Café Prima Pasta

Opened in 1993, Café Prima Pasta is still almost always busy, and the welcome is as personal as it was when the place was an eighth of its current size. The pastas, breads, and desserts are still house-made. Stand-out pasta dishes include black linguine with a choice of three sauces (zesty marinara, spicy fra diavolo, or particularly delectable creamy lobster) and, also with the last sauce, raviolotti stuffed with real crabmeat. But because pastas are unfailingly cooked to perfect al dente chewiness and basic ingredients such as olive oil are of top quality, even the more simple fettuccine carbonara and spaghetti aglio e olio (with garlic, olive oil, and basil) are satisfying. Make room for Mama Carla's homemade apple tart.