Cafe Spaghetti — Restaurant in New York

I unfortunately did not have the same experience eating here as some of the other reviewers. Me, my husband and his friend were visiting from South Jersey and stumbled upon this place while out and about. It started out pretty rough as we waited about 20minutes before anyone showed up to our table to even get drink orders, but we waited patiently bc we understand, it gets busy and possibly they're under staffed. We finally received our drinks, (we all ordered the Olive Oil Martinis) which yes, they were delicious, however it wasn't worth the almost 40 minute wait for them & it only got worse from there. We ordered the Ricotta Crostini, Meatballs, and Burrata for our apps and after waiting for what seemed like forever, they arrived at our table COLD!!! Not hot, not even warm but COLD - fine. We didn't want to be complicated so we ate them, they were just okay, would the temperature have made the difference between just okay and delicious? Maybe, who knows. But I finally had enough when we got our dinner and found a black hair in my food 😭 I was so skeeved out I couldn't eat any of it. I waited for our waitress to come back to the table so I could adress the issue of the hair with her and guess what. She never came. After about 20mins I went looking for her and found the manager. When I approqched her she seemed absolutely bothered by me and was zero help and infact instead of offering some modicum of an apology, she suggested that it was my own hair that fell into the food. I pointed out that I am blonde and the hair is clearly black. I took her back to our table where I showed her the hair in question and to show her that I didn't eat any of it and since I lost my appetite I politely asked her to just take it off the bill. I didn't want it remade and I didn't want anything for free (not that it was offered) I just didn't want to pay $27 for a dish that I now deemed inedible. She told me she didn't think it's possible but she will see what she can do. It was at this point that my husband and friend jumped in the conversation and told her all about our long wait and cold food and that's when she said "well ya ate it so" to which I retorted "If we hadn't, would it have been taken off the bill?" She turned around and walked off mumbling something under her breath. The table next to us was appalled and leaned over to tell us she had called me a "fking btch" LIKE WHAT!?! I STILL don't understand what I did to warrant such horrible treatment and I typically don't write bad reviews of places bc sometimes restaurants have an off night, I get it. But to be treated so poorly by the staff on top of all the issues we ran into, I felt it necessary to make others aware before they spend their hard earned money here. Oh! They did reluctantly take the meal with the hair off the bill, which I feel like I had to fight for, which shouldn't have been the case. Very...

Such a stellar experience I’m already wondering when my next trip will be.

Before getting into food it has to be mentioned that the atmosphere here is half of the magic. Before we were even seated I was sold. We were so delighted to have such charismatic service all night every step from the host stand, the bar, our server (whose name I wish I recalled because he was such a blast), and even Sal and the GM, Giovanna, who stopped by our table several times to check in. The decor makes the place feel like a classier extension of your grandma’s kitchen with a sweet combination of soccer posters, scopa cards, and photos of people who feel like family. There are candles lit throughout the building lighting your way to one of the best gardens for dining in the area.

We went with a group of friends, so we were all able to try a little of everything (so this won’t be brief by any means):

Their drink menu had a delicious lemon ice with an amaro that was so simple but legitimately delicious

Between all of us a number of different wines were had. Our server had great tips to help us narrow things down, and offered us a taste of anything we were trying.

The ricotta crostini was one of my favorite things all night- a little sweet, the bread was delicious on its own, so delicious.

The spiedini was unlike anything I’ve tried before- it’s like someone took grilled cheese and tomato soup and arranged it all in advance for you to eat with a fork

The calamari was exactly what you expect from a good one

The burrata antipasti plate had generous servings of everything and the cherry tomatoes alone deserve some love for being so tasty

The rice balls were creamy and delicious, I could have eaten 100

The spaghetti pomodoro was another menu highlight- the balance between savory and bright is not one I’ve tasted before, such a classic dish was really clearly fine-tuned

The cavatelli with butternut squash was my favorite dish of the night- the sauce was perfectly creamy and flavorful, it was sweet and onion-y in all the right ways

The branzino was perfectly crispy and fleshy and the butter beans were perfect to complement

By this point we were in pain considering the amount of food, but we had to try the tiramisu, which apparently Sal’s dad comes in to make daily. It was definitely the right decision- I have never had tiramisu like it before. Super creamy and fluffy, almost marshmallow-like, it was really brilliant.

I left feeling full and warm and totally delighted. Huge fan, can’t...

I hate to write a lackluster review for a place that is clearly being embraced as a neighborhood spot with charm. It is that, for sure: a nice spot for locals to have a meal they could have cooked at home had they felt like putting in more than the minimum. Basic dried pasta with sausage and broccoli rabe (according to our waitress, there isn't a single dish made with housemade pasta here, which is surprising for a place called Cafe Spaghetti). A steak you asked for medium rare but the chef hammered and cooked well done, neglecting to trim the gristle sufficiently so it was all a bit too chewy (it was also strangely served stuffed on a tiny plate that made it impossible to cut without most of the food flying off of the plate). A pretty sad spaghetti with clams...bland sauce, nothing particularly interesting about it.

The eggplant parmesan was a highlight. The spiedini was something new to me and we liked it - a mozzarella grilled cheese topped with a super lemony tomato basil sauce. The tiramisu was very good as well and we liked the ricotta crostini.

But the rest was just...fine. It wasn't priced for fine. It wasn't hyped for fine. And frankly, I want my restaurant experiences to be more than what I can easily do at home with 15 minutes and the right ingredients on hand. I want them to try a little harder. I want them to put a few dishes on a menu that surprise me and take too much work to make at home. Make a sauce or two that I don't see elsewhere. Put some effort into making the key ingredients that one expects in at least one dish at a destination Italian restaurant. And for heaven's sake, don't hammer a steak to oblivion when the patron asks for medium rare.

Feel like something basic and homey? I can see the appeal. Many of the other places with truly epic Italian food are just too hard to get into. But I think for even good home cooking, you can do better and...