Barbuto

[JeremyEG]

Hey Everyone,
Had a good meal at Barbuto tonight but we were seated almost an hour late. When they finally seated us, they told us "We know you've been waiting, but it's worth it." That seemed a little arrogant, especially with no offer to comp a drink or something. Oh well. We had the tasting menu (good value at $50) and it was very good. Just wanted to share.
Jeremy

[Hmmmmmm]

Whoa...you had a reservation and they served you an hour after that?

Not too cool!

[JeremyEG]

We had a 9:00 table and we were seated at 9:50.

[Hmmmmmm]

Would you ever return there?

What did you have?

[JeremyEG]

We had the tasting menu. It was difficult because the waitress offered to pair wines with it but when we asked what the courses were, she said she didn't know. It was a little odd. The first course was a really good fennel salad with blood oranges. It was followed by an odd calimari dish with wilted escarole and a very caesar dressing-like sauce. It was very heavy which would have been fine but it was followed by two very heavy pastas. A shrimp risotto and a pasta with walnuts. Both in cream and both very good but a little too rich after such a heavy 2nd course. The main courses were grouper which was simple and good and a half a roast chicken which was solid but nothing to write home about.

This seems like one of the few places where it might be better not to order the tasting menu as the a la carte options looked very good. The wines were good but lost something as they were served in piping hot, damp glasses fresh from the dishwasher that hadn't been wiped off.

I would go back if I new there was space at the bar and I wasn't in a rush. Hope this helps!

Jeremy

[Hmmmmmm]

Thanks, J!

[Sean Dell]

Hmm..I have a suspicion I know this waitress. She is fabulous, an actor and writer, and one of the worst waitresses in the business! She doesn't know what Shinola is, never mind the details of a tasting menu.

That's a perennial problem in NYC. No-one really wants to be a waiter in this town, for many reasons, not least of which is the inability to distinguish between service and servility. But thank god for it too, because give me occasionally dotty wait staff over the cynical lifers in places like Peter Luger.

Too bad it happened in Barbuto, where the kitchen staff turn out consistently good food.

[Bob77]

I went on a date to Barbuto on Sat. (1/14) night and had really lousy service. A waitress named Katherine A. basically ignored us after the entrees arived. The hostess had to give us dessert menus and the bill. The food was fair, but our experience was really tainted by the server's inattentiveness.

[Mookie]

Wow - a little arrogant?? That's downright rude. If you're going to make a statement like that it must be followed up with the offer of a complimentary drink or a mention that your appetizer will be on them. More like "We hope you'll find that the long wait was worth your time. We apologize for the wait & do appreciate your patience - your appetizer is on us". Ultimately, the customer is the one who decides if the quality of the food was worth an extra hr. of their time.

[Datum]

Word.

[willow]

Had a very good meal there last week; wanted to report back since I went based on recs on this board.
It's a noisy room, but lively. Made reservation but had to wait at bar. Hostess asked if we wanted to get a drink at the bar (we were standing there 'cause there were no seats). We don't like drinking standing up, we told her. (That would have been the time for a better restaurant to comp . ..)
We waited for 20+ minutes even though there were over 7 empty tables. Then the meal. Waitress was very nice; helped us select wine to go w/ meal (though we were served apps before wine arrived!). Puntarelle w/ anchovy dressing & egg -- very yummy & nice presentation. Bean soup -- good. Shared risotto w/ wild mushrooms, also very yummy (though could have been cooked 3 minutes more). Main: scallops & shrimp on cooked spinach w/ blood orange sauce. Very yummy, particularly shrimp. Not a transporting experience, but very heartening and pleasing. Excellent wine. All in all, a fine dining experience. Not formal, very loud, but it felt festive and casual (for example, open kitchen caused room to get kinda smoky and stung the eyes later in the eve) Cost: $124 for 2 w/ wine before tip.
I'd go back, and would recommend to others for mid-week meal.

[Bob Martinez]

We had a wonderful meal at Barbuto on Christmas Eve. We started with the small cheese plate for $15. Pleasant enough but unremararkable. The absolute winners were our entrees - my GF had the short ribs while I had the lamb stew. Both were meltingly tender and had tremendous depth of flavor. Easily among the best things we've had this year. As a side dish we had the fagioli (stewed corino beans, pancetta, and sofrito.) This was the weak link in the meal, a forgettable soupy mix of beans and broth that didn't have much flavor.

This sounds like a mixed review but it's not. When you go, skip the fagioli and order a different starter. *Do* order the short ribs and lamb stew. This meal was a standout and at $115 including tax and tip, a bargain as well.

BTW, the winelist was filled with well chosen bargains. We had an outstanding Monetepulciano for $30. There were a number of other attractive choices in the $25 to $30 range.

Note that their menu changes frequently so move fast.

One warning note - As other posters have mentioned, the place has lots of unpadded surfaces so noise can be an issue if the room is full. If noise bothers you, go early when it's less busy.

[deepeshbanerji]

I had lunch at Barbuto today on a nice summer day... place is great in the summer because its all open. We had a really solid pasta and the pizza de journo with eggs prociotto on it. Both were really good and we had the affolo for dessert which was nice on a summer day. Solid food and a nice cool spot.