Luigi’s Homemade Italian Food is practically a cliché when it comes to Italian restaurants. Red-checkered covered tables and hundreds – yes hundreds – of straw-cupped Chianti bottles adorn the walls. Fortunately, the food overshadows the décor.
Luigi’s has been part of Colorado Springs’ dining scene for 55 years. Although that’s much longer than I’ve been eating there, my guess is little has changed. On every visit a line of people wait for tables. This wouldn’t be the case if the food wasn’t worth it.
Only open for dinner, the menu features pasta and pizza, with several other options. It would be silly to miss the pasta, especially the homemade manicotti, which is the special Fridays and Saturdays – that just means it’s $13 instead of the regular $16.25. The manicotti are filled with seasoned ricotta, topped with a pungent tomato sauce and rich, creamy béchamel with a suggestion of nutmeg. The dish comes with a choice of meatball or sausage, which are made in-house. I’ve tried them both, but because it’s easier to make meatballs at home, I usually opt for the sausage. Just the right amount of fennel complements the pork. This is a flavorful and abundant plate of food. It comes with a choice of salad or minestrone, and bread.
My husband loves Spumoni and ordered a dish of the multi-flavored ice cream. His serving had only pistachio and cherry; it usually includes chocolate or vanilla.
I, like most of the patrons, usually walk out with a container of my leftovers.
Luigi’s
Three- and three-quarters Plates
947 S. Tejon St.
Colorado Springs, CO
The Blue Page Special 
This looks like my kind of place.