901 Wood Burning Kitchen & Bar — Restaurant in Town of Yorktown

We have been waiting to try Novecentos for some time now and made reservations for dine in on Friday night. We are both Bronx born and raised and were hoping for an experience reminiscent of our favorite Italian spots in Throggs Neck and Morris Park. Reservations seem to be a must - when we arrived there was a line to the door, but we were seated immediately at a small corner table on the wood-burning stove side of the restaurant (the other side is where the bar is located).

We found the lighting on this side to be a little too bright for a dinner - perhaps more appropriate for pizza with the kids. The lighting on the other side seemed to be dimmer, so next time we will request to be seated there. This side of the restaurant was also very cold. I think this was due to the location of the front door. I think a vestibule would Lee some of that chill out and make dining in a little more pleasant. Even my husband, who’s a shorts all year kinda guy, found himself cold while we were eating. Definitely bring a sweater!

After a few minutes our server, Chris, brought bread to the table and took our drink orders. There is a decent beer menu here, featuring popular brews and local favorites. I think they would benefit from having a beer menu on the wall. Although our server was very knowledgeable and able to list their entire beer menu, it was hard to hear him over the general restaurant noise.

After our drinks arrived we ordered appetizers - Blistering Shishitos and a Bar pretzel. The bar pretzel is enormous and the sauces served with it are perfect. The honey mustard was delicious and savory and the maple bacon was pleasantly sweet. They complimented the pretzel very well.

The shishito peppers were also flavorful and delicious, although overcooked. As a very big fan of this pepper - they should be cooked until bright green and just blistering, this way they still have a little bite and crunch to them. These peppers were extremely soft and definitely lost a little bit of their flavor, but overall the seasoning was good and we finished the entire order.

For dinner I ordered the Linguini Nero Pescatore while my husband had the Deconstructed Lasagna. We also ordered a Cauliflower Steak. The Linguini was delicious - probably some of the best I’ve ever had. The seafood was extremely fresh and perfectly cooked. The pasta was also nicely cooked and the sauce was light and fresh. I finished my entire plate - something the rarely happens! I would return just to eat this.

My husband enjoyed the lasagna and the presentation was very nice with the fire roasted ricotta on top. He also enjoyed the sauce and felt the noodles were cooked well.

The cauliflower steak was also a huge hit. I took this home to share with my mother and we both agreed we could easily enjoy this as a dinner. I don’t eat meat often, and sometimes struggle when I’m out to eat - this is an amazing vegan options that will not leave you disappointed at all! The cauliflower was perfectly cooked and very flavorful. The kale, olives and tomatoes were a delicious touch and overall the flavors blended perfectly. I only wish this was on the lunch menu as well, because I could certainly see myself eating this any time of the day!

For dessert we had the cannoli dip and the peanut butter mousse. The mousse was light and fluffy and very tasty. Lots of peanut butter and chocolate, but the dessert was not overly sweet or rich, making it the perfect end to a heavier meal of pasta. The cannoli was also delicious and not overly sweet tasting. The flavor and consistency was really good, on par with some of our favorite Italian bakeries.

Overall the food was really excellent. We are genuinely excited about this restaurant and plan to be regulars! Looking forward to trying the...

How disheartening! On a raining Saturday morning, on 10/14/23, at about 5pm, my husband, my daughter, son in-law, my one-year-old granddaughter and I wanted to have a good plate of Italian food and decided to go to Novacento in Shrub Oak. The restaurant was recommended by my sister. Sadly, we were treated terribly so that's why I am writing this review. Upon entering the restaurant, we noticed that the restaurant was pretty empty with lots of empty tables and chairs on both sides. There was probably about fifteen guests in the restaurant at that time. We first thought that it was due to the weather, but we now question whether there are any other reasons for this! We proceeded to walk in and spoke with a young female (early twenties) that was managing the seating. She asked us if we had a reservation and we responded no. I did tell her how super excited we were to be here because it was recommended by a family member and how nice it is to have another Italian restaurant nearby to go to. She then proceeded to look at her log book and appeared to be annoyed as she was checking. Seconds after that, she said "I can give you a table, but you will have to be done within an hour." At first, I didn't think any of it because we normally finish within an hour. However, after reflecting on our entire experience, we felt that she did not want us to be there. Who says that when a restaurant is practically empty? Shortly after that, she spoke with a busboy and instructs him to set up a table for us with three chairs and a high chair. We then remind her that we are four adults and a baby. She then tells the bus boy to squeeze another chair at the table and we told her that we couldn't all fit at the table. She responded and said "oh well." We have never ever been treated so harshly as we were. I actually feel she had some kind of bias against us. How sad and disappointed we were. When then proceeded to Little Sorrento in Yorktown Heights and receive the total opposite customer treatment. The minute we walked in we felt welcomed and appreciated. The restaurant was crowded, but the staff there made us feel like family. The food was amazing as always and they made our day much brighter. Five STARS for...

I joined a friend yesterday at Novecentouno for an early dinner and a drink. I had been there on several occasions and have always found the service to be lackluster, however, it never impeded me from going back. Yesterday changed that. My friend and I each ordered a salad and one drink. I ordered the Advocate. Initially I told my friend it tasted more like grapefruit juice with lemon, however, I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt and kept sipping. About 50% through the drink I called the waiter over to inform him the drink did not taste as described, especially because I had requested Tito's in it, and that I wanted a new drink to replace that one. Instead of apologizing, he facetiously said "you should have said something before finishing it".

I had not finished it, as a matter of fact I left it half full upon paying for my bill to show it was not finished, I wish I would've taken a picture. Shortly after, the owner approached my friend and I in a very oppositional fashion starting off by saying

"You told the waiter your drink had no vodka? It's all vodka with muddled strawberries, I checked the bottle and the bartender used vodka, I don't understand why you're saying there's no vodka in it".

I responded by telling her that I was stating my experience and I was hoping the drink would have been better. My friend stepped in modeling a calm demeanor, opposite of the owner's, and she told owner she should be receptive to the feedback from a customer. The owner looked at me and asked if I wanted another drink, I said no thank you. We asked for the bill, and that will be the last visit to this location. I plan on sharing this experience with others.

The staff, owner, and curmudgeon looking woman sitting by the entrance can certainly benefit from Customer Service training rather than approaching customers like they're ready for a heated argument.

I could afford a $10 drink, no one was trying to get over on...