Pasta Louise Cafe — Restaurant in New York

Be careful! We have ordered takeout twice, and the food has been good/decent. And then I ordered last week - I waited over an hour for my dinner, which I never received. I called twice for a status and was told it was on the way. (I live about 1 mile away) After 75 minutes, I got a call from an Uber delivery driver telling me he is at my address. He was not. The delivery person proceeded to yell at me because he was somehow at the wrong address. I hung up on him and called the restaurant to let them know that after an hour+ of waiting, I am now being screamed at by the delivery person. They said they are sorry, but they have no control over their delivery drivers' actions. (Umm, what?!?!) She offered to send another order but advised that she could not guarantee a quicker delivery (said it would likely be another hour) or a better delivery experience. After waiting an hour and a half I declined her offer and asked for a refund. Was advised that the refund would be processed and no sincere apology for my experience. Cut to 20 minutes later and I was still receiving texts that my order is on the way and then I received another crazed phone call from the delivery driver yelling at me again because he was at another incorrect address. I called the restaurant back, asked for a manager and of course there was no manager available. I advised the woman on the phone that since they have no control over their delivery drivers - as they stated- that someone needs to stop the delivery driver from harassing me. That was it. I waited to write this review because I was expecting to hear from a manager in the following days. I did not. Mediocre food is forgivable, abominable customer service is not. Will never eat or order from here again, and I warn anyone who orders delivery - Be Very Careful because Pasta Louise has advised me they have no control over their delivery drivers'...

Not sure what the buzz is about. This restaurant is all over the place. I live nearby and finally tried it for dinner and genuinely regret spending the money. It’s like a “choose your own adventure” with 6 of all the wrong choices.

The menu truly doesn’t make sense to me- they have a pasta shape of the day and you add your sauce. It feels like a too-busy, too-expensive fast casual menu without any sensical structure, no real protein options, and is not conducive to a balanced dinner. They’re selling $17 8-bite “fancy-ish” salads alongside bread and prosciutto “sandwiches” and whatever they’re calling “Cacio e Pepe” - a cream sauce atop whatever noodle they want (I’m sure Italian purists are shuddering).

Food itself is just ok- meatball starter was my favorite. noodles themselves in the pasta were good, but the sauce was horrible. It was far too liquidy and too much - almost like a soup- and tasted like it was thickened with a bunch of flour or cornstarch. We got the spicy pesto. No flavors here except pepper and starch. I think most people could make better food at home. I would prefer jarred pasta sauce to this.

Vibe is too casual for parts of the menu and price. Again, confusing. $16 glasses of subpar Nebbiolo sitting at a white plastic table listening to the Weekend and other pop music on a Friday night doesn’t do it for me.

Service is ok. People are very nice. But it took forever for our pasta to arrive (and I consider myself relatively patient even when it is 24 degrees outside). Note outdoor tables under awning are too close together (for covid distancing).

It’s like an amateur cook who can make great noodles (with no branding sense or restaurant experience) decided to open a restaurant. Maybe they should stick to doing less - sell pasta to go, and offer espresso and overpriced but good ($7) soft serve. Lunch and...

You know when you dine out, and days afterwards you can't stop thinking about that place? Pasta Louise is one of those for me.

We first encountered Pasta Louise when we were apartment hunting last summer. I won't pretend that the storefront decor wasn't an eyesore in an otherwise quaint neighborhood. I mean, it's the type of decor that you would find in Little Italy, the kind that screams tourist trap. Oh, how misleading first impressions can be...

After seeing it pop up on Google Maps as "top rated," we decided to give it a try. Once the waiter explained that the chef chooses a pasta shape each day and some of them are pretty funky, I immediately understood why there were all these different pasta shapes adorning the storefront sign. It's part of the unique charm of this place. That day, it was this rooster-shaped pasta called "Creste di Gallo" (literally "rooster's crest"). It's design-your-own bowl where you can choose a sauce (roasted tomato sauce, cacio e pepe, garlic and olive oil, and pesto) and any add-ons with the pasta of the day. And damn, do they know how to whip up a good pasta. It was probably one of the most satisfying bowls of hot carbs I had in a long while.

On a subsequent visit, I split the focaccia with homemade whipped ricotta. It was SUPERB. Now whenever I come here, I'm going to be getting ricotta on everything. EVERYTHING.

Excellent service, and just an all-around delightful...