Bottega Fiorentina

Great food. Great price. Friendly staff. Would come back.

I cannot believe that it has taken me six months to sit down and write a review for Bottega Fiorentina! A friend and I were shopping on Newbury this summer, and by the time we realized we were too hungry to continue, every restaurant on the street that we could agree on seemed to have at least a 30 minute wait. We lucked out, however, because at Bottega Fiorentina, several tables were finishing up just as we arrived, and we were able to get a table in about 10 minutes.
Making a decision was difficult — there are so many options to choose from, so to save ourselves from starvation we placed an order for bruschetta to tide us over while we made our choices.
I like the pick your own pasta approach — the customer can choose the shape of pasta and the sauce. The have a core menu of traditional sauces that are available daily, along with a selection of specialty sauces, of which a few are available — the chalkboard and the servers will tell you which ones are available that day. I forgot what my friend ordered, but I chose the penne arrabiata.
The bruschetta was good — nice and garlicky, and they used perfect tomatoes. I wonder if this dish would be as good any other time of the year, when good tomatoes are not easy to find? Either way, kudos to the kitchen staff for not using bland tomatoes.
The penne arrabiata was also good. Not phenomenal, but it was tasty enough for me to look forward to eating my leftovers the next day. The tomato sauce was thicker than I’m used to in arrabiata, but it wasn’t like lead. I would have liked it to be spicier — after all, «arrabiata» means enraged. This sauce was a frown and a pout; whereas I prefer a full-​on Bald-​Britney-​with-​an-​umbrella arrabiata. I added some chile flakes, and then it was fine.
I have to mention my complaint about Bottega Fiorentina’s wine glasses. Like most patio restaurants on Newbury, the tables are way too close together. When you’re wearing a white dress and drinking red wine from a lightweight, stemmed glass, having other patrons squeezing by with their shopping bags creates anxiety, which detracts from the overall experience. I understand that it’s kind of a given that tables will be squished together on any Newbury St. patio, and I probably should have thought about that when I ordered red wine, but it would be nice if they would switch to stemless, heavier weight wine glasses so customers won’t be so worried that they’ll end up wearing their Chianti.
This complaint aside, Bottega Fiorentina is a nice spot for a casual lunch, especially on a warm, sunny day.

The food here is decent enough but not quite good enough to justify spending almost $ 9 on a Caprese sandwich. The guy at the counter was friendly and the atmosphere was cozy.
I am giving these guys a 2 star review because the wait for our lunch was absurd. My two friends and I stood waiting for our sandwiches for at least 20 minutes and in that time we noticed people come in, sit down and get served their lunch. I also saw a couple sitting at a table waiting for their lunch. They asked the waitress to check on their food. They had been there since we arrived and had not been served. The woman was so frustrated after the waitress didn’t come back that she and her husband got up and left.

There was glass in my food. Need i say more?

Came here with a group of 10 for a birthday dinner and sadly I enjoyed every dish I tried besides mine. I often judge an Italian joint on their marinara sauces and this place did not impress me. I forget the name of the sauce but it was a marinara with red wine, pork sausage, peas, and mushrooms. Did not enjoy it at all. It was boring and bland and I kept eyeing my friend’s Gnocchi until she gave me some. She got it with a cream sauce which was sinfully tasty… mmm. The gnocchi was perfect too, chewy and tender. Service could have been friendlier and quicker with the check, since it’s a tiny place and wasn’t crowded. I’d come again for the Gnocchi though.

I was pleasantly surprised at this low/​no frills Italian red sauce place, first by the fact that it was open pretty late on a holiday (Memorial Day). It was a nice day and I appreciated the outdoor seating. I thought the complimentary bread was fine but the flavored olive oil was a little funky and would probably have been better plain.
I always like the mix-​and-​match concept in pasta even though I appreciate different sauces may be better with different types of pasta. We had the carne sauce with bowtie — the sauce was a little more watery than I would have liked and not particularly robust. I preferred the michealangelo sauce (tomato, basil, and fresh mozzarella) with spaghetti. It was pretty fresh and they did NOT skimp of the cheese. The servings were also big enough to easily take home half. The $ 6 glass of chianti was satisfying for what it was. The service was pretty prompt and water was continually refilled, but it wasn’t particularly friendly. I personally wouldn’t recommend going with anyone you were looking to IMPRESS, but the food itself was solid. I’d be interested in trying the sandwiches, too.

Dropped by for a quick lunch at this casual place. On the lower level, they have a small outdoor seating area as well as several tables inside. Large counter and shelves all about with food stuff for sale. In some ways, has the look of a food market café. It was quiet on the weekday we went so while the service was fine, it could also be scarce.
If you like the build-​your-​own-​pasta approach, this is good place for it. Lots of sauces including most basics and some that might be their own concoction and some that are only available on certain days of the week, with a few pasta choices to go with it. Menu also has some basic antipasti and sandwiches. We went with pasta. Prices were plain cheap for the area.
Average bread came with a very nice flavored dipping oil with grated cheese and pepper flakes. Giant cups of latte, gave us the caffeine kick we were looking for but otherwise forgettable. Started off with the carpaccio antipasti, with came like no carpaccio I’ve ever had, mounded high with arugula. It was decent but nothing to come back for. Our pastas were also decent and again, quite average. I tried the linguini alla Maremmana, with eggplant, red wine, mushrooms, peas, sausage, and garlic. Sampled my dining mate’s spaghetti fedora, their signature sauce, a tomato sauce that’s slightly creamy, slightly sweet. Both were ok, just not wow, not much depth and sounded more interesting than they tasted.
If you’re looking for excellent Italian food, this isn’t it. But Bottega Fiorentina wins on value, giant portion sizes for low prices, and food that’s satisfying enough if you know what to expect.

Came by on a nice day with the boyfriend and asked to sit on the outdoor patio. The owner looked at me sharply and said, «$ 15 minimum per person.»
Now, normally, that wouldn’t be a big deal. But, we’ve been coming here for literally 3 years and never has anyone mentioned a $ 15 minimum per person! Not only this, but the menu is so reasonably priced that each person would literally have to get two $ 8 sandwiches to sit on the patio. it makes no sense.
When I asked him if the policy was new, he said «NO, IT ISN’T. YOU WANT TABLE OR YOU DON’T, OK?!»
I said no thank you and left promptly as it was very clear by his tone we were not welcome.
We were both dressed well and he’s seen us there before, so this show of aggression was a shock. Visitors beware!
We went down the street to Piattini and had a delicious snark-​free meal!

Love love LOVE Bottega Fiorentina. Amazing food, cozy atmosphere, delicious sangria!
There’s a reason their Fedora sauce is trademarked. Highly recommend just ordering your favorite pasta with one of their kickass sauces. I’ve been going here for years. Simple is best!

This place is a dump. It always feels dirty to me. The food is meh. It’s cheap but it’s not good so it’s a moot point.
The staff always seem ultra disinterested and look and act like Real Housewives of New Jersey cast offs.
I ordered here once for delivery and was ripped off by about $ 3. They added on more to the tip.
Typical Newbury Street restaurant that gets away with being subpar because it’s Newbury Street.

I brought myself down to this little tucked away restaurant ready for a filling lunch before Newbury St. wandering. Inside it was quaint but with enough tables to handle several diners. The girl at the counter said to sit at any 2 top, clarifying the 4 tops were off limits.
Right away water, bread and oil and place settings were put down. I first noticed how reasonable the menu was. A $ 7 prosciutto di parma sounded good to me! Fiancé chose the Chicken Limone special.
Meanwhile, the oil that accompanies the bread was addicting, its loaded with cheese and peppers. The bread was soft inside with crunchy outside.
The food arrived in seriously like 3 minutes! It was dead and I understood my sandwich could of been put together fast but the cooked chicken too? That was questionable. I imagined it was previously cooked then reheated. The sauce wasn’t bad but the spinach portion with bechemel was unappetizing looking, yet edible. My sandwich was the winner. The size of it was large. Half of it did me in.
The waitress disappeared outside and didn’t return for a while later. We had to go to the counter to cash out with the sandwich maker which was odd since we had gotten table service the whole time.
So-​so experience. I maybe would try the pasta sometime in the future if I’m nearby and hungry again.

Nice atmosphere, but lacking in the taste department. The best I could say about the food is that it is amazingly average. Nothing to write home about and nothing to make you come back.
There is a lot of variety. You can pick your own pasta and sauce to mix and match. Nice selection of antipasti. I ordered a Spaghetti Michelangelo and a caesar salad. Both were not that great. It was not inedible, but not worth the trip.
Also, when I was picking up the food, there was a little mouse that ran across the floor of the dining room. There was no one eating in there by the way.

i might even force it and say they have the best pasta on Newbury st
and its great for the pockets and fills the belly
I’ve had the whole menu
only thing… pasta or dish specials vary daily

Second time, first review, but I ate the same thing both times, so…
Glancing at my friends’ reviews to the right, I feel somehow weird about rating this place so highly, but DAMN it was good. I’ll jump right in with the cons first so we can get to the tasties… ready?
1) The bread was stale (but dipped in the yummy olive oil with parmesan, came out awesome)
2) They were playing TECHNO when we entered. Techno. In a restaurant. That’s horribly inappropriate in my book.
Anyway, they turned off the music at our request (very politely, I might add) and we got to ordering. What felt like 10 seconds later, our food arrived: Spinach gnocchi with gorgonzola sauce (also known as awesomesauce) for me, carbonara tortellini for my man. One extremely happy and stuffed 45 minutes later, we exited for less than $ 35 (with beers!) Awesomesauce, indeed.

Came here for dinner on Saturday night with the idea of a nice low-​key dinner in a place where we can chat. Yum!
I’ve been here to get sandwiches for lunch a few times, but I have never taken the time to sit in and eat dinner. The wait wasn’t particularly long even though the place is tiny and we went at prime dinner time. We shared a tricolor salad and a firenze pizza. The salad was delicious and a nice portion. The pizza was also good, but not amazing and could’ve used some sauce to cut the greasiness. The huge plates of pasta that everyone else ordered looked great and I will definitely be trying that next time.

A restaurant with a nice ambiance, this quaint little place is located along Boston’s famed Newbury Street and is a perfect place to stop after you’ve finished your shopping.
My friend and I chose this place because 1.) we were starving, and 2.) we were attracted by its outdoor seating and the trees decorated with white lights. Feel free to sit outside if the weather is nice — the tables are perfectly positioned for people-​watching.
The menu is not overly expensive and the choices are good. I ended up ordering one of the Wednesday specials, spaghetti alla puttanesca. It cost $ 10, came with olives, anchovies, capers and tomatoes, was filling and yummy, and didn’t take very long to arrive. I believe that it was at the table within 15 minutes of my friend and I having been seated. My friend ordered the penne leonardo — porcini mushrooms and sausage — which is actually pictured here on this site. I believe the Unilocaler who took the photo labeled it «bovine fresh!» Whatever the label, it was good. And only $ 10, too. Can’t beat that.
The bread and olive oil that they give you — and replenish readily — at the start of every meal is also good, as is the dessert. My friend and I split an order of torta frutti di bosco, which is basically a fruit tart. Quite good. They also have a nice wine selection. I ordered a very good white wine that went well with my meal.
All in all, Bottega Fiorentina was a nice find in a nice section of Boston. Stop in if you find yourself on Newbury Street.

I had a fabulous time at Bottega Fiorentine, but it wasn’t because of the food or ambiance. The group of 15 friends and magically delicious pitchers of sangria which kept on flowing late into the night may have had a major effect though…
The prices are reasonable for Newbury street but the décor and the menu aren’t really anything special. The menu is made of paper (all class) and it’s all about variety (it’s huge) but not necessarily quality or artistry which makes me feel more like I’m eating Italian deli-​style than anything else. They let you pair your pasta with a sauce from a large list which I find mildly offensive to Italian cuisine, but it does afford customers many many options which is nice for a big group. The bites of pasta Maremmana I snuck from friends’ plates were reasonably tasty. You can also get a «salad» made of antipasti like tomatoes, olives, and cheese. I got the Pizza Fiorentina which was kind of heavy on the truffle oil but also covered in delicious fresh vegetables. It did take a little longer than the pastas, as advertised, but nothing like the complaints I saw in some other reviews.
The staff took awesome care of our big party and crammed us comfortably us into a relatively tiny area. The sangria was so good, chock full of chunks of apple and orange and mixed by a man the servers call «the shaman» because of his giant sangria pot and magic sangria touch. The bread also came with some really awesome olive oil with parmesan, chili, and other delicious herbs mixed in. I couldn’t get enough of that.
All in all it lacked the finesse of most restaurants in the area but provided cheap, tasty food with a lot of spirit. It would be hard for me to give 4 – 5 stars to a Tuscan restaurant where not a single staff member is Italian at this point in time, but since this gem is so close to my new apartment, I may be seeing a lot more of it. Maybe then I will get over myself about the lack of authenticity and focus more on the joy Bottega can bring.

I just had this delivered via Foodler/​NightOwl, so I can’t speak for the service or atmosphere, but I very much enjoyed the food. I had the spinach gnocchi with ‘Michelangelo’ sauce, which is a red sauce with chunky tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella. It was a very decent-​sized portion and my only complaint is that I would have loved just a little bit more!
Bottega Fiorentina will still not be my first choice when I am craving pasta (I leave that honor to Lilly’s Gourmet) but I will absolutely have it again, and look forward to visiting the restaurant and trying something new when I am there.

I knew it was gonna suck when it was way crowded across the street and nobody was eating here on Sun 5÷25÷08, but I just wanted a simple quick meal.
It took forever to get our food. It’s order at the counter down and then if you want to eat outside, bring it out yourself the guy said. Hated him then.
Got a Caprese sandwich — mozzarella, tomatoes, basil & olive oil $ 5.95. The guy tried to sell me on the focaccia instead of a roll. I hate focaccia so no way Plus it’s $ 1.75 Extra! You crazy man! It tasted like crap. Boring mozzarella, boring tasteless tomatoes, basil even yuck & no olive oil that I could taste. Roll I got it on was average.
Husband got a boring pasta: Spaghetti Andrea — supposed to be prosciutto, sweet peas, mushrooms, cream, & truffle oil. It was just tasteless. Plus a slice of bread — looked average.
What a wasted meal. Save your money and eat elsewhere.

You just want aMore!
I can’t speak for all the menu as I have only tried 7 pasta dishes so far on 3 occasions. The service is great, the place is spic ‘n span clean, and it’s a great addition to the neighborhood.
The pasta is good, served perfectly al dente every time I’ve had it. The pasta Andrea (I had it with penne) had just the right touch of truffle oil to leave you wanting oh-​so-​amore. Bolognese is decent, and their bread is a decent match on the palate for their pasta sauces. The only real disappointment, surprisingly, was the penne alfredo, which I’ll give a 2.5.
Fun Italian grociery items, but more importantly, it’s just a short walk for me to get my NUTELLA!!!
They are still relatively new to the neighborhood, so don’t officially deliver yet (they said 2 weeks from today), but I was stuck inside the house by my parole officer, so I offered a nice bonus if somebody could make the 1.5 block trip to drop off 3 pasta dishes, and they complied. I can’t complain at all.
3 – 3.5 stars for food, but 4 stars for value. Can’t beat the prices.