Scosso Ristorante & Martini Bar

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  How can u run out of gluten free pasta when there is a Shaw's next door and it's on your menu.

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  Posted on 07.15.13 Dennis R.

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  Very "Right now" hip spot in N Shore...but also the new Cougar spot. Hate when that happens. Food is great, order small plates to share for variety and more reasonable price. Drinks are priced like Boston and I cannot forget the fact that I'm technically in a mall, paying an In Town price. Good for girls night starters, martinis, etc, but nothing exciting beyond that. I have hopes for this place...but the crowd is not very "scene" anymore, and more older couple type. Bring the price point down and this could be a great night spot....and not just a 2 drink then leave.

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  Posted on 07.08.13 M S.

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  Drinks were good - apps were amazing - we thought we had a good things coming for dinner. I ordered the salmon and it came out raw. I asked her to cook it more and she said "This is how we serve it" I was expecting an Ok no problem, but she fought with me about how I wanted the salmon cooked. It was very unprofessional. It is too bad because we really wanted to love this place. Side note - the place is very beautiful inside, but you have to take an elevator and go down a hallway in the mall to use the bathroom - not safe for women.

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  Posted on 06.21.13 Alicia M.

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  Scosso is the place to be on a Thursday night.  The DJ Anthony Arduino was on point with the music, very appropriate and willing to mix in music of all kinds.  The bartenders were making all kinds spirits that electrified this night.  Not to
  Mention the dècor of the facility, classy yet elegant and inviting.  I recommend Scosso to anyone who wants to grab a great dinner or to someone who wants to spice up their weekday.

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  Posted on 06.19.13 John M.

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  Okay, I'm going to try to keep this short and sweet. Would've been 5 stars but the martinis were 'okay'...average to me as a former bartender and delicious to the average person (that may not always drink martinis). That brings us to 4.5 stars. Wait! There is a 3 Martini limit. Drop to 4 stars.  Our server was super sweet...but slow. It wasn't busy...and yet, we waited a while for drinks, service, etc. You take an elevator to the bottom floor to the bathroom...walk through creepy white halls, round a corner and you're there. Drop to 3 stars. But ah!! The food arrives! Add a star. 4 stars for this place. The food was OH so delicious. The Gnocci and Tortellini apps/small plates were gone in seconds, definitely recommended. It almost makes up for the 'eh' $11.00 Martinis and slow service. I'd go again, maybe try sitting at the bar.

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  Posted on 05.21.13 Princess L.

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  We made reservations so we had no problem with waiting. Out waitress was Stephanie and she was awesome! She gave us honest suggestions on the food and drinks based on our needs. From the very end she made it such an enjoyable experience that I'm writing this review as i return home. You must get the baked salad. I had the lemon chicken which was so tender and lemon-y. Husband had the salmon and was so happy with his choice. The only down side is the bathroom location. It feels like 4 flights down. Can't wait to go back but concerned about my tiny tank :)

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  Posted on 04.06.13 Penelope T.

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  I really enjoyed this place - been here twice so far, so this review will encompass both visits!  The food, atmosphere, service, and especially the drinks, are fantastic!  Here's WHY:
  
  Speed:  4.5/5
  Probably the only issue with speed was that during one of the two visits we had, we had to wait around in the waiting area since the hostess was somewhere else.  It was lunch time, so it was a bit slow, and a waitress eventually saw us and seated us.  The speed of the order, drinks, and food itself wasn't bad.  This may be partially due to the fact that by being there, I felt relaxed and in no hurry, so I may be biased on the actual speed, but I think if the setting can make me feel like that, then that's what I should grade on.
  
  Service:  5/5
  Our server the first time ended up being the waitress who seated us during our second visit.  What was nice however, was that this waitress remembered serving us the previous week.  Very good personal touch.  We had a new waitress the second time, who was obviously new since she was pretty nervous, but was very polite and prompt with our order.  Our original waitress was the time - we had nothing to complain about.
  
  Food Taste/Quality:  5/5
  Amazing.  I'm normally not a big fan of Italian food, and Peabody is slightly out of the way, but due to my girlfriend's request (and the fact that we had a $10 off coupon :P) I begrudging gave it a shot.  Well.. least to say, I came back a second time a week afterwards.  Who'd have known?  First, their drinks.  Mannn.  Their drink menu lights up, which is a great touch, but the drinks themselves were delicious!  We tried a fruity martini the first time (forget the exact details, but it was good!), as well as a dessert martini (strawberry shortcake - rimmed with shortbread crumbs and deliciously strawberry with a hint of champagne).  The greatest part is when they shake the drinks right in front of you, and pour it into the martini glass.  Second, the bread.  I know right?  But the bread they give you is a huge, freshly baked loaf that's warm and soft on the inside, and nice and crispy on the outside.  Dipped in the olive oil provided, and you got a great starter!  And third, the mouth-watering entrees.  We decided to try the littlenecks & pasta and the shrimp fra diavolo.  Wow!  The littlenecks pasta had a generous portion of clams and littlenecks, and the garlic oil packed a good punch of flavor, maybe even a bit too heavy (but still good enough for me to finish).  The shrimp pasta had just the perfect kick of spicy peppers, and I literally wolfed it down no issues.  We also tried their chicken marsala, but we only found that enjoyable, not outstanding - the chicken was a bit on the dry side.  However, overall, this place is fantastic in terms of food and drinks.
  
  Value:  4/5
  Diners looking for a cheap meal - look elsewhere.  Scosso is a more upscale Italian dining, with the right food and scene to match.  For the price tag, I think it's worth it.  However, it can end up being a bit pricey, especially with the $10+ drinks they have.  In the end, I personally think it's worth it, but I'm grading this a 4.5 due to the slight hike in price compared to some other places.  Then again, most Italian places are only slightly cheaper, hence why it still has a fairly high rating.
  
  Ambiance:  5/5
  My favorite part.  This place is a beauty - the restaurant offers a bar area with a lounge area for dining, as well as a more traditional table-and-chair seating arrangement in the upper level.  The music is great (the type of jams I'd listen to on the radio in the car, or dance to in the clubs) and the lighting was superb.  The bar area itself looked like a perfect centerpiece at a club, with colorful lights radiating from from bottles of alcohol.  Everything was clean, professional, classy.  Love this place!

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  Posted on 03.09.13 Jimmy B.

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  Great food. A tad pretentious with the backlit drink menu, waitstaff seems like they are still learning but not "bad". A little pricey overall (approx $75 for wife and I each time we went)... but speaking about JUST the food...? It was very good. I would recommend you to try it if you got some extra $$$ and feeling like trying a new place. FYI: Their sister restaurant is "Venetian Moon" in Reading, MA (or so I'm told).

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  Posted on 03.05.13 Scott F.

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  Went last Saturday night with my boyfriend and his parents.  Yum!  It was tasty!  The atmosphere was nice and trendy, there are huge windows that are covered by gray blinds.  The waitstaff is attentive, whenever my glass needed to be filled, they were right there.  We sat upstairs.  They have a wine menu that lights up like a kindle does, which is a nice trick to get patrons to open it up and possibly order from it.  
  
  After ordering, we had bread and oil brought to us.  The bread was cold, which I didn't care for, but the others that had some said it was good.  Others on here commented on the salad being bad, I had mine with a raspberry vinegrette, so I didn't notice that it was gritty or sandy.  What I had was crisp and good.  After our salad's were finished, all our silverware was removed and we all received new clean silverware to eat our meals.
  
  We ordered two entrees, an appetizer and a salad.  Two of us had the lemon piccata, which we thought was tasty, but we had better other places.  The appetizer was the stuffed mushrooms which were good, and the salad was the tomatoes, onion, olive oil, and mozzarella, which was also flavorful.  We both ended up bringing half of our lemon piccata's home because there was so much food.  
  
  This past Monday I went a second time, for lunch since it's a bit expensive, with a girl friend.  I got chicken marsala and she got the brioche burger.  We decided to order some martini's with lunch.  I had the Strawberry fruit martini and she had the Flirtini martini.  We had bread and oil, but this time the bread was warm.  I had some and it was good.  The oil had garlic, and sliced olives in it, which had a nice taste to it.  I again got the salad with the raspberry vinegrette, which was the same as last time.  
  
  It took a lot longer for us to get our meal for my lunch experience than it did for my dinner experience.  Now, you'll probably say it was the burger that took forever, but my friend only ordered it medium.  It finally came out and I loved what I had more than the chicken piccata I had two days earlier.  
  
  At this point we had finished our first martini's and decided to go for a second martini each.  I decided on a strawberry shortcake martini and she had a birthday cake martini (since her birthday was a few days prior).  We of course tried each other's martini's and came to the consensus that we liked the first martini's we had ordered more than the second ones.  All of the martini's were tasty, but boy are they expensive.  They cost us $11 per martini.  
  
  The second time that I went was okay, but I didn't like the experience as much as I did the first time that I went.  Our waitress the second time kept having to be located to get our water glasses filled, or extra sauce requested.  Overall, I would go again, but probably not every weekend.

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  Posted on 02.20.13 Kristen E.

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  Went to Scosso last night with a group of friends (10 in the party)  We go out to dinner once a month together and try all sorts of places.  The decor was lovely, very New York chic.  
  
  We were seated downstairs.  There was one other table filled, and people at the bar - I say that because it adds to my puzzlement  of the EXTREMELY poor service.
  
  Our waitress came to the table and asked what we'd like to drink.  Two of our party had not arrived as yet.  One in our party ordered coffee. After 30 minutes I asked the waitress about the missing coffee - her response was 'oh yeah'. She then told us what on the menu was NOT available.  She took the food order of one person at the table and then without a word, left the table.  She delivered food to the people at the other table - then WENT UP TO THE HOSTESS DESK WITH THE HOSTESS and we didn't see her again for at least 20 minutes!!!   When she finally returned to the table she took our order.  I ordered a plum tomato and baked mozzarella salad and shrimp limone with gluten free pasta.  She asked what type of dressing I wanted.  I said the salad description in the menu says it comes with olive oil so I didn't want dressing.  She then said in a very snippy tone ' the meal comes with a side salad, what kind of dressing do you want'.  I said I didn't want that side salad as I had ordered a salad.  She repeated ' the meal comes with a side salad'.  Not wanting to argue I said OK, no dressing and just box that side salad up - I will take it home for lunch tomorrow. She sighed. Like a petulant teenager would. Another in the party ordered a specialty salad and did not want her side salad either.
  
  We had collected the menus at one end of the table.  She took then, walked around the corner and one woman at the end of the table saw & heard her throw the menus on the floor.
  
  After 20 minutes, the salads began to come out.  S L O W L Y.  My friend and I were waiting for our specialty salads when out she came with a side salad, put it in front of me and said here's your salad.  I said I did not order this, I ordered the plum tomato and mozzarella salad. She was very flippant - you ordered this, no dressing.  Again, I repeated - I ordered the plum tomato salad with the mozzarella, and the side salad I was bringing home.  She grabbed the salad plate and stomped off to the kitchen.  Everyone at our table was aghast at her attitude and behavior.  We were nothing but polite and respectful and were all surprised at her behavior and level of disrespect.  10 minutes later the two specialty salads came out.  
  
  I only ate a small portion as I thought the entrees would soon follow.  My request to take the remaining salad (for which I was paying an extra $10) was once again met with attitude.
  
  When the entrees began to come out - she brought two plates. One she placed in front of the person who had ordered it, the other (the shrimp limone) she placed in front of my friend, who politely told her she hadn't ordered it.  I said, oh that's the shrimp limone - I ordered that'  She took the plate back to the kitchen.  She was standing about 3 feet away from me, and all at the table heard me.  
  
  When she brought it back out, it was placed with some emphasis in front of me.
  
  I have two very much loved family members who work in the food service industry.  My friends son is an executive chef at a French restaurant in the Maryland/DC area - a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America.  We are ALL very supportive and understanding of the workers in food service.  We understand that some patrons can be demanding - and since we have beloved family members who might have to deal with that type of behavior we are NEVER demanding or impatient but we KNOW what good service is. And we definitely did not receive good service at Scosso - which is a darn shame because the food is amazing.  
  
  Without question, and sadly, this large party will not return to Scosso.  We never saw any sign of a manager.  Especially with such a new restaurant, one would think that a manager would be a presence - introducing themselves to each table, inquiring about how everything is.......    If the owners of Scosso are wondering why business is slow, they need to look at their waitstaff.  They are representatives of the business - this waitress either needs to be better trained, including the proper way to address patrons.

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  Posted on 02.13.13 Lois L.

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  My husband and I decided to try Scosso out , kinda glad we did. We were seated promptly upstairs, waitress was friendly and brought us our bread and water. I ordered the strawberry lemon martini, Yum! My husband ordered his drink. I ordered the pumpkin ravioli which came with a side salad. The salad was gross, talk about premade, definitely not fresh. However my raviolis were very good, generous portion brought half home. My husband had the tortellini which he enjoyed.
  
  The service was ok, nothing to brag about. The only downfall is the smell of burnt garlic that kept wafting up to where we were sitting. Pricing is on the upside. If we go back it will be for a special occasion. Too pricey for just a night out.

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  Posted on 02.03.13 Sarah F.

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  Wow!  I haven't been to place like this in a long time.  Great atmosphere,amazing food, and the service was flawless.
  
  We went in a group of six.  Sat downstairs, we were greeted snd ordered drinks right away.  We decided to order small plates and share and it was perfect.  Everything we chose was so tasty.  The artichokes, mussels, salad, eggplant  and ravioli plenty of food.
  
  The service was right on.  Louis was fabulous!  Friendly, fast and even brought us new cutlery when we had taken a breather.  
  
  We all enjoyed our drinks.  I had the Mexican haze martini, delish!   The virgin cocktails were just as good .  
  
  Everything was perfect.  Great night out!

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  Posted on 02.03.13 Kim B.

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  On a recent trip back east, I was very glad to find Scosso!  It was a truly wonderful all-around experience with awesome drinks and food, excellent service, and great atmosphere.  
  To start with, the martini selection was amazing!  I finally decided on the sparkling Flirtini and also sampled a friend's Almond Joy (dessert in a glass!) and both were delicious.  While we waited for dinner, there was ample bread and we also ordered the artichoke hearts, which I would recommend highly for both taste and texture.
  As for the entrée, I was told that the chef does an excellent chicken marsala, so I was pretty excited since this is one of my all time favorite dishes.  Sadly, I've given up ordering it most places since I'm usually disappointed.  Not so here!  It was literally the best chicken marsala I've had!  Not only was the marsala great, but the house-made pasta was the perfect complement.  Luckily the portions were large so I got to enjoy this the next day, as well.  A friend had the stuffed veal chop which was so huge, tender, and flavorful I'm sure Henry VIII would have been quite satisfied.  Additionally, my boyfriend had the butternut squash ravioli which is a unique take on a classic dish.  Rather than the traditional sage butter, it had a pumpkin butternut sauce that was so delicious it could have been served by itself.
  Needless to say, I can't wait for my next trip to Scosso!

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  Posted on 01.29.13 Carmen M.

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  Went to Scosso on Jan 26th for an early dinner with friends. We weren't sure what we were going to get reading some of the early reviews. To say we were very pleased is an understatement. The service was great, very attentive.  The menu had a great mix of food - it looks a little $$$ on first take but the portions were very generous - all of us brought home about 50 percent of our dinners.  We had a bottle of wine which was great - one of our favorites at about double retail so priced well for a restaurant.  Martini menu was great and they tasted great.  We ended the night with a slice of red velvet cake split 3 ways - was excellent.
  
  Glad we tried this place.  We will be back soon!

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  Posted on 01.26.13 Tom J.

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  This is the sister restaurant to Venetian Moon in North Reading, which is my favorite so I had high expectations. Ambience is dark and trendy and their extensive drink menu is lit by led lights. I tried the watermelon and eggnog martinis, which were made perfectly. You'll pay about $10/ martini here.  I got the baked haddock/scallop combo which came with a side of fresh whole wheat fusilli.  The pasta was overcooked and watery. Not too much red sauce with it.  The seafood was loaded with butter and heavily salted.  
  I will definitely be taking the trip to north reading over this local spot.

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  Posted on 12.30.12 A W.

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  Gnocchi lunch special was solid, but not heart warming, which is what I expect from a higher end restaurant.  Spent $30 on lunch, including a fab chianti classico.  But I'd wished it had cost $20. Were the prices a little lower and the side salad a little better, I'd give 4 stars.  I'd still go again happily!  Great to get real food in the mall!

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  Posted on 12.27.12 Vanessa L.

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  My wife and I went to Scosso last weekend after doing a little Christmas shopping. We were a little unsure as the place had just opened and I'm always leary about trying new places until they have a little time to get their act together. But given the alternatives, ie the food court (enough said), the mass produced, faux-chinese PF Chang's, or the over-sized portions at the Cheesecake which most fat Americans seem to love, I figured the new kid on the block would be the way to. Besides my wife loves Italian and it made her happy.
  
  Anyway, the place was very cool. I loved the atmosphere -- certainly more trendy than the aformentioned mall comparators. Actually it's pretty trendy by essentially any comparison. We sat down opened the menus, the martini one actually lit up, which if nothing else would have been a great way to keep the kids busy for a few minutes. But it was actually quite funcional too and was easy to read. I ordered the pomegranate martini and my wife ordered the french berry. Both were quite yummy and went nicely with the delicious bread and oil they promptly came out with.
  
  We intended on making it a quick dinner, but half way through the martinis we called the babysitter. the kids were great, so we decided to make a night of it. I ordered the mussels, which was a huge portion and really good. My wife got the gnocchi which she loved too for an app.
  
  For the mains, I ordered the veal eccitbale (i think that's what it was called) and instead of the pasta I asked for a side of asparagus. The veal was tender and dilicious and the asparagus was to die for. I don't think I've ever raved about a vegetable before, especially one that makes your pee stink. But it was amazing. I asked the waiter about it, and he said they have some special oven or something to cook it in. My wife got the lemon chicken which was also good. I sometimes find lemon chicken to be too tart, but this was nice. We both ended up taking half of it home and skipped desert because we were too full.
  
  Always wanting to try new things, I ordered another martinini, but this time the blue vanilla, and like the first one it was great. They even coordinated the sugar around the rim. On my pomegranate they used a red sugar, and on the blue vanilla they used a blue sugar. I may need to hunt some down for my next party.
  
  Considering the options at the mall, Scosso is far and away the best bet. In fact, I thought it was so good, it's worth the trip even when you don't have any shopping to do. We'll defintely be going there more regularly.

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  Posted on 12.19.12 Shawn H.

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  My husband and I decided to give Scosso a shot on a Friday night. We were promptly seated upstairs. We loved the cool decor and the drink menu lights up(how cool). We ordered our drinks, I decided to give the grapefruit martini a try. Our waiter brought over some fresh bread and olive oil for dipping.
  
  We quickly got our drinks and I LOVED the martini. It was crisp and refreshing. We decided to order some appetizers. I ordered the gnocchi and my husband ordered the mussels. When we got the food we were both pleasantly surprised. The portions on the mussels were huge and my husband proclaimed that they taste better than Legals. My gnocchi was amazing. That is where the end of our great night came.
  
  Our salads were next to arrive. The salads are a field green mix. The salads were disgusting. The mescalin mix tasted gritty, like it hadn't been washed. When we complained to our waiter he immediately went and took them back to the kitchen. He came back and told us that the executive chef said " this version of mescalin mix is more rooty  and it was that and not gritty. Yeah, okay but I know what sand/dirt tastes like and that's what it was. We ignored it since it was just salad and we waited for our entrees.
  
  And we waited
  
  and we waited
  
  and waited
  
  and waited..... do you get the picture yet
  
  45 minutes later and still no entrees we inquired as to where they were. Our waiter insured us that he would go and personally bring them out of the kitchen. When he came back empty handed we asked for our check. Also 55 minutes for entrees seemed a bit excessive. When the manager came over she offered no apologies and just said " well I can go get them for you". The manager never came back over, she just seemed like Oh Well. Terrible customer service. Our poor waiter was apologizing profusely and it wasn't any bit his fault. We got our bill on which the manager comped NOTHING, paid and left.
  
  If I ever go back here and that's a big IF it will only be for martinis at the bar.

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  Posted on 12.07.12 Carolyn P.

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  Scosso Ristorante & Martini Bar opened over the weekend at the Northshore Mall. This new restaurant and bar serves up creative Italian American cuisine and has a modern upscale feel, yet it's a casual sitdown place.
  
  The layout of the space is unique with high ceilings and dim lighting comprising of a spacious martini bar/lounge on the lower main level, which has a flatscreen TV at the bar, comfortable cushion booths (U-shaped), open air table seating at the mall level and tables for larger parties. The dining room is on the upper balcony level overlooking the lounge area below, which has table seating including cushion seating along the back wall. Each wood table has a lighted candle holder. There is light relaxing background music playing over the speakers.
  
  The menu offerings include salads, appetizers, fresh pasta dishes, seafood, steaks, pork, chicken, and veal dishes. The prices here are moderate to high. Most lunch entrees priced $13-$20 and most dinner entrees priced $18-$38. The "heavy bookstyle" wine list illuminates when opened, pretty neat!
  
  I decided to have a relaxing dinner here after some holiday shopping at the mall. I was seated in the upstairs balcony dining area and seated at a table along the railing overlooking the lounge below. I was given a glass of house ice water and a fresh baked loaf of Italian bread and olive oil mix with peppers, garlic & black olive. The bread loaf was very chewy and firm on the outside and soft and moist texture inside.
  
  For dinner, I ordered the Fusilli Ultimo ($21), which included a side salad. The side salad had the standard crisp lettuce, greens, tomato slices, and cucumber slices with a tangy balsamic vinaigrette dressing on top. The main dish arrived in about 20 minutes after ordering, which had veal, chicken, shrimp, red roasted peppers, hot cherry pepper slices, rosemary cooked in a very spicy White Zinfandel lemon sauce served over homemade pasta (I chose fresh wheat fusilli). This dish was very spicy to the taste and definitely did not need anymore pepper. I was given some grated parmesan cheese in a glass container (Papa Gino's action) to sprinkle over my dish, not the fresh grated cheese I would expect at finer Italian restaurants and also at The Olive Garden. The boneless veal slices were cooked perfectly, which was very tender and the boneless chicken was soft and tender. The shrimp (cleaned) were also very tender.
  
  I did fill up on the bread, which resulted in having some of the food boxed up to go. I passed on the offer for dessert, which included tiramisu, chocolate cake, and a lemon mascarpone cake. The total check came out to $22.47 with tax and before tip for one dinner entree & side salad and ice water.
  
  The service was acceptable on this visit. I was given refills on the ice water and the food arrived in acceptable time, though the waitress apologized for the delay. The restaurant does have fresh cracked pepper, which could be offered on the salad, as well as the entree.
  
  (OVERALL 3.5/5.0 STARS) - I will round up since the veal was excellent and the leftover food including the bread was packed up promptly.

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  Posted on 12.02.12 Ian W.

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