Barbuto

on saturday we arrived at 1.00pm and after being shown to a very tightly packed table we moved to one with much more space...brocolli salad was great..but then..after 50 minutes I asked about our main course and was told it was coming..after 80 minutes I said if it was not here in 5 minutes we were leaving..our food then came..our fish and chicken dishes were excellent,, our guests pasta carbonella looked like an appetizer portion..why the delay "training chefs!!" I was told....you have to be kidding!!! I am paying full price to wait 1 1/2 hours for my main course..with only 15 or 20 other people in the dining room..and there was no one in charge..2 pleasant but ineffectual waitresses and 3 people in the kitchen..never again..my suggestion is to go to Pastis or the Spice Market in the same area.....I thought they had cooking schools for training chefs?????

I saw a very good food review in Zagats and decided to try this restaurant out for a special occassion. We went early in the evening on a week-night and when we got there it was pretty much empty, but had a full crowd when we left. The service was great - very attentive bar tender and waiter. Our drinks and bread basket were always full - a big plus there. On to the food - we ordered the cheese plate and while it tasted alright, it was not a good value for the price - $25 and you get 5 small pieces of cheese. I ordered a fish dish, which came as a whole fish (I wasn't expecting that, but in any case they were kind enough to filet it for me), it was extremely bland tasting. My dinner guest ordered short ribs and said they were very good. In all, it was a $200++ dinner (with 1 before dinner drink and a bottle of reasonably priced wine) for mediocre food and decor that leaves lots to be desired. It's just not worth it - for that price, check out Fiamma.

We reserved the chef's table for my boyfriend's birthday and it was GREAT! The food was delicious and plentiful... we were stuffed. The staff couldn't be nicer. The only negative was that the previous party ran late, so we sat down 45 minutes later than our reservation. I would recommend reserving the earlier seating! (6:30)

We went to Barbuto after reading great reviews from many established food critics and found the experience very disappionting. The food was mediocre at best. The codfish appetizer was good, but certainly not what you'd expect from a the restaurant rates as best italian newcomer in 2005. The red fish was good. I've had better risottos at dinner parties. In addition, the service was terrible. It took the waiters 10 minutes to present us with waiters. They then brought the desert menus before we had even eaten our entrees. Requests for bread also went unacknowledged. In short: it was a very disappionting meal. Not terrible food, but certainly not worht the price or the hype.

Their ingredients are so fresh and seasonal. I often eat at Barbuto and have never seen unseasonal vegitable on menu. The food is simple, so I can taste ingreditents itself. That is great!!

The food here is simply amazing. I recommend the skirt steak, and definitely get the lamb if they have it. We also had the shaved asparagus salad - quite good. The overall experience was great. My only problem, like previous posts, is that it can get too noisy when they are full.

I really enjoyed eating at the restaurant on a weekday evening - service was fairly prompt but not very professional, and outdoors eating experience can't be beat, especially with an open kitchen. The zucchinni appetizer was above average, but a poor value. The entrees were much better value, and the tiramisu was great. Without drinking the bill was under $70, which is great for a night out on the west side. I reccomend it for a casual date .