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Copley (Green)
Back Bay (Orange)
"An excellent, modern Italian restaurant at reasonable prices. My daughter and I enjoyed a lovely lunch there yesterday. We ordered the…" read more »
I took my friend here for a birthday lunch. I work with a girl who also works at Papa Razzi, and I knew she really loved the food.
He had the Rigatoni con Luganega, sausage, mushrooms, crushed tomatoes and caramelized onions with cream, which was $11.
I had the Spaghetti alla bolognese, which had pancetta, ground veal and mushrooms in a light tomato sauce with a touch of cream for $12.50.
I must say, the pasta was delicious. It was rich, flavorful, and the portion was just right. Also, they served us foccacia which they encourage you to eat with the chili olive oil on the table. That was tasty. The Bolognese is their specialty, and I could see why.
While it is a little expensive (especially for the ever present college kids, such as I), they are very informed and can give you many recommendations. They also tell you that you can make any changes to any dish and really make it your own. That's a nice touch.
I just received the single best customer service experience here that I have at any restaurant ever, and considering that I eat out at least 100 times a year for a decade and a half, that is a feat. Grazi Papa Razzi.
Per Weds night routine, I met team C at Papa Razzi after work. Evidently, there had been some mix up with seating (I arrived late) and the staff, especially the manager, John, compensated us ten fold. Above and beyond an apology which would have been sufficient, he brought our little man a pizza dough, sauce and cheese kit to make at the table to bake tomorrow, brought us four complimentary desserts, and was as engaging as any restaurant manager has ever been to us.
This has forever cemented our Wedensday night routine, and was an absolute shock to how GOOD service can be. A million thanks to all! Cheers!
I know that Papa Razzi is a chain, and there is really no need to frequent chain Italian, especially… Read more »
When I feel depressed, I like to shop. After I shop, I like to dine alone. Why? hEllO, because shopping is exhausting, and the last thing you want to do after city walking for three hours with bags in your hand is to sit across from someone and have "conversation."
Let me paint a vivid image for you. I was walking up and down Newbury for hours on a cool night in October (ya, it wasn't freezing), with an Italian v-neck and shopping bags in each hand, and I wanted to eat at a place where I might be mistaken for being European. It was either Cafeteria or Papa Razzi, and I chose Mediterranean.
Luckily for Papa Razzi they have a bar where I was able to sit and order my food, and be surrounded by my bags. Why not a table? Please, this is not NYC we're talking about. And being so close to the South End I just didn't want an incident where some boy would come up to the table and ask to join me (happens aLL the time). The bartender (after hitting on me for five minutes) told me about the specials and I decided to order the rainbow trout with parmesan risotto and butternut squash, along with a thick cab to loosen me up.
Later I was informed by a mysterious informant that the rainbow trout is the "substitute" after the swordfish is sold out for the night. And was I fUrIOUs. I love swordfish, mostly because it reminds me of John Travolta, but also because it tastes good. Still, I waited patiently and chewed the complimentary bread.
My biggest disappointment was that the rainbow trout was not rainbow-colored. Still, it tasted delectable. The risotto and butternut squash were perfectly paired, but oh, my attention was absored by the wonder of what they'd taste like paired with that swordfish. There are two things that EvEryOnE knows about fish. The first is that rainbow trout is no substitute for swordfish, hEllO.
And service? The bartender--although he was hitting on me and never asked if I was European--was excellent and sociable. And any staff member I came into contact with--all two of them--were so sweet that it 'almost' made up for the swordfish incident.
What an adorable little place, and perfect for a date. Well-lit (important for any eligible guy), friendly staff, interesting food. Just watch out for switch-a-roos. Boston is surrounded by water, is it not? As if they can't just go catch a swordfish while I'm waiting? I've never fished, but it can't be that hard.
Next time I go to Papa Razzi, there will be a guy sitting across from me, paying for my meal.
This has been a Review by Fulgencio
I've only been here once, but i was impressed.
I met up with some family for lunch before pride this summer and we decided to go here. I had the Tuscan eggs Benedict, which was basically just eggs Benedict with the addition of thin sliced tomatoes. It was served on foccaccia i think, with a side of roasted potatoes and little fruit salad. It was really good. i don't usually like breakfast in restaurants for some reason; i love going out for breakfast but am always disappointed with the food. These were some good eggs. I also had a bloody mary, which was good but not huge. One of the major draws of the bloody mary is that it is usually super-sized, you know? My sis had chicken caesar salad, it looked good and she liked it, i didn't try it though. My aunts had some chicken and asparagus thing that looked pretty good to me.
The service is what really impressed me. My aunts are pretty demanding of waitstaff, and the waitress we had handled it exceptionally well.
i would definitely come back if i was in the neighborhood.
I came here one rainy saturday that I couldn't be bothered to eat at the dining hall (you can only take so much greasy pizza and dry cucumber). It was good decision!
The atmosphere is pleasant, the decor is elegant without being stuffy and service is attentive without being stiffling. I'd walked past this place before and the name had put me off - I couldn't help but think it had to be pretentious with a name like. Thankfully I was wrong - it's a very relaxed atmospher where you can go for a casual lunch or dinner.
I love the foccacia and grissini that they serve while you're waiting for your food. They have a variety of pasta dishes on the menu and they're very accomodating for any changes you want to make. They even allow you to get a half order / a side order of pasta if you're also having one of their "signature entrees". My friend had the Scallopini de pollo with a side of angel hair - delicious!
Their desserts are also nice - their cheesecake is the best I've tasted in Boston - thought it doesn't compare to my mum's - and the bombatinas aren't bad, even though I found the pastry a little too chewy.
Overall, I highly recommend this place. It is pretty expensive though - but worth it - so go there as a treat :-)
So three women walk into a restaurant, one who is a vegetarian, one who is gluten free, and one who owns Italian and Greek restaurants in the Midwest. Where in Boston can they all have wonderful, satisfying meals and great service?
PAPA RAZZI.
We had a great experience here this past weekend. We each had an appetizer/salad which was a huge portion and we enjoyed the bread brought to the table. My gluten free friend had bread as well. Our main courses were all great, I was surprised at the selection of vegetarian options and the pasta dishes could all be made with gluten free pasts. I had the ziti pomodoro pasta dish - it was really delicious.
The portions were huge and our meals were piping hot. The waited told us all of the meals are made to order.
Needless to say we were all pretty full after our meals, but did enjoy cappuccino and espresso after dinner. The service was great, the food was wonderful, the wine list was impressive.
mmm tasty focaccia to start is always a plus! It was pretty busy for being late at night, but the staff was quick and friendly regardless. I liked how they emphasize making all of their dishes to order, so it takes away the anxiety of asking them to use linguine instead of penne (not that i have anything against penne, but sometimes you just have those cravings right?)
I got arabbiata and it was great, my girlfriend got mushroom tortellini which was killer. Both the dirty martini and manhattans were also excellent. Since i live down the street now I'll definitely be back!
I used to walk by this place ALL the time! Peering from the outside and enthralled by the name, the place looked like a pseudo restaurant / bar. When this weekend I finally decided to give it a try, I came to find out that it was indeed both - with a small caviat. The place is HUGE!
It was Friday night and my friend and I decided to walk in and see how long the wait was especially because the place looked so busy. We were treated with a very courteous staff member who told us that we could be immediately seated. Alarm bells immediately went off and I thought that that is odd especially for a Friday night, but when I walked in some more I realized that this place was enormous. Of course they'd still have seating. Our waiter was extremely attentive and nice and gave us the time to choose from the menu. We decided to skip on the restaurant week dinner menu and just go with something on their set menu.
The calamari was great! It had just the right zing to it with peppers and jalapenos thrown into the mix. I was so disappointed with my last couple of outings that finally having a good calamari dish definitely brought a smile to my face. We wanted something vegetarian and rather simple for the night so my friend ordered the ziti al pomodoro which is a classic and I went with Penne al' Arrabiata which was on the slightly spicier side for pastas. Both were good dishes, but nothing to die for - then again, the dishes weren't meant to be something extra-ordinary anyways, which is why I can't take away too much from the food.
The ambience is great as well; you can easily come in for a drink and sit at the bar and order some finger food. The place is big so it can accomodate a big group of people any time and for a large establishment, it has good waiters who know how to keep their customers happy.
I'll certainly find myself here again if I don't feel like going to the North End or dealing with Giacamo's ridiculous wait and only cash policy. Good place all in all.
I honestly did not know it was a chain restaurant until I read it. The place looks so authentic. I went there on Valentine's Day with my boyfriend and it was the most romantic date we've had out of a year and a half of being together. The pasta was amazing and the Caesar Salad needed extra dressing which the waiter brought for me.
It was a bit pricey but so worth it for a date. I liked the bread things they gave too.
(Took off a star for the price)
Came here mostly out of necessity the other day. We were on our way to a show and it was really gross out (55 degrees in June, huh?) and we decided this place would do.
It took a while for our waiter to greet us, and by the time he did, we had made up our minds about what to order. He wasn't very attentive and seemed to only remember us when bringing the check. Sometimes I think servers have the misconception that young people are all assholes and won't say "thank you" or tip well.
I'm not sure if all of the locations do this, but our waiter gave us a shpeal about everything being "made to order" and we could customize any dish we liked. I should have taken that to mean, "we thought this would taste alright, but we're not perfectionists. Please feel free to anticipate how we might mess this up and make special requests."
Anyhoo, the food. The food was what we needed it to be-- it was warm and filled us up before a long night out. We both got a piece of focaccia bread and a huge basket of those crunchy breadsticks. Not sure what that was all about but the bread was fine. I ordered the farfalle and smoked salmon and my bf ordered gnochi something. My salmon was diced up into wee pieces, about the same size as the peas in the dish. I even took the dude up on his offer to be "creative" with my meal and asked him to add diced tomatoes (which amazingly were not as small as the chunks of fish). The aftertaste was akin to garlic bacon, which took me a while to escape. My guy felt okay about his meal, and we both agreed that our food was loaded down with too much sauce.
Quality of food and service didn't match up with prices. In my opinion, not worth seeking out.
If you take me here, I am putty in your hands--this is Dan C's ultimate date place. If your man (or you) are anything like me, be prepared for delicious food heaven with everything you like. Cheating ex-girlfriend be damned, this place is still my favorite (it was originally "our" place). This place is delicious, all I have to say is risotto (and MEEEE....MEEEE AND MRS., MRS. JONES--). Thats all I am going to say, risotto (now you are putty in MY hands or perhaps playdough), it stands alone. Every day there is a different special--chicken and asparagus, mushroom, pumpkin, who knows! Don't like that idea; just want some sliced red peppers and shrimp in your risotto? Just ask and they will do it. You can be a doctor Frankenstein of risottos.
If you want the Dan C. special here is how it goes: Insalata de Campo, risotto, tasting flight of reds. The insalata de Campo is a mix of greens, sweet dried cranberries, walnuts, and Gorgonzola in a balsamic vinaigrette. Risotto are previously mentioned. Finally the tasting flight is key for maximum drunkatude.
I'm not a fan of the little bread sticks, mainly because the food is awesome. Service is fast and kind. The deserts here are delicious, I am always up for the sorbetto trio. The gnocci is also quite good (and not a dessert). All around this place goes on my "All Time Boston Food Boner Jams"
Don't get me started on brunch. Free mimosa or bellini what?
Bottom Line: I...um...I need to sit down here for a little while longer.
Papa Razzi... Papa Gino's half cousin on his mother's side. What can I say about a place that tries too hard to be Italian? More Italian/American, actually. The food really wasn't bad, but certainly not worth the money we spent. Why does a "glass" of cheap wine cost so much, anyway?
I liked the feel of the Cambridge location much better. Yeah, it's been that long since I last ate at Papa Razzi's. It'll be at least that long before I go back.
Really classy place...and I just HAPPENED to be dresed appropriately. The food was plentiful and yummy. We got the cold appetizers and I was like "What the heck is that!" It was full of raw meat and tomatoes and ricotta --it was delicious though.
I REALLY wished I had ordered dessert instead because the presentations of the sorbet, ice cream, brownies...delicious. It looked to beautiful...
If you look up at the ceiling, you'll see the sky. Then look at the corner of that ceiling and you'll see a sun with a smiley face on it. That sun looked like my waiter, so I kept laughing at him. I'm mean I know.
Anyways, I'm coming back.
The one in the BackBay is the best one. I've been to other branches outside Boston that have left much to be desired. Have to try their Scallopini di Pollo! Excellent! The prices are reasonable and the service is generally Okay. Good value for very good food.
Want great Italian food outside of the North End? Come here. I love, love, love Papa Razzi. Even though it's a chain, it does not have the typical chain restaurant vibe.
Atmosphere: You can make this place as fancy as you want it to be. Special occasion? Dress up. Catching up with some friends over dinner? Dress casual. You'll feel comfortable either way.
Service: The staff here is awesome. They're all extremely friendly, helpful, and seem genuinely interested in making sure you have a fantastic dining experience. If I had to have one complaint, it's that service can be a little slow at times, but they always handle it very professionally.
Drinks: They have a very diverse drink menu and make the drinks delicious, yet strong. My personal favorite is the Back Bay Sangria.
Food: Want a white sauce instead of a red? Want it vegetarian? They're happy to make any variations to the menu that you want. They have fantastic daily and weekly specials. The food always comes steaming out of the kitchen and actually tastes like it was freshly prepared. Their tiramisu is one of the best I've ever had.
Price: It's on the expensive side, but whenever I look at the check at the end of the night, it's always less than I thought it would be. The price is certainly worth the quality dining experience.
So stop reading my review and head on over. What are you waiting for?
I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the food here. I wasn't expecting anything too memorable, but I should have known better, since I was brought here by a friend living in the city.
The prices are reasonable, and although I can't remember exactly which dish I had, the portions are pretty big and mouth-watering good. I think we ordered an appetizer as well, so I couldn't finish my entree, but if I lived in town I would definitely love my leftovers.
One thing that clearly stood out to me in a negative way was the service. For some reason, our server ignored us while serving other tables, so our meal took much longer than it should have. Add a couple starving people and that makes for some unhappy campers.
Anyway, I can't deviate too much from the food. Service is spotty but the prices won't break your bank and your tummy will be satisfied.
Unlike me, perhaps you realize that Papa Razzi is a chain restaurant. This fact surprised me because, frankly, the food was above average. But two days after dining at Dartmouth St's Papa Razzi, I passed another Papa Razzi-- this one at the Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey. This revelation sadly does affect my rating of Papa Razzi. As I said, the food is decent; the options plentiful while not overwhelming. It's also on the expensive side for a chain restaurant, though the real estate may contribute to this.
Papa Razzi has tried to carve out something sleeker, cleaner than Bertucci's and slightly less national-chain-generic. They succeeded. Their only success, I think.
They failed to make it a remarkable dining experience because they're stingy. The focaccia is good, and having a bread man come around is delightful, except he came only once and so you better munch your bread morsels slowly. Food takes time to arrive and portions are disappointing.
I sat there and spent the entire time regretting not choosing for Giacomo's [in back bay] for better ambiance, service, food, drink.
I love this place. The food is good and the atmosphere is so city like. Its usually crowded and the bar is small, but there is squeeze room.
I love the bar too because you get breadsticks and olives with your drinks. I havent been in a while, but it has always been fun.
Brunch wa good too and I loved their blueberry bread. Their focaccia is also pretty amazing. Last time i went they also were serving whole wheat pasta, not something you normally find (im surprised) still.
Pappa Razzi is pretentious. It's too pricey, but, for pretentious, it's pretty cheap. The service is usually dead on and, for the most part, their friendly. This is a good place to find your fabulous hairdresser or masseur or other Newbury St employee at the end of the day.
Sometimes I'm in the mood for pretentious, so I give it 4 stars.
Maybe it was an off night? The group's meals at Papa Razzi were just average. Not cooked the best...Average service...And fairly expensive for what you get! Decent atmosphere.
I love Joe's American Bar and Grill (owned by the same group), but some how Papa Razzi didn't measure up. I don't think I'd go back.
I love Papa Razzi.
I actually started visiting the location in Cambridge, at the Cambridge Side Galleria. Only when that closed down did I go to the one in Back Bay. However, the menu's the same and service and everything has been similar so this review covers my entire experience.
I've found management to be totally hands-on and always there to answer questions, ask how the meal's going, etc. They're also very nice and talkative. It makes for a more intimate experience.
Host/hostess staff has always been very nice, in fact, it often includes a manager to help you get to your seat. Requests for a different table have always been accommodated w/o hesitation when it was possible.
The food might be its only downside, depending on what you're looking for in an Italian restaurant. Given the ease of eating authentic Italian food in the North End, Papa Razzi has some stiff competition. However, I'm not the biggest fan of the authenticity, I want something a little cookie cutter (red sauces, pasta, and not too many ingredients I can't pronounce or would be a little scared of) so I like the menu a lot. On authenticity, it's a step above the Olive Garden, but not so much that you have to be worried if that's not your thing. If you want authenticity, go to the North End, there's plenty of that there.
Prices are fine. Given the atmosphere it sets up I expect a little pricier menu. It's about on par w/ some of your nicer restaurants in the area.
Atmosphere is very nice (speaking Back Bay strictly here, since the other's closed). I, like one of the other reviewers, am a big fan of the two tables that overlook the street, but no complaints about any of the other tables. There are even a few booths, if you like that sort of thing.
All in all, I love it. Go see for yourself!
This place has pretty good Italian food, and I used to love it, but this time the service was so atrocious, it really left a stained mark on the restaurant for me.
First off, the hostess was incompetent. She never took our name, or had forgotten it, or whatever, and we didn't realize, until people who arrived after us, were being seated. Then, we ACTUALLY had to wait all over again, and she acted like she had never even seen us standing there. So started off on the WRONG foot.
Moving onto the service -- it was just awful. The entire staff was moving tables all around, making tons of noise. I also overheard the manager say they had misplaced a reservation for another party of 10 (in addition to the party of 12 they already had) ...but would *manage* to fit them in...hence all the table scrambling / moving, etc. It was like a maze trying to get out ... I felt so bad for some of the elderly people trying to maneuver their way through small places and zig-zagging through just to find a bathroom or the exit!
We never got breadsticks or a bread basket...though I overheard our waitress tell a neighboring table they were out of bread. But when the big party of 12 came in ...you better believe they had multiple bread baskets. Unacceptable...since we were literally starving, and it took forever for our main course to arrive.
Our waitress also took 15 minutes to bring our drinks over, which is really really unacceptable...never got a re-fill either.
Overall, way too noisy and bustling to enjoy the nice dinner you expect to get in a restaurant like that.
Also, I had some friends work here a few years back, they called it "Papa Nazi" ...so that should tell ya something, and saw many glimpses of how poorly it's run last weekend.
Let me start with the caveat that I've only been here for Saturday brunch. That said, the brunch was terrible. Forgettable, almost inedible food and even the mimosas didn't make up for it. Way overpriced for mediocre food.
I'm in love - serious love. Unfortunately, it's going to be a long-distance relationship, since I live in Oakland, and the object of my affection, Papa Razzi, is all the way across the country in Boston. Sigh.
Let me tell you why I'm in love:
Pappa Razzi came to the rescue a few Friday nights ago when my hon of hons husband and I were wandering the hot and humid Boston streets looking for someplace interesting to eat. We perused the menu, and decided to drop in. The restaurant is nicely decorated, lots of wood and several different rooms. We were seated in the front room and had a great table.
We started off with some prosecco (yum) and nibbled on the fabulous skinny breadsticks and foccacia. My salad was sort of weak - just some lettuce with not enough balsamic dressing, but my HOH husband's salad was delish, complete with dried fruit, nuts and Gorgonzola. I LOVED LOVED LOVED my pollo all valdostana, and he was also swooning over his porcini mushroom in lobster sauce.
Service was friendly and efficient.
Highly recommended, and I can't wait to see my love again.
Maybe dinner isn't great, but BRUNCH. Oh man, the brunch here is awesome. Served until 3pm, with a free mimosa or bellini, along with the free focaccia bread (with the deliciously spicy olive oil)....can't beat the combination of food, value, drinks, and atmosphere for a classy weekend brunch. Everything on the brunch menu is under $15 (and even then, $15 is for the filet mignon benedict), a wide variety ranging from frittata to classic breakfast, all served with a teasing of free alcohol. The service is really friendly and accommodating, and you really get the feel you are much more adult like eating at a classy joint for brunch without the huge lines or huge price tag. I'd say try Papa Razzi for brunch and it'll definitely make the top 3 places for brunch in Boston!
I've never found there to be anything particularly spectacular about Papa Razzi. Boston is too full of locally owned businesses that provide the freshness and quality, while not inflating the prices so and having a more creative menu for me to opt to eat at Papa Razzi with any kind of frequency.
The food is okay, fresher and far more diverse than most chains, but it's still overpriced for what it is. On the plus side, each plate is made fresh so substitutions, additions and changes are welcome (as stated by our waiter. he asked for a curve ball...the best we offered was gnocchi with pesto instead of their sauce)
Their drink list is comprehensive and mixed well when it arrives at your table. I can't really speak to the wine list as I've never ordered wine here.
Generally, it's a nice space, full of dark woods, and cream walls. The ceiling has a bit of a mural painted on it. Behind me, there was a half wall of glass overlooking the bar. This helped the restaurant feel larger...but it also helped a friend watch the basketball game over my shoulder. There isn't much room near the hostess station, so it can become crowded, especially in the winter since no one will want to wait outside.
This past visit, our waiter accidentally spilled about 1/4 or my martini on one of the members of our party. He was very apologetic and immediately offered the napkin draped over his arm. After the waiter poured the remainder of my martini and left to get me a fresh martini, we were still laughing when the manager came over. He gave our friend his card, apologized profusely and offered to cover any dry cleaning that was necessary. He then made sure no one else was spilled upon and that the waiter was getting me a fresh, full drink, which he was. When the bill arrived, no martini was to be found. It was a pleasant surprise to see a restaurant care this much about service with no prompting or scene incurred by our party.
So the run down? The food's fresh and okay, but nothing spectacular or particularly original and a little on the pricey side. The space is nice, but again, nothing particularly special. It would seem that mediocrity is the name of this game.
It was kind of pricey on some things. I had the pollo alla valdostana, which was really good (chicken with prosciutto, fontina cheese, and mushrooms!) and not too expensive. The waitress was friendly, knowledgeable about the wines, and accommodating when we had one more member of our group show up than we originally thought (sorry guy at next table that I had to kind of crowd because of that!). The hostess was also very helpful.
My one beef with the place is the expensive drinks. I expect wine to be expensive, but well drinks? Do not go here just for drinks. Their house scotch was $7.35, which I think is more than a bottom shelf basic drink (no complicated mixing) should be.
I'm not sure I've ever had a worse dining experience for so much money. I started with Insalata Caprese. You know tomatoes, mozzarella and basil. Well they forgot the basil (or ran out which seemed to be the thing last night). The tomatoes had no flavor what so ever. I know it's winter, but if you can't serve something with taste don't serve it.
The Pasta e Fagioli was one of the worst things I've ever put in my mouth. It consisted of nothing but beans and pasta both of which were undercooked and I mean still crunchy undercooked.
Then for the final act, I had the Gnocchi it was like eating ball of gelatin. It was rubbery and the sauce on it made the consistency of them even worse.
I will never be back, if you want good italian, don't go here and waste your money. My meal came to $45.00 and it wasn't worth $10.
If you don't already know, Papa Razzi is a small chain based out of Massachusetts, but expanded into RI, NJ, and NY. I first experienced Papa Razzi at the Short Hills Mall, age 8, a budding shopaholic resting her pieds with her mumfy, bff, and bff's mum. Then, I was a big fan of their lemon chicken accompanied by roasted potatoes and broccoli and came to associate it with long hours at The Limited Too.
Since then I've grown older, taller, wiser and my tastes in fashion have matured to such names as Missoni, Chloe, Diane von Furstenberg, Hermes, but my taste buds and affinity for Papa Razzi has been unwavering.
The bread sticks are delightful: long, thin, and so crisp that you can snap them in half. They come with whipped butter. Even better, though, is the focaccia, which is buttery, garlic-y, savory, delicious. They aren't stingy with it either. If you run out, a Papa Employee will happily replenish.
Anyway, enough of the prelude; here is the story of how I liked this location Papa Razzi:
Upon entering, I knew it was going to be a delightful experience. The manager was so kind and directed the host to seating us at a table by the window (which isn't much of a window because the location is semi-underground, but still).
Our waiter was fantastico. He was so accommodating, suggested a wonderful Merlot, and convinced the both of us to order the day's specials: a chicken, cranberry risotto and haddock with spinach over mushroom polenta garnished with lemon. Both were magnificent, especially with the wine, and I really have not experienced better, more professional, friendly service at a restaurant in proper Boston although a Stevie Wonder-esque waiter chez Bob's Southern Bistro gives him a teensy run for his money.
Anyway, I cannot recommend Papa Razzi any more vehemently. Some staple eats are as follows:
*Bruschetta (some of the best I've ever had)
*Cesar Salad (I am not a Cesar fanatic, but this one is truly remarkable. It is mixed to perfection, unlike the salads with dressing drizzled atop. It has both heavy anchovy and lemon flavoring: IT'S SO FAB!)
*Garmberi alla Spiedo (grilled shrimp with braised spinach and lemon vinaigrette)
*Gnocchi di Sorrento (potato pasta in pink vodka-esque sauce, and one of my faves for an entree)
*Petti Di Pollo (classic lemon chicken - Molto Benne!)
At this point, you probably think I have high stakes in Papa Razzi's stock or at least work for them, but THIS IS NOT THE CASE, PEOPLE! I just happen to be a big Papa Razzi advocate and if you are looking for HIGH quality I-talian, at more than fair prices, I suggest heading here as opposed to Vinny T's (the Applebees of Italian inspired), UNO's (no restaurant should have Asian, Hispanic, and Italian influences), Olive Garden (see MAD TV Olive Garden skit), or Trattoria Toscana (mix between options 1 and 3). Ciao!
Okay, so I know it's a chain and on a busy night it's very bustling, but I really like Papa Razzi. I was surprised the first time I found out it was a chain, since I've had such good experiences here, and the quality was so much higher than the bland boring-ness of what I've come to expect from some other chain restaurants.
The food is delicious, everything is prepared really well, they had some good wines the last time I went and they have a divine chocolate cake. The staff is friendly and professional, and the decor is elegant and warmly lit with dim lights. It's very clean, and easily accomodates large groups too.
Came here on a weekday night with a friend who was in town for a conference. Definitely an interesting crowd...
-good service
-good decor/atmosphere
-okay food - there's better italian in boston
this place is in a prime location for business type meals, so i think that is the main attraction of the day. First Papa Razzi I went to was the Cambridgeside location, which has since closed. You can always count on them to on point for service and decent food. Every dish / experience I've had at their restaurants have been consistent.
Maybe I've just been lucky, but every time I've gone here, I've gotten a window seat. I've always had great service and tasty food. Meals here are on the pricey side, but it's about what I'd expect with this type of restaurant. Italian style food, and with appetizer or dessert and alcohol, expect to spend $40-$60 per person.
Parking in the area is a hassle, so take the T to Copley and it's right around the corner. Upper-mid-scale restaurant for a nice dinner after a show or on a special night.
I'm always slightly surprised when I find a chain restaurant (especially an Italian one) that I like, but Papa Razzi fit the bill.
A friend and I were Christmas shopping at Copley and decided to get some food. It was absolutely FRIGID out, so we preferred to stay in the mall, but what is there, really? We checked out the Cheesecake Factory (despite my animosity toward the place) and didn't even get to ask the wait because we turned around before we got to the hostess; there were people waiting EVERYWHERE (it was 9pm, by the way). Um, no.
We ventured into the outside world to get to Papa Razzi and I'm glad we did. It was such a cozy place, which was great on such a cold, wintery night. Christmas music was playing (ok, I'm a sucker for most things Christmas), but softly in the background...cute.
Our waiter was nice and the manager (one of them?) was more attentive than I've ever seen anywhere, actually helping me hang up my coat. Pretty good wine list, I had a good Chianti (also a sucker for). The Amatriciana was really good, with big chunks of pancetta.
My friend was there mostly for dessert (since it was 9pm she, like most people, had already eaten), so we got the brownie sundae, which, ok, is not very Italian, but it was good. I couldn't resist ordering a glass of Amaretto, which only added to the "cozy winter dinner" theme.
Impressed. I do like this location much better than Chestnut Hill Mall, too.
'Twas a dark and misty night as the Bradling and I returned to my neighborhood with thoughts of nourishment, warmth, and protection from the ceaseless drizzle.
A previous stroll down this Newbury cross street had led me to notice the subtle exterior of Papa Razzi, so that is where our squishy sneakers and rain soaked pant legs carried us. We pulled open the dark door and descended into a bustling, pulsing atmosphere full of noise and diners. A large group with an international flair stood in the front and I feared that we might be standing around for a bit, but the sweet faced hostess brightened her eyes and said the words that filled me with relief, "Party of two? Oh it will be about 5 to 10 minutes." [ A quick flash to the Seinfeld episode about the Chinese Restaurant entered my mind, but I am trusting and the hostess seemed sincere.]
The Bradling needed to use the facilites to powder his nose. I stood in the bar area next to a loud group of patrons who were seated on leather couches. I leaned against the wall and put on my coolest exterior as I scanned the dining area and waited for my love to rejoin me. Not a twinkling after he returned with the announcement that the bathroom was tiny, we were escorted to our table. There is always that moment, as I approach a table with a dinner companion, in which I am unsure of which seat to take. This occurs most often when you are presented with the one booth seat, one chair seat option. Bradling is a gentleman and he relinquished the cushiony bounce of the booth seat to his precious.
We settled in and picked up the two foot tall menus to peruse the offerings. I had an image of this chain restaurant in my mind and the memory of my friend Sugar telling me how her field hockey coach had once taken the team out to dine at a Papa Razzi. However, as I perused and took in the atmosphere of this upscale establishment, I couldn't envision a group of early teen hyper field hockey girls patronizing this particular location.
The menu was laden with Italian offerings and meats. I rarely eat pasta and when I do it at restaurants, my eyes are always drawn to one particular offering: gnocchi. This particular pillowy potato pasta pouch presentation came dressed in a pink pomodoro sauce and topped with mozzarella. My choice was made. As for my Bradling, he decided on the aged New York sirloin accompanied by spinach and potatoes. Our waitress arrived with a lovely piece of foccacia for each of us and we informed her of our dinner selections. When she asked the Bradling how he would like his steak, he paused and looked into the distance and then returned to slowly pronounce the word, "rare." He explained to my vegetarian sensibilities that often when you request rare, you receive a medium rare item. Worldly and charming, I do believe I have a winner.
As we sat and enjoyed our focaccia and the skinny crisp bread sticks and whipped butter that were given to us, it was clear to us that the volume level in the restaurant was intense. There was a boisterous, almost deafening, party seated next to us. It contained the one particular type of fellow who likes to lean in to his companions to tell perhaps an off color joke and then after delivering the punchline, throws himself back into his seat and bellows out an ear piercing laughter that announces to the rest of the restaurant that he is comedy gold. The Bradling and I exchanged wide eyed looks at each other and a subtle shake of the head.
Our food arrived quite promptly, to our pleasant suprise. My gnocchi was placed in front of me in a very shallow bowl or perhaps it was a plate with a pronounced lip. The pasta rested in a single layer, swimming in sauce and partially topped with a few mounds of melted mozzarella. It appeared there may have been some slipping and sliding in their journey. In my gnocchi experience, I have found they can be amazing, overwhelming, and full of suprises ( much like love) or boring, lacking and just not what you hoped for. Unfortunately, this version fell into the latter category. The sauce was likened, by my dear one, to the flavor of spagettios. I didn't find it to be that far down on the taste spectrum, but I was not impressed. Bradling's 14 oz steak was presented to him and the waitress encouraged him to cut into to see that it was to his liking. A slice, a look and a request for a bit more cooking followed. The chef's version of rare was a little too purple for his tastes. After a short wait, a young woman returned with his meal and an apology. Bradling checked the meat again and it was much more suited to his request. He enjoyed the meat, found it to be tender and a fine cut. His potato side consisted of circular rounds much like chips and the spinach was accompanied by a suprise of red pepper flakes.
It was a fine yet loud and somewhat pricey meal with pleasant service, that met our needs for the evening and offered us respite from the rain.
Ehhhh. Here's my take. I went here with a large group of people so maybe this place is better in a more intimate setting.
1) Food was decent but overpriced. It was presented well, tasted pretty good, but nothing really stood out and the 8 people I was with agreed with me.
2) Decor pretty good.
3) Service pretty good.
Maybe if I had gotten a chance to try their wine or their dessert selection, I would have given this four stars, but as it stands, I wouldn't recommend it heavily.
I went here yesterday for Christmas Eve dinner with my brother. Not a great dinning experience what so ever. We should have gotten the hint when we walked in and saw only one table occupied.
First with strike one they gave us bread to start out with and it was rock solid stale my brother said he hurt his mouth trying to take a bite out of his portion.
Then we ordered the Bruschetta for an appetizer which came out 20 minutes after we ordered it. Not sure why it took so long it was just bread and tomatoes along with the fact that their were only us and another table there. Keep in mind that Bruschetta tends to be a hard thing to mess up. The bread was really small and very very soggy it had the texture of a sponge. The tomatoes weren't seasoned and were over ripped which tasted horrid. That equaled strike 2.
Strike 3 was the entrées. My brother ordered a salmon dish and I order a ravioli dish. Each dish costing about $20+. His dish portioned well and was cooked well yet tasteless (no seasoning). My dish was portioned horribly (literally 4 small raviolis). To add to the bad portion size my dish was way over cooked and badly seasoned yet again.
As we were talking to each other about how horrible our food was the table across from us had sent back they're dishes. Which confirmed that we weren't the only ones experiencing this terrible food.
In closing I'd only give it one star for the waitress who was prompt and welcoming. Everything else was rubbish.
This place is cool I guess. The food is real good, they seem to have interesting specials, and the lunchtime waitstaff is pretty chill. Plan on spending at least an hour with a big group at lunch time and be prepared that some of their sandwhiches come with a salad when you may want fries. I'm sure they'll let you sub fries in, but you'd have to ask.
So it's a decent place for those once in a while big group lunches, but not a work week staple.
I was mildly disappointed in their service, my friends and I were forced to drink bottled water out of our purses since we weren't given water for over 30 minutes, but the food was outstanding!
The salads are great, and it is a perfect place to share dishes! I went for brunch but opted to order off of their lunch menu-it was difficult to pass up the complimentary Bellini or Mimosa that comes with brunch orders though!
I dined on the salad with goat cheese, capers and tomatoes-highly recommend it-but also nibbled on pizza, calamari and bruschetta!
Other than the lacking waiter, he was basically brain-dead throughout the entire meal, everything was great! The prices are reasonable and the location is stellar!
A friend and I stopped in for drinks after a gallery opening and I will go back. She had carpaccio that looked very good. I passed on food but did enjoy a couple of the skinny bread sticks. The service was great! It always helps having a cute waiter. The prices were average for the area and I like the look of the place. I will try eating there sometime. Luckily I was dressed correctly as it is fairly swank. It is stuffy though and I would go back.
Wednesday Night is Spaghetti…
Boston, MA
Introducing
Somerville, MA
Neighborhood: Back Bay
Category: American (New)
Neighborhood: Back Bay
Category: Italian
Wellesley, MA
Category: Italian
Neighborhood: Back Bay
Category: Italian
Neighborhood: Back Bay
Category: American (New)
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