L’Artusi can officially go on our list of favorite restaurants in this town. A few things stand out as qualifications for such an honor – outstanding and consistent food, great service, good music, and some ancillary entertainment since we can’t sit still. Let’s address each individually. L’Artusi is the sister restaurant to Dell’anima, and it’s the larger, louder sister for sure. The cuisine is Italian, and it’s the kind of Italian cooking that’s not afraid to go heavy on big flavors like garlic, lemon, olives, chiles, and fat to win your favor. Not that it’s unrefined – these are some of the most well thought out and beautiful plates we’ve had the pleasure of eating at an indecent pace. The service is fantastic, from the hosts to the bartenders to the guy getting crazy at the cheese counter. Music get’s an A+ with Santogold and Kid Cudi in the mix on current and upbeat playlists. As for entertainment, that comes in the form of excellent people watching. There is always a good mix of dates in various stages of progression, generally hot people, and a celebrity here and there to pretend you don’t notice. Not to mention one night when some dude spent three minutes violently pounding on the bathroom door that he couldn’t push his way out of, despite the massive “pull please” directly in front of his face. Yes, L’Artusi gets a ridiculously high rating, but we stand by it. It hits all the Immaculate Infatuation erogenous zones, and the roasted mushroom dish alone is worth a boatload of points.
A Voce just received a Michelin Star which, in case you were wondering, is a huge deal in the restaurant world. A friend recently said to me, “one day, you will need to explain to me the connection between tires and good food.” I can do no such thing. What I can do is tell you that A Voce turns out some incredible Italian. It’s definitely fine dining, it will definitely hit you hard in the wallet, and it’s definitely full of suits from the New York Life building next door, but no matter – the food coming out of that kitchen is amazing. The vibe is upscale modern, and while we were blown away by the service and the food, the music is atrocious. Smooth jazz permeates the room and makes you suddenly feel like you’re eating ravioli in John Tesh’s living room. Someone needs to sort that out ASAP. We would be happy to make suggestions. Otherwise, A Voce is firing on all cylinders. Our waiter made excellent recommendations and from appetizer to entree, most everything on the menu is phenomenal. We recommend any and all of the homemade pastas, and the roasted trumpet mushroom appetizer is straight-up unbelievable. This is another one of those spots best saved for special occasions, or any time you feel the need to drop some chang on a serious meal.
I have to admit, when I walked up to Scarpetta (which sits on the 14th Street border of the Meatpacking District) late on a Saturday evening, part of me expected to see an H2 limo pull up and let out a gaggle of women having “like the best night ever on Stacey’s 34th birthday!” Luckily, that was not the case. For now, the tasteful and dim lit room is calm and relatively untouched by Meatpacking District sprawl. I say “for now” because rave reviews, proximity to the Gansevoort, and the chill out lounge beats pumping through the speakers will soon draw in Stacey and her wobbly heeled friends. Regardless, Scarpetta fully lives up to all the recent hype. The food is absolutely incredible, and I was blown away by how simple and well executed everything was. Truffles and foie gras make appearances, yet don’t come off the slightest bit heavy handed. I was never a fan of sweetbreads, but Scarpetta might have changed my opinion after having them in the excellent farfalle dish. The spaghetti is just that, spaghetti in tomato sauce with basil – incredibly simple and somehow the star of the menu. I will deduct points for the electronic elevator music, but otherwise Scarpetta is about as good as it gets.
Move over people, the champ is here. Joe’s is the best slice in Manhattan. It’s been like that forever and will remain that way for eternity. If you can make a case for any other slice on the island of Manhattan, please let us know. The menu is simple and usually there are three options: plain, fresh mozzarella and Sicilian (sometimes you can catch a Pepperoni pie too). If you’re ordering by the pie then there’s the additional toppings option, but why mess with perfection? The kitchen operation is a well oiled machine and keeps hot pies blazing out of the oven one after the other. Unlike a place like Artichoke, which makes lining up to vote look like fun, the line at Joe’s is the epitome of efficiency. You can be backed up 15 deep on the sidewalk and still be in and out with your slices in 10 minutes, easy. Bonus points to Joe’s for owning one of the best fountain cokes around, with just the right balance of syrup, carbonation, and water.
Since the day we launched this website as a side project from our full time jobs in the music business, it has been, and continues to be a labor of love. “Labor” comes in the form of lots of late night meals and early morning writing. The love part is our passion for eating good food and running our mouths about it (we also kind of love taking it to the house on bad restaurants when necessary). Next week, we’ll hit one hundred reviews on immaculateinfatuation.com. Along the way to one hundred, we’ve only come across a few places that were new to us and blew our minds. Barbuto is one of them.
Giveaway: Dinner On Us
