Babbo (First 6 Years)

[macrosan]

I'm going to Babbo on a Friday night (Feb 22) and I intend to eat at the bar. On two previous visits, I arrived at about 6.30 and got a seat immediately. This time I plan to eat at about 9pm.

Does anyone have an idea as to whether I'll get a seat at that time ? If not, what time gives me the best chance?

[tommy]

i know we've discussed babbo, but i don't think there's a thread where everything is in one place (and i can get my answer), so i'll ask here...

going soon.  haven't been in probably over a year.  any recommendations?  should i again do the pasta tasting paired with wines?  

any advice would of course be appreciated.

[tommy]

come on people!  don't make me respond to myself.  that would be emabarrassing.  i know more than a few of you have enjoyed babbo recently.

[Mao]

Yeah, yeah OK.  I have been 3 times in the last month.  The pasta tasting menu with wine pairings is superb, though I think the bolognese is disappointing. Along with Bouley and Gari, its the joint I hit most.  I always go for what is usually a special, probably because I have tried decent portions of regular menu, and I actually think it tends to be what Mario was inspired to dream up that day after he went to market.  Things I think are superb: the Octopus appet, the goose liver ravioli in browned butter with balsamic vingegar gets my vote for dish that has most cosnsistently converted people who don't know anything about good food to the cause, and if the waiter mentions that they have some cut of meat that has been cooking in the back for 2 days, then you are a fool if you don't order it. Quail, rabbit superb, as are mint love letters.  hell, everything is very good.  The pastas are in my experience the most consistently great items.  Ditto fish.  Just order everything.

[macrosan]

I've had two meals there, both excellent, but the dish that really stood out for me was the lamb chops --- a quite exceptional dish, and possibly the most "perfect" complete dish I've eaten anywhere.

...now is that a trifle OTT ? ..... Nawww, not for Tommy  

[tommy]

OTT?   yeah you know me.

well, i had the pasta tasting, paired with wines.  very good indeed.  the first past dish, one with fresh peas, was outstanding.  all good.  a bit too much food, although i think the portions were just right (mrs. tommy was stuffed, but then again, i've got about 100 lbs on her).

thanks for the advice.  i now remember why i like the place so much.

and, the lamb at the next table looked incredible!

[tommy]

babbo's menu, including the pasta tasting, are on-line on their website for anyone who's interested.  scattilo prego, voi bastardi silly

[Jinmyo]

Ha! Thanks tommy! There's a nice link there about baccala alla vincentina which gives me a great idea for some baccala I have hanging around. But I'll use creeeaaammmm...

[mogsob]

OK, I'm convinced.  I need to try Babbo again.

A couple of years ago, I had what was probably the worst meal of my life there.  They stuck us (party of 6) in the back.  My wife was lost in the back and the staff never even bothered to fill her water or wine -- we had to pass her glass to the front for refills.  The food was no better (save for a mussels and blood orange starter that was fantastic).  The pasta, lamb and fish were severely overcooked.  When we complained, they said that's how Italians eat.  Please.  And I don't think they eat fish that is well past its prime either (and thus necessitating overcooking).  That, and paying $75 a bottle for Chianti really soured me on the place.

But, I can't shake the feeling that an early reservation on a Saturday night relegated us to the "B" team - both in the kitchen and out front.  And, yes, everyone is entitled to one mulligan, even Molto Mario.

[ajay]

That's the spirit Mogsob.  I had a similarly lousy experience my ffirst time at babbo.  But the second time, we sat at the bar, and it was as if it were a totally different place.  The mint love letters had zing, we got an amuse bouche and petite fours (things that were not provided when we had a table late on Friday night), and we had the opportunity to sample wines before settling on one.

I found the mint love letters to be particularly excellent, but then again, I did not try lamb or fish.  I've been eager to go baack, but thus far, I've had trouble enlisting other diners to join me; they're put off by offal.

[tommy]

in the spirit of the last two posts, i will say that i found myself thinking "if only this were a danny meyer restaurant".  that's not to say that the service is bad, but, you know.  oh, and, that host guy can, as far as i'm concerned, isn't very nice.

edit/full disclosure:  my comment about the host guy was probably a bit harsh. i retract that statement, a bit.  

[mogsob]

Tommy, you are absolutely correct.  I can think of several restaurants that would greatly benefit from the "Meyer" approach to service.

[Howie]

I've been a reader of the site for months now, but just never find a good time to post but thought this Babbo post would be a good way to get back into it.

Tommy, hope that I can be a bit of assistance here. I love Babbo! It's one of my favorite restaurants in the city for its casual atmosphere, great food and resourceful with all the great ingredients that other city restaurants sometimes fail to showcase (ie tripe, headcheese, etc.), and its price/quality ratio.

Anyway, onto the food! The website is a great place to start, but it seems to miss out on a lot of the seasonal ingredients that Batali incorporates into the menu. Two weeks ago when we were there, the menu was flush with morels, spring peas, ramps, soft shell crabs, wild striped bass, young garlic, and the like!

Here's my philosophy on the menu; I feel Batali does a better job with braised meats and game birds than he does with seafood. While I've had the grilled octupus, whole branzino, and most recently the soft shell crab secondi, I feel that the dishes are either a bit overcooked or just too plain for my taste--lacking the extra layer of complexity and seasoning that I find in the non-seafood dishes there. Or maybe I'm just a sucker for shortribs!

Apps: I love the tripe parmigiana--the ultimate comfort food and with that great tripe texture. Totally different than how I usually enjoy it down in Chinatown, and that's why I really like this one. Also, the lamb's tongue vinagrette and quail's egg is utterly rich and buttery. Another favorite of mine.

Primis: This is my favorite part of Babbo (though I've never tried the pasta tasting menu). Bucatini amatriciana is one of my favorite dishes in the city--the hollow pasta is perfectly al dente, the sauce is nice and spiced up, and the guanciale (cured pork cheeks) are incredible. I've tried to recreate this myself at home but I can't seem to find guanciale that tastes the same way; the last time I ran into Mario, he mentioned that they'll soon sell it at Italian Wine Merchants. Other great pastas include the beef cheek ravioli. Personally, I think the mint sauce in the lamb with mint love letters it much too overpowering, but I know a lot of people love this dish.

Secondis: Again, I'd reiterate the recommendation for braised meats and game birds. The short rib here is so tender and well seasoned, I think I could have it every night. The polenta is extremely creamy and the sauce and horseradish adds just another layer of flayor. Another favorite is the quail; for the life of me, I can't remember what the side dish was but something like pasta with a tangy pomegranate sauce sounds about right. IMHO, the shoft shell crabs with ramps were a bit too salty and nothing too impressive or unique about the dish. The braised lamb chop will make you feel straight out of the Flinstones as it is this gigantic, bone-in chop.

Desserts: The assorted gelati and sorbetti in what looks like egg cups are very good and extremely flavorful. If you're not too stuffed, I'd think about that or the assorted cookies and biscotti with an espresso shot. Both are great!

Have a great time and apologies if I started rambling on!

[Jinmyo]

Good post, Howie. More, please.

[stefanyb]

apologies if I started rambling on!

Howie, you can ramble to your heart's content.  A great read.

More please......

[Bux]

apologies if I started rambling on!

Apologies are hardly necessary for that post. I think we're changing the nature of unline discussion and our members seem to have the capacity to read long posts if they stay focused. I think you offered a good personal evaluation of the restaurant that many should find useful, especially if they haven't been there, or been there but haven't learned how to appreciate it.

[stefanyb]

I recently called Babbo for a reservation for four people on a Saturday night some weeks hence.  I fully expected to be offered, at best, a table at 5:30 or 9:30.  But, I was flabbergasted when told the only thing available was at 11:00 and most of all I couldn't believe that their kitchen would still be open for people being seated at that hour.

Is this good or bad?

[Beachfan]

It's good.  Late night on a hot day in the Village?  Sounds great.

Would it be better if they were closed?

[stefanyb]

It's good.  Late night on a hot day in the Village?  Sounds great.

Would it be better if they were closed?

Do you think a kitchen can sustain top level production from 5:30 to 1 AM?  Can Mario actually cook all that time and better yet, does he?

[Sandra Levine]

When is Mario most likely to be cooking, at 5:30 or 11?  I was offered  5:30 or 10:30 about three weeks ago for Wednesday, May 29.  Union Pacific had no trouble offering me the requested 8 p.m. for the same time, so Mario will have to wait for my presence until another time.  Actually, so will Rocco, since Alan decided he would rather see Mary Clere Harran at the Algonquin for his birthday than eat a fancy meal.  Some people!

[Beachfan]

It's good.  Late night on a hot day in the Village?  Sounds great.

Would it be better if they were closed?

Do you think a kitchen can sustain top level production from 5:30 to 1 AM?  Can Mario actually cook all that time and better yet, does he?

Good point.  I guess I assumed he was usually not there given his far flung empire.

[Liza]

Obviously, Rocco's loss.

[Sandra Levine]

There's always my birthday.

[Ruby]

I recently called Babbo for a reservation for four people on a Saturday night some weeks hence.  I fully expected to be offered, at best, a table at 5:30 or 9:30.  But, I was flabbergasted when told the only thing available was at 11:00 and most of all I couldn't believe that their kitchen would still be open for people being seated at that hour.

Is this good or bad?

Stephany, the offer from Babbo for an 11 o'clock reservation is ridiculous. Next they'll be offering people 'dinner' to be consumed in the morning. The same thing happened to me about a year ago - I called Babbo weeks in advance for a party of 4 and was offered a 10:30 seating. Sorry, I just don't like eating that late and feeling like maybe I'm gettin 'sloppy seconds' meaning the night is over, their preferred customers have dined and gone home and we're at the bottom of the barrel. Maybe some people love eating late but I don't.

If I'm out at a club, I don't mind stopping for breakfast anywhere from 1 to 3 a.m. but that's different and my choice - it's Florent or eggs at some late night diner.

What gets to me is that some of these places, like Babbo, have gotten so popular that they almost dictate when you can dine there. Thank goodness that in NYC we have so many other restaurants.

To answer your question: methinks this is bad.

[Christopher]

At GT we also have 11pm bookings on Friday and Saturday and they come in handy for post-theatre dining but also for post flight dining when one is coming from a different time zone. I'm nearing the end of my shift and a table of four, wide awake-jetlag-hasn't-hit-yet-we're-in-a-different-time-zone, sits down and enquires about the 7-course tasting menu with cheese!

I'm not going to argue that 11pm is a dinner hour, but it is a very workable time for certain people and given that New York is so massive a city, these people come and fill the seats.