Teatro, Downtown Crossing

I have been a fan Teatro since it opened many years ago.  I enjoy the atmosphere, the friendly service and of course the food, which has always been consistently great.  I decided to go for dinner this week after about a year of not visiting and again was not disappointed in any way.   Teatro remains solidly good in my opinion.

On a miserably rainy Tuesday I arrived with my friend Karen without reservation at the surprisingly busy restaurant.   We did look for a seat at their small but busy bar and decided that the main restaurant was the only option.  Greeted by a very friendly host we told them we had no reservation to which he said “not a problem, please follow me.”  We were seated in the center row of the restaurant very close to two other tables.  Teatro definitely keeps it cozy. 

I love the architecture of Teatro made for a cavernous and loud atmosphere. This is definitely one of those places where if you want a quiet dinner, this is not the place.  However, if you want something fun, noisy and where you can hear someone else’s conversation, this place is perfect.  The design of the ceiling is striking white and pale blue and I love the open kitchen.  The people watching is quite interesting from the business crowd, to the pre- and after-theater crowd, to the girls on a random mid-week night out, like us.

Their menu is Italian inspired with lots of tasty options from small plates to share to pastas offering half and full portions to crispy flatbread pizzas and more serious entrees of sirloin steak and seared scallops. 

Our evening started with fresh, soft bread and garlicky hummus while we looked at the menu. 

We were all about trying lots of different things and sharing.  Looking through the smaller plate options we started with the Whipped Ricotta.  It was quite possibly one of the most heavenly dishes I have had in ages and could have easily doubled up as a dessert.  Served with crispy bread we put large dollops of this white, super creamy ricotta, drizzled with sweet honey and olive oil onto our bread, took a bite and then had a moment of silence.  It was fantastic! High praise for something so simple.

Next was the Truffled deviled Eggs.  I am a huge fan of deviled eggs and these; small little numbers laced with a hint of truffle were really tasty.

The Tuna Tartare, our third choice for small bites was very prettily presented in a little bowl filled with fresh tiny chopped melt in your mouth tuna with a sharp kick of lime, crunchy cucumber and a bite of chili.  Lovely.

Four our entree dishes we shared the Mushroom Pizza and Fetucelle with Rock Shrimp pasta dish. 

The pizza is crisp and flat with a thin layer of olive oil and strewn with earthy mushrooms and spoonfuls of goat cheese across the pizza, which I happily spread over the mushroom.  The pizza also had a lovely smoky flavor to it.  I do like crispy thin pizza and I loved this tomato’ less based version.   

We ordered the half portion of pasta, which is absolutely more than an enough.  Large flat spaghetti pasta cooked perfectly al dente with chunks of chopped sweet shrimp and tomatoes with a lemon infused buttery taste.  The pasta was a little too garlicky for me, however my friend loved it.  

Teatro is such a fun dining experience for any occasion. I would highly recommend you stop by for dinner sometime.

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