Babbo (First 6 Years)

[johnjohn]

Tommy - does the entire table have to order the pasta tasting?

johnjohn

[tommy]

Tommy - does the entire table have to order the pasta tasting?

johnjohn

can't confirm that. but probably. and everyone *should*!

[jpk8216]

Tommy,

You said Babbo was one of your top five...what are the other four...

[tommy]

Tommy,

You said Babbo was one of your top five...what are the other four...

it depends on the day and my mood. but i enjoy tabla, march, bereket, pam's thai, and numerous others.

[macrosan]

It obviously had to happen sometime. I just had a meal at Babbo which was only very good rather than excellent

I went on Saturday night at 8pm and had to wait just over an hour for a seat at the bar. The place was JAMMED. I guess because of this, service once I got my seat was somewhat offhand, and that was

I started with Duck Bresaola which was, on reflection a mistake. The dried duck was OK but no more, although greatly helped by an orange marmalade and beautiful fagioli. Really, I should have ordered a "full" starter.

Main was Barbecued Skirt of Beef with Endives and Green Salsa. The meat was tender and well flavored, the charred endives a great accompaniment, but the salsa didn't help the dish at all, it needed to be much sharper. There was a fantastic vegetable decorating the dish, seemed like strands of red onion (I florgot to ask, and the service was, as I said, offhand) and this was sharp and clean. I would have preferred this to the salsa.

I drank a Sicilian red suggested by the bartender. Smooth and pleasant, but too sweet and mild for my taste, and not the best of wines with barbecued beef.

Very enjoyable, but not the best of Babbo. Still, if I never get a worse meal than that, it will remain my favorite New York eatery.

An informed source at the bar told me Mario is opening his pizza joint in early January. It's going to be on 8th Street at %th Avenue, and it's named Otto after it's location.

Edited to add the following Babbo will serve either tasting menu at the bar, but it must be for two people or more. In fact, a young couple were taking the pasta tasting menu while I was there ... I noticed that the pace of service was very slow, although this may be considered a plus for many people.

Edited November 25, 2002 by macrosan (log)

[jaybee]

Pretending we were all StefanyBs, six of us descended (or ascended) to Babbo for a snowy night dinner. We were seated in a cozy corner table upstairs. In keeping with my belief that if it ain't broke, don't fix it, I ordered what I order every time I eat there: lamb's tongue salad in balsamic vinegar reduction, beef cheeks ravioli in a sauce of squab liver and black truffles, and lamb chops. Apple walnut tart with creme fraiche for dessert. Plotnicki ordered the wine, which I will leave to him to identity, suffice to say the upscale Suave was sharp and refreshing and the red was chewy and very tasty, standing up to the food well.

Before ordering off the menu, Steve asked if Mario would cook for us, and the equivocal answer put our noses back in the menu.

Apart from our lamb chops arriving cold (yes, several were cold to the touch), and sending them back for another blast of heat, I enjoyed my meal completely.

I also enjoyed my tablemates thoroughly, and was delighted to finally meet Mrs. P, who is striking-looking and good company. I will leave it to others to out their identities as evil usurpers of a reservation made by another.

By the way, the manager told me with a great smile that she was very happy to see the six of us there tonight. The place was buzzing from 6 through 9 when we left.

And yes, Molto was in the house, in apron and pony tail.

The best part was telling them to send the bill to StefanyB.

Edited December 6, 2002 by jaybee (log)

[Steve Plotnicki]

For the life of me I do not see what people think is so special about this restaurant. My meal tonight was barely acceptable. I had Manta, shrimp from the Adriatic that were split and grilled. It was mostly shell and despite it being advertised by our waitress as being easy to eat, I had to pretty much pick the sucker up and suck the meat out while holding the sharp edged shell. The savings grace was the exceptionally good chicory it was served with which was nice and crunchy. Then I had the Lamb Chops Scotta Ditta which were served cold and had to be sent back. In fact all three orders at our table were cold. And even after they heated them they were still on the tepid side. And while they weren't flavored badly, being marinated in what seemed like garlic, mint and green pepper, I assure everyone who is reading this that I make lamb chops at home that are ten times better. There were a few dishes at our table that others had which got good reviews. The lamb's tongue salad is always a winner. The beef cheek ravioli was a winner as well. But the squid in tomato sauce and the pig shin milanese got two thumbs down.

Desserts were a saving grace. Well at least one of them was. I found the meal so unsatisfying that I actually ordered two desserts which is something I never do. The budino of Indian Pudding was really delicious and it was served with a creme fraiche ice cream. But the panna cotta was inedible. Blech. We drank pretty well though draining two bottles of 2001 Gini Soave La Frosca. Make a note if you are going that they have it for $36 and it is well worth it compared to the other white wines on the list. Then we drank a 1998 La Spinetta Stadari which was a little modern but has a nice future.

This is the fourth time I've been to Babbo and if anything my opinion of it is getting worse. It's starting to look like the Italian version of the Union Square Cafe. Italian food that looks good on paper but tastes homogenized. As if it's been put through the New York City "upper middle" meat grinder. And the place is just mobbed. I truly don't get it. I would prefer to eat at Lupa anyday over this place. At least the pretension that you are eating something special has been removed.

[jaybee]

An accurate description of the entire meal with a more negative cast on the place than I feel, since I enjoyed my food very much. (BTW, I asked FG to move my post to this thread).

[Beachfan]

Hmm, too bad. I've eaten there three times and been absolutely wowed.

[mogsob]

Went to "Baddo" about six months after it opened and had such a terrible experience that I have never gone back. Your meal sounds exactly like mine -- two of twelve dishes were excellent, most were sub-par, and a few were downright inedible and were sent back.

This is a creation of food-tv celebrity, nothing more.

[Steve Plotnicki]

And I used to enjoy eating at Po more then eating at Babbo. I can recall a great mixed sausage platter that had accompaniments of various mustards and relishes which were terrific. It was a great mix of Italian and modrn tastes. And while I see the potential for that at Babbo, I don't see where they deliver the finished goods.

[tommy]

sorry to hear that you didn't like it steve. but i have to ask, did you somehow convey to the restaurant that you wanted special treatment or that you are particularly knowledgable about food and that you would like them to perform at a certain level? everyone knows that the menu is for tourists.

Edited December 6, 2002 by tommy (log)

[Steve Plotnicki]

GFY Tommy.

Actually we did that at the beginning of the meal. I asked the waitress what would happen if we just told them to cook for us. She thought this to mean that they could serve us the printed tasting menu. When we sort of grimaced at that suggestion, she then said that she would be happy to order our meal for us. At that point we dismissed her because she didn't get what we were talking about and they obviously do not have a tradition of doing that there. In the end it didn't really matter because we didn't really want to do it, but we wanted to find out how they would respond to the request. Later on before we ordered the waitress came back and asked how she did with her explanation and I told her "not good." This response on my part provoked a frown on her part but didn't provoke any inquisitiveness as to exactly what it was I was interested in. As someone said later, she reminded them of a cocktail waitress at a hotel in the midwest.

Later on in the evening, Susan said that if we were known to Mario or the restaurant, there is no way we would have been served cold lamb chops. And she is probably right. And the funny thing is that as we were walking out and getting our coats, all of a sudden Molto Mario appeared at the Maitre 'd's stand literally standing three feet away from where we were. It was the first time we had seen him all evening. I have no way of verifying if this is true but, based on articles she has read about MM, he had come out specifically to see who had sent the lamb chops back.

But none of this has anything to do with my original question which was I don't know what the fuss is all about? I would probably still be asking it if everything went perfectly. I can tell what those lamb chops would taste like if they chose the best cuts and cooked them to perfection. They would very good instead of being on the mediocre side. But they would certainly not make me consider Babbo to be an extraordinary place. At best, they are marginally better then the lamb chops scottaditta they serve at the Union Square Cafe. More interesting flavors and they are in sort of a Sicilian/North African marinade and spicing routine. But you could go to a Middle Eastern restaurant in one of the boroughs and by accident run across that marinade. Susan, keen observer that she is, thought that people's view of Babbo might be distorted by the fact that they like Italian food and the choices in NYC are so pisspoor and Babbo is definitely a cut or two above especially in terms of creativity.

[tommy]

As someone said later, she reminded them of a cocktail waitress at a hotel in the midwest.

the midwest is for tourists.

seriously, thanks for expounding on the whole "having the chef cook for you" aspect of the evening. i shall now return to the blue hill thread to post your findings, as i'm glad to see that they were in line with many peoples' assumptions about what would happen if one walks in and requests this treatment.

and please, don't blame the restaurant for the bad bits. you only have yourself to blame.

Edited December 6, 2002 by tommy (log)

[Ron Johnson]

At that point we dismissed her because she didn't get what we were talking about and they obviously do not have a tradition of doing that there.

Later on before we ordered the waitress came back and asked how she did with her explanation and I told her "not good."

As someone said later, she reminded them of a cocktail waitress at a hotel in the midwest.

Being a jerk to the server is for tourists.

Edited December 6, 2002 by ron johnson (log)

[Toby]

I was pretty disappointed in the meal. Nothing was good enough. I ordered the Two-Minute Calamari Sicilian Lifeguard Style -- the recipe is in the Babbo Cookbook, and I'd looked at it this summer when I was cooking a lot of calamari soup/stews. What I was served was way inferior to the way the recipe would taste if cooked properly; it was totally boring and also served not very hot. The tomato sauce they were cooked in tasted like it came out of a jar. The best thing about the dish was some wonderful green olives, stems still attached, that were sort of floating around in the yucky tomato sauce. The beef cheeks ravioli were good. The Adriatic shrimp has some nice flavor but were mostly shell and very difficult to eat, although the chicory that accompanied them was delicious.

I love Lupa; the food there shows some care and creativity, and the meats are wonderful. I'd always wanted to eat at Babbo, but I think I'll just keep going to Lupa instead.

Edited December 6, 2002 by Toby (log)

[Nick]

At that point we dismissed her.....

....all of a sudden Molto Mario appeared at the Maitre 'd's stand literally standing three feet away from where we were. It was the first time we had seen him all evening.  I have no way of verifying if this is true but, based on articles she has read about MM, he had come out specifically to see who had sent the lamb chops back.

Ah, yes. Dismissed her. Now there's an attitude. BIG MISTAKE. You set the tone for the rest of the evening. Had she been one of some of the "waitresses" I've known, you should consider yourself lucky that you didn't end up with something particularly messy and gooey in your lap, with an, "I'm so sorry."

As it was, I'm sure word quickly spread into the kitchen about table x. Hence, Mario just had to come out and take a look. (Who knows why those chops were cold.)

Plotz, I agreed with you on the Blue Hill thread that letting the chef cook for you can be a good thing. But, there are ways to do it and ways not to do it. And times to do it and times not to.

Edited December 6, 2002 by Nickn (log)

[mikec]

Frankly this is pretty depressing. My wife and I have reservations for Babbo next week to celebrate our anniversary. Previous anniversaries have been celebrated at March, Gramercy Tavern, and Daniel. For some reason, nothing really is tickling my fancy right now.

I don't think that I've ever seen such divergent opinions on a restaurant. Either you love it or hate it.

What to do...?

[Fat Guy]

I'm not sure how many times I've been to Babbo. Maybe nine or ten? Definitely a dozen between me and the wife, some together and some separately. On a couple of occasions I have been served the exact same mediocre-to-bad meal described here, and on several other occasions I have been served the best Italian meal available in the United States (of all the places I've sampled). I've also experienced extreme highs and lows in service. The last couple of times I went -- this was probably a year ago, though -- the restaurant was firing on all cylinders. It tends to go through cycles, that's for sure.

I see no parallel whatsoever between Babbo and Union Square Cafe, though. Babbo has one of the most advanced menus in town, with a higher proportion of offal dishes than any upscale restaurant in town. The flavors are often very bold. Union Square Cafe is overrated, yes, but assuming Babbo is equally overrated it's got to be for a different set of reasons.

[tommy]

What to do...? 

1) stay away from these threads

2) go

3) make up your own mind

4) post about your experience

[mikec]

What to do...?  

1) stay away from these threads

2) go

3) make up your own mind

4) post about your experience

Tommy,

We actually ate there once before. It was about six months after the restaurant opening and had a bad experience much along the lines of what Steve P and Jaybee have described.

However that was a couple of years ago. Since then several friends whose opinions I respect have told me about their great meals there.

Makes the decision even tougher.

[tommy]

Tommy,

We actually ate there once before.  It was about six months after the restaurant opening and had a bad experience much along the lines of what Steve P and Jaybee have described. 

However that was a couple of years ago.  Since then several friends whose opinions I respect have told me about their great meals there. 

Makes the decision even tougher. 

everyone has an opinion. not everyone loves babbo. but obviously a lot do. while i appreciate your hesitation, personally, i would go, as you've been planning on it. with any luck, even if it's horrible, you'll have plenty more meals to make up for it in the future.

[Steve Plotnicki]

Tommy - Actually in your desperation to make me just like you, you didn't read what I wrote. I asked her what would happen if we asked them to do that? We weren't really interested in having them do that and in fact Mrs. P was kicking me under the table to not have them do that. Now, if the waitress said something that piqued our interest we wouldn't have put it through a thorough discussion on the merits. But if we were really interested in a chef's menu, and she wasn't getting it, I assure you that I would have asserted myself to the point where I would have asked for a manager, or even Molto himself could come and discuss it with us. But you're welcome to your difficulties in these situations. Just try not to include me in your own mishegas.

Nick - Please do not try and characterize my editorializing of the interaction as rudeness on my part or anyone elses. You have no idea what you are talking about. This was about the waitress not getting it. Maybe it's because they don't do that at Babbo. Or maybe because she was new. I took it to be that they have mechanized their process and this doesn't come up very often. Because when we were probing her, she had two ways to go. What she did was one choice, or she could have alerted a superior to come to our table and suss out what we were after.

The difference goes to the level of service they offer there. One waiter's troublemaker is another waiter's discening diner. What would have made us all happy is if she had said to us, I'm not really understanding what you are asking me but if you explain it better I will be happy to see if we can do it for you. But that wasn't an arrow in her quiver. Now I'm not necessarily faulting the restaurant for it and that is why I didn't raise it in my original review. But since Tommy asked I relayed what happened. And I guess it is indicative of how much extra effort one has to go through to get them to cook you a special meal. I think in general they are too busy their and a bit overwhelmed to begin with. So the types of requests I am describing might not be viewed will great enthusiasm by the kitchen.

Fat Guy - I can see the potential for having the best Italian meal in the U.S. there. But my underlying question is, what does that mean? It doesn't necessarily get you to "best or favorite restaurant in NYC" which is what you hear fairly often. As for USC, I was only comparing the lamb chops scottaditaa which is on the menu at both restaurants.

[Fat Guy]

I thought you were making a broader comparison between Babbo and USC.

[tommy]

Tommy - Actually in your desperation to make me just like you...Just try not to include me in your own mishegas.

i love it when you speak yiddish to me.

desperately yours,

tommy