurant in this area that is a must - so they do take them now. They just haven't quite figured out yet how to stagger reservations to accommodate multiple seatings and manage their kitchen flow.

My recommendation- give them a couple weeks to adjust their scheduling and then make La Grotta your go-to spot starting this August. The food is exceptional and the service from the family owned business will make your meal a pleasurable one.

Service was excellent as well as the food. Had the veal Milanese and loved every bite. Portions are hefty so bring your appetite.

Dined here on a Friday night with 3 friends. We had the pear salad which could have been good but it was drowned in sweet dressing. Also tried caesar which was very good. For entrees we had the cod, risotto with shrimp and lobstar, pasta with pesto and shrimp, and a vegan pasta dish that was specialty made for my friend. All was very good, service was good, and staff was very friendly. Would definitely return.

Atmosphere was small but cozy and well decorated.

My wife and I are in town from Florida. We headed into town walking the neighborhoods looking for acquaint restaurant to have dinner. We were magnetically drawn to this charming restaurant without sidewalk seating and a small interior. We luckily got a table outside and were immediately greeted by several members of the family owned restaurant. The nephew grandfather and daughter seated us and made us feel comfortable immediately. We didn't know that this was a BYOB and the grandfather heard and brought us each a glass of red wine.

We split the calamari, Ceasar salad and for our main course pesto shrimp lump crab pasta dish all were made to perfection.

We were then introduced to the daughter and son in law who runs the restaurant and is the chef. This is a special place with the warmth of home and the quality of family with many years of restaurant experience who know great value and made our dining a wonderful experience. We'll be back!!!!

On a recent summer night we spotted an empty sidewalk table at LaGrotta. We parked the car and took our chances. Although the empty tables were mostly reserved, the staff made it work and we were seated. We were with guests from out of town who proclaimed their meal "the best Italian they have ever had". I had the risotto with scallops and lobster-heavenly. One of our guests had a veal dish that he talked about for the rest of the weekend.
The staff is beyond hospitable, the food is fabulous and the experience, for us, divine.
PS. Don't forget to bring cash-no credit cards accepted.

Absolutely amazing Italian food cooked by chef Giancarlo and served by his wonderful family! Everything is cooked to order, steaming hot and presented beautifully. The service is also out of this world! We used to go to their old location in Brigantine and were so excited the Presta family opened in Ventnor:-) I highly recommend the Zuppa Di Pesce...if I had to choose my last meal ever, this would be it!