04/28/09

Good Italian Food North of Little Italy

by bklyn13

I haven't been to this specific location since it was a bar called Two Potato a few years back. I ate there this past Sunday. I'm a big fan of Frutta di Mare [pasta w/ an assortment of seafood & marinara sauce for you NON- Italians]. I try this every time I go to an Italian restaurant for the first time - it's the test dish to see if I'll be coming back again. It was very good - the mussels were big & juicy; the cockatiel clams were tasty albeit tiny [like they should be I guess]; the shrimp were large & cooked just right [although they could have thrown in more than 3]; the calamari was tasty & cooked just right; the penne was cooked just the way I like it; & the sauce was good. I had the arugula salad as a starter - was fresh & tasty. The waitress was quick & I had a seat near the open window to do some people watching as I ate during this abnormally warm day in April. Washed it all down with a Peroni beer. The prices were ok - probably could be a little cheaper considering the fact that the portions were nice - but not family size. Overall, a pleasant experience. The only reason I'm giving it 4 stars & not 5 is that I've had better & have definitely had worse. I will definitely be going back to try some of their other dishes or maybe the brick oven pizza.

• Pros: Tasty Food; Friendly Waitress; Great Location
• Cons: None

11/12/08

GAETANA?S ~ IN A WORD, SCRUMPTIOUS!

by lizzimack

In a word ~ Scrumptious! Everything that comes out of Gaetana's magical brick oven is hot, fluffy, crispy & dripping with tradition. With Frank on the juke box & Frankie running the show, this is the informal neighborhood place where you belong ~ Sister Michelle will help you avoid mortal sin by coaching you on the art sopping up the gravy with the bread - oh the bread! Servers Mikey & Richard will become instant pals & by the end of the meal, you're a regular. Great place to throw a party. Very reasonably priced ~ you can easily roll outta here for $35 ~ Best Italian in the Village!

• Pros: Great Food * Good Company * Fun * Relaxing * Nice Music * Friendly

06/28/08

WORST ITALIAN I'VE EVER HAD

by glorybee30

Some of the worst food I've ever had in New York. I eat and and cook frequently so food is something I can definitely opine on. For starters the service was probably some of the worst I've had in awhile. The waitress kept coming by every minute asking us if we were ready to order and by minute three she was annoyed and impatient that we haven't chosen anything. It was as if she was trying to get rid of us and there were plenty of empty tables - so it wasn't a question of accomodating other customers. It got to a point where we had to tell firmly and politely for her to come back in five minutes to which she huffed and clearly didn't like hearing. For an Italian restaurant, it's an ABOMINATION. This is food made without any love, care, or concern for quality of ingredients. NONE of the pastas are home made - everything comes out of a box. The lasagna bolognese was just awful -- it was bland, it had no depth of flavor, the pasta used was overcooked, the meat sauce was made without any herbs or spices and the presentation was deflating - I would not serve it like this at home, must less at a restaurant that dares to charge $16.95 (or something like it) for a piece of the worst lasagna I've ever had. Save your $ and go to Max's -- where while some of the food isn't amazing, the lasagna is fantastic. Also, Da Silvano is close by and albeit a little pricey - you will get stellar, beautiful food prepared with love.

On another note, no, decor is not how you should judge a restaurant, but in this case, it all fell in line with everything else. Tacky Christmas decorations (they can be campy and fun like Arthur's Tavern) grace the bar -- really, I had a bad feeling about it from the beginning, but my friend said the reviews were great, which shocks me given that NYC is a city with a sophisticated palate. Trust me, I don't have an axe to grind here, other than tell you - the food was terrible. Go somewhere else for your Italian fix.

• Pros: NONE
• Cons: food, terrible service, gaudy decor, too noisy, too expensive given the quality