(347) 394-2639

153 E 45th St (Between Lexington Avenue and 3rd Avenue)
New York, NY 10017 40.7531 -73.974

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Neighborhoods: Midtown Center, Midtown

www.genteny.com

Hours:

Mon-Fri 11:30am-10pm

Sat 4pm-10pm

Price:

$$$

Last updated 8.16.11

Category:

Restaurants , Corporate Catering , Catering

Parking:

Street Parking

Payment Methods:

American Express , Cash , Discover , Diners Club , Visa , MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

Family-Friendly Dining , Lunch Spot , Date Spot , Romantic Dining , Special Occasion Dining , Outdoor Dining , People Watching , Business Dining , Group Dining , Food Delivery , Carry Out , Private Parties , Notable Wine List , Prix Fixe Menu

Cuisine:

Pizza , Italian

Special Offers

Editor's Tips

What People Are Saying About Gente

Featured Review

Contributor

Contributor

The Scene – Under black-and-white blow-ups of film stars like Marilyn Monroe and David Niven, young professionals settle into this film noir-ish spot--more during lunch time than dinner, though the bar attracts an after-work pack blowing off office steam over inexpensive bottles of wine. Service is very efficient and practical. – – The Food – The variety of simple, serviceable dishes--sandwiches, pizzas, pastas, salads and more--keeps regulars coming back. The kitchen succeeds in producing elementary yet flavorful fare, like penne rustica minimally adorned with fresh…

Editor's Tips

Where to Sit:
Request a sunny window table to people-watch in big, comfy, leather chairs.
ambiance
100.0% positive
  1. “The restaurant is cozy and great for group dinning!”
  2. “The decor was nice and comfortable.”
  3. “The service was good, the food was excellent, and the ambience was very nice.”
  4. “Restaurant appears closed from a distance at night, but the dim lighting adds a lovely atmosphere to this excellent restaurant.”
  5. “The atmosphere is romantic but is also great for a group of friends hanging out after work.”
  6. “Great food & nice ambience”
dessert
100.0% positive
  1. “The staff is friendly and accomodating, and the desserts are very impressive.”
  2. “It was a calm place with some of the great desserts around.”
drinks
100.0% positive
  1. “love going here at least once a week they have great pasta, and dont miss to ask for a bottle of wine its wonderfull.”
  2. “The biscotti with the coffee were superb and the service was very good well.”
  3. “11 Wines by the glass a varied Assortment of beers and fabulous cocktails (like green apple martinis).”
  4. “They did a great job setting up the room and serving great food and drinks.”
  5. “Great Food, Great wine, Great Service; nothing is missing.”
food quality
95.1200008392334% positive
  1. “Jay, the owner, is a born host and proudly recommended various dishes to us.”
  2. “Anyone wanting a decent meal at a reasonable price cant really go wrong here.”
  3. “The price fixed lunch menu offers a wide variety of selections, but my favorite dish is definitely the unique Artichokes, which will keep you coming back for seconds!”
  4. “However, the food was decent but not worth talking about.”
  5. “The service was good, the food was excellent, and the ambience was very nice.”
  6. “best pasta ever”
  7. “It's a terrific place for groups to talk and eat a tasty meal.”
  8. “Wow i never eat pizza out in the restaurant but there were so many great choices in the menu and i was so hungry that i decided to order Pizza Con La Verdura---------the the vest vegetable pizza that i had so far.”
  9. “Excellent service and food was good”
  10. “The food was excellent, better than lot restaurants, could hold its own against any Italian restaurant in Manhattan with a very good price, and the service oh god you cant imagine everybody is very friendly from the owner to the sweet busboy specially Nic”
  11. “The food is great and the prices so reasonable.”
  12. “highly recommend it if you like authentic Italian cuisine!”
  13. “Freshes food, with an amazing staff”
  14. “Atmosphere, service, food and staff are fantastic.”
  15. “the chicken cacciatore was pretty dry though it was in an oily sauce.”
  16. “The appetizers were so good that we had 3 different ones followed by some nice home made pasta.”
  17. “Fabulous food at fabulous prices”
  18. “The food was delicious, the service was excellent, and the prices were cheap!”
  19. “The chicken piccata is in a light sauce with capers - fantastic.”
  20. “Risotto seafood with my favorite cosmopolitan that they make”
  21. “The food was good and cheap!”
  22. “Good food, very good service and not that expensive.”
  23. “The food is very authentic (I have been to Italy many times with my family.)”
  24. “recommend Gente to anyone looking for great pasta without breaking the bank.”
  25. “recently had a baby shower at this restaurant, and i can't tell you how many compliments i received regarding how quaint and casual the place was, the great food, and the great service.”
  26. “Great food & nice ambience”
  27. “was pleasantly surprised to find such authentic Italian fare outside of Little Italy.”
  28. “am looking faward to try other things in this restaurant i can imagine how great the pasta will be and other things as well.”
  29. “love going here at least once a week they have great pasta, and dont miss to ask for a bottle of wine its wonderfull.”
  30. “They could not maintain the quality of Tuna as fresh as possible, and as Spaghetti was too much boiled with too much tabasco, the taste was very bad.”
  31. “great food great service this is my favert restaurant best pasta black white tagiolini thank gente staff”
  32. “The food is consistently excellent and I have been a customer for years and years.”
  33. “can honestly say this place has the best Italian food in the neighborhood - HANDS DOWN.”
  34. “Jay always takes advantage of seasonal produce and will surprise you with a tasty treat.”
  35. “The chicken breast was cooked perfect and the dish was good although I did find a small bone in the chicken.”
  36. “Super salads, perfect pizza, rapturous risoto.”
  37. “fast service, but not great food”
  38. “Being from Italy, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the food was very authentic.”
  39. “They did a great job setting up the room and serving great food and drinks.”
  40. “Their bread and olive oil/balsamic was excellent.”
  41. “ordered a seafood pasta dish that was absolutely divine.”
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. “Wow i never eat pizza out in the restaurant but there were so many great choices in the menu and i was so hungry that i decided to order Pizza Con La Verdura---------the the vest vegetable pizza that i had so far.”
  2. “The price fixed lunch menu offers a wide variety of selections, but my favorite dish is definitely the unique Artichokes, which will keep you coming back for seconds!”
  3. “If you don't want to break the bank, this is a good place to go and the menu has a lot of favorites.”
  4. “As a vegetarian, there were many different options to choose from although I would personally recommend the eggplant parm.”
overall
100.0% positive
  1. “great food great service this is my favert restaurant best pasta black white tagiolini thank gente staff”
  2. “have never ordered a bad item from this great little restaurant.”
  3. “If you don't want to break the bank, this is a good place to go and the menu has a lot of favorites.”
return potential
100.0% positive
  1. “absolutely love this restaurant and will come back again and again!”
service
100.0% positive
  1. “recently had a baby shower at this restaurant, and i can't tell you how many compliments i received regarding how quaint and casual the place was, the great food, and the great service.”
  2. “The biscotti with the coffee were superb and the service was very good well.”
  3. “Freshes food, with an amazing staff”
  4. “The food was delicious, the service was excellent, and the prices were cheap!”
  5. “The service was good, the food was excellent, and the ambience was very nice.”
  6. “The service is always great, and the owner walks around to make sure you enjoy.”
  7. “you have to go and se this restaurant is great i cant wait to go there an the best is this gentelman weter samy service exelent thank you sammy”
  8. “Good food, very good service and not that expensive.”
  9. “There was a huge party there, but we still had great service.”
  10. “fast service, but not great food”
  11. “It was the perfect place to host a small group of 30 people or so.”
  12. “Great Pasta -Great customer service”
  13. “Excellent service and food was good”
  14. “The service was wonderful, and very personable.”
  15. “The staff is friendly and accomodating, and the desserts are very impressive.”
  16. “and i thank very mach this water sammy for great service”
  17. “The food was excellent, better than lot restaurants, could hold its own against any Italian restaurant in Manhattan with a very good price, and the service oh god you cant imagine everybody is very friendly from the owner to the sweet busboy specially Nic”
  18. “great food great service this is my favert restaurant best pasta black white tagiolini thank gente staff”
  19. “Atmosphere, service, food and staff are fantastic.”
  20. “Staff are friendly and professional.”
value
100.0% positive
  1. “The food was excellent, better than lot restaurants, could hold its own against any Italian restaurant in Manhattan with a very good price, and the service oh god you cant imagine everybody is very friendly from the owner to the sweet busboy specially Nic”
  2. “Good food, very good service and not that expensive.”
  3. “The food is great and the prices so reasonable.”
  4. “The food was delicious, the service was excellent, and the prices were cheap!”
  5. “There was a huge party there, but we still had great service.”
  6. “Fabulous food at fabulous prices”
  7. “However, the food was decent but not worth talking about.”
  8. “Anyone wanting a decent meal at a reasonable price cant really go wrong here.”
  9. “The price fixed lunch menu offers a wide variety of selections, but my favorite dish is definitely the unique Artichokes, which will keep you coming back for seconds!”
  10. “The food was good and cheap!”
1 Star Rating: Poor

09/23/11

Bad Service - Poor Quality - Nothing Original

by SammyJunior

An overpriced restaurant claiming to be Milano style (but if you've been to Milan you know it isn't close). Jay claims he's been to Italy a 100 times but it's obvious his travels were as a merchandiser (his former job) for ladies fashion and not related to food. Nothing original about his recipes taken from others. So if you want to spend a lot of money, at a restaurant overseen by a merchandiser vs. a true food critic (not to mention chef), you might feel better contributing to your favorite charity instead.

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

05/05/11

Favorite Italian Restaurant!

by dslatus1117

My friend and I have been going here for lunch and/or dinner for many years now. Atmosphere, service, food and staff are fantastic! We are now friends with the staff which makes our experience even better. Brushetta is wonderful. The chicken piccata is in a light sauce with capers - fantastic! The Cosmopolitans are the best we've ever had. They also have a huge wine selection. The atmosphere is romantic, but is also great for a group of friends hanging out after work. Dinner for two including appetizer, meal, drink and dessert is approximately $70-$80. Highly recommended!

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

01/12/11

A gem in midtown

by emily13

I was so pleasantly surprised to stumble upon Gente while I was in midtown with two friends recently. Usually, I eat downtown or in brooklyn and find midtown to be a hard place to find quality and affordable food. This place was amazing. We had a mozzarella and tomato salad that tasted like summertime in Italy, an amazing artichoke pasta dish and some side dishes that were flavorful, healthy and exquisite.. The wine was great; the place was quiet, relaxed with a nice ambiance and we felt comfortable enough to stay for almost three hours. I felt like the waiters tended to us and were aware of our needs but also left us alone to talk and catch up and didn't hover. The next day, I was still thinking about how good the food was, as good as anything I've had in New York! I highly recommend this place to Italian lovers and anyone else who finds themselves hungry in midtown.

1 Star Rating: Poor

06/06/10

If this restaurant starts operation in Japan, No Way

by Rainbowseeker

I had a dinner yesterday with my friends. I ordered Tuna Tartar and Seefood Spaghetti. They could not maintain the quality of Tuna as fresh as possible, and as Spaghetti was too much boiled with too much tabasco, the taste was very bad.

If this restaurant opens in the most competitive markets such as in Tokyo, it should be difficult to survive.

  • Pros: Wine is inexpensive
  • Cons: Foods are terrible.
3 Star Rating: Average

05/19/10

Excellent service and food was good

by BroadwayBay

Their bread and olive oil/balsamic was excellent. Started with the Minestrone which was thicker than most but tasty. For entree had the stuffed chicken (spinach,, prosciutto, fontina) topped with a mushroom marsala sauce with a side of pnne topped with their homemade marinara. The chicken breast was cooked perfect and the dish was good although I did find a small bone in the chicken. The marinara was way too salty for my taste and rather bland. They did top off my wine without asking and provided an after dinner Tia Maria both "on the house". Overall a good, not great, experience but enough to make me try it at least one more time.

  • Pros: Service was EXCEPTIONAL
  • Cons: Food was good, not great

The Details on Gente

Place Categories:

  • great italian food
  • great food great service
  • great little restaurant
  • perfect place
  • friendly staff
  • great pasta
  • favorite seafood pasta dish
  • almost as good lasagna
  • very nice ambience
  • romantic atmosphere
  • great italian experience
  • order pizza con la verdura
  • like authentic italian cuisine
  • decent meal
  • comfortable decor
  • great desserts
  • very good price
  • fabulous cocktails
  • recommend theres
  • best gentelman weter
  • best manager
  • outstanding night
  • recommend gente
  • favorite cosmopolitan
  • great champagne