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Sortino's Italian Kitchen, Sandusky, OH

Sortino's Italian Kitchen

4.2
4.2
466 Reviews
$30 and under
Italian
Sortino's Italian Kitchen is a new age red sauce restaurant where old-school Italian cuisine meets the modern age. Sortino’s Italian Kitchen is a casual restaurant and bar that brings the Kalahari a tradition of hospitality established by Giorgio and Giacomo Sortino more than 60 years ago when they opened the original Sortino’s Little Italy restaurant in downtown Sandusky, Ohio.

Make a reservation

2 people

7:00 PM


Booked 14 times today

Order delivery or takeout

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Cuisines
    Italian, Steak, Bar / Lounge / Bottle Service
  • Hours of operation
    Dinner Daily 5:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Phone number
    (419) 433-6653
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive chef
    Chad Vandegrift
  • Private party facilities
    We don't have a private room, but we accept parties. Please contact the restaurant for more details. 419 - 433 - 6653.
  • Neighborhood
    Sandusky
  • Parking details
    Private Lot
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cafe, Cocktails, Counter Seating, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Late Night, Non-Smoking, Takeout, Wheelchair Access, Wine

What 466 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.2
4.2 based on recent ratings
  • 4.2Food
  • 4.3Service
  • 4.2Ambience
  • 3.9Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • Cleveland / Akron / Canton

    Kid-friendly

  • Cleveland

    Kid-friendly

466 Reviews
  1. Lisa

    Cleveland

    19 reviews

    vip
    4.0

    19 reviews

    Dined 1 day ago

    overall4food5service2ambience3
    All of the food was delicious and our server, when asked, gave a perfect recommendation of what to get.

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  2. Bdot

    Central Coast

    23 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    23 reviews

    Dined 4 days ago

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Food was fabulous!! Large portions !! Customer service was excellent. It was great to see and speak with the owner during our meal!!

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  3. Ditasflipflop

    Cleveland

    11 reviews

    5.0

    11 reviews

    Dined 6 days ago

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    I have eaten here several times and not once been disappointed. The spaghetti and meatballs are top tier. The service was outstanding. I think it is one of the best dining experiences in the area.

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  4. MichaelC

    Pittsburgh

    4 reviews

    5.0

    4 reviews

    Dined on September 22, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Great little restaurant! Make sure to go while George is there. Great to talk to and spend some time with. We look forward to going back again the food was excellent!

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  5. Conference

    Cleveland

    1 review

    3.0

    1 review

    Dined on September 14, 2023

    overall3food3service4ambience4
    It was expensive and they were out of the house red wine and didn’t have another house option in red.

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  6. TrishaB

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on September 9, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience4
    We started at the bar where Chris made a fantastic drink! Followed with a fresh, authentic Italian dinner. The best part of our night was our chat with George, the original owner. I love that he still continues to visit with diners, share memories, and most of all show gratitude for their business. that kind of customer service cannot be beat!

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  7. James

    Cleveland

    1 review

    3.0

    1 review

    Dined on September 8, 2023

    overall3food3service4ambience2
    Disappointed at the change from the original restaurant. Ambiance and unique experience are gone. Original bread dipping oil far better that what was served. Should not have added vinegar to the recipe. Too much cheese and sauce on the food now. It masks the true flavor of the dish. Food is still good but now too "Americanized". Trying to fit a Sandusky institution into a glorified food court environment just doesn't work well.

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  8. ToddN

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on September 5, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    I like the atmosphere of the restaurant, how attentive the waitress was and how authentic the Italian food tasted. Thanks for having us, we will be back in the near future!

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  9. Keysha

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on September 3, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Loved this restaurant! The food was delicious and the portions were extra large. If you get the veal parmigiana plan on sharing or having lots to take home. The atmosphere is nice as well, italian music and art, hanging lights, etc. Would definitely recommend and would go again.

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  10. Foodie

    Cleveland

    2 reviews

    3.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on September 3, 2023

    overall3food3service2ambience2
    I’d say, it was OK. I was hoping for great but was disappointed. Wait staff was disorganized and scattered. Took a long time to take our order and bring drinks. Calamari was overly salted, meatballs were meh and italian salad was bland with dressing only being oil. Best thing is the bread.

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  11. FallonD

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 27, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Food arrived quickly and was authentic Italian. Delicious.

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  12. DanielleO

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 23, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Food was delicious, portions were large. The service was efficient and friendly.

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  13. OpenTable Diner

    Pittsburgh

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on August 22, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Great dinner. Our server Devin was awesome. We will be back.

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  14. SharonM

    1 review

    3.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 21, 2023

    overall3food3service3ambience3
    We were very excited to try Sortino’s as it was my sons choice to eat here for his birthday dinner at the Kalahari. Our waiter was very honest and helpful when we were ordering…completely appreciated his honesty. The wait time for our food was reasonable. Our food was hot. The portions were big…if you don’t have any room in your mini fridge, it would be better to have slightly smaller portions with a slightly smaller price tag. According to the boys, the fettuccine Alfredo was good…although not as good as mom’s (mom is not Italian). The baked ziti had a lot of cheese…maybe too much cheese. The Chicken Parmigiana was really tasty although the size of the portion was ridiculously large (my husband ate maybe 1/3 of it and he is not a light eater). And the cheese ravioli was way too salty! The ravioli was really good but the sauce was way too salty. I was offered a different dish but turned it down. All I wanted at the time was a refill on my drink…that took forever…I was done with my meal before the refill came. Just a tip to the waiter, it’s okay to ask someone to pass the glass down to the end of the table to refill the water glasses instead of reaching across the table and dripping condensation from the water pitcher all over everyone’s food. This was a very pricey not so good experience for the 5 of us.

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  15. Disappointedlocal

    Los Angeles

    2 reviews

    vip
    1.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on August 21, 2023

    overall1food1service2ambience1
    The food was undercooked and uninspiring from the table bread to pizza. For the prices they command, one would expect better food and experience. There is little charm or uniqueness about this place as it seemed no better than a low end Italian chain. The charm of Sortino’s is long gone.

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  16. SusanR

    New York Area

    106 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    106 reviews

    Dined on August 19, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Incredibly delicious, authentic Italian food. Started with the 2 huge meatballs with marinara appetizer. Then Veal Milanese and sausage and peppers and a huge shareable side of roasted broccoli. We shared and loved everything. Large portions so we took half home. We declined bread, but saw huge loaves being delivered to tables. Yum. The owner visited many tables with lively conversation treated everyone like old friends. Many were repeat customers. We will go back too.

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  17. LaurieS

    Columbus

    6 reviews

    5.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on August 14, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    One of the best meals I’ve had in some time. Highly recommend the bruschetta and spaghetti and meatballs. We enjoyed all our dishes. Portions are large — enough for two people.

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  18. poppy

    Cleveland

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on August 13, 2023

    overall5food5service4ambience5
    We had a great dinner. Our waitress (Gabriella) was helpful and had a great personality. Our meal was delicious!

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  19. GabriellaP

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 12, 2023

    overall4food3service5ambience5
    The bread and butter in beginning was delightful. The chicken marsala was ok but the pasta with it was just drawing in marsala sauce. The spicy pasta with steak and veggies was not great. There was one piece of broccoli and like 4 pieces of peppers. To make it spicy they pour hot sauce in it. It was like eating a bowl of delicious noodles and sauce ruined because all you could taste was hot sauce. Not even spicy, just hot sauce. NOTE to chef: you use cayenne or red pepper to make pasta sauce spicy. Not hot sauce.

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  20. NiseR

    Detroit

    7 reviews

    5.0

    7 reviews

    Dined on August 12, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Our waiter Matthew G was amazing. It was our first time there and he was very helpful in choosing our entrees. The meat and cheese appetizer was delicious. Matthew was very personable and made sure that we had everything we needed throughout the meal. I chose the shrimp cocktail and tomato and mozzarella caprese for dinner. Lite and delicious. This was the best restaurant that Kalahari had on property. Highly recommend.

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  21. Rusty

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 9, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Eggplant Parm. was the best I've ever had as was the mussels in maranara sauce. Originally from Sandusky, our past was filled with memorable italian restaurants. Now living in Nova, Oh. though, it's been many years since we've had good italian food. Sortino's went beyond our expectations. Not keen on its location at Kalahari but look forward to dining there again. The dinner was to celebrate my husband's 84th birthday and you folks truly outdone yourselves. He enjoyed the shrimp alredo and shrimp cocktail. We both drooled over the delicious cannoli and apple crostata. THANK YOU so much for making his birthday a special memorable event. May God Bless you all!

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  22. CoryB

    Detroit

    1 review

    3.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 9, 2023

    overall3food3service2ambience2
    It’s in a resort so it over priced. The bread was odd for a Italian restaurant and not served warm. The waitress seemed new and inexperienced.

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  23. ChelseaM

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 8, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    The place was amazing. Our server was amazing. Def will visit again.

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  24. RobertC

    1 review

    2.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 8, 2023

    overall2food2service1ambience4
    Our waiter was was very poor. Was always in a rush, rude and did not explain anything prior to ordering. Every time we had a question or a request it was like we were bothering him. The food was ok but not high end. The sauces for the Spagetti and Alfredo were watery, not something you would expect at place like this. Probably did not drain the pasta properly. Appetizers were good.. it was a good thing for the waiter he got the mandatory tip for the large party as he would have got none for that poor service. Its probably why he was so rude and short to begin with as he knew he had a mandatory tip coming. If you go, be a small party so they don't apply a mandatory tip and you get stuck with a crappy waiter who doesn't care. Reflects poorly on the resort.

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  25. OpenTable Diner

    Toronto

    4 reviews

    5.0

    4 reviews

    Dined on August 7, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Lovely Italian dinner, food was excellent, generous portions, reasonably priced, friendly service. Our server Elyse (might have spelled wrong, sorry) was top notch and very personable. Would return and recommend.

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  26. Aldomichael

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 6, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Dinner was super authentic and excellent. Had a wonderful waitress, Ciara, who was very experienced and great with our kids. Going back again tonight.

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  27. NathanC

    1 review

    3.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 4, 2023

    overall3food3service3ambience4
    Ravioli only came with 4 pieces. My sone finished his ravioli before I finished a slice of pizza. Wife's fish was 2 star at best.

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  28. JaimeL

    West Palm Beach

    13 reviews

    2.0

    13 reviews

    Dined on August 3, 2023

    overall2food1service5ambience5
    After watching the hotels information channel and learning about Sortinos and the owners story we were so excited to try. The appetizers were very good but the food was really disappointing. The noodles were all over cooked for the 6 of us, shrimp were tough and overcooked, the meatballs were hard straight through just an overall underwhelming experience. Nothing like the hype of what we saw on TV.

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  29. FoodCritic

    1 review

    3.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 1, 2023

    overall3food3service5ambience4
    Some pasta dishes at our table were good. My Chicken Marsala didn't have even a hint of Marsala wine and chicken had a heavy charcoal taste. Not just grilled. Atmosphere and service was great though.

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  30. LatoyaT

    Cincinnati

    3 reviews

    3.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on July 26, 2023

    overall3food2service3ambience3
    We were seated 10 minutes earlier than our reservation which was accommodating. I’ve we were seated we never received utensils and had to ask for them. For an Italian restaurant we wasn’t even offered fresh grated Parmesan. Then to top it all the food didn’t taste authentic.

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  31. JimmyD

    Chicago

    5 reviews

    4.0

    5 reviews

    Dined on July 24, 2023

    overall4food4service5ambience4
    Food was good, good atmosphere and our waiter Carlos was exceptional

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  32. PatS

    Cleveland

    2 reviews

    4.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on July 23, 2023

    overall4food5service5ambience3
    Really like the restaurant and food! Service was very good and our server Sierra was excellent! Families with small children is challenging but it is up to the parents to control they're children and sad to say most do not at this time! What the answer is I do not know! My experience with noise level I guess was to be expected and overall was still good.

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  33. EB331

    Indiana

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on July 21, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Good food and service. The garlic cheese bread was so good too!

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  34. JosephB

    New York Area

    3 reviews

    4.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on July 21, 2023

    overall4food5service5ambience5
    I am an Italian Food snob. That being said the food here is very good and authentic. Portions are very big so come hungry. Our server Gabriella was the best.

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  35. MIKE

    Toledo

    1 review

    1.0

    1 review

    Dined on July 18, 2023

    overall1food1service1ambience3
    We waited over a hour and a half for our food. The waiter was polite but kept assuring us it was on the way. He then informed us the chef was remaking it. When I finally got my steak medallions l, the were in a pool of water. The food was bland. I would suggest getting a pizza or going out in town to eat.

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  36. RICHELLES

    Cleveland

    2 reviews

    1.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on July 18, 2023

    overall1food1service1ambience1
    Not good to much money to spicy would not recommend this pkace

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  37. DanielleL

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on July 16, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Everything about our experience was amazing! We wish their was Sortino’s by us in Michigan. The service was great! Our waitress was extremely friendly and welcoming. The food was delicious and great portion sizes.

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  38. Neha

    Austin

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on July 10, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Lovely dinner at Sortino’s, Ohio. The food was delicious & the portion size was a little on the bigger side. We happened to meet the owner during our dinner & he was a such a pleasure to meet. A gentle personality & he loves to take extra care of his guests. During our conversation, we randomly mentioned that we were celebrating our son’s birthday & he treated our son to a free dessert of choice. Sweet gesture:) We ordered chicken alfredo pasta & cheese ravioli. Both were yumm!

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  39. LeciaR

    Cleveland

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on July 10, 2023

    overall5food5service3ambience5
    Excellent food and keep training new waitresses to match your brand!

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  40. DonaldE

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on July 7, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5
    Sortino’s food has changed since they moved to the new location. Not all items are on the menu, and there love sauce in not even close to what it was before. Food is still good, but just not the same.

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Safety precautions

  • Cleaning & sanitizing

    • Surfaces sanitized between seatings
    • Digital, disposable or sanitized menu provided
    • Common areas deep-cleaned daily
    • Sanitizer or wipes provided for customers
    • Contactless payment available
  • Physical distancing

    • Limited number of seated diners
    • Distancing maintained in common areas
    • Extra space between tables
  • Screening

    • Sick staff prohibited in the workplace
    • Staff temperature check required

FAQs

Sortino's Italian Kitchen offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (419) 433-6653.

Sortino's Italian Kitchen is rated 4.2 stars by 466 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people

7:00 PM


Booked 14 times today

Order delivery or takeout

Google Map for Sortino's Italian Kitchen

7000 Kalahari Dr, Sandusky, OH 44870-8628

Additional information

  • Neighborhood
    Sandusky
  • Hours of operation
    Dinner Daily 5:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Cuisines
    Italian, Steak, Bar / Lounge / Bottle Service
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Private Lot
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    Chad Vandegrift
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cafe, Cocktails, Counter Seating, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Late Night, Non-Smoking, Takeout, Wheelchair Access, Wine
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