Baffi’s Restaurant. {Photos by Han Okcuoglu}
It’s time to talk about the specials at Baffi’s.
Baffi’s is our absolute favorite mom-and-pop authentic Italian restaurant, and I cannot say enough about the family that runs it and how we leave with hugs and laughs every time. The recipes are fantastic and our go-to whether we’re happy, sad, celebrating, or just hungry.
Owned by Camillo DI Benedetto and Jacqueline De Abreu, Baffi’s is technically in Boca Raton but located right off 441 near the Wawa in Parkland.
We started off with the large-size order Imperial Salad ($22.40), a simple arugula and fresh diced tomato salad with two big pieces of burrata in the middle, drizzled in lemon juice and a house balsamic reduction, surrounded by thinly sliced prosciutto.
Even ordering the large size the portion is very generous.
Imperial Salad
The Ravioli Alla Zingara ($26.80, zingara also meaning gypsy) is something else. It’s homemade ravioli containing shredded and seasoned osso bucco beef. It’s delicate and light, with the creamiest chunks and parts of the burrata mixed in a salty Parmigiano Reggiano cheese sauce. A welcome touch was finding pieces of crunchy toasted almond scattered throughout. It’s a delightful, thoughtful, and flavorful dish.
Ravioli alla Zingara
The Cartoccio ($32.40) is enormous but yet never too filling. They cooked soft beef tenderloin in a delicious mushroom sauce swimming in sliced mushrooms and a hint of pepper. It’s similar to a marsala sauce, but not quite. The other side of the plate has their homemade fettuccine slathered in a cheese sauce. Shaved parmigiana cheese is grated table-side if you want (of course we do!). It’s very well-balanced, and you truly get the flavor of the mushroom accompanied by a steak that needs little effort to cut through.
The Cartoccio
The Fettuccine Mare e Monte ($27.80) is another fettuccine dish that boasts marinara sauce with a touch of cream. Copious chunks of beef, chicken, and shrimp are mixed throughout. There are no acidic reactions to typical red sauce; it all ties together wonderfully.
Fettucine Mare E Monte
The only entree item we ordered on the regular menu was their Gorgonzola Gnocchi ($19.90) because it’s that good. I still enjoy bringing new people to Baffi’s, who share the same disdain for gorgonzola cheese as I do, giving very skeptical faces at my strong opinion that this is the only gorgonzola dish you will ever catch me eating.
Gorgonzola Gnocchi
Then, that moment after their first bite, they figure out how unbelievably good it is to know how precariously close gorgonzola dishes can be to become an overpowering, pungent gorgonzola mess.
Combine that with the gnocchi texture I previously described as “made of clouds,” and you get a unique dish I’ve rarely seen another Italian restaurant attempt. (Tip: don’t order that dish for delivery and only eat it in-house, as the ratio of gorgonzola changes because of the time the dish sits waiting to be driven and delivered.
Our trip is never complete without trying some of the matriarch Jacqueline’s homemade desserts. The milhoja ($9.95) is a light, flaky pastry cake with layers of creamy custard topped with powdered sugar. It had just the right amount of crunchy textures and layers. The pavlova has its own layers of cream and crust, crunch and dulce de leche, and strawberries.
Milhoja
Pavlova
It’s always reliably terrific, just like the family that runs the place.
Baffi’s Restaurant
23269 FL-7 #112
Boca Raton, FL 33428
(561) 218-4979
Business Hours
Mon: Closed
Tue – Thu: 4:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Fri: 4:00 PM – 9:30 PM
Sat: Noon – 9:30 PM
Sun: Noon – 7:30 PM
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