Misi — Restaurant in New York

Updated July 2024

I tried Misi last summer and the experience was memorable. It is my favorite casual fine dining restaurant in NYC. Pricing is reasonable (~$50-60 pp) given the thoughtful design of every dish.

Pro tips: Resy opened at 10am 30 days in advance. Service for dining tables is way better according to my last experience. I could only secure bar table seats for three. The service was less attentive tbh.

＊Whipped Ricotta Crostini w. Marinated Ramps Sott’olio Gonna reorder their most famous whipped ricotta crostini in my every visit. Light and fluffy whipped ricotta is perfectly piped on the toasted crostini with crispy edges, bursting with buttery & olive oil aroma. I prefer having roasted mushrooms as the side, but the ramps are so refreshing with a slight citrusy kick.

＊Grilled Italian Broccoli Highly recommended by our server. The broccoli was grilled to crispy. It was mixed with garlic vinaigrette, sharp provolone, and breadcrumbs for more crunch.

＊Spinach and Mascarpone Filled Tortelli Instantly my new favorite pasta from Misi. The spinach and mascarpone filling is light, creamy and buttery. It has the perfect ratio of filling and pasta.

＊Gelato Their olive oil gelato blew my mind completely. It has a decent balance of sweet and savory.

Pistachio and amaretti cookie were good yet nothing special. Texture wise their gelato is more lightweighted and creamier than normal gelato, so you can still easily finish a glass after a big meal.

————-

I would exaggerate this as the best meal I've ever had in NYC thus far. Top-notch service - our waitress was patient, very attentive to our needs but not disturbing. She knew the menu well and gave us great advice on dishes. They cleaned our table and changed our cutlery after each course.

Overall it was an elevating dining experience and we left feeling full and satisfied. The pricing is reasonable (~$60 per person) given the food quality, A+ service and thoughtful design of every dish.

＊Trumpet mushrooms sott'olio, whipped ricotta crostini This insta-famous appetizer really deserves the hype. The toasted crostinis were perfectly piped with whipped ricotta. It literally made my taste buds sing! The edges were crispy and the bread dough was soft with a buttery and olive oil aroma. To give the dish an extra layer of flavors, the ricotta swirls were sprinkled with flakey sea salt. The roasted trumpet mushrooms were flavorful and won my heart.

＊White asparagus, guanciale, pecorino, black pepper Our waitress strongly recommended this appetizer so we decided to give it a try. They replaced white asparagus with the green ones on that day. It blew my mind as I could never imagine a vegetable antipasti could be that addictive. Orange peel, citrus sauce, guanciale, pecorino cheese complemented perfectly with the asparagus and ended with a spicy hint.

＊Sheep's milk ricotta filled occhi, bottarga, lemon Another signature handmade pasta from Misi that dominates my feeds. The sheep's milk ricotta filling was incredibly light and it melted in my mouth. The occhi soaked up the lemon sauce without getting too citrusy or overpowering. We shared a nod of recognition with each bite.

＊Linguine, anchovy, garlic, parsley, colatura Don't sleep on their linguine, it was a sleeper hit and immediately stole our heart after the first bite. The ingredients were simple but premium. It was an explosion of flavor in my mouth: we could savor the citrus and garlic seasoning, then a hint of anchovy came through midway in that finished up with a slight bit of wheat flavor from the linguine itself. We were surprised that even though both pastas were seasoned with lemon, their flavors were entirely different. The linguine was cooked to perfection and al dente, while the toasted bread crumbs added a nice crunch to the plate.

LOVED their restroom btw - they put Le Labo's hand soap and lotion. A clean restroom is always a great addition to a restaurant.

Worth...

Dinner at Misi (@misinewyork)

A cozy Italian restaurant located in Brooklyn with a delightfully warm ambiance and impeccable service.

Recently grabbed dinner with a visiting friend at restaurant of her choice and she choose Misi (reservations were hard to get, I got an alert around 11:00PM that one opened up)

Run by the same chef and owner Missy Robbins as nearby Lilia (also really hard to get a reservation)

Drinks I ordered Misi Spritz: light refreshing and vibrant in both color and flavor

a+t spritz: refreshingly flavorful and delicious (my friend ordered this first and she looked to have really enjoyed it)

Martini: honestly tasted a bit lost and I didn't enjoy the olive with the pit still inside

Appetizers (we shared): Slow Roasted Tomatoes (seasonal): amazing starter; the tomatoes were surprisingly sweet and juicy (despite being roasted). Highly recommended 10/10

Cauliflower: I know the picture seems to show only a small amount of Cauliflower but that's because I forgot to take the picture before I started serving lol. What's not to like about Cauliflower, great flavor, nice crunchy texture, perfectly seasoned. Also highly recommended 9/10 only cause it was overshadowed by the other appetizers.

Whipped Ricotta Fettunta on sourdough toast (the star of the appetizers): this is served with charred marinated peppers and honestly the primary reason Sara chose this restaurant. The ricotta was like a light cream cheese, the sourdough was so flavorful and toasted nicely but for me I loved the peppers the most. Perfectly charred to give it that smokey flavor, the marinade and the peppers' natural sweetness had me eating nonstop. 10/10 definitely order this appetizer if you dine here.

Entrees

Sheep's milk ricotta filled occhi: so light and creamy. The pasta basically burst in your mouth like cheese filled bubbles. The lemon really complements the cheese filling; making it feel like a light dish I could have eaten at least 2 servings of that. If you like cheese filled pasta that doesn't make you feel overly full. Definitely order this 10/10

Spinach and mascarpone filled tortelli: yes Sara mostly ordered cheese filled pastas despite my reported lactose intolerance. However this was another homerun and I already took a lactaid pill. You really can taste the spinach and the mascarpone and the brown butter sauce makes this dish irrestible. Also despite all this filling ingredients I didn't feel like I was overeating (so dangerous). 10/10 also highly recommend.

Daily Steak Special: now this dish was my favorite and the star of the menu. Cooked to a perfect middle raw and served with chilled Flava beans. I would come back time and time again for this dish alone. The meat was so tender, my knife basically glide through it (honestly I didn't want to share this dish). It was also coated in this fennel dust which gave it this amazing flavor that you just can't help with inhale this dish. I had to force myself to slowly savor this dish. 12/10 (because the only dishes were also perfect but I love this special so much more). If they have it you MUST order this. Our server told us it's so popular some day you have to let them know to reserve one for your table.

Dessert

In house made Gelato. Hazelnut/chocolate/Olive Oil: yes hazelnut and chocolate are pretty standard flavors. The hazelnut tasted like a Ferrero Roche and the chocolate tasted like dark chocolate. I was interested in the unusual flavor olive oil. And I don't know what I was expecting but it tasted exactly like olive oil. Interesting...

My husband and I have been a loyal customer at Misi Pasta for 6 years, but after this recent experience, we plan to never go back.

What was supposed to be a special Sukkot and welcome celebration dinner with our family visiting from abroad turned into a nightmare. It all started with a mistake made by Misi staff on our reservation. We clearly told them during booking (made 3/4 weeks in advance in person) that our party would consist of 2 kids (under age 10) and 6 adults—yet when we arrived, they had us down as a party of 7. The kids (twins) are both under age 10, eat kosher, and would only eat plain pasta boiled in water with salt. But the restaurant manager seemed incapable of understanding this basic dietary restriction request and accommodating such a simple request.

Upon arrival, first my mother in law was kept waiting standing (60 year old woman) without being offered a chair and then later I had to stand for 15 minutes with no seat, no hospitality, while the Misi staff tried to figure out their mistake with the manager. Not once were we offered a chair, even though my husband and I have been loyal customers since Misi opened. Eventually, the staff told us we couldn’t sit at our chosen table due to a “fire hazard,” even though there was a private room next to us filled with 20-50 people cramped together—a much bigger fire hazard if you ask me!

After keeping us waiting another 10 minutes, the manager insisted (without accepting their reservation mistake and without trying to be accommodating to our family) that we needed to order double dishes with a maximum of 4 dishes because it will put a "strain on the kitchen." He basically came to our table and told us what we can and cannot order. The manager's audacity and privileged attitude were astonishing, as he approached our table of 8 and dictated what we were allowed to order. This level of disregard for customer choice is unacceptable and something we have never encountered before in our life.

This is despite us clearly stating that the kids would ONLY be eating plain pasta due to their kosher diet. He completely ignored the fact that we were ordering for 6 adults and that the kids’ food request was incredibly simple. Apparently, plain pasta “puts a strain on the kitchen.” And ordering all 6/7 flavors Gelato's on the menu for dessert—which is simply scooped by one person in the back kitchen—was somehow also a strain? Ridiculous!

When things got heated- the Misi staff were in corners giggling by the bar and gossiping about the whole situation which made us as guests feel more unwelcome.

The Misi when it first started, and the one I used to know was humble, welcoming, and considerate. Over the years- its become very stuck up. Most of the time we put up with all the "rules" and bad hospitality just because we enjoyed the pasta. Now, they act like they know better than their customers, dictating what you can and can’t eat. This experience was the last straw (and a major discriminatory behavior by the manager when he clearly dismissed the fact that the kids are not eating from the menu) that left a sour taste in my mouth and my family's.

I’m so disappointed that a place we once loved has now become so pretentious, inhospitable, unwelcoming and dismissive by the people who are supposed to be representatives of the brand Misi. We won’t be returning. The Misi chapter has...