Dolce Vita Ristorante

Dolce Vita Ristorante

221 Hanover Street
Boston, MA 02113

No smiles here, sadly disappointed with Dolce Vita

I went to Dolce Vita with my dad after I toured U Mass Dartmouth (a.k.a the Concrete city they call a college) and after a day filled with disappointments, we thought a meal in the North End would make it better. Sadly we were mistaken.

We were walking down Hanover Street and were ushered in by a guy standing outside the restaurant boasting that Dolce Vita was the best restaurant in the North End. We believed the guy (we shouldn't have) and went in.

We ordered our drinks, then bruschetta as an appetizer. Essentially it was cold diced tomatoes and onions on top of bread. It was okay at best.

For an entree I ordered Pollo Veridicchio. It was chicken sauteed with white wine, red peppers, olives, and artichokes. The red pepper took over all of the flavor, I don't remember even eating an olive, and I couldn't taste the artichokes. I was very disappointed with my meal; I forced myself to eat about half of it, and then covered it with my napkin.

My dad was also underwhelmed with his Fettucini Bolognese with Pappardelle pasta. If you ask him, it was a waste of $18.95.

Dolce Vita and U Mass Dartmouth were huge disappointments... the only good part of that October day was missing school!

Scores :
Food : 1
Service : 2
Atmosphere : 2
Overall : 1.6

La Famiglia Giorgio's

La Famiglia Giorgio's

112 Salem Street
Boston, MA 02113

Another family trip to Boston! With my second tour of Emmanuel completed, this time with my dad, mom, and sister in early July of 2013, we drove to the North End. After researching online, looking at menus, and going where it looked good, we decided on La Famiglia Giorgio's on my favorite street in the North End, Salem Street. The reviews online did not do this restaurant justice--it surpassed my expectations exponentially. Here's a picture my dad, expert photographer, took of us outside the restaurant, about to climb the stairs.

The food, man oh man was it delicious!!! Huge portions, amazing homemade sauce and ready pretty fast considering it was packed with people!

I ordered the  Chicken Parmesan Combo in the Carne section for dinner with fettuccine as my pasta. It was the first time I tried the eggplant and I was extremely satisfied with my choice. I ended up eating less than half of the meal (that's how big it  is) and brought the rest home for leftovers...which still had flavor and were almost as good as at the restaurant. One of my top dishes I've ever experienced, I would definitely suggest to anyone to try it. Side note, my Uncle Tony loves veal and eggplant Parmesean, so when I go to dinner with them in the near future, I'm going to try to get him to try it, and I'll make another post about it.

La Famiglia Giorgio's has a page worth of different sauces to choose from and for only $3 you can get the fresh and homemade pasta added to any dish (sounds yummy to me!) One of the largest menus as well, at least that I've seen, and I wish I could order one of everything!!

My dad ordered the Marianna with Rigatoni from the sauce section, it had diced tomatoes, black olives, broccoli, artichoke hearts in a white wine chicken broth sauce. He thought it was "very good, but would definitely try something new. There were about 15 things I wanted to get, but I just ended up getting that" +Michael Gatos.

My mom, Rhonda, who wants to feel included, ordered the chicken and broccoli with alfredo sauce and ziti for pasta. She was very pleased with her meal.

Logan, my sister ordered Chicken Saltimbocca with tortellini. The Saltimbocca had chicken sauteed with mushrooms in a butter wine sage sauce topped with prosciutto and melted mozzarella. She loved her meal as well!

I would definitely go back to La Famiglia Giorgio's if I had the chance, maybe when my Uncle Hal and Tony come to visit me in the fall!

Scores :
Food : 4.25
Service : 3.75
Atmosphere : 3.5
Overall : 3.8

Dino's

Dino's

141 Salem Street

 Boston, MA 02113

At the corner of Prince Street and Salem Street, and right across from my favorite bakery, Bova's, Dino's is a great place to go for a quick bite.

I went with my family: mom, dad, and sister, the day I toured both Northeastern and Tufts in Medford! It was fantastic!

Definitely not a typical sit-down restaurant in the North End.... its more like a sub shop in the way it works, but still totally a great place to go ( it was recommended by my dad's good friend Dan Lauzon who works on the Amtrak and eats in the North End all the time...Dino's is his go-to place!)

Anyway, back to the food! I ordered the cheese tortellini, but the restaurant is very typical traditional Italian, nothing too fancy...but it was AMAZING! The sauce is spectacular and the food is made super quick but does not lack quality. You can see them making it right in front of you while you can also look out the windows at the passerby's of Salem and Prince St. 

Logan, my sister ordered Chicken Alfredo, and was also extremely pleased. My mom has no memory so she can't remember, and I don't know either, and my dad ordered this, and loved it!!

My dad and Logan went to Dino's again before Logan's Regional swim meet in Rhode Island without me or my Mom  :( 

They got subs and are convinced that it made Logan swim faster, so maybe they're magical??

As you can see, this sub looks amazing, and I don't like Italian subs, but I want to eat it right now!

And by the way, Logan's wearing my swim sweat pants (what's new), just thought I'd point that out for when my family reads this 0:)

Okay, so my scores for Dino's

Food : 4.5

Service : 3

Atmosphere : 3

Overall: 3.5

And when you go to Dino's look across the street at another hidden gem, Bova's bakery! To die for!

Antico Forno

Antico Forno
93 Salem Street
Boston, MA 02113


February 5, 2013

The day I toured Emmanuel for the first time and fell in love!!

This place was beautful from the outside, with floor to ceiling windows that open up in the summer. We looked at the menu and stepped in. Smelt the aromas and were hooked!

I ordered the Margherita Pizza, and as you can see in the picture was very happy to dig in! It was delicious!!! Brick over pizza that bursted with flavor and amazing sauce!! I was extremely pleased, and with the price (only $10 for lunch!) I'm sure my dad was also quite happy ;) . I would order this again if I come back...which might have to be in a few years!

My dad ordered Fettuccini Alla Bolognese ($12 for lunch), which he loves to order by the way, and loved the flavor. He just wished that it was a larger portion because he left the place with room in his stomach (I did not...I left extremely full). He would definitely come back, but possibly order an appetizer or salad.

Oh, how could I forget about the bread?? It was so cute in the little basket (in the top right corner of the picture) with the dipping oil. I was definitely a fan (I LOVE BREAD AND DIPPING OIL). The bread was hot and super soft, in other words, perfect.

Antico Forno, and of course a trip to Bova's Bakery afterwards capped off an amazing day, that little did I know, would influence the rest of my future (oh my!). I found my dream school, had a fab lunch, and got a cannoli for home--how do you beat that? You don't!!

Okay, so here are my scores:

Food : 3.75
Service : 3
Atmosphere : 3.5
Overall : 3.4

La Galleria 33

125 Salem Street
 Boston, MA 02113

September 2012 (June 2014 Picture)

Still one of my favorite restaurants in the North End, both food wise and aesthetically (they have the coolest lamps and chalkboard map of the North End, plus an open kitchen!!!)

The first time we went was for my 16th birthday (before the quest idea), and I ordered the chicken Alfredo (which is now off the menu but can be requested) and fell in love. That dish has been one of my all-time favorite dishes in my 17 years of life...

My dad ordered the Veal Paradiso, which he swears is in the top 5 best dishes he has ever had...so I would suggest trying it if you like veal! (He gets it every time we go, and normally he tries something new each time!)

The next time we went I ordered the Chicken Bona Boca, also to die for!!! Chicken with  spinach, prosciutto, mozzarella, mushrooms, and white wine with a side of pasta and marinara. It was filled with flavor and fantastic, my family tried it, loved it, and now we have it all the time (my dad is a great cook).

The third time I went (as you can tell my family and I love this place) I ordered the Chicken Ziti Brocoli with EVOO (one of my favorite all time dishes anytime) and was amazed. Packed with flavor, just the right amount of everything...PERFECT!

November 24, 2013

Last time I went there with my two uncles  (extremely picky eaters) and they LOVED it. One is Italian and a huge critic, and was amazed with his food, eggplant and veal Parmesan. We also ordered fried artichoke hearts, which were pretty good (i'm not the biggest fan of them to begin with) and bruschetta, which was also good, I just like my dad's more. Anyway, the food was amazing, and I would definitely go back if I didn't have a 100 other restaurants to try....but I definitely suggest La Galleria 33 if you love good Italian food and a great atmosphere!

Picture with Lisa (one of the owners) and Pat, a long time worker and hilarious guy who gives the bread and water. If you watch the show with them on it, you'll see more about them!

Uncle Hal, Uncle Tony, my sister Logan, and I experiencing Faneuil Hall with the Christmas lights! Definitely the best time to go down and see if you ask me!


Scores:

Food : 4 stars

Service : 4 stars

Atmosphere 4 stars

Overall: 4 stars 

My "Quest to Test Boston's North End" began two years ago when I discovered my dream school, Emmanuel College in Boston. After the tour in February of 2013, I decided with my dad that before I graduated from Emmanuel (hopefully as Biology major) in 2018, we will have sampled every single restaurant in Boston's North End. It is quite a task, as there are over 100 restaurants in the area, but if you know us, you know we are up for the task. So we started our "quest" that day at Antico Forno, and since then we have checked off quite a few. Obviously I did not start this blog right away, I'm starting it the summer before my freshman year at Emmanuel (I just had Orientation the past two days), so I will be starting with where we've gone and what we've eaten, and eventually bring it to present time. I am so excited to do this, and not only am I doing this blog and rating and reviewing all the restaurants we test, I am recording it on a map of the North End my dad gave me for a graduation gift (how cute!). Basically, I'm recording my thoughts and opinions on the food at each restaurant in the North End so I can check something off my college bucket list and have this to remember all of the great experiences I had while studying in Boston!