Review of My Cousin Vinny's Italian Restaurant in Niagara Falls, ON

Our first night in Niagara Falls, ON, we took a walk to find someplace local to eat for dinner. My Cousin Vinny's Italian Restaurant stood out to us because of the interesting name and the fact that it said it was world famous. For something that claims it's world famous, I had never heard of it. Since it was just a few blocks from our hotel, we decided to give it a try. Located at 6541 Main Street Niagara Falls, Ontario L2G5Y6, My Cousin Vinny's is close to the Horseshoe falls and only a short walk from the many hotels in this area.

My Cousin Vinny's had a definite Italian decor, but it was unfocused. I didn't understand why there was an area on the wall dedicated to Elvis. Was he Italian? What did that have to do with anything? They had an outdoor area as well as the indoor restaurant, and we choose to eat indoors. The outside area looked like a nice area depending on the weather. Inside it was a little warm at first but they must have pumped up the AC because it cooled down real fast.

The menu was kind of simple for an Italian restaurant without a whole lot of pasta options. Instead the menu also includes many things I wouldn't consider Italian like hamburgers. Due to the lack of appealing pasta dishes, I choose to get Fish and Chips and my husband choose Chicken Marsala. We both choose to get mashed potatoes and gravy instead of fries.

We did enjoy the mixed greens salads and the bread that came with our meal. It actually made me want more salad. As for the entrees, my husband said was that the Chicken Marsala was good, but definitely not great. He quickly named off a handful of places that had better Chicken Marsala. He's not usually a picky eater so to hear that from him showed me that it really wasn't that good. My fish was actually one huge piece instead of 2-3 smaller pieces that most restaurants would give. I ended up breaking through the breading and just eating the fish. I didn't care for the breading that much nor the tarter sauce that they gave with it. The mashed potatoes and gravy were good, not wonderful, but good.

It's hard to say much about the service because we didn't see the waitress much. The place was dead so she didn't have reason to wander our way very often. She did her job, took our orders and delivered the food, but it was a little slow. The waitress was friendly though, and I don't think she did horrible, just not exceedingly great.

The prices were quite high, especially considering the quality of food. Of course, everything in this touristy area seemed to be overpriced for the most part. Our total bill inclulding tip and taxes came to 72.69 which is way more than I've ever paid in almost any other Italian restaurant. In fact, Italian food is usually quite affordable.

Overall I would only recommend My Cousin Vinny's if you had no other choice. East Side Mario's is nearby as well and the only reason we didn't go there is because we have one locally. After this visit I realize that there is a reason I never heard of the "world famous" My Cousin Vinny's. The food is just ok, the prices are high, and the overall appeal is only because it has a cool name. I wish I had read all the negative reviews online before going here, but like I said I never heard of it until I saw it. My Cousin Vinny may be a good movie, but it's not a great restaurant.