Where to eat the cuisine of Italy in New York City "without surprises"

Regional Dining Discussions New York City
#1

The leading restaurant guide of Italy published an article today, in Italian, about where one can find the dishes of Italy in New York City without getting surprised by what’s on your plate (if you’re Italian). The list was actually compiled by the Italy-America Chamber of Commerce (never heard of it before, but that means zero), which awards restaurants across America with a “tricolore” (the red, white & green of the Italian flag) for authenticity in cooking traditional dishes from Italy.

Here is the Gambero Rosso article (in Italian)

and here is the list of 25 restaurants in NYC who received the “tricolore”:

Cacio e Vino

Cacio e Pepe

Caffe’ dei Fiori

Da Tommy Osteria

Don Antonio Starita

Gran Gusto

I Trulli

Il Corso

Il Gattopardo

Il Riccio

Keste’

La Nonna Bella

La Vela Dining

La Villetta

Mamma Lucia Italian Restaurant

Mozzarella e Vino

Osteria del Principe

Piccola Cucina Enoteca Siciliana

Piccola Cucina Osteria Siciliana

Settepani

The Leopard at des Artistes Tiella

Via Emilia

VITE Vinosteria

#2

Sure not the kind of places I’d want to go. But Italian-Americans sometimes aren’t real adventuresome.

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#3

What are you talking about?

This is a list of places recommended to Italians visiting New York City.

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#4

On the other hand, never mind.

If anyone would like to eat In NYC the kind of food one eats in Italy, the list is there. I’ve eaten in several of these places, and can vouch for the soundness of the list and the approach. Many non-Italians would be VERY surprised by these tastes, and pleasantly so – and cheaper than the air fare (believe me, I know).

No more comments from me in this thread. If people want to stop by to say how they aren’t interested, feel free. I won’t be here to read it.

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#5

I presume that, as the article is from Gambero Rosso, it is suggesting that the food at these places is “genuine Italian” as opposed to “Americanised Italian”. What would be interesting is to read any comments from board members corfirming, or not, that this is the case with those places.

Personally, if I want to eat genuine Italian food, I visit Italy. When I visit America, I’m more than happy to eat Americanised Italian food. 'Tis a different cultural experience.

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#6

THAT’S what I mean. The Italy-Americ CoC might not be the very best reference. Sorry you have such a hard time understanding. I’ll try to be clearer in the future.

#7

The visitors could buy some Italian dried pasta, olive oil and cheese, etc. at DePalo’s, find an equipped kitchen, and take advantage of that fabled NYC water supply.

#8

Now you’re talking!!! Damn near everything in DiPalo’s IS from Italy, right? Lou brings back the good stuff.

#9

the Italian-American chamber of commerce (like the Franco-American, the Anglo-American, the German-American, and any other hyphenated-American Chamber of Commerce) is nothing more than a conglomeration of American businesses who may or may not be doing business in Italy, and Italian businesses that may or may not be doing business in the US, and a few disgruntled expats who really just want their assignment to be over so they can go the hell home, but it looks impressive to drop a few hundred bucks a year in membership fees and publish on the corporate website that they’re a member.

These chambers are marked by monthly lunch meetings an appropriately culturally-theme restaurant, interspersed with hoity-toity luncheons with the 2nd back officer of the satellite office of the consulate of that country and a few expensive blowout parties revolving around major national holidays of the hyphenated country.

Doesn’t mean that most of them have so much as a single cell in their body with DNA matching the country in question – nor that they’ve ever even visited that country (obviously the petulant and pissed-off expats are excluded). Saying that they’d know a proper dinner from a hole in the ground is questionable “authority”, at best. And the pissed-off expats? Yeah – you could fly in a meal directly from the most renowned 3-star in that country and serve it to unsuspecting expats, and they’d ridicule it, simply because it’s being served in America, and we all know how those ruin perfectly good food.

I have belonged to enough of these over the years (because it’s good for business, donchaknow, and you’re the international person, so make sure you go to all the meetings) to have seen all of the above first-hand on multiple occasions.

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#10

There are several restaurants on that list that I’ve been to and like, but its existence begs the question: are Italians especially resistant to new culinary experiences? I can understand being stuck for a length of time in a foreign land and missing what you’re used to. But when I travel, I want to try the local stuff, not a replica of what I can get back home.

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#11

Way to generalize.

#12

Because the food they were brought up on and learned to cook is so much better than what your going to find at a restaurant . Mamma is cooking .

#13

I said “sometimes.”

#14

In your opinion of course. I’ve had long running convos with Italian-Americans about their dishes which frequently bear no semblance to “authentic” dishes.

#15

It’s home cooking . There is no right or wrong way . Talk to any Italian and ask them how mamma cooks this or that . No two families cook alike . The start of many arguments . Mine is better than yours . And what is supposed to be authentic ? The food in Italy no way resembles the food in the US . It’s just different .

#16

“Authentic” is always meaningless in a food context.

There are as many “authentic” versions of Lancashire Hotpot as there are people cooking it. Of course, my mum’s was the most authentic.

#17

I’m interested!!! Always looking for more Italian that is more like what we had in Italy. Thanks HT!

#18

Which have you been to? Grew up outside the city but it isn’t the city I grew up around anymore - and I’m sure none of these were around back then anyway.

#19

I’ve only visited Italy and don’t find your statement accurate. Especially with sources like Batali and M. Hazan.

#20

Fair enough

“Food is a pretty good prism through which to view humanity.”

― Jonathan Gold