Il Giardino

The young lady who works up front is always super rude, but the food is pretty good. Maybe a little overpriced, but not a bad place to go if you're at the village and craving pasta. Just be ready for some attitude

I visited this spot because another USC professor had recommended it to me and said the pasta was great! And she was right. Every time I've had pasta here, the flavors have been unique and delicious and the pasta is very solid. The dishes are simple yet always good.

Il Giardino is located in USC Village and has indoor and outdoor seating, as well as a full menu of pasta. There are set dishes or you can build your own. They also have specials often! The service is quick and the clientele is mostly students. I've been here several times and I haven't been disappointed.

I really wish Yelp had a decimal system. Not all 4 stars are the same. Not all 5 stars are the same. If we had a decimal system, I would give this place a 4.7 stars. I'm giving this place 5 stars because this place does almost everything right. As you enter this restaurant, there's a pasta maker making fresh pasta, the menu prices are exceptionally cheap for what your getting. I got the Spaghetti Mare (Seafood pasta) for $14.99. For me the portions were perfect, but I don't eat that much. So I can see someone who has a hearty appetite being unsatisfied with the amount of food. My only complaint about my meal is the noodles were a bit on the softer side, I prefer my pasta to be al dente, however, freshly made pasta can't be made al dente (firm) due to the nature of fresh pasta. Only dry pre-packaged pasta can be made al dente, so be warned as you come here.

The food does not have any flavor at all. Very bland.I ordered the rigatoni with Bolognese sauce and I was very disappointed. The service was average and the ambience was basically like a cafeteria. You're better off with a frozen food dinner from a grocery store which would be a lot cheaper and have more flavor. Therefore, I do not recommend this restaurant at all.

Decent spot for some quick Italian grub if you're near or on the USC campus. I will say there are probably better food options overall, but the price and portions here aren't bad, and there's definitely a convenience element to dining here. I also feel like it never gets super crowded here, which is definitely a plus.

I like how customizable the pastas here are, and they really do have a range of options for noodles and sauces. I just oped for the Penne Gamberi, probably out of laziness, and it was honestly pretty tasty and came with a decent amount of shrimp. My friend got the special, which was a Salmon Spaghetti. The sauce was tasty, but noodles were clearly overcooked.

The bread that the pasta comes with is really delicious and soft, and I found it was the star of the meal.

The past 5 times I've ordered the daily special which is fusilli pasta in chipotle sauce with chicken and asparagus. The chicken always has this smoky taste and for the price, it's huge and worth it! I always eat half of it and save the half for dinner. It also comes with bread.

Service is okay..kind of slow. But it's at the village so I'm sure they get pretty busy.

Kinda average, wasn't anything to special. Felt like portion was a bit small as well. Service was okay at best. Environment was also nothing special

Amazing food service and flavor!!

Best pasta ever !!

Fast friendly and delicious !!

I used to love this place and thought the pasta was great but it recently has fallen flat when I came. I usually order the pesto sauce with penne and chicken, but this time I decided to get the tagliatelle noodles. The noodles were cooked well, and the pesto sauce was fine, I just wish it was more creamy, but I guess its just how the sauce is made. The chicken was severely under seasoned, I could not make out a single flavor on it besides cooked chicken. It was slightly overcooked, but did complement the pasta quite well. All in all, the food was just okay, it was solid and provided a good meal and filled me up, but the flavors were lacking.

When I have pasta cravings and no time to cook, I come here. BEST SECRET MENU ITEM HERE = EXTRA SAUCE added to any dish (for free!) Definitely do that so every bite will be well coated and super saucy.

They make every order fresh and the pasta is delicious. I usually get the tagliatelle bolognese (very meaty with rich flavor) but today tried the penne gamberi (shrimp) special -- not disappointed! Comes topped with lots of shrimp cooked just right. You can substitute the pasta and add a different sauce to any of the specials. I swapped rotini and added pink sauce and it was super comforting, creamy and flavorful.

Also - this team hustles! I came in one day behind what seemed like the entire USC swim team and they pushed out the pasta super fast and still quality. Hope their hard work is recognized and well compensated.

One of go-tos for comfort food in the USC Village. I always get the penne with pink sauce, and it hits the spot every time. The bread is a fluorescent yellow color which is a little strange, but this is a great spot for a warm bowl of pasta if that's what you're craving.