The Florentine Cafe

A North End resident recommended this place. We had such a good meal here we came back a few days later when our son and daughter in law joined us on our trip. Atmosphere was great as was the food. My wife had lobster ravioli (both times) and I had lasagna — very good. There are countless Italian restaurants in The North End and of course we couldn’t try them all. It’s hard to imagine there are any better than Florentine Café.

We just had dinner here and I must say that it was one of the best Italian meals I have had in a long, long time. The service was prompt, the atmosphere was very friendly, the food was fresh and tasted very much homemade. The Burratta appetizer was fantastic and my chicken Parmesan was perfect. There are many restaurants on Hanover Street that are far more crowded so the next time here you should definitely give this place a try.

We stopped here after a long day of sightseeing. Despite some so-​so reviews, we decided to take a chance. Our server, Angelo, was great. The tuna and spinach salad was outstanding. We ordered lobster ravioli in vodka sauce, pasta Alfredo and risotto with shellfish. All three entrees were undercooked. We’ll start with the ravioli… the ravioli was stuffed and garnished with lobster meat. However, the vodka sauce was merely a plain bechamel devoid of any seasoning. The shellfish in the risotto was well cooked, but the rice itself was still white and terribly undercooked. So much so that the rice stuck in our teeth, there was no creamy texture and the sauce had absolutely no seasoning whatsoever. Our kids split a penne Alfredo dish. Even theirs was undercooked, and had practically no sauce on it. Because we were so hungry, we ate as much as we could. As a courtesy to future customers, we told our server of the quality. He was awesome and brought it to the attention of the manager. We appreciate that they deducted the cheapest entrée (penne Alfredo) from our bill, but thought it was classless for the manager to not come over to personally address the issue and offer an apology. Needless to say, we opted to skip dessert and rushed down the street to Modern Bakery.

Excellent! Had the Salmon with Risotto and it was exceptional, I’m still craving it! The bread was amazing and salad was great. I’d go back weekly if I lived in Boston.

Food and service was excellent. The lasagna was sooooooooo gooooood!

Love the open windows here in the summer that overlook Hanover Street. It has a great bar too! I have had the filet and it is amazing. The salmon is great, along with the shrimp scampi. Lots to choose from on the menu!

Came here for dinner this evening. We didn’t make reservations for dinner tonight even though we knew it would be packed due to the marathon. After checking the wait times at a few restaurants, we stumbled upon this one and were seated at the last available table. Talk about luck! Our server was absolutely wonderful, very friendly and attentive. Our water cups were never empty and we left full and satisfied. The bread was homemade and delicious. For dinner, I ordered the caesar salad and chicken soup. The salad was crisp and fresh and the soup was perfect. It was hearty and filling. My parents ordered the lasagna with bolognese and the rigatoni bolognese. The sauce was sweet, but delicious. I would definitely return in the future!

Food and service were fine however I was distracted by a strong, cold breeze leaking through the doors that make up the street side wall. I am sure that having the door open on a summer day would be very nice but on the day that I was there the temp outside was 40 and it made it very uncomfortable. I was told that this «could not be fixed». If they want to monetize every square inch of their space they should spend the money for good weatherproofing. There are a lot of other good choices on Boston’s North End.

A cozy spot on the corner with a welcoming staff who provide exceptional service! Calamari was the best we have had and the marinara with a spicy kick was delish! Chicken dishes were amazingly flavorful — very hearty portions of intensely flavored fresh ingredients. Check it out — the bar crowd looked like a fun time too!

The place is OK. I sat at the bar and ordered a pizza Tartufo, and a glass of Malbec. The pizza was about 10″ in diameter, but being a pizza bianci, does not have a tomato base, so it’s important that the toppings are sufficienin quantity fresh and tasty. There were too many empty spaces on the pizza with no mushroom, spinach, mozzarella or sausage. I. E just pizza base with no flavour. I wouldn’t recommend the pizzas but some of the pastas I saw served to other tables looked better. Overall, filled the stomach but I wouldn’t go back.

If you’re looking for Italian in Boston you go North End. If you’re looking for the best Italian in the hood, you don’t go Florentine, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. It’s A-​OK, but nothing special compared to some of the other fine restaurants you’ll fine lining the streets.
I was disappointed with our service during my recent visit. Our server was paying more attention to his phone and talking with his coworkers than checking on us or refilling drinks. I won’t let one bad server’s interaction shade an entire review, but it’s worth noting that many of the other small restaurants on the same street have better service.
The food was pretty good! I enjoyed my carbonara and my husband had good things to say about his lobster ravioli. The vodka sauce also got two thumbs up from our party,
All in all, The Florentine Café is a decent little place to stop when you’re looking for a casual“ish” lunch or dinner. The thing that keeps it from getting more stars is that it is simply surrounded by better restaurants.

If you are new to Boston you obviously have no clue on which restaurant to try on Hanover street– there are way too many Italian restaurants here!(and a random chinese takeaway too!) — so what you do is check Unilocal!
We visited the place on a Sunday night — and the really highly rated restaurants all had a long wait to get a table so decided to try the Florentine Café– decently reviewed, quite big and had a place to sit !
Nice interiors — it feels cozy even though the restaurant is big.
Do not be fooled by the menu that has been placed outside– which is the lunch menu and not the dinner menu. The menu actually pulled us in but we decided to eat in anyway after realizing that the dinner menu was different.
The bread is nice and soft — nothing to complain about .
We know that wine is what most people would have with their Italian food but the restaurant could certainly do better with their beer list– very little choice available.
Tried the lobster ravioli for the mains– as this was the most talked about dish on Unilocal!Certainly very well made — the sauce was excellent — nice and thick which went well the ravioli and the lobster itself was great. The only thing not right was the ravioli which seemed to be cooked more than it should have been. Yet– enjoyed the dish thoroughly !
The restaurant is decently priced– $ 26 for a lobster ravioli is what you would expect at any restaurant on Hanover.
Overall– it was a good experience which gives very little to complain about. It’s not a hit out of the park but gives you enough to enjoy a nice dinner.

Great food great service always accommodating our waitress today was great. Love this place

I am always amazed by the restaurants on Hanover Street in the North End. Anywhere you look, there is a small italian restaurant and they all seem to be excellent!
Florentine Café was no exception. The lobster ravioli was delicious with a good amount of lobster, fresh pasta and a creamy vodka sauce. The restaurant is small and tables are close together but the service and food are excellent.

Don’t feel like I can give a completely accurate revue. BUT, we stopped in for a drink and the atmosphere was buzzing and there was only one seat open at the bar. This was like brunch time on a Sunday. I used their bathroom too-​it was clean. The bartender here was probably one of the nicest ones we came across in Boston– they are clearly not known for good service. I saw a lot of people in couples and just enjoying a meal. I would go back to try some food!

Visited this place 31 oct 2015. I got the famed lobster ravoli. They were okay. Admittedly my friend got the butternut ravoli and it was much better.
The meatball was meh. Said to be really good but nothing special or fantastic.
The bread they served looked fresh… but if it was I don’t know why it’s warm.
All around just average you get what you expect.

Florentine café has a pre-​dinner happy hour session and I for the life of me cannot get used to standing in a lineup before opening time for good places… or just any place.
Anyways, my friends and I came for a happy hour drink at Florentine and stayed for dinner. The bartenders made nice drinks and gave their best at promoting their home made pineapple vodka [Svedka based soaked in a big jar]. The food came swiftly, but the silverware had to be waited for.
The server was delightful and obviously fresh off the boat, staring at us with a blank expression through gorgeous piercing eyes. Italian. Go figure. The food was medium sized and light-​heavy [if that makes sense] Full fleshed but not overboard gutfilling. Good for a pasta dish and not the oversizes you get at other north end. I had the cheese ravioli, my friend had the Linguini con Vongole. We eventually did get the pineapple vodka that had quite the punch.
I would have given this place a 4 star but for the unavoidable noticement of the servers obsessions with their own phones. At first, you think it’s them answering them as part of their jobs at the restaurant, but then you notice that it’s blatantly just them on their own business. To the point that they turn their backs to the customers! Apparently Florentine staff is not trained in rudeness awareness. It’s worth calling management on and never going back, too bad it’s in a prime tourist location.
It’s neat with a good view. Maybe is management takes a line on cell phone use during shifts it would have superb service as there is definitely potential for.

Boston’s Little Italy is an area rich with charm and history. One Thursday I set out on foot to explore this fine city and by mid afternoon my phone and body needed a recharge. I passed many cute cafes and bistros before deciding to try The Florentine Café. This classy restaurant was bustling with activity and I appreciated the unique architecture.
The corner location has cozy tables overlooking the street with ideal people watching potential. Unfortunately the server would not let me sit at a table without ordering a meal, even though it was 2:30 in the afternoon and between peak hours.
I settled in at the bar and my friendly bartender let me bring my phone back to life after heavy a heavy day of Unilocaling. I sampled an Italian red wine that had deep color, nice legs and intense flavors. It was a gorgeous sunny day in Boston and The Florentine Café is built for this weather. As I relaxed and sipped wine I listened to stories about the weather just 2 months prior. The bartender shared tales of a city deeply buried in snow which reminded me why Dave Loggins’ famous song specifically mentions springtime in Boston.
The Florentine Café was the perfect place to recharge and learn more about this lovely city.

The food here was ok! The calamari was good but cold when it got to us but the portion was good enough for 4 people. I got this seafood mixture with pasta and it was pretty good. There was a few clams and shrimp and a piece of lobster meat. The taste was good and it was filling. My friend got the veal pasta and that was good — good for you meat lovers out there, but there is a very distinct veal taste, so if you don’t like that don’t get it. My other friend got shrimp scampi and that was my least favorite dish because it was tooooooooo buttery! The best dish of the night was the lobster ravioli! If your gonna go here for dinner go for the lobster ravioli! I would stay away from the shrimp scampi unless you love butter!
Other than that the price I guess is kinda average for North End, but I’ve always thought food in that area was too expensive. I’d honestly rather spend 12 $ at a chain restaurant for a plate of pasta rather then 23 $ for a plate of pasta in the North End. To me it’s not worth it, pasta is pasta doesn’t matter where i get it!

I asked my business partner where we should go for authentic Italian food. The first mention was the North end the second was Café Florentine. I am happy I agreed!
We stopped for lunch on a nice sunny spring Boston day. The windows were open and we were seated with a window on Hanover street. The waitress was very friendly and knew all about the menu.
They make their own pasta sauce and pasta. The coffee was superb and the appetizers were a meal in themselves.
This is a great place to go for a business lunch or a casual date. Very quaint and pretty with old world charm.
Go for the food and as much the authentic Italian Boston atmosphere.
I will go again!

llegamos a este restaurante de casualidad y entramos, la comida buena, el servicio correcto pero nada especial, me pareció demasiado turístico y funcional