Who doesn't love a big bowl of perfectly prepared pasta? Whether it's a creamy carbonara or spaghetti in silky red sauce, there are times when nothing else will do. To help fuel your comfort food cravings, we've found the best places around the US to get your pasta fix – from longstanding Italian trattorias to more modern restaurants putting their own spin on the classics.

Click or scroll through our gallery to discover the best pasta dish in your state.

Our selections are based on genuine user reviews, awards and accolades, and the first-hand experience of our team. They're also regularly checked and updated.

The menu changes often at this excellent Italian restaurant, but the signature Capellini Bottega often makes an appearance – and for good reason. Featuring a sauce made from San Marzano tomatoes, hot chiles and basil clinging to thin capellini pasta, this dish might but simple but it’s executed to perfection here. Reservations are recommended for the dining room, which is open only during the evenings, while the adjacent café – serving a more relaxed menu of pizzas, salads, pastas, and risottos – is open all day, with no booking required.

It's all about the seafood in Alaska, so it's no surprise that the best pasta dish in the state incorporates just that. At Louie's Steak and Seafood, halibut, salmon, shrimp, and scallops are sautéed in your choice of zesty garlic herb butter or house-made Alfredo sauce, then served with perfectly cooked pasta. It's a hearty dish that seafood fans absolutely love.

Though he's better known for his Italian pizzas, chef Chris Bianco also knows how to serve up a mean plate of pasta. Available at the Town and Country location of Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix, the house-made pappardelle is a wonderful vessel for a rich grass-fed beef Bolognese. It might seem simple, but this dish is packed with unbelievable flavor – it's a true joy for the senses.

Famous for its red sauce, Bruno's has been serving customers brilliant Italian American dishes since 1949. It's rated as one of the best Italian restaurants in Arkansas, and its menu is full of delicious options; however, the lasagna imbotito is legendary. Layers of ricotta, mozzarella, and Romano cheese are stacked with Italian sausage, meatballs, and various cured meats. It's nothing short of genius.

Italian chef Franco Pisani, who grew up watching his mother cook in the family bakery, opened Paravicini's Italian Bistro in 2003, and the restaurant quickly become known for its delicious pasta dishes. While customers adore the white clam linguine, it’s the spaghetti and meatballs, featuring juicy, full-flavored meatballs (made fresh every day), that people return to try time and time again.

This tagliatelle dish proves that the flavors of sweet Maine lobster and spicy Calabrian chili are a match made in heaven. The sauce is bright and light (thanks to the addition of celery and preserved tomato), while the pasta is handmade and cooked flawlessly. Booking is recommended, but there's patio, lounge, and bar seating available for walk-ins.

A wonderful medley of Japanese and Italian flavors, this fusion dish shouldn't work, but it does. The thick udon noodles are perfect for absorbing all of the creamy carbonara sauce, which is spiked with a little miso. It's unlike any other carbonara dish you've ever tasted – yet when you've tried it once, you'll want to eat it again and again. 

An old-timey Italian joint that's been open since 1938, Consiglio's has countless excellent pasta dishes on its menu, but it's the classic lasagna that diners can't get enough of. Decadent layers of minced beef, ricotta, and pasta are baked with the joint's famous red sauce and plenty of mozzarella. It's indulgent, it's hearty, and it's cheesy – lasagna perfection.

Open for nearly 80 years, Mrs. Robino's is a longstanding Wilmington favorite – and its menu is filled with delightful options like cannelloni Florentine, and veal and chicken Parmigiana. But if you come here just once, your choice has to be the Tour of Italy pasta. A mountain of spaghetti and ravioli is topped with a huge house-made meatball and sausage, then smothered in a secret red sauce.

Consistently rated one of the best Italian restaurants in the state, Cafe Prima Pasta delivers delicious house-made pasta – and has been doing so for the past couple of decades. The crab ravioli is the star of the menu, though. It's filled with deliciously sweet crab meat and comes served in a creamy lobster sauce, so every bite is a perfect morsel of seafood flavor.

A recipe developed by BoccaLupo's chef Bruce Logue, the black spaghetti dish is unlike any other pasta you've tried before. With an intense black color from the squid ink and warm heat from the hot sausage, the sauce is a real treat, made with hot calabrese sausage, red shrimp and spring onions.

Although you'll find carbonara dishes all over the world, the one at Fête Hawaii is a slight deviation from the classic – which, according to diners, only serves to make it even tastier. The silky-smooth sauce incorporates two cheeses, Parmesan and pecorino, and it's tossed with perfectly al dente spaghetti, plus a heavenly mix of bacon and Portuguese sausage.

ÀLAVITA's striking black ravioli are stuffed with butter-poached shrimp and fontina cheese before being tossed in a sauce infused with lobster, lime, fennel, and thyme. The creamy sauce carries the delicate flavors beautifully, resulting in a pasta dish that's full of indulgent flavor. Available on the restaurant's winter menu, it's the perfect warming bowlful to dig into.

You might think there's no need to reimagine a classic pasta dish like carbonara – because what could possibly make it better? However, you'll change your mind once you visit Formento's. Here, bucatini (thick, spaghetti-like pasta with a hole running through the center) is topped with a perfectly runny egg yolk, crispy pancetta, and freshly cracked black pepper, which come together to create a sensational dish.

If you're after hearty servings of the best Italian American dishes Indiana has to offer, look no further than Mama Carolla's. The restaurant's rosemary chicken lasagna is a very special dish – slices of roasted chicken are layered with pasta sheets and a mixture of wild mushrooms, spinach, ricotta, fresh mozzarella, and spices, then baked to perfection. To top things off, the lasagna is finished with a pool of tomato butter sauce.

There are several brilliant pasta options on the menu at this wonderful Des Moines restaurant, so it's not easy to single out the best dish. However, the handmade cavatelli is a firm favorite among diners. The fresh pasta is doused in a stunning marinara sauce that incorporates the hearty flavors of Italian sausage and the cheesy goodness of mozzarella. One thing is guaranteed here – you won't leave hungry.

A firm favorite in Downtown Salina since 2001, Martinelli’s Little Italy’s serves up a tempting selection of different pastas, which can be ordered in individual portions or as family-style sharing dishes. Whatever size you opt for, the oven-baked mac ’n’ cheese is the pick of the bunch: tender penne is bound in a rich, creamy cheese sauce and topped with a golden crunchy upper layer. You can also opt to add bacon, chicken, or shrimp if you really feel like treating yourself.

Something of a signature dish at Vincenzo's, the lobster tail spaghetti – available only on the dinner menu – is a favorite among customers. It's a relatively simple dish that relies on the freshness and flavor of the ingredients to make it so irresistible. Spaghetti is tossed with South African lobster tail, shrimp, sun-dried tomatoes, arugula, olive oil, parsley, and garlic.

Recognized as one of the best Italian restaurants in the state, Vincent's Italian Cuisine is a Metairie staple that's been serving huge portions of superb Italian food since 1989. The best dish you can order here is the house special cannelloni. The feather-light pasta is stuffed with veal and spinach, and cooked in both red and Alfredo cream sauces. The dish is also served at the joint's sister restaurant in Uptown.

Maine is all about the freshest of fresh lobster – so much so that even its pasta dishes come loaded with the delicacy. At Street and Co., a Mediterranean seafood restaurant that first opened in 1989, the lobster diavolo (for two to share) sees freshly cooked lobster served with a stew made from mussels, clams, and calamari, plus plenty of garlicky, buttery linguine. Scoop the lobster meat out, mix it into the pasta, and enjoy a taste of seafood heaven.

Grano Pasta Bar in Baltimore serves both traditional pasta dishes and modern takes on Italian cuisine – but it's the joint's simple linguine mussels that customers can't get enough of. In this classic dish, a circle of Prince Edward mussels surrounds perfectly cooked linguine tossed in olive oil, tomatoes, garlic, wine, butter, and herbs.

A beloved Italian small-plates restaurant in Boston, Coppa is perfect for a laid-back meal, and everyone will tell you to order the carbonara. Made the traditional way – with pancetta, egg yolk, and Parmesan – the dish is taken to new heights with the addition of uni (sea urchin). The saltiness from the pancetta complements the uni's creaminess in the tastiest possible way.

What began as a pizza parlor in 1968 is now a Detroit favorite serving authentic Italian food of all kinds – including pasta. Giovanni’s, named for the founder’s father, is especially loved for its lasagna, which diners describe as layer upon layer of perfection. Those who've tried it say that not only can they not stop talking about it, but they can’t stop eating it, either. The recipe is classic: meat, cheese, and béchamel are layered with thin sheets of pasta, then baked until bubbling.

Pasta lovers in Minneapolis will be familiar with Molly and Tom Broder's casual pasta bar, which has been delighting diners with fresh handmade pasta in delicious Italian-inspired sauces for years. With nearly 30 pastas and risottos on the menu, it might be difficult to choose – but if you ask us, you've got to go for the tagliarini. Served in a light truffle cream sauce with Prosciutto di Parma, it's the restaurant's best dish.

Although the angel hair pasta dishes are exceptional at Jackson restaurant BRAVO!, it's the lasagna that regulars say is the dish to order. Classic and cooked to perfection, the menu staple sees pasta layers stacked with ricotta, house-ground beef, spectacular marinara sauce, and gooey mozzarella. It's utterly irresistible.

Toasted ravioli is a St. Louis specialty – so you'll find it at Italian restaurants across the city. If you're looking for the best, though, head straight for the cozy, family-run Anthonino's Taverna, which serves a mix of Italian and Greek cuisine. Crispy on the outside and filled with delicious meat inside, the joint's take on toasted ravioli comes complete with marinara sauce for dipping.

You might be surprised to see a seafood dish topping the charts in Montana, but you simply can't deny the amazing flavors of Ciao Mambo's linguini alle vongole – served in the restaurant's Whitefish, Billings, and Missoula locations. Baby clams are tossed with perfectly made pasta and a white or red sauce, depending on your preference.

Although it might be better known for its steaks, Spezia's pasta offerings are excellent too. A standout dish, the giglio with chicken and asparagus combines twisty pasta shapes with a creamy pesto sauce, grilled chicken pieces, toasted yellow peppers, asparagus, and tomato basil relish. It's as colorful as it is delicious.

Want to try something a little different? Opt for the zucca alla zozzona at Esther's Kitchen. This dish features pasta shaped like pumpkins, in a sauce that's a mash-up of two Roman favorites: amatriciana and carbonara. Its name comes from the Roman word zozzo, meaning rich, calorific, and substantial. It's packed with guanciale, sausage, egg yolk, and pecorino – everything you need to slip into a blissful pasta coma. As a bonus, Esther’s Kitchen is off the busy Strip.

This cozy Italian restaurant serves up a long list of delicious pasta dishes. You can take your pick from spaghetti, linguine, or penne with your sauce of choice, but it's the chicken carbonara that diners especially love. Succulent pieces of chicken are complemented by sautéed pancetta, onions, mushrooms, and creamy egg Parmigiana sauce. The carbonara can also be served with veal.

Offering a range of Northern and Southern Italian dishes, Paisano's always serves up something delicious. The standout, however, is the pappardelle rustica. The pasta is light and perfectly al dente, while the hearty old-style Bolognese sauce – with a touch of cream – has a wonderful depth of flavor. It's the ultimate comfort food.

Serving recipes straight from the owner's Italian grandmother's kitchen, Joe's Pasta House is a classic red-sauce restaurant. The Italian American spot's best creation is a wonderful fusion dish incorporating New Mexico green chiles. Cheese ravioli are topped with sautéed chicken and the restaurant's signature green chile Alfredo sauce. 

Italian American restaurant Carbone is a star of the New York food scene; customers love its elegant surroundings and special twists on classic dishes. The specialty is the spicy rigatoni vodka, which receives rave reviews. House-made pasta is tossed in a delicious take on vodka sauce that incorporates onions, tomatoes, and cream, and the taste is nothing short of luxurious.

Patsy's Italian Restaurant in NYC has been dishing up Italian classics since 1944. Frank Sinatra, who often sang at the family-owned restaurant, was a regular and now has a private dining room named after him. Whether Sinatra’s favorite meal here happened to be spaghetti and meatballs isn’t known, but one thing is for sure – the dish is adored by today’s customers. Simple, unpretentious, and utterly delicious, the veal meatballs are seasoned with garlic and cheese and served in a rich tomato and basil sauce.

A favorite among locals, the penne alla vodka is the best pasta dish you'll find on Mama Ricotta's menu. Made with high-quality ingredients and minute attention to detail, it's the restaurant's most famous offering, too. The penne is al dente, the spicy tomato cream sauce is spiked with pepper vodka, and the dish is finished with sautéed pancetta. 

Butterhorn specializes in showcasing fresh ingredients sourced from all over the Midwest. Pasta is made in house daily, and the menu changes with the seasons. Customers say whatever is on offer will be the best pasta you've ever tasted. Pictured is the spaghetti with fresh shrimp and scampi – but other popular pastas include cavatelli alla vodka with house-made fennel sausage, and tortellini with charred cabbage and toasted garlic breadcrumbs.

You'll find that quite often, the simplest pasta dishes are the most delicious – and Sotto's cappellacci with short rib is no exception. Similar to ravioli, cappellacci is a type of filled pasta. In this instance, it's served in a light cream sauce with shallots and thyme. One of the original Sotto dishes, it's been on the menu since the restaurant opened in 2013, and it remains a firm customer favorite.

The seasonal Italian sausage pasta dish at Stella is simply delicious. The pasta is tossed with sautéed mushrooms and sausage in a red wine sauce, and finished with Parmesan shavings on top. It's a wonderfully comforting dish that customers can't get enough of.

A dish that's not for the faint-hearted or small of appetite, Grassa's mac ’n’ cheese is topped with a generous helping of sticky barbecue pork belly bites. The handmade macaroni shapes are hugged by an incredibly cheesy cream sauce, spiked with jalapeños, and topped with a cornbread crumble. This is comfort food at its very best.

The incredible skills of Le Virtù's chefs are best displayed in their signature maccheroni alla mugnaia dish. To make it, a long, single strand of hand-pulled pasta is dressed with garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, pecorino cheese, and hot peppers. The dish comes with more hot peppers on the side, should you want to add more spice – but satisfied customers say the pasta is already seasoned to perfection.

Al Forno's pasta shells are baked to perfection in a tomato, cream, and five-cheese sauce. The dish is cooked until the cheese on top is bubbly and golden, which is delicious enough – but, arguably, the edges are the best part, as the pasta turns deliciously crispy in the oven.

Although it's more famous for its wood-fired pizzas, Renzo always has a perfect pasta dish or two on its ever-changing menu. The wood-fired lasagna is said to be out of this world – it's a tempting combination of pasta sheets, Bolognese di testa, provolone piccante, pecorino, parsley, mint, and 'grandma's special sauce.'

Baked cheese tortellini is about as comforting as pasta can get. The cheese-stuffed pasta pillows at Johnny Carino's – loved across the country for its warming pasta dishes and exceptional cocktails – are mixed with a creamy cheese sauce before being baked with mozzarella and Parmesan on top. If you love cheese and you love pasta, this is quite possibly the best dish ever.

An incredibly simple yet delicious dish from The Bar-B-Q Shop, barbecue spaghetti combines the best of Italian cuisine with Memphis' signature barbecue style. The dish pairs pasta with chopped onions and green bell peppers, and comes topped with barbecued pulled pork, drenched in the restaurant's signature Dancing Pigs Bar-B-Que Sauce.

The ravioli at Bludorn may be a little out of the ordinary, but it's loved by customers. Perfectly formed ravioli are stuffed with the softest short rib, then served with an unusual (yet delicious) combination of blue cheese, figs, and red onion. We guarantee you'll want to lick your plate clean.

Anyone familiar with the restaurant scene in Salt Lake City will know about Valter's Osteria and its legendary owner Valter Nassi, who passed away in 2022. His menu lives on, filled with Tuscan classics inspired by his mother's cooking – but the one you'll want to order is the rigatoni dish, which comes slathered in a sauce based on a family recipe. The rigatoni is soft and chewy, and its tube shape is perfect for carrying as much of the tomato-based porcini and meat sauce as possible.

A traditional Italian trattoria that's been going for more than 20 years, Trattoria Delia knows a thing or two about pasta. Its house-made spaghetti is combined with lobster claws, broccoli rabe, tomatoes, and Calabrian chilies in a lobster fra diavolo dish that's utterly irresistible. The seasonal menu is subject to change, so this specific dish may not always be available; however, there's always something mouthwatering to choose.

The selection at Dal Grano might be large, but there's one particular pasta and sauce combination that customers come back for time and time again. The bucatini all'amatriciana combines fresh bucatini pasta with a rich amatriciana sauce made with tomato, pancetta, onion, and pecorino cheese. Can't get enough of it? The restaurant sells raw pasta for cooking at home, too.

This traditional Italian restaurant uses locally sourced ingredients and offers a daily changing menu, which is small but perfectly formed. San Fermo's selection of pasta dishes is superb, but it's the saffron spaghetti Bolognese that customers say is something very special indeed. The sauce blends pork and veal with rosemary, fennel, and Parmigiano Reggiano. Delicious!

It doesn't really get any more old school than Muriale's, which has been serving up traditional Italian American dishes since 1969. Customers say the manicotti – tube-shaped pasta shells stuffed with ricotta cheese and smothered in a rich meat sauce – is simply divine. If that wasn't enough, it's also served with one of Muriale's famous meatballs. 

Owned by renowned chef Paul Bartolotta, Ristorante Bartolotta serves some exceptional pasta. Its signature uovo in raviolo dish is only on the menu during truffle season, but it's well worth seeking out. A large raviolo is filled with spinach, ricotta, and an egg yolk, cooked to a runny consistency. Finished with Parmesan and brown butter, it's indulgent and rich, just like pasta should be.

Glorietta is a must for any pasta lover, offering a seasonally changing menu of delicious dishes. However, the meatballs alla nonna are always on the menu – and customers say they're a must-have addition to your meal, whether you choose the dish as an appetizer or entrée. Served on a heap of spaghetti pomodoro, topped with cheese and parsley, this classic and comforting choice is incredibly tasty.

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Last updated by Emily Shardlow-Price.