SF restaurant review: IL Casaro

Living in San Francisco is a big responsibility. I have to try every single restaurant while we live in the city. Okay, not true, but there are so many amazing restaurants here that it's difficult to decide where to go when we want to eat out. Many people have advised that we not go to the same restaurant twice during the first six months of our SF residency. We're going to do our best to listen to that advice, but when we find something we love, it's hard to not go back. Case in point: IL Casaro Pizzeria & Mozzarella Bar in Little Italy.

After a lazy day of watching college football, my husband and I were ready for some Italian food. If I could only eat one type of food for the rest of my life, I would absolutely pick Italian. From pasta, to soups, to pizza, you just can't go wrong. We surely did not go wrong with IL Casaro.

The restaurant is intimate but the ambience is energetic. We sat next to the window with a street view, so basically a prime spot for people watching. It wasn't too loud to where I couldn't hear my husband but it wasn't too quiet to where the people across the restaurant could hear me. IL Casaro is complete with trendy lighting, unique decor and the menu painted on the wall.

You can't go to a mozzarella bar and not indulge in some mozzarella. We got the Imported Burrata Mozzarella and it was simply incredible. My only complaint here is that we didn't get enough bread, but that didn't stop us from finishing off the mozzarella by itself.

For my entree, I got the Spaghetti al Carbonara, and oh my goodness. It took every ounce of self-control I had to stop myself from finishing the whole entree when I was full. I reminded myself that I'd be happy when I had leftovers at work the following Monday. My husband loved it, too, and he is pretty picky when it comes to pasta. The cheese, sauce and pasta were all extremely delicious.

My husband got the IL Casaro Pizza, and I wish I had an after photo. He devoured it very quickly. I was hoping we would have a piece or two leftover, but no such luck; he finished the entire pizza by himself (well, I did have half a piece). Talk about gourmet pizza--this is it!

If you live in San Francisco or if you plan on visiting in the future, I highly recommend IL Casaro. I know we've been told to not repeat restaurants during our first six months in the city, but we may have to break that rule for IL Casaro.

Have you been to IL Casaro or do you have any other Italian recommendations in San Francisco? I'd love to hear from you. Let me know in the comments!