Best Italian Restaurant

1. Fratellino’s by Cesar Lomeli

600 S. Brea Blvd., Brea, 714-255-9100, fratellinos.com

Established in 2000, Fratellino’s has placed among the Top 3 on this list for 11 years straight. Owner Cesar Lomeli doesn’t take the voters’ choice lightly. “It is a big responsibility, as a restaurateur, to be able to offer consistently what a customer is looking for — quality of food, good service, cleanliness, coziness, ambiance, etc. – at a great value. We’re always working hard on keeping all the variables a top priority with the highest standards. We recognize we have many great restaurants in OC and for us to stay on the top favorites year after year” is a challenge.

Walk into the family restaurant and an Old World Italian atmosphere is evident. The menu consists of hearty food portions such as beef lasagna with meat sauce, eggplant or veal parmigiana, shrimp scampi and chicken cacciatore. Then there are traditional pasta, chicken, seafood and meat dishes; pizzas (Margherita, vegetarian), sandwiches (meatball, hot turkey-Francisco style), salads (antipasto, caprese) and wines (sparkling, whites, reds, Italian). Fratellino’s has daily lunch specials and relatively reasonable prices too.

When it comes to the menu, Lomeli believes his customers “want to see the same items every time” they arrive.

“That’s what make them come back in the first place,” he said. “Our business is more than 40% takeout. Party trays are a big portion because the quality of the food we sell at a reasonable price of about $5 per person with a hot meal, salad and bread.”

PAUL BERSEBACH, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Cesar and Gabriela Lomeli own Fratellino’s by Cesar Lomeli in Brea. They were voted the best Italian restaurant in the OC Register’s Best of Orange County readers poll.

— George A. Paul

2. Roma D’Italia

611 El Camino Real, Tustin, 714-544-0273, romaditalia.com

Celebrating its 60th anniversary, Roma D’Italia specializes in pasta classics in a casual rustic space with red checkered tablecloths and a stone patio. A total family operation, second and third generations of the Roma family operate the restaurant.

Alfio Rossetti, part of that clan, says they “regularly welcome guests celebrating family milestones and events of all types.”

Among the lunch fare are grilled salmon salads, homemade soups and sandwiches. Signature pastas, specialty breads, veal, raviolis, seafood, calzone pockets and more comprise the dinner menu.

Rossetti stresses that the restaurant has a “strong desire” to serve fresh quality ingredients — something customers “have come to enjoy … the calamari fritti is, hands down, the best around. Our delicious, homemade cannoli, cheesecake, tiramisu, and rum cake desserts continue to be crowd pleasers.”

3. Roman Cucina

211 N. Harbor Blvd., Fullerton, 714-680-6000, romancucinafullerton.com

From the Italian flag that adorns the outdoor canopy to comfort food passed down from the Roman brothers’ grandmother, a sense of family and authenticity have been the hallmarks of this restaurant since it opened in 2001.

“We strive to provide the best dining experience by treating every guest that walks through our door like family,” says owner Mike Flynn.

Open at 5 p.m. daily, Roman Cucina’s specialty entree is the Pasta Gianni — shrimp and langostino lobster sauteed with mushrooms in its Bianco Diavolo sauce. Specialty desserts include tiramisu and cannoli. Recently, lobster ravioli and shrimp carbonara were introduced to the menu (with ample pasta choices) and proved instantly popular with customers.

Yelp reviewer Vicki L. of Irvine said she “got the calamari and pesto with penne. Both were super delicious, and the portion was big enough to be split into a second meal.”