Via Maestra 42
Where: 3343 State Street, 569-6522.
What: Owner Renato Mosio named this deli-plus after his home address in Italy, and that should tell you everything.
How much? Sandwiches $6.95-$7.95, main courses $11.95-$21.95, gelato $2.50-$6.
The dish: You can’t get more Italian than Via Maestra 42 in San Roque, for the food delights, the atmosphere is charming if a bit cramped, and the service is ever-polite and almost always continentally, well, let’s say deliberate instead of slow. It’s worth the wait, though, and if you go at lunch and order one of the tasty sandwiches pre-made-spot what you want in the case-you can get out relatively quickly. Never pass on the Emilio, with top-grade mortadella, homemade fresh mozzarella, and tasty tomato, all on a lovely foccacia. Not that the Parma, featuring prosciutto, or the Toscana, featuring grilled eggplant, are anything to give the boot to. All the foodstuffs here, except for produce, hail from Italy, and you will say “Hail, Via Maestra” for serving it to you. There’s also a host of pasta dishes, all made fresh, and completely reliant on their fine ingredients to sing. You’ll hosanna back to their arias. For dessert there’s gelato, so save room.
