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Went here on a Tuesday night - the place was packed, and extremely loud (a very small space). That said, the service was good - and more importantly, the food excellent. While all the pasta is fresh, the carbonara isn't as good as the Gnocchi. Try the polenta as a side - EXCELLENT! And the caramel espresso dessert.

After hearing so much about this place I finally got in and was excited to see if this place lived up to all the hype. Upon entering, I was surprised that the place was as small as it was but not deterred as it reminded me of the old Bouley Bakery. As for the food, I wanted to love it but just couldn't find enough great dishes to rave about. Our starters of ricotta cheese and a sauteed onion and garlic spread were terrific. As for the pastas, my black ink penne with very little seafood was al dente but tastleless. To the waiters credit he offered to exchange it for me. The parpadelle with mushorooms on the other hand was delicious. The roasted beat salad and quail were good but not great. As for the mains, the veal breast was ok but some portions were overly fatty and probably wouldn't order again. Other mains were good but once again not great. Desserts like the rest fell into that same average category. I want to love this place because of the intimate envirnment- especially with the chefs preparing the food in front of you-but just can't get jazzed quite yet. I certainly wouldn't make this a destination place but if I was in the neighborhood I would give it another shot for sure if only for the theater that the chefs provide.

Hip and trendy, this West Village Italian is the place to be seen. Loud with a scene, the food never disappoints. For those wanting a quiet place go rlsewhehere. Otherwise if good food and being part of this uber chic scene is what you want this is the place.

this place is a truly solid choice in the west village, offering handmade pastas in a rustic setting. authentic italian food and high-quality ingredients are the reason this west village restaurant is packed consistently.

I tried this restaurant for dinner after friends told me it was "all the rage." I called to make a reservation early in the day and the hostess was polite and professional. I arrived ahead of my girlfriend and so I had to wait a little while. The hostess did not offer to take my coat, but the bartender did politely offer me a drink (I declined, but appreciated his attentiveness). Once we were seated, we were promptly greeted by a waiter who seemed more interested in flashing a pretty smile to my girlfriend than making sure we had a great dining experience. (It was my girlfriend, and not me, that made the observation.) The waiter then offered us bottled water or tap water. When I said we would have "New York's finest" (i.e., tap), he gave me a disapproving look that was borderline offensive. On the upside, we asked the waiter some questions about the menu, and he was very knowledgeable about the dishes. My girlfriend ordered the Garganelli, which turned out to be absolutely delicious. I asked the waiter about the Casunzei, and said it was good but warned me that it was a small portion. I said "no problem," thinking to myself, "How small could it be?" Well, the waiter was not kidding! I had never seen such a small pasta dish in my life! The dish consisted of 6 tiny ravioli that hardly had any stuffing. On top of that, it was extremely undercooked. I would have sent it back, but I was concerned that the waiter might "look down" on me again. I definitely should have stuck with the bread and spent my $18 pasta price elsewhere. As for the wine, we had one of the few reasonably priced bottles at around $40, and it was excellent. Service, though, was poor -- I frequently had to refill my own glass. Not a huge deal, but that's a nice touch that is routinely experienced and far less expensive restaurants. All in all, I was disappointed, given what I had heard about the place and given my horrible entree choice. My recommendation would be to take your $100 (the total cost of our meal) and spend it elsewhere.

The food was pretty good, though the only bruschetta topping I liked was the avocado one. (I think the others were pesto -- which tasted like cheap mustard, and octopus -- which really didn't taste like anything). Our mains were tasty (though my ravioli dish was on the small side). The dessert was good, not excellent. Service was really good and the ambiance is romantic. However, we were getting choked out by the kitchen. All I smelled was burnt oil (and my clothes reeked of it as well). For how expensive the meal was, I felt that we should have been shielded somehow by the stench... I won't be going back any time soon.

This place exemplifies the herding instinct of 30-somethings in New York; big drink, cacophony, sloppy food. The too-charred octopus was over-seasoned. The capellaci was oily and salty. The flavor of the microscopic fragments of sea urchin lost its battle with the chillies. The pleasant staff somewhat compensates for food.