Al Boccalino - (206) 462-3309

• Private Cooking Classes
• Romantic & Intimate
• Catering on or off site

The wines are perfectly paired, and the tastes of Southern Italy very well represented at Al Boccalino. The place has great vibe overall and I was impressed with the service.

The first time I went to Al Boccalino, it was right after the legal ceremony of my wife and my marriage. Even though he was not open, he graciously allowed us to stay, but we couldn't because one of my friends was a vegetarian, and since he WAS allowing us to stay, he had only one thing to cook: a veal dish. History aside, my wife and I were very curious about this place, and others are too by simply walking by the place, going to the waterfront. The mood inside is romantic and cozy, and there's at least three small dining areas. Frank Sinatra was playing and that just brought back my memories of growing up in Chicago. We ordered the Risotto Riserve wine and I had the Raviolo, which was crab encased in home-made ravioli topped with a wonderful Pistachio creme sauce that was heavenly. My wife had the penne and we asked if Luigi (the owner and chef) could subsitute the tomato sauce for a creme sauce (my wife's favorite). The result was heaven. Normally when I cook a alfredo sauce, the flavors are powerful, but his was subtle, and the pistachio was simply amazing! The natural crab taste blended perfectly with the sauce, and my wife's dish was awesome too. The lemon flavored noodles mixed perfectly with the creme sauce she had. Combined with the atmosphere and the cozy staff who know regulars, we were hooked. No other Italian place in the Seattle area will do anymore, and dare I say my own cooking now has to rise to the occasion! This was a perfect occasion!

If you're looking for great Italian food and a fun experience, this is the place to go. First of all, the service was different from anything I have encountered, and I loved it! The owner and servers were very outgoing and conversational. This made for a comfortable and enjoyable setting. We were asked if there were any limitations on what we would like to eat (this was good because there were vegetarians with us). Soon after, we were served two amazing appetizers. One was a polenta with creamy Gorgonzola, the other was a dish of chantrelle mushrooms in a balsamic vinaigrette sauce. For the main course we had a wonderful pasta dish with an aurora sauce, as far as meat goes we had chicken, prosciutto, and Italian sausage, and the vegetarian dish was amazing but I honestly do not know what it was. Dinner was phenomenal, the servers were not too "in your face" yet very accommodating (ex. getting drinks, clearing plates, etc). We also ordered dessert, where we got a sampler of spumoni, tiramisu, chocolate terrine, and strawberries in a special sauce. Overall, the food was outstanding and I would definitely go back just for that. I also enjoyed the fact that we didn't have to waste time with menus, we were simply served some of the best Italian food I have ever had. I thought the atmosphere was great and I will be visiting them again.