Bar Milano Now 'inoteca - 24th St. & 3rd Ave.

[weinoo]

Stopped in at Bar Milano (323 Third Ave. at 24th St.) the other night, and was mightily impressed with what we sampled. To start, there is a nice list of cocktails from Tony Abou-Ganim; Campari and Aperol figured in the two we tried, which were quite tasty and might be considered "gateway" cocktails for folks who haven't sampled these two bitter spirits.

Food wise, we sampled four appetizers and four primi, along with a hearty portion of fried rabbit (which seems to be getting its day in the sun, as we had fried rabbit at Mia Dona just last week). And the bread plate was refilled a couple of times as well.

We didn't get to try any of the entrees or desserts, as we were already quite stuffed. Standouts included the patata imbottita, polpo and porcini e aglio from the appetizer portion of the menu, along with the pastas. The lobster risotto was good - but we felt it was served a little tighter/stickier than we would have liked, considering it was a seafood risotto, which I like all'onda, or wavy as is served in the Veneto. But then again, this is Milano .

What was really nice, and not surprising, considering the professionalism of Joe and Jason Denton, along with partner/chefs Eric Kleinman and Steve Connaughton from 'inoteca and Lupa, was that this team really hit the ground running. Food was prepared well, didn't take forever (which can sometimes happen in a new place), and the service was good (in the bar/lounge). Prices were reasonable, though certainly not cheap - the appetizers all came in at under $15, while the primi that we sampled ranged from $17 up to a high of $24 (for the lobster). Entrees looked to be in the $25 to $35 range.

And I'm looking forward to heading back to try some more of the menu.

[Nathan]

was here last night. cocktails are top-notch...slightly sweet for my palate, but balanced all the same. excellent bar gear, everyone's using jiggers...Tony was in evidence and very gracious (as were the rest of the staff). Murray Hill gets its first legitimate cocktails. I'll certainly be back for them.

decor wise, I'm not really a fan...it does kind of reflect the neighborhood...there's no TV above the bar (than goodness!) but one wouldn't feel out of place. the dining room is better.

as for the food, we tried four dishes. liked the polpo (with grilled endive?), nice slightly charred flavor. not a fan of the porcini with a garlic sfumato..the porcini were kind of flavorless. however, the "osso buco ravioli" were nifty and really good. the tripe with polenta and essentially in brodo wasn't bad at all....if really kind of simple.

and that might be the problem. considering the location and prices, comparisons to A Voce are inevitable. that's a high bar to reach. something to keep an eye on.

[Nathan]

I should add, the 323 is absolutely magnificient.

rosemary infused Hendricks, lemon juice, reduced balsamic and muddled strawberries and basil.

Edited April 18, 2008 by Nathan (log)

[ulterior epicure]

Is there a website for Bar Milano? If so, Google's not helping me much.

[kathryn]

http://www.barmilano.com/

I find that you cannot Google for the restaurant's official site easily, OpenTable or MenuPages will often have the right link.

[ulterior epicure]

http://www.barmilano.com/

I find that you cannot Google for the restaurant's official site easily, OpenTable or MenuPages will often have the right link.

←

Doh. OpenTable, why didn't I think of that? I also went on MenuPages. Sorry for the bother. Thanks!

Edited May 26, 2008 by ulterior epicure (log)

[weinoo]

I've heard from a reliable source that Bar Milano will reopen (as 'inoteca) on or about February 18th. Expect the 'inoteca menu with additional menu items to include pastas at under $15, and perhaps some other surprises.

It will be a lot less fancy than Bar Milano, yet some of the furniture and fixtures will remain (obviously, since that investment has already been made).

Cocktails will have a lower price point than the high-end cocktail places around town, and Mr. Tony Abou-Ganim is once again developing and doing the initial consulting.

While Bar Milano was never the place I hoped it would be (though some of the food offerings were tasty), I think the change to a more casual, lower priced "trattoria" is the best move in this economy.

[gastrodamus]

I've heard from a reliable source that Bar Milano will reopen (as 'inoteca) on or about February 18th.  Expect the 'inoteca menu with additional menu items to include pastas at under $15, and perhaps some other surprises.

It will be a lot less fancy than Bar Milano, yet some of the furniture and fixtures will remain (obviously, since that investment has already been made).

Cocktails will have a lower price point than the high-end cocktail places around town, and Mr. Tony Abou-Ganim is once again developing and doing the initial consulting.

While Bar Milano was never the place I hoped it would be (though some of the food offerings were tasty), I think the change to a more casual, lower priced "trattoria" is the best move in this economy.

←

offering pastas under $15 is a smart move. do you know if it'll be open until 3am?

[weinoo]

offering pastas under $15 is a smart move. do you know if it'll be open until 3am?

←

No, I don't. But I imgaine it will be open similar hours to 'inoteca, at least until they see what kind of business they're generating.

[gastrodamus]

dined at the new location last night. first thing i noticed was the unmistakable smell of truffle oil from the egg toast; a good start. overall, the quality of the dishes is very comparable to the LES location. i only got to try the tagliatelle w/lamb ragu off of the new pasta menu, which was excellent despite its resemblance to linguine. one of the servers (sommelier?) informed us that this is the only pasta that is fatto in casa. she also said that the pinci is virtually identical to bar milano's though i didn't get to try. if anyone misses the baked polenta, it's back on the menu w/chickpeas. ours wasn't quite as crunchy on the outside as i remember it but still delicious. the wine list is slightly varied than the original location but just as approachable and extensive. unlike LES, this location has a cocktail list, which i unfortunately didn't peruse. the interior is what everyone predicted; somewhere between bar milano and the original 'inoteca.

the dentons were in front of the house and joe stopped by our table to give us a warm welcome. they're taking reservations for the first week or so and for parties of 6+ afterwards. we were walk-ins around 8:30 but were seated right away despite the bustling dining room and bar. it appeared to be at capacity around 9:00. and yes, they're open until 3am and eater reports lunch and delivery will begin next month. except for a slight lapse between our first and second dishes, everything went smoothly for us with no noticeable opening jitters. while i'll miss bar milano, inoteca is such a welcomed format change and a much-needed spot in "gramurray bay" neighborhood. i think it's going to perform extremely well.

[weinoo]

After a wait of a month, my wife and I finally got a chance to try the "new" 'inoteca and we were not disappointed.

Arriving at around 7:15. we were told a table would be available in just a few minutes - certainly not the case 30 minutes later. I had wanted to step into the bar to check it out, but the hostess said it would be best to take cocktails at our table, and one look into the bar (virtually unchanged from Bar Milano) assured me that she was right - it was packed.

The first thing we noticed after being brought our menus was that the cocktail list had expanded dramatically. Not only are the original cocktails developed for Milano still on the list, but classics as well as not-so-classics (Widow's Kiss, for example) are there as well. We opened with a Last Word (she) and a standard Manhattan (me), which were both finely executed. Oh, did I mention the Last Word is made with V.E.P. Chartreuse (at least for now) and comes in at $10. As do all the cocktails...it appears the Dentons are intent on getting this crowd to drink some good cocktails - selling them at perhaps the best price point in the city.

As for the food, we've always had a soft-spot for the original 'inoteca, what with our love of Italian dining as well as it being in our neighborhood. And uptown 'inoteca doesn't disappoint. Additions to the menu include about 5 or 6 pastas, as well as a similar number of spiedini, with the rest of the menu essentially a carbon copy of downtown's.

Starting with suppli, the gooey, cheese filled balls of risotto - deep-fried to a nice crisp - is always a good idea. They go surprisingly well with the last sips of a Manhattan. Of course, we needed to try a number of the new dishes - and both the spiedini we had hit the spot. 2 skewers of quail, crisp and moist at the same time, came atop a farro salad. Octopus spiedini was tasty as well, dressed simply with olive oil and sitting on a bed of, for want of a better word, Italian potato salad.

Like gastro above, we ordered the tagliatelle with ragu - well cooked pasta enhanced by the sweet and meaty ragu. (The other pastas look good as well - think Lupa pasta, and how bad can that be?) Wanting an old favorite, we also had the polpette, 3 large, tender meatballs on a bed of caramelized onion and tomato. Nice, and they were good for lunch the next day as well. Of course, at this point you might think we were being gluttons - which we were. Not to worry - from the classics, we also got to try the beet salad as well as the grilled calamari with fennel - good as always. Dessert, which we didn't have room for, was the affogato (minus the espresso, so basically vanilla gelato) and a bitter chocolate pudding.

In these tough times, retooling Milano into 'inoteca seems to be a good bet. To be able to have a couple of nice cocktails, or a half-bottle of wine, along with a couple of winning bites and get out for let's say $50 - $75 for two, is no doubt going to make 'inoteca "uptown" as tough a ticket as the downtown location has always been. That's why it's nice that they're on Open Table. Reserve and go.

COMP DISCLOSURE: The 2 salads, Widow's Kiss and some sort fo flip with dessert. As if we needed it.

[BryanZ]

I went to the LES outpost of 'inoteca with a big group last night for the family style meal. The menu can be seen below. We booked only a couple days in advance but somehow they were able to accommodate 11 of us in a nook right by the windows. A tight squeeze, but festive, and "interactive" as the manager I set up the event with warned me it would be with so many people in so small a space. Good for tipsy friends, not for a business dinner or a meal with the in-laws and their extended family.

Classic Party Menu

First Course

romaine, radicchio, stravecchio & roasted garlic

beets, orange, pecorino, mint & hazelnuts

grilled calamari, fennel, capers, roma tomatoes & pomodoro gremolata

rucola, pickled red onions & pecorino

affettati

Second Course

polpette

polenta, market vegetables, parmigiano reggiano & pancetta

lasagnette di melanzane

soppressata, goat cheese & tapenade panino

zucchini, smoked provolone & pomodoro gremolata panino

verdure misti

Third Course

affogato

market fruits

nutella panino

In general I enjoyed myself. The restaurant has a really good, bustling vibe and was surely a step up in atmosphere from the Frying Pan, our most frat-tastic locale for pre-dinner drinks. The restaurant had a lot going in its favor given the cool breezy night and massive window frontage that made for some good people watching.

There were, however, some quirks that I think could've been addressed more professionally. Before I even discuss the food itself, I wish the wine steward would've discussed a couple more options with me before simply locking in on two. Also, while there was certainly enough food in the end, for 11 of us we might get 10 panino halves rather than 11. We had no problem sharing off our individual plates but why not make the extra sandwich and give us an extra half? The same could be said for the lasagna. Two smallish pieces for our party seemed a bit light. I also wish they would've slowed down the food a little bit. I was told we'd have the table until after midnight if we wanted it, yet we were done eating by shortly after 11 pm with our 9:30 reservation. Minor problems like this are pretty much endemic with group dining, but in a perfect world...

My expectations for the food going into the dinner weren't that high, so I was pleasantly surprised with most of it. There was no shyness in seasoning be it with lemon on some of the salads or salt and pepper across the board. I didn't have a problem with this, but perhaps half of my party found the meatballs to be overseasoned. I admit they tasted eerily like beef black pepper beef jerky, but I enjoyed them in a kind of base way. The beet salad, on the other hand, was really, really excellent. The calamari salad was also a favorite of mine, light yet pleasantly meaty and chewy. As might be expected the affogato was a hit across the board.

It was a fun meal, and I don't really have complaints that would keep me from going back. 'inoteca has always been a kind of drop-in kind of spot so going there to celebrate an event kind of shifted the dining experience. With that said, it worked for our purposes and we spent about $52/person after tax and a built-in service charge with a couple bottles of wine and some beers. Quite fair, I think.