Cesca

pasta, meat and fish dishes that my dining companions and i have tried have been excellent. appetizer selection is a lot of fun. very expensive though. lovely ambience.

I went to Cesca for dinner on a Wednesday evening. When we arrived at 6:30pm, the bar area was full and the restaurant mostly empty. When we left around 8pm, both the bar and the restaurant were full and lively. The decor is simple and dark--chocolate brown fabric, deep wood furniture, dark walls. The menu is very extensive, with an array of "starters" for the table--olives (a HUGE bowl for $9), fritters, etc; and then a lengthy list of first through third course selections + dessert. Our server was warm and attentive, as were the other staff who brought bread, water, cleared plates, etc. We both began with the mozzarella and tomato salad, which was fresh and taste. I had the seasonal vegetable platter as an entree and it was AMAZING--lightly but deliciously seasoned. My companion had the dover sole, a chef's special, and it was excellent as well. Highly recommend!

We were taking friends out for a celebratory dinner, and wanted a special experience. What we got was a rude bartender, who told us he'd "tell the waitress" when we went to the bar and attempted to order a drink. The food was completely overpriced. Basically $25 for a plate of pasta and overcooked fish. Bill for 4 was almost $400 with tip.

I was seated in a cramped booth with 2 friends, the bread was cold and hard. I ordered mussels expecting to get a mussels fork but had to use a regular one, and the toasted bread in the dish was burned so the whole dish had burnt overtones. My friends had the scallop entree for $35.00. I asked if I could substitue the cauliflower and was told that they could remove it for me. This was a birthday dinner and I didn't want to complain. The music was really nice though & non obtrusive (early evening) good eating music!

Had excellent service and the food was lovely. I brought some out of towners here, and one, a retired opera singer, just about fainted over the Dover Sole special (it was the real thing). I had a terrific soup starter,and went for the spaghetti pomodoro, just something light and it was perfect, not heavy and full of flavor. We also had a lovely Brunello di Rosso; the wine list had a great selection of Italian wines. It feels like a nice restaurant, not downtown "clubby" at all, and it was quiet and you could actually have a conversation. It may be a bit quiet for people who prefer more of a "scene", but if you just want a lovely Italian meal with friends without the noise and pretension, this is a good choice. Be aware - this place is not cheap. But you do get what you pay for here.

I went to Cesca tonight to celebrate my mom's birthday, and we had an excellent time all around! I had the impression from other reviews that it would be noisy and trendy... I was very pleased with the fact that it was not noisy at all, had a wonderful atmosphere and even better food. We were on an expense account, so went all out and sampled a bunch of appetizers and pasta (the orecchiette with house made pork sausage was a winner) and had an incredible bottle of wine (a $60 bottle that the waitress recommended over the $100 bottle we had picked out... can't complain about that!) My tuna with eggplant caponata was outstanding. Everyone truly enjoyed their meals. The warm chocolate cake with gelato is a MUST- one of the best desserts I have ever eaten. The service was very prompt but our waitress was a bit sour-faced (as I noticed most of them to be.) Overall Cesca is definitely a new fave and I can't wait to recommend it to others!

The food here is fabulous! I highly recommend going there if you haven't yet. Try the cheese plate and the procuitto fritters. Oh, and the chocolate cake!