E AT & D R I N K
REVIEW
Arturo’s Restaurant 6750 N. Federal Highway, Boca Raton; 561/997-7373
Clockwise from bottom: scaloppina vitello piccata con capperi, calamari e gamberetti fritti, and torta primavera.
IF YOU GO PARKING: Valet HOURS: Tuesday – Friday: Noon – 3 p.m.; Tuesday – Sunday: 5:30 – 10 p.m. PRICES: $14 – $60 WEBSITE: arturosrestaurant.com
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t’s rare to feel like you’re pulling up to a restaurateur’s home when you park for dinner. The family-owned Arturo’s is fashioned like a classic Italian villa, with its terracotta roof and late-harvest wine-hued building. It’s like the late patriarch and restaurant’s namesake, Arturo Gismondi, wanted to transport guests back to Sora, his Italian hometown, before they savored one bite. Now, after more than 40 years, Arturo’s, which many say was the vanguard of fine dining in Boca, continues its unwavering tradition of serving Italian classics in its white-tablecloth setting. After so many decades, this isn’t the first review this restaurant has fared. However, since our last review was published eight years ago, we wanted to revisit it to see how it was weathering the influx of new Italian concepts and mercurial dining trends. I visited on a Saturday evening and found it brimming with guests, even during the tail end of the season. The Gismondi family goes to great lengths
to take care of its patrons, who, over the years, have become honorary family members themselves. We were greeted with a smile, walked past the pasta-making room—where we peered in like kids in an ice cream shop—and were seated in the glass-enclosed patio room overlooking its terrace. The pianist tickled the ivories while his son serenaded us as we perused the menu. Classic antipasti like beef carpaccio, prosciutto di Parma with cantaloupe, and a Caprese salad with imported mozzarella all grace the menu. We started with the fried calamari and shrimp ($22) and Arturo’s famous torta primavera ($20). The calamari were lightly fried and tender on the inside—exactly what you’d expect from the dish—but the shrimp were overcooked and dry. The torta, with its thin crepes, vegetables like artichoke and spinach and a mixture of meats like salami and prosciutto, was interesting. While it wasn’t to my taste, I could see the allure for those who enjoy that combination of vegetables and meats.
Our server shared that several kinds of pasta are made in-house, like the capellini, fettuccine, ravioli and gnocchi. So we opted for the fettuccine alla Bolognese ($32) and veal piccata ($40). As the menu offered many different preparations, it seemed this was the place to order the veal. While the fettuccine delivered on its promise of perfectly al dente pasta topped with savory meat (it’s veal, in case you’re wondering, and I would order this again and again), the piccata, on the brink of dryness and lacking a depth of flavor, fell short. Regardless of the hits or misses, looking around the room I could feel what made Arturo’s a staple in our community. It was the love among friends celebrating a birthday, couples on a date, and families chatting around the dinner table, not a cellphone in sight. Arturo’s brings generations of diners together with its warm ambiance, simple Italian fare that’s classic and consistent, and award-winning wine cellar with more than 1,000 bottles.
AARON BRISTOL
Written by CHRISTIE GALEANO-DEMOTT
bocamag.com • • • • September/October 2024
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