Locanda Verde - 377 Greenwich St.

[mrud]

is there any word on this yet? i'll be in the area tomorrow at lunchtime and always liked carmellini.

thanks

[oakapple]

is there any word on this yet?  i'll be in the area tomorrow at lunchtime and always liked carmellini.

thanks

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It's too soon for the pro reviewers, but this Eater post has a pretty good summary of the early word (including Ruth Reichl and Gourmet), and Gael Greene had a mostly positive blog post this week. Do a bit of googling, and you'll find more of that ilk.

[mrud]

stopped in today at the bar. pretty empty and a lot of staff standing around waiting for the rush...very handsome room and nice menu although only had time for 1 pasta and a glass of wine. 1st glass was oxidized and warm (opened at least the day before). pasta was good but not great.

all things considered, i'll give it some time and come back with high expectations given his former stints and the great room.

Edited June 5, 2009 by mrud (log)

[ewindels]

A winner overall. The space is well laid out and accomodating, if a little tight, particularly when it gets crowded at high time, but that's to be expected. The food's terrific: a little more rustic and unfanciful than what Carmelini was doing at A Voce, but excellent all around.

Whipped ricotta with grilled bread is fine, the latter generously replenished when we ran out, which we did fast. If livery flavors scare you, the chicken liver crostini will do you fine, as they're ameliorated and sweetened with vin santo. The gabagoul and grana is a funny idea, but for $14 the portion is a little paltry. Ditto for the calamari stuffed with chorizo and served on smooth polenta, a great combination. The grilled jumbo shrimp doesn't have much innate flavor, and the lemon and garlic on it weren't particularly distinguishable. Spaghettini with lamb amatriciani had just a hint of bite to it's rich, hefty sauce. Even better was a special of orecchiete with rabbit sausage and fresh shell peas in a light broth with little strips of prossiutto fat: the peas singing with flavor against the other ingredients. Roasted trout was beautiful with crispy skin, and the accompanying steamed new potatoes outshone the side of Rustic Potatoes with garlic and parmigiano-reggiano that we ordered. Fire-roasted Garlic Chicken For Two (which is also available for One) had too much and too many herbs on it for my taste, but was beautifully cooked. The porchetta is a knockout: infused with fennel and rosemary and with simultaneously unctuous and crispy skin. The side of fresh bitter greens is a perfect contrast. The lemon tart is an exceptional, perfect example of the dish. The Chocolate Torta itself was fine, but outshone by the accompanying cardamom gelato. A bottle each of a Dolcetto and a Barbera, a few starter drinks, one or two caffeines, and with tip the damage came to $94 a person. All around, good value for the quantity and quality of what we got.

[yasuofenix]

i've been there twice so far. my girlfriend and i ordered the chicken. it was good and a sizable portion. i did think there were a bit too many herbs as well. i love the ricotta and bread (i first had it at A Voce). One night i went they had very large prawns and they were quite flavorful but i wish they left the skin on. we also had grandma's ravioli which i swear were different at A Voce. But they were still good.

then we got dessert. i wasn't really wowed with anything both times i went. thats all i have to say about that.

the waiters were super friendly, but the crowd was kind of disturbing. a lot of jersey and long island accents being thrown out. i'm originally from jersey and i shutter when i hear an accent. (I don't have one... well maybe when i speak spanish)

i was a big fan of his from A Voce, and while i wasn't wowed i think the food was good and i'd go again and again. the price isn't bad. i wish they would bring back the tropical tiramisu and bomboloni.

i think this restaurant will turn out to be a great place as time goes on. i just hope carmellini doesn't become too casual because that man can make some mean ass higher end food if he wanted to.

[johnder]

About a month ago, per there reservation policy I made a reservation for tomorrow for a 3 top at 8:30. Calling back to confirm the reservation today, they suddenly have no record of any reservation, nor any recourse to get me in tomorrow or anytime in the next week.

Clearly this is a disappointment, and while Andrews food may be amazing, the front of house is clearly in disarray as losing a reservation is pretty bad. I am sure they have heard the story of people claming they have booked reservations when they really didn't, but in this case it clearly was an error on their part.

it is upsetting that they can accommodate me and my party at some point within a day of the original reservation.

[oakapple]

Clearly this is a disappointment, and while Andrews food may be amazing, the front of house is clearly in disarray as losing a reservation is pretty bad.

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I am not defending errors, but "clearly in disarray" based on one lost booking is an extreme statement.

[johnder]

Clearly this is a disappointment, and while Andrews food may be amazing, the front of house is clearly in disarray as losing a reservation is pretty bad.

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I am not defending errors, but "clearly in disarray" based on one lost booking is an extreme statement.

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well I use that statement because they are refusing to believe I had a reservation, and are not trying to help correct the problem at all. That is a pretty big lapse in hospitality. Sure, it may not be symptomatic of bigger problems, but in my specific case it shows poor handling of the situation.

[yasuofenix]

I was just there yesterday for lunch. I forgot it was restaurant week, and would have never gone if I knew. When I arrived I almost fell asleep from talking to the hostess. It was like talking to a corpse. All the waiters looked like they were working in a prison. Its always funny to me when someone says "Have a nice day" when their face says go to hell.

I went there twice before for dinner when they first opened. They were actually very nice, where did those people go?

The food is good but what happened to grandma's ravioli? Its different from when I use to go to A Voce. Is this the grandma from the other side of the family?

Carmellini is still one of my favourite persons to get a great meal from, the problem isn't him its the people who bring the food he worked so hard to make.

I'm leaving New York soon so I wish him the best he's a badass, the only thing I wish I could say to him is that he should do something big. The economy sucks, but once it picks up he's a man who can do great things in a higher setting. Its almost a waste for a man like him to be this casual.

[oakapple]

I'm leaving New York soon so I wish him the best he's a badass, the only thing I wish I could say to him is that he should do something big.  The economy sucks, but once it picks up he's a man who can do great things in a higher setting.  Its almost a waste for a man like him to be this casual.

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That was the gist of Bruni's review, but the man has to earn a paycheck, and now wasn't the time to be opening a Café Boulud redux.