I Coppi

It has been a few years since we last visited I Coppi. We sat in the back garden which is very nice and comfortable. Staff was great and service was timely and you did not feel rushed. The food was very good and we had a delicious bottle of wine at a very reasoanable price. Overall it was a wonderful experience and I would recommend the restaurant for anyone looking for a nice casual dining experience.

Just had to write this so that the reviewer who complained about the bread is aware of some facts. There was a heavy salt tax back in the day imposed by the pope in Tuscany, and the people decided that instead of paying, they would make do without. That is why the bread was "tasteless" and the staff was, in fact, correct. Try reading sometime. The food here is one of the few Italian places that is actually any good, compared to most "Italian American" places that are horrible facsimiles of authentic Italian food.

While the garden was lovely, this was the worst Italian, and probably the worst meal altogether, that I have had in New York. The bread tasted like cardboard and when I asked the waiter to get us a new basket, I was told that this is just how "authentic tuscan bread tastes" - yet I have been to tuscany a few times as well as a number of tuscan restaurants and have never had anything that tasted quite this bland. The salads were unimpressive and lacked flavor. They failed at both a classic pasta dish and a more creative fish entree. My boyfriend and I just kept ordering things until we got something that tasted mildly satisfying and eventually found the prosciutto pizza, which was very good. The dessert, as well, was very good.

We were 8 guests celebrating a 'big' birthday while sitting in the outside garden. We had antipasti and secondi, 2 bottles of wine and desert. We were promptly seated as we had reservations, Saturday night, 6pm. The garden is very attractive and well-protected from the elements. Each one of us thoroughly enjoyed our meal, especially the 4 formaggi pizza and the special requested gorgonzola pizza made in the brick-oven. Outstanding! The service was charming if a bit slow. A lovely evening.

I have only been to I Coppi for brunch (a great value at $15 and in that lovely garden!) until last night. Pylos had a 1 hour wait (without reservations) so we wandered around and decided on I Coppi. No availability in the garden so we ate in the lovely front room by the windows. Service is relaxed, more European (so if you are in a hurry this might not be the place for you). For app. we had the grilled Tuscan bread w/melted Taleggio cheese & figs served with baby arugula salad. Please note, their bread is nothing special (but is served with a decent olive oil). Entrees were ravioli stuffed w/gorgonzola & ears in a creamy mushroom sauce and Livornese style shell fish stew served with garlic bread. We finished w/espresso and fig gelati. Everything was delicious.

I realize that this is just the opinion of my boyfriend and I, but most people we know generally trust our taste. We went to i coppi last night, and were disappointed in only one thing: the fact that we had never been there before. The restaurant is nice and cozy and the food was delicious. We split the taglioteli with the butter sage sauce, you could taste the flavor of every ingredient. And the filet was delicious with the arugula addingwonderful flavor and the meat perfectly cooked. Add to that a wonderful and reasonable bottle of wine, and we were hogs in heaven. The waiter even offered to cork the bottle and let us take home whatever we didn't finish. Of course, we finished the whole bottle, so that wasn't a problem, but what a nice gesture!

We gave up our reservation at Po to try this place, based on the recommendation of a friend. The food was decidedly subpar. The Branzino Fillet was overcooked as was the seafood stew, which was rubbery and off-smelling. Meat dishes fared a bit better, such as the lamb rack, but none were worth any particular mention. The waitstaff was very nice, but inattentive. They forgot the vinegar on my wife's salad and after trying to get their attention for about ten minutes, I just went to the kitchen and got it myself. The wine, a Badiolo, was well-priced and nice at $35.00 but much of their selection is not the kind of wine you'd order with a mediocre meal. The atmosphere in the garden is quite lovely and had the food been better, it would have been a great evening.