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I had lunch there today, and I thought that the food was a major disappointment. The artichoke spread appetizer was extremely bland, unattractive, and unremarkable. The spaghettini with mussels consisted of a bowl of mediocre pasta with sour tomato sauce and a few stray mussels mixed in. The dessert was a chocolate panna cotta with pears, and it really wasn't good at all. The consistency was gluey and the flavor was...well..there wasn't much of a flavor at all. The pear morsels on top were pretty awful too. The Gramercy Hotel is beautiful, and the restaurant is lovely to look at and to be in. The wait staff was gracious. I won't be returning, however, because I really disliked the food.

We had a terrific experience the other night. The only glitch was a 30 minute wait before we were seated for our reservation, but the hostess personally and immediately brought over an appetizer to make up for it once we sat down. From that point on, everything was excellent, from the wine selections and suggestions, to the friendly waitress, to the delicious food (and we tried a number of different dishes). Will definitely be back.

If you're a guy and want a full meal you will not enjoy this place. The atmosphere is nice and the food is decent, but the portions are laughably small. For $21, the suckling pig pasta dish included 2 bites of pork and 4-5 thick strands (though not nearly as thick as pappardelle) of pasta. I would say the portion was roughly 1/3rd of a standard pasta starter or maybe 1/5th of a pasta entree. I do highly recommend it for NY's fashionably thin women however.

$15 for one ravioli and $49 for tasteless steak -- so glad this was an expensive dinner but what a waste. Pretentious, not great food --- oh, the bread was nice. Never again

We were expecting a unique Italian experience. The portions are really small. The special rabbit dish tasted medicinal. Nothing we had was remarkable except the bill which was high.The waitress had an attitude. never again.

We were greeted by very friendly people. Our table was ready within 15 minutes of the reservation which I was happy with. The prociutto, salad, pumpkin ravioli and suckling pig were fantastic. Dessert also great unbelievable. Our waitress was as nice as could be. I also loved the atmosphere. We live in the neighborhood and can't wait to return very soon.

To this point, Danny Meyer has been deservedly recognized as creating the finest restaurant service experiences in New York City. I have eaten multiple times at Gramercy Tavern, Eleven Madison and Union Square Cafe, and have always been struck with how genuinely caring the maitres d' and serving staff have been. Maialino is a different question altogether, much to my (unpleasant) surprise. I arrived on time for our 9:00 reservation, and asked if any of my other six dining companions had already been seated. The hostess said that they had arrived, but our table was not ready yet. When I asked where I might find them, she dismissively waved her hand, saying that she really didn't know. I found them in the lobby of the Gramercy, and we were seated 15 minutes later (and late!). Our waitress, the same I had during my previous visit, had improved somewhat: first time around, she refused to tell me the specials "before everyone is ready to order." This is not the MeyerLand I have come to love. The restaurant is also extremely noisy. On the bright side, however, the food is uniformly excellent: the pastas are wonderful, the tripe appetizer is spicy and delicious, and the off-the-menu pick is just what a maialino should be! A mixed blessing overall.