Italian Food At The Mall? No Joke, Lucca's Is Good

Restaurant review Lucca's Pasta Bar, Alderwood Mall, 3000 184th St. S.W., Lynnwood. Open Monday through Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Beer and wine, major cards, food to go. 774-7367.

One doesn't usually go to a mall for Italian food. One especially doesn't go to the mall expecting good Italian food. But Lucca's Pasta Bar in Alderwood Mall is proving you can do exactly that.

On first glance it looks like another smartly appointed espresso bar - an order and pick-up counter, some tables and chairs and counter seating.

True, espresso drinks are readily available, but once you've perused the specials board by the entrance or the overhead fixed menu, you see there's more here than lattes and biscotti.

Lucca's offers a nice selection of Pasta specialties - pre-designed dinners - sandwiches, salads, breakfast for the early shoppers and/or diners and the pasta bar.

With the pasta bar you design your own meal. You choose from fettuccine, tortellini, angel hair or the special pasta of the week and add Alfredo, Lucca's marinara, red or pesto sauce. A basic bar, pasta and sauce, is $2.50, the full bar - which includes condiments such as sundried tomatoes, mushrooms or spinach is $4.50. A la carte condiments are 89 cents.

If you're too tired from doing Nordies to fix your own, any of the house specialties is a good choice. The Fettuccine Classico, $4.75, is fettuccine noodles bathed in the house cream sauce, with Italian sausage, sundried tomatoes and green onion. The sauce is smooth, the meat and vegetables add a sweet zest.

The Tortellini Gorgonzola, $4.99, is fat pasta buds in a smooth white sauce. The gorgonzola cheese is rich without being overpowering, there's plenty of fresh mushrooms and they don't hold back on the pine nuts.

Some of the other choices include spaghetti, fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken and Tortellini Lombardi, and the house special, which is tortellini in cream sauce with artichokes, olives, green onions capers, sun dried tomatoes, fresh tomatoes and mushrooms. At $4.99 it's a substantial dish.

Lucca's also does a nice job with its salads. The Caesar can be had in its simple lettuce, cheese and crouton state or you can add chicken or shrimp. Lucca's also offers house and spinach salads.

For breakfast Lucca's serves a variety of frittatas and breakfast sandwiches.

Usually food at a mall is an afterthought, something you do while you're resting between store assaults.

But Lucca's is good enough to consider your first choice for entering the World of Merchandise.

You can always do a little bit of shopping afterward. If you're not too full.

Neighborhood Eats is a regular Thursday feature of the Seattle Times. Reviewers visit restaurants unannounced and pay in full for all their meals. When they interview members of the restaurant management and staff, they do so only after the meals and services have been appraised.