Vinoteca di Monica

Recommends

lisacooper2003

Joined 6 years ago

Thinking about it makes me smile. This restaurant is truly a jewel in Boston. Friendly service, excellent food, great vibe. I've been dining at Monica's for several years and have never had a bad meal or bad experience there. It is a go-to place for out-of-town visitors and local friends. The tajarin pasta is consistently fabulous, as is the pumkin ravioli. The waitstaff is friendly and knowledgeable. The only downside has been mentioned in other reviews - the prices on specials can be high, and you shouldn't have to ask. But that pasta with truffles was heavenly.

Doesn't Recommend

avidrestaurantgoer

Joined 6 years ago

TERRIBLE RESTAURANT EXPERIENCE. This has to be the WORST restaurant I have been to in all my years in Boston. The food was ok, but overrated. The portions were quite small and not everything listed on the menu was available that night. Yet, the waiter failed to tell us until we were ready to order, and so half of us had to re-look at the menu and order again. The service was lousy, and it started from the beginning when although we had a reservation, we also had to wait 45 minutes and the host was extremely, EXTREMELY rude (both in tone and with what was actually said) and felt threatening to me. The waiter was ok overall though. I did however ask for ketchup for the french fries that came with the steak, and the waiter told me no and that they do not have ketchup available. Haha, I find that incredible. The wine selection was not bad, though overpriced. Oh, and for such a "high-end" (only because of the prices), my wine glass was chipped, badly.

Doesn't Recommend

asfour

Joined 6 years ago

Terrible Customer Service - RUDE OWNERSHIP!. I reserved at Monica's for dinner to take family members from out of town to the North End.

I had an 8pm reservation for 7 people - and we were not seated until 10 minutes to 9pm. More annoyingly than waiting so long to be seated - I was shocked about how RUDE the personnel were - and the situation got ugly when after dinner (aside from my guests) I spoke to the owner to mention the extremely rude host - the owner instead of being polite and apologetic - actually could care less - he actually said he didn't care that we were so disappointed because he has a full house anyway! The owner continued to use foul language - I have never experienced such bad customer service - I will NEVER go back - and will never recommend this restaurant to anyone!

Doesn't Recommend

sjones17

Joined 6 years ago

Avoid EVERY night!. I recently made reservations for a large surprise birthday party on a Saturday night, 2 weeks in advance, and was told that the reservation was confirmed. I called 2 days before the event to confirm the 6 PM reservation. The night of the event, the party started arriving 10 minutes before 6 and was told that all members had to be the at the restaurant prior to being seated. When all but 4 were there (including the birthday girl - this was to be a surprise after all) by 6, they were told at 6:10 that if the remainder of the party did not arrive momentarily, the reservation would be canceled due to the fact there was another large party scheduled for 7 PM. Who gives a party of 15 an hour to eat??? And this is suppose to be an "elegant" restaurant?? Luckily, there was a charming restaurant directly across the street that accommodated us and moved patrons around so we could all be seated together. And guess what - the table next to us had patrons from Monica's who had the exact same issue we did!! The host staff was incredibly rude, they never called me directly to inform me of the situation. I will never recommend this place again!

Recommends

popular345

Joined 6 years ago

Best Bruchetta Ever. Great Italian speaking waiters (who can be a little slow sometimes but all the waiters are more than happy to help you). The ambience is cozy yet updated. It feels like you are in an old diner - where the front door opens into the middle of the restaurant - that has been updated with warm yet contemporary furnishings and lighting. Plenty of the customers are European and you will hear multiple different languages while sitting in your seat. There are big open windows opening up onto the sidewalk for people watching so be sure to ask for a window seat if it's nice out. We went there last night and this is now officially my favorite restaurant in Boston. My only complaint was slightly slow service.

Recommends

desieclipse

Joined 7 years ago

great service, delicious & fresh food, huge wine list. I went to this restaurant on a first date - we had reservations at a touristier place on Hanover but they made us wait 45 mins so we just walked out and found this spot - what a great find! The ambiance was trendy but warm & romantic, the service was excellent - naming many specials, recommending a good wine, and giving feedback on what to order. We had some seafood pasta dishes that were on the specials list and they were absolutely fresh and deliciuos. I also ordered a very interesting wine - I wish I remember the name but it was the waiter's recommendation and it was delicious! There is a bar area that looks like a great spot for an appetizer and casual glass of wine - overall, this restaurant was lovely and a great place for a date or a small group.

Recommends

madgirl

Joined 7 years ago

Great food. Great restaurant in the north end. The food was wonderful and the ambiance was perfect. We had a little table at the window which I think made the experience that much better. Our server was from Milan and although he did a great job overall, he was a little slow with the service. But if you aren't in hurry, then it's worth the time.

Recommends

jmso

Joined 7 years ago

Fabulous dining experience. I have eaten here with friends three times, and every time I love my meal. The wine selection is very interesting, the pumpkin ravioli is my favorite, and the appetizers are quite good too. Good service. Expensive but a unique treat.

Doesn't Recommend

simonp56

Joined 7 years ago

One of the worst Boston dining experiences ever......especially for the North End. Not friendly at all.. Went to this restaurant with a party of 8 on a Saturday night at 5:00 p.m. Decided to go early as we had two children, ages 4 and 6 with us..We understand that many people like to go out and enjoy a peaceful dinner, so we decided to go very early in the evening due to having children with us. We also had two teenagers, age 13 and 14. When we arrived to the restaurant, I asked "before" we sat down if they are kid friendly and have a kids menu. Answer was no to the kids menu, but not to worry as the kids could order sides of pasta...we thought that was just perfect as we do not believe in spending $26.00 for a bowl of pasta/butter for a 4 year old. The host

sat us down and from that minute on, the service was poor, the attitude was not nice and mind you, the restaurant was empty at that time. It was only 5:00 o'clock. The sides came and there were 11 pieces of penne pasta in each bowl. We had figured at the price of $8.00 for the side, maybe there would be more pasta. Well, the kids were hungry still, we then asked to order another bowl of plain pasta with butter for each for them, but larger this time...we got $10.00 bowl of pasta which they ate, small amount again..so at a total of $18.00 each child and an attitude from the wait staff we havenever encounter in all our dinners in the North End. We paid our bill, and as we left I asked the hostess about this, and her attitude was worse than the wait staff and the manager that was on that evening. They refused to even listen. This was one of the worst dining experiences, the quality of the food, portions of the food, adult menu speaking was just average...bread was good, they did not have a good wine menu. Not recommended at all and we have enjoyed all our dining experiences in the North End..This was one not to ever repeat. Attitude adjustments needed with "All" of the Staff.

Recommends

nbodell

Joined 7 years ago

Great food. The food here is great, not your average North End meal. I also like the uniqe decor and attentive wait staff. Very nice wine list.