Massimino's

02/04/2008 Posted by megker22

We had lunch here and it was so good. The waitstaff was a lot of fun we had great food and a great time.The prices were very reasonable.

Pros: priced right

Cons: out of the way

01/24/2008 Posted by LRPCCC

My boyfriend and I decided to order our food from here based on all of the wonderful recommendations that we have had (as well as the award from Zagat and a few others). This was our last dinner together as I am moving tomorrow and we wanted something really delicious and I have to say that I have never been so disappointed in a meal and I have never complained. I honestly didn't even eat my entree. My boyfriend ordered the veal saltimbocca which is supposed to be stuffed with prosciutto and served with penne. The pasta was dry and the veal was not only bad, but instead of being stuffed with prosciutto, it had chunks of ham all over the pasta and not even stuffed in the veal. I ordered the shrimp scampi, which is my favorite dish of all time and I have NEVER been dissatisfied with at any other restaurant... the pasta was dry and chewy, the shrimp was not fresh and extremely over cooked and there was no sauce on it either. The lobster ravioli was nothing special either. The food was terrible quality and I feel terrible that my boyfriend had to spend so much money on such poor quality food.

Cons: The food was terrible.

05/21/2007 Posted by fromboston

I am an expert in Italian food and this is by far the best I ever had. We had the antipasta for appetizer and it was yummy. i had the cheese tortollini with red sauce and i just loved it. the best sauce i ever had! my fiance had one of the specials which was a seafood/pasta dish and he loved it! even after over 2 months from eating it he still talks about it. we defintely will be going back in the future!

Pros: good food, good service

03/16/2007 Posted by dlmn

My boyfriend made reservations here for my birthday. He had called ahead and asked that we be seated downstairs in the wine cellar, and told them it was my birthday and they said they would provide pieces of cake and a candle. (He didn't tell me this ahead of time of course) Well, I got there and they had our reservation down for an hour and a half later than the actual time he'd made the reservation for, but they said it wouldn't be a problem getting a table. We were seated shortly after everyone arrived, so it wasn't a problem though they did seat us upstairs, which was louder and crowded. I agree with what other people posted about the specials, they don't tell you the prices of the specials. I ordered one of the specials but they were out of it. I ordered another one of the specials, and one of the appetizer specials, but I don't know how much they cost. the food was very good, the service was good except they forgot the birthday cake. he asked the waiter about it on the way out and the server said he forgot as they were busy. I'd say the food was good and we had a good time, but don't count on your reservation.

02/23/2007 Posted by boston217

Booked a birthday dinner for small group and when I made a reservation they didn't say anything about it being a problem, just said "see you tonight!" When I got there, the place was crowded and hostess claimed we'd have to wait another 1-1.5 hours! When asked about having a reservation, she got "too bad - we're busy tonight!" Totally recommend the food (delicious& not too expensive) but don't consider your reservations to be solid at all!

Pros: Food

Cons: Attitude

06/28/2006 Posted by kevinmichels

This place is amazing. First off it's easy to find and when i called to get directions the host was more then happy to give them to me. When i got there i didnt have a reservation, and there were two of us, waiting for three so we were sent to the bar downstairs. The bar is small. unbelieveably small. no chairs nothing, but by far they have one of the best bartenders in the city. Not only did we not have to wait for a drink, but the drinks were unbelieveable. This girl made an italian espresso martini, which i've since tried to order at several other places, but is no where near as good and she made my wife a drink from where she was from in canada called a "Quebec Bissou" that is now my wifes favorite drink, but no one else in the city know how to make. When we sat down at the table and were served bread and water right away, greeted by our waitress who was more then happy in the middle of a rush to help us order. She reccomended the veal chop, which was beyond phenomional! She also took the time to help us chose a wine, and dessert. The food was amazing, huge portions, by far the best meal i've had in boston, and the staff will bend over backwards to make sure you leave happy. Only in a family owned Italian Bistro will you get such personal service. I would higly reccomend a vist!

Pros: Bartender, food, staff

Cons: Croweded, small waiting area

06/11/2006 Posted by lekohawk

I visited Massimino's on a bit of a whim (we just started walking the North End, and went in to the first relaxed attire Italian place we came across) with a friend on a recent trip to Boston. I have to say, I had an excellent time! It was a Friday night and there were only a few clusters of people sitting in the restaurant. The hostess gave us our choice of sitting upstairs or downstairs ("We'll go look downstairs, and if you don't like it we'll get you a table upstairs.") The waitress quickly took our wine and antipasti order, and upon discovering that they were out of our wine selection, she exclaimed - in true east coast Italian style - "I'm gonna take care a ya!" and went off in search of a different wine for us. She quickly came back with a very good red, the name of which escapes me at the moment. After a few minutes with the bread (which was, I'll admit, a little dry) and antipasti, she took our food order - again with all the flair and fire one expects from a waitress at an Italian bistro. Within 20 minutes, I was eating my meal. We dined at a fairly leisurly pace, and were never rushed. As a matter of fact, the waitress encouraged us to eat slowly, and even sat down near us, briefly, to discuss the finer points of finding good Italian on the North End. The bill came, and we discovered that though the bottle of wine she'd brought us was $25 more expensive than the wine we ordered, we were only charged for the cost of the bottle we'd ordered. Take care of us, indeed! Probably the best waitress I've had in a long time. In all, I'd highly recommend Massimino's to anyone looking for good Italian, and fun and friendly service. I'll be back in Boston next summer, and you can bet I'll be back at Massimino's then, too.

Pros: Ambience, Friendly Staff

Cons: bread was a little dry

05/12/2006 Posted by miamurphy

There's a reason that there are so many poor reviews of Massimino's. It claims to be sort of down-home, rustic italian food. And the food's OK. But, my boyfriend's is way better. And prices are outrageous, which makes for a downer of an evening. They are pretty deceptive about the specials, ie. they cost three times as much as the rest of the menu.

Cons: prices

02/11/2006 Posted by aink

I've been going to Massimino's for 5-6 years now, and I and have always enjoyed myself. I recommend it to everyone. The other reviews that complain about stand-offish service simply don't get it. I don't want someone bothering me while I'm having dinner with friends and certainly not when I have a mouthful of their exquisite wine selection. In that same vein, when I do attract their attention for another basket of bread or another bottle of wine they are all over it! If you want a stuffy atmosphere with no character, go somewhere else. If you want the feel of an Italian kitchen, attitude and all, then go to Massimino's. I like standing in the bar area and speaking to the wait staff and bartender about the specials and my favorites on the menu. That's also a good time to ask them about any new wines that they have.

10/30/2005 Posted by bostonfan1983

Massaminos. 1 word. obtrusive. in so many ways, the size of this place is a downfall. STAFF lingers near the doorway which is connected to the kitchen which is 5ft away from the seating. A hovering effect as all stafff just stands their talks mingles, talks loud. very unproffesional. THE FOOD..The soup a pasta, small bite size peaces of pasta with beans. Looks like a CAN of soup picked up at STOP AND SHOP. nothing special. the polo paridiso sauce is watered down. a pasta dish comes on the side with marinara sauce..pasta has a KIDDY size look and taste. The Bachliorti though is impressive. the mixture of Chicken , ham, cheese is very appetizing. the server... You'd expect more from an Italian Restaurant... She seemed lazy, unattentive and left EMPTY plates on the VERY small table. One must know when the table needs to be cleared.