Not your mom’s Italian
New dining in old North End
There's a new North End restaurant in town called Aqua Pazza, and it's anything but North End. “It's a little sacrilegious,” owner
Mike Paquette told the Track about the eatery. He's partnered up with his father-in-law-turned-investor Frank DePasquale, who
also owns North End landmarks Trattoria il Panino, Bricco, Quattro and Mare, to open it. Unlike other restaurants in the historic neighborhood, Aqua Pazza is not serving up the old-school fare you've come to expect.
“The makeup of people living in the North End has changed. … It's no longer mostly Italian,” Paquette said. “It's mostly 25- to 40-year-old business professionals who go out to eat every night. It's what they want.”
Paquette has worked in the restaurant biz for 15 years, doing every job from pastry chef to sommelier to manager. For the new venture, which is located in the former Sfizi space at 135 Richmond St., he said he's drawn inspiration from his travels throughout Italy for his wine studies — coupled with a little local influence. “I look at restaurants like Little
Donkey, Toro and The Gallows,” he said. “You still get the aspect of fine dining that you want with the food, but in a more comfortable atmosphere.”
“I'm not Italian by any means,” Paquette added. “Everything I see is what I take. I don't have a 30year Italian background to draw from.”
Even though you might find mainstays like bolognese and carbonara at Aqua Pazza, the recipes have turned tradition on its head.
“The flavors are delicate, fresh, clean and bright,” he said.
And let's not forget the makings of any hip Boston spot: the drinks. In addition to a curated selection of wines, the restaurant is offering a cordial-based cocktail list and 11 craft beers, five of them from Italy. These are not your corner store's Peroni.
“The craft beer in Italy is exploding,” Paquette said. “People here don't even know it.”
So when you stroll into the cozy, coastal spot on the corner of Richmond and North streets, you can look forward to an experience reflective of current-day Italy, not a flashback to Sundays in your grandmother's kitchen.
“It's more like what you might find right now,” Paquette said, “if you went to a Michelin- star restaurant in Italy.”