Lena’s Cafe, Altoona, PA

Recently we  traveled to Altoona, PA for a weekend visit with Dan’s mom.  No trip to Altoona is complete without a dinner at Lena’s Cafe, one of our favorite Italian restaurants in the world.  The atmosphere of this family-owned eatery is best described as friendly-causal — wood paneling on the walls, possibly the original old-school restaurant tables and chairs, and some the nicest restaurant staff we’ve ever encountered.  Our Lena’s dining experiences are probably also enhanced by the fact that someone almost always recognizes Danny (how he is known in Altoona) and comes over to say hello.  But hands-down, the very best thing about Lena’s is the red sauce — the owner’s mother’s special recipe.  We’ve never had anything like it anywhere else.  Dan’s red sauce recipe is really good, but it’s no Lena’s.

8 thoughts on “Lena’s Cafe, Altoona, PA

  1. Thanks for the mouth watering photos of your Lena’s experience. Everything looks sooo so good but I am mostly drooling over the eggplant parm. YUM!

  2. Thanks for the Lena’s update! We lived in Altoona at least 10 years ago and ate pasta at Lena’s weekly. I was searching the web to see if Lena’s was even still there, and if they still had the same pasta, since we are planning a 3 hour trip just to eat there. Can’t wait now that I see the familiar pasta pictures!

  3. As an employee here I thank you for the nice review it’s always nice to hear good things from a satisfied customer.

  4. Absolutely love the simple house dressing! Have tried to figure it out but can never seem to get that same taste! No longer in the Altoona area and miss Lena’s.

  5. I grew up eating Lena’s and wish I lived closer so I could go more often. When my family is in town visiting friends and family they beg to go there for the homemade noodles and homemade gnocchi. We love the sauce and wish I could make it at home!

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