Vico Ristorante Italiano — Restaurant in Norwood

Ok Ill give it to this place, its good, really good, for the suburbs. Don't expect North End Italian anywhere around Dedham, Norwood or other suburban areas. However, this is as close to the ambiance and homey cooking you will find anywhere around here.

This place sits on the backside of the sportsman club near the common in downtown Norwood, which is starting to come around but looks like its stuck in a Norman Rockwell 1950's postcard. The place is tiny, so I would recommend calling for a reservation since it gets packed and they only take reservations the old fashioned way, by phone. Its an old school interior, nothing fancy, but looks like a hole in the wall place which adds to the ambiance.

Its run by a family, father chef, mother hostess and front of house and daughter waitstaff. Weekends I would assume there is a guy walking around singing opera for peoples birthdays which was funny. The menu is collection of all sorts of Italian specialities, the norms and others like seafood dishes. The wine list is pretty impressive, full of all sorts of Italian wines straight from Italy. The appetizers we ordered were decent, Burrata Caprese very tasty, hit the spot, fresh. The entrees, came out made to order, the Veal Saltimbocca was pretty good, good taste, not over the top, but had a decent taste, could of used more spice, but I liked it. Farfalle Boscaiola was ok, again needed more spice but not bad. Desserts, Tiramisu was excellent, but the Nutella Creme Brule was a mess and not settled right. Prices were decent for the portions etc. and in all not a bad meal, for...

So this evening I was lucky enough to have her Highness the fabulous Sophie Ricci at my dinner table along with my good friend Carlo Prisco..From the time we entered Vico's front door till the time we left Chef Vincenzo and his lovely wife Maria along with there staff completely Wowed us like we were Movie stars..Believe me when I tell you I nor Sophie or Carlo have ever had a dining experience like the one we had tonight at Vico..Chef Vincenzo didn't let us look at the menu, He just asked us what we wanted and he made his version of it..From the focaccia bread to the eggplant campanelle and the Leek soup to the lemon risotto and the cacio Pepe and Carlos salad it was just amazing. For dinner Carlo had the cioppino and Sophie had the fresh halibut. I asked him for swordfish and it came out grilled with spinach, asparagus and mashed potatoes. The flavor in all of these dishes was just top-notch. I can honestly say that the three of us were wowed with every single bite..at this point the 3 of us were completely full until Chef Vincenzo waved his magical wand and presented us with an entire Dessert Platter which consisted of cannolis, tiramisu, creme brulee, and chocolate mousse. This ladies and gentlemen was completely over the top. The absolute best dining experience I have ever had in my life. In my opinion there isn't a restaurant within a 50 Mi radius that's even close to Vico...Absolutely a must...

Vico is one of the rare "neighborhood gems" that really does outshine city dining. The food is, as it should be, the reason you come....Vico is consistently great with a core of menu go-to items and then specials that blow you away (pict of my futti di mare w/house made gnocchi could be my phn's wallpaper)

The service matches the food; the staff are friendly, efficient and attentive...they check-in but never break into our table conversations. They mix great cocktails, know everything about what comes out of the kitchen and can pair it with effortlessly with a great wine.

This isnt a chain restaurant that you walk into, you should call ahead to reserve a time. Seating is a mix of booths and tables and Vico can accommodate a lrg party with notice. There will be some ambient background buzz that comes with peak dining times, but I have never found it to be problem whether in a booth or at a table

Vico is a family restaurant and you really owe it to yourself to dine that way here...enjoy a cocktail and then get your apptz, pair up the entree with a great wine (bottle or glass) and dont miss out on their house made desserts and after dinner drinks / coffees.

It is hard for any restaurant to maintain quality & service over the long haul, but over the past 9 yrs I have been going there, Vico...