Lupa and The little owl

[gastronomy]

Hey all!

My fiance and I will be in New York for the first night of our honeymoon. I have been looking for the perfect spot for us to have our first dinner and everything is either closed Sunday or booked. Now we are considering "walk In"- What do you guys think about these two restaurants- how long are the waits usually? Also looking at Babbo.... Thanks!

[aeros]

All things considered (service, food, noise level) we would recommend Little Owl over Lupa. Po' on Cornelia street is also wonderful. We also have had success several times as walk-ins at Babbo. It was wonderful. One time we had the pasta and wine tasting menu. The next time we went we shared three pastas and split mini carafes of wine recommended by our waiter. Everything was incredible. One other recommendation, not sure if it's open on Sundays, is A.O.C Bedford. Wonderful french food, intimate and open air onto the street.

[jessfood]

I have actually had the best success with walk-ins at Babbo out of those 3... as long as you're open to eating on the earlier side (6/630ish).
What is the date that you are looking for a destination? This Sunday the 17th? next sunday?

[gastronomy]

Sunday the 24th... I do agree with you guys on the walk in situation.... we managed to get a table at River Cafe for 9:30pm- We have never been there- can you guys give any input???

[torrey]

I agree that it's pretty risky to do a walk-in on the first night of your honeymoon, but maybe risky is a little romantic! I've had great success with walk-ins at the Little Owl and it really is a great romantic spot...Last time I did walk in there was on a Saturday night. Went by at 6:30, put my name in and was sitting down within the hour. You could always go early and then plan to wander around the Village a bit, stop in somewhere for a drink while you wait for your table. They'll call you on your cell phone, so as long as you don't go too far, you could make the wait kind of fun.

[egit]

Well, *I* would certainly not have a problem saying "hey, let's try to do a walk-in at Lupa tonight..." Because I would know what to do if the answer was "that'll be a two hour wait." I'd have an idea where to walk to try for the next walk in-- because I live here.

I dunno.. call me an unromantic.. but I'd save the walk-ins for a dinner less important.

gastronomy: do you really want to tell your grandkids that your first dinner together as a married couple was at KFC in the village, because you couldn't get a table at Babbo? :-)

[gastronomy]

LOL!!! Point taken guys! We got a reservation at River Cafe for 9:30 :)

[egit]

You really want to do a walk-in for your first dinner together on your honeymoon? That's crazy talk. I just looked on opentable.com, and Peasant has tables for 2 at 6:30, 7, 7:30, etc.

I like Lupa just fine, but there's no reason whatsoever you should have to put up with the uncertainty and the hassle of a walk in. Get a reservation somewhere.

[RCC]

Agree.

[sam1]

i usually find the occasional 9:00pm sunday reservation for little owl on opentable. im sure they would do their best to accomodate you. despite how popular it is, the service is very friendly.

i think little owl would be perfect for your situation though. its relaxing and romantic but casual and not stuffy.

[Lucia]

Little Owl is tiny, so I think you'd have an easier time getting into Lupa. Both restaurants are very good. Food and atmosphere would be deciding factors. Lupa can be a little tight and frenetic, while Little Owl is more cozy and romantic.