Trentonian 4/17/2014

 

HAMILTON — The grand opening of Mafalda’s Italian Kitchen located at 3681, Nottingham Way in Hamilton went off without a hitch Tuesday.Local dignitaries Mayor Kelly Yaede, Councilman Dennis Pone and others were on hand to welcome the area’s newest Italian restaurant.Owners Anthony and Michael Lettera and Anthony Maimone wanted to invite the locals to indulge in Hamilton’s finest Italian cuisine such as their butterfish franchise.“We pride ourselves on our authentic Italian offerings served by the most attentive waiters and waitresses. Our goal is to make your dining experience the finest in New Jersey,” said Michael.A goal to provide impeccable service and Chef Jose’s experience are on the restaurant’s early roadmap to success.“With a soft opening in February we have refined even further our commitment to ensure your time at Mafaldas is memorable. The food is the real star at our establishment,” said Anthony.There is a large selection of appetizers including, seafood antipasto, clams casino oreganato, spring salad with fresh beets, tomatoes and a heavenly goat cheese or try crab avocado or a roasted beet salad with pistachio to start your meal.In addition to the butterfish franchise, some of the other entrées include: Italian seasoned chicken on the bone, fried gnocchi mozzarella, tripe fra diavolo, Alaskan cod italiano, as well as linguine lettera.Mayor Yaede was excited about the new restaurant and what it meant for Hamilton. “This speaks to the economic development efforts of our administration. Hamilton has the traffic base and population base that attracts businesses,” said Mayor Yaede. “I love Italian food,” she added with a smile.“Chicken parm and spinach bread was delicious. Very clean & family oriented. Glad Mafalda’s is in Hamilton Square,” said Karen Paulaski, a Hamilton area resident.Mafalda’s is open six days a week Tuesday through Sunday. Weekday hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Weekend hours run Saturday 4 to 10 p.m., Sunday 4 to 9 p.m.

 

The Times of Trenton

5/16/14

Anthony Lettera was chatting with us when he got called back into the kitchen. Someone wanted a pizza, and he’s the pie man.

Lettera’s expertise in the restaurant business and making pizzas goes back to when he worked at several area restaurants owned by him and his family. They included the Yardville Hotel in Hamilton, Tony’s Pizzeria in Bordentown, Villager Pizza in New Hope, Pa., and Keg in Trenton’s Chambersburg.

He had moved on to owning car dealerships when his son, Michael, said he wanted to get back into the restaurant business.

Three months ago the father and son, plus cousin Anthony Naimone, opened Mafalda’s, subtitled Mama’s Italian Kitchen, which they named for Anthony Lettera’s mother. On any given day, you will find members of the family waiting tables, cooking and working the front desk.

“It’s a good family business,” Anthony Lettera says. “Everybody works.”

Now that he’s back making pizzas, he says he has realized that he missed it. “It’s not a job, it’s fun.”

His customers seemed to be having fun too, when we visited. The restaurant, located on Nottingham Way in Hamilton, had a good-sized crowd for a weeknight.

Many of the customers have long memories. They frequented Keg when it was owned by Anthony Lettera, and had come in search of the Italian food they remember.

Pizza isn’t prominent on the menu, but we started our meal with a personal-size thin-crust Margarita pie, $10. It was good, with plenty of crushed tomato, fresh mozzarella and bits of basil.

A cup of seafood bisque, $3, was lightly creamy, pureed and tinted pink with a dominant shrimp flavor.

From among the entrees we tried the Sunday gravy, $17, which was a Sunday night special at Keg, Lattera says. Hearty tomato sauce, made using the family recipe, was served over the pasta of choice with a meatball, piece of sausage and a small serving of braciole. It was this last item, a thin piece of steak that is stuffed and rolled before cooking, that was the most enticing.

The meatball and sausage were also good, but the tender braciole packed the most flavor. The dish is hearty and perfect for a meat eater.

An order of linguini with clams, $16, was nicely done with fresh clams mixed in plus a few in the shell perched on top. We tried it with red sauce, although white was also available.

An order of chicken Mauro, $16, featured thinly pounded chicken cutlets cooked in a sauce of white wine and garlic and served with potatoes, mushrooms and a topping of fresh mozzarella. The tender chicken was very good, and the potatoes had absorbed the flavor of the wine sauce nicely. The only disappointment was the cheese, which had pretty much disappeared from sight and taste due to the heat of the dish.

Desserts are made in-house, so we tried the ricotta pie, $5.50, which was light and airy and not too sweet.

The emphasis at Mafalda’s is family-style food served by members of a family. It’s a nice addition to Mercer County’s list of Italian restaurant