"Maine's most authentic Ligurian table — Genoa-born Paolo Laboa, a Pesto World Champion, makes the pasta by hand on the Portland waterfront. Order the pesto."
Solo Italiano sits at 100 Commercial St on the Old Port waterfront, a destination in our Portland guide and on our Italian map. The kitchen is run by Genoa-born chef Paolo Laboa, who brought the cooking of Liguria — Italy's pesto-and-seafood coast — to Maine.
The room earned Gambero Rosso's Due Forchette in 2025, and Laboa's pedigree is unusual for New England: he was named Best Young Chef in Italy in 2003 and won the Pesto World Championship in Genoa in 2008.
Laboa cooks the food of his home coast with little compromise. The signature is his trenette al pesto — the same mortar-and-pestle basil pesto that won him the 2008 world title in Genoa — served over hand-rolled pasta. Around it come Ligurian classics: house-made pastas, crudo of Maine fish, and a seafood-leaning menu that reads like the Italian Riviera transplanted to Casco Bay. The list is all-Italian.
It is precise, regional, ingredient-led cooking from a chef with 40 years in the kitchen, and it shows on the plate.
The dining room is intimate and warm, a real restaurant rather than a scene, with the waterfront just outside and the focus squarely on what comes out of the kitchen. Service is knowledgeable about both the food and the all-Italian wine list.
Seats are limited and Portland's season runs hot, so a reservation is the safe move.
Solo Italiano suits an anniversary, a memorable first date, or a dinner to impress clients with something genuinely regional. For other Portland tables, compare Fore Street, Scales or Piccolo.
Not for a casual, walk-in bite or a big rowdy group — it is a small, focused Ligurian room where handmade pasta and an all-Italian list lead, at upper-moderate prices.
Authentic Ligurian cooking from Genoa-born chef Paolo Laboa in Portland, Maine. The signature is his trenette al pesto — the basil pesto that won him the 2008 Pesto World Championship — over hand-rolled pasta.
Chef Paolo Laboa, from Genoa on Italy's Ligurian coast. He was named Best Young Chef in Italy in 2003 and won the Pesto World Championship in Genoa in 2008.
At 100 Commercial St, on the Old Port waterfront in Portland, Maine.
It sits in the upper-moderate $$$ band, with around $55-90 per person before wine from an all-Italian list.
The trenette al pesto is the dish to order — Laboa's world-championship pesto — alongside his house-made Ligurian pastas and crudo of Maine seafood.
Seats are limited and the Portland season is busy, so reservations are recommended. Find it at 100 Commercial St on the Old Port waterfront.
Affiliate disclosure: Restaurants for Kings may earn a commission when you book through our reservation links, at no cost to you. Our scores are editorial and never paid for.
Solo Italiano anchors part of our Portland guide — Genoa-born chef Paolo Laboa's Ligurian cooking and championship pesto on the Old Port waterfront.
See the Portland guide →