13 Absolute Best Italian Chains Across The US

Tearing into limp spaghetti or a mediocre chain restaurant pizza is a sad place to be when you were craving a delicious Italian dinner. Italian food done right makes the soul sing. It's garlicky, herby, cheesy, and bursting with comforting flavors. That's why we've rounded up Italian chains where you can satisfy a craving for baked lasagna bubbling with cheese, or for crispy pizza made with real ingredients.

Some of America's most interesting Italian chains have spent decades perfecting recipes brought straight from Italy, while others take a more inventive approach to Italian cooking. Our selections include family-friendly spots where quality reigns alongside generous portions, bougie restaurants serving luxury takes on Italian classics, and casual joints making waves with street food sandwiches and gelato.

There's no single recipe for a great Italian experience. The best Italian chefs make every meal feel like a splurge. It doesn't matter whether you go to a chain restaurant or a tiny cafe. These chains prove that delicious Italian food can come from some surprisingly familiar places.

Let's get the obvious out of the way: Including Olive Garden on a list celebrating Italian food is a bold move. The brand is practically an emblem of what's left standing despite America's anti-chain movement. Back in the ancient times of 2017, millennials and Gen Xers gleefully blogged about the inevitable demise of casual chain restaurants. Give us authenticity, they cried; give us sun-flecked cafes and Italian nonnas making pasta by hand. Olive Garden's reputation could have crumbled like a block of Italian cheese. Instead, the company grew stronger.

In a 2026 YouGov poll, millennials, Gen X, and baby boomers all ranked Olive Garden as their number one choice for a casual restaurant. Gen Z can't resist the appeal of never-ending pasta and fluffy breadsticks either. They ranked Olive Garden second. Renewed love for the Italian chain is fueled by familiarity, the same feeling that almost caused its demise. Yes, the pasta is chewy and dripping with luscious, homemade sauce, and the Zuppa Toscana soup could probably start its own fan club. Olive Garden's biggest draw remains its cozy mix of comfort and nostalgia. An OpenTable reviewer who visited an Olive Garden on the Las Vegas Strip described the magnetic pull. "After being overwhelmed with celebrity chef restaurants at every corner, we realized we were craving something familiar, something we knew would not disappoint: the Olive Garden!"

Get five Americans talking about Italian food, and someone will probably mention red sauce pasta or Parmesan cheese. Fine Italian chocolate hasn't achieved the same cultural cachet — a fact Venchi, a luxurious chocolate-and-gelato phenom, aims to change. Venchi is introducing chocolate lovers worldwide to impossibly rich, velvety varieties from Piedmont, Italy. Start with the famous Gianduiotto, a wonderfully creamy blend of artisanal chocolate and ground PGI Piedmont hazelnuts. For a chewier bite, try Venchi's decadent take on tiramisu. Layers of coffee chocolate, soft mascarpone, and dark chocolate create a symphony of exquisite flavor.

Venchi's gelato invites exploration as well. The gelato is made fresh daily, and most flavors are far more intriguing than the typical chocolate or vanilla. The Green Pistachio from Bronte, for instance, is made with a Sicilian nut famed for its unique flavor and aroma. Fans rave about the fresh gelato, with many calling it amazing, and the best they've ever had.

Buca di Beppo is another contender for the Italian-American comfort food throne. Olive Garden's power move is endless pasta; Buca di Beppo's claim to fame is portions so large you won't need to order more. Buca di Beppo's menu is built for groups. It's a go-to spot for graduation parties, wedding receptions, and cheerful nights with friends. Customers adore the boisterous atmosphere, often ranking Buca di Beppo's ambiance among the industry's best. It might be the only restaurant where you can watch staff dance and sing "Happy Birthday" while you sit at a special table decorated with Pope memorabilia.

Wine enthusiasts can appreciate Buca's Traditional Chianti, the chain's proprietary wine. The fruity notes complement the natural sweetness of tomato-based sauces. Anyone can fall in love with the food: Family-size portions of favorites like chicken parmigiana with melty cheese and shrimp scampi swimming in butter. If you prefer to go meatless, Buca di Beppo ranked third in USA TODAY's 2023 Best Restaurant Chain for Vegans poll. Try the mixed green salad with thick pepperoncini, olives, red onions, and Roma tomatoes, all drizzled with the chain's signature Italian vinaigrette. For entrees, the spaghetti marinara is a worthy vegan choice, too.

Two Texans with Sicilian roots created Carrabba's, and their rich culinary background influences every dish. The menu is an ode to Italian cuisine rather than a collection of 100% authentic recipes. Co-owner Damien Mandola personally created the customer favorite Chicken Bryan, named after the Texas town where the Carrabba family lived when they first moved to the U.S. The chicken is wood-grilled until golden, and then smothered in goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and a house-made lemon-butter sauce.

According to the Carrabba's website, the wood-burning grill is one of the chain's standout features. Some Carrabba's regulars even claim the chain introduced them to Italian grilling. That might be a reason why Carrabba's snagged a spot on Yelp's 2023 list of Most Beloved Brands. The chain's Fettuccine Carrabba, made with chicken, peas, and mushrooms in silky alfredo sauce, made Yelp's roundup of the Top 10 most-loved takeout orders of 2023.

The Old Spaghetti Factory has been a family affair since opening in 1969, with the founders' son currently serving as chairman and owner. The chain's dedication to affordable, three-course Italian meals has remained equally consistent. Old Spaghetti Factory entrees automatically come with warm bread, minestrone soup or salad, and ice cream for dessert (we recommend the spumoni). It's home-style cooking, done right.

A name like The Old Spaghetti Factory tells you what to expect for entrees. Excellence here means 100% durum semolina spaghetti topped with housemade sauces. But it's not the familiar Italian-American red sauce that gets fans drooling the most. Customers obsess over the spaghetti with mizithra cheese and browned butter. Many order nothing else. Mizithra is a rare cheese for American palates, with a milky softness when fresh and a light, and a crumbly texture after it's salted and aged. The browned butter adds a delightful nuttiness. For a more intense flavor, try the garlic mizithra pasta, which adds garlic, bacon, and mushrooms.

Don't call Maggiano's Little Italy a basic chain. Maggiano's claims to function more like a devoted extended family, a metaphor that stops being ridiculous when you taste the food. Clearly, team Maggiano's is doing something right when it can produce culinary winners like Rigatoni D, a pasta made delicious with onions, mushrooms, chicken, and smooth Marsala cream sauce. Reviewers say it's just as good the next day.

Leftovers are the norm at Maggiano's thanks to the brand's Famous Family Style menu. Portions are meant to be shared, and you can order as many refills as you'd like. Options lean upscale, with indulgences like the signature Caesar salad with Maggiano's lush Caesar dressing, housemade croutons, and fresh Parmesan grated at the table. Even traditional recipes like lasagna have a touch of added luxury. Chefs gush over the 30 pasta layers and the scrumptious béchamel and Bolognese sauce.

Reality TV turned Carlo's Bakery (also known as Carlo's Bake Shop) into a 2000s cultural icon. For almost a decade, Cake Boss viewers were enthralled by the bakery's behind-the-scenes operations. You could watch Buddy Valastro, the Cake Boss himself, and his gregarious family while they handled in-store customers and created jaw-dropping cakes. The TV show's reign is over, but fans can still visit the bakery. It's a worthwhile trip, even without the Hollywood sheen. USA TODAY readers named Carlo's Bakery the runner-up for 2023's Best Dessert/Treat Chain.

Carlo's cakes are gorgeous, of course, perfectly frosted and richly colored. Chocolate mousse cake shines with a dark, satiny ganache; strawberry shortcake tantalizes with glistening fruit and real whipped cream. There's deliciousness all around. The original Carlo's Bakery in Hoboken, New Jersey, often has more than a dozen cake styles ready for pickup. After you check out the cake parade, there are more famous Carlo's treats to explore. The chain's lobster tail, made with French cream and layers of flaky, hand-pulled dough, has been a favorite for over 100 years.

Foodies already know that Carbone is exceptional. Snagging a reservation at the flagship Manhattan location is so tricky that The New Yorker even wrote an article about it. Celebrities, influencers, and every other version of the well-heeled flock to Carbone. You might even sit next to an Obama. You won't see them getting any special treatment by staff, though. Carbone co-founder Mario Carbone told Harper's Bazaar that it's "wonderful to have celebrities, politicians or whoever in the dining rooms," but his focus is on the everyday fans who may have waited months for a table. "I'd rather make sure that couple that spent all that energy and time to come here has a spectacularly special experience," he explained. 

That spectacular experience starts with the bread service: tomato focaccia, 24-month-aged SarVecchio Parmigiano, carved tableside, salumi, and cauliflower. Add Carbone's made-to-order warm mozzarella and prosciutto from the esteemed Cesare Casella to deepen the spread's flavor. The entrees blend familiar notes with gourmet touches. Want lasagna? Carbone's lasagna verde is a green-tinged tower of mozzarella, spinach pasta, basil pesto, broccoli rabe, and buttery béchamel.

Giordano's is practically synonymous with Chicago-style pizza. The chain has a stack of "Chicago's Best Pizza" mentions from esteemed critics and a seemingly endless flow of fan love. Even Chicago locals admit Giordano's has some of the best deep-dish pizza around. The legendary pizza recipe comes from Mama Giordano, who impressed her Turin, Italy neighbors with a decadently cheesy Italian Easter pie. All that cheese remains in Giordano's stuffed deep-dish pizza.

Typical deep-dish pizzas feature a thick crust and a generous layer of sauce and toppings. Giordano's version adds an extra layer of crust beneath the cheese. What's really special, though, is the quality of the ingredients. Giordano's flaky crust comes from a proprietary flour blend of wheat from North and South Dakota. Wisconsin cheesemakers produce the chain's mozzarella from milk from local farmers. Giordano's signature tomato sauce is especially impressive. Chefs make it fresh every day. Tomatoes grown in California's Mendocino County give the sauce its slightly sweet, tangy flavor.

Giordano's deep-dish pizza gets all the attention, but the menu also includes tavern-style and traditional thin-crust pizzas. Both options are less saucy and cheesy than the deep dish, yet just as tasty.

Chefs at North Italia make pizza and pasta from scratch every day. Watch them at work in the chain's bright, open kitchens, specially designed to evoke freshness. North Italia doesn't pretend to be a standard Italian restaurant, so you'll see some creative pairings. And even though pizza has been a national obsession since World War II, North Italia's menu may still offer some surprises. There's the Funghi, which caters to mushroom lovers with a heavy dose of roasted mushrooms, truffle, cipollini, and smoky mozzarella. The Cacio e Pepe pizza, full of pecorino romano, fonduta, and cracked black pepper, recreates the flavors of one of Italy's top comfort foods. Try not to get too attached, however. North Italia frequently reinvents its menu.

North Italia's fresh pasta is a canvas for premium ingredients such as Grana Padano crema, horseradish gremolata, and herb-roasted chicken. A traditional Bolognese is the house specialty. It's mouthwateringly simple — traditional meat sauce, Grana Padano, wild oregano, and fresh pappardelle. Prefer seafood? The squid ink tonnarelli features tiger shrimp, calamari, and a spicy tomato sauce.

Dinner at RPM Italian is a sumptuous affair. Creamy pasta thick with egg yolks shares menu space with black truffle Chicken Vesuvio and a Gorgonzola-cured wagyu. The prosciutto service features meat produced by an Italian family that's been curing prosciutto since the 18th century. Order a tableside option like the signature beef tartare for a more interactive experience. You'll watch the team prepare Westholme Wagyu and a mix of chives, capers, shallots, and quail egg.

RPM Italian makes all pasta in-house using imported Italian flour. The chain also imports an award-winning Giachi Primolio olive oil made from olives hand-picked in the first 10 days of November. Italian food this good deserves a glass of wine, and RPM Italian delivers. You can pair every delectable dish on the menu with a rare or renowned glass. The chain's wine program was recognized as Best in North America at London's 2023 World's Best Wine List Awards.

Waiting in line at All'antico Vinaio has become a rite of passage for sandwich-obsessed foodies. Some happily wait two hours or more for a bite of one of All'antico's world-famous paninis. The first shop opened in Florence in the early '90s, and the crowds followed soon after. Now, All'antico Vinaio has locations across Italy and the U.S., selling its wildly popular, fresh-baked bread and crave-worthy fillings.

All'antico uses two large slabs of schiacciata, a crispy Tuscan specialty similar to focaccia, in every sandwich. The bread serves as the perfect carb-y base for a slew of prosciutto toscano, pecorino toscano, and truffle cream, all showcased in the La Schiacciata del Boss sandwich. The La Paradiso features a pile of mortadella, stretchy stracciatella, pistachio cream, and real pistachios, for a textural contrast with the rest of the soft sandwich. The sandwich is easily big enough for two, though you may not want to share.

Il Fornaio's culinary brand began with a desire to help budding bakers master fine Italian pastry. The Il Fornaio baking school opened in Lombardia, Italy, in 1972, and was so successful that an actual bakery followed a few years later. The chain's U.S. expansion brought full-service restaurants, with the first opening in Corte Madera, California in 1987. All the technical expertise and nuanced flavor profiles that make the bakery outstanding also exist in the restaurant kitchen. But instead of delicate meringues and elaborate sfogliatella, chefs focus on savory creations.

Homemade dough is standard at Il Fornaio. Taste the chew in the fresh pizza and pasta. The menu has options like capricciosa pizza with kalamata olives, mushrooms, artichokes, and ham. Il Fornaio bucks the chain restaurant trend toward identical restaurants and designs each location for its specific community. You could do an Il Fornaio tour and find new things to try at every stop.

Il Fornaio's food and hospitality have won global recognition. The collective Chambers of Commerce of Italy awarded the chain the Marchio Ospitalità Italiana (also called Marchio Q), a certification that honors authentic Italian restaurants worldwide.

So, how did we choose the Italian chains that deserve adulation? We paid attention to fan love, incredible dishes, and homemade techniques. We didn't care about "authenticity." Traditional Italian recipes are world-renowned for a reason, but Italian-American comfort food and creative twists on old favorites can be just as satisfying. We didn't care about white tablecloths and fancy plating either. Our only firm requirement was that each chain have multiple U.S. locations.

We started by digging into menus and ingredient sourcing methods. Does the chain make menu items from scratch? Do the ingredients match the dish's expected quality? A $15 plate of spaghetti marinara doesn't need the same luxurious ingredients as a $50 lobster pasta, but both should reliably deliver on flavor. We also gave extra attention to signature dishes and unusual specialties. Customer appreciation was the finishing touch. A horde of devoted fans knows what they're talking about when they insist an Italian chain is the best.