michael's

if you happen to be in the niagara region and want to stay away from the tourist joints as well as the chain restaurants, italian-american should be your best local bet and michael's will have what you might want to enjoy.
this is a mom and pop place that has been around since '60 and is located right at the limit of little italy.  you will find everything from pasta, to sandwiches, to american meal favorites, to pizzas.  tomato sauce is everywhere it seems.
the beans and greens soup is popular but we had some italian wedding soup which was on the special's list.
if you are in the mood for something different and a specialty of the house, you might want to try what i had: the calzone.  this was the biggest one i ever had and you might struggle to finish as i did.  it came in pipping hot.  in fact all portions here are huge.
the calzone is essentially a pizza dough wrapping some ricotta and mozzarella before finally being quickly deep friend for the exterior.  you can add extra ingredients as an extra charge and i selected the meatballs to seal the deal.
you might not have a good representation of the full flavors of real italian food but sometimes all you want is basic and fast american comfort food.
lots of locals come here and the service is very friendly and helpful.

3 strikes an your out!!! will not be back.. first off an italian restaurant that did not use real garlic, asked for extra garlic, got a small dish of garlic powder and was told we don't have fresh garlic, ok strike one. no white cream sauce on the menu at all, i figured i'd ask, can they could do a chicken broccoli alfredo.. they tried, but tasted like a cheap microwave dish at best no exaggeration..very poor, strike 2, today i thought well give them one more shot for my wifes sake, she does enjoy the shells and red sauce, i ordered the eggplant parm this was strike 3. eggplant was cut so thin i actually believe it was shaved with a potato peeler, the greasy breading was thicker than the almost impossible to find eggplant, by far the worst i have ever been served, i cannot understand how they stay in business,

awesome. we came here on referral from someone ....great portions and calamari was delicious , also highly recommend beans n greens......

great food, lovely waitress,plentiful food ,great prices. my lady wife and i had a pizza ,i gave the waitress an open hand on the pizza and told her to surprise us with what she thought was there best pizza ,
it was fabulous we dined with friends and they really enjoyed there pizza as well

this place is crowded but server is really good. meat sauce is delicious. pizza is too cheesy for my taste.

we ordered fried calamari and calzone, everything was very delicious. i recommend this place!

italian "southern" soup. ordered a cup of the beans and greens soup made of spinach, collard greens, and white beans. it was awesome! didn't know italians know how to do it southern style. :) could have used some cornbread to go with it. did get a basket of crackers and so-so bread. was hoping for more garlic but thoroughly enjoyed the lasagna with red meat sauce. great place to stop while in little italy on pine avenue near niagara falls, ny.

surprising jewel. michael's is a surprising jewel in the little italy of niagara falls where locals eat. the lasagna and fettucini alfredo were delicious. prices were very reasonable and portions were huge.

great place!. excellent calzone - sauce is superb - chef salad (with rolled mozza) and italian dressing - all are worth the drive (from canada)

this is very good, generous portions, soup is excellent, my daughter and i eat here all the time, never disapointed. how ever i fell it family owned and once the owner is gone probably will not survive.

a good restaurant in niagara falls is like finding a needle in a haystack. as far as "italian" food goes its even harder. this lacks the "restaurant" experience. you'll be better off at olive garden. this is sunday italian-american cuisine that can be better done at home. no creativity no flavor.

love this italian diner, i usually do take out when i'm on the go food is excellent, 2 dinners equals enough food for myself, my hubby and 2 kids. my favorite is the eggplant parm the salads are nothing to write home about however the entree makes up for this.

everything is good here—you’re leaving full and happy no matter what item you choose from their extensive menu. but i’ll make that decision easier for you. get the eggplant parmesan. it comes a la carte (including pasta) for $9.80 and as a dinner (with salad and pasta) for $12.80. you’ll receive a big basket of bread and butter with either option, and you’ll be leaving with leftovers no matter what. michael’s take on eggplant parm excels in its integration of ingredients.

we really wanted to have italian for lunch. but we are vegetarians, and were not able to eat the famouse red sause. so we got the other options of butter / oil and garlic.
and as you can see on one of the pictures, we had to drain our pasta and ravioli plates. and wipe the ravioli with a napkins, just to get some of the butter and oil off.
on the positive note, you can get breakfast and other dishes...

one of the best sauces outside of mom's kitchen. although a 15 year resident of niagara falls i had never been here but finally got my chance when my father requested it for his fathers day dinner this year. wow! we were seated quickly and had a super friendly and very attentive waitress. hving worked in the restaurant industry in various positions i was actually shocked at how genuinely friendly she was, it gave the place a very home like feel.
i ordered the ziti and brocolli special with soup and it was huge and delicious. i was a bit aprehensive to get a meal with a butter and garlic sauce with it, but it was excellent. the brocolli was blanched just right and the simple sauce was delicious. my fathered ordered spaghetti with sauce and sausage, which he let me dip my bread in (he's a good dad like that) and i loved their sauce as well. i chose beans and greens soup with my meal and it was fantastic. i had never had this style soup served this thick so it was a very pleasant surprise. the meal was so good we packed it to go even though were we on our way to a bike ride to the falls! half sized portions are available and the menu is quite large so i'll definately be coming for dinner with dad here again and again and again! one of the best home made sauces i've had outside my mothers kitchen!