Best of Citysearch
view & uploadphotos
- Neighborhoods:
- Downtown, SoHo
- Categories:
- Restaurants, Certified Green Restaurant(R)
- Price:
- $$$
- Restaurant Special Features:
- Payment Methods:
- General Info:
View Less
At a Glance
?
87% ambiance
“The food was unmatched, the wine was excellent, and the undoubtable New York atmosphere gave this mid-westerner the real New York feel!”
80% dessert
“told him what happened and he said if I would like to order an additional dessert I could but I would have to pay for an extra dessert!”
89% drinks
“great italian wines.”
85% food quality
“particularly liked the grilled whole bass, it was delicious.”
91% menu variety
“The wine menu is decent but the sizing is annoying - wine only comes in mini-carafes of 1.5 glasses each.”
88% overall
“Tiny tables put too close together, little privacy, not a great place for a date.”
50% return potential
“love this place but lately i do not what is going on with the SERVICE ,my wife and i decide to not ever come back cause the service bad, bad ,bad.”
85% service
“The look and feel of the restaurant makes you feel like you are in Italy, the wait staff is friendly and helpful, the wine list is extensive and great for people who want to try something new!”
65% value
“but while the food was great, it wasn't truly 'authentic roman'-- even though they use italian for the menu (kudos), the penne arrabiatta was far from authentic, and the pricey appetizers were not worth it.”
100% wait time
“Food presented well and the service once we were seated was great but we had a long wait for our table (about half an hour) even though I had pre-booked.”
Write a Tip for
Lupa Restaurant
Lupa Osteria Romana
@LupaOsteria
RT @indigenouswines: 1 of our favs @LupaOsteria's Josh Romero w/ #LaSpinetta Il Rose di Casanova #drinkpink http://t.co/qSmv69X8ii
Reply
Retweet
Favorite
3 days ago
What Our Expert Scouts Say
November 07, 2012
One of Mario Batali's first, and still one of his best, restaurants. Lupa is Super Mario's take on Roman food and never became a mob scene the way Babbo did. Which is lucky because it's as good in its way. Lupa just never stopped being a great neighborhood restaurant, to it's great credit.
0
Heart
Tips for Lupa Restaurant
July 05, 2011
Best Italian In NYC.
I get giddy when I think of eating and drinking at Lupa. I compare it to all other italian places in the city.
I have been coming to Lupa for 5 years and have always had a wonderful time with good food, wine and service.
The past winter there was a dish I absolutely jonesed for. The skirt steak with mushrooms and truffle polenta was the best thing on earth. I went during the spring and they subbed the polenta and shrooms for a skimpy veggie---dissapointing, but the steak was still good.
0
Heart
April 03, 2011
it was ok food. i think it was just ok the food was just ok i don't think im will go back
0
Heart
February 18, 2010
Not so great. Not sure if it was the company or the place that made this such a bland night. The hostesses were very un-welcoming which seemed to defeat the purpose of their said positions. After waiting for over an hour for a table at a bar where you could barely raise your arm to sip your drink, we were finally seated...on top of another couple which is signature Mario. The food was decent and very well priced, but small in size and just ok. I will give it that the pasta was al dente and somewhat tasty, but there was nothing memorable about the meal. Just very average all around. I wish these celeb chefs would visit their restaurants more often as they do such injustice to NY cuisine.
0
Heart
January 27, 2010
don't fall for the hype. I have lived in Manhattan for nearly 40 years and this was the worst meal i have ever experienced. What was described as Duck confit with pear sauce, was actually deep-fried and overcooked and served swimming in a horribly acidic pool of apple cider vinegar reduction. The chicken was so dry, that it could not be swallowed without washing it down with water. A broccoli rabe appetizer was so foul, that 3 of us had to spit it out into our napkins. Batali's success is clearly a product of his marketing savvy and while he may be a genius at branding, he is a crap chef and his restaurants are testimony to how you can sell anybody anything in this celebrity obsessed culture
0
Heart
December 05, 2009
horrible waiter. I was a big fan of this restaurant for a long long time but these days I feel very disappointed by how those waiters treat us. I have to admit ....with this, whole dinner is spoiled. I will never go back there.
0
Heart
November 16, 2009
bad experience with hostess. hostess was nasty. really off-putting. strange cause i usually dont encounter that.
0
Heart
October 11, 2009
WORST SERVICE/ATTITUDES. I couldn't agree more about the nasty attitudes at Lupa. We made a reservation over 2 months ago for 7 people and the only time we could get was for 9:30. 6 out of the 7 people arrived promptly but were told we could not be seated until everyone was physically present (which was ridiculous considering we all had to wait outside since there was nowhere to stand other than on top of the poor table of people that were sitting by the door). When the 7th person arrived we were told our table was given away and it would be at least another 45 minutes until another table would be available. No one had the decency to let our party know this was going to happen. When we said we were leaving they were extremely aggravated (as if we were inconveniencing them). We ended up at a restaurant a few blocks down called "Scuderia" with wonderful, attentive service and great food! I would not waste your money at "LUPA"-the food might be good but the service is horrific!
0
Heart
October 07, 2009
a disgrace!. Do NOT bother with lupa. I was actually shocked at the way the staff and gm was treating my party of 5. Trying to make a birthday special for someone turned into a birthday nightmare! Besides serving us disgusting clams out of a can and trying to charge $15 for them; they rushed us out of the restaurant before we even brought out the bday cake . The bill for 5 came out to $386 and you think these people would appreciate their customers. They politely told us to f*ck off and in return, i do the same.
0
Heart
August 23, 2009
Self Convincing.
WIth every time I eat at a famous chef restaurant, I become more and more convinced that folks deceive themselves into believing that the food before them is something remarkable. This is my second time at Lupa. No better than the first.
The portions and the prices: Please - eight paper thin slices of Speck - $10 - that's about $100 per pound.
Spaghetti Carbonara - no more than one cup - at best $16. You can buy eight pounds of imported pasta at Chelsea Market for that price. - But it's not just the price - it's the miniscule bowl!
Main Course - ok. The pork shoulder was, to my taste, far too perfumed. - But, my daughter liked it.
The Lamb with egg ! Come on! It sounds "deep", but it was ridiculous. The lamb was fine. but the egg salad on top was pure nonesense that had nothing to do with anything other than to make people being over charged think they were getting something to ooh and aah over.
In the end, the whole thing was something like Mario's orange whatchamacalls. Get over the show and do something real.
0
Heart
March 23, 2009
Wonderful dining experience. On a Sunday evening my friend and I spontaneously met up on SoHo to grab a bite to eat. I have been wanting to go to Lupa but have had a hard time getting a reservation on a days notice. On a whim we decided to try...the place was packed, but luck was on our side as the hostess was able to seat us right away at a table that was just cleared. Another women checked our coats and bags, she was so cheerful and friendly. We really felt that we were appreciated for our business. The meal was fantastic and our waitress was kind and friendly, not overbearing. The atmosphere was lovely and it was one of those truly enjoyable dining experiences. The coat check lady came to us with our coats, no prompting necessary. Great atmosphere, fantastic food, and exception service!
0
Heart
Write a Tip for
Lupa Restaurant
People also viewed
Related Guides
Your Friends
Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Facebook to see what your friends are up to!
Citysearch Mobile
Get the Citysearch Mobile app so you can spend less time searching for great places, and more time enjoying them.
Best of Citysearch
Nominated for: