Off the Penn-beaten path in South Philly, Mr. Martino’s Trattoria teleports its diners straight to heart of Italy. When our group entered the quaint unassuming storefront, our first thought was “did we just walk into someone’s house?” Amid casual mismatched tables, soft candlelight and dark wooden wainscoting, the owner Marc Farnese (or Mr. Martino, if you will) greets his guests as if they were entering his living room. In a way they are — with his wife Maria in the kitchen rolling out homemade pasta and his aunt living upstairs, the trattoria offers a glimpse into a classic Italian home.
The menu is hand written, with a brief list of antipasti, various pastas and a few chicken dishes, with each dish priced under $20. Simple white bean soup with rosemary scented broth, mushrooms sautéed with garlic and parsley and baked ricotta cheese with spicy Italian sausage and olives were all delicious starters. The main event at Mr. Martino’s however, is the pasta. Homemade veal or cheese tortellini, spinach ravioli and cavatelli, are all paired with a variety of sauces sure to please anyone’s palate — creamy pumpkin and basil pesto were the true stars. The balsamic chicken was slow roasted and tender beyond belief. The daily special we sampled, creamy risotto with bay scallops, was a wonderful addition to a menu which only includes seafood when the ingredients are their freshest.
Mr. Martino’s is quaint, delicate and thrives on its atmosphere as an undiscovered gem. So don’t run there in hoards, but instead visit Mr. Martino’s for a retreat from the bustling restaurant scene with a date or an intimate group of friends on a special occasion. What more could one ask for than homemade pasta in an Italian home? Bon appetito!
Mr. Martino's Trattoria 1646 E. Passyunk Ave. (215) 755-0663 Don’t Miss: Tortellini with pesto Skip: The cab... borrow a car Bottom Line: Mom and Pop shop feels like home.
