Risata Cucina

Waiter suggested the chicken parm. It did not disappoint. The bruschetta, arancini, spaghetti and panna cotta were great too. Menu prices were kind high but everything is made from scratch in-house and tastes great so the cost seemed justified. Plenty of seating. Service is quick, polite and frequent. They clean your table and swap your plates and utensils between courses. Didn't have to wait long for the food to come out. Great location in Robbinsdale. Atmosphere is chill. Similar to European restaurants, they let you stay pretty much as long as you want and don't try to kick you out.

We were excited to try Risata Cucina, especially after the loss of Nonna Rosa’s which formerly housed the same location. The food was fantastic and the menu offered variations to classic dishes that made it stand out, I had a zitti n’duja with mascarpone and mint that was both spicy and light for summer! The portions were also huge, my dad has never been able to order Chicken Parmesan anywhere before now that left him feeling full—he took half home this time! Unfortunately, we didn’t take a picture but trust me it was as big as his face. Dave, our server, was also very friendly and fun! Only thing to know is they have an open kitchen in the restaurant so it will be fairly warm during summer time, keep in mind.

This was our first visit. We were lured in by the chicken parmesan on the three course restaurant week special menu. We started our meal by sharing the meatball appetizer which was delicious. (Suggestion: for four meatballs you really should include at least four slices of bread instead of just two slices.) Next we all had the ceasar salad as our first course from the restaurant week menu and it was fantastic! Next we all had the chicken parmesan entree from the restaurant week menu which was very good. We were surprised that it was just chicken served without pasta (not that pasta was needed, but we probably would have ordered a side or two of pasta had that been presented as an option). We were equally surprised that the chicken wasn't a breast but instead was a thigh with bone-in leg rather than the boneless breast we'd anticipated. The chicken was delicious and the portion size was more than adequate, but we would have preferred not to have to struggle with the bone-in leg. Our last surprise was that the tomato sauce was spicy. We thought the meatballs were spicy but it wasn't until we got the chicken entree that we realized it was the sauce that was spicy. It would have been helpful to have all this information disclosed as part of the menu descriptions but it wouldn't have changed what we ordered. I will say that we needed three baskets (each which had three slices) of bread to balance out the unexpected spiciness of the sauce. It would have been nice if the bread had been served automatically. We only received the first basket of bread because we asked why each table had a bottle of olive oil. That's also a sign that none of the other tables that we could see received bread which was a shame because your bread was warm and delicious and the olive oil on the table was fresh and light. Both definitely left us wanting more! For the last course of the restaurant week menu, two of us had the order (of 2 mini) cannoli and one of us had the chocolate crosata. For us, your desserts were the unexpected star of the night. We liked them so much that we ordered another chocolate crosata, two more orders of cannoli, and we even ordered the strawberry panicotta which was delicious as well. We were very excited to see two non-chocolate items on the dessert menu! We also appreciated the elevated bar menu. We had two glasses of Peroni, two glasses of wine, two old fashioneds (which were very good but should have been served with the aged marachino cherry), and a negroni all of which were very good. In addition we ordered a Coke, Diet Coke, and an iced tea. Our only complaints with the beverage service are: 1) the still water brought to the table was warm and no ice was offered (do people actually like room temperature water especially on a 90° summer day?) and 2) we had to request every refill of the iced tea, soda, and even the noticeably empty bottle of still water. Our server, Joe, was very friendly and very knowledgeable about both the food and bar menu. Over the course of our meal, we were served by four different food runners/staff and our table was cleared by two different bus persons/staff all of whom were friendly and courteous. With that amount of staff tending to our table, it was glaring that all the staff was attentive to every detail except the bread and the beverage refills. All in all, we had a very good first visit. Everything we ate was delicious. We even ordered the a 4th entree off the regular menu to take kind because we wanted to try your pasta (so we chose the pasta aka vodka). We are definitely looking forward to going back!

First timers at Risata! Wonderful experience! Quaint spot, very comfortable, treated like family. Can’t wait to go back! Outstanding dishes were the peach and tomato bruschetta (the waiter said it tasted like summer and it was spot on); the panzanella salad had peeled and pickled cherry tomatoes that had this beautiful pop of flavor that blended so well with the other tomatoes, bread and cheese. We also loved the fusilli with beef cheek ragu! Delicate pasta with a hearty meaty ragu with the perfect amount of heat. I would definitely get the cello cello drink again! Limoncello fans will love this!

Had a wonderful meal at Risata! We are so excited about this new addition to Birdtown. Food was amazing and our server, Todd, was so kind and helpful. We tried the meatballs, carrot agnolotti, gnocchi, swordfish piccata, and the sides of the roasted cauliflower and smashed potatoes. Everything was amazing! The mint on the swordfish was super good as well as the dill on the carrot agnolotti. The sauce that comes with the potatoes was also 10/10. We can’t wait to come back! Our second time back we tried the strawberry panna cotta and we LOVED it! The mussels were also a favorite. We were excited to bring our parents back to try the mussels but they are no longer on the menu. Please bring them back!!