4070 N. Dixie Highway, Boca Raton, 561-362-0874, taliastable.com
Hours: 11:30 – 8:30pm Monday-Saturday
Wow factor: Fresh mozzarella, fennel sausage, meatballs, ciabatta bread, ravioli, marinara, ala vodka and white clam sauces are just a few of the house-made ingredients used to create the salads, sandwiches, pizzas, pastas and entrees at Talia’s. Choose from more than 50 lunch and dinner items under $12.
The overstuffed “Bronx Bomber”-salami, capicolla, mortadella, ham, provolone and hot peppers- and the “Michelanglo”-a chicken cutlet with eggplant, mozzarella and roasted peppers- top the hero ($10) popularity charts. For larger gatherings, any of the 15 sandwiches can be made into a two-foot party hero for $29. Step into the next room at Baba’s for delicious carnivorous alternatives. Fish taco wraps are generously filled with a choice of soft shell crab, crawfish, catfish, tuna, dolphin, snapper or salmon topped with lettuce, tomato, avocado and mozzarella, and served with homemade sweet potato fries ($10).
Quote: “We’re a little hidden jewel, like the door says ‘Boca’s Best Kept Secret’ and we like it that way,” explains chef/owner Andrew “Baba” Bennardo. “We’re not for everyone. Some people just don’t get it. They come in and want to plop down and be served. And they don’t like the loud music. That’s not our customer and that’s okay. I did the fine dining thing and I’m over it. The advantages to this style is that it’s more fun, there’s no tipping because there’s no waitress and you get to meet the owner who takes your order and makes your food. I’m the chef and the waitress so I’m controlling everything and making sure it’s right. This is what people want.”
Background: In 1923, Bennardo’s great grandfather opened an Italian grocery and delicatessen on 108th Street and Lexington Avenue in New York City. Chef Andrew continued the family tradition by graduating with honors from the Culinary Institute of America in 1982 and furthering his studies at Florida International University’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management. He gained his practical experience in New York, Italy and Switzerland before settling in South Florida.
In 1990, he launched his namesake restaurant, Bennardo’s, in Delray Beach. After a solid 10-year run, he decided a casual eatery would be more conducive to his now married-with-children life. Talia’s Tuscan Table, named after his daughter, opened in 2001. During the summer of 2010, the drugstore adjacent to Talia’s closed and Bennardo took over the space creating Baba’s Shrimp Shack, a childhood nickname. He knocked down a wall to join the two storefronts, creating two restaurants under one roof. The restaurants share the same entrance, menus, kitchen staff and philosophy-no-frills, counter service with good food and good prices in a casual atmosphere.
Buy this: A monthly dinner and movie series includes an Italian buffet and classic films projected onto the side of the building under the stars for $25 per person. Bring a lawn chair, space is limited and reservations are required. Check Talia’s website for the schedule.
Classic Italian, hands-on cooking classes for groups of 10 are held the last Sunday of the month 11 a.m.-4pm. Single classes are $85 and a three-class package is $219. Baba’s specialty meals for two ($18) offers a choice of San Francisco cioppino, Moroccan seafood paella or the Boston clam bake. So good is Baba’s Bahamian spicy shrimp and conch chowder and white clam sauce ($7) that he’s in discussion with the specialty supermarket, Trader Joe’s, to stock them.
Talia’s prides itself as the home of the self serve draft beer complete with honor system. So while you wait for your order, pull yourself a cold one from the countertop keg, just don’t forget to leave a buck in the cup.
-Claire Perez
