trattoria lucca

fantastic true italian. hands down, favorite downtown restaurant. very authentic food, love the atmosphere. the cauliflower sformatino has earned everybitof love it has received. only negative comment is that it can become very loud when full, but once the food arrives, there is no need for conversation anyway :)

parking is abittricky. delicious food. they must have taken care of the "liquid" license issue between my visit and the last review. brush up on your italian beforehand or you might have some trouble reading the menu. this is my new favorite place to eat.

i love this place!. this review is about a year late, but better late than never. i've been three times. the second time i went, a friend and i were debating over which entrée to split. the owner/chef overheard us and offered to make us half portions of both entrees. that was so kind of him and he certainly didn't have to, but it was definitely something i haven't forgotten. i also like the way ypu cam choose appetizers, because i love sampling a littlebitof everything. they have great desserts. i'll be back.

i have eaten @ lucca 3 times and it has been great. the restaurant is small and abitloud, but that is where the criticism ends....the food and service have been fantastic on all three visits. the duck is incredible, we had the featured oysters and ordered 6 more they were so good. great place, reasonable prices, just off king st.

5 more stars for ken veerdinski inside trattoria lucca when i first started out writing this blog i wanted to find those "hidden restaurant gems" that were off the beaten path and simply, incredible. it happened again. nestled in the sleepy elliotsborough neighborhood is trattoria luca. so nestled that if you didn't know if was there you would pass it. we went with friends whose husband is a native charlestonian and he didn't even know where it was. parking is abitchallenging since it's mostly residential, but with abitof patience we found a spot. the restaurant is lined with windows and very warm and welcoming. we were quickly seated at our four top by a very nice member of the staff. here's where i thought it was going to go abitsouth. expediting area our table was directly, i mean directly, in front of the kitchen. it was also where the servers congregated and chatted. top that with a very loud radio and we could barely engage in any conversation. when our server came by i ask

super crazy good food. went to lucca last night with my wife. the noise issue -- valid. they really need to deal with it -- sound baffling is cheap and ez to install. neighborhood issue is valid. it's very sketchy, but turning around. there were lot's of folks biking and walking even at 10 pm -- nice and alive.

so on to the food:

appetizer: crudo -- seriously one of the best things i have ever tasted in my life -- seriously. made with swordfish and was truly out of this world.

appetizer: golden beets -- very earthy, topped with walnuts and some sort of dressing from heaven.

appetizer: cauliflower cake -- holy cow that was delightful. tasted a littlebitlike a creme brulee without the sweetness. the little topping of (i think) bacon should be viewed as garnish as it overpowered the delicate flavors in the cake.

entree: gnudi -- wow and i thought gnocchi was the bomb -- gnudi is basically gnocchi without the potatoes. this was served in a red sauce with tiny, spicy and delicious meatballs.

overall -- get rid of the noise please but i'd go back for the food even if it was being served amongst a pack of wild dogs (which is sorta what it sounds like ;)

excellent food. one of my favorite spots in town. i will agree with other posts that it can get abitloud on a fri or sat night (somewhat small, but beautifully furnished, interior). but the food is tremendous, this is one of the best chefs in town. great for a date night. wine list is excellent.