Lucca Restaurant & Bar

I’d much rather give this place 3.5 stars versus 4…
I recently went to Lucca on a first date and I was very much into the look and ambiance of the restaurant it’s very ominous and actually quite romantic minus the random wicker chairs. It was definitely a great pick for a first date.
Our waitress was very friendly, but it was a bit awkward for me seeing the waitress she was training following her around, I mean I get it but it was just awkward.
Now to food… totally pass on the zucchini chips you get for free from checking in on Unilocal,SUPER SALTY! It was just an over abundance of salt and it was just not awesome. However our entrees were fantastic! I ordered their pappardelle with their spicy sausage and it was just so good, and my date ordered the chicken picatta which he said was equally as delicious.
Over all, I’d say go to Lucca on a weekday rather than a weekend since it appears as if my fellow helpers have had several issues here on the weekends… and again avoid the zucchini chips!

If you like hospital food, this place is for you.
Came here on a Sunday night. Not too terribly busy. None the less, we had reservations and we were seated right away. Our server was very nice. He definitely earned the stars for this review.
But, man! The food was not great. Not even good. Our zucchini chips were greasy. Both of our entrees were incredibly bland. I had the pancetta wrapped chicken. The pancetta was really thick and all fat. You would think that would at least add flavor. It did not. Even the mashed potatoes needed a lot of salt and pepper.
Our other entrée was the shrimp linguine with lobster sauce. Tasted like bland Ragu red sauce. The shrimp was cooked well, but again NO FLAVOR. It’s like the kitchen was out of seasoning… or really just didn’t care.

Great service with our waiter Sammy! Friendly and very accommodating with our change in reservations. Food and drinks were great. Great atmosphere!

Came here for Happy Hour and was absolutely blown away. I sincerely couldn’t believe that the quality of both food and establishment aligned with the prices. Between us, my friend and I had four glasses of superb red wine, and three «bites», including a ricotta gnocchi that was exquisitely most and flavorful. And we left the place about $ 23 lighter. How is that even possible?!?
It’s also very pretty, yet not imposing inside. It is a nicely intimate environment but not exclusively romantic, that would equally perfect for a date night or a small outing with close family and friends. We had great service that was friendly and prompt but not pushy. Though I didn’t personally partake, I saw a few dessert items at other tables that looked dreamy.
We definitely need to come back and try the dinner!

Really nice ambiance, great service, and even better food. We were seated in the «outside area» on a rainy evening. The space heaters and tarp surrounding you makes it seem like you’re in a toasty indoor paradise. The waiters were always nearby, ready to fill my glass with water and accommodate changes to orders. For dinner, I had the beef short ribs with polenta. Every bite of the meat melted in my mouth. The polenta stayed away from the traditional «buttery and chewy» texture and instead resembled a fluffy mashed potato. Luckily I couldn’t finish the whole thing so I have leftovers for lunch tomorrow. My boss had the papardelle pasta which she really enjoyed. My colleague had the chicken saltimbocca which he said was moist and had good flavor! Also got the zucchini chips for free with the Unilocal check in.
Had to deduct a star however for the dessert. The profiteroles were pretty bad. Definitely had Hershey’s chocolate sauce on top. Could’ve made it better myself at home.

This review is for the burger and fries only. We had been hearing rave reviews that this was the best burger in all of Sacramento. Well I think it’s pretty hard to make a crappy burger if you have good ingredients, I must say this burger was pretty amazing. It came on a focaccia type bread, the burger was a true rare patty (most places won’t do TRUE rare burgers, which should be uncooked, and even a little bit cool in the very center of the meat) and all the ingredients were very crisp and fresh. The bacon was very thick, plentiful, and the cheese tasted of quality. The French fries were shoestring, I tend to go more for a thicker, crisper Fry but they were still good. We got a free zucchini chips side order with a check in on Unilocal,We were not big fans of that but don’t normally enjoy very fried foods in general. I say if you’re looking for a good burger in the Midtown area this is one of the better spots. While I am a big fan of burgers and brew, Malabar and a few of the other uppity type hipster joints, this place definitely makes the burger list. But hey, I’m even a fan of in-​n-​out burger so clearly I’m a burger type girl :-) Just give me bacon, avocado and cheese on my burger with all the fixins and I’m a happy camper!

What a place to be when it rains!!! Appetizers were so good and dinner was excellent! Our waiter was kind and efficient! Bathroom was clean and food was beyond flavorful!!!

Extremely tasty food – possibly the best I’ve had among the fancy joints in Sac. The ambiance feels a bit dated, but it’s easy to overlook with food and service that can’t be beat. !
About the food:
I’d skip the zucchini chips – they actually don’t taste much like zucchini because they are so thin, they just absorb the taste of the (recycled) oil.
The patchwork salad was so flavorful.
Their specials are inventive and successful.
The salmon, beef short ribs, and risotto are all really nice.
A must-​try in town

Have been here for celebratory dinners and fancy group lunches.
Valet for $ 5 is so much easier than trying for metered street parking during the day, especially in midtown/​downtown.
At first I thought it was mainly Italian cuisine, but the menu describes it more as Californian/​Mediterranean food. Reasonable prices, good food, with the exposed brick look/​feel. Unilocal check-​in gets you a free order of zucchini chips, but this visit we (party of 10) had plenty of appetizers to share already. Two orders of the marinated California olives ($ 4.50 each), two orders of the baked parmesan and ricotta salata flatbread ($ 10 each), one order of iron skillet roasted mussels ($ 14.50), and one order of fried brussels sprouts ($ 7). Bread and butter complimentary as well. They did also have a little insert to the regular menu with the daily specials, including a potato/​pepper soup, roast beef sandwich, and the gelato/​sorbet flavors. The olives were bright and citrusy, the flatbread went well with all the dips (hummus, olive tapenade, pepper), and the sprouts were managable size starters. I’m more of an oyster fan than clams or mussels, but these mussels were tiny and packed with buttery taste.
To start, I normally would go for the beet salad but was already set on an entrée which also had farro. Chose the wild arugula salad ($ 9) instead, which has radicchio, celery hearts, radish, shaved parm, potato crisps and black truffle vinaigrette. Not too filling, a lot of crunch. My main dish was the pan roasted salmon, with mustard butter, carrot braised farro with pancetta and brussels sprouts leaves ($ 20). Chef prepared it medium, and it was a very good sized portion. All the flavors went really well together. For dessert, I had to get the caramelized bananas served with vanilla frozen custard, cinnamon phyllo, toasted pecans, salted caramel and chantilly cream ($ 6.50). That dish was not as I expected, but was still good. I imagined more of a bananas foster cooked dessert, but instead the custard was sandwiched between phyllo and sliced banana quarters/​halves were put on top with a coat of bruleed sugar, pecans, cream and the salted caramel sauce.
Servers were attentive and managed our large group well, I had iced tea refilled right away, no mix-​ups with orders, etc. They are sticklers for reservation times (we arrived early so had to wait outside until the table was ready) but that’s not a big dealbreaker for me. Easily spent a few hours at this long work lunch, so if you’re in a rush (big group or not) then maybe this isn’t the best pick for your meal.

Phenomenal happy hour! Very cheap and delicious.
Came in around 6 on a Monday. No wait, although this might have been due to the rainy day.
Please note the happy hour is limited to the bar area. I will definitely be back for their lovely enclosed patio on a less wet and warmer evening.
We (3 ladies) ordered the pitcher of sangria. It was not the best I’ve ever had by definitely above the norm.
The zucchini chips are so addicting. We started with one by ended up getting two. Perfect portion to snack on.
We ordered two flatbread pizzas. The flatbread pizzas are easily enough for one person and very filling.
We also got the risotto gnocchi. Not a huge fan. The other girls loved it but I’m not a huge pasta or marinara fan. I would have liked it more in a creamy white sauce.
My favorite by far was the shishito peppers. They were light, delectable, and amazing. I could order those endlessly.
Great service and knowledgeable waiter.

Being friends with terry and Ron the owner
This place has a special place in my heart
Trying the food
We started with zucchini fries
Awesome very tasteful
Whao food was delicious and amazing
I love the chicken sandwich and the shrimp pasta

I would describe this place as «legit.» Pretty popular italian restaurant in midtown located on J street.
Parking is hard if you come on the weekends, I would recommend coming early and planning to park a couple blocks away. This place does have valet parking if you’re not cheap like me.
Ask about their zuchinni cheaps, they hand them out like candy, and it’s FREE. It’s well known if you get them free if you check in on Unilocal,but some of the waiters/​waitress is so chill they don’t even check.
Menu is dense like a history book. Selection is great, so many drinks, apps, and entrees, to choose from. I got the calamari assortment dish. Fried calamari with fried lemon and fried vegetables was a good fatty appy that started the dinner. Prawns linguine, OH MY, oh my goodness. This was so savory and delicious. Prawns and noodles were cooked to perfection and the sauce of the linguine was almost perfect, tad bit oily, but I loved it. By the time there was an option for desert we were stuffed, but walking out seeing others eating the deserts, #regrets.
The bartenders and waiters/​waitresses are all super nice, attentive, and friendly. This place has a chill but fancy ambience to it. The wait was actually pretty bad, granted it was a full on a friday night. If i was not engaged by the kings trying to beat the warriors and munching on my zuchinni chips, I probably would have noticed that it took 45minutes to an hour to get our entrees out. Other than that, it was good times, solid restaurant, wound recommend to randoms.

My sister got married in Sacramento over the weekend and has her rehearsal lunch here. They saved the back room for us. It has plenty of space and the restaurant itself was beautiful!
We had a set menu for the lunch so I wasn’t able to try other things that looked delicious on their normal menu. We had a salad with a lemon dressing that I was hesitant about at first but it ended up being amazing! I’ve never had a lemon dressing before. I ordered their penne with tomato sauce. It said it was supposed to have some spice but I didn’t taste much. The only thing I think it needed was some sort of cheese on top! But it was great pasta! My boyfriend ordered chicken wrapped in prosciutto and stuffs with cheese. It was amazing! The mashed potatoes it came with were extremely smooth and yummy.
For dessert I had the tiramisu and it was to die for!!! Best I’ve ever had!
I have to say though, the highlight of this place is their amazing cocktails. The menu is well crafted and they make them one by one. I tried multiple off their menu, every one of them being great. Their Bloody Mary though… Oh my gosh. My cousin ordered one and I wanted to drink it all myself! They took so much time making and adding everything one at a time. No mix.
Recommend this place if you’re in Sacramento, visiting or live there. Great for parties of 2 or parties of 30 like us!

Lucca! You screwed up big time.
First of all, if you’re gonna charge hefty prices, your food and service need to be exceptional. I am sad to say that neither were even close to being on par. I went with a group of 18 people, which means that we’re planning to spend a considerable amount of cash. We all waited over a full hour before getting our food.
I’ll start with a couple of pluses. The Pear Flower and House Manhattan were excellent cocktails. They came out pretty quickly and my girlfriend and I enjoyed every sip. The fried brussels sprouts were also pretty good. I’ve had better, but they were still good. I also ordered the crispy duck confit. The duck was pretty bomb, but the veggies on top were a bit overwhelming.
Let’s talk bad. The free zucchini chips were pretty crappy. They were just a bunch of salt and grease. The fritto misto (calamari) was absolutely terrible. When a person eats calamari, he/​she expects to taste the actual squid and not just the fried batter. And now the worst part of all. My girlfriend ordered linguine with prawns and the prawns were undercooked. Serving undercooked seafood is absurd. Bad!!!
After finally getting our check, my party spent two and a half hours at Lucca. The experience was very disappointing. There are plenty of nice restaurants downtown, so find somewhere else to go.

I’ve been here twice, once as a regular customer with a group for my bachelorette party, and a second time as a guest of a wedding in which they rented the entire restaurant out to the wedding party.
For both experiences, the staff was gracious and attentive. Food was delicious and the drink selection is second to none! Not once did we have to ask for more bread or another drink. For the wedding, the bar staff treated both types of drink orders (both cash bar and open bar) with the same great service.
Would highly recommend for a date!

We had heard this place was great and read reviews and saw mixed signals. We decided to make a reservation and give it a world!
We arrived early since we heard it was basically street parking and it fills up quick. We came as they opened and they had plenty of seating! We chose the patio area.
Our waiter was AWESOME! We told him it was our first time so he gave us all the GOODIE run down! I initially came in thinking steak and asked about the pork chop. He said «hands down… the pork chop!». Sooooo I ordered the pork chop and swapped the sides that was on special with the steaks. No charge for doing that which was cool! BTW… that was the BEST pork chop dinner! If I were eating at home I would have picked up the bone and nawed on it! Bahahaha!!!
Their patio was beautiful. The sound of the water flowing in the background was nice. The had lights hung up and very well decorated with stuff and plants. Wish my backyard looked this cozy!
Overall…the wait staff was AWESOME! The chef and kitchen help were on it. FANTASTIC job and everything was DELISH! The zucchini chips were great to the dinner to our dessert! GREAT food, drinks, and the staff were all FANTASTIC!!!
Thank you for an awesome dinner out!!!

With how many people suggested this place to me and the good things I’ve heard about it, I’m wondering if I should give them another shot.
I’ve wanted to try this place for a long time and I must say I was not blown away. The food was only mediocre. Quality ingredients, but nothing that was absolutely to die for. Sacramento has tons of breathtaking dinner spots and I just don’t think I would categorize this place as one of them. We started off with the mussels, and zucchini chips. Then when we ordered a house salad our waiter suggested sharing it between the three of us which was fine portion wise and price wise. Then we each chose the linguini and prawns as multiple servers suggested. I rarely get pasta despite my LOVE for it, (mostly so I’m not too full for dessert to be completely honest) so I was looking forward to a yummy pasta dish. Every single thing was just kind of. Eh.
Our customer service experience was interesting. While the staff was very friendly, our specific waiter seemed a bit frazzled. He may have had a hard day, dealt with some difficult customers, or possibly been new, but he struck me as extremely nervous. Shakes with his deliveries and didn’t visit the table much. I will take these possibilities into consideration and I did sympathize a little bit; though the other individuals of my party were displeased. One member of our group actually had to take our check up to someone so we could complete our payment.
I will add that I was pleased with how they handled our special birthday treat. We brought an ice cream cake from Baskin-​Robbins and they held it in their freezer for us. I handed the cake to the hostess and she communicated with our waiter planning everything very well. A candle was even lit with the cake when it was brought to us at the end of our meal.
I just don’t see myself going out of my way to return. Maybe if I’m invited for a group party.
P. s. Parking is a hassle as well which would kind of raise my expectations hoping it is worth it. $ 5-​$ 10 to park raises the price of only an okay meal.

Joe K took me out for dinner here to celebrate my birthday. He had previously dined at this restaurant with his family and was impressed enough to make a return visit. I looked forward to trying them out after hearing about his family’s own positive ratings.
The restaurant was busy when we arrived and even though we had reservations, there was a 20 minute wait. I had no problem with this, since that meant we could sit at the bar and enjoy a before dinner drink. I always like trying out specialty cocktails, and after studying the bar menu, settled on the Trader Vic’s Mai-​Tai. This unexpectedly unusual tasting drink had a brownish color on the top and white at the base. It was definitely alcohol strong and I wasn’t sure if I could continue drinking it, but after a few more sips, the alcohol kicked in on my empty stomach and suddenly I felt more relaxed and had no problem drinking the rest!
We were finally seated out on the cool patio area where we could enjoy the beautiful warm evening. The menu had a nice selection of Italian style meals. Most included meat, but I was able to find a vegetarian option of stuffed sweet peppers. Joe ordered a Pappardelle and an appetizer of Parmesan fries to start off our meals. We were also given ice waters in pretty blue water glasses. As we checked in on Unilocal,we received a nice surprise by getting another appetizer of zucchini chips for free! My whole birthday meal was upper class delicious! The food prices were quite reasonable along with getting spot on service by our friendly waiter. I couldn’t have asked for a nicer or more romantic birthday dinner! Since we hardly ever get to go out to nice places anymore, I hope I won’t have to wait for my next birthday to come back here again…

My bf and I celebrated our 1 month dating anniversary at Lucca about 5 years ago, lol. We haven’t been back for whatever reason, but upon seeing their HH menu, it’s been near the top of my list.
We came in around 3:30 pm on a Friday, and it was nearly empty. We were greeted promptly and seated by the bar. Our waitress was super sweet. I showed her the coupon for free zucchini chips after I checked in on Unilocal,and she told me not to worry about it. We also ordered:
1. Parmesan fries w/​truffle oil ($ 3): these were good, but I most likely will not order it again, unless I had a burger or sandwich
2. Steamed mussels ($ 4.5): the mussels were served in a white wine broth; and there were plenty of mussels for the both of us. I honestly think that this dish was just okay. The broth was very flavorful, however.
3. Ricotta gnocchi ($ 5): this was a nice surprise! I’ve never had gnocchi before, and after eating this dish, I really like gnocchi now, lol. It is similar to a ravioli, but has no filling. The marinara sauce it was smothered in was also good.
4. Zucchini chips ($ 2): this was free after checking in at Lucca via Unilocal!SO ADDICTING. I love these chips. I already love cucumbers, zucchini, and anything related to cucumbers and zucchinis, so this was delightful! We contemplated ordering some to go lol.
The waitress was really nice and attentive. She checked in on us many times, but did it in a way that wasn’t overbearing. The hostess was also gracious in attending to our need for more of their complimentary bread. I cannot wait to go back!

Anyone that really knows me would probably guess that I ordered the Port Braised Beef Short Ribs with roasted carrots, caramelized pearl onions, and the dreamy creamy white corn polenta. I love short ribs and I love polenta. I also ordered a side dish of sautéed spinach. I would have never thought as a child that the day would ever come that I would love sautéed spinach.
The braised short ribs were tender and flavorful with just enough sauce to add flavor without overpowering the short ribs or running all over the plate. The carrots were sweet and tender and the polenta was very smooth and creamy and had good flavor with the caramelized pearl onions adding nicely to the dish. The spinach was cooked to perfection and was of a rather abundant proportion which was much appreciated.
As much as I appreciated the short ribs, I must admit my daughter’s Roasted Chicken Risotto was even better. She shared a couple of bites with me and it was extremely hard for me to stop and go back to my own dish. The flavors of the mushrooms and thyme mixed with the mascarpone and parmesan were absolutely spectacular. My mother’s Chicken Paccata was good but no match for my short ribs or my daughter’s risotto.
My father really enjoyed his Crispy Duck Confit and my sister raved about her Pappardelle with house made sausage. The service was great and we had a wonderful dinner.