Scalini Fedeli — Restaurant in New York

Scalini Fedeli, or "Steps of Faith," is a place I recommend with caution. The food is fantastic. The ambiance is upscale Italian with a romantic touch. For a pre fixe menu setup, the price is reasonable. The price includes a number of small "complementary" appetizers and dessert that are phenominal. This is especially true of the coconut sorbet with sweetened pineapples, and the special potato chip. Many of the dishes have a special way of blending a buttery, savory flavor into them, and I have never tasted such subtly flavored chicken liver, "purses" as they call them. Astonishingly, unlike almost any other liver, it wasn't overpowering or overbearing at all. The coffee is smooth; it's served at a warm/hot temperature and complements the meal well. One very present problem which needs to be corrected is how the entrees are cooked. Don't get me wrong, the flavor is wonderful. However, entrees simply are not cooked as they are requested. A "medium-well" strip steak came out with one end well done, and the other end medium-rare. The arctic char came out entirely medium rare. Fortunately, the lump crab meat really is lump.The complementary bread is nothing special, kind of bland actually. It is served with a cold, sea salt topped butter which tastes good, but is hard to spread. I recommend the Napoleon of Chocolate dessert. It has a crisp, chocolately outside, and dual flavored creamy interior. It is sprinkled with chips of bittersweet chocolate, matching the rest of the dessert well. The staff is fitting if an upscale, professional environment. They allowed me to take my seat half an hour before my scheduled reservation. A coat check is present. The waiting staff is also professional, however they disappear for long lengths of time. Another problem I experienced was that whoever packaged my to go box disappointed me by leaving out almost all of the (delicious, buttery, hint of salty) spinach. I know, I know, call me Popeye if you like. The bathrooms are located in a downstairs, cellar-like area underground. When you're there alone, you can clearly hear your clothes rustle--it may just be the quietest place in the city. The soap has a "clean cotton" scent. The lighting is dim and the bathroom is clean. Before you visit Scalini Fedeli, I offer a word of caution: meats are simply not cooked the way they are requested, which I know disappoints the majority of guests; I hope management and chefs will take notice. This is a place I would...

This restaurant was like taking a trip back in time. I didn't plan to eat here but we were curious about what was in the old Bouley space with those fantastic vaulted ceilings.

First of all, the host was extremely gracious when we showed up without a reservation. They have a price fixe menu for $89 where you get about six courses. That price is very fair for the amount of food and service you get. The service was excellent. I was very impressed by how thoroughly the waiter folded my boyfriend's napkin when he went to the bathroom. A nice touch!

What I love most about this restaurant is ability to hear. So they had tapered candles on some of the tables. Very old school.

The menu was also huge! We found it difficult to make a choice of from all the amazing pasta offerings between the main menu and then the specials.

I also really like the fact that the the supplements for dishes were reasonable. It was no $50 upcharge for shaved truffles.

The food was good, not amazing but absolutely we are presenting what was offered. They bring a few of nibbles and small appetizers before your pasta course. The raviolo with runny egg yolk was very good as was the spaghetti Alice.

Unfortunately, my duck was tough but my boyfriend salmon was very generous and tasty even if it was slightly overcooked from what we asked for.

I thought that the desserts were the weakest link in the whole experience. It wasn't the execution or size but the quality of the chocolate and the ice cream that was lacking.

Still a thoroughly enjoyable dinner that would be perfect if you were taking your elderly Mom out to dinner if you wanted to remember what good service used to be like in this town without paying to eat at the more expensive places in New York.

I can think of two restaurants, right on West Broadway, that we've eaten in recently which were pricey and the service paled by comparison.

Except for the staircase which is steep and could be a bit of journey for an...

I’ve dined at hundreds of restaurants in the city, but this was the first time I’ve ever experienced food poisoning. Both my friend and I felt nauseous shortly after the meal, and I eventually vomited hours later. We did not finish our dishes—not because we were full, but because the food was barely edible.

I ordered the lamb medium, but what arrived was clearly undercooked. My friend’s scallops were mushy and watery, with a texture that strongly resembled defrosted seafood—not fresh at all. Neither of us finished our meals.

The atmosphere itself was nice, and we appreciated being able to walk in without a reservation on a Friday night—which in hindsight, says a lot. The dining room was quiet for a reason.

Service was inattentive and, frankly, dismissive. We were ignored multiple times, and my friend commented that the treatment felt borderline discriminatory—perhaps because we’re young. When the manager eventually came over, we thought he was offering a complimentary drink as a gesture of apology. Turned out, it was just a sales pitch. We were charged full price.

The worst part? No accountability. When I tried calling afterward, the management was nearly impossible to reach. Once I did get someone on the line, there was no apology, no concern, just a defensive insistence that their team is “professional.”

For comparison: I once had a less-than-perfect service experience at Daniel. They followed up proactively after my review and offered a sincere gesture to make it right—a bottle of champagne the next time I dined at any of their restaurants. That’s what professionalism looks like. That’s what customer care means.

I’m not expecting Michelin-level treatment everywhere I go, but basic food safety and respect should be non-negotiable. I would never return here—and I sincerely hope no one else has to experience...