THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Marcuccio's

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Marcuccio's Restaurant Review:

Large by North End standards, Marcuccio’s is made more intimate by the wall that separates the dining area into two somewhat cozy rooms. Full-length windows (that are opened, weather permitting) set the scene upfront while a semi-open kitchen fills the back of the house. In between bare brick and faux-marble-painted walls are occasionally joined with oddly cut slabs of concrete. The original wall art offers playful interpretations of Mona Lisa, Botticelli’s Venus and other similarly styled paintings from Renaissance Italy. The sound system is just as quirky moving from Miles Davis to James Brown. But before you think this au courant and playful ambience mandates cute food, banish the thought because chef/co-owner Chuck Draghi is a precise practitioner. The dishes are objects of fastidious beauty, whether they’re such appetizers as charred calamari and seared scallops dusted with black pepper and served in a small pool of saffron broth with escarole, or such entrees as roasted and grilled fish in tomato water sauce. Draghi swears he uses no oil or butter for his sauces and we’ll believe him, as the intensity of flavors and thinness of his sauces/waters/broths is reliable witness to his claim. The wine list is unusual in that you’ll find no Chardonnay or Cabernet Sauvignon it. Instead there are plenty of wines featuring indigenous Italian grapes like Vermentino and Ruche. Someone on the wait staff is familiar enough with the wine list to steer you (sometimes Draghi himself will leave his kitchen post) to a bottle after a discussion of your preferences. Quite simply, Draghi cooks very good food from a menu that changes almost daily to reflect what’s market fresh. If you call ahead, he will prepare a multi-course chef’s tasting menu (wine included) at a price that will astound you.