Joe's Italian Bistro - Allen

We really enjoy Joe's! The food is better than average—not exceptional, but good—and the staff is friendly. Like many places, they've raised their prices, but they're still quite reasonable. We've tried every pizza joint in the area, and we found Joe's next on the list for New York-style pizza. However, that's not a huge compliment since the pizza around here is usually pretty bad. Their rolls are fantastic, and they serve a legitimate calzone with ricotta (although I usually ask for extra). The dining area is a bit cramped; I wish they had more space inside, but the location is convenient, so we usually opt for takeout.

We celebrated a birthday dinner at 5:30 and had no trouble getting seated. Shortly after we arrived, the restaurant began to fill up. For appetizers, we ordered the fried calamari ($10.99), stuffed mushrooms ($9.99), and Joe's salad ($7.99). All of the appetizers were decent, with reasonable portion sizes. For our group of six, we chose two extra-large pizzas: the Joe's Special ($20.99) and the Hawaiian ($20.99). The pizzas were ample for everyone, but I would suggest serving them hotter to achieve a crispy crust instead of a limp and soggy one. The service was satisfactory; the staff was friendly and made an effort to be attentive. Overall, if you're looking for an Italian dining experience, this place could fit the bill.

I’m not sure why it took so long to get water; filling three cups seems like a simple task. Perhaps the waitress was preoccupied chatting in the kitchen, who knows? It felt like we waited at least 15 minutes, and there were hardly any customers—just two other tables. Everything took forever. My chicken was tough, and overall, the experience was disappointing. I won’t be returning here, even though it’s conveniently located near our home. It was worth a try, but it didn’t work out.

Joe's Italian Bistro is a local Italian diner that fits the stereotypical strip shopping center Americanized version of Italian food. The food is pretty decent. When my daughter and I had a regular weekday dinner there, there were four older ladies who came together and talked about her life and her family (I tried not to eavesdrop...but they spoke very clearly to my table)... what really is what it is about in a restaurant (joint experiences about meals). With regard to our meal, the pizza is quite good (I have the anchovy... which is normally not served in other facilities), although not unforgettable. My daughter thought her baby part of the lasagna was delicious. Overall, it is a nice place to go when you live in Allen and want something local and Italian as well as something else than Olive Garden.

Absolutely loved this place. It?s a hometown small non chain pizza and Italian food eatery. The service was great and they were very quick. The food was great and the prices were very reasonable. We will be coming back again with the family.