Pasta remains — for me, for many — one of the kitchen’s best offerings. The universe’s way of saying, hey, everything just might be OK. And Orange County offers plenty of ways to enjoy the Italian mainstay, from cavatelli at a longtime San Clemente red-sauce joint to Japanese-Italian noodles in Fountain Valley. Here are six great spots for your next bowl of pasta.
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Sonny’s Pizza & Pasta
429 N. El Camino Real, San Clemente; 949-498 2540 or sonnys.com
For more than four decades, Sonny’s has been feeding San Clemente with a comfort-forward menu that’s big on putting pasta, sauce and cheese in the oven together. The jumbo shells hold a filling of beef, spinach and ricotta enrobed in marinara. Meat lasagna follows suit with a classic formula of beef, marinara and ricotta, while the cheese-filled gnocchi (yes, technically dumplings) can be baked with pesto or tomato cream. Outside the oven, excellent dishes include a cavatelli with broccolini, olive oil, garlic, shaved sheets of Parmigiano and a healthy dousing of lemon.
Oliver’s Trattoria
6511 Quail Hill Parkway, Irvine; 949-418-8107 or olivers-trattoria.com
The lasagna at chef Erik De Marchi’s Quail Hill merits immediate attention: Instead of the tomato-based meat sauce with dollops of ricotta found at many red-sauce joints, the one here layers creamy béchemel with bolognese for a traditional Emilia-Romagna interpretation of the dish. Phenomenal. As a finishing touch, crisped spinach gets scattered around the lasagna, which makes for fun plucking post-hoovering of the lasagna. The extensive pasta selection also includes chitarra pomodoro with roasted cherry tomato sauce. And the cacio e pepe remains one of Orange County’s finest.
ALSO SEE: 6 LA County restaurants that will take you to Italy during National Pasta Month
Ciao Pasta
31661 Camino Capistrano, Suite 205, San Juan Capistrano; 949-496-5002 or ciaopasta.net
A city fixture since 1995, Ciao Pasta draws on the cooking of Puglia in southern Italy. Its pasta selection features such standouts as lemon-infused tagliolini dressed with lemon, cream and Parmigiano, and the trofie with pesto and stracciatella. Seafood enthusiasts should investigate the strozzapreti featuring shrimp, calamari, mussels and clams in a light red broth.
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bl00m
220 E. Fourth St., Suite 105, Santa Ana; 714-257-5417 or eatbl00m.com
Stylized “bl00m” with two zeros nodding to the 00 flour used in its pasta dough, this downtown pasta and wine bar newbie is one of Orange County’s best new restaurants this year. All of its pasta is made in-house. The fall menu includes rigatoni with morita tomato sauce and house-made ricotta, plus mafaldine with pumpkin puree, brown butter, sage and roasted pepitas. There’s also gemelli with the kitchen’s carbonara sauce, cream and bacon. Don’t miss out on the beef lasagna with tomato sauce and béchemel sauce.
ALSO SEE: 6 pasta restaurants to try in the Inland Empire
Ini Ristorante
16129 Brookhurst St., Fountain Valley; 714-277-4046 or keiconcepts.info/brands/ini
Kei Concepts’ Japanese-Italian eatery (stylized “INI Ristorante”) takes a broad view of what belongs in a menu’s pasta section. Its spicy miso carbonara uses udon with bacon, shiitake and parmigiano crowned with an egg yolk. (Adding an egg yolk to pasta dishes isn’t uncommon; stirring it in helps emulsify the sauce and give it a velvety texture.) The onyx-hued squid ink pasta heads further out to sea by pairing squid ink ramen with briny Santa Barbara uni, uni cream and tobiko. Those wanting house-made Italian pasta can check out the seafood mafaldine, which combines scallops, crab, shrimp and sausage in a piquant tomato cream sauce.
Also see: Best of Orange County 2026: Best Italian restaurant
il Girasole
3321 Hyland Ave., Suite E, Costa Mesa, 657-218-9439 or il-girasole.com
Chef Antonio Bevacqua gives familiar Italian dishes some elaborate touches at his Costa Mesa spot. The gnocchi al pesto comes stuffed with a garlic-basil emulsion, then served with Parmigiano foam and toasted pine nuts. His ossobuco “lasagna” brings together braised veal shank, saffron (are you noticing a lasagna preference?) béchemel, gremolata sauce and bone marrow. Even the sea urchin taglierini gets a caviar sauce upgrade. For those seeking a simpler order, fettuccine pomodoro comes with basil, Parmigiano and stracciatella.
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Other choice pasta places’ menus to peruse:
- Brunos Italian Kitchen (Brea)
- Limoncello Ristorante (San Juan Capistrano)
- Roma D’ Italia (Tustin)
- Storico Spaghetteria (Tustin)