It’s no surprise that Northern Virginia is full of amazing Italian restaurants. So we had to ask, which is the best in the region? After just over two weeks of voting, we have an answer. Thompson Italian came out victorious as the inaugural NoVA Wars: Italian champion.
In the final round of voting, Thompson Italian went against Sterling’s Urbano Modern Italian, but the Falls Church eatery came out the winner after a tight contest. In the previous rounds, Thompson defeated Burke’s Villa Bella, Alexandria’s Osteria Marzano, Vienna’s Roberto’s Ristorante Italiano, and Centreville’s Ciao Osteria.
“Winning this means so much to us because it comes from our community,” said Gabe and Katherine Thompson, co-owners of Thompson Italian. “We pour everything into this restaurant — the seasonal menu, the drinks, the hospitality — and knowing that our neighbors feel that is the best possible feedback we could receive. Thank you to everyone who voted and who continues to make Thompson Italian their place.”
Thompson Italian first opened its Falls Church location in 2019 after the Thompsons, moved from Manhattan to Northern Virginia. The duo previously owned and operated three popular Italian restaurants while in Manhattan: L’Artusi, Anfora, and L’Apicio. The neighborhood restaurant expanded in 2022 when it opened a new location in Old Town Alexandria.
Since opening, Thompson Italian has been on Northern Virginia Magazine‘s Best Restaurant list six times in the last seven years.
While the menu is full of Italian favorites, the rigatoni with beef bolognese (pictured above) is beloved by customers and always on the menu. Thompson’s menu also features a handful of seasonal housemade pasta dishes and appetizers, including garlic bread with scratch-made marinara. If you still have room after that, put in an order for olive oil cake, a guest favorite, or the tiramisu, which our food critic named one of the best Italian dishes in NoVA.
Thompson Italian is open from 5 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday (4:30 to 10 p.m. in Alexandria), and 4:30 to 9 p.m. on Sunday. 124 N. Washington St., Falls Church; 1024 King St., Alexandria
Feature image courtesy Thompson Italian
