Mare E Monti Trattoria

My favorite Italian restaurant in Worcester. People are nice and attentive. The pastas are fantastic and good portion. I love the seafood pasta which has mussel, shrimps, Scollops in it (forgot it’s name)

What a wonderful secret gem in the neighborhood! In short, the menu has a ton of dishes that all sound delicious, so my group ordered a bunch of dishes to try and while all dishes are rated solid to delish, my favorites are the lobster ravioli and the mushroom ravioli. The Frutti di Mare, comes in a close 3^rd. The Pappardelle alla Bolognese is next on my list to try!
The exterior is nothing to rave about, but once you step inside you are welcomed to exposed brick and high ceilings. Honestly, I would never have guessed the deliciousness I was about to devour before stepping inside.
I came here for a graduation dinner, we made reservations for 4pm for 14 people on a Sunday evening. And good thing we did because the restaurant fills up quick. They have a small kitchen so I was happy they allowed us to put in our order before hand so they could prep the food in advance.
Portions are the usual large Italian sized plates. We got 6 appetizers, 11 entrees, and a couple of desserts for the table and I felt like I had carbo loaded enough to run a marathon.

This is probably my favorite Italian restaurant EVER!
The bad: The wait time to get a table. This place is so popular that if you want a table, you have to be ready to wait around an hour or more.
The good: Everything. The Food it feels legit Italian food. I ate the anatra (duck) it was delicious. Oh and the desert, the desert! That Nutella moose.
Definitely will be coming back.

Salad and appetizers with family at the Bar. Delicious! PEI mussels, Polenta, Caprese salad and drinks, I live out of town but I will be back again

I’ve eaten here twice now. Both experiences were excellent. My boyfriend and I set out in quest of Italian food one night only to discover that our initial destination was not open. We were within proximity of Mare & Manti, and since I drive by it on my daily commute to work, I suggested we check it out. My first compliment is for the ambiance. The exposed brick walls with wooden features and soft lighting yield a vibe that is both modern and a little rustic. The service was prompt, friendly and precise. The food? Oh my… I could spend an hour describing the menu and how it makes so many classic comfort foods sound extra classy by using gourmet ingredients, but that doesn’t even matter, does it? You want to know if it tastes good! Well my answer to that question is an emphatic «YES!» They start you off with some complimentary bread and garlic infused olive oil for dipping (I could have easily filled up on this, but thankfully, my will is strong). On my first visit I ordered the amaretto chicken and fell in love after the first bite. It was creamy. It was nutty. It was delicate and savory. The fresh pasta they serve really makes a difference too. On my next trip I decided to order my all time favorite, a much more «basic» dish — chicken parm. It’s a simple meal, but you’d be surprised how often restaurants ruin it by doing things like drowning the meat in a mediocre red sauce, or coating the chicken in flavorless /​greasy breadcrumbs. I was very happy with the dish I was served here. The meat had a nice crust with an appropriate radio ratio of sauce and cheese. My boyfriend’s meals were equally impressive (eggplant parm and mushroom ravioli respectively). We shared an almond mascarpone torte after our second meal at Mare & Manti and I barely resisted the desire to lick the plate clean. This has become one of our favorite restaurants for a romantic, upscale night off from cooking and cleaning in our own kitchen. The prices are very reasonable — if you’re not ordering wine or cocktails, you could easily enjoy a really impressive meal for under $ 50. If you haven’t eaten here, I recommend you try it as soon as possible. And if you want to impress someone with your restaurant choice, this is a safe bet to say the least!

I’m not a snooty gourmet who looks down her nose at restaurants that serve the wrong kind of truffle oil or don’t arrange the dining room according to the principles of Feng Shui. I merely expect that food should be tasty, hot, cooked from scratch, and served with concern.
First, the good. Service was very good. Atmosphere nice. Prices ok.
The problem was the food was not hot, and not cooked from scratch. I had asked the waitress to cook the eggplant for the eggplant parm in a pan with some olive oil instead of being cooked in a deep fat fryer. She told me that they precooked the eggplant, and then put the finishing touches when I ordered.
I know probably a lot of people would complain if dishes took 30 minutes to come out of the kitchen, and table turnover would be impacted, but it really would have been nice to have the eggplant cooked from scratch, and everything hot when it arrived at the table. Instead, everything was barely warm.
And no, I did not send it back, because they just would have boiled it in the microwave.
Too bad most restaurants are food reheating places rather than places that actually make food from scratch.
Sad, because the ingredients for an excellent meal are in place here. Excellent bread, great sauce, al-​dente pasta.

We were on our way to NC from Boston and looked in Unilocal to determine where we would stop for dinner. Decided to stop here based on reviews. The food was amazing and the service was wonderful! Highly recommend it!

My boyfriend and I are true «foodies» and after reading all of these reviews I went to mare e monti 3 times hoping to like it as much as everyone else! I kept telling myself maybe it was just what I ordered, something like that. The caprese salad was good not amazing, the cheese was fresh. I have had buffalo mozzarella that just melts in your mouth, this was tasty but not the best I have had. My meal every time I go in I am disappointed. The first time I had gone I had the mushroom ravioli which had way too much Parmesan and one thing I keep noticing with all my meals I cannot find the food because there is WAY too much sauce. My boyfriend gets the baked lobster meal which had a huge clump of not melted cheese on top which he pushed to the side because it was too hard to eat and the sauce for his meal was like liquid, not good. I ordered something Andrea and it was 4 – 5 uncooked pieces of shrimp in a huge bowl of sauce and some penne (seriously) I could have made that at home in 20 minutes. Nothing special, nothing extra in the plate just always a huge bowl of sauce.
The waitress came over noticed we didn’t eat much asked if we didn’t like the food. We told her we weren’t satisfied with it but we ate as much as we could. She then told the owner, who in turn DEATH stared us until we had to leave it was so uncomfortable.
They offered a free desert, which that was not my point of telling the waitress. But either way got the tiramisu and that was actually pretty good.
Atmosphere is great. Won’t go back again.

We have always had some great food here, they have homemade pasta for an extra fee — always worth it– but I have to say my favorite is the dessert… the almond tort! I dream of this dessert… it was delicious!
they don’t take reservations, so you do need to get there early (I’ve been there when they have had an hour and a half to two hour wait) and street parking is difficult sometime, but they have free valet so take advantage!

We arrived early on a Saturday evening, around 5:15. They don’t take reservations on the weekends, so we wanted to avoid too long of a wait. We wound up waiting about 40 minutes in the bar area. Dress code seemed business casual and better.
We started with the arancini and Pomodoro Gorgonzola. The Pomodoro Gorgonzola had good flavor, but suffered from underripe tomatoes. The arancini were awesome.
I had the zuppa di pesce which was awesome. Big bowl of delicious broth and seafood, a welcomed follow on to the heavier appetizers. My wife had the Pollo Giuseppe, also very good but rich. She couldn’t finish. No dessert.
Parking is challenging as it’s in a hood. They have complimentary valet which most were using after it got busy.
This really should be a 4.5 star IMO.

*Singing* «Simply the best, better than all the rest!»
Definitely a MUST TRY! :)

My grandfather used to play in a band at the old old El Morocco, so I am very familiar with the area and was psyched to see a new restaurant on the street.
I decided to meet some of my former colleagues there for a catch-​up dinner. We were NOT disappointed (well, a little. More on that later).
I had Frutti di Mare, and it did not disappoint. There were no shrimpy shrimp in this dish. Everything was large and succulent. The flavor was out of this world, and the service was impeccable.
Here is where the disappointment comes in — the portions were so huge and so delicious, we didn’t have any room to try their desserts! They did bring a tray over, and it truly pained all of us to have to decline. We will be back again, and will hopefully be able to control ourselves during the appetizer and entrée rounds :)

Came for a Valentine’s Day dinner. Read really good reviews and decided to try. Not in the best location in Worcester but it’s like a secret local favorite off the beaten path. Parking can be a challenge but there is a lot 2 houses passed the restaurant that you can use. I heard there is also valet some nights.
We sat at the bar and was taken care of by Armando. Great bartender and very attentive. Their bread is baked fresh every morning and cut for each table. The olive oil has roasted garlic in it… Mmm. We had the bolognese which was so delicious and the seafood soup which was packed with seafood including haddock, shrimp, lobster, clams, and muscles. Only change i would make is to not put the crostini into the soup. The chowder we had to start was also really good. Big bowl filled with tons of clams.
We will be back for some more soon.

So thrilled I finally got a chance to try this place out. The hype is definitely true. Love everything from the setting (intimate/​romantic/​hidden/​classy/​cosy) to the food and service. I ordered the Pappardelle alla Bolognese and UGHHH, it was one of the best bolognese I have had. The meat had a really rich flavor and the pasta was fresh. It was also a ginormous portion. I had 3 meals of out it. Like most other italian places, you also get bread. Didn’t love the bread but it was still great.
Obviously, it’s a little more expensive, especially if you get drinks… but so worth it. I’d definitely come back here again. Great for date nights :)

Wow. Just wow. Everything from the bread and oil to the appetizer and the entrée were absolutely amazing. My equally amazing waitress, Kym, brought over the tray of desserts, all looking fabulous. Unfortunately I had to decline because the meal was so good and I was full.
The appetizer I chose was the Tonno Carpaccio. It’s basically flattened tuna with capers and other spices. Loved every bit of it.
For the entrée I got the Argosta all fettuccini special. The shrimp, lobster and home made pasta was seasoned and cooked perfectly.
My only wish is that I had room for dessert. Prices were very reasons for such high quality all around. I will be back here very soon.

Went here the other day with my sister and brother-​in-​law. We’ve eaten all over the country, Chicago, NYC, Los Angeles, etc…, and we came away saying this was one of the best Italian meals we’ve had. And we each ordered three different dishes.
We got there fairly early around 5:45, and we found the place already packed. There was a small wait, and we could see why. The décor seems like a restaurant you’d find in a larger city. The intimate lighting and the exposed brick really set a great environment.
I ordered the Spaghetti con Polpette with meatballs and sausage, and let me first say the portions are huge. We all have healthy appetites, and we all had about half our plates to take home. So there’s quantity, what about quality? Pretty proportional. The pasta was freshly made, and there was an abundance of tasty sauce to go with it. Enough that when you reheated the leftovers the next day, the dish still tasted great.
The other dishes ordered were the Spaghetti alle Vongole and the Pappardelle alla Bolognese. Both were of equal quantity and quality. Feeling full we weren’t planning on dessert until the server brought over the actual dishes on a tray. We ended up splitting a nutella, chocolate pie dish which was just as great as our entrees.
We were very happy with this gem tucked away in a residential neighborhood of Worcester, and we can’t wait to return to try the other dishes.
NOTE: There was a lot of street parking but there’s also complimentary valet.

A very good place to chill.
Foods amazing. Should try the pastas real good.
We were 15 of us and still had great service.
Makes sense to cal for reservations.
The host is very welcoming.
Would go again

Lets get the obvious out of the way Mare E Monti is in one weird-​ass location, on a residential street in a typical, somewhat threatening looking worcester neighborhood. Will I take off a star for lack of parking and weird neighborhood you ask? Perhaps if their food wasn’t outta control.
Went here around 4:30/5 on a Saturday night (we have a kid don’t judge please), either way they sat us quickly and were very accommodating, especially the hostess. My wife ordered the anti-​pasto appetizer which was huge and also delish. I ordered the simple spaghetti and meatballs/​sausage. The spaghetti was awesome, seemed home-​made, if not there then in someone else’s home, the sauce was simple and perfect.
We were both craving Italian and it hit the frigin spot! With a bottle of wine and 2 meals the bill was very modest, the nice thing about being in Worcester I guess. By the time we left around 6 the bar area was packed and a wait had built up, because obviously other people have read these Unilocal reviews. I would highly recommend this if you are craving Italian and don’t wanna deal with the parking/​prices of Boston.

The food, service and atmosphere is on point. Everyone at my table (13 of us) enjoyed every bite. The servers where quick to the tables, and with refills. The kids loved there chicken tenders.and.pasta with meatballs. Everything was fresh and clean. The food presentations made the food look just as amazing as it tasted.
My only complaint is the location, and the dim lighting in the restaurant. Would be. nice with couples but when groups are talking to each other, it’s hard to see each other. A bit pricey but worth every bite.
Has a bar area too. Typical set up but then seating. wraps around the bar area room. Little strange but plenty of seating. Not enough good things I can say about this place. Skip olive garden, go here instead.

Saw Mare e Monti on Phantom Gourmet and it looked like something we should check out. Then we checked it out on Unilocal and saw that it had 4−½ stars!
We decided we wouldn’t go on a Saturday night because we weren’t sure what the waits would be, so we decided to early Sunday evening.
We got there about 4:45 and were seated right away. The décor is very cozy and rustic with brick walls and dimly lit chandeliers. Very cozy padded chairs.
Their menu is very interesting and not your usual boring typical Italian choices, although I did notice some familiar looking entrees.
I was torn between the Scallops with lemon sauce over linguini (which was a special), Vitello Vincenzo (which I believe is like Marsala) or Merluzzo a Forno. I chose the Merluzzo a Forno which was Baked lemon and herb crusted haddock filet, served with spinach and parmigiano risotto and Italian string beans. The haddock was superbly cooked, the risotto super creamy and tasty, and the green beans, delicious.
The hubby got Vitello alla Parmigiana, an Italian herb breaded Provini veal, pan fried in extra virgin olive oil, in a pomodoro sauce topped with romano and mozzarella served with choice of pasta. He said the veal was huge, delicious and super tender. Exactly what you want in a veal dish.
Our waiter Chris, was very friendly, informative and very attentive.
We asked to see the dessert tray, but was so full we don’t know what we were thinking. The desserts sure did look delicious and homemade.
We settled for coffee as our dessert as we were so full we couldn’t have fit dessert if we wanted to.
This restaurant is a sure winner as far as we are concerned and will definitely return again.