Il Lucano Ristorante Italiano — Restaurant in Gig Harbor

This was among the best meals and the best dining experience my wife and I have ever had.

We arrived around 4:30 pm because my wife's Google app said that between 5-6 pm on a Saturday the restaurant hit its peak time. The app was right. When we arrived there were about four occupied tables, one of them was a long table set up for a dinner party. Around 5 pm couples and families started walking in every few minutes until the place began filling up.

We were lucky to get Tonia as our waitress, the same person who served us on our first visit. I'm sure the other waitresses are just fine but Tonia is a true professional. She knows the menu and she is great with describing the entrees in mouthwatering terms, matching up entrees to fit palates. If you wish to deviate from the menu, no problem. She had a solution for everything. She also made us feel right at home.

And now to the food. My wife and I shared a delightful Caesar salad with housemade Caesar dressing. (Tip: Pay the $1 extra to add the whole anchovies to the salad. The oily, salty fishiness elevated the salad from really good to "wow".)

And speaking of "wow", our entrées were exceptional. Mine was the one of the house specials, Cappelletti: little pasta hats stuffed with grass fed ground beef and porcini mushrooms, swimming in a purplish, Sangiovese-based buttery, red sauce, dotted with islands of filet mignon. To be honest, at first the taste was a bit lacking. When our order was first served at our table. Tonia asked if we wanted ground pepper on our dishes. We both declined. But after I had tasted the dish and the sauce I realized that some freshly ground black pepper might be what the dish needed. I had Tonia return to our table with her trusty peppermill and...I was right. The black pepper elevated the dish into an extraordinary flavor delight. Suddenly the Sangiovese, the butter, the beefiness from the pieces of filet, were married together into a sum of flavors greater than its components. The flavors went on forever. I can tasted them still as I write this. The Cappelletti pasta was tender and flavorful, the beef and porcini mushrooms in a harmonious marriage within.

My wife ordered the Cannelloni Ripieni filled with beef, spinach, garlic, ricotta and parmesan covered in your choice of sauces. She chose the Aurora sauce, a light orange-colored sauce which is the house combination of the marinara sauce and the white cream sauce. The flavor of the stuffed cannelloni was a knockout as well. The Aurora sauce? Why isn't the restaurant bottling and selling this sauce. We haven't tasted anything like it anywhere, a perfect marriage (AGAIN with the marriage analogy?) of the slight sharpness of the marinara with the creaminess of white sauce. For one of the few times in our history of eating out together, we enjoyed tasting each other's entrées but were happy with our own choices. The common link between the two dishes was me eating each sauce on its own with a fork.

Il Lucano is a warm, friendly welcoming place. The capper tonight was our encounter with Michele Simone, owner and chef. We've restaurant owners on TV making the rounds talking to diners. This was our first experience in real life. Michele has an incredibly expansive personality, making you feel both welcome and that you are a personal friend. He really worked the room, visiting all the tables. He came up to our table and patted my shoulder a few times while talking warmly to us. He looked at our empty bottle of the 2015 Liveli Orion Salento Primitivo (Puglia), picked it up and said "You killed it! Now THAT'S what I'm talking about!" (It was a delicious, light-bodied Italian red which was the perfect accompaniment to both entrées. He took obvious delight in our having a great time in his "home".

And they do make you feel at home here, and you can easily imagine it being their home in Italy. We have now found "our" Italian restaurant. Can't wait to find out what other dish delights Michele has in...

A week ago we spent over $100 on food from El Luciano restaurant in gig harbor. We have eaten there multiple times as my children have gluten intolerance and other food allergies and they advertise they are gluten free restaurant and have a special menu. When we arrived home I served my children their "gluten free food" and stuck the remaining food in the oven to reheat. As with most kids they begged to start eating and we let them begin. When we removed our dishes from the over we noticed the noodles were the same as the ones the kids had been eating, regular linguine, not gluten free. I immediately called the restaurant and spoke with a server. He apologized multiple times and assured me he would make sure this would not happen again. He said he wanted to "make it right" and prepare the meals again. I told him I would give them a call back. My children were sick for over a week with upset stomachs and my daughter had many fits where she would through her self around banging her head because she was in so much pain in her stomach. My husband had been away for the past 7 weeks doing military training so being home alone with two children reacting to gluten exposure is quite difficult to say the least. Today I called to place my "replacement order" I ordered far less then my original order, mainly because I am one of those people who feels bad getting anything for "free". The server took my order with no trouble and I explained the situation, she was compassionate and understanding. I informed her I had saved the noodles in the fridge, but was never asked to bring them with me. I told her "I am so sorry this happened, I know people make mistakes and we are all human". A very rational response I thought coming from someone who just took care of two children who were exposed to an allergen from their advertised gluten free menu (that we paid extra for also). Upon arriving at the restaurant I was met by the server who said there was a "miss communication" and the owner wanted to talk to me. He approached me very aggressively and began to talk loudly and make accusations implying I was lying. The owner then asked me "how do you know your kids have gluten problems" and "most people who come here think they have a problem with gluten but they have something else wrong"At this point he fetched a bag of gluten free noodles from the kitchen and shoved the bag close to my face and yelled "are these the noodles" I said no, my children were fed gluten noodles. He laughed and rolled his eyes at me. He asked me "what happens to your kids if they eat gluten" I really was quite confused how a restaurant owner felt he had any right to ask questions about my children's medical condition in the first place? He was attempting to diagnose my children's allergies and shrug them off as though they did not exist. This is not only bad business but the safety of the patrons that eat here is at stake. Many people have life threatening allergies, and if you advertise a special menu, you should hold true to that. Also the verbal assault on a woman in front of an entire restaurant is unacceptable. I am a calm, loving, caring person who always is kind to everyone I meet. I really wanted to give them another chance and let them "make it right" as they asked. I did not expect to be lured into a verbal assault that left me in tears, shaking from anxiety and fear. I called this establishment back and informed them I was seeking the advice of an attorney and also going to contact the bbb. This is not a healthy environment for people with allergies to food, and a horrible display of customer service. I am shocked and appalled. As a nurse of almost 10 years I will advise all my friends and family, especially those with allergies to steer clear of this place. I have seen photos of family members of the owner who are in the army. Are you proud that you berated and badgered a fellow decorated...

Why not 5 stars? I love the food. Sooo delicious and authentic. The manicotti is amazing (I had it last time a couple weeks prior).

We waited only about 15 minutes to be seated. It is a smallish restaurant which is nice. Still got a little loud inside. They were operating at full capacity.

So I was slightly disappointed in the oil for the bread. Years ago I raved about this "bread sauce" we called it this time, but it didn't live up to my memory of it. Still really good....but years ago it had more chunks of garlic in it. That elevated it so much I bought a bottle of it from them (years ago...not this time).

This time I got a Ceasar salad with chicken and one of the appetizers as my meal. It's the prosciutto wrapped prawns. Really good. Love the flavors mostly. What I miss is the bacon-wrapped scallops from, again, years ago. That was the perfect pairing with those flavors - same lemony yumminess with tomato and zucchini. Maybe I'm just living in the past too much?! Perhaps. Still great 👍 I just liked the scallop version better. Bring it back please 🙏

One friend ordered the mushroom something or other pasta of some sort. I'm not a fan of mushrooms, I know, we can debate any the health qualities of it another time. She said it was really delicious. She was just thrown aback by the kind of lavender color of it. Presentation can be like perception. It's 90%. The other friend got the manicotti which I adore yum! It's enough food for leftovers.

The mushroom lover got Tirimisu because it was her birthday so YES we embarrassed her with announcing it to the server. They sang too = perfect moment 😉 & she shared with us. Yes tasty. Is it supposed to be doused in rum or something? 🤔 no there was no rum. Maybe i got a spiked one long ago (different restaurant also Italian). I like it doused. Doused is good!

Overall I will go there again. I don't want to give it a 5 but 4.8ish would be good. Why can't I vote in increments? Rude! 😆

If you like Italian you should give it a try. But I do have a request. If the bread sauce has a bunch of garlic chunks, let me know right away! Cause I'll run over and grab a...