Marco, Bacco or Antico Forno?

[lmuller]

I want to make reservations in the North End at a place that we haven't tried yet. All of the above menus look like they would suit us. Can anyone recommend any one out of the three?

[lypp]

I am not a huge fan of Antico Forno. I would defnitely do Marco - I've posted on them before. I've had "okay" food at AF but nothing outrageous and I've had some bad dishes as well (specifically mussels that were just off).

[tamerlanenj]

Antico Forno is really one of those can't-go-wrong places. I love it. The meals are often fantastic, and when they are less than fantastic, the fact that it wasn't that expensive means that you don't feel like you got kicked in the stomach or violated with a rusty chainsaw like you do when you get a bad meal at Meritage or Strega for twice the price.

[MC Slim JB]

Never eaten at Bacco, not planning to. It's another one of those interchangeable North End chicken parm / spaghetti-and-meatballs kind of places I have little use for. It's handy for a drink if I'm waiting for a table at Terramia or La Brace. Make that a highball; their shaker drinks are weak.

Antico Forno is one of the my favorite inexpensive, informal places in the North End: very fine wood-oven pizzas and baked pastas, casual atmosphere, reservations, dessert.

MarcO is more of a fine-dining place, though the atmosphere isn't especially formal. The room is a bit problematic: cramped and loud. I think the chef is going for a Roman kind of feel with the food. Extraordinary risotto, maybe the best I've had in the North End. It's significantly more expensive than AF, a $10-20-30 (anitpasto-pasta-secondo) kind of place.

[chowciao]

I'll toss my vote in for Antico Forno as well - if the caneloni is on the menu (can't recall if that was a special or not), it's worth trying. We went with a good sized group of people and I believe everyone enjoyed their meal.

[lisa13]

I would not chose Bacco for dinner. They offer great mixed drinks and apps (esp calamari, bruschetta and antipasto) at the bar, which makes them well worth a pre-dinner visit, but the dining room is very loud and crowded, and the dinner fare is not the best. Not terrible, but not great.

[Northender]

Toss up between Marco and AF. Marco has more atmosphere and maybe a slightly more innovative menu. It is also probably a little more expensive. Both are really good. Never heard anything particularly positive about Bacco's chow.

[twentyoystahs]

Another vote for Antico Forno. Most dishes made in their brick oven..very warm, homey and comfortable...however the menu is quite different from Marco's..and so is the ambiance. Just depends on what you're looking for.

[NiKoLe1625]

I havent eaten at Marco and Bacco, but Antico Forno is one of my favorite NOrth End locales! Its very authentic! They have great pasta and pizza dishes and its extremely casual and laid back! One of my favorite things that they make is linguine with clams. I haven't had it that good since the last time i was in Italy! Needless to say i LOVE that place and would highly recommend it!