Cuisine:

• Italian

Rustic Kitchen Description:
Owner Jim Cafarelli closed both the original Rustic Kitchen in Faneuil Hall and its Cambridge twin in preparation for this branch in Park Square near the Theater District. The results are anything but rustic, and nothing if not theatrical. Indeed, with its arcaded ceilings, anemone-shaped lampshades, copper-domed stone pizza oven, exhibition pasta station and a glassed-in, Viking-equipped studio kitchen for filming TV segments, the space is so dramatic that one hardly expects the menu to offer relatively simple, hearty Italian fare---but so it does, just like its predecessors. In fact, the selection is as small as the seating capacity is large (250), with only a handful each of pizzas and pastas, appetizers and entrées; this, we think, is a good thing, as it's less likely quality will suffer regardless of high volume. We're also glad for the return of both the well-crafted agnolotti dal plin and the rich, meaty tagliatelle Bolognese, dishes we especially favored at the flagship. An extensive wine list gets our thumbs up for representing almost exclusively Italian vintners, including many lesser-known labels using unsung grapes.


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