A lovely small Italian restaurant nestled in Melrose's downtown! I met friends here for dinner for a Fundraiser for MAAV (Melrose Alliance Against Violence) and was so happy to see them participate in something like that! We ordered martinis from the celebrity bartender, mine a pumpkin martini, and then ordered food. I always try to order what a restaurant is known for so under "House Seafood Specialities", I went with the mussels and calamari over homemade fusilli 'Giacomo style' (lobster based red sauce with a touch of béchamel) absolutely delicious with a generous portion of seafood and pasta plus so reasonably priced at $25!! It was very loud so it was tough to catch up with friends but it made me so happy to see such a big turnout for such an important cause! We're already planning another dinner here soon! read more

See all

I only write reviews when I'm pissed, so here we are. My wife made a reservation for our 20th anniversary, they had no record of that. No matter, it was empty enough at 5 on a Saturday. We started with bruschetta. Maybe slice it into pieces? Nope. I'll just destroy it. Then I got the chicken Marsala. Flavorless. Boring. My kid got the chicken fingers. They were actually decent but I had to double check the menu to make sure she was supposed to get an ice cream for dessert. The waitress was happy to give us our check. When I asked to speak to a manager, he got super aggressive and stomped over angrily saying "I'm the manager ." we asked if we were supposed to get ice cream with our kid's chicken fingers. He said "take it up with your server." Thank you. You're a delight. We haven't seen our server since she gave us the check. read more

Overall, the quality of the food was disappointing. The fried calamari, in particular, was soggy--it tasted as if it had been cooked yesterday and simply reheated in a microwave. It completely lacked the crispiness you would typically expect from this dish. The other dishes came in generous portions, but the flavor fell far short of what I would call good. Perhaps my expectations were too high, but I was deeply disappointed. read more

Delicious! We went for a date night / birthday dinner combo. We tried the fall appetizer special which was really good. The butternut squash didn't have too much flavor to it, but the crostini and ricotta was very good with the pumpkin seeds. Our dinners were great and everything came out quickly after ordering, but we didn't feel rushed. read more

See all

Absolutely delicious entree. We will be back based on that alone. We sat at the bar and the younger bartender was icy/cold to the point of being rude/really unfit for that sort of role. I tried to get some humanity out of her, without success. Maybe she didn't feel well, although that begs the question of why she was working around food. The food saved the day though, and I ate the leftovers the next day, gobbled them up! We will be back! read more

Giacomos Melrose Oh how the mighty have fallen. Use to be our go to for quality food. Not any more. Been there 18 times in last 3 years. Slowly but surely the quality and service have gone downhill. Last night was the last time ever going. Ordered and my dish came and i took a bite. Wrong dish. Looked right but it was a completely different ravioli. Sent it back and then watched all the servers devour it at their station. Gross. I do not think they knew i ate some of it. My sons dish(squid ink pasta with tuna and sword) smelled like a sewer. It was rancid and foul. I think they just poured squid ink over the ingredients. So bad. My real dish came, allegedly. I looked at it and told waitress it was wrong again. I get this dish every time i go. She asked the chef. Sure enough they ran out of what i ordered and instead gave me frozen store bought cheese raviolis hoping i would not notice. It was suppose to be sausage and broccolini stuffed. Wtf? Who does that. Never again. Ever. Server was very nice. read more

We've been here a few times now and we are hooked! Conveniently located in Melrose center, this little gem of a place is a great alternative to making a trip to the North End. You enter though the back, where there is plenty of parking. The bar is always hopping. The space is small, but quite comfortable. We always make a reservation through Open Table and request a table near the windows. The staff is always sweet as can be and the food is fantastic. Our favorites are always the calamari snd bruschetta appetizers. I really like the lemon paddadelli with seafood and chicken piccata. The cocktails are also so good! Not inexpensive, but a quality experience with delicious food. read more

Prepare for pasta with a side of retribution. The hostess was rude and clearly doesn't care about customer service. We called ahead to let them know that we were running late from a kids performance for a 6:15pm dinner reservation and they assured us that we could still make it. When we arrived at 6:36, the hostess told us that they gave our table away because we were too late even though we had called. read more

First time here. The Calamari appetizer was very good, tender with the the right about of coating. Both meals were good with plenty of good. The Pappardella with Shrimp/Scallop had a bit too much pesto or similar but otherwise was great. The Tiramisu dessert was excellent. The service was very good, he didn't rush us and provide time for us to enjoy the meal. Overall very enjoyable, we'll be back. read more

We went here with a few other couples on the weekend. The food was very similar to the North End location which is fantastic. Our waiter was Fabio! -- so we all got a great laugh and made our requisite jokes (especiall the ladies). Great food, great laughs, and great service. Overall, this is a fabulous restaurant with excellent Italian fare. read more

Our first time there. We had an early reservation, seated right away at a lovely table by the window. The bread and water were provided. No options on water, which was ok. The bread came over and it was small and one piece for each of us. No olive oil was provided. We ordered garlic bread and fried mozzarella. The fried mozzarella was perfect, crunch on the outside and goey on the inside. The garlic bread was a hunk of bread, garlic on top and a big knife to cut it with. Very rustic and not what I was expecting. The entrees were good, lasagna, eggplant parm and pumpkin tortellini. All entrees were good but the portion size on the tortellini was small. About 10 pieces. Dessert was nice, a chocolate lava cake. Well presented it was delicious. Service was good. So its a good place to eat if you want a red sauce Italian restaurant. Nothing exceptional at all, but solid. read more

Food has so much flavor and really big portions. Great atmosphere and friendly staff. Nice way to end our trip in boston. read more

See all

Fantastic local Italian restaurant. The cocktail menu is on point. Service is attentive; even on a Friday night. Everything coming out of the kitchen looked amazing. The seafood platter (for two) looked AMAZING. Huge lobster surrounded by other amazing seafood. The wine menu is delicious and affordable. We got a bottle of Duckhorn Cab for only 36$. House salad was delicious. Lightly dressed. The chicken Piccata was crisp and lemony and delicious. The lemon fettuccini with scallops and shrimp was also delicious. And the pasta was of course; Al dente. The chicken Parm was HUGE and delicious. We also ordered a platter of the broccoli rabe. Nice and spicy, but a little bitter due to the size of the stems. read more

See all

So my main reason for my trip here was the cannoli martini! And let me just tell you this tasted just like it and lived up to call the hype!! Presentation was to perfection and screamed cannoli right as our waiter was bringing them over. It was super filling I will say!! We just had a small app but I would love to get back to location to try dinner menu, it looks amazing! It felt like you were at an Italian restaurant in the city perfect date night vibes. read more

Giacomo's - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

Been to this (and the North End location) many, many times. Usually the food is decent. Lately, not so much. I am not sure if there has been a change in the kitchen or what. Last 3 visits the food was bland and mediocre at best. Most recent time it was plain awful. I hope they figure out the issues and get back on track. read more

Decided to try the Melrose location (we usually go to the north end and sometimes the south end location). Had reservations on Sunday at 5pm. Came in and the place was packed, even the bar. Highly recommend making reservations if you plan to eat earlier. By 7pm there were few empty tables and no wait. There is street parking in front and they have a big parking lot in the back. This is a plus compared to their other locations Service was attentive and friendly. Food was good but not the same quality as the north end location. But still delicious and plentiful. We got the large calamari, clams linguini and 2 Fra Diavolo FruittiDiMare linguini (very generous with the seafood compared to other places). Seafood were all very fresh. read more

See all

Very good service, delicious food. Appreciated the good bread. Most of our party had the Frutti Del Mar which was delicious and generous.

First time at this location. The appetizers antipasto and chop salad was really good but the main courses were bland. The lobster with calamari in red sauce was bland avd the shrimp in red sauce over pasta as also no flavor the pasta linguini abd the fettuccini pasta was over cooked. No garlic flavor. The service was very good. I gave only three stars because of the flavorless pasta dishes. read more

Giacomo's - Veal Marsala. - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

See all

This was our first visit to this location, have been to the sister restaurant in the North End. The atmosphere was vibrant but very crowded and equally noisy. Got a table for 6 in the back which was more spacious and less noisy. The service started off a bit slow but we had a great waitress, very friendly, funny and attentive. We ordered several different meals so we had a good sample of the menu as a party of 6. The food was ok at best, not super tasty but ample quantity. We will probably give it another try but will not hurry back. If you want to avoid Boston for Italian, Petrillo's in Peabody is head and shoulders above in all facets. read more

I wanted to love this restaurant 100% and be super thrilled to come back. But I can't. It was good. Was it Northend good? No. Was it authentic Italian good? No. It was solid American Italian food. Let me explain my experience here. I went here with three folks. Made a reservation. On a Saturday at 7 PM. There was no need to do that. The place was relatively empty inside, and we were even able to get outdoor seating. Without any special accommodations. We sat down and waited a little bit, but I did see the way to running around like a chicken with his head cut off, so I was OK it was sitting outside and waiting. He came to our table and he was very, how do I say, Boston? Hey how you doin..He says. Can I get something started for ya? We opted to start with a large order of fried calamari. Which, when it came out, was really good and a very ample portion. I think you could even use it for a main meal instead of an appetizer it was so large. We got a bottle of wine as well. It seem like a better choice with three folks as opposed to individual drinks. Came out to be the same price. We ordered the Fra diavolo seafood, the The lemon fettuccine shrimp dish, and chicken Parm. Nothing fancy, routine items on the menu it seemed. They didn't take very long to come out and didn't all come out at once. Again, our waiter was super busy with all the tables outside for himself. My chicken palm was not steaming hot, it was warm, even hot, but not as if it just came out of being cooked. More like it probably had been sitting under the heat lamp for a few minutes. Maybe while everything else finished cooking? The lemon fettuccine dish looked really pretty and my friend said it tasted really good. Hubby got the seafood fra diavolo. Again, it looked really good, but he said the sauce was relatively underwhelming and not spicy enough at all. We were never offered grated cheese or hot pepper to put on our food if we wanted it. I don't know if they even have that there. Also, when we got our bread for the table? Three small pieces that we used with olive oil. The bread was really good. But we could've used more and I waited never asked us if he wanted some. Oh and all it was a positive experience, but just not exciting enough for me to really go back again. Paragraph plus, parking and getting into the restaurant is kind of weird. They don't tell you that the entrance to the restaurant is on the side in an alleyway. So we had to walk all the way around the building only to find the entrance was literally right where we had parked!! read more

See all

Walked in on a very slow Monday night for a drink and maybe some appetizers. We were the only 2 at the bar. Woman bartending or pretending to was so rude and bothered by our presence we decided to .forgo any food and leave after our 1 drink each. She literally stood against the coatrack the 30 min we were there. iMaybe explains her lack of a bar patron following. Needless to say won't be rushing to give them my business. Sorry giacomos it's staff like her with a bad attitude that discounts your business'. Also your men's room was in complete disrepair with gnats flying around. read more

Typically, pasta feels heavy, but Giacomo's has hit the spot with making their sauces light and still creamy. We added a chicken cutlet to the fettuccine with peas and prosciutto for more protein. The lobster ravioli was light and tasty. If you like lobster, get this. The calamari is a must get. Our server was super nice and accommodating with the 3 kids we were with and super quick with the drinks and food. The restaurant was casual and slightly dimmed. It is definitely bigger than the ones in Boston so better suited for larger groups. read more

Giacomo's - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

See all

Food is delicious! Staff is nice! Super cute on the inside! A little over priced and menu is a little small for my liking but overall recommend! read more

I've enjoyed Giacomo's for years. Mainly on special occasions like Valentine's Day. But this place is great for even just craving good Italian food. Brought the hubby here for father's day. I do always recommend reservations when a place offers it. The place was mid-full around 630 on Sunday, but it did get packed very quickly after. Also, be mindful, that the bar is small, with only a few seats available there. decor: is your usual somewhat dim romantic Italian decor. Drinks: I got the 454 which was very good and hubby got his usual raspberry lime Ricky which he loves. Food: we started with the arancini balls, much smaller than anticipated but very tasty. The sauce was good, it is a slightly sweeter sauce than what I like but still good and I know hubby loved it. For entrees I ordered the Lobster Ravioli in white sauce - soooo yummy, pasta cooked perfectly and you def get chunks of lobster in most bites. Hubby got the chicken piccata.....but chicken parm came out. Oops, no problem was corrected seamlessly by our waitress. We also tried their tiramisu which was very very tasty and not overly sweet, just enough. However, they drizzled caramel sauce over??? Not sure why. Price is very fair given the amount of food. and of course, we recommend and will be back again and again! read more

See all

Giacomo's serves absolutely impeccable italian food at an affordable price. While the atmosphere isn't as inviting as the north end, you don't have to wait in long lines, but still get that amazing , authentic north end quality. I highly recommend the fried calamari to start, and you cannot go wrong with any of the entrees. I loved my chicken piccata. They also make an excellent dirty martini. And we had the fried banana cheesecake with strawberry ice cream for dessert. You have to pay them a visit the next time you're craving Italian! read more

See all

Very surprised. Food is usually excellent. Wondering if they have a new chef. Ordered squash raviolis which came drowned with cream sauce. You could hardly taste the squash. Also ordered ziti and meatballs but ended up loaded with mozzarella cheese all over it. Dessert was molten lava cake but couldn't find the lava. read more

Giacomo's is one of the most consistent Italian restaurants around. I love the chicken Parmesan. I have tried just about everything on the menu and it is all delicious. The service is always awesome & it's really nice inside. Great, strong drinks as well. The meatballs and fried mozzarella are my favorite apps! read more

First time had the Chicken Marsala, and it was simply amazing so much so that we had to go back. However, the second time it did not have any flavor whatsoever, and we were disappointed. read more

First off I had not been to this location in quitye sometime in Melrose, MA. At first everthing looked the same then out came the bread which was the first giveaway that this was not owned by the same people in Boston. This resturant use to have the best bread, then came the dinner which i had rabe sausage and pasta and I could not eat it as the rabi was so extremely bitter and the sausage had no flavor at all. I wish I knew that they sold this location as I would have gone else where. Lastly, when the server asked me how it was I said it's just ok she said ok and walked away. read more

Had a 6 o'clock reservation. I got a text 10 minutes before that our table was ready while we were parking. Got in the restaurant before 6 o'clock. Had to wait 20 minutes on the bench. The host calls us up saying it's ready. Then we spend 15 more minutes standing up waiting. The fried mozzarella was solid. We both got the fig manhattan. Nothing fig about it. Pretty sure they just gave us a regular manhattan. Food was just okay. The waitress was great. read more

The Medford location was not as great as our experience with the North end location, food was mediocre. Service was really okay they rushed us to be seated and rushed us to order and rushed us to get out, don't go on a Friday evening! read more

So much better than the North End location! Highly recommend the fried calamari, lobster ravioli, and frutti di mare in fra diavolo sauce. Can't wait to come back. read more

Giacomo's - Fried calamari - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

In the mood for Italian food? Don't want to drive all the way to Boston? Giacomo's in Melrose will satisfy your Italian cravings and have you in carb central. Everything I tried from appetizers to entrees was all so good. Fried calamari melts in your mouth. It was cooked perfect and I guarantee you that you won't hurt your teeth chewing. My entree was huuuuggggeee. It can feed 3-4 people honestly. After all the apps and cocktails I had, sadly I didn't eat much of it and packed it for home. Pasta always taste better the next day so I wasn't mad. Over all, Giacomos will be my go to when I'm in the mood for GOOD Italian food. PERIOD! read more

See all

Ordered the chicken parmigiana and garlic bread to go. Was ready in 20 minutes. Staff were friendly. Chicken parmigiana was really good. Garlic bread was not what I was expecting, I didn't like it due to the underside being too browned for me. Food was hot. Complimentary bread was a nice touch. read more

Giacomo's - Chicken parmigiana - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

See all

Thought we'd try Giacomos's in Melrose. The reviews on Yelp looked pretty good and the pictures of their food looked phenomenal. We got there later on a Friday night. I will say the tables are a little close together but wanted to try it out. The hostess seated us after a few minutes even though the restaurant was full. We had Melissa for a waitress. Ordered an Apple Martini. Was very good. There was artisan sourdough bread on the table. Nothing came with it. I assume the olive oil already on the table is what you eat it with. Freshly baked. We just ordered our entrees as it was pretty late. I ordered the Chicken, Broccoli and Ziti and hubby Veal Parmesan. Entrees came and they were DELICIOUS! Very, very good. Sauce good, veal tender. Chicken tender and slightly browned, pasta cooked perfectly, very light cream sauce. We were just finishing up and the busgirl was taking way the plates and by accident dumped over my Martini. My phone that was on the table got drenched, my purse on the floor, etc. We used our napkins from dinner to soak up the mess. Melissa came over and said is there anything more I can get you? I asked if the busgirl was getting another drink. She said "I cant get you another whole drink". But honestly more than half my drink was spilled all over the place. She replied, "well it was a mistake, right?". I just looked at her after she said that, not believing that was the reply she had. I replied yes of course it was an accident, but I paid for a whole drink and was lucky if I didn't even drink half of it! No "I'm so sorry", "no could I get you another drink", no "could I take the drink off the bill". Just "is there anything else I can get you? Meanwhile, the busgirl came over and apologized several times. Then Melissa came back over and asked me if I knew how to make an Apple Martini. I just looked at her. She said the bartender left and she would have to make it. Now mind you, the entire restaurant was packed. She came back shortly after with a whole Martini and said "thank God the bartender came back". She never apologized once. The right thing for Melissa to have done is to do is to apologize, even though she had nothing to do with it, and ask if the customer would like another drink or the drink taken off the bill. It's a drink, and not worth losing a repeat customer. Melissa made the wrong decision in dealing with the accident. Instead, she made me feel like I was trying to get something for free. Needless to say, Melissa received NO TIP. And all this was going on with another party one foot away from us. So not only did we feel uncomfortable, I'm sure the party next to us was uncomfortable as well and this ruined their dining experience. Yes, mistakes happen. Food comes out undercooked, overcooked, drinks spill, etc. It's how you handle the situation that matters.   The food isn't the problem here. It's excellent. This place gets 5 stars for food. A we eat Italian...A LOT! I will say I called today 10-30-21 and spoke to Manager Nick. He apologized for the experience and said he would address it immediately. He was more than accommodating which changed our mind on going back. I'm sure this was a one time thing, and anyone loving authentic Italian food has to give this place a try! 5 Stars for the food. 1 Star for our waitress........Its unfortunately Melissa doesn't have one once of class. read more

See all

Have been to Giacomo's in Boston, but never ventured here, although it's close by. We were lucky to snag a reservation for 4 on a Saturday night. Didn't know there was a parking lot next to the restaurant as Melrose parking can be a bit challenging. There's a large community lot behind the buildings across the street. The place was jammed with a full bar area and lots of people waiting. The cacaphony of conversation and merriment was almost deafening, but what was actually deafening was the host screaming out people's names for their tables. A little acoustic treatment would be welcome. No wait for us and we sat in the back part of the restaurant with a clear view of the busy kitchen. Our server was perfect- helpful, proactive, offered some welcome advice and several tastes of different wines. Look up "great Italian server" and you'll find her. The food was mostly a hit with a caveat. My brother and law and I had the Frutti di Mare which was offered with a choice of Pesto, Fra Diavolo, Red, Scampi, or Giacomo (Lobster based red with a touch of bechamel). Our server recommended the Fra Diavolo and Giacomo sauces. I was on the fence- so she offered a mix of both! The Frutti di Mare was tasty included the usual clams, mussels, shrimp and a few scallops. But both of us agreed the amount of seafood in this was not enough. Lots of pasta though. Either add a nice piece of fish to the dish or add more of the other seafood- like 50% more. And I'm not even a big eater. Other dishes were similarly lacking in portion size. The shrimp and scallop dish while delicious could have been a bigger portion. The veal special was a combination of veal and some vegetables blended in pasta. the pieces of veal were 1/8" slivers. You get the trend here. Pricing here is very reasonable- but the portions (excluding the pasta) were lacking. Service was outstanding. The noise made conversation a challenge. 3.5 stars rounded up because of our server. read more

Giacomo's - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

Giacomos has the best calamari. The fry them with hot peppers as well which compliments the calamari perfectly. It's hard for me to eat it any other way not. This is how it's done. The fruti de mari can be a bit messy, but its worth trying if it's your first time. I would just stick with the mussels and clams pasta. I also usually get the half diavola and half giacomos sauce, but the 100% giacomos sauce is started to grow on me. Might just get that the next time. A must try in boston! read more

Giacomo's - a plate of fried calamails with a side of tomato sauce - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

See all

My friends and I went here for dinner two months ago. Thankfully, we made a reservation in advance since the place was packed. For an appetizer, we got the sausage arancini. The appetizer came with 5 arancini covered with tomato basil sauce. The arancini was very good but I thought the tomato sauce was a tad sour. For entrees, we got the shrimp & scallops in pesto sauce and chicken marsala to share. The shrimp and scallops in pesto sauce was very good. The pasta was cooked al dente. It had a lot of pesto flavor which I liked. The chicken marsala was served over linguine and came with lightly breaded chicken, prosciutto, mushrooms in a sweet marsala sauce. It was wonderful! For dessert, we shared a tiramisu and molten chocolate cake. The chocolate cake also came with vanilla ice cream, diced strawberries, and whipped cream. Both were delicious and not overly sweet. Portions were generous. Definitely a hidden gem in Melrose! read more

See all

Ordered takeout of linguine w/ clams in pesto sauce and chicken penne w/ broccoli. That Pesto sauce was heavenly! Chicken was very moist and buttery. Big portion that I had a left over meal for the next day. read more

Giacomo's - a plate of pasta with clams - Italian Near Me - Melrose, Massachusetts

The reviews were right, these chefs know how to cook! We started with the arancini app, which is what we typically begin with and they were different than I've ever seen. They're mini balls! The outside was nice and crispy and the inside was flavorful, but there just wasn't much of it so it was just different than the the regular sized arancini balls I'm used to. Let's get to the star of the show! Chicken Marsala. What a rich and perfect sauce, tender chicken and linguine. Totally succulent. Hubby said his chicken broccoli penne was good, but he liked mine better too! Keeping the pandemic in mind, service was super slow. But our waiter was busting his butt, moving fast to tend to his tables. I was impressed with his energy and efforts and tipped appropriately. The one star off is for a combo of slow service (which is understandable, but detracted from the evening just the same) and the decor. The inside could use some updating. It looks like it's out of the 80s. And the music was so bizarre for dinner service. I think it was classic rock! Thought there isn't much ambiance, we will certainly eat here again and again and again and I will certainly keep ordering the Chicken Marsala on repeat! read more

See all