La Buca di Sant’Antonio

2^nd time to visit this restaurant. awesome food-​great wine list-​excellent service. we had a 2:30 lunch rez and did not arrive till after 3pm – it was a long drive from Chianti! They took us anyway (there kitchen closes at 3pm) and gave us a wonderful experience. cannot wait to go back!

amazing food and staff! found this place on Unilocal and we decided to make it our place for dinner and we were very satisfied!

Arrivés aujourd’hui à Lucca, notre séjour a très bien commencé avec ce délicieux restaurant. D’abord l’accueil, puis la salle à la décoration typique avec de nombreuses casseroles suspendues, et surtout bien climatisée … Alors que la chaleur extérieure était brûlante.
La carte est axée sur la cuisine toscane. J’ai choisi les cèpes grillés et polenta crémeuse. Le service était parfait, avec sourire et professionnalisme. Quant à l’addition: 41,00 € pour 2 plats, 2 bouteilles d’eau et un café. Parfait.

We came here based of it’s mention in Michelin.
The interior is charming, filled with copper pots & pans and oversized wine bottles. The waiters run around in bowties and aprons.
We started off with an amazing wine from Lucca, and a dish of buttery pasta covered generously with spring truffles. The meal went unfortunately downhill from there. Our waiter disappeared and it seemed that other waiters were in charge of covering our table. We had the bolognese, and the baby roasted goat. All of these dishes showed great technique but they lacked in the punch of flavor that we enjoyed at other restaurants.

The manager at our hotel told us this was the best restaurant in Lucca. We were only there three nights but this was by far the best meal we had.
We made reservations (highly recommended) and a table was waiting for us when we arrived. We ate outside on the patio which is just off the street — very charming and fun to watch people walk by.
As soon as we sat down, we were served a complementary glass of prosecco — what a nice way to start an evening! The food is typically Lucchese, with pasta and meat dishes, but the quality and preparation here are superb! And, the menu prices are very reasonable, no higher than the other places we tried. The waiter helped us pick out an affordable Chianti Classico from the extensive wine list and it was excellent, too!
Our server was warm, friendly, helpful and very professional. He did not mind at all that we did not speak Italian. He even recognized and waved at us the next day as we walked by on our way to the train station.
Our dinner here was one of the best memories from our trip to Italy.

The place you’ll wish you could order two of everything.
Walking in you are greeted by the staff dressed in well tailored dark suits and bowties. Then you see the decorations: an interesting assortment of copper pots and pans with the odd trumpet hanging from the ceiling.
The main, spit roasted baby goat was tender and had a taste that made brought the image of an intimate log cabin in the Tuscan countryside to mind. It came with roasted potatoes that had a beautifully crunchy exterior and smooth center.
Definitely recommend as the one place to go to in Lucca!

How can you review a restaurant that was the highlight of a fabulous trip? We stayed in Lucca for eight days and dined here twice. We were on our flight from London to Pisa and a very wealthy man asked where we were going — we we told him Lucca, he said that we HAD to come to Buca DiSantantonio. Second day of our trip, found it off the Piazza San Michele, and made our reservations. What followed was a love affair with menu, food, staff and a desire to remind ourselves of the fabulous connection to the lovely room, the other diners and the sweet surprise of a «Big Night» experience.
NY Times wrote of Bucadisantantonio in 2006, but the Luccan fare was new to us — the faro soups, chickpeas and cod and other specialties are perfected here. A complementary glass of prosecco, bread and olive oil along with chick peas arrive as you sit and take in the lovely rooms. Fried cod is also offered as you oh and ah over the menu. The staff is amazing — and through out the evening engaged us in conversation, interested in what we wanted to try. The pasta dishes are made fresh daily, sauces are light, perfect. We had the rabbit, cod, chicken, and while we were enjoying the perfect wine selections from Walter, we also chatted with our table mates, delighting in the magic of our evening. Desserts, coffee, aperitifs were also wonderful — one of those places that you have to take photos of your food, of the room, each other because you can’t believe that you are lucky enough to be there. We are already looking forward to going back — please, if you are in Lucca, make a reservation (the website is in English) and don’t miss this dining experience.
PS — can you tell we really, really loved it?

Our favorite dinner in Italy, let alone Lucca. Recommended by some locals whom we were with on business. We had the bistecca, paparadelle with hare sauce (teehee), cold rabbit with green salad, and the gnocci. We were lucky enough to walk in on a Thursday night at 9pm and sit down without reservations, but we were here in the off-​season in February.
The waiters were so kind, and recognized we were nervous about speaking Italian (the menu is even offered in English), They poured us a complimentary glass of prosecco to make us even more comfortable. :-) The service was impeccable, and they recommended a fantastic inexpensive bottle of wine to complement our meal.
At the end of our meal, they even called us a taxi to take us back to where we were staying. A perfect evening, and you can’t go wrong here.

This is a hidden Gem in Lucca and away from the beaten path. We visited 11-​26-​2013 for our first dinner. Which later found out it was a late lunch according to Italy standards at 4pm.
It’s decorated with copper pots & horns and glass wine crafts. Let’s your eye and mind wonder of what /​when they were used last. Beautiful linens and place settings.
We enjoyed a wonderful meal with recommendations from our waiter and it was so good that I couldn’t stop saying that… Portions were huge. Waiter was very nice and polite.
I could see this place filling up fast and reservations would be wise. Pricing was fare and believe it is in line with quality. Probably my best meal and experience in Lucca.

Wonderful resteraunt. Food cooked to perfection — we had pork and veal and the starters were all outstanding. Wine list very impressive and wine waiter highly knowledgeable and speaks perfect English

An outstanding choice in Lucca. They do a great job with the classic dishes of Tuscany. A terrific selection of the regional wines at reasonable prices. Many of the wines are just slightly more than you would pay retail in the U.S. One of the things that sets this restaurant apart is service. I love dining in Italy, but service tends to be a bit «relaxed». Buca’s service is a pleasant exception — attentive, helpful and personal.

We went to dinner at Ristorante Bucadisantantonio. It’s history dates back to 1782 and they think it existed even before that. It is a Michelin 3 star restaurant.
This was one of my favorite meals in Italy. It was an amazing dinner and everyone was really nice with great service. We started out with some complementary wine and warm appetizers. Then we got the prosciutto with fresh figs (really good), zucchini ravioli, and stuffed vegetables. We ended the meal with a pear tart with chocolate. The flavors were perfect and we were so happy.
This is probably the best restaurant in Lucca. A reservation is definitely needed and this is so worth it. The whole meal was 70 euro for 2 people.