San Diego Magazine's Best Restaurants 2012 awards us both Critic's and Reader's Choice for Best Italian for the 3rd year in a row!

The Eat is On! "We've swooned over the prosciutto & puffy pillows of fried bread. We've hunched over our pink gnocchi, forgetting the world outside. But what keeps us coming back to Bencotto [...] is the front-of-house power duo Guido Nistri & his charming wife, Valentina Di Pietro."

San Diego Home & Garden Lifestyles highlighted Bencotto's olive all'Ascolana: "The 'mmm' inducing nuggest require pitting large olives, spiral-cutting them, packing in a filling of highly seasoned minced pork, recreating the original shape and frying the double-breaded olives to a delightfully crunchy finish."

The Buzz: Snaps from San Diego Magazine's Best Restaurants Kick-Off Party.

"Best Wheel of Fortune: Risotto in Parmigiano Reggiano at Bencotto. Chef Fabrizio lovingly serves a special version of his creamy risotto from a carved-out wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano, scraping in flecks and flecks (and more flecks)."

"From stellar bechamel dressed lasagna ('bout time a non-red sauce version hit the scene) to tender meatballs yummy enough to abandon noodles altogether, chef Fabrizio Cavallini's edible homages to his homeland never fall flat."

"For one of the city's more decadent, melt-in-your-mouth experience, order the prosciutto di San Daniele from Bencotto... Savor with a glass of the lightly carbonated, low-alcohol Lambrusco "wine snack".

Rated Best Italian critic Candice Woo

"Its sleek, slate-colored environs are packed – you can only get an easy seat when Little Italy's streets are blocked off for a festa. And the regular menu tops out at $19 for both the Cioppino Bencotto and the grilled beef tagliata with arugula and sun-dried tomatoes."

"Bencotto's 90 possible carb and sauce combinations have earned the Little Italy newcomers instant success. 'I've never seen people go so crazy for fresh pasta,' says Milan-native di Pietro. 'But Americans love having choices, so our menu is meant to respect that.'"

"Voted Best Italian in SD: "The new kid in Little Italy is in a class by itself. No red-checked tablecloths here; the Milanese owners deliver contemporary, exciting Italian food with house-made ingredients in a swanky setting."

"Full and exhausted, I opt for sweet dreams instead, picturing the Bencotto kitchen staff tucking in the prosciutto slicer and singing it an Italian lullaby."