Just had our last meal in Boston before heading back to the West Coast- pulled up "Best Italian restaurants in North End" and La Summa came up as number one. We were not disappointed- exceptional experience all around. Very authentic Italian food- so delicious! What added to the experience was the service- so friendly and welcoming- felt like we were back in Italy. We will definitely be back!! Highly recommend !!! read more

La Summa - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

La Summa was one of my favorite restaurants pre-pandemic and now I'm so grateful to have them for takeout to enjoy the delicious food at home. The food is consistently wonderful, with the Pollo Limone being my absolute favorite, and the staff is consistently helpful. We've ordered for all our holidays and special occasions this year and it makes us feel a little more at home despite the distance from our family. I can't wait until we're all vaccinated and feel comfortable eating out here again. read more

Went here on a recommendation and so glad we did. It's not on one of the main streets with the majority of other Italian restaurants but it's worth searching for. We started out with the rice balls as an appetizer. Never had them before but they were incredible! Entrees were also amazing. Our waitress was so attentive that we felt like the only people in the restaurant, yet it wasn't intrusive. An amazing meal and awesome service! read more

La Summa has spectacular and tasty food as well as great service. Nelson was our waiter and he was absolutely amazing!! Not only was the staff friendly, but the atmosphere was also great. We did have to wait a little but it was absolutely worth the wait!! We ordered the mussels (Cozze) and the pasta on the side. Even though the mussels were considered an appetizer, there was SO MUCH! The pasta was the best I've had in my life. They gave us biscotti at the end too :) read more

La Summa - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

My wife and I could not have been more pleased with this choice. Small place away from the crowds. The hostess and waitress were extremely nice. The atmosphere was warm and cozy, and the food was GREAT!! Highly recommend. Make a reservation. You will not be disappointed! read more

Was I dining in the same place as the other reviewers were? What a disappointment. I really wanted to like this place, but just can't recommend it. Restaurant was located down a dingy side street off of Hanover. Walking into the restaurant, our first thought was it was very dark. We had a reservation and were seated quickly and water was brought to our table right away (good start). Waitress was patient as it took us all (we were a party of 4) a while to decide what we wanted. No bread was brought until after we ordered. Bread was not up to other North End restaurant standards. It looked and tasted like a sliced loaf from the grocery store and wasn't even warm. Our food did not arrive at the same time. Two dishes came out first (there were four of us), my son's and mine. I had Fettuccini Alfredo and he had chicken, sausage and broccoli rabe over pasta. The portions were tiny to say the least. Some of the reviewers mentioned that they served hearty portions which is one of the reasons we chose this restaurant as I have a college athlete son who needs a lot of food. What does it cost to put a little more pasta in the dish? We then proceeded to wait for the other's dishes to arrive. My son's girlfriend's gnocchi came out about 5 minutes after mine, and again a tiny portion. We continued to wait for the final dish before we started eating. Our waitress disappeared and 7-10 minutes later the busgirl brings over the last dish, lemon chicken. We then proceeded to dig into 3 lukewarm (because of the wait time for the final dish) pasta dishes. The pasta dishes were average at best. The lemon chicken was tough and overcooked. We won't be returning to La Summa. read more

La Summa was the perfect place to celebrate graduation - the atmosphere is cozy and charming, and the food is fabulous. We loved the arancini, salads, gnocchi, and service. Definitely the place for authentic Italian in the north end. read more

We had a table of 7 on Sunday night of 4th of July weekend so we were worried about the service with every place being very busy. We were pleasantly surprised to receive great service and our waitress was extremely helpful and knowledgeable about the menu. She made great recommendations and we thoroughly enjoyed all of our meals. The fresh pasta was exceptional in each of the different sauces we had tried. The prices were extremely reasonable for both food and bottles of wine. We will definitely return and recommend this restaurant to others looking to try some place new in the north end! read more

What a nice find in the North End. Charming small restaurant with nice service and great Italian food. The wine list was quite reasonably priced, and the food was delicious. The price range is most affordable and I highly recommend! read more

Absolutely love La Summa! I've been coming here for years and by far it's my favorite place to eat in the North End. First off, the people that work there are so friendly and so welcoming. I truly feel, combined with the ambiance and small-restaurant feel, that I'm at someone's house for dinner. Love the fireplace and dark lighting. Most importantly, the food is not only reasonably priced (rare in the North End) but delicious as well. The arancini is a perfect starter to share. I always get the chicken parm entree -- a huge cutlet served on a plate of house-made pasta. Definitely get your money's worth here. I've recommended La Summa to several others and have never been disappointed. A true North End gem. read more

La Summa is the best restaurant in the North End hands down. The food is incredible and the prices are realistic unlike other restaurants in the area. You seriously can't go wrong with anything on the menu!! read more

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Ok guys, no joke the best place ever!!! Susan was our server and was the most incredible server I've ever had. She was funny, quick, friendly, knowledgeable...a-mazing!!! Now let's talk about the food......handmade pasta!!! The BEST!!! The owner makes the pasta everyday. It's insane! We had the chicken sausage cacciatore, chicken marsala, and a white sauce dish from heaven with procuitto. Everyone that's paying triple the amount on hanover....you're cheating yourselves.....come to this place. You wont regret it. By the way, I dont know what olive oil they use but it's the best ever! read more

It's our favorite go to North End restaurant. Food is fabulous, owner and her staff are terrific. Always feel at home when we are there. Very comfortable. Moving to AZ but when we come back it will be our first stop from Logan. Be there this Friday. Can't wait. CThe other Sharon and John read more

Great food reasonably priced. Cozy family friendly atmosphere. I went with Caesar salad and chicken parmigiana and it was delicious! My only complaint was that I overate because it was so good! read more

Went to la Suma on a busy Saturday night during the Charles River Regatta, expecting that it might be exceptionally busy, but the service was outstanding. Excellent, classic North End family-style restaurant. Dinner for four with wine and appetizers was still only about $200.00! Veal/chicken parm dishes cost only about $23, while other places in the North End charge double! No ferns or leaves thrown on top the food to hide what's underneath; just outstanding, simple, stomach-filling, delicious Italian food served by an attentive but not obtrusive waiter, Chris. Lemon chicken was incredible, as was the veal parm! Highly recommend if you want a great, meal at a great price in a classic, family-owned North End restaurant. read more

Whenever we're in the North End La Summa is a must. Have been coming here for years and it never disappoints. True Italian home cooking, marinara / ravioli sauces are so good we order extra to soak up with bread. Just love this place, I hope it never changes! Thank you Barbara for giving us amazing memories with our visits to your restaurant! read more

In Boston for short stay and came upon this place. My husband and I ate outside and thought the food was outstanding . Also, the staff was so friendly and accommodating. Would highly recommend. read more

Excellent food and outstanding, attentive service. We went there for an impromptu dinner on a busy 4th of July evening. We were not disappointed. I agree with other reviewers. If you are looking for an intimate romantic setting with authentic, uncompromised quality, La Summa is a good choice. This place is unpretentious, yet they treat you like royalty. Take someone you love to La Summa. read more

Last night's dinner was fabulous! The food was delicious and plentiful and the staff friendly and accommodating ! Would definitely return. Best of Boston!! read more

Food was ok, but my cutlery was dirty, the service was extremely slow, and they tried to charge us for a beverage when we did not order any. The appetizers were brought out with the main courses so we were waiting for a ridiculously long time even though we repeatedly asked for the appetizers first. They did fix the bill, but ended up charging us about a dollar more on the card than they showed us on the bill. Would not recommend. read more

Cute, warm, and some true ambiance. The menu wasn't that big but what they had were true cuisines. I ordered the Cozze (mussels) and the stuffed mushrooms. The mussels were amazing and super creamy. Although the white sauce was a little bit too salty for my liking, it didn't overpower the taste of the mussels at all. And the amount of mussels I received was outstanding. I struck gold. The stuffed mushrooms were also very tasty. You get 6, which are filled with their homemade stuffing. I should have asked what the stuffing was. Rookie mistake. But at the end of the day, it was just too good! The service was impeccable. The waitress gave us enough time to decide what we wanted and our water was constantly being refilled. By the time I left, I was full and hydrated. Overall, I really like this Italian place in the North End. read more

La Summa - Cozze - mussels in white sauce. - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

LOVE La Summa. Always my first recommendation when people ask me where to go for dinner in the North End. The food is delicious, the prices reasonable, the staff friendly, and it's not on Hanover Street, which is a bonus. The first time I went here it was with my college Italian class. Our professor was from Rome, and hand-picked La Summa for our "field trip" out of all the other restaurants in the neighborhood. I figured that had to be a good sign. More recently, I went for dinner with my dad and ate the most delicious stuffed manicotti I've ever tasted. Our waitress was very friendly and attentive, answered all our questions about various menu items, and even gave us tips about which wine to get. I only wish I had eaten there more, especially considering I used to live right across the street. Regardless, I will definitely be going back! read more

Where to eat in Little Italy in Boston on the spur of the moment? We lucked out on our first trip when we stumbled across La Summa. We didn't have a reservation on a Friday night (it was early), but they accommodated us. I wasn't expecting much from the usual Italian fare, but I was in for a treat. Chicken Parmagiana was out of this world! Crispy chicken on a bed of penne with delicious homemade marinara. A caprese salad was similarly great. Bread would have been a great meal in of itself! My friend had a pasta dish with eggplant that she said was revelatory. Would definitely go again if ever in Boston. read more

I visited La Summa with a friend a few weeks ago and we loved it. It had a great atmosphere, it was quiet and mellow away from the busy traffic of Hanover Street. I really enjoyed learning about reading the backstory behind the rest. The hospitality was awesome. The food was wonderful. The portions were large and the prices were reasonable. We ordered ravioli and chicken parmigiana, both were excellent. If I have the chance to dine in the North End again I would definitely visit this restaurant. read more

A comfortable, not so trendy place, where what really sold me was the meal. The stuffed mushrooms appetizer was to die for, and I don't even like mushrooms. I ordered the Pappardelle con melanzane for an entree and it was amazing, blew me away. Also the Falesco Sangiovese was the best wine I'd had in a long time. Only thing that put me off was we felt like we were being rushed out, but I was tipsy so I didn't care too much. read more

If I had a Nonna that cooked food for me, this is what I imagine it would taste like. I like La Summa because it doesn't try to be trendy and modern. It's good, old-fashioned food made by hard-working people. It doesn't try to be a tourist spot and I appreciate La Summa for that. I can go there when I want and get a table. I can hold a conversation without yelling. I can leave without my wallet getting emptied on some modern interpretation of food that is beautiful and delicious the way it has been for years. I love that I feel like the people there really have pride in their place and stick to good, solid dishes. They are always full of flavor, authentic, and delicious. Great service, great prices, great food. read more

We were the "Worst Diner Ever!" and we still got great service. "Hi we don't have a reservation." "Oh Thanks for the table, but we have a couple more joining us, can we move to a bigger table?" "Oh thanks, we have some more people coming, can we have them disturb you other diners?" "Great!" "Can we get the check quick so we can catch the plane to Italy?" "Wonderfull" Belive it or not they did all we asked. We had a 4 hour layover in Boston around dinner time on a Saturday. On the recomendation of the guy working at the taxi stand, we went there. On the way I called my sister. She came to join us w/ her 1 year old. Then my other Sister and her Husband and 3 kids came by. We we pandemonium. They handled it remarkably well considering that we did not have a reservation. The food was pretty kick ass too! Arancini, hmmmmmmmm. read more

I've gotta say, I haven't been to a bad Italian food establishment in the north end...they are all great. La Summa is off the beaten path of Hanover, which means less crowds, yay! Reasonable prices, fresh quality ingredients, romantic table setting, I like this place. I had a homemade pasta dish with meatballs. Uhh so good. The sauce is a sweet and very very flavorful. Meatballs were very moist, large, and I liked the unusually high ratio of Italian sausage to beef- different! Pasta was soft, chewy but not soggy perfectly cooked. The whole thing, bite after bite, was a wonderful experience. The bread to start, dipped in olive oil, is exceptional as well. My friend had the special- spinach gnocchi with chicken and shrimp, covered in a basil pesto sauce. Also an excellent dish! To our surprise, the portion of chicken and shrimp was quite large, which was nice. Normally you get maybe 3 tiny pieces of shrimp.. this dish was not lacking meat! The gnocchi were green, chewy and yummy. Manicotti, also a good choice. Riccotta filling was creaming and delicious, I'd get that next time I go. I would definitely come back with out of towners! Since dinner was great, next time I'd like to try dessert :) read more

I hear you can't go wrong with any place in the North End, and I keep meaning to test this theory but I always end up at La Summa because it's just so darn good! Off the beaten path (ie. not on Hanover St) I have never had to wait for a table. Actually, there have never been more than three other groups... kind of makes me wonder how they stay in business, which kind of makes me really sad. The atmosphere is intimate and charming, complete with a fireplace (as the best intimate and charming places are). I've had the same waiter every time - which probably means I should remember his name, but I don't because I suck. He's adorable and very attentive. I want to adopt him as my Italian grandfather. Then I wouldn't need to learn his name, I could just call him "Nonno." As for the food... My friends and I have tried several different pastas and have always been impressed. My personal favorite is the Pasta Spinaci. I'm a sucker for a good cream sauce, and this is pure creamy deliciousness. Plus, it has spinach, so it's healthy, right? The Insalata Della Casa is also ridiculously good. So good it seems like a dessert masquerading as a salad. My palate and my waistline approve. Unfortunately, I've never had room for actual dessert. I keep meaning to pace myself... just like I keep meaning to try other North End Italian joints. But alas, I always find myself venturing a block over to Fleet St. And in the end, I'm always glad I did. read more

Faces possibly the oldest Italian restaurant in the North End of Boston. Barbara the owner personally invited us to the restaurant and we are glad we took her up on her invitation. The food was incredible comforting like eating at Grandma's. Even my fourteen-year-old said we should give it a 5 on Yelp. The food was incredible. read more

La Summa - We met the owner at a local grocery store in North End Boston, we came to her restaurant and was not disappointed. - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

My husband and I came here on a recommendation from a friend after spending a few hours grabbing after-work drinks on a Friday evening. We had been out on Broad Street and wanted to get dinner in the North End, but didn't have reservations at any of Hanover Street's popular restaurants. My impression of the decor = Your Little Old Italian Granny's Living Room My impression of the food = Your Little Old Italian Granny's Dining Room One big plus was that there was no wait at 9:00 p.m. when we arrived. Another plus was the friendly service. The food was definitely old school, nothing fancy, but all was homemade and very good. I had the gnocchi and my husband had the veal piccata. We shared an order of the arancini and a bottle of reasonably-priced red. We were both more than satisfied with our Italian dinner, and we walked away with take away boxes for tomorrow's lunch. All in all, it was a nice spot to get a homey, neighborhood meal when you're looking for something slightly laid back. If you want the whole blow-me-away North End experience, you might want to try a different spot. read more

Comfortable like your grandma's house. I mean literally. There's a random bookshelf full of old-looking photo frames right in your face as soon as you open the door. Why can't they move that back like 5 inches? Anyways. Despite the old-ish decor, and old-ish crowd to match, this place has what everyone looks for in this part of town - some good-ass Italian food. I came here with the parental units who were in town, as well as the bf. We got 2 apps and 3 entrees (2 of which my mom, dad and I shared) and this was more than enough food. We also had a great, inexpensive bottle of Chianti - a must-have with Italian, of course. The food. -Caprese was large, very good cheese and decent quality tomatoes. Yummy basil. -Stuffed mushroom app was awesome. The bf even liked it and he doesn't prefer to have mushrooms most of the time! -Pappardelle with eggplant...oh yeah, this is where it's at. What a unique meal. The pasta was made and cooked with perfection. I typically don't love larger pastas, but this wasn't dense like fettucini can be...it was light and complimented the eggplant wonderfully. -Fusilli was also cooked well, and although a simple dish with just their homemade sauce, it 100% should not be overlooked. The sauce with the pasta and wine all joined forces in my body and I thought for a brief fleeting moment that I was in Italy. -bf got a seafood dish that he really liked. No room for dessert, but that's what Vittoria is for. In any case, a great place to take parents, and a place to share food as the portions are huge. Will I be back, or will my propensity for being hip prevent me?...TBD. read more

La Summa is one of those restaurants that is a perfect 3 stars. Definitely no more. And probably no less. We had reservations for 9 people (6 adults, 3 kiddos) for 7:30pm on a Saturday during on of the North End's Italian festivals. We were seated by 8pm, not so bad considering we made the reservations only a few hours before and the streets were packed with peeps. The ambiance for La Summa is definitely geared more towards the romantic and fancy. They did not have a kids menu (we didn't do much research ahead of time), but they were willing to make the kids anything they requested. I will say it took a good 20 minutes for our server to come over to get our drink orders (beer or wine only), another 10 minutes for our food order, and I lost track of how long to get bread, but we were losing our patience by then. Bruschetta (with melted cheese?) was delicious as well as the crab balls. My fellow diners seemed to enjoy their meals, but I on the other hand thought it was lacking flavor. It was the Frutti De Mare ($28) and had scallops, shrimp, calamari, and mussels over homemade linguini. The pasta was phenomenal and I found myself digging down to the bottom of the dish past the seafood to get to it! With so many choices for Italian cuisine on the North End, I probably will not be going back the next time I visit Boston. I do recommend, though, if you're dining at La Summa to try any of their homemade pastas. read more

We went to La Summa after reading great reviews on yelp, and were highly impressed! The last couple of times we went to the North End, we went blind, with no restaurant recommendations--big mistake. We got overpriced mediocre food. Thanks to reading the reviews on this place, we had a much better dinner. La Summa is a step above in taste, and lower in price than many other neighboring restaurants. I had the manicotti, and it was incredible! The pasta was made fresh, and the sauce and cheese filling were delicious (I assume they were also made fresh). As you walk into the restaurant they have a bookshelf filled with family photos, instead of the usual hostess station. It was a neat touch. It's not super fancy, but the food is awesome. I'd wholeheartedly recommend it! read more

First, let me say THE FOOD IS EXCELLENT HERE. It is in fact the best homestyle Italian cuisine I have had in the North End. La Summa is a cozy, exposed-brick room with a fireplace. When you walk in there is a bookshelf filled with family photos, which I loved. It has a slight feeling of being in someone's home, which is not entirely superficial - La Summa is family owned and operated. I much prefer this kind of Italian restaurant than the more upscale nouveau trattorias and definitely more than the overpriced tourist traps with lines down Hanover Street. It's on a side street right off Hanover, easy to walk to. We made a reservation, but didn't need it, though we were there early-ish (7 pm) on a Thursday. It got pretty crowded around 9 and stayed that way. I've lived in Boston eight years. Not very long, but long enough to know to choose restaurants in the North End based on reviews of the food. Randomly choosing a place to eat has never gotten me a good meal in the North End or any Italian neighborhood in the US, and restaurant websites are often misleading. Additionally, I try to stay off Hanover Street unless it is for pizza. At La Summa, the sauces are fantastic. The only time I order pasta at a restaurant is at a place like this. It's all about the sauces! I highly recommend the pappardelle e melanzane (wide semolina noodles sauteed in a tomato-based sauce with eggplant) and the gnocchi was the freshest I've ever had - you could taste the potato, and again, the sauce was fabulous. The wine list is small but has a decent selection of Italian wines in a varied price range ($28-90) from all different regions. It would be nice if they would add a more affordable Piemonte option, like a Barbera d'Alba. The waitstaff was cheerful and attentive. The only reason I don't give La Summa more stars is that the kitchen was very slow. We got our appetizer fairly quickly (the arancini, which was ok but a bit overcooked) but then waited 30-40 minutes for our main course. Not being a weekend night or an occasion to have a long, drawn out dinner, this was not good for us. Luckily we had a good bottle of wine and some bread and evoo to tide us over. Other than that one glitch, the positive reviews I'd read were accurate, and it was nice to dine in a place where the four of us could hear each other well enough to talk and catch up, and the North End is always vibrant and a lovely walk with lots of beautiful buildings and history. I highly recommend La Summa. read more

Lasumma is a great old-fashioned italian restaurant. The food is orthodox but absolutely delicious. Unlike many of the restaurants in the north end, it is completely homey here, they aren't trying to be flashy or fancy or anything. As a result, the atmosphere here is refreshingly mellow and tourist free. When I went there we had the arancini, a couple of veal dishes, and ricotta cheesecake. All standard, classic recipes, but all executed perfectly. I'll be back again. read more

I have been going here for years, and have recommended it to loads of people. I love everything on the menu. The key feature is the home-made pasta. The meat dishes are great because they all have perfect gravy, you can tell everything is cooking in broilers for hours. My only problem with it is the bread, they need to get a better bread in there and serve it warm. Nice warm, dark interior, loads of fun to knock down a bottle of wine... enjoy read more

What a great restaurant! The food came out relatively quickly. Several choices of wine. Good ambiance. Definitely will come back and recommend to friends. read more

La Summa is an excellent Italian restaurant in Boston's North End. I had the chicken parmigiana, which was delicious, as was the accompanying pasta. The wait staff was friendly and helpful. There's a fair amount of seating, but you might want to make a reservation, just in case. The next time I'm in Boston, I'd like to go back. read more

I'm glad we managed to get a reservation on Saturday for a restaurant in the North End. Dining with 8 is always difficult, but La Summa had a nice table waiting for us. Unfortunately, the food was underwhelming. I started with a Caesar salad and the dressing was very bland. I make my own Caesar dressing, so I wasn't looking for generic bottled dressing-- just maybe some more cheese and anchovy/salt. They brought over cold sliced bread for the table and the olive oil on the table was tasteless. For dinner, I had the stuffed manicotti. The pasta itself was pretty good, but it was just an explosion of cheese and sauce on a plate. A typical Italian-American dish I guess. I wasn't blown away by it. I also had some of my sister's seafood special. I think there was only one scallop? The prices were decent and the server was nice. One more thing, as we were leaving the restaurant if was very crowded because of the festival. We were trying to get to the street and I tried to move out of the way for someone I think was the hostess..and she exclaimed "this isn't a walkway! I hate you people". So, I'll just hope that wasn't actually the hostess, but that was very uncalled for. read more