You have to try it. That’s what people had told me about Mamma Onesta’s in Lockport. So a friend and I stopped one day when we had to be in downtown Lockport anyway. One step inside and we were struck by its Old World elegance and café charm. I quickly snapped a couple pictures and sent them to a friend I thought might appreciate them. “Mamma Onesta’s is very good,” came the quick reply.

Another confirmation. We were in good hands. “Eight years ago,” our server said when we asked when Mamma Onesta’s opened. The answer surprised us. We had never heard of it. So we made up for lost time. We ordered a variety of food; the fried calamari and marinara dipping sauce arrived first. The calamari had a nice crunchy coating and the inside was cooked perfectly, hard to do as calamari tends to become rubbery quite quickly. We took this as a good omen.