Provini report

[eeee]

Had occasion to visit Provini last night. Lovely little place - small marble tables (with two quasi-banquettes at each end) and a wide, pleasant bar. Menu is moderately sized (about four choices each of appetizer, salad, pasta and main) with an extensive and very well-priced wine list, all Italian, from what I could see.

Service is sweet and attentive. Servers seem to be of Italian origin. Plates and silverware are changed after each course.

Specials were read. We got two of them - an appetizer of tomatos stuffed with mussels and a main course of short rib stewed in tomato over polenta. Also ordered: a pasta with a long and difficult-to-remember name (it's the one that costs $11) and a main of codfish.

The bottle of wine, a Barbera, was outstanding and cost $32.

Of the dishes we ordered, the standout was the short rib, served on the bone and meltingl tender. the drippings seasoned the polenta delightfully. The pasta, a sort of rough-cut thick spaghetti with a tomato/cheese/breadcrumb sauce, was very fresh-tasting and pleasing. Codfish was good as was the mussel appetizer - tasty but not remarkable.

Portions are not large and there is no free starter (olives, bread) of any sort. If you are the sort of person who requires a heaping plate, Provini is not for you. For example, the mussel appetizer consisted of two small tomato halves with perhaps two mussels in each, along with some lightly dressed leaves of arugula. I thought it was tasty but it was noticeably petite. I actually prefer smaller, less expensive plates, so this worked for me.

Pricing is fairly low, though I did not pay the bill and so did not see the cost of the specials. The pastas range from 9 to 14 dollars and mains are in the mid teens to low twenties.

I would happily return to Provini, most likely when the weather gets cooler as I think that season favors the red meats and pastas that seem to be Provini's forte. I would also consider stopping in for a glass of wine and a salad at the bar for a light lunch (the restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.)

Provini is located at 13th and 8th in Park Slope.

[cjd260]

Thanks for the report! I've been wondering about that place ever since it opened. Out of curiosity, would you rank it in the Park Slope pasta universe? I'm guessing from what you've written that it would be targeted somewhere north of (and more ambitious than) the Scalinos and Scottaditos of the world but below Convivium.

[eeee]

To be honest, I'm not up on the Park Slope Italian scene, though I don't think the menu is as ambitious as Convivium or Al Di La.

[Alfvaen]

If you want to be ignored and leave hungry by all means eat here. I went last night for dinner and wine with a local business owner. The restaurant was busy (always great to see) so we decided to eat at the bar. After several attempts to get the bartender’s attention we asked a waitress for menus. There was a nice selection of wines, but the food menu was basically the same as their other place. We finally managed to get the bartender to take our order for wine, 2 appetizers, a salad for my friend and an entrée for me (one of the specials the bartender mentioned after my friend ordered). The wine came and the appetizers (mussels without broth and a pricy small cheese plate) came not too long after. The few slivers of cheese tasted great, but the miniscule portion of broth that came with the mussels was instantly soaked up by the tiny bit of bread in the bottom of the bowl, so the mussels were dry and fairly tasteless. Disappointing, but I was looking forward to the seafood risotto I had ordered. I would review it but, after waiting for 40 minutes after we finished the appetizers, neither the salad nor the risotto had appeared. We had managed to get the bartender to come to bring another glass of wine but he ignored our other attempts to get his attention. We finally asked the manager to cancel the orders because it had taken so long. He said nothing but went to tell the bartender, who glared at us and then proceeded to ignore us again. We had to ask the waitress for the bill. No employee ever apologized for the failure of service. That failure was reflected in the tip, and in the fact that neither of us will go back.