Scutra

Went to Scutra and ordered what we thought was the «2 courses for $ 26.95» special, M-​Th nights. What is offered on the special? Nothing that you can find out about in writing — only verbal version from the waiter. And the daily specials all have long, wordy descriptions. So even though we started our order saying «We are ordering the 2 courses special» apparently what I ordered didn’t count for the special. (Wouldn’t it have occurred to him to say, «That is not on the special»?) So we spent $ 15 more than we expected. Which we would have added to the tip if the waiter took it off the bill when we complained. Could you try printing a menu with daily specials? Or write them on a blackboard? No return trip to Scutra, ever.

It has been a while since I have been back to Scutra. I found the food and atmosphere to be delightful; much better than what we experienced in the North End earlier in the week. The stuffed meatballs were delicious. I wish I could make the spinach salad as well as they can. For an entrée we had the seafood pizza — a one word description would be WOW! I am sure that we will be back more often.

My wife and I went to Scutra with my parents after they moved into the neighborhood. It’s certainly in a strange spot, and it’s unfortnate that cars’ headlights shine right into the dining room when they enter the parking lot, but this is a cute little place once you get inside.
For appetizers, we got some Tater Tots, the Organic Baby Green Kale Caesar Salad, and the Scallops. The Scallops were fantastic, cooked perfectly and in a great pesto sauce. The Tots were okay but needed an extra dipping sauce, I think. The Kale Caesar was also quite good but nothing too mind-​blowing.
For my main course, I did another appetizer: the Roasted Butternut Squash Arancini. Small portion, even for an appetizer, but they were quite good. A little too much breading for my tastes but the sauce on them was delicious. My wife got the Chianti Braised Short Rib Ravioli — I loved it, she thought it was just okay.
Too stuffed for dessert but I’m sure we’ll be back!

We love Scutra as our go-​to local place for a nice meal or when friends are in town for a visit. The atmosphere is nice and cozy, the chef is always there checking everything out and the staff are friendly and professional. There is something for everyone on the menu and the seafood is great. We also like that there is a full bar with some stools for eating at the bar. Feel lucky to have this place right around the corner.

The food is good but not amazing for the price point. I do enjoy how knowledgeable the staff is and was open to suggesting some wine to pair with our meal. I’ll be back.

I enjoy Scutra at least two times a week. Didier and his wife, Cid, are wonderful proprietors and welcoming hosts. Didier is a phenomenal chef. The entrees, particularly the seafood and prime rib, are excellent. The servers and bartenders are efficient and friendly.

On our first visit the food was delicious and service was horrible. On our second visit the food was okay and the service was okay. For the price, very poor value.

A decent place. Our experience was mixed. The service was good and my meal, the trout, was very good. My wife’s fish was overcooked. Wine choices were decent but the Pinot noir I ordered was warm. For $ 80 I expected it to be a little cool.

In my efforts to help local businesses in the aftermath of never-​ending blizzards and sidewalk construction, I had the chance to enjoy a wonderful meal here tonight. I ordered the shrimp and phyllo appetizer, the short ribs ravioli, and the cheesecake. Everything was excellent. I usually don’t even like restaurant cheesecake, but this particular one was in a class of its own. The waiter and all of the other staff people were also excellent, and I can safely say that at long last, I have a favorite restaurant in Arlington. The only reason for the 4 stars instead of 5 is that the prices are a tad high, but I will certainly be back as often as possible.

It’s been a while, but I wasn’t super impressed. I remember having a risotto and some seafood dishes — the mussels weren’t all that fancy, and perhaps too buttery. Otherwise the atmosphere was fairly pleasant and a nice place to have a nice meal.

We were excited to find such a nice restaurant within walking distance of our new home. Scutra has a romantic and warm ambiance and the staff are all friendly and attentive. We have two kids under 5 so it’s often tough to find somewhere that we enjoy eating but where the kids are also welcome. Everyone at Scutra went above and beyond to make us all feel welcome, from bringing little bowls of berries for the kids to snack on while they waited; to our server getting down other level as he explained the specials to us so they felt included. The chef even made sure that our youngest sons meal was cut up into smaller pieces so it was easier for him to eat. The food doesn’t disappoint either, we had a fantastic meal with some really tasty wine and beer pairings and look forward to coming back and trying many other things on the interesting menu.

Love this place! Such a great, classy atmosphere. I ordered the mussels which are on special every Wednesday and they were EXCELLENT. I highly recommend Scutra.

Overall, good. However nothing special. The atmosphere is nice, but the menu reads better than the food tastes. The artichoke appetizer and stuffed quail are ok.

We have been to Scutra twice and both times we left with the «Meh, we’ve experienced better» The food was OK, service was OK and prices too high for what we had. Drinks were the best thing.

Sat down with a speaker over our head and the music was loud, not only that, a very poor choice in music. Asked if they could turn the music down and they did and 15 minutes later what do they do, turn the music back up. They really didn’t give a damn at all. Really bothersome, right over our heads while we were trying to talk and dine. And, I’m a musician.
Even my 19 year old son was bothered by it.
The décor is outdated too. 90’s
Food is very good though but we are not going back again (3 times there) the music ruined our meal, really loud and we are trying to talk and dine. The atmosphere is not what it use to be, not at all. To many other great places to eat now.

My wife and I went here on a Saturday night. We heard good things about Scutra from several people. The food was VERY good but the portions were very small for the price you pay.30 dollars for a small beef tenderloin with risotto.
The service was amazing and the restaurant itself was great.
The 3 stars was due to the prices being on the high side and the portions being rather small.
Be prepared to spend 60 – 65 dollars per person for drinks, 2 appetizers, 2 entrees, and dessert.

This place was a wonderful surprise to my fiancé and I! The prices were EXTREMELY reasonable for food that was not only delicious but also clever and original. We had crab wrapped in eggplant, limincello squid, PORK OSSO BUCO, and VEAL MEATLOAF. Each meal was plated beautifully and had numerous layers of taste that blended perfectly. I can easily say that the food here was better then a restaurant at the Elephant Walk level and almost as good as a place like Rendezvous.
I believe the reason this restaurant isnt more popular is all because of its location. It is in Arlington but NOT on Mass Ave and therefore I dont think anyone knows its there unless they find it online. If this place was in Cambridge it would be more popular! Also, from the outside you cant tell how nice of a place it is inside. Its a great place to grab a drink or bring someone for a schmancy dinner.
As an added bonus it is GREAT for people with a gluten allergy! Many options and all marked on the menu.

Biggest dining mistake ever…
Went here with my husband, son and daughter. When we were greeted at the door by the hostess/​server (blondish short hair), the look of dispair with a child in a bucket and 6 year old were ice cold.
Overall, we were treated like we did not exist. They don’t have a children’s menu for starters. They offer pasta for $ 8… fine, no big deal. I have food allergies, and the server was annoyed and told me I should have called the day before… ?? wtf? really? If you can’t accomodate food allergies, you need to get out of the restaurant industry! My requests were mainly no butter, and plain cooked vegetables. It’s not like I asked for my allergies sweetie! You don’t have to make me feel like sh$t because I have them! And make me feel like sh$% she did. I was horrified… call in a day in advance to notify you of allergies? Sorry, since when does the guest accomodate the restaurant? Shouldn’t it be the other way around? Get your head out of the clouds!
The half a$$ed (again, short blond hair) server never checked back on us… we waited quite awhile to get the hell out of there…
The food btw was actually pretty decent, my son and husband liked their meals, and the bus staff was incredibly attentive with water, but our server needs to find a new profession. She clearly hates people and can’t be bothered. Food and bus stafff bring this place from 1 star to 2… I’m trying to be fair here.
It’s amazing how your interaction with staff can make or break a place even if the food is pretty good…
I wouldn’t return here… nope, never!

It was my Dad’s 55^th birthday so we decided to celebrate the special occasion at Scutra. Unfortunately, my experience at Scutra was extremely disappointing. PLEASE do not waste your money or time! There’s better out there…
Appetizers: I tried the red beets and arugula greens salad with fried artichoke gnocchi as well as the Halibut strudel, which was a special for the night. Both of these were good, but small portion sizes. They were certainly both unique dishes.
For dinner, I ordered the scallops served on couscous. This dish was served cold. It was so annoying. I had to ask them to reheat the dish so I ended up getting the dish back when some of my family members nearly finished their meals. It was certainly nice of them to substitute the risotto for couscous since I am lactose intolerant. The scallops were fresh, but some of the spices in the dish such as the ginger were overpowering.
My dad ordered the braised cod served with vegetables and ginger sticky rice. I was thinking about ordering this dish but decided to try the scallops instead. I tried some of this dish from my dad and was immediately filled with happiness solely because of the fact that I did not order the dish. The fish was overcooked and extremely chewy. I could barely swallow my bite.
We sent the dish back and ordered the chicken and eggplant parmesan served with mozerella and pesto sauce. This dish was not any better. The chicken was extremely bland. I felt horrible because my dad did not like it at all. He struggled to eat a portion of it. Considering we came to Scutra to celebrate his birthday, I was rather frustrated.
Dessert: I ordered the warm chocolate soufflé. This time I asked for it to actually be served warm and it was warm indeed. The dessert was about average… good enough to satisfy my sweet tooth this is only satisfied by chocolate
Service: Excellent service. The reason I am giving this restaurant two stars instead of one star is solely because of the amazing service. They were very accommodating of my dietary restrictions. They were very friendly and patient.
Overall, I do not plan to visit Scutra again. If you are looking for a great Mediterranean cuisine, my suggestion is Oleana, which is a couple of miles away in Cambridge and similarly priced.

I’ve never written a review on Unilocal,nor do I go around bashing restaurants or telling people to avoid certain places because I may have had a bad experience. However, the experience I had today at Scutra was appalling.
My boyfriend’s family rented out the entire restaurant after we were at the funeral for his grandmother… a FUNERAL. The food was served buffet style and there were waiters periodically going around to the tables and asking if anyone needed their drinks replenished. It was apparently the bartenders time to make rounds of the tables, so I asked him politely, «May I have a diet coke?» to which the response was «What do you say?» Thinking that there may be a language barrier or the noise level was too loud, I repeated myself «May I have a diet coke?» After the same response was given to me, it suddenly dawned on me what he was fishing for. I looked at him, confused, and said «Please?» and as he turned his back to me he responded with «Maybe you’ll get one now.»
I’m sorry… ARE YOU F@$#(@ KIDDING ME? I have had my fair share of smart-​aleck waitstaff and I am always willing to play along. Ask anyone, my favorite thing to do is give a sarcastic remark IN JEST. And yes… I will gladly take the blame for not saying the word «please.» I suppose I could see where he was coming from if I was rude to him whatsoever… but believe me, I was not. If this was some attempt of being coy… save it. I was left embarrassed and utterly shocked in front of my boyfriend’s family at a funeral reception.
I was in the food service industry for 8 years and could never imagine having the ego to say that to a customer. I’m imagining the staff reading this review and laughing about it. If that’s the case then good. If the staff is reading it, then potential customers must be reading it too. I’m hoping this review can sway anyone to STEER CLEAR of this place. It does NOT deserve your business.