La Padrona Boston
Italian restaurant · Back Bay ·
Glamorous Italian restaurant with regional dishes and cocktails
Glamorous Italian restaurant with regional dishes and cocktails
"A glittering, ritzy Italian restaurant inside the luxury hotel Raffles in Back Bay, this spot made waves almost instantly after opening in May 2024; it was Eater Boston’s Best New Restaurant in 2024 and landed on the New York Times’ 2025 restaurant list. Spearheaded by chef Jody Adams, with Amarilys Colon, the menu fuses Italian classics prepared with precision and seasonal New England flavors, taking diners through regional specialties from Puglia pasta traditions to Tuscany’s showstopper bistecca alla fiorentina. I recommend the chickpea spoon bread—roasted squash, black currant agrodolce, and gorgonzola piccante folded into pillowy soft bread, served warm in a mini cast-iron skillet—and the lobster and uni risotto with caramelized fennel, tomato, and chives; a less pricey and just-as-delicious alternative, the tagliatelle Emilia-Romagna, bursts with a mound of creamy, cheesy, saucy pasta drizzled with aged balsamic, and the grilled sweet farm peppers, marinated in creamy tonnato, get an expected flavor punch from tangy anchovies that cut the sweetness of the peppers and the black currant agrodolce just right. Calling all extra filthy martini lovers: the salty truffle martini—an ice-cold glass of black truffle–infused vodka and olive brine—arrives elegantly with a cocktail pick full of ricotta-Parmigiano and black truffle–stuffed olives resting on their own little chilling tray; there are six different martinis on the cocktail menu. I treat it as a splurgy, special-occasion destination; go early to snag a bar seat or a quieter, more intimate atmosphere, since the room gets busier and veers sceney as the night goes on—an earlier Monday dinner feels romantic, while a later Thursday skews nightlife." - Celina Colby
"Dining at Raffles Boston's La Padrona is an equally decadent experience to staying at the hotel: chef Jody Adams's lobster and uni risotto combines pitch-perfect lobster risotto with caramelized fennel and creamy uni for a luxurious, memorable dinner." - Todd Plummer
"La Padrona is the latest addition to Jody Adams’ Boston restaurant empire, and it’s arguably the crown jewel of the lot. A burgundy-soaked space, all mirrors and dark corners, with some of the best Italian food in the city. It’s a bit like an Olive Garden for people who have access to olive gardens at their Tuscan villas, with fennel-flecked grissini instead of chunky breadsticks and camel-toned leather seats in place of squeaky vinyl. It’s the kind of place where proposals, both wedding and business, happen over plates of hand-cut pasta and baskets of warm focaccia. La Padrona can get a bit loud, and the acoustics aren't great, so you might have to shout to get your point across, but a strong Birth of Venus cocktail with oyster-infused vodka and sherry will help. Get the Tagliatelle Emilia-Romagna, a tangle of creamy pasta that wears a racy little stripe of aged balsamic down the middle, and save room for the tiramisu, too." - Grace Kelly
"Located inside Raffles' Boston debut, the restaurant marks a new chapter for James Beard winner Jody Adams with a modern Italian menu that balances elegance and approachability; standout items include Italian pigs in a blanket made with mortadella, a burger with onion jam, and addictive fried zucchini strings, and the room feels posh without being stuffy." - Todd Plummer, Shannon McMahon
"A glitzy, award-winning Italian restaurant located in the same building but run separately by a Boston-based restaurant group, operating independently from the property's in-house culinary program." - Erika Adams