Welcomed by the black and white pictures of “Girlfriend of the Month” candidates, then invited by the wonderful smell, Buca De Beppo is hyperbolized, but authentic, Italian dining and cuisine.
My first trip to this restaurant was with my girlfriend. It’s long been a family favorite for the Sernas. During our wait (on a Friday evening, about 20 minutes), we toured the hyper-catholic restaurant; one room is an enormous round table that easily sits 30, centered around a life-scale model of the Pope’s head. Clearly, someone with a sense of humor was in charge of decoration.
The menu is unique. Every dish is offered in different sizes (2-3 people, 4+ people), and the food is served family-style in the middle of the table. In this sense, the prices are deceiving; appetizers and drinks included, it cost my girlfriend and me about $35 to eat there.
We chose the Bruschetta as an appetizer. It was average, but still good. Our main course was the Macaroni Rosa, which is broccoli, chicken, and peas in a wonderful “rosa” sauce. The rosa sauce was incredible; it’s a cream sauce with tomato sauce added, making it pink in color. I’ve spent long nights since trying to create it at home. For that sauce alone, the restaurant is worth it, not to mention the pasta was cooked perfectly, the chicken was moist and the veggies were fresh. For dessert, we shared cannolies. They were wonderful, but we were too stuffed to finish them.
My new favorite restaurant, Buca Di Beppo is a wonderful choice for a family dinner, a group gathering, or a fun, intimate date.
more