Tino's Italian Bistro
1 PhotosView more
Menu
Tino's, in my opinion, is the best Italian neighborhood restaurant in Howard County. I've never gotten a bad meal. The pasta is fresh, pizza outstanding, Italian dishes are full of flavor and the service is great. This restaurant has become so popular that you really need a reservation to guarantee a table at the time you may want especially on the weekends. We go a minimum of three times a month, We have order carryout pizza and it is superb and full of flavor.
Fantastic food that tasted very authentic. Service was excellent. I certainly recommend!
Everything went well. The portions are huge. Prices are reasonable. Would not hesitate to return.
Busy local spot for good Italian classics. Noisy local spot for classic Italian food. Service was good and it looked like staff worked together well to deliver hot dishes.
Overall the food was really good. It was a bit too loud though to hear the person I was with.
Always pleased with this place and the food. We look forward to trying weekend specials!
Tino's has become one of our favorite restaurants. A real gem. Great menu and wine list, excellent food with very generous portions. Great tenders of bar. Excellent service. Top notch spot for a date or family dining. Next time we intend to try the pizza.
We are regulars. The food never disappoints. Tino's cares about what arrives at your table.
Service is always prompt and your bill will never shock you.
Exceptional neighborhood dining.
George Andrews
Great service, delicious food and a good value for all that you get. We will be back often!
Grandparents day. Family enjoyed the dinnet
Love this place - service and food always consistently good. My favorite is the risotto with shrimp and asparagus!
We had an impromptu dinner out and were glad to get a reservation at the last minute on a Saturday evening (guess lots of folks were away for the Labor Day weekend). We had a light dinner, splitting an appetizer order of meatballs in sauce which were DELICIOUS, and splitting a large gyro salad. The kitchen divided the salad for us -- a nice touch that we appreciated. The complimentary bread was warm and the dipping oil was tasty. A couple of glasses of wine and we were happy. We had a wonderful server who had a great attitude; wish I could remember his name to give him a shout out. We always enjoy Tino's.
This was the first time I got a disappointing entree.' I order lasagna. The sauce was not flavorful and watery. I was expecting a meat marinara sauce, but it was real watery and not much flavor. The lasagna was coated with melted Parmesan cheese, which would have been fine if the dish had better sauce. The lasagna was huge and I only ate a little less than third.
I should have stuck with my first choice of rigatoni with bolgonese rose creme sauce which is one of my favorites. My wife loved her meal. She got the Fra Dialvo marinara sauce over angel haired pasta with grilled blacken salmon. Bon Appetite on that dish. However, one bad meal does not deter us returning to the restaurant. Overall, the food including pizza that we have tried at the restaurant has been quite good and well above average.
My wife and I had an excellent lunch at Tino's with oysters and pizza. The wait staff and manager, Tracy, were super efficient and friendly. We will definitely go back soon.
Excellent food and service as always! Generous portions and friendly and professional wait staff!
Tino's was a great find, through Open Table. Met relatives for dinner and we were all impressed. Good selection of good food. We had a selection of foods from pasta to steak to seafood to vegan. All was good quality and cooked correctly. Our waitress Melissa was a gem!! We had a great time with her and appreciate her friendliness.
Food was great as always; server seemed a bit preoccupied.
Great food and service. Sunday night half wine bottles makes for a great date night dinner spot.
We had a wonderful meal with friends and the server was great.
Wonderful first visit to Tino's Italian Bistro with the family. Our server, Tracy (sp?) was excellent - super friendly - made great food recommendations - attentive without hovering. Everyone truly enjoyed their selections - the various salads ordered were fresh and tasty - the bread and seasoned oil were delicious - the chicken parm, gnocchi, Atkins, veal parm and shrimp scampi were all delicious! We will definitely be back!
In spite of our extremely sullen waitress, we enjoyed our meal. Good, creative drinks and delicious food. But it was the first time in my life I’ve come close to asking for another waiter to serve us. Still tipped her 20% in hopes it made her feel a little better, but she scarcely deserved 10%.
But again - stellar meal!
My wife and I dined at Tino's for our first visit on a recent, stormy summer Friday night . We arrived 30 mins prior to our reservation but our table was ready and we were seated promptly. The service was prompt and courteous. We started with a salad. My wife had the fruit de mer (seafood pasta) and I had the vodka penne. Both entrees were excellent and the portions were very generous. We had a bottle of red Italian wine, a Montepulciano blend, also very good. Finished with the multi-layer chocolate and cheesecake Skyscraper cake (just a few bites) and coffee. We ate only half of our entrees but took those and the cake home for the next day. Lance, the owner, stopped by our table to check on us and we commented about the quality of our food.
Though the Columbia location is not in our neighborhood, this is what qualifies as a true neighborhood gem and we will gladly return.
Love their weekend specials!! It would nice if they included spoons with the tableware.
Ate on the patio - great location for a good evening with friends
We were in Columbia for a concert and googled Italian restaurants and Tino’s came up and it was close to our hotel. Glad we made a reservation as it got pretty crowded. The menu is really big with lots of choices for every part of the meal from apps to dessert. The service was very attentive and the food was very tasty. The portions were big and if we hadn’t had anything to eat all day, we would’ve had leftovers. Good meal!
Always the best. Our go to regular place. Salads, lite fare are excellent for my diet. Daily fish specials are my second choice.
Went with spouse for dinner. Received complimentary bread and dipping oil. Dipping oil good, but heavy on raw garlic. Ordered Salmon Rosé; good, but unusually oily. Spouse ordered Fettuccini Alfredo; good, but unusually eggy. Overall okay, but unsure why this place is considered one of the best Italian restaurants in Columbia.
Great for authentic Italian food...and my mother is first generation Italian. I was quite surprised by the veggie pizza. Most of the veggies were fresh (not from a can). Always nice when the owner/manager stops by your table for a relaxed chat.
My wife and I selected specials from the menu. The food was good. We were seated near the serving area and it was noisy. This restaurant was quite busy but our server was as attentive as could be expected.
Food was delicious and staff very accommodating. Will definitely return.
We all loved our meals...loved my salmon medalions in rose cream sauce w/penne. It was so good!!! We had leftovers last night! Definitely will be back soon! Our waiter, Oscar was wonderful. Kudos!
Tino's is a neighborhood gem. In our opinion, Tino's is the very best Italian restaurant in the Ellicott City and Columbia area. Fresh pasta, seafood and sausage are the best. Prices are reasonable. Tino's also has an excellent wine list.
My wife and I enjoyed a fabulous lunch at Tino’s this week. While we don’t need an excuse to dine at Tino’s, we did so to celebrate my wife’s birthday. My favorite go to dish is their salmon Rose, salmon medallions sautéed in a rose cream sauce served over penne! My wife had their Tortellini Bolognese, sautéed with ground veal in a rose cream sauce which was the best I’ve ever tasted. We started our meals with their crispy, fresh garden salad,
topped with the best in-house parmesan dressing. To end the meal there’s no better desert then their incomparable light, fluffy tiramisu! The service was, as always, pleasant, courteous, attentive and engaging in a customer friendly way. How refreshing. Perfectly prepared, tasty food and people there who truly appreciate your patronage. Thank you Tino’s for a wonderful time!
Looking for Italian place comparable to local Italian restaurant that closed last year. This was not it. Very ordinary quality pasta & sauces, nothing special about the seasoning. Veal piccata very disappointing--presentation of plate, quality of meat, bloated spaghetti noodles (with English peas), lack of seasoning. Good desserts much appreciated- on the house for everyone due to special birthday!
Always a great experience. Not sure why there are no Open Table points are applicable.
We come often because they seldom disappoint and have a great variety of entrees, especially good for gluten free diners. This portions are large, and we almost always have enough for a second dinner from leftovers. This last visit was spectacular. Special was seafood contessa- scallops shrimp and crab on pasta with a light rosemary cream sauce. I could eat this every night!!
We went to Tino's Italian Bistro because my husband wanted something Italian. He was very pleased with his pasta & Bolognese sauce with sausage. I should mention he is the cook in the family & very picky.
Upon a recommendation from our waiter, I had the crab ravioli. Even though both dishes were delightful, we couldn't finish the servings, so we too the rest home for a later dinner.
It was delicious - so delicious in fact that my boyfriend and I went back the next night!!!
Was our first time going there and it was a huge disappointment. Service was slow and missing. The food was way too expensive for the quality. The $7 side of 2 meatballs tasted like canned spaghetti Os. Our main dishes were completely overpriced for the size, quality and taste. The only thing good was the free bread and butter!! Unfortunately we will not be going back! Don’t waste your money!
Delicious, as always. The ravioli I had was excellent.