Centro Vinoteca

09/28/09

Fun dinner/apps place

by NYC girl

Fun scene, nice servers and truffled deviled eggs make this a great place. I have gone for dinner and the apps are much more intersting and memorable than the entrees.

• Pros: scene

07/01/09

Very Impressed

by gmen80

Definitely found one of my new favorite spots. The food was fantastic.

We went on a tuesday night and got there around 7:30 for drinks first. It was a little quiet when we got there but by 8:30ish or so the whole place was busy and the atmosphere was great. We sat in the downstairs which seemed to have a different vibe from what I can tell of the upstairs.

I had the scallops to start which were a special and the lamb for dinner. The lamb was cooked perfectly and very juicy.

Service was great. The waiter was very friendly and knowledgeable. Just an overall enjoyable great dinner.

• Pros: Great food, fun atmosphere
• Cons: none

05/01/09

Wonderful food, atmosphere and service

by JDbella

There were four of us girls for dinner on my birthday March 28. We walked in and barely had to wait. At the bar, we encountered a plethora of amazing drinks. The bartenders were attentive and even made a newly invented drink. I loved the use of thyme and cucumber in their choice of cocktails.

Dinner was devine. The lamb, truffled deviled eggs & other piccolini, and dessert were perfect.

We dined upstairs and I loved that room. The atmosphere was dreamy. It was well lighted and the decor is beautiful.

Lastly, the service was extremely professional. The manager checked on the tables and our server was very good.

I rarely take the time to write reviews though, I dine out often. This restaurant has made the top of my list.

• Pros: outstanding menu, inventive drinks, friendly service

01/05/09

Awful Service, Awful Food

by arts10022

Rachel Maddow, why would you eat here? The waiter did not know the wine list (the restaurant was out of our first choice) or the specials. The piccolinis lacked any distinction. The skate and cod were served over the same puddle of mashed potatoes. Everything was fried to an indigestible crisp. To add insult to injury, we were seated between a toddler wielding a beeping electronic toy and a group of people taking flash photos of themselves, their food, and everyone around them. Awful, just awful. We could not get out of this restaurant fast enough. The kitchen and staff have a long way to go in providing an enjoyable environment and cuisine to match.

12/07/08

Very good food in a trendy atmosphere

by DanielBStern

A lot of the reviews on city search for Centro Vinoteca are very negative. I think this is due to the age of the reviews. Suffice it to say that since these reviews were written, almost all of the complaints have been addressed. As of 12/7/08, the food is very good, the waitstaff (particularly Sean(?), one of the hosts) is very friendly, and the atmosphere is trendy with an attractive crowd. The food is a little pricey for what you get, but all in all I had a very positive experience.

• Pros: Great ambiance, good food, friendly waitstaff
• Cons: downstairs is a little noicy

08/27/08

What's the rush?

by sourcherriesmk

I had noticed Centro on my way somewhere while I was in a cab or walking past it. I thought it looked cute and wanted to try it. Last night, I was in the mood to have small plates and wine with my boyfriend so we went to Centro. As soon as you step in, you're practically face to face with the host. The entrance is too short with the comptuer and host station right at the door. You can practically ask for a table from outside. I should have trusted my gut and walked the other way. He came off so cheesy with his pretentious grin and suit. Then we followed the hostess. I didn't know there was an upstairs, but nonetheless, I would have appreciated, "follow me upstairs" or something. She was not very friendly. I don't know why she was even there.

Our server was very sweet. We ordered a bunch of smal plates. We were surprised that they brought them out all together, but okay. THE WORST PART ABOUT THE MEAL was when we started eating, the busboy would come by every five minutes or after we took a bite to see if he could clear the plates. He would put his hands on the plates, ready to whisk them away, before he even asked. SO RUDE. The restaurant obviously doesn't believe in training their employees to allow their guests to actually enjoy their meals. I was trying to have a conversation with my boyfriend over dinner, but was constantly interrupted with "are you done with this?" or "can I take this away?". My waitress never came around and asked if I wanted another drink too. The food was okay. I would never mention this place in the same breath as Peasant. Peasant has the most excellent food and no matter how crowded it gets, they let you sit and enjoy it. The decor is very cheesy West Elm-aren't we sick of seeing that stuff? Doesn't match the food at all.

I would never go back to Centro. They can't even get the basic principle of dining out right. What a waste of a nice evening, time, and my money.

• Pros: location-but who cares if the restaurant is no good?
• Cons: attitude, rushing of clearing plates, interruption of dinner, lackluster food

06/24/08

What's with the Chef and the Manager???

by bobby39

What's up with the chef? I sat up by a bar table in view of the chef and saw the wall of fame. Everything started off great but then I ordered my pasta and asked if I could have it without meat in the sauce if they had any marinara they could use. They said no. And I said well i understand if you don't have it I don't expect you to serve me something that isn't in your kitchen. But I saw in the menu that they serve zucchini fritters with a spicy marinara sauce so I asked if I can have the pasta with that sauce which has no meat in it because I don't eat bacon. The server said no and so I asked certainly there must be a good reason? He said that the chef doesn't do it. I knew it wasn't the waiters decision so I asked to speak to the manager who seemed drunk and was very rude to me because he just came up and without hearing what I had to say he said "Hi I'm Ed the General Manger of this restaurant and you absolutely can not substitute that sauce with the BUCCATINI!" then flatly said "Sorry sir, you need to pick another dish."

I was shocked! I just wanted to understand why and he didn't even give me a chance to ask! So at that point I just gave up decided it wasn't worth the fight clearly they don't care. I decided to order a seafood dish that ultimately tasted really bland and I hardly touched it, I basicly lost my appetite at this point. So i'm just sitting there with this dish that wasn't at all good and no appetite and I keep seeing this General Manager talking to the Star Chef kackling and making faces at each other and I felt as if they were talking about me. Maybe they weren't talking about me but I'd think a chef with all these write ups and a nice restaurant would treat her guests I don't know with a little hospitality. Maybe if she spent less time making fun of people or whatever and more time actually taking care of her guests and cooking she might have a successful restaurant. I wish them all the best of luck. They'll need it.

• Pros: nice chandiliers/ there are plenty of other restaurants in the city
• Cons: Creepy manager/ Mean Chef clearly was making fun of me from across the room!!! wtf

05/14/08

Worst Service, cold food.

by nycvillage

My family and I went there on a friday night. We had reservations and were seated. The waiter was the worst waiter we have ever had. Then we asked for water and and extra napkin we never got it till much later. We had menu questions and no one was around to ask. When we ordered our food it was wrong. We received another persons dinners !!!

THEN WE HAD TO WAIT ANOTHER 20 MINUTES FOR OURS TO ACTUALLY SHOW UP AND THEY STILL TRIED TO CHARGE US ! The Host Eddie all he did was laugh and walk away !!

I would never recommend this place to anyone. There are soo many more desering and good restaurants in the west village this one def deserves to overlooked.

• Pros: We dont have to come back !
• Cons: Worst service ever ! Horrible Host !!!!!!!!

05/09/08

Management?

by Darrin023

I have also had a bad experience at Centro Vinoteca. The food is more bad than good, and if you're going to have an open kitchen, the chef needs to at least pretend not to be miserable and crabby back there. It really drags down the mood in the bar. I have seen Anne Burrell on TV, and she was always positive and intiriguing, but if this is what she's like in real life, maybe they should consider extending the white bricks over the kitchen. Someone should tell her that if you're on the tube, people are always watching you when they see you in real life. Cheer up, for god's sake! Nobody wants to watch someone miserable at work.

As for the manager, I don't think they actually have one. There certainly didn't appear to be anyone circling the restaurant, checking that we or anyone else was happy. Maybe they shouldn't, or they might get some surprises with the responses. I've never been treated by a host the way I was treated by the tall black guy with the stale breath. I thought your supposed to be treated like a guest in a restaurant, not an inconvenience. Anyone got a mint?

• Cons: Empty vibe, no personal attention

05/08/08

What's all the fuss about?

by streeteater

Having heard all the hype and searching for the best new Italian joint in town, I made a reservation at Centro Vinoteca for last weekend. (Is that even a word in Italian?) Our table wasn't ready in time, and we were told to have a drink at the bar. No biggie, this is the city. The hostess was very good at keeping track of where we were, and thankfully it wasn't Mister Snippy, who pretty much dismissed us at the door when WE were on time.

We were seated after 45 minutes, upstairs, in what could have been Siberia, given the absence of assistance around. Service was ordinary and uninspired, which I can normally forgive, if the food is really something else. It is not.

The salad was crunchy. Not crouton, or fried onion, or crispy bacon crunchy, but gritty soil or sand crunchy. Note to chef: wash the greens. Not a great entrance to the meal. Mortadella pate reminds you of what you used to get in your sandwich at school, only blended and sprinkled with stale pistachios. It was reminiscent of dog food with stale pistachios.

Fried monster gnocchi doesn't get me going, even with a decent boar ragu. It's too fat and stodgy for my liking.

I'm the kind of guy who will order somthing that I have been warned off more than once, partly because I'm stubborn (ask my wife), and partly because I have some need to see the chef prove that they sometimes just slip up. Everyone has a bad day, right? Listen to me and my two friends who have all eaten it. DO NOT order the rabbit, unless you are going for award winning jaw muscles, the kind that flex in a soap opera.

I'm also the kind of guy who thinks he's going to say something to the manager on the way out, but always chickens out and smiles and says "Thankyou! Everything was great!" I resolved to do it this time, though and stopped at the host stand to look around for him. I spotted him at the bar, having a nice glass of wine with the chef and enjoying his dinner. They both deserved it. Rewards for a job well done.

• Pros: Good wine selection, nice bartender
• Cons: Food and management attention