Onotria Wine Country Cuisine

Our table of four came to celebrate a birthday. We were made to feel welcome and completely taken care of for the entire evening. We had a table close to the door but it was lovely to watch the people and action on Bristol Street.
Service was attentive and suggestions were right on. The eggplant appetizer was outstanding. Absolutely one of a kind… We shared several at the table including the beef carpaccio, shrimp cocktail and the antipasto. Presentation and taste were 100% on all. Mains were delicious and big portions. The pasta was cooked perfectly and the angle hair pasta in a light red sauce on the side was beyond memorable.
We all cannot wait to return!

I’ve driven by this restaurant a thousand times and never gave it attention. It’s quite and unassuming, but inside it’s this beautiful, romantic, Italian restaurant. Here’s the highlights:
* Romantic
* Great wines
* Amazing and delicious Italian food
The service was on point with friendly staff. We had this wine from Scilly. Niro Di Lupo… Which was light fruity and delicious.
Honestly, really good place. Visit. This is a pleasant surprise.

This restaurant has become a habit now. The delicacy of italian inspired flavors and dishes are truly something to experience. The staff and the owner were sublime. They were very knowledgeable in terms of wine and flavors. Loved it!

Hands down, the brick chicken is amaaazzzing! I hear the restaurant uses only organic ingredients, which makes me want to try everything on the menu! The staff is incredibly attentive as well as the owner himself. I am definitely going back!

Excellent food and service at a great price. Spent NYE here and it was a blast. Highly recommended.

Onotria is a hidden gem in Costa Mesa. I have to admit, I had driven by the location on several occasions and never knew it was there! A close friend of mine started to work there behind the bar, so a few friends and I went to visit. It was such a delight! Not only is the owner, Massimo, such a charismatic character, but the staff are all very friendly, and it’s a very open space. It’s comfortable to be there. The best part — the food is amazing. From the appetizers to the main courses, everything is delicious. I have never tried anything out of their kitchen and been ‘iffy’ about it. It’s solid, wonderful, Italian food. I recommend asking your waiter to pair your dish with an appropriate wine — not only do they have a rich selection, but it’ll compliment your food that much more. Not interested in wine? Go for an authentic Italian craft beer — Gjulia (I hope I spelled this correctly). I went to Onotria for a New Years’ Eve dinner and my boyfriend ordered this beer — we were all drinking it for the rest of the night.
I recommend going to this spot on a date, with friends, family or whoever. You won’t be disappointed.

Very expensive, server was aggressive to us, food was just ok and the prices are high. Won’t be back because they offered us plates for the cupcakes we brought for our birthday celebration. Then they charged 2.50 per plate and did not disclose that until we brought up when questioning the bill. Server he made an error however refused to remove the charge. It was not on the menu or disclosed when making the reservations. Plus they charged an 18% tip and tax on that number as well!

An odd space and experience. Glittery Christmas decorations, a big open dining room like a German drinking hall, dark side rooms full of piled up junk (I think), forced valet in an empty parking lot, a single sheet of inkjet printed paper sitting in every menu with the specials. It has intentions to be fancy, but then edges much closer to having checkered tablecloth in how it tries to pull it off.
The best thing was the squash blossom appetizer, but we also got a calamari salad which was really weird (fried squid dumped on top of a romaine salad), the worst offender was horribly overcooked pasta (could barely keep it on the fork) with an ok meat sauce, and an osso bucco special that was tough and seemed like it was just cooked improperly.
Really weird place. They have glasses of wine from $ 11-​$ 20, and then bottles from $ 55-​$ 3,000(!). It makes me really curious to know more about who owns this place and its history. I wonder if they’re still around. It seems like it might have had a soul at some point.
In any case, definitely not returning. I’m glad some people like it though.
Update: Just noticed our take home portion of overcooked pasta was in an aluminum container. The reaction between acidic foods and aluminum isn’t a new thing, and an Italian restaurant should know better.

Wow what a disappointment! We had high hopes for this place and gave it a try last night prior to seeing Cirque in Costa Mesa.
Our server really had a chip on his shoulder. We waited 15 minutes to get our wine and once brought to table, it took another 10 minutes to open. Our waiter actually scolded up for moving the bottle around our table. Truth is we were going to take it to the bar to open.
Food– out of the four of us, one was satisfied. Mushroom risotto was on point. Greasy pork dish, just that, greasy and dry. Chicken, just ok. Carbonara, a complete inedible mess. Sent back. Waiter had the nerve to school me saying dish was correct. I’ve had this dish at other upscale Italian eateries and know what it should taste like. It was horrible!
Service Zero
Food– subpar
Wine (once opened) — perfect.

What a HUGE disappointment. Made a reservation on October 25^th then went here on Saturday (Halloween) night to celebrate my birthday with my husband and another couple. When we got out of the car we were greeted with techno music and A LOT of Halloween decorations. No biggie… they must just be really into Halloween.
When we walked in the door the hostess was taking photos of the decorations. She did not greet us at all except to finish taking her photos while we all stood there. Then she finally barked at me, «Have a reservation?» I said yes and she picked up the menus and walked away. After standing there for a few seconds I realized that she expected us to follow her. Way to do your job!
After being seated in a VERY LOUD restaurant the waiter came by and asked for our order. We ordered the burrata app, chicken salad, spaghetti, seafood stew, carbonarra with guanciale and one other special pasta dish that had guanciale in it. We also ordered the pumpkin crème brûlée (it was AWFUL… super watery.) Except for the crème brûlée the food was actually good. But here’s where it gets weird… All of the staff (except our server and busboy) were dressed up for Halloween. There were two large groups of people in there also eating… all dressed up as well. These parties were super loud. One guy actually bumped into my friend and said, «I hope you guys weren’t expecting a quiet dinner tonight!»
Then as we’re about ½ way through our dinner we realize that a DJ is setting up in the corner. As soon as he was done setting up the manager of the restaurant danced his way from the front door area through the restaurant to the area in from the the DJ yelling. «Whooooop! Let’s paaaaarty!» Then proceeded to dance alone in front of the DJ just in front of us for the rest of our meal. I literally sat there shocked, I expected Taffer or one of the restaurant makeover guys to jump out any minute. It was CRAZY! They even had special Halloween lights and a disco strobe thing going off in the restaurant!
I have NO PROBLEM with them having a special event at all. If this is the way they wanted their restaurant to be that night… more power to them. BUT TELL PEOPLE THAT! We would have happily changed our reservation to another day. I made our reservation through Open Table… they had my information to contact me. Such an easy fix.
Our server was so apologetic. He kept saying to come back another night, that it wasn’t like this normally, that it’s usually fine dining and that he’d take care of us with a free glass of wine if we came back. We live 5 minutes away and will definitely not be back. For 4 of us to eat is was $ 289. Such a disappointing birthday dinner.

The place has a Tuscany ambiance, out the window are grape vines, you might believe you’re in wine country for a split second, before you see some cars speed by on Bristol. They have a nice bar area with very knowledgeable and friendly bartenders with an extensive list of wines, and even some good beers. The wine list seems slightly overpriced but that is what you get in OC.
My wife had been to Scampi’s before it closed and Chef Navarretta opened Onotria in CM. This is only my 2^nd time we have been here as it is sort of out of our way. Chef Navarretta organizes his entrées and appetizers according to the wines he feels suit them best. They have a several gluten free options also.
Anyway I digress, went here for my birthday looking for some good food and wine. Ordered the fried calamari and peppers. The calamari was fair, little mushy, the peppers had good flavors with some heat. As I was driving, I ordered one glass of chianti which was good.
Main courses were the wild boar pasta, it had a good flavor but nothing out of the ordinary. Wife ordered blue crab pasta dish. I did not care for the crab as it tasted a little watery but my wife loved it. The other guest othered the duck which was ok but was slightly overcooked and dry. They did give my a strawberry/​raspberry cheesecake for my birthday, that was very good.
It wasn’t awful by any means; it just wasn’t up to par with other places in the area. With a 4 star rating I will give it another try, maybe it was a off night.

We celebrated Mother’s Day here a few months ago. I was looking for something in the OC that could fit a larger party, and my Mom likes Italian. I figured with the great Unilocal reviews that this place would be good, but beware the OC Food Rule. What’s the OCFR, you ask? Well it goes like this– if you’re eating in the OC and it’s not Asian food or chicken garlic sandwiches from Le Diplomat, it’s not going to be very good. It’ll be decent. But never memorable.*
Overall, the service was fine, but the food was not good, especially considering the price. Nothing really tasted fresh, flavors didn’t really pop. The ambience was great, it was quite cozy. And the wine selection was good. But at the end of the night, and $ 400 later, and I was pretty disappointed.
*The only italian place I’ve had in the OC that was actually good was Cucina Enoteca

Started out with 5-​stars but trimmed down to 4 only because I want to return to see if the food is consistently as wonderful!
We went to Onotria with a friend that dines there often and knows the Chef /​Owner. You might drive by this lovely little restaurant and never realize that its there. The food is divine! Pasta with wild boar ragout in red currant tomato sauce, filet mignon in a pomegranate, dark cherry & port reduction. Sublime! Ended with the Creole Dark Chocolate Truffle — exquisite! The splendid food coupled with a wonderful wine list — we’ll definitely be returning for more of Chef Massimo’s delicious food! The restaurant is not inexpensive but it’s definitely worth it!!!
Oh, and there are cooking classes as well. Definitely going to have a look see!

After reading the reviews I had to try this place out. Walking in the place was set up in a rustic theme that made you feel like home. The service was excellent but the food was good but not great. The octopus appetizer did not taste fresh but a bit soggy. The chicken was good and a bit to much olive oil and the cheese ravioli was ok too. I really like the décor which may bring me back for a second try!

The restaurant is hidden just behind the 73 Freeway. From outside the restaurant seems abandoned, but when you walk in, it is a charming and romantic atmosphere.
The food was great, but it definitely does not justify the high prices on the menu. I had the Veal Osso Buco. The meat was tender and juicy, but definitely not a $ 30 dish, maybe $ 22. The rest of my family seemed to enjoy their prime rib and the seabass. However my girlfriend ordered the Quinoa dish, it was absolutely terrible. One could retort and say you don’t order that at an Italian restaurant, but she is vegeterian. Furthermore, if it doesn’t taste good, it should be on the menu.

The worst thing that could happen at a restaurant is a waiter questioning your decision in food. When they brought out the bread I asked to have some vinegar and oh my, was that just a preposterous request. Our waiter called the manager over to explain that vinegar was not allowed in this fine establishment. He gave me a lesson on vinegar, and my intelligence felt very undermined. He explain that vinegar is rotting wine and it would be an offense to serve it there. * Now please, I understand you have an option to serve what you want but don’t give me a 5 minute snobby lesson. I could not careless what this waiter had to say. He was rude and unforgiving that I dare ask for vinegar.
Now beginning the evening with some bitterness, the food only increased that feeling. I ordered the quinoa vegetarian dish and it tasted horrible. Actually there was no taste. It was bland and not worth $ 20. Maybe this is a meat place but for the type of attitude and pretentiousness that this certain waiter carried, all food should exceed expectation.
Don’t come here. Orange County and Los Angeles have great Italian restaurants that will not belittle you for asking for vinegar. Plus the food is overpriced and bland.
*one star for complementary valet

Talk about a hidden gem! Onotria is a building I’ve driven passed at least a couple hundred times and never realized it was there. I’m so glad that I found this place!
The appetizers (especially zucchini blossoms and burrata cheese plates) were perfectly prepared and easy to share. The entrée options were vegetarian friendly and scrumptious, and the dessert was PHE-​NOM-​EN-​AL! If you want a simple, yet satisfying dessert, make sure to order their version of the affogato, you won’t regret it.
On top of the food and wine being amazing, the servers were equally great (attentive with great personalities). I would recommend Onotria to couples for a romantic dining experience or anyone who loves organic, GMO free Italian cooking.

Two things come out of Campania, a region in the south of Italy, grape vines and gladiators. Chef Massimo Navarretta comes from the area and brings a little bit of «Wine Country Cuisine» to the OC. When I first learned of Onotria, I was glad that such a restaurant was located in a relatively central, accessible area, it seemed to be a perfect candidate to celebrate a favorite friends birthday…
It wasn’t as dressy a place as I had first imagined, OC neat comes to mind perhaps but certainly appropriate to have a celebratory dinner among friends. After dining here I felt that the prices were at the higher end of $$$ and that was after our party showed restraint sharing two appetizers and ordering only one glass of wine. Everything on the seasonal menu sounded so enticing, it’s easy to spend $$$$ especially if you plan to wine pair…
I knew we wanted to order the Squash Blossoms right from the beginning and they’re good, maybe even great, but they didn’t have the wow like the ones we had at Redd Wood in Yountville. Something more pedestrian, we were nevertheless tempted by the Fried Calamari which generously sported a good number of the tentacles and had a light crispy batter like the blossoms — if it wasn’t for the discovery of a hair in the batch I would have considered it well executed. To the staffs credit, they replaced the order without hesitation or added hassle…
The Veal Ossobuco «bone with a hole» was a popular choice within our group as two of us decided to order the same thing. Meltingly tender and succulent was the meat as it yielded from the bone with just a fork, I remembered to scoop out the marrow from the veal shank and serve it up on top of a piece of bread, I was rewarded as the taste was stupendous. Served traditionally modern on a creamy bed of Parmigiano polenta, the cheesy highlights went particularly well with the hint of Marsala in the sauce…
We splurged on one of the whole Mediterranean white fishes offered on the menu that evening, a grilled European Seabass or Branzino. Filleted and served tableside, I told the waiter not to dispose of the personally prized crispy outer skin which when peeled back revealed the flaky moist and supple flesh. I doubt that the fish was even a pound in weight as I’m somewhat familiar with buying whole fish from the likes of Ranch 99; trying to harvest the prized cheeks from the head were out of the question, especially after frying or grilling. At $ 45 a plate, ordering this felt a bit like an indulgence even with the waiter’s presentation as the plate itself was bereft of anything else save for the agliata preparation which seemed a lot like a vinaigrette…
My friend ordered a Penne Pasta with Wild Boar Ragu which looked very good from where I was sitting, even though he bagged most of it. The sauce sounded interesting because it had red currants in it…
The veggies were a la carte and taking a recommendation from our affable waiter, we ordered the sauteed Rapini. The characteristic slight bitterness is reminiscent of similar cruciferous members of the same family like broccolini but less stalky; much needed with the veal and the fish entrees…
It’s not difficult to figure out why the dessert is called a threesome, but isolating three distinct elements is either just incredibly smart or incredibly stupid, you decide. I enjoyed each element but the sweet whip cream was terrific with either the fruit or the dark chocolate and enhanced both, though I didn’t really taste the rose infusion. The complementary tiramisu that they gave the birthday girl was a nice touch and very well received and appreciated…
Just on a value call, I would have been inclined to give this place the fifth star if it were indeed a $$$ place but if I had to rate it like a $$$$ place then it would be harder to do so…

My husband and I went to Onotria for the 1^st and last time. Not only was this place over priced, the food was not worth rating. I had the duck which had way too much fat, grease was running threw the plate. There was a side of what looked like polenta, not good. My husband had the salmon so cold he felt bad asking them to take it back. Newport locals this place has no room to be in the elite of finner resturants. With so many great places in Orange County this place needs a reality check and need to update their reviews.
A Dissappointed Customer

I was excited to try this place but I was very disappointed.
The appetizer was great. Octopus ceviche. It was very fresh and exactly what you want a ceviche to be.
On to the main course. I did not see anything that I liked on the menu so I asked what their specials were for the night. Our server talked about «clams in a garlic sauce.» I thought that linguine and clams sounded delicious. So I ordered that and when the dish came out there it was, clams in a garlic sauce, no linguine, just clams in a garlic sauce. Now technically it is my fault for making the assumption that clams in a garlic sauce would come with linguine or anything at all. I just never had clams by itself, ever and it sucked. Like, it was just clams and nothing else. It would have been a great appetizer but nope, it was my main entrée. And I was still starving after I ate the 14 clams that were in my bowl of soupy garlic sauce.
I had to finish the rest of my wife’s plate, which was a penne pasta with boar meat. It was good not great.

I came to Onotria on a Tuesday evening after work to meet up with my friend who bought a Groupon for us to go to Paint Nite here. We arrived a little early to grab some drinks at the bar and catch up beforehand.
We had great service, albeit the bar was still empty when we got there around 5 PM but we each ordered a glass of wine and shared a bruschetta-​esque appetizer.
The location of this restaurant is a little hard to find as it’s right underneath the freeway. Just remember it’s an olive green building and you should be able to spot it. Parking is kind of weird — they share a lot with a dinky looking apartment complex and you can either valet park or self park in the same lot. It’s all a little too small for my taste.
The ambiance inside is pretty romantic– I don’t think it’s a bad date spot, but considering all the other options in the area, I would categorize Onotria as just average. As for the actual Paint Nite, I wrote a separate review of that but the waiters working the event were attentive and very friendly.

If this place was walking distance from a bunch of other restaurants, I would suggest that you come here for a pre-​meal drink, then mosey along. They have a cute bar area with a very knowledgeable and friendly bartender, an extensive list of wines, and even some good beers. BUT, this place is not walking distance from a bunch of other restaurants. It’s near some apartment complexes and the freeway. Because of this, I’m not sure I’d recommend coming here at all.
The ambiance of the actual restaurant is okay. If you look out the window at their grape vines, you might believe you’re in Napa for a split second, before you see some cars speed by on Bristol. Really, I think this place could do way better if the location was better. But, then again, the food wasn’t that great either.
We started with the calamari and a couple overly priced cheese plates. Both were good, but not amazing. I did appreciate the baskets of hot bread, which they happily refilled for us at least 3 times. They didn’t have a ton of vegetarian options for entrees, so I went with a corn pasta. I have no idea what corn pasta is. I guess it’s part of this gluten-​free fad? I happen to enjoy my gluten, but there weren’t really other veg options for me. I thought about getting the agnolotti pasta dish (which is similar to ravioli) until they told me it only comes with 5 pieces. Um, that would not suffice.
The pasta was fine, but it was strikingly similar to a bag of frozen pasta that I buy at Trader Joe’s. So, yeah, nothing to write home about. The desserts are good, but small. Also, we told our waiter that someone in our party was allergic to strawberries and he proceeded to bring out our desserts (a chocolate mousse and a lemon cheesecake) covered in strawberries. Ummm… we told him to take them back and use other berries. He brought them back with nothing at all. And then a random side of berries after we were almost done with the desserts. Awesome.
The wine list is good, but the cheapest bottles are $ 40 – 50, which is pretty expensive if you ask me.
There are just too many really good restaurants in Orange County for me to recommend going here. It wasn’t awful by any means; it just wasn’t up to par with other places in the area.

It’s established history that yearly, during my birthday month, i feast at as many restaurants as possible off of my MUST TRY list.
I only recently saw reviews for Onotria, but I decided on having one of my birthday dinners here with a few of my favorite people. Italian food, friends and wine, well can’t really go wrong with those right? That and I love bread baskets. Italian places almost always have complimentary bread baskets.
First off, the restaurant is small but gorgeous. The atmosphere definitely romantic laced with voluminous chatter within its walls. I loved every bit of it! Every single person on staff that evening was very warm, from the bartender who made me special libations which included fruit picked from the «backyard» (haha) to Massimo himself who photobomed my birthday group photo (with all ladies, mind you). The servers, who were actually Italian, and not bad on the eyes either, provided exemplary service that made you feel like you were right at home.
Now we ordered a lot of everything, calamari, ceviche, bread and more bread with tons of butter. And of course, several rounds of shots — even Massimo and our server, whose name I regrettably never got, took a shot with us and shared a few laughs. On top of the shots, we also had imported beer and wines brought to our table.
Out of the many dishes we ordered, I was fortunate to try the salmon, the goat cheese ravioli, rib eye, and of course my veal ossobucco which was melt in your mouth rich and delicious. I had an omg moment at every bite. I wanted it with risotto versus pasta and that’s exactly what they gave me.
To top it off, they brought me a complimentary dessert, sang me a quite vivd rendition of happy birthday in addition to the desserts we actually ordered — all of which were a perfect end to our lavish dinner.
We were literally there for about 3 hours, every minute filled with laughter and a tinge of drunkeness. Loud is definitely an adjective that’s well appreciated here.
I certainly had it my way that evening and everything from start to finish was absolutely fantastic. More importantly, no one made fun of the obnoxiously large hello kitty balloon my friend brought me, she even got her own seat.

delectable food, great service and atmosphere, loved it! definitely a place i want to come back to. prices a good $$, and it’s not stuffy like some other restaurants in the area