scorecardWe tried Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson's Italian date-night spots and thought the 'SNL' star's favorite restaurant was more impressive
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We tried Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson's Italian date-night spots and thought the 'SNL' star's favorite restaurant was more impressive

Anneta Konstantinides,Rachel Askinasi   

We tried Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson's Italian date-night spots and thought the 'SNL' star's favorite restaurant was more impressive
Anneta Konstantinides (left) and Rachel Askinasi (right) tried the restaurants Pete Davidson and Kim Kardashian went to for date nights.Anneta Konstantinides/Insider and Rachel Askinasi/Insider
  • Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson have been spotted on dinner dates for months.
  • Insider reporters tried their Staten Island and Los Angeles spots to compare the experiences.

Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson have been together for months, and they're frequently spotted on date nights at Los Angeles and New York City restaurants.

Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson have been together for months, and they
Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson love having date night at Italian restaurants.      Frank Micelotta/Hulu; Mike Coppola/Getty Images

When the reality TV star and "Saturday Night Live" comedian first began dating, many wondered what they could possibly have in common. But at least one thing is clear: both Kardashian and Davidson share a passion for Italian food.

Early on in their courtship, Davidson took Kardashian to Campania — an Italian restaurant on Staten Island — for a private dinner. Davidson told Paper in 2019 that the Dongan Hills eatery is one of his favorites.

Kardashian returned the favor a couple of weeks later and took Davidson to Giorgio Baldi in Los Angeles. The upscale Italian restaurant counts Rihanna and Justin Bieber among its many famous fans, and Kardashian once tweeted that it was "the best restaurant ever."

Insider's food reporters happen to live in NYC and LA. So we decided to check out both places and see how Davidson and Kardashian's favorite Italian restaurants compare to each other.

Campania, Davidson's choice for date night, is in the Dongan Hills neighborhood of Staten Island.

Campania, Davidson
Campania in Dongan Hills, Staten Island.      Rachel Askinasi/Insider

This restaurant with three locations on Staten Island and one in Brooklyn is known for its coal-fired pizza and handmade pasta.

The couple visited the Dongan Hills location in November and dined on the rooftop patio, despite the area being closed off to everyone else during the colder months.

"Pete arranged a dinner on the rooftop privately," a restaurant source told Page Six. "It was just the two of them." The restaurant owner didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The vibe inside Campania's main dining room is casual and cozy, but they also offered bright and comfortable outdoor seating during our visit.

The vibe inside Campania
The view from Rachel's sidewalk seat at Campania.      Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Our reporter Rachel walked through the main dining room to get to her outdoor seat and said it reminded her of other neighborhood trattorias in New York, just larger. It was filled with dark wood accents and had a bar along one side, she said.

As for the sidewalk seating, tables were lined with the same palm-tree-looking plants Rachel saw on the roof. She said the greenery set a relaxed tone.

Rachel tried an appetizer, pizza, and pasta from the menu. But the first thing she loved was the caponata that came with the free bread.

Rachel tried an appetizer, pizza, and pasta from the menu. But the first thing she loved was the caponata that came with the free bread.
The team brought Rachel a basket of bread with caponata for dipping while she decided on her order.      Rachel Askinasi/Insider

The great food started before Rachel even ordered her first dish.

Like many restaurants, Campania serves a complimentary bread basket. But instead of just the usual butter and olive oil offerings, the restaurant brings a small dish of eggplant caponata.

It was soft but textured, sweet but vinegar-forward, and all-around bursting with flavors. Rachel thought it was the perfect bread topper and a wonderful way to start off the meal.

Next, she tried the clams oreganata.

Next, she tried the clams oreganata.
The flavors were bright and the textures were exactly what she was expecting.      Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Rachel ordered a half portion of baked clams and was charged $10 for her smaller order instead of $18.

The breadcrumbs were toasty on top and a bit mushier closer to the meat of the clam, which is exactly how it should be, in Rachel's opinion. They were slightly more crumbly than she would have liked, but it didn't really bother her. Rachel said the flavors were appropriately salty, fresh, and parsley-forward. She thought the lemony goodness came through clearly in the sauce that expectantly pooled on the bottom of the dish, which paired beautifully with bread.

Rachel ordered two varieties of pizza, which was the next course to come out.

Rachel ordered two varieties of pizza, which was the next course to come out.
Rachel tried two varieties of thin-crust pizza.      Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Rachel ordered a 12-inch pie of two different varieties — Campania allows diners to order a half-and-half pizza. She chose the popular Lombarda and a classic Margherita for $19.

The Lombarda came topped with red sauce, mozzarella cheese, arugula, prosciutto, shaved parmesan, and truffle oil. It was salty from the meat and cheeses, refreshing from the raw arugula, and savory from the truffle oil, Rachel said.

The Margherita had the same red tomato sauce, mozzarella and pecorino cheese, and thin ribbons of basil. The herb was strong and bright, Rachel said, and the sauce had a sweetness that was able to shine better on this pie.

Each pie had a very thin, well-cooked bottom crust. Rachel described it as crunchy and sturdy enough to ensure zero floppage when she picked up a slice by the edge.

She was sure to order one of the house-made pasta dishes, too.

She was sure to order one of the house-made pasta dishes, too.
Each main ingredient was visible.      Rachel Askinasi/Insider

For the pasta course, Rachel ordered cavatelli with diced eggplant, fresh basil, burst tomatoes, and shaved ricotta salata for $21.

She loved how soft and pillowy the noodles were, and thought they were the perfect vessel for the sauce, which was glossy and a little bit thick.

Rachel also thought the firmer cheese — as opposed to the more commonly known wet ricotta — offered a nice texture variety from the rest of the soft ingredients.

Ultimately, Rachel said she was impressed with the meal and understands why it's one of Davidson's favorite spots.

Ultimately, Rachel said she was impressed with the meal and understands why it
Rachel said she would go back to Campania again.      Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Rachel noticed that portions were large across the board and flavors were robust in each dish. From bright and light to silky and rich, there was a great variety of tasting experiences, she said.

While she said she probably wouldn't travel to Staten Island again just to visit Campania, she did say that if she's in the area, she'd go back for any of the dishes she tried.

Read Rachel's full review of Campania here.

Meanwhile, on the West Coast, Giorgio Baldi is tucked on a quiet corner right next to the beach in Los Angeles' Santa Monica neighborhood.

Meanwhile, on the West Coast, Giorgio Baldi is tucked on a quiet corner right next to the beach in Los Angeles
Giorgio Baldi has been a hit with celebrities since it opened in 1990.      FG/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Giorgio Baldi might attract A-list diners every night, but the restaurant is surprisingly subtle. The front facade is almost entirely covered by its well-trimmed hedges, and the "gb" written above the door is easy to miss.

But Giorgio Baldi has still been the background of many paparazzi photos. Rihanna — who has been known to visit up to three times a week — is frequently photographed leaving the restaurant. The Fenty mogul has spoken about her favorite Giorgio Baldi pasta dishes in a number of interviews, and even bought a home in the nearby Pacific Palisades partly so she could be in the restaurant's delivery zone.

Unlike many Hollywood hot spots, Giorgio Baldi's vibe isn't flashy. In fact, it's quite romantic.

Unlike many Hollywood hot spots, Giorgio Baldi
The restaurant has teal-blue walls and dim lighting to set the mood.      Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

With its dim lighting, white tablecloths, and teal blue walls, Giorgio Baldi feels as Mediterranean as the sea breeze that flows outside its doors.

There might be a photographer parked at the entrance, but from the moment you walk in everything feels private and intimate.

Anneta first tried Kardashian's favorite pasta, a $30 plate of homemade ravioli that's been on Giorgio Baldi's menu since it opened in 1990.

Anneta first tried Kardashian
Kardashian's favorite Giorgio Baldi pasta is this $30 agnolotti.      Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Kardashian is such a big fan of Giorgio Baldi's agnolotti — which is stuffed with sweet white corn and drizzled with a white truffle sauce — that she even defended it on Twitter.

Someone had screenshotted a picture that Kardashian shared of the pasta on her Instagram story back in 2018, and it went viral in 2020.

While Anneta's plate of agnolotti definitely looked more photogenic, she was surprised by how small the portion was. There were only 18 tiny raviolis on the plate — meaning each one cost almost $2.

Anneta loved the delicious white truffle sauce, although she couldn't taste much of the corn in the ravioli. Overall, she thought the pasta was nice and light — but it just didn't wow her.

Anneta also tried Rihanna's favorite Giorgio Baldi pastas, and she loved them far more than Kardashian's regular order.

Anneta also tried Rihanna
Rihanna is a huge fan of Giorgio Baldi's $23 gnocchi.      Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Rihanna has been known to get half-orders of all three of her favorite pastas: the $23 homemade ravioli filled with ricotta cheese, the $23 homemade gnocchi served with a meat or Gorgonzola sauce, and the pasta pomodoro with basil — which is no longer on the menu but still available.

Anneta thought the gnocchi looked stunning with its thick meat sauce and a generous sprinkle of parmesan. The pasta tasted like fluffy little pillows and Anneta loved the sauce — which was just light enough.

But Anneta's favorite was the pasta pomodoro, and not just because it was a far bigger portion.

But Anneta
Rihanna also loves this off-menu plate of pasta pomodoro.      Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Although it was the simplest of the four pastas she tried that night, Anneta thought the pasta pomodoro had so much depth of flavor.

There was also a light sweetness to the sauce, which was so delicious that Anneta's boyfriend declared it was "maybe the best red sauce I've ever had."

Read Anneta's full review of Kim Kardashian and Rihanna's favorite pastas here.

Anneta loved Giorgio Baldi's vibe, but Kardashian's favorite pasta just wasn't memorable.

Anneta loved Giorgio Baldi
Anneta at Giorgio Baldi.      Anneta Konstantinides/Insider

Giorgio Baldi's romantic and Mediterranean interior made Anneta feel like she had stepped into a little restaurant off the coast of Italy.

But Anneta thought Kardashian's preferred pasta order was pretty pricey for the small portion size — and the flavor just didn't stand out to her.

Kardashian might have Davidson beat in the fashion game, but when it comes to Italian food we had to give Davidson the win.

Kardashian might have Davidson beat in the fashion game, but when it comes to Italian food we had to give Davidson the win.
Pasta at Giorgio Baldi (left) and pizza at Campania (right).      Anneta Konstantinides/Insider and Rachel Askinasi/Insider

While Giorgio Baldi felt like a romantic escape from the standard flashy Hollywood spots, it still had an A-list price tag.

Anneta would definitely go back and order Rihanna's favorite pastas again, but she wasn't wowed by Kardashian's agnolotti and was a bit let down by how small all the portions were.

Campania, on the other hand, felt like a cozy neighborhood spot and really impressed Rachel with large portion sizes and bold flavors. The meal was relatively inexpensive compared to typical NYC prices, but it tasted like great quality food.

So Davidson takes this round — but we're excited to see where this superstar couple dines next.

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