Serving a rotation of seasonal dishes, Cucciolo Osteria keeps the menu small to keep the flavor big. With the original restaurant location in Seoul, Korea, the Durham restaurant continues the practice of serving excellent Italian dishes with a twist. Whether you’re looking for dinner, dessert or both, Cucciolo Osteria will exceed your expectations.
Took my vegetarian partner to dinner for his birthday, great food selection and ambience. Ordered vodka pasta and eggplant parmigiana. Both were delicious but definitely would go back for the vodka pasta. They have a complimentary panna cotta for dessert which was sooooo good!
Keith
Aug 11, 2025
3
First time dining at Cucciolo Osteria. Loved the vibe of the place. Old tobacco area. Staff was polite and attentive. The food? Meh. Had a couple of cocktails which were unique and very well done. Ordered Artichoke and Pecorino appetizer. It was good and had decent flavor. Had Spicy Vodka Tomato Cream Rigatoni at server’s suggestion. It was good but very small serving. One of those meals where you think you could have done better at home, which is always a disappointment. I’d have gladly paid more for a bit more pasta. Was going to have desert but nothing really jumped out at me. There are a lot of good Italian restaurants in the area, but this won’t make my go-to list.
John Lei
Jul 13, 2025
5
A new gem in the Durham area. The food tastes very good and the price, compared to price of everything these days, is very reasonable. Both entrees were $21. Definitely give it a try if you're feeling italian or take a date there. I'd definitely visit again!
Kimberly Martin
Jun 28, 2025
5
Delicious! Italian deliciousness! We had dinner and drinks at the bar. Good service, good food. Ambiance but could be a little more. Very noisy, hollow sounding, my only
Complaint. (Industrial, brick. Fits with the area a whole, but doesn’t make for cozy feel) We felt Portions NOT shareable. We shared and I only got 2 bites of main dish. Would order my own next time. Had a beet salad-delish, and Tajarin was excellent! BREAD IS DELICIOUS-but have to ask for it. Not served otherwise. In a walkable area from our hotel. Felt safe at 9-10:00. Would go back again. Delicious!!
Zachary Sutherland
Jun 24, 2025
4
Overall a pretty good experience. 4/5
All of the food I had was good, though I am not sure it's as good as the price would suggest. Food overall, 4.5/5. Food, for the price? 3/5. I'll give it 4/5 for this review.
The service was great. We had two waiters and our water was refreshed regularly without being intrusive which is great. 5/5
My main problem here is it's excruciatingly loud. By the end of the evening I had a growing headache because it was hot and LOUD even when there was only a single other table left around 9:30. The concrete/brick building is tall, long, and narrow so it turns into an echo chamber. When we arrived at around 8:10 for our reservation, the volume in the building was *thunderous* and we couldn't hear each other despite sitting next to each other. I really think the dining room would benefit from acoustic tiles, tapestries, or even canvas paintings along the upper walls. 2/5 for atmosphere.
McKenna Wood
Jun 24, 2025
5
One of my favorite meals in Durham! If you’re dairy free ask for their dairy free pesto! Cocktails are also delish!
Christopher Schlitt
Jun 1, 2025
5
We drove from Raleigh to try this place bc of the truffle pastas. We were amazed at all the unique dishs and spins they did on classic dishs. The butter chicken was superb. The truffle pasta was delightful and deep with flavors. The spin on the carpaccio was pleasently satisfying. The server Moe was super and knew the menu and ingredients as well as cooking processes of all the dishes. He was like a teacher of taste :) I highly recommend this place to friends and family...the parking however sucks and it cost me 8$ on a Sunday
Jeff & Nancy Kueffer
Apr 24, 2025
5
OMG! Calling all Carbonara lovers! Kudos to the Chef for his delicious recipe for Linguini Alla Carbonara (Roman way). It is simply incredible and ranks amongst the best I've ever eaten and this includes "Crispo's" of NYC which won "Best Spaghetti Carbonara" by New York Magazine in 2004. Trust me... try Cucciolo's version... it's just as good if not better.
Allan Robison
Feb 9, 2025
5
Cucciolo Osteria is an absolutely wonderful high-end, quality Italian restaurant. We have come numerous times and have never been disappointed. This time, we are in their private dining area. We were introduced to a very unique beer from Fullsteam Farm's Edge called Hard Frost. Reservation is required. Still returning and still amazing. Still coming back.
Chandler Meyer
Oct 28, 2024
5
We rented the private room for our small wedding of 30 guests. All of my guests raved about the food, and even though I was so nervous on my wedding day, I couldn't help but eat so much of the food. The staff was also very friendly. It was the perfect room to have a small, intimate wedding reception. I highly recommend!
Allan Robison
Oct 4, 2024
5
Cucciolo Osteria is an absolutely wonderful high-end, quality Italian restaurant. We have come numerous times and have never been disappointed. This time, we are in their private dining area. We were introduced to a very unique beer from Fullsteam Farm's Edge called Hard Frost. Reservation is required. Still returning and still amazing.
