Ristorante Trattoria da Maria — Restaurant in Genoa

Two different visits to this trattoria with two very contrasting experiences because of very different levels of service. The first time we were served with very friendly courtesy and received help with the menu. The second time we were asked to move from one table to another beside what looked like a dumb waiter that made a loud vibrating noise every minute or two. The waitress brought the menu, then the drinks, then took orders for the starters, each time running away before we could ask for help with the menu for main dishes. Meanwhile an impatient customer across the table kept trying to grab my menu and eventually whipped it out of my hand.

Sheer rudeness on the part of the waitress and the customer nearby. I admit it is not the kind of restaurant where you should expect too much in the way of sophistication, but the second experience was hard to beat for awfulness and would...

Da Maria is an ambience-free hole in the wall that's open only for lunch. For 12 euros (10 for the food, 2 as a cover charge) you get a 3 course meal plus a beverage. I started with a bowl of Genovese minestrone which was delicious and decidedly not yo momma's minestrone (assuming, of course, that yo momma hailed from southern Italy where minestrone doesn't come in green). My wife started with a plate of penne in a totally acceptable tomato sauce. I chose a beef stew as my main while my wife went for the chicken cacciatore. I'd recommend either of these without hesitation. Both were very, very good.

Da Maria is not an "Italian" restaurant in the sense that its food transports you to Italy. Rather it is a place to get a tasty, well-prepared meal served by a friendly and attentive waitstaff at a...

Is this a great place or what? For an even E10 today, I had an excellent lunch of trennette al pesto, complete with small diced potatoes and green beans; a nice lettuce, tomato, onion, and egg salad; some really good bread; and a lemon iced tea. Even though I arrived less than 30 minutes before the 1500 closing time, I was welcomed warmly, served quickly and efficiently, and told not to rush. This really IS great cucina casalingua genovese and I'll definitely be back for more. And, BTW, the handwritten menu is NOT that hard to read, and if you can't the staff will gladly read it for you. But, at least make the effort; it's just...