Recommend this business?
view & uploadphotos
At a Glance
?
92% ambiance
“First of all, I really love the decor; it is romantic and dark lit, perfect for dates.”
100% dessert
“Three Star dining at $25 or Under prices, an excellent waitstaff (most have been there since its opening), attractive intimate room, creative menu, inexpensive wine list & a desserts that rival most patisseries, LaVagna is the best dining deal in Manhatta”
100% drinks
“Great wine selection and good food”
93% food quality
“Everyone in my party enjoyed the food so much, that we vowed to come back really soon.”
100% menu variety
“Nothing great on this menu but everything is pretty good and it's a nice first date place, lively but candlelit.”
100% overall
“THE best Italian place in the neighborhood!”
50% return potential
“The food is okay, but the service is terrible -- my wife is a vegetarian and instead of pointing out the vegetarian dishes when we requested, our waiter told us to figure it out for ourselves and said he'd come back later.”
81% service
“The food at Lavagna is great and service gets hairy on weekends because people expect to sit for hours at their tables or to arrive late and still have their table.”
76% value
“awesome price fix though they just raised price”
Write a Tip for
Lavagna
Tips for Lavagna
April 16, 2012
the attitude of the waitress was terrible..
I went to this restaurant with my friend last Friday night.
It was my first time to visit this restaurant and I was kinda excited since the reviews were pretty good.
I and my friend were waiting for a waiter who could take us to the table, but nobody came to us. my friend said "excuse me" to the waitress who was a white female with a blond bobhair but she didn't even say hello and totally ignored us and passed us by to serve the other tables in the outside. we were disconcerted a bit ,so I couldn't say anything. actually, I was kinda shocked.
she saw us again when she came back inside the restaurant, and I saw She threw a look of contempt at us. I felt like the reason why she ignored us might be that we were Asian females.
of course, she would say "I am not a racist or something", but I don't know why she did it to us.
even though she was not a racist, her attitude was terrible as a waitress.
Did she forget what she had to do as a waitress because she was an idiot?
The owner must lay off her before their reputation gets worse.
0
Heart
October 14, 2011
The place was nice.. I really loved the setting of the place, I love the ambiance. Me and my husband went here for our anniversary; the lighting and the decorations, it felt romantic. The place was near perfect for the occasion. However, the food was not that good. On average, I must say. But the prices were good, reasonable in congruence with the food. It was nice :)
0
Heart
January 28, 2010
Romantic and intimate Italian Dining.
Came here for my anniversary with my BF and they have pre-fix special for $30 per person from 6 to 7 PM. First of all, I really love the decor; it is romantic and dark lit, perfect for dates.
The food is excellent too. We picked different dishes for all courses. I really love the pan-seared scallops; the puree sauce is very sweet and savory and scallops totally soaked up the juice. My entree, Black pepper Crusted Tuna tastes fresh and tender as well. It came in 3 big pieces of Yellowfin tuna.
Finally, the desserts were outstanding. My panna Cotta is so soft and vanilla-ish. My BF's Warm Fruit Crisp was warm, sweet and it goes very well with their Vanilla Ice cream.
I want to come back to try out their Rigatoni and Chocolate Moose cake.
0
Heart
August 11, 2009
Simple Italian offers classic dishes and hospitality. Behind a deep red awning in Alphabet City lies this understated trattoria, frequented by locals in search of a casual, romantic spot for traditional Italian fare served in rustic, welcoming environs. The right side of the space is dominated by a wood-burning oven, turning out whole roasted fishes and pizzas dripping with Fontina and truffle oil. The menu also includes several pasta courses and other seasonal dishes. Despite the restaurant’s rather small size, the wine list is extensive (and affordable), with several varieties to complement each dish.
0
Heart
March 02, 2009
good eats. Solid, inexpensive northern italian food, good wine list, great neighborhood vibe. Loved the braised rabbit pappardelle.
0
Heart
September 30, 2008
Not Good... I wasn't thrilled by this. I am sometimes overwhelmed by prix fixe dinners. But this one was not my favorite of all the ones I have been to. It was awhile ago, before I started blogging, so I cannot remember all teh details of the meal. But I do remember being decidedly underwhelmed
0
Heart
July 01, 2008
Classy joint and neighborhood favorite.. I'm a regular here... I love all the foods but I rarely step away from my usual order - mussels for appetizers and the grilled porkchop for entree. I can't get over how they cook the porkchop. I'm not a great cook but I can never get it evenly cooked and keep it all tender and moist. And I love onions and vinegar so there's not a better dish then this one for me. I would recommend reservations as this is a very small place and is a neighborhood favorite. The last time I was there I saw 3 of my neighbors (different ones!) eating a meal. I love this place.
0
Heart
May 28, 2008
YUM. I have eaten at the best italian restaurants worldwide but Lavagna's sweetpea ravioli in creamsauce with a hint of mint is an absolute homerun...i have never licked a plate before in my life nor would I ...but my girlfriend did this last friday while dining here!
0
Heart
April 22, 2008
make a reservation!. I have had several meals at Lavagnia so far and will deffinitely come back! The food is simple, everything tastes really great. My favourite dishes are scallops appetizer, pasta with rabbit, pork entree, and once I had a special of the skate wing, which was trully amazing! Another thing that is wonderful about this restaurant is a really amazing wine and beer selection. Even though it's italian, the wine list is eclectic, includes great french and german whites and rare portuguese reds. The service is brief and informative, polite and professional. The manager (Georgi?) is a funny person that adds mood to the restaurant :) We will be back!
0
Heart
April 13, 2008
Charming place, good food. I don't know what other people's problem with this place is... My husband and I have now eaten here twice, and it's been wonderful both times. The restaurant has a very charming, relaxed and cozy ambiance, the food is delicious and not your typical Italian fare - here on top of pasta you'll find things like braised rabbit and seared monkfish. The Homemade Ricotta & Spinach Ravioli are to die for. The service was very courteous, but it did take them a while to bring our order - which, because of this delay, arrived with a complementary (and very tasty) appetizer. So the downside is that the place is rather small, and when it's packed, you DO wait. I thought it was worth it though. We'll be coming back here for sure, and bringing friends.
0
Heart
Write a Tip for
Lavagna
People also viewed
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.