10 editor picks in Boston.
10 italian places in Boston we have eaten in, sorted by editor score. All cuisines in Boston | Italian across every city.
Italian food is one of Boston's defining cuisines, rooted in the North End and now reaching across the river to Cambridge. Mamma Maria on North Square and Bricco on Hanover Street work the fine-dining end of the North End, while Giacomo's and The Daily Catch keep the no-frills, no-reservations tradition alive on the same streets. Coppa in the South End and Pammy's in Cambridge show how the cuisine has spread and modernized beyond its historic core.
Mamma Maria on North Square is the North End's fine-dining anchor in Boston, in a five-room brick townhouse since 1973. Kitchen leans italian.
OrderThe pappardelle bolognese; the kitchen makes the pasta in-house.
TipBook the upstairs Library room for a quiet conversation. The Sunday family menu at 17:00 is the easy walk-in seat.
Giacomo's on Hanover Street has run a no-reservations Italian-American room in Boston's North End since 1985. Priced at $$. At 355 Hanover St.
OrderLobster ravioli with vodka sauce, the house signature.
TipArrive by 17:30 to skip the longest wait. Cash only, BYOB welcomed from the wine shops on Salem Street.
Damien DiPaola named Carmelina's after his mother and runs it on Hanover Street as a regional Italian kitchen in Boston since 2012. Located in North End.
OrderThe carbonara pasta with smoked pancetta and pecorino.
TipReservations open four weeks ahead on OpenTable. The bar is the easier walk-in seat at 17:30 weekdays.
Ken Oringer and Jamie Bissonnette's Italian enoteca on Shawmut Avenue runs house-made charcuterie and Roman pastas in Boston's South End since 2009.
OrderThe charcuterie board, all five cuts, with the bagna cauda.
TipThe marble counter is the better solo seat. Walk in at 17:00 for the easy table.
Chris and Pam Willis run Pammy's as a New American-Italian trattoria between Central and Harvard Squares in Cambridge since 2017. Priced at $$$$.
OrderThe tagliatelle bolognese with brown-butter aged parmesan.
TipResy opens 30 days ahead and the room fills the same minute. Counter walk-ins from 17:30 weekdays.
Giacomo's on Hanover Street has run no-reservations Italian-American in Boston's North End since 1985. Cash only, big portions, sidewalk line by 18:00.
OrderLobster ravioli with vodka sauce, the house signature.
TipCash only. The line moves fast at 17:30 weekdays; weekends run 45 minutes.
The Daily Catch on Hanover Street has run Paul Freddura's Sicilian seafood kitchen in Boston's North End since 1973. 20 seats, open kitchen.
OrderBlack pasta aglio olio, hand-ground squid-ink linguine with chopped calamari.
TipTwenty seats; the line forms by 18:00. The new takeout window two doors down at 331 Hanover skips the wait.
Damien DiPaola's Carmelina's on Hanover Street has run regional Italian in Boston's North End since 2012. Reservations available, family-style sharing.
OrderThe carbonara with smoked pancetta and pecorino, the kitchen signature.
TipOpenTable bookings four weeks ahead. Sunday lunch family gravy at 13:00 is the easy seat.
Frank DePasquale's Bricco on Hanover Street has run a contemporary regional Italian fine-dining room in Boston's North End since 1995. Book 2 weeks ahead.
Frank DePasquale's Bricco on Hanover Street runs a Friday-Saturday late-night Italian kitchen until 02:00 in Boston's North End since 1995. At 241 Hanover St.
OrderCarbonara
TipLate-night menu Friday and Saturday from 23:00. Order pastas and pizza; the antipasti runs lower energy late.
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