Zef Cicchetti & Raw Bar and Alba — Restaurant in Quincy

I have been here for dinner several times. It can be a bit confusing as the building/door is under the banner of Alba steakhouse and the Zef Cicchetti part is all faded like it doesn't exist anymore. Fear not! Its all one and the same. You have to go to the door on the corner to get into the establishment, including the rooftop dining. The rooftop is very nice, with a full bar and tv, that is perfect for warm days.

The restaurant is basically broken into three sections. The upstairs rooftop deck, and then the three dining areas downstairs. One is mainly booths and seems more upscale dining. Then there is a bar/dining area and then a smaller table section beyond that. I have eaten at each of these except the downstairs bar.

Each time, the servers have been attentive without rushing. The food was always DELICIOUS. If you are a big seafood lover like I am, you can order crab cakes and raw oysters for an appetizer. These were the best raw oysters I've ever had in my life. For entrees we got the Diavolo linguine and the grilled octopus. Both were very tasty. We also got an order of truffle fries with turned out to be addictive and I have ordered every time I have returned to this place since! It all paired nicely with a Chianti red wine.

Suitable for solo, friends, families and dates. More upscale and pricey but well worth it in the food!

Parking can be a bit of a run around on this busy restaurant street, so you may need to drive up and around the side streets to find parking. There is a small free parking lot on the corner of Hancock and Walter J. Hannon that...

I was unexpectedly pleased with this restaurant. We had wanted to go to another restaurant in the area, but couldn’t get a booking, so we decided to check out the Zef- Cicchetti and Raw Bar. We arrived early enough to get a seat and we were extremely pleased with our choice. I loved the atmosphere of this restaurant, as the bar area was open and tables were uncluttered and well spaced. Also, it is connected to Alba’s restaurant, so you can move between both easily. They have a great selection of both beer and wine, which was reasonably priced. We started with the polpette, which are meatballs in a tomato sauce and they were very tasty. For the entrée, my husband had the pork osso bucco and he raved about it. The meat was slowing cooked, tender, and flavorful. It was served on mashed potatoes and had a masala sauce over it. It was a big serving and he was extremely happy.

I had the black truffle gnocchi, which was served with short rib, wild mushrooms and a sauce. It was delicious and although the plate looked small, it was extremely filling and delectable.

I think what made the greatest difference of this restaurant was the bar staff and our server Leo who was personable and attentive to everyone that he served. I will be back to visit soon and would recommend it...

So, the food here is always excellent. But, the experience should be SO much better. A Friday night, still a little cool out, but one of the first spring-feeling nights of the year, we sat up on the roof deck, 4 of us. We ordered drinks, then appetizers and meals. The soups came after about 15 minutes. It's soup - how could it take that long? The appetizer was then a good 15 minutes after that! It then took at LEAST another 40 (!!) minutes for the main dishes to arrive. The server was attentive and kind, but that delay is crazy. AND, one of the meals was incorrect!! Over an hour since we had ordered, and now we had to wait another almost 20 minutes for the salmon. They didn't even offer to take that off the bill or anything, which would seem the obvious good faith move. That said, we finished and paid. The food WAS delicious all around, and the atmosphere is a lovely oasis in the middle of Quincy. I just want this place to DO BETTER, try harder. I have to admit, I was a little bit embarrassed to have vouched for this place to the friends I brought, only to have them experience this kind of lack of hospitality. I'd be so much more likely to go back sooner and more often if I wasn't afraid I'd have the same kind of weak experience...