Restaurants

Chef Jody Adams will open La Padrona at Raffles Boston next week

The Italian restaurant will open May 15.

Rendering of La Padrona at Raffles. Courtesy of A Street Hospitality

updated on May 8, 2024

Celebrated Boston chef Jody Adams will open a new restaurant, La Padrona, on May 15, and with it comes the completion of the Raffles Boston hotel’s array of restaurants and bars, which steadily rolled out after the hotel’s opening last September.

La Padrona is also the latest addition for Boston-based restaurant group A Street Hospitality, which is headed by Adams as head of culinary, CEO Eric Papachristos, and COO Jon Mendez, and includes Trade, Porto, five Saloniki Greek locations, and The Venetian.

Chef Jody Adams – Courtesy of A Street Hospitality

Entry into La Padrona, an impressive bi-level 8,600-square-foot space in the Back Bay neighborhood, begins with the bright and airy street level 40-seat lounge and bar. A grand staircase, which pairs wrought iron balusters with a walnut wood handrail and natural travertine stone steps, connects to the second level, which seats 200. There is an elevator for those who wish to cut out the climb.

The darker toned, more sultry designed dining room’s focal point is a central bar crowned by a violet-veined Calcutta marble countertop that matches the marble floor surrounding the bar stool seating. The bright violet pops against the room’s rich burgundy painted walls, which are framed by heavy drapes. Dining seating varies from free standing high tops to reclusive Hollywood booths, and there are several customizable private dining rooms.

To create the menu, Adams, Mendez, and Papachristos took a trip around Italy.

“We covered 10 different regions in 11 days,” said Adams. “We cooked everywhere from Michelin star kitchens to home kitchens. You’ll see the rustic influence on the menu, but it’s refined,” she added.

The paccheri and clams dish at La Padrona. *– Brian Samuels*

The menu includes house-made pastas and local seafood — the paccheri and clams unites charred wheat pasta with small, sweet Barnstable clams; then there are meats and, “Lots of contorni,” said Adams, referring to vegetable dishes.

“One dish is a roasted cabbage,” she enthused. “It’s the conical arrowhead cabbage, which is roasted at a very high temperature and served with anchovy butter. It’s so simple, but you won’t want to stop eating this.”

The menu is divided into familiar traditional Italian categories like antipasti, primi, secondi, and, of course, dolce! Desserts include a brioche gelato sandwich, served as a trio and filled with pistachio, strawberry mascarpone, and brown butter ginger gelato; and a cannoli with a thin Florentine cookie style almond tuile shell filled with whipped orange flavored ricotta.

Besides Adams, A Street Hospitality’s culinary team also includes executive chef Amarilys Colón; chef de cuisine Philip Nacron and pastry chef Kimberly Beatrix head La Padrona’s kitchen team.

Whilst Italian beers, cordials, and amari digestifs are offered, wines are sourced from around the world as well as from Italy. La Padrona’s cocktail menu includes a collection of martinis, and one of Negronis. Classic and vintage cocktails have playful twists: the Sophia Loren on the Beach is a refined hibiscus and ginger accented take on the 1980s fruity Sex on the Beach, and made with Rhum J.M. Fruité, Ten to One Caribbean rum, and Batavia arrack.

La Padrona, said Papachristos, was created for both Bostonians and Raffles hotel guests to enjoy.

“There’s a lot of eyes on the Raffles brand from the international travelers,” Papachristos added. “But we don’t want to cater only to that demographic. We want to honor the city, too.”

La Padrona opens at 4 p.m. daily for lounge service; and for dinner service from 5 p.m.-10 p.m., Sun.-Wed.; 5 p.m.-11 p.m., Thur.-Sat., at 40 Trinity Place, Boston

Correction: A previous version of this story misstated the number Saloniki Greek locations. Boston.com regrets the error.