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From the team behind Prima and Capo, this massive SoWa newcomer features plenty of space to relax over spritzes and steaks.
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Capri’s patio. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Can’t escape Boston for a Euro summer? Local restaurateurs are aiming to bring a slice of the Amalfi Coast to the South End: Capri, which opened in late July, wants to transport diners to Italy with a massive, umbrella-bedecked outdoor dining space that evokes beachside dining with a hint of glamour.
Capri’s rigatoni alla vodka (roasted garlic, basil, pecorino). / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Co-owners Eric Aulenback and Will Clark wink to Capri’s sibling restaurants with this new spot’s name—Capo plus Prima—but each venue puts its own spin on Italian, from Capo’s red-saucy Sinatra Sundays to Prima’s luxe Italian steakhouse vibes. The team is also marketing Capri as an Italian steakhouse, but the real highlight here is the hand-rolled pastas, accounting for two-thirds of the overall pasta selection. The technique “makes all the difference,” says Clark.
Capri’s patio. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Capri. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
We’re already fans of the hand-stretched pici—essentially fat spaghetti—at Prima, so color us intrigued by the Capri staff kicking pasta up a notch. Take the fusilli al limone, for instance, which chef Nick Dixon describes as “thick, similar to udon.” Punched up with lemon (a hallmark of the Amalfi Coast) and basil, the dish gets some textural layers with the addition of broccolini. Pro tip: Aulenback also likes to add shrimp to his order. Another dish the group is hyping? Garganelli alla pollo, with a unique tube shape that makes it the optimal vessel for the roasted red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, and cream.
Capri’s bread plate with honey sea salt and house ricotta. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
The best way to try some pasta but also venture into Capri’s other offerings: Dine family-style, making sure to incorporate at least one of the breads. The “bread plate”—pull-apart white bread, drizzled with Italian honey and served with house-made ricotta, has been a hit so far, particularly for those with a sweet tooth, says Dixon. You’ll also want to experience the restaurant’s “elaborate charcuterie effort” via a board of three meats and three cheeses, says Dixon, who sources cheeses from neighborhood staple Formaggio Kitchen a short walk away. Also from the neighborhood? Giardiniera fritta, featuring vegetables straight from Capri’s next-door neighbor, SoWa Open Market. “The chefs are excited to walk through and pick out food,” says Dixon.
Capri’s patio. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Capri. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Beyond all that, “you’d be crazy not to finish with a steak,” says Clark; this is meant to be a steakhouse, after all. Perhaps that’s something straightforward like a six-ounce filet or a bone-in Brandt ribeye, or perhaps you want to live large with a perfect-for-sharing 36-ounce dry-aged Florentine.
Cocktails on the Capri patio. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Capri’s sprawling two-story Harrison Avenue space—once home to another Italian restaurant, Cinquecento—is as much a part of the experience as the food. To that end, the team worked with Assembly Design Studio, the local firm that also (gorgeously) designed Prima, aiming to give each part of the restaurant its own personality. There’s the garden room, for instance, that Aulenback recommends for first dates—20-foot windows look out onto the patio, with ample greenery setting the scene for a lovely Italian-inspired summer. (Come winter, the team imagines a magical snowglobe feel.) Or head to the cozy dining room, complete with fireplace and, eventually, live music: The grand piano’s already in place.
Capri’s patio. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Capri. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Outdoors, there’s plenty of room to relax under large, striped umbrellas or a 20-foot olive tree. Aulenback, who’s been in the restaurant business for 30 years but had yet to open one in the South End, was initially hesitant about this restaurant space but was won over by the outdoor area. He saw it as a prime gathering space for friends and family to catch up after work, something that would attract the neighborhood’s “hip” clientele of architects and designers. “This was something the neighborhood was craving,” he says.
Capri’s steak with lobster Oscar. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Whether sipping a bell pepper gimlet under an umbrella outside or cuddling up with a date over espresso martinis and plates of pasta by the grand piano, there are a variety of experiences to be had at this South End newcomer, and the Capri team thinks it has hit on the winning formula. “[We’re] doing Italian classics that lots of restaurants don’t want to touch,” says Aulenback. “Innovative Italian with classics next to them.”
Capri. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Capri. / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Capri is open for dinner daily, plus weekend lunch, with free parking available except when SoWa Open Market is running on Sundays. 500 Harrison Ave., South End, Boston, capriboston.com.
Capri’s linguine alla vongole (Manila clams, spring onion, and Calabrian chili). / Photo by Assembly Design Studio
Dining and Cooking