I've gone to both the North End and Seaport locations. Both are popular, but the Seaport location has more dining room. Here's what I've gotten: Fried calamari appetizer ($12): meh, no sauce Lobster and crabcake appetizer: good, but very small portions (2 small cakes with coleslaw) Linguine with clams in red clam sauce ($20): decent, mixture of chopped up clams and intact ones, rich in garlic flavor. Linguine with clams in white sauce: also good, strong seafood/garlic flavor Algio olio: their famous dish. Also very good with strong seafood flavor Overall, liked their pasta more than their appetizers. Tip: If you're going to the North End location, go early to avoid lines. You can't wait inside. Food is served in frying pans and there's no air-conditioning, so it can get very hot in the summer. read more

Came here around 2pm on a Friday and only had to wait about 10 min! Score! There is usually a HUGE line for this place and this place is TINY. I'm sure it's normal to wait 1-2 hours just to have a meal here. We started off with the fried calamari and split the Aglio Olio black pasta. The calamari was nicely battered and fried and the sauce was nice and light. The black pasta is freshly made so it's very good and you can taste the difference. I love garlic and the chopped garlic and squid was so delicious and tasty! The portions are a good size and we even had some leftover to bring home. I like that this is a no-fuss place and you get the pasta served in the pan that it was cooked in. Since the place is so small you get really cozy with your neighbors. We sat next to a retired couple and we exchanged "must-eat" places in Boston and Los Angeles. It definitely added to the experience! The service was friendly, and there was only one waitress and one chef. Very efficient! It's just funny that the chef was Asian even though this is an Italian restaurant... Lol. Oh well, the food was delicious and the price was reasonable! Definitely come at a time that's not too busy! read more

Cash only. Really small space. Be prepared to wait outside because they seat only a handful (maybe two handfuls) of people at a time. Best food I've ever had. Large portions. When I come back to Boston, I'm going to eat here. Aglio Olio - dying dish. read more

Don't forget to bring cash and be there early. Came on a Sunday at noon, waited 45 minutes for a party of two. Wonderful fried calamari. Tried the aglio olio black pasta, it was good but the star of the show was the monkfish on top of pasta. I've never had such a good pasta dish in my life. They ran out of the monkfish for the day really quickly. read more

So here's the thing... We've been to Daily Catch a number of times. Their food truly is delicious, BUT without fail, they always manage to be rude or unappreciative of their customers. I get that you are busy, but you're in the customer service industry. DO BETTER. For example, this morning (to be clear, it was 12:00 PM and online it says they open at 11:00 AM), we arrived at their unlocked door and no one else was in line. We opened the door and asked the bus boy if they were open. He said 'ehhh 5 minutes' So we sat and waited. Three minutes later, the older woman came out from behind and said "we're not open yet, I need to clean, go outside". We'd been sitting for 3 minutes already...the restaurant was certainly clean and there was no one else waiting. We said it was cold outside and we didn't mind if she still needed to wipe off tables, etc. and she said to go outside. REALLY?! It's 25 degrees! So we went outside...and then decided today was not a day they earned our business. So please, get better customer service, so that we can enjoy your food even more. read more

I've never entered a restaurant with so much anticipation and hope, but left with a belly full of distaste, discomfort and disappointment. I've lived in Boston for nearly 10 years, and I've heard of the famed "squid-ink pasta" for as long as I can remember, but just have not had the time nor the patience to wait in the long lines to sample the famed pasta dishes. Arriving just 30 minutes after the lunch hours started, my family and I waited in the bitter cold for nearly an hour, as the groups before and after us were ushered in without a word of consolation or concern. When we tried to ask the waitress about the wait time, she dismissively and rudely told us to wait outside until she comes out and grabs us. Embarrassed to leave after waiting for an hour, I waited until nearly half of the restaurant cleared out before we were seated. However, once we sat, the waitress rushed our orders and even chastised me for ordering insufficient dishes for the group and gave me an "I told you so" when I asked to taste another smaller plate of the squid ink pasta. Regardless of how the food tasted, I was embarrassed to have brought my parents to such a crowded and tiny establishment where we were rudely treated in every step of the way. The food may have been good in retrospect, albeit a bit expensive for the size portions. The squid-ink pasta with anchovie oil was a bit too salty for our taste, but the garlic-olive oil version was much more palatable and the noodles were chewy and delicious. The $20 calamari dish was delicious as well, although, like the previous statement, wished there were more seafood than french fries... Overall, my experience here was horrific and I wouldn't recommend this place for any parties larger than 4 people, because you will NOT be seated at any reasonable times. One of the rare cases where the services ruined everything. read more

This is the original location in the heart of the Italian district. The place is tiny so you might have to share a table. The kitchen is in the open and you can watch the chef prepare the food. Do not come if you want decor. The food is very good and get the calamari appetizer. The waitstaff is delightful and remain so whilst running around. There is always a line outside so get there early. read more

Perhaps the lesson on establishments with long lines rendered by Grimaldi's & Di Fara's in New York didn't register during the Bostonian hiatus. What lesson might that be? If there's a 2 hour wait with a line out the door, it's best to pass on the establishment. Of course... Given the notoriety and praise rendered by the Bostonian Community and Tourists alike, it would be cynical if not hypocritical to avoid sampling the offerings of The Daily Catch. Being regarded as one of the best Seafood / Italian institutions in all of The North End, why not endure the long lines if the potential renderings are truly remarkable and praise worthy? Upon arriving at The Daily Catch, little to our surprise, there was a line out the door... 1 Hour, 15 Minutes Later... We were in front of the line and next to be seated. Visual inspection of the interior from the outer confines revealed a simplistic establishment seating no more than 14 patrons at maximum capacity. The decor of the establishment is furnished by off color tiled walls and 1970's Formica wooden tables. The chairs were of solid wood and mahogany finishing, although old, sturdy enough to seat patrons for a long duration meal without discomfort. The size of the restaurant is at best 500 to 600 square feet. The kitchen itself is open to patron visibility and occupies approximately 250 sq ft of the establishment. While patrons decide on their consumables for an evening's consumption, they can view the handy work of the chef. Ultimately, the restaurant atmosphere can be described as cramped & hot (given the open kitchen). Nevertheless, the simplistic feel renders a slightly charming impression for this North End establishment. Service: Perhaps the highlight of the evening. The service was efficient and detailed oriented. Our server was friendly and swift at presenting beverages and bread during seating. Orders were taken at a moment's notice and requests for refills were granted in a timely manner. The Food: Calamari & Clam Linguine w/ Red Sauce: Presented on the 12" inch skillet for which the application was prepared, the dish itself appeared to be a classic rendition of the Italian staple. Excessive amounts of Linguine were topped with a generous portion of Calamari & diced Clams. The addition of Parsley provided the added color contrast to bring out the elements of the application. Sadly, the presentation was all the noteworthy praise that can be rendered to this dish. At first bite, the initial impression of the dish was bland! The tomato sauce used in the application lacked any notable seasoning. No hints of salt or pepper were detected in the sauce. The texture of the tomato sauce appeared to be watery, thus lacking the thick consistency to properly coat the pasta. Given the texture of the sauce, there was an extreme distortion of flavors between the mild tomato sauce and the starchiness of the pasta. In addition, the seafood was excessively overcooked, to the point in which the texture was rubbery and difficult to consume. The natural sweetness and scrumptiousness of the seafood was virtually non-existent. "Aglio Olio" - Black Linguine w. Sauteed Squid: Squid Ink Linguine topped with Diced Squid is sauteed with a based of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Butter, White Wine & Garlic. During consumption, patrons will find that the immediate impression of the dish is the exponential aromatics and flavoring of Garlic stemming from the Garlic Oil used as the sauced in the application. Although the permeating scent and flavor of garlic was in some ways appealing, the excessive presence could've been subdued just slightly. Similar to the Linguine & Clam application, the dish lacked seasoning! The flavor derived from the application stemmed from the fruity Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Garlic. At no time was any detection of seasoning discovered during consumption. Although the sauteed squid did provide the much welcoming salty base for the application, they were overcooked and lacked the juicy texture commonly known of squid. As for the Black Linguine, the freshly made pasta did have a nice clean finish. Unfortunately, the pasta itself was slightly undercooked with certain strands being discarded to the side due to inedibility. It goes without saying, the technical and execution flaws observed in these dishes could easily be remediated had a sampling of our food been taken prior to presentation. Sadly, the following impressions were observed at the conclusion of our meal... 1) The tomato sauce needs seasoning and herbs! 2) The White Wine / Garlic Oil base of the "Aglio Olio" needs a kick (perhaps Red Pepper Flakes or a Jalapeno Pesto). Perhaps the 75 minute wait could've been better spent at another North End establishment. Like the saying goes... "Curiosity Kill the Cat". In this particular case, curiosity killed $80 from my wallet and 2 hours of my life! read more

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Four of us went here last night and had to wait for them to clean up a four seater. The waitress blankly looked at us and looked over at the six-seater table that had a couple occupying two seats and said "You can sit here now." And we were all "Well, we can wait the minute it will take to clear the other table." She gave us a smirk, a roll of the eyes, and waddled away. Sure enough, one minute later, we sat down already designating ourselves as the uncompromising assholes of the whole place. So after waiting about 15 minutes, and after craning our necks to read the chalkboard menu, and after straining my eyes to try to read the parts of the blue-chalk-on-green-chalkboard menu, she finally comes to us to take our orders. The whole time we're ordering I feel like she's about to stab us when we hem and haw but whatevs. If they spit in the food, we'd see it cause we were in the back table RIGHT NEXT to the kitchen which REEKED of garlic which I love and but I think I still smell it today, like it permeated my skin. Anywhats, the place has a family sort of feel especially since you're basically eating in the one room [P.S. I don't think there's a bathroom in there] and the lady totally reminds me of my mom if she hated me more. I tried the soft, creamy calamari meatballs with a sweet red sauce. I also tried one of the huge chewy littleneck clams whose white wine juices were spilled on Annie as they were served. I still have the palate of a 12-year-old and get all "EWWW!" when I see the calamari bits that look like tiny octopi or clams sitting in the shell, but I'm trying to get over it. I mean, Kraft can only make so many varieties of macaroni and cheese. So I order the appetizer portion of the black pasta, dyed from squid ink [very daring for me] with Alfredo sauce [very vanilla of me]. It was good, the texture of the pasta was... interesting, more substantive than garden variety boxed pasta, and the Alfredo sauce was creamy but not too salty. I think the place was closing soon because one of the cooks hung up his apron and broke out the latest issue of "Brazilian Times." I left satisfied, but not full, and feeling awkward as usual. Sometimes I feel like I should just stay at home and order bulk Kraft from Amazon...unless the postman makes me feel awkward :( read more

You know how in movies when someone finds a hungry orphan child and they give him something to eat and he's just gobbling it down all wide-eyed and crazy while guarding his plate with one arm and there's food all over his face? That's what I look like when I eat here. I believe I frighten the other patrons. It's possible there's crack in their black pasta puttanesca. It tastes SO good. I love the thick, al dente texture of the pasta and the super flavorful puttanesca sauce with the large slices of bell peppers cooked to perfection. The fried calamari is pretty fabulous, too. Someday, when I have $70 to blow on pasta, I will come back and get the lobster fra diavolo for two, which in my case would be lobster fra diavolo for one. It smelled incredible. Grar. read more

This is the only post you need to read and it will tell you everything you'll need to know. First, do not come here for the service which probably accounts for 98% of the negative reviews of this place. Chances are you will be mostly ignored or even treated rudely before or during your meal. In fact, if you're read reviews complaining about being treated horribly here, they are more true than false and I've witnessed a number of incidents myself (all minor). If you're the least bit thick-skinned, and you don't insist on being fawned over, you will actually enjoy the semi-refreshing aspect of coming to a place where you KNOW they're not faking it. Take away message: Leave your ego in the wait line outside. Second, do not come here for the warm, comfortable decor. The place is small (seats 20 at most) and cramped. You will wait in line. If it's winter, you'll be cold outside and cold inside (unless parked at the table near the oven). You will likely sit with one or two people you've never met or at a tiny table crammed in a corner. But, oh the counterpoint: You sit only a few feet from the kitchen and the smells of garlic, fresh pasta and seafood is beyond compare. Moreover, the cramped quarters make the experience ultra friendly if you're the least bit outgoing. So this is the place to talk, have some (average to crappy) wine and just enjoy yourselves. Interestingly, they've never rushed me there, so you can take your time and eat at whatever pace you want (obviously, with the line outside, we try to move things along somewhat to give others a chance to eat too). So now, having managed your expectations as to what to expect, let's talk about the food. As I indicated in my review, I love this place. It's right up there with my favorite Italian restaurants anywhere and I've been all over the US and Italy (and elsewhere). So why only 4 stars? Hard to say. Mostly, I want to properly manage the expectations of those who do read this review. Anyway, about the food: Don't expect unique, just delicious. The pasta is tremendous and perfectly cooked. The white sauces are crammed with garlic. The fish is exceptional too - fresh and perfectly prepared. I always get the same thing. Broiled haddock with a side of pasta with red sauce (more like true Italian "gravy") and a perfect complement to the haddock. In cooking the fish, the chef first pan sears the fillet and then lightly breads it and finishes it under the broiler. Simple and perfect. Also and perhaps something many overlook, everything is served to you in the pan meaning it's hot, fresh, and it stays that way for the entire meal - better yet, you can dunk the Italian bread (mediocre but authentic) in your pan to soak up the garlic and oil which is nothing short of food heaven. So bring your appetite and bring some money because at The Daily Catch they don't take kindly to you or anyone for that matter, and they don't take American Express...or Visa...or MasterCard...or any plastic. IT'S CASH ONLY. ENJOY. read more

I came to Boston looking for quality seafood restaurants and thought I found that in The Daily Catch. I was pretty excited to try their food but I didn't even have the chance to do so. The waiter there was incredibly rude to me and my family. As my brother and I waited for our parents to join us, we were told by the waiter to stand outside until the rest of our party arrived. However, seeing as the temperature was in the 90's that day, I asked the waiter if I could just sit down first and have a glass of water since there were two empty tables available. The waiter had a fit and said he couldn't do that until everyone was there to be seated. As I tried to explain the situation to him, he started yelling at my brother and I and said "You can go somewhere else. I don't care. DO WHAT YOU WANT." I have never been treated like that at any other restaurant and I would never recommend this place to anyone visiting Boston. This review doesn't even warrant one star from me. read more

It's a very small place which is probably why the line gets so long - it's cozy inside. You can see the chef cooking from any table. Went around 3-4 PM after walking the Freedom Trail a bit and there was no wait. Best haddock I've ever had in my life. The butter garlic pasta was amazing. They do a black noodle which is just dyed with squid ink. Very unique dishes but everything was very delicious, would easily go back again. read more

The wait was ridiculous but I understand that it's a small space so not a big deal. I think my issue was ultimately the food was pretty bland. The servings are impressive, the pricing was standard (cash only is a little annoying but ok) and the seafood was fresh but our food lacked salt and was devoid of flavor. read more

So we've been waiting for the table for 2 hrs under the pouring rain (ok, that was our choice) Once we were seated, we've noticed that next table customers tried to get waiter's attention like three times. The girl next table was staring at her bread like there was something in there that wasn't supposed to be there. After fourth request the waiter (busboy?) finally came to their table. The girl gave him her bread plate and told there was a worm in her bread. The following conversation between them: Waiter: "Is THAT what you wanted to tell me?!" Girl: "Well, yes..." Waiter*yelling at her* "WELL THANKS FOR TELLING ME THAAAAT!" One "small" detail: the girl was Asian and the waiter/busboy was squinting while yelling at her... He took that plate and threw it on the table next to chef, told him there was a worm. The chef barely looked at it , threw it into trash can and just started laughing out loud. Those customers decided to stay, but we left immediately, didn't even try the food.. Would not recommend this place. Not with that kind of service. read more

After thinking PASTA and heading to Hanover street only to find Giacomo's with their obvious ridicurous line outside.. my out of town guest + two bang twins were rubbing their stomachs with hungry beady eyes.. so I had to save the night (yet again. sigh. puhaha.) While walking to G's... we passed by all the pasta staples but the Daily Catch caught my attention due to having had dinner at the other location by the docks. This Daily Catch was way different and better. Limited seating, no paper menus and one sole gangster waitress. Anyways.. we ate here. It took awhile to eat here but we sure ate here. I'm not sure if the staff here wanted us to eat here after they were open aired annoyed that we asked for them to clear a table for us instead of seating us next to a romantic dinner couple but we still ate here. Stale bread coming 'atcha! Don;t you worry... AMAJEEEENG Cherrystones. Chika chika bang bang.. meaty, flavorful and easy to go down! Had a bit of the calamari meatballs=light fishy tasting meat balls. Get the black pasta here... even if it's the appetizer size and go for the garlic sauce.. alfredo was yummy but on complimentary levels..Aglia Olio won. Yes this is the place where they serve pasta straight from the stove to table in the silver pans.. handle and everything! Oh snap! P.S Even if you piss off you know who.. she'll still give you a smile at the end. read more

Food was good and fresh. Place is very small so if you go with a bigger pArty prolly have to wait. Prices are reasonable. I have shrimp pasta with red wines sauce. It's good for 2 ppl. Big portions.. cash only location limited on drinks. But def was worth to try. read more

Very low-key, very fresh seafood, menu in chalk on the wall, everything cooked in the kitchen which happens to be right in the small dining area so you get to watch. Hard to find a hole-in-the-wall style place somewhere as touristy as the North End, but this place reminded me of Italy. It is small, so your best bet is weeknights or off-hours, worth a visit though. read more

Cash only! Lots of hype around this restaurant, so I brought a friend for an early dinner. Not early enough apparently since the queue was about an hour & a half's wait. I give this place 3.5 stars, rounding up, because I won't really be back. Service: One waiter, one chef = long queue. Our waiter was still very nice though & quite attentive. Prices: Not bad, but a little on the expensive side. Food: Calamari was delicious, but it wasn't worth a long wait. It was nice & crispy, but I've had better. It didn't come with a sauce, but it was still good on its own. I do wish it'd come with a nice tomato sauce though. I got the squid ink pasta with scallops because you can get any pasta you want with any of the pasta entrees. It was pretty good, but again, no worth a long wait for & it wasn't the best I've ever had. Too much hype over this place. Boston, I'm so disappoint. The scallops were fresh, my friend's linguine was al dente, but the pasta lacked a particular umph to put it over the moon. I reheated it the following day, adding a touch of agave & fish sauce to it & it was so much better. I also wish the squid ink was fresh instead of infused into the noodles, but what can you do? No one in Boston does this, so you gotta work with you got. What I got was pretty good, but it simply not worth the wait. Is anything in Boston actually worth the wait??? Come on, guys, tell me. Don't hold out on me. If you tell me Mike's, imma slap you. Environment: Tiny restaurant, little seating, kind of hot in there because the kitchen is about 10 ft away from you. tl;dr good food, not worth the wait. read more

I can't rave enough about this restaurant. It has 5 tables, open kitchen, and they serve your entree in a pan. We wanted to find a the in the wall Italian restaurant, here in Boston and we found it! Highly recommend the clams linguine in white sauce. read more

The Daily Catch - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

How does a Yelper review a place that has been open longer than I have been on this planet? How do I do it? I want to do The Daily Catch justice, so here we go: Monday night. The day was over and night was upon us. Still, it being June it was light outside. There was a chill in the air and a slight spring in my step. Of course, I was excited to be in the North End, one of the most lovely places to be in all of Boston, maybe even in the world. We knew where we'd be dining that night. The Daily Catch. Why would we want to "risk it' anywhere else. We parked in Parcel 7 (which was a DOLLAR). Make sure you get your parking validated @ the Daily Catch. Amazing deal. So we walk down Hanover Street and poke our head in their tiny restaurant. The place was packed! Not a seat to be had. Luckily, there was a table paying their bill and there only were three people ahead of us. Sebastian, the waiter extraordinaire pokes his head outside and said "Fifteen minutes", when I asked how long for a table for two. No problemo! Literally, 30 seconds later, Sebastian comes back out and says. "Just kidding, I can seat you right now." So, in we went. The smell of garlic cooking made me even hungrier. We sat next to the three people who were waiting ahead of us. They were from Tokyo and Taiwan and were friendly -- you will be sitting right next to strangers, fyi. We ordered the calamari meatballs, which do not contain meat, just calamari, breadcrumbs, spices. The marinara sauce they serve with it is deelish. I got mussels fra diavlo with linguine. PERFECTA!! My fiance got littlnecks with a spicy red sauce. We got a bottle of their Sicilian red wine, it was wonderful. I love how you basically are in the kitchen and can watch the chef make your dinner. The red wine vinegar with hot pepper is such a interesting condiment. I put it on my bread, I even put it in my pasta. The prices are not too high, but they are not very low. I'd say for what you get, the prices are just right. The Freddura family has owned and operated this fine establishment since 1973. Why not bring your family by sometime? You will not be disappointed. Phenomenal food, phenomenal service, phenomenal experience. read more

The Daily Catch was so memorable that I can only fully recount the experience by means of poetry. I'm thinking in haikus. Four tables, maybe. tiny but inviting dive - almost romantic. Tribute to the squid: meatballs, pastas, rings, salads - each choice intriguing. Handmade, black pasta. savory, ground squid pieces - soaks warm, crusty bread. Served in a skillet: rustic, homey, fragrant bowl - garlic, olive oil. Holy shit, I'm so full. but, this was twenty four bucks, so - shut up, finish it. read more

This is my favorite place in the North End and one of my favorite seafood restaurants on the East Coast. This Italian take on seafood is truly incredible, and you can tell that they put a lot of love into it. I don't know how the single chef can produce such perfectly rendered mouth-joygasms, but he does it with serious sprezzatura. Here's what you have to know, though: CASH ONLY. And it is tiny. T-I-N-Y. It seats 20 people MAX. Some tables might as well be windowsills. At the peak hours after 6pm, expect a long wait. You queue outside, and you can't put your name down. read more

I'm no stranger to long waits at popular restaurants that don't take reservations, but the "service" we got here was utterly unacceptable. We showed up during a pretty slow period when there were only a few people ahead of us in line. Poked our heads in and were promptly yelled at to get in line. So we wait and watch a fairly large party and another table of two leave. Takes them about 15 minutes to bus the tables but w/e, they're busy...so we keep waiting. By this point, there is only one party ahead of us so we assumed that they'd get the bigger table and we would be seated at the table for two. Here's where it gets ridiculous. Just as they were clearing off the tables, the daughter of the rude hostess/server shows up with her bf, and plants herself down at the newly freed table - just walked in and flagrantly cut in front of the line of people waiting outside! Of course, the server also took the spoiled daughter's order before attending to the other party that had gotten there at least half an hour before them. No matter how good the food is, there's no excuse for flagrantly rude and unacceptable behaviour like that from any restaurant. If you're going to give preferential treatment to some customers, you could at least be more discreet about it! read more

Mine is too salty, I can't eat, and bad sanitation and service. When I asked the server my is too salty, she just answered yeah, and I was like ???????? All right, I will not come here anymore. read more

The Daily Catch - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Come 5pm in the North End, crowds move from the cannoli line to the pasta line. The wait can be up to 90 minutes at the real popular places. Too hungry & impatient for that mess, we lined up behind just two parties at Daily Catch & 15 minutes later, the three of us were crammed in, sharing a table with another trio. I wanted something small & cheap-ish, so I went for the shrimp scampi. Six large shrimp swimming in butter, garlic & butter. Delicious! Grab extra bread (nice & crusty) & keep soppin' up that buttah sauce until the restaurant has to call your cardiologist. read more

Calamari was over fried and with likely bad / old oil. Probably worse calamari i had all year. Linguine with clams and other things were under cooked and had so much extra garlic that you couldn't taste anything. Worse was the waiter. Had to ask for plates, then napkins, then spoon for pasta. Everytime he looked like we annoyed the hell out of him. Really disappointing experience. read more

Filled with tourists who end up reading about this place from their guide books. Only they don't know about the ambience, which entails the cook swearing and the bus boy shot-putting the sautéed pans into the metal industrial sinks. The only conclusion I could gather was he must be deaf because I cringed after every BANG, CLANG, and BAM! You would think ALL of the plates would be broken after how forcefully he threw them into piles and drying racks. Not to mention the gross price inflation. First, hubby got the single person version seafood fra diavalo with lobster, clams, etc for $50!!! $50!!! For one person!! The owner/waitress recommended that he get the two-person portion for $74 instead because you know, screw what you want, get what your husband wants in order to economize. When the seafood and pasta came out, it was underseasoned. The red sauce had depth, which was nice. The black ink pasta had zero flavor difference besides being thicker and chewier than the linguine. For an almost $30 lunch plate of seafood pasta (monkfish & ink pasta), it was just underwhelming. I would have much rather gone to Legal Seafoods, which is elegant and delicious. read more

GREAT experience and GREAT food. My boyfriend and I planned on getting seafood in the North End on a Saturday night, but the restaurant we wanted to go to had a three hour wait so went over to Hanover st. The Daily Catch had good seafood reviews so we decided to check it out. The line was ok at the time we got there (around 6pm) there was maybe 12 people in front of us and we only had to wait about 45min to get in. The restaurant is one room including dining, and kitchen area so it was fun to watch the chef cook our meal right in front of us. It was a no-frills mom and pop shop, which I can appreciate. The server was running the whole show including the line outside and he was entertaining during our meal. We started with the fried calamari, which was perfectly cooked and served with marinara sauce. For dinner we split the Lobster Fra Diavolo. It was a whole lobster, clams, mussels, calamari, and shrimp over a LARGE bed of pasta. We were able to eat the seafood, but could barely put a dent in the pasta. The tomato sauce was perfectly seasoned and had the right amount of heat to it. I will add it was my first time having lobster and clams. The lobster cracking was fun and both were delicious! Overall, we were extremely satisfied with the seafood and pleasantly surprised with the dining experience. The chef even came around to chat at the tables! If you're around the area and want delicious seafood you won't regret...come here!! read more

Me and a friend got here on a sunday afternoon around 1pm. The restaurant seats about 18 people, so there's a high possibility you'll have to wait if you go during popular times. We waited about 35 mins, then got seated. Once we sat down, the service was not the smoothest, but I have no expectation that it would be. This is a cash only place. Also there are two other locations in Boston, so it may get confusing if you're tying to google the location. We order the clams marinara w red sauce and the black noodles aglio olio. The aglio olio was a strong garlic flavor and was very flavorful, I would definitely recommend. We requested extra bread and soaked the left over sauce into the pan. The mussels were pretty good, a little more subtle in flavor but all around good. This place is somewhere you go to experience the North End. I wouldn't necessarily bring my parents here for a nice lunch, or a date. Overall the food was great, and our bill came out to about 55$ for 2 entrees/tax/tip read more

The Daily Catch - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

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I think people are missing the point of this restaurant. It's divey. It's rugged, even abrasive at times. The people running in this restaurant and the people working in this restaurant make no pretense to fine dining or impeccable service. It's meant to embody raw, New England, and perhaps more specifically Bostonian, 'charm.' There's one chef, one waitress, and one busboy. The kitchen/restaurant is cramped, and a bit smokey at times. There's fumes galore but the food is absolutely delicious. I walked in not expecting good service and was pleasantly surprised. Who knew that if you treated someone nicely, they'd treat you back nicely as well? I didn't greet the waitress with any smugness whatsoever and just tried to be as nice as I could to her, and she responded in kind. My gf and I shared the Lobster Fra Diavolo and it was absolutely out of this world amazing. It's pricey, but it's definitely worth the money you're shelling out. There's about 5 different kinds of seafood in that dish and it's just exploding with flavor. I came here following a recommendation from a friend who's been in Boston for the past three years and was not disappointed at all. The wait's not long if you show up first thing at 11:45 when it opens (despite it saying 11am on the website). read more

Amazing hole in the wall, especially known for their squid ink pasta and ridiculously fresh seafood. My friend and I got their scallop in white sauce with squid ink pasta, and it came served in the pan it was cooked in, fresh and hot. The pasta was a perfect al dente, and the scalloped just melted in my mouth. We also ordered the fried calamari, which was wonderfully seasoned. They are first come, first served, and it's a no frills, get in, eat, get out kind of place. Staff are friendly, service is quick and efficient. I think I prefer this place to Giacomo's down the street. Definitely come here when you are looking for amazing pasta! read more

Fried calamari was fantastic! Side salads were fresh. We had shrimp and pasta with red sauce and scallops and pasta with red sauce; both very good and full of tasty garlic! They only have 20 seats so go EARLY! Also Cash only here so come prepared. Dessert is across the street at Mike's Pastry...also Cash only. read more

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There seems to be a great imbalance between food quality and service in this restaurant. My family and I got to the restaurant before the huge line hit on the friday evening, with only one lady and her family ahead of us. We waited a good amount of time before the waiter inside even took notice of us and reassured us of our place in line. In fact a third lady literally walked into the middle of the restaurant before the waiter actually acknowledged those waiting outside. One would think that a restaurant who have seen busy days so often will have a more organized waiting system. At least provide a sign saying line this way or take a number, or just come out quickly and ask us how many are in our party? Nope none of that. When we finally got seated we ordered the alfredo squid ink pasta, puttanesca squid ink pasta, and a calamari clam combo. Both squid pastas were ok, but the sauces outshone the novelty of the squid ink pasta. I found that the ink may have made the pasta too tough, more than al dente. The calamari clam combo in white sauce though was quite good, and better than the squid ink dishes in my opinion. However despite the good food, I certainly didn't enjoy the wait it took to get it. Like another reviewer pointed out, the cook waited for all the orders to be collected so he can push the food out all at once. Though this is convenient for the cook it is unfair to customers who have arrived first, and even more unfair to the slowly forming line outside who could have gotten to eat faster if the cook was not only working for his own convenience. Overall this restaurant has 4 star food (and price), but also 2 star service, which averages out their review score to 3. read more

This restaurant is just okay for us. We waited for about 40 mins from 11: 23 on Sunday. And the service was not really good. We asked if we can order after we sitting there for 10 mins. They replied not friendly and said that the machine had some problem which needs more time. What's good was we didn't wait too long for the food. We ordered the lobster fra diavolo, black paster with aglio olio and fried calamari. I can only say all of them tasted were just okay for us. read more

I serendipitously stumbled across this place on a lazy weekday afternoon when I came to the North End looking to grab lunch at a nearby Italian place that happened to be closed. I whipped out Yelp to see what else was good and saw hundreds of reviews for this place called The Daily Catch. At a first glance, the restaurant isn't much to look at. It's probably the definition of "hole in the wall". There are maybe enough seats for 15-20 people. Although it was already 1:30 pm, the restaurant was full, and we ended up having to wait about 15 minutes. As one diner walked out, he said to us, "you don't come here for the atmosphere, but the food is amazing!" We were seated at a table for two which wasn't really a table - it was sort of a tile platform jutting out from the wall. I had to sit sideways since there was no legroom underneath, so at that point, I was thinking, "this better be good". Two other things also caught my eye. A lot of diners were eating different variations of this black looking pasta and I'd never seen anything like it before. Also, the kitchen is completely exposed to diners. There was one chef churning out orders like mad, moving rapidly from oven to stove to plating. I'd occasionally see a flame flare up out of the corner of my eye. This guy was definitely impressive. I also found it interesting that he was a middle-aged Asian man cooking Italian food...I guess pasta and noodles might have a common origin after all! At the waiter's recommendation, we ordered the clams casino to start. It was a wonderfully rich dish of baked clams topped with crispy bread crumbs. I've never had juicier and more fresh clams. For the main course, we had two types of their famous squid ink pasta (the black pasta I saw people eating earlier). One version was puttanesca style, with olive and anchovy butter, mushrooms, onions and capers. Just delicious if you like more sour flavors. The other was the aglio olio style, with ground squid sauteed with olive oil and garlic. Mmmm... Verdict: food is really memorable and unique Italian cuisine, restaurant is really adorable and cozy Tip: this place gets packed, go during an off-peak time. Even as I was leaving, a huge wait started to build up again. Luckily, I just realized they have multiple locations in Brookline and Seaport too, check it out: http://www.dailycatch.com/index.html read more

The reviews are right when they say this place is always packed. A small little restaurant but delicious pasta, and we only had the to go experience. It was our last night in Boston and I really wanted to try The Daily Catch pasta. We had some things we had to take care of so the hubby asked the server if it was possible for us to order something to go. We felt bad coz there were people outside waiting in the rain, but we really had to get back to our hotel. The server was nice and accommodating, since we only had one order. We ordered the linguine with clams and white sauce. And even after walking in the rain back to our hotel, this pasta was absolutely delicious. The pasta was cooked perfectly, the amount of garlic to sauce ratio was perfect and they gave us bread to dip into the sauce. The clams were juicy and a good amount of them too. I honestly can't wait to go back to Boston so that we can actually dine in next time. read more

The Daily Catch - Our clams and linguine pasta with white sauce to go. - Italian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

I know there are better Italian places within walking distance of this place...Carmens, Vinoteca de Monica, Mare and Teatro come to mind. You could easily get a better 2 course meal w/ one drink at each of these places for the same $95 I wasted on Daily Catch. Yes I get that it's really fresh seafood, yes I get it's a small family operation...but seriously...I was pissed. Hell at this point I'd even go next door to Cafe Pomodoro again (a place I swore off after they redid the dining area. Yes the booths looked nice but the food wasn't what it used to be. Now it looks like the changed it back to dining tables again). I don't care about ambiance, really as long as the food is good I'll happily squat on the sidewalk. But the food simply wasn't that good. It certainly was not worth waiting outside for an hour to be sandwiched between two strangers with hot frying pans flying around your head. We had the fried calamari, fried clams, clams with white sauce, and scallops and shrimp w/ broccoli with white sauce. The pastas were good, but not particularly memorable. Oh and the restaurant ran out of bread on a Saturday night around 7. I specifically remember eating at Il Panino (the sit down place not the fast food-ish type one) and a bus boy running out to buy more bread when they ran out. read more

We went on a Saturday night. The line was extremely long, and we waited 1 hour 45 minutes. As a general benchmark, if you are currently waiting past the door of the souvenir shop next door expect an 1.5 hour long wait. The food was awesome. We would recommend the lobster fra diavolo with black pasta. read more

My husband and I were VERY lucky that our toddler decided to nap just as we walked up to The Daily Catch. For our entire 90 minute wait, she napped, which made it very easy on us as we stood there... and stood there... but it was WORTH IT. We arrived around 2:30pm on Labor Day weekend. I'd recommend coming back on a non-holiday so hopefully you won't be waiting so long during such an off-time to eat. Fried calamari: 4/5 - the marinara sauce is delicious. The calamari was very tender - not over cooked at all. There could have been a bit more seasoning on the batter, but it was all still very delicious. Squid Ink Pasta with Alfredo: 4/5 - The pasta is a bit thicker than spaghetti, so some might think it's al dente, but I thought it was cooked through more than that. The alfredo sauce was rich, but not as rich as I expected. We ordered an appetizer portion since we were going for the Lobster FD as the main course. Lobster Fra Diavolo: 5/5 - this is hands down the best non-cheesy pasta dish my husband and I have ever had in our entire lives. The red sauce is so flavorful with the hint of seafood and white wine. The seafood was very tender - the mussels, clams, calamari, and of course lobster. It was a lot of food for two people. Service: 5/5 - the one server works his butt off. I don't know how the chef is so consistent with his cooking at such a fast pace. This was the highlight of the trip. read more