Caruso's Restaurant
(520) 624-5765
434 N 4th Ave
Tucson,
AZ
85705
32.2269
-110.9653
Neighborhood: Ward 6
What People Are Saying About Caruso's Restaurant
The Editor
Contributor
Citysearch
The Scene
Indoors, red-checkered tablecloths and wall murals of the Italian countryside decorate a series of small, low-lit rooms of an old house turned restaurant. Outside, strings of colored lights dangle from the white porch roof and a border of towering cypress trees circles the huge backyard. This is a place to relax, sip a glass of vino and chat with family.
The Food
No surprises, just straightforward, home-cooked lasagna, pizza, spaghetti and eggplant Parmesan. The shrimp Mediterranean is in a white garlic sauce, or choose between the marinara and Caruso's special sauce. The only appetizer, a saladlike antipasto, comes in sizes for two, four, six or eight. Other choices are also simple: one salad, one soup--minestrone--and four desserts, all homemade. The nutty crunch of almond and coconut in the tortoni makes it a favorite.
User Reviews
JohnRae
May 08, 2009
My husband and I went to Caruso’s for dinner for the first time as our 1st Anniversary dinner. We were seated at 7:57 PM and our server brought us our drinks after only a short wait, he took our order and garlic bread quickly followed. We waited about 30 minutes, then started wondering where our dinner was. Our glasses had long run dry, and while the server walked by our table many times, our drinks were never filled and we could not grab his attention. At 9:00 PM, I asked the hostess what time we were seated, and she informed me that it was at 7:57 PM. I asked her how long it normally takes for meals to arrive, and she stated that it takes approximately 20 minutes unless the kitchen gets backed up, but that it should not take as long as we had waited. She informed someone of the situation, and in about 5 minutes the server was at our table apologizing. He let us know that he had ‘clipped’ our ticket over with a completed order and had not turned it in to the kitchen. He then began to only address my husband as ‘Sir’ and avoided talking to me, and assured my husband that our meals would be out in less than 10 minutes. He then offered us dessert “on him, not on the house” which he made sure to tell us about 3 times that he was paying for it and not Caruso’s. When our meal arrived, my husband’s small helping was obviously very warm as it was steaming, but my six ravioli’s were only lukewarm. Since we had waited so long for our dinner, I ate half of mine then boxed the rest to take it home. My husband's meal was disappointingly small, compared to the plates on the tables around us. I’m not sure how large the portions at Caruso’s are supposed to be. We paid full price for two mediocre LATE meals and no manager, supervisor, owner, etc. came to discuss any of this with us. I emailed the owner about this experience two days ago and have yet to receive any response. This entire experience was unacceptable, and we will not be back. Thank you Caruso's, for ruining our 1st Anniversary dinner.
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Anonymous
March 19, 2009
I worked at this restaurant for many years and loved there food its been since 2005 that i have worked and eaten here and am sad to hear that so many people have had a bad time, I have just spoken to the manger while I was reading these reviews and he too was sad to hear the news but very happy that I am online writting this... I would ask that you have not given it a second chance already then please due so I am wondering if anyone remembers any of the servers names that served them those night or what they looked like I knew everyone there at one time and know who the best servers are or somewhat good ones if anyone is going to the restarurant soon i would suggest asking for elke, johnny, ryan, kelly, jeff even will if any of these servers are still there tell them Sarah sent you to them lol and that i miss them all I worked there from FEB 2003- Augs 2005 I only left due to a deadly illness and the death of my father..... OTHER than all that I LOVE the Caruso's and Sal Zagona is a great man was a wonderful boss and the family is great also!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Cpattz
January 25, 2009
The first time I went to Caruso's was a couple of years ago to attend a graduation party. I don't remember exactly what I ordered back then, but I believe it was a red sauce pasta dish of some sort. Having been familiar with great Italian food (from cooking it, spending time in Italy, and eating at other good restaurants around the country) I was disappointed with my first visit. The red sauce tasted like it came out of a Chef-boy-R-D jar. I could not understand the hype that this place generated. Last night, a friend wanted to try Caruso's out, as she had never been before. I was hesitant at first, remembering my first experience. But I thought, "What the heck I'll give it another shot". I had heard great things about their pizza. I thought maybe that's the reason people come in droves and not so much for their pasta. After receiving poor service and waiting 40 minutes for our food, my pizza arrived. I looked down at a blackened and burnt crust and an extremely greasy and oily topping. It didn't look appetizing and all of my hopes quickly faded away. I was so hungry however, that I took a bite. I had been craving pizza for hours after all. I was shocked. After waiting 40 minutes for a pizza, they couldn't even cook the darn thing right. My pizza dough was extremely undercooked...chewy, runny, and doughy. I took my fork and pushed aside the oily cheese topping to reveal a translucent, runny dough. I quickly sent the pizza back. Server was unapologetic and wanted to replace my pizza with "something that was quick and easy. Yeah? Well what if I didn't want quick and easy? I decided on the Carbonera. If you are familiar with Carbonera than you know it's a white sauce dish with bacon and sometimes eggs. White sauce was extremely bland. I kept shaking parmesan cheese over it, hoping it would taste better and mask the blandness. The bacon did not taste like bacon but more like Baconbits! What more can I say about this place? First time was blah, second time was even worse. Will never go back.
read full reviewThe Details on Caruso's Restaurant
Parking:
Because Caruso's is in a residential neighborhood, parking is on the street. Your best bets are on 7th Street or 3rd Avenue.
Category:
Payment Methods:
Check, American Express, Discover, Visa, MasterCard
Restaurant Special Features:
Local Favorite, Romantic Dining, Quiet, Outdoor Dining, Private Rooms, View Dining, Family Style Dining, Group Dining, Carry Out
Cuisine:
Smoking Permitted:
No
