Mmmm Maggiano's

One of our favorite restaurants up here is Maggiano's. In my opinion it's the PF Chang's of Italy. They are always bustling and busy and reservations can be hard to get, but they are definitely worth the crowds and the late night meal. Service is always great and the prices are phenomenal. You get a lot of food for very little money.

We started off the night with the Mozzarella Marinara. This is a huge chunk of mozzarella breaded, fried, and topped with slice of provolone cheese and marinara sauce. Fried mozzarella doesn't get better than this; the mozzarella is creamy, the breading is crunchy, and the provolone and marinara add a sweet saltiness to the dish.
Alex ordered the Chicken Pesto Linguini. This is his favorite pasta. He loves the sauce, which is an alfredo-like pesto sauce. The sauce is loaded with pine nuts and the pasta is full of roasted chicken. Because the sauce is more like a cream sauce, the pesto is very subdued. You get a hint of the herbs in the pesto but they aren't as potent.
I ordered the Chicken Parm. This chicken dish hit the spot as the chicken was incredibly juicy underneath the fried coating. The chicken was topped with provolone cheese and marinara. Melted cheese makes just about anything good and this made chicken even better.
For dessert we ordered the Apple Crostada and, omg wow, this was the best apple dessert I have ever had in my life. The apples were extremely tender and they melted in my mouth. The pastry was exactly what a pastry should be like in this kind of dessert, crisp on the outside and warm and chewy on the inside. The dessert was topped with a scoop of ice cream, which was perfect pairing for the warmth of the apples and the pastry.
Maggiano's has one location in Boston and several locations throughout the US. They are definitely worth checking out and exploring.