Carmine's?

[kam0424]

I have a friends who is having a birthday dinner at carmine's? Does anyone know if this is good? If so, what do i order?

[duckfat]

I think 43rd st and 92nd st (maybe a block or two off) are equal,,, lots of food, fun with a group , its really loud,, the best thing to get there is the red sauce with 3 meats in it i forget what they call it. veal parm is safe. Good place to have fun

[Bigtigger]

The chicken parm is imho unequalled. I always take a triple order (enough for six) and bring two orders home with me ! The steak also awesome. Pizzetta when they have them. Chocolate bread pudding. A great place despite the TSq crowds...

[BronxBoy]

Believe it or not, Carmine's serves very decent Italian-American fare. The marinara sauce is quite good and the rigatoni is never overcooked. Also, the chicken scarpiello is masterful and tough to duplicate. Get it without the sausage. It's loud and a good place for kids; don't expect to hear much more than the person next to you.

[RCC]

We've been once to the Times Square location. We've had better food in no name corner pizza joints almost anywhere in the city sans the noise and the wait, and at lower prices.

[jenniebnyc]

My standbys are:

Fried Calamari
Ceasar Salad
Linguine w/ white clam sauce
Penne w/ tomato sauce and pancetta
Chicken Parm
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Carmines Wine (served in a juice glass of course)

[financialdistrictresident]

I have only been to Carmine's midtown once for a business lunch. I remember there was a lot of food, served family style. The food was v. good for traditional Italian fare. We also had the caesar salad, calamari, and a variety of dishes. Service was also very good.

[LNG212]

Carmine's food is only so-so. I think it's more about the "experience" -- meaning it's a fun, loud place if you have a large group. Everything is served family style. So you and your group would have to confer on what to order (one "dish" is way way way too much for one person). The servers are usually pretty good about giving guidance to the group about how many appetizer/salads, then meat and/or pastas to order. Usually they also have something interesting on "special" that isn't on the regular board. And if your group does wine, Carmine's has it's own "Carmine's wine" in these big bottles (litre and a half, I think) that is serviceable. If it's a birthday, maybe you'll be having some special dessert. But if not and you're ordering off the menu, stay away from the tiramisu. It's not good at all.

[financialdistrictresident]

Which Carmine's? There are two, totally unrelated. The one in midtown is much better.

[LNG212]

i think they are related (check out their website at www.carminesnyc.com where both locations are listed). i think the food is equally so-so in both. but personally, i find the atmosphere of the upper west side one better (less touristy esp.).

[financialdistrictresident]

Thanks for the link. To clarify I meant the Seaport Carmine's not the uptown Carmine's (so I guess there are 3 . . .). I did not see the historic Seaport restaurant listed (unrelated to the 2 other Carmine's). It used to be open 24 hours.

[LNG212]

oh, yeah, you are right. i totally didn't even think of the one by the seaport. you are correct -- that one's not related to the midtown and uws ones. :)