Vetri isn’t just the best Italian restaurant in Philadelphia—it’s one of the best restaurants in the city, period. The Center City staple can get extremely expensive, so it works best for a special occasion. As soon as you walk in the door, you’ll get an aperol spritz on the house, which feels nice until you realize you’re shelling out $165 for the tasting menu. The meal is actually worth all that money, though, because you’ll eat around 15 courses.

Fiorella is where you should spend all night eating pasta until someone tries to kick you out or demand rent. While the Bella Vista pasta bar has outstanding small plates like wild boar terrine with cherries, make no mistake:it’s the pasta you’re here for. If you snag any of the bar seats inside, you’ll have a great view of ricotta gnocchi, chestnut lasagnetta with goose, and their legendary sausage rigatoni being made right in front of you.

Wm. Mulherin’s Sons looks like a house in the Catskills that Martha Stewart owns. The part-boutique hotel, part-restaurant in Fishtown has big wooden tables and a fireplace in the middle of the dining room. They also have some great outdoor seating for groups, whether you're sitting on the sidewalk or in the garden that feels straight out of a scene from Downtown Abbey. On top of just looking really nice, the cocktails and Italian food are also excellent.

With massive picture windows and bright green signage, it’s hard to miss this Kensington pasta bar and wine shop. But even if you don’t notice the couples sharing bottles of merlot as you walk by, the unmistakable scent of lamb ragu will draw you in. From perfectly blended cocktails and unique, affordable wines to pastas so good that you’ll consider proposing to the chef, this intimate corner restaurant should be your go-to for any time you’re craving carbs.

If you ever wanted to know what it feels like to have an exclusive dinner party inside of your high school, head to Irwin’s inside of South Philly’s Bok Building. Even though the atmosphere is laid back and casual, the Sicilian dishes, like citrusy whole fish, tender agrodolce chicken, and handmade pastas feel like they could be served to somebody who lives in a palace. Come here for a fun group dinner and experience one of the best views in the city.

Osteria is a spacious Italian spot on North Broad that has a beautiful covered greenhouse. It's flowing with flowers and a long bar that makes it an easy place to drop in before a show at The Met. The cocktails, pizzas, and handmade pastas are all excellent—especially their creamy and earthy francobolli ravioli that’s packed with robiola cheese and topped with large trumpet mushrooms. But we’re also big fans of the wood-grilled chicken.

Open since 1899, this is Philadelphia’s oldest Italian restaurant. It's overwhelminingly old school—think white table cloths and candlelight, chandeliers, black and white photos, and dining rooms throughout converted townhouses. The South Philly spot uses that century of experience to whip up top-notch pastas like the gnocchi romano, fettuccini filetto with filet mignon and sun-dried tomatoes, and a baked lasagna that’s the best in town.

When you drive by Café Carmela, you’ll see a line that looks like PennDOT on the weekends. And it’s no wonder—they’ve mastered the carb holy trinity of pizza, sandwiches, and pasta. There’s not a bad dish on the menu (we checked), but if you stop by and don’t try the American Boy pizza with creamy mozzarella or a cheesesteak with thick cuts of ribeye, you’ll miss out on what everyone in that line is probably waiting around for.

Saloon is an Italian restaurant, but it’s also a quintessential South Philly dining experience. It’s been around for 55 years, and is still outfitted with dark wood walls and candlelight, stained glass windows, and paraphernalia from 19th and 20th century Philadelphia. The staff has as much personality as the building itself (and most have been around just as long). The menu ranges from traditional steakhouse dishes, but we’re partial to the Italian house specialties.

You’ll probably see a few tourists when you go to Ralph’s in South Philly, but considering it’s one of the oldest Italian restaurants in the country (it opened in 1900) and one of the best in Philadelphia, what else can you expect? All of the food comes in huge portions, from spaghetti in red gravy and shrimp scampi to one of the best veal parms in the city. And because all the portions are so big, you can expect to leave with lunch for the next day.