171417 Sun Aug 01 21:28:56 -0700 2004 9 14 Washington DC & Baltimore Area 0 919944 Visiting Baltimore next weekend and we were looking for a fun place in Little Italy with great food. Any suggestions? Thanks Sun Aug 01 21:28:56 -0700 2004 0 bee zee 1 919946 Boccaccio and Da Mimmo own the high-end. If you want something less formal (and less pricey) I like Della Notte (love their Papardelle Bolognese) and Germano's. Sabatino's and Chiapparelli's are perennial crown pleasers as well. NOTE: Wherever you go for dinner, be sure to save room for a walk over to Vaccaro's for dessert. Sun Aug 01 21:58:00 -0700 2004 919944 0 Kevin Robbins 1 919967 where angels fear to tread . . . . with hopes of possibly forestalling another little italy discussion, i've attached a link to a representative thread. i did not attach what might be considered the mother of little italy threads, but if you want to read it, you can find it at: http://www.chowhound.com/midatlantic/boards/dc3/messages/13349.html. another somewhat lengthy discussion can be found at: http://www.chowhound.com/midatlantic/boards/dc2/messages/10393.html (but be forewarned, it's not pretty). i haven't been to little italy for a while, but I think i would recommend germano's or capriccio's, depending on the menu. pretty good food, shouldn't be outrageously expensive. most of the other stuff (sab's, chips, boccaccio, and aldo's) will be in the upper hundreds if you get wine. and whatever you do, make sure you ask the price of the specials. hope this helps. let us know if you need more. Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/169588#908137 Mon Aug 02 10:48:43 -0700 2004 919944 0 atls14620 1 919986 Oh boy, here we go again. I have been meaning to write up a Little Italy tip sheet but haven't gotten around to it yet. I'm over there atleast once a week, I'll give you the summary (all my opinion of course, others will disagree). All in all, don't expect to be blown away. Even the best place (Boccocio, IMO) will price the meal so that you will leave saying, 'Dang for what I paid, it better be good': Top Tier: Boccocio Clearly above the rest. Quite Expensive. Next level: Aldo, DaMimmo's. Also expensive. Would have to drag me into the place: Sabitino's, Chipperelli's. Two words: Canned mushrooms. Avoid. "Fun place" and somewhat casual: Amici's. This is the place to go if you want to hang out with friends, have some wine and decent food. Place worth a try, no guarantee: Cafe Roma. Very casual, especially downstairs. Decent food and, when he is working, the only place I have found with a respectable barista in the neighborhood. Post back with your experience. Buona fortuna. Mon Aug 02 12:45:44 -0700 2004 919944 0 KAZ 2 920088 I understand Sab's shortcomings but I LOVE LOVE LOVE their double-sided garlic bread and their homemade creamy salad dressing, especially combined, dipping the bread into the salad bowl, o my god. are there other places in LI or anywhere else in DC/Balto that make comparable garlic bread and dressing? Tue Aug 03 17:27:41 -0700 2004 919986 0 Jamie D 1 919991 Boccaccio is absolutely fantastic. I would say the second best place there now is Aldo's. If you want to go to a bit less formal then I would select of the rest of the restaurants Caesar's Den. Boccaccio is truly the place if you want a meal that will make your day. Mon Aug 02 13:27:54 -0700 2004 919944 0 writehere 1 919999 I agree about Bocaccio and Aldo's The most overlooked restaurant in Little Italy has to be LaTavola. We have been going for years and love the place. The menu is not filled with the same red sauce standards, the prices are reasonable and the manager makes you feel like a regular, even if you arent. I have mentioned La Tavola in several previous discussions, but I think I am the only one who has ever been there. Link: http://www.la-tavola.com/ Mon Aug 02 14:34:13 -0700 2004 919944 0 gusshusband 2 920013 my experience at La Tavola a year ago was unfortunately different then what you described. while the food was excellent (and i agree, reasonably priced), our particular server made it one of the most unpleasant meals out i had had in some time. i, for one, always appreciate a server's recommendation, but our waiter made no attempt to hide his snootiness when i good-naturedly rejected his REPEATED attempts to shamelessly upsell us into a bottle of wine that was over three times the price of the one i had ordered. same thing when we placed our dinner orders - after hearing about the (far more expensive) veal special, we commented that it sounded good, but my mom opted for a different veal offering from the menu. he suggested the special instead. she, again, said "thank you, but i'll stick with my choice." at this point, we were amazed as he literally glared and again said that we were not making the right decision, leading to an uncomfortable exchange where i had to get my temper in check and explain to him (bluntly) that we'd do the ordering, he could stick to keeping his opinions to himself and try to provide some semblance of service. luckily, on the way out, the manager (after asking and being told "how everything was") lived up to your description and was more than compensatory, complete with gift certificate which i haven't yet taken advantage of. its good to hear a positive review. maybe i'll have to give it a second try and hope that enough people took note of our server to have him gone and ruining dinners at another establishment. Mon Aug 02 16:19:46 -0700 2004 919999 0 rawdog 2 920015 How recent was your experience at La Tavola? I went a few times over a couple years after it first opened, but I had heard rumors in the last year or so that either the management had changed, or that the same management had chosen to change direction - either way, the report I had gotten was that the menu had veered into the Sab's, Chipp's, etc. zone of stereotypical red sauce "tourist Italian." I must emphasize, I have NOT been there recently, so I'm only going on rumor, and asking anybody who has been there recently to confirm or deny. I'd hate to find out it's true, I really liked the adventerous nature of the place. Mon Aug 02 16:44:52 -0700 2004 919999 0 Warthog 1 920366 I think Ciao Bella is the best Italian in little Italy HANDS DOWN. Every trip to an Orioles game (from the DC area) usually includes a visit to Cia Bella afterward. The veal and shrimp dish in the chef's rec section of the menu is fabulous-as is the spaghetti. The wait staff are excellent and very friendly. Address: Downtown Baltimore Little Italy 236 S. High Street Fri Aug 06 11:57:07 -0700 2004 919944 0 Debbie