In one word, E Tutto Qua is 'delizioso'

House made pastas, pizzas and breads are made in this former Bank of America

Despite it being the Fourth of July, my brood didn't feel like barbecuing at home on Saturday, so we headed to North Beach around 7:00 p.m. and met my girlfriend for dinner.  We had planned to eat at Tomasso's but since we were really ravenous and there was an hour-long wait, we decided to walk around and find someplace less crowded.  We stumbled upon È Tutto Qua - which means "everything's here" in Italian - on the corner of Columbus and Broadway, a two-story former bank where the owner was standing outside and welcomed us inside.  We were seated upstairs right away, by the window with a good view for peoplewatching. 

We ordered quickly to avoid a melt-down from our hungry preschooler and fortunately, the food arrived swiftly.  With the exception of my son, we were all craving pasta and ordered several kinds to share, family style.  The owner had explained that they make all of their pastas in house so we were doubly excited to taste them.  The squid ink pasta was our favorite.  It came in a white wine sauce that was extremely flavorful, with just the right amount of salt and garlic.  The noodles were perfectly cooked and topped with a generous portion of calamari, clams, mussels, and shrimp. 

We asked if they could make capellini with a light marinara sauce and shrimp for my daughter, and they graciously accommodated us.  They even cut the shrimp into bite size pieces which we appreciated.  The sauce was creamy and slightly sweet, perfect for our preschooler's palette.  It was my second favorite pasta dish of the evening.

My husband particularly enjoyed the papardelle with lamb and tomato sauce, a plateful of thick, chewy pasta with ground lamb seasoned with rosemary and garlic.  My girlfriend and I thought it was the least impressive dish, it just didn't have that wow factor and the noodles were a teensy bit too al dente.

Squid ink pasta loaded with seafood ($16.95) was the standout dish

My son demolished his trio of grilled lamb chops accompanied by steamed broccoli, spinach, and potato slices.  He also polished off two orders of seared scallop appetizers served with porcini mushrooms and truffle oil.  We adults also shared and enjoyed an order of scallops, with the mushrooms actually being my favorite part.

We definitely want to go back and try their Roman style, thin crust pizzas made with fresh mozarella that is kept in water until it "hits the house made dough."

If you are looking for authentic Italian fare made with fresh ingredients in a casual North Beach setting where the staff is friendly and speaks with a charming Italian accent, this is a good place to go.   È Tutto Qua is tutto bene!