Restaurants

What to order at Lucia Ristorante & Bar

The North End institution is know for house-made pasta and veal dishes from the Italian region of Abruzzo.

Carrozzella, a dish of veal and mozzarella in a white wine sauce. Photo courtesy of Lucia Ristorante

February 27, 2024

3 minutes to read

For nearly 50 years at Lucia Ristorante, the Frattaroli family has treated locals to the rich and rustic cuisine of Abruzzo. Filippo Frattaroli founded the Hanover Street spot just a few years after moving to the North End from his hometown of Sulmona, in the central region of Italy. According to his son, Philip, “my dad was the first Italian chef to open a restaurant in the North End in a couple of generations,” since Italian emigration to Boston had peaked before World War II.

In 1977, homemade pasta, tender veal, and easy-drinking Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wine set Lucia’s menu apart from other European-inspired restaurants in the area—and it continues to appeal today. The old-school spot is a throwback to the Old World and also another time in the North End with its ceiling mural and red-brick walls. “I remember as a kid, having to walk under the highway to go to Faneuil Hall,” Philip Frattaroli says. “The Greenway has changed a lot in the North End. It made it more accessible, and some of the Italianness kind of went away after that. But the restaurants and the feasts keep the character of the neighborhood.”

Frattaroli’s family once lived in an apartment above Lucia, but they’ve since relocated to the suburb of Winchester, where they have a second Lucia Ristorante. Yet the Hanover Street institution is steadfast in its traditions and tastes—which are the flavors Frattaroli grew up with. The second-generation operator, who also owns Ducali Pizzeria and Caffé Ducali in the neighborhood as well as Cunard Tavern in East Boston, walks us through his favorite comfort foods at his family’s first restaurant, Lucia.

Antipasti (appetizers)

Carrozza

This crowd-favorite appetizer of mozzarella and prosciutto is lightly breaded then pan-fried into crispy pillows, served with Lucia’s signature marinara sauce.

Dinner

Lasagna Lucia

In Abruzzo, a region in central Italy, the Frattaroli family milled flour. So pastas have always been a signature at their U.S. restaurants, though they no longer mill their own grains. (Lucia even offers gluten-free pasta these days!)

Lasagna layered with thick noodles and ground veal, crisped up around the edges, is maybe slightly more refined today than how the restaurant’s namesake, Nonna Lucia, would make it. But it’s still a taste memory, Frattaroli says. “We really take pride in taking the extraordinary amount of time to make it the way my grandmother made it,” he says. “It reminds us of all the times when we’d have it for special occasions.”

Scaloppine Abruzzese

A sauté of veal, chicken, broccoli and house-made penne rigate in a buttery white wine sauce is traditional to Abruzzo and “my absolute favorite dish,” Frattaroli says.

Carrozzella

For the more carbohydrate-conscious, this dish, pictured above, is a pasta-free option featuring the Abruzzese specialty of veal. The tender cutlet is topped with mozzarella and fried sage in a craveable white wine sauce.

Tricolore

“A little kitschy, in retrospect,” Frattaroli says, laughing, but Tricolore is a true Lucia original. It combines three types of pasta with three different sauces: classic tomato with long, cylindrical chitarra, the staple noodle of Abruzzo; filled tortellini with cream sauce; and gnocchi sautéed in fresh pesto. Together, the family-style plate evokes the red, white and green of the Italian flag. The dish is typically shared among the table, Frattaroli explains. “When you serve it onto your own plate, the sauces kind of mix together and it’s really special.”

Vino (wine)

Montepulciano d’Abruzzo

Frattaroli’s father made made a deal in the 1970s with Martignetti Importers to bring in Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, which put Lucia on the forefront in the U.S. when it comes to this medium-bodied red wine. The distributor eventually worked with the restaurateur and the producer to put a signature label on the bottle. Today, the “Frattaroli” wines available across the family’s group of restaurants “come from the same vineyard that we’ve been doing business with for almost 50 years.”

The popularity of Montepulciano lies in its food-friendliness. The red wine is robust but not too rich or overpowering and well-matched to everything from acidic tomatoes to creamy cheeses and mushrooms.

Dolce (dessert)

Tiramisu

Tiramisu is an ideal way to end a meal at Lucia. “I have a lot of childhood memories of trying to steal the bowl of cream before my aunts put it in the dishwasher,” Frattaroli recalls, laughing. “A favorite, for sure.”

What to order at Lucia Ristorante & Bar

The North End institution is know for house-made pasta and veal dishes from the Italian region of Abruzzo.