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It’s entirely unfair to review a restaurant on opening night. Sudbury Weekly had no intention of writing a full review – just a quick feature highlighting the opening of the new concept. But when a restaurant opening impresses like Sul Tavolo did on January 17, the good word must be shared.
Sul Tavolo is a new restaurant, under the same ownership that operated Sobre Mesa, a Mexican restaurant at 29 Hudson Road in Sudbury the past few years. The decor has been modified slightly to account for the concept changes, but the relatively minimal aesthetic updates that were required in the bar and dining room highlight the ingenuity of the original design. It’s comfortable in there, as always.
The meal started with the Tuscan Monkey Bread. Don’t skip it – you’ll thank us, and the purveyor, later. It’s the perfect entry point to Chef and Owner Jordan Mackey’s menu. Good olive oil, good cheese, and a dash of herbs foreshadow a menu that makes great use of fresh herbs and spices. When those simple, quality ingredients are paired with warm, shareable bread that’s crunchy on the outside, and light and airy on the inside, everyone at the table seems to relax. We’re breaking bread, not turning good eating into performance art.
The antipasti options are vegetable-heavy in a genuinely exciting way. We tried the crespelle de melanzane first. Think of them as eggplant crepes, but every ingredient was working together. Garlic-truffle ricotta, wood roasted eggplant, basil, and a truly feisty pomodoro sauce. It’s on the heavier side for an appetizer, but the portion is well managed. This will be a regular order in future visits. You’re not getting anything like this anywhere else around here.

The calamari highlighted Mackey’s use of spice and texture, but also his restraint. It’s all calamari, a few delicious and not-too-spicy piparra peppers, and some olive oil with chili and fennel. The menu called it “calabrian style” – we call it a wonderful blend of honest food with an herbaceous twist.
Before we get to the main course – let’s talk about service. The crew here is welcoming, knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the food they’re serving up. If there were any small hiccups on their first night, they would be impossible to notice because you’re just happy every time you interact with any of the staff. They’re not going through the motions. They truly want you to enjoy yourself and eat well.
Main courses were, in a word, excellent. The bucatini with clams features a spicy tomato broth with basil, lemon and chili. Mackey knows how to use heat in a dish, and he isn’t afraid to use it. It’s a refreshing change of pace from Italian-American restaurants that throw half a teaspoon of dried chili flakes into a dish and call it “spicy.”

The chicken parm – an odds-on favorite for the most ordered dish in the Boston suburbs, hits different here – in all the right ways. We suspect Mackey’s success with the outrageously good chicken sandwiches at Nan’s Kitchen may have informed his approach. The portion is huge, it’s crunchy on the outside, moist on the inside, and once again features assertive use of herbs to add depth to a tried-and-true dish.
The highlight of the night was the swordfish piccata. It’s herbaceous and inventive, yet comforting and familiar. The swordfish chop is served with a “nest of aglio and olio capellini.” The sauce is impossibly velvety, and the careful use of lemon and capers lets some of the other ingredients, including delicate bits of artichoke, shine through. If we were making a list of the best main courses you can find in Sudbury, this one would be very high on the list.

The children’s spaghetti and meatball dish is a generous portion, and the meatballs feature perfect texture and a delightful depth of flavor. They could add two meatballs, put it on the main menu, and adults would thoroughly enjoy it.
Dessert, which is becoming a pretentious endeavor in restaurants these days, is designed for deliciousness more than Instagram – though it would look great on Instagram. The “creme catalan” makes spectacular use of lemon in more ways than one, extracting the most out of an ingredient while somehow leaving room for the custard to shine on its own. It’s like a lighter, fresher creme brulee.

The tiramisu affogato was served in a glass mug, and may have caused some tension at the table when certain guests took overly-large scoops for themselves. It’s an electric dessert that doesn’t even attempt to be flashy because, let’s admit it, it knows how good it is.
The cocktails, which were already excellent at Sobre Mesa, continue to stand out for their quality and creativity. The speciality cocktails extend the herbaceous theme from the food menu – working in harmony if you choose wisely. But don’t skip the wine experience here. The red and white wines are listed as table wine, nice, a little nicer and really nice. It’s worth taking the gamble.
The table agreed to a bottle of “a little nicer” and received a bottle of Ciavolich ‘Aries’ Pecorino. That’s made from a grape that most Americans have probably never tried. And it’s a bottle that you won’t find in many local liquor stores. Sul Tavolo has a sophisticated wine program that doesn’t make you feel like a neanderthal for not knowing about an obscure grape that is grown on a solitary hectare in a region you’ve never heard of before. Instead, they promise you good food and good wine, and they deliver.
The discussion on the short walk back to the car focused on what dishes to try during the next visit to Sul Tavolo. Put it in your regular rotation. It’s very good food, elevated by creative and assertive use of honest, high-quality ingredients. And it is served up by people who genuinely care about their guests. What’s not to like?