Located at signalized intersection of US 6 and PA 296 in the small borough of Waymart, La Rustica Trattoria is local family owned Italian American restaurant offering full service dining and takeout.
They serve lunch and dinner 6 days a week (closed Monday) including Italian dinners including traditional pasta dishes, veal, chicken, seafood (served with salad & garlic bread), pizza (thin crust, pan, Sicilian style), sandwiches, burgers, hot & cold subs, fried appetizers, and wings. They also have a kids menu (10-) and senior menu (62+) too. The prices here seem pretty reasonable, most dinners in the $9-$14 range.
While driving through Northeast PA, I stopped for dinner at La Rustica Trattoria on a sunny Saturday afternoon. The place was pretty quiet when I arrived here, with only one regular enjoying dinner in the main dining room. Betsy (one of the owners & my waitress) greeted me and I was seated in the center of the room and given a menu. She said it would be a few minutes before she could take my order.
There are two dining rooms here with ample table seating with the main dining room and the second back dining room (probably for private dinners/functions). The atmosphere here is very homey with hanging plants, framed pictures, family photos, religious items (Roman Catholic/Pope), and art plates hanging on the walls.
Initially, I was going to order the Linguine with Red Clam Sauce, but I was told they did not have linguine. I quickly decided instead to order the Saturday dinner special which was Sausage Parmigiana with Spaghetti, salad, and garlic bread ($10.95 plus tax). The salad and baked garlic bread were brought out first. The side salad was comprised of crisp iceberg lettuce, green peppers, cucumbers, carrots, vine ripe tomatoes, red onions, and bleu cheese dressing (very thick) on the side. The baked garlic bread (sliced sub roll half) was firm and very buttery.
The entree was served in two separate dishes including three large grilled sausages topped with lots of tomato sauce (not thick) and melted mozzarella cheese and a side bowl of spaghetti (al dente) topped with tomato sauce. I actually dumped with bowl of spaghetti onto the large plate with the sausages and sprinkled grated parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes onto the dish. Other the tomato sauce not being thicker, the food tasted pretty good and it was filling. The waitress brought out the check after I finished and cleared the dishes.
Overall, La Rustica Trattoria was a good place to stop for dinner during my long road trip from New England to Central PA. The food was good and the prices here were reasonable. Joe (owner) who was working in the kitchen thanked me for stopping in. read more
