restaurant suggestions - party of 6 - at NON CELBRITY RESTAURANT?

[ritraveler]

We are a party of 6 looking for some recommendations for good food for a Saturday evening in NYC. Not into the trendiest (if one more person recommends Bocco and all the Lidian /Mario places - I am outta here!)
There needs to be meat /vegetarian options, moderate (35-50 pp) we are ok with funky, interesting, but we are foodies! Are there any good old fashioned NY places left?
Get back to me you guys! THANKS

-----
Becco
355 West 46th Street, New York, NY 10010

[sam1]

where is bocco? and who is this lidian person you speak of?

you are on chowhound. we like good food here. not entirely sure why you think that every place that is recommended is full of 'celebrities.'

because im a nice person, ill answer your question. if you mean that total cost per person will be $35-50, i recommend da andrea on 13th street. friendly, bustling, neighborhood italian with excellent pasta at good prices.

-----
Da Andrea
35 W 13th St, New York, NY 10011

[RGR]

sam1,

I presume you realize that the references are to Babbo and Lidia Bastianich? :)

ritraveler,

For solid Italian-American food in a *very* non-trendy restaurant, I would recommend Campanile, on 29th St., b/t PAS and Madison.

http://www.campanilenyc.com

http://thewizardofroz.wordpress.com

[ritraveler]

thank you RGR
I will check out Campanile
It seems as research NYC restaurants the same names or combo there of keep coming up: Batali, Lidia Bastianich, Joe Bastianich, Bobby Flay and misc "IronChefs" (thus Celebrity Chefs)
hopefully Campanile will be the spot, thanks for the post

[kathryn]

Lidia Bastianich owns BECCO, does she not?

[RGR]

True. But Batali was also mentioned, and since he's not a Becco partner, I thought it could be a Babbo reference.

http://thewizardofroz.wordpress.com

[ritraveler]

hi sam1
thanks for your reply
sorry for the typos - it should have read Lidia (I love her and her show, but am far too frequently directed to: esca, del posto, becco, felidia...)
yes $35 to $50 a head is what we were thinging for the budget - unless you can suggest - (we don't want a burger joint but rather an enjoyable nite with quality food)
thank you - i am going to check out da andrea now!
cheers!

[kathryn]

Is the $50 per person just for food? Or does it include tax and tip? Don't forget to include wine while you're thinking of cost per person. The best way to get recommendations here is to give a dollar figure per person just for food.

If the $50pp figure is just for food, you could do Scarpetta if you order carefully -- antipasti, primi, and dessert, and skip the secondi.

Since you're 6 people, note that this is usually considered a large group in Manhattan, so some of the restaurants will have literally 1 or 2 tables that can accomodate a group your size. Also, when are you coming? Our most popular restaurants book up 3-4 weeks in advance for the weekend nights.

-----
Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014

[ritraveler]

Kathryn
Thanks for the tip
I did give a dollar figure per person for food - i know wine in nyc can be expensive
Scapretta keeps coming up- - but they dont do parties of 6!
I realize it is difficult to find a place for a party of 6 on a Saturday nite, which is why I am posting on here, for some recommendations.
Thanks

[kathryn]

For something more rustic, maybe Peasant (on OpenTable) or Po (call for reservations).

I swear I've seen parties of 6 at Scarpetta before. You may need to call vs using something like Open Table? Or they may be fully booked for your date -- it's a popular place.

-----
Po
31 Cornelia St, New York, NY 10014

Peasant
194 Elizabeth Street, New York, NY 10012

Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014

[planetjess]

Yeah, that's odd. There have been parties of six or more present every time I have been to Scarpetta (once a party of 20 sitting at tables they ran down the middle of the room).

-----
Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014

[goodhealthgourmet]

Scarpetta does accept parties of 6, but as has been mentioned, getting a reservation for *any* size group can be difficult because it's so popular. assuming you've been trying to book online, you might want to try calling to find out about cancellations.

-----
Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014