Which storefront has the best cannoli, and where can you really get the best slice of pizza in New York? Anything featuring clams is recommended, and all the stand-bys are on the menu such as rigatoni in meat sauce, veal marsala, and filet of sole. I have been going to this restaurant for over 30 years. He mastered all the dishes that Marios is famous for: the spiedini; octopus salad; meatballs slow simmered in tomato sauce. Guarino's Restaurant . But the further in you go, the more awe-inspiring it is. Im extremely optimistic about the area, Dr. Scelsa says. The menu is sizable, and the most expensive item (linguine di pesce) is $30. The restaurants history from then on is incredibly varied. Di Palo's cheese shop and Ferrara Bakery & Caf . black professional networking groups > classification of cables according to insulation > oldest restaurants in little italy, nyc how to thicken fruit compote without cornstarch May 12, 2022 Italian Little Italy. 1905, Last delivery order taken 1 hour before closing, 2023 Lombardi's. If you buy something or book a reservation from an Eater link, Vox Media may earn a commission. Where Nightlife-Loving Mayor Eric Adams Eats, The 16 Best Restaurants to Order Pasta in NYC. Cesarina. Yet it feels understated because the walls are not covered with pictures of every New York Yankee, movie star, and former NYC mayor who ever dined here (an aesthetic youll encounter at many Italian restaurants around New York). Small and quaint, went for early dinner before the show, quick efficient service, excellent pasta and meatballs like grandma use to make. Mobster Joe Gallo -- also known as Crazy Joe -- was gunned down in the original Umbertos location, two months after it opened in 1972, and died on the sidewalk outside. The following is a list of Little Italy's most famous food destinations. From former pipe clubs to knish bakeries, these spots offer delicious menus served with a journey into the past. Cacio e pepe with house-made fettuccine will be on the specials menu from time to time, as will lobster fra diavolo. Not in the grand style it once was, but its still there. We produced the phone record showing our call to the restaurant and they wouldn't even look at the phone, fully knowing it was their fault. The carre dagnello is a rack of oven-roasted lamb in a Cabernet sauce. Ive had people telling me that its the best cannoli theyve ever had, says Denise Orfanos, a manager at Caffe Roma whose family has run the business, which dates back to 1891, since the 1950s. 1. Da Nico. Go often to these relics, which hark back to a simpler time in dining. They dont even realize weve moved [a few doors down since then].. Food was good, it wasn't amazing but it was still good. The chicken valdastano is one of his personal recommendations. We were seated in the back of the restaurant and were jammed in between two tables. When your first restaurant goes platinum, all eyes are trained on your next project. When I asked why, she and Joe looked at each other and laughed. The best restaurants in NYCs Little Italy boast legendary pastries and some of New Yorks best pizza. Alternatively, you may use, There are newer reviews for Casa D'Angelo. Lombardi is credited with developing New York Style pizza and making Lombardi's the first pizzeria in the United States. 14 Hidden Gem Private Dining Rooms in NYC, 15 Restaurant Week Deals to Check Out in NYC. La Mela is famous as a staple of Mulberry Street in New York's Little Italy. Located in the heart of Little Italy, NYC, Buona Notte is the perfect place to discover the exqui. Come along for the ride! Despite the heavy tourist presence here, locals still frequent their favorite New York City Little Italy Italian restaurants, whether it be late-19th-century landmarks like Caffe Roma and Puglia or newcomers like Peps on Grand. Visitors come to the neighborhood to see where The Irishman was filmed and then sit down for pizza, pastries, or pasta. For gelato, theres a color wheel of flavors available at Ferrara, a bakery on Grand between Mulberry and Mott that opened in 1892. This fifth-generation Italian deli owned by Lou, Sal, and Marie Di Palo (one of them is likely to wait on you) opened in 1910 on Mott Street as a latticino, selling freshly made mozzarella and ricotta. Welcome to Paesano's of Mulberry Street. On the higher end, La Nonna has a handful of steak entrees with cuts ranging from black angus sirloin to filet mignon. Mario and his brother Clemente took over in the 1930s, officially changed the name and transformed the pizzeria into a white-cloth, fine-dining restaurant. And while many old-school Italian restaurants in the outer boroughs are inconveniently located and notoriously challenging to get a table at, its impossible not to get a table in Little Italy. Tel: 212-226-6060 . Puglia is still in the Garofalo family, with Joe II, Gregorio's grandson, in charge. Sixty five years before the True Neapolitan Pizza Association (AVPN) declared that real Neapolitan pizza could only be made with tomatoes grown on the plains of Mount Vesuvius, local buffalo mozzarella and double-zero flour, Neapolitans abroad adapted their citys age-old recipe to their new environments and made pizzas with the best of what was available locally. Equally popular are the fried calamari and baked clams. Even General John Lamb sending a cannonball through the taverns wall during a scuffle with the British in 1775 did not deter the popular establishments business. Look no further than these 15 classic restaurants that have been cherished by local New Yorkers for generations, all which were founded before the turn of the 20th century. The answer was simple: time. At this fast-casual Chinatown concept from Michael Jong Lim, Hawaiian pok. 12309 Mayfield Rd, Cleveland, OH 44106-1927 (Little Italy) +1 216-231-3100. Wine and Cheeseburger: Harley and Lara Pair Falafel with Wine. This long-standing Little Italy bakery has been peddling crusty loaves to New York restaurant clients and consumers since 1903. Most are named after a region of Italy or begin with La or Da. Torrisi and Carbone unspooled theirs in two parts, turning their original venue into a serious restaurant (all tasting menus) and moving its casual half into Parm. But the connection runs even deeper than that. Super Bowl NYC: Where to Order Food For Your Party. Penne alla norma is a nod to her fathers Sicilian roots, while trofie al pesto alla Genovese is a culinary ode to Genoa, where he migrated to before leaving for North America. Lasagna al forno and artichoke ravioli are two popular pasta dishes. Much of the menu is served straight from Peasants open-fire hearth, with hits including lamb merguez, smoked linguine with clams and pizza with sopressata and nduja. The chef-owners Ann Redding and Matt Danzer are keeping the meals wallet-friendly, too: Main plateslike a spicy lobster omelet and fried chicken laaball cash in under $30. The menu features classic favorites such . Tomino - Taberna Gallega 236 reviews Closed Now Spanish, Wine Bar $$ - $$$ Menu ". La Mela has been delighting people with delicious and generous portions of Italian food for over thirty years. It housed several government offices at times, as well as a boarding house in which a famous ballerina was stabbed to death. Angelo's restaurant, an old-school favorite mentioned by nearly everyone interviewed for this article, had to close following a 2018 fire, but it's scheduled to return once renovations are. Little Italy is next door to Chinatown, Manhattan, NYC. If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu. Founded in 1919 as a pizza parlor,Mariosis the oldest restaurant in the Bronxs Belmont neighborhood (aka Arthur Avenue, or the Bronxs Little Italy). Dj vu! this shop serves up a bonzer breakfast menu, too. It wont be the large, wonderful neighborhood that it once was, but then again, there arent any large, wonderful Italian-American neighborhoods left in America today. Weve rounded up the absolute best restaurants in Little Italy so you can find, piled high with capicola, heaping plates of old-world pasta and the, Photograph: Courtesy Facebook/ Caffe Roma Pastry, The Michelin-starred Thai restaurant Uncle Boons has opened a, well, sister restaurant with this takeout spin-off. Its the sort of restaurant where groups of twenty-somethings exchange HBO Now passwords over plates of pasta. There is some debate as to the actual age of the building itself. A handpicked selection of stories from BBC Future, Culture, Worklife and Travel, delivered to your inbox every Friday. [It] really has survived, says Dr. Joseph V. Scelsa, the founder and president of the Italian American Museum, whose ancestors arrived in Little Italy around the turn of the 20th century. Loaded down with Victorian glitz, the bakery has been doing things right since 1892. After entering Da Nico, youll see the bar and brick oven from which 14 different pizzas are prepared. You'll often find owner James Bari seated outside this small eight-table restaurant which dates back to 1968. Start with the fried zucchini or the tripe marinara, then proceed to a plate of fresh tagliatelle alla Bolognese or the linguine with white clam sauce. Ferrara has been serving up treats like these, alongside daily lunch specials, since opening in 1892. The antipaso was great and we enjoyed all the other dishes as well. Its a topic Ianniello would rather not discuss, certainly not like its just a scene from a gangster flick, and he gives a knowing nod when the subjects broached. Sign up to unlock our digital magazines and also receive the latest news, events, offers and partner promotions. New York, NY. When its streets are crowded with tourists, Little Italy can feel a little overwhelming. Mario's dining room is filled with old images of Naples painted by a distant Italian relative (Credit: Danielle Oteri). Which storefront has the best cannoli, and where can you, in New York? Go early to secure a table and dont miss the steamed artichoke or the sweet creamy vodka pizza. For more information read our privacy policy. Film buffs might be aware that Il Cortile is the spot where the Sopranos cast held going away parties when a members character got whacked. Still, Lombardis continues to bake a hot contender for best pie. Patsy Lancieri learned his "paper-thin. Improve this listing. Its no surprise that some of the best food in Little Italy can be had at its fresh-faced newcomers, some of which have garnered citywide reputations and become chains. My kids ordered the chicken parm to share, and we were surprised that it didn't come with spaghetti. setting that will have you feeling like you are right back in Sicily. The antipaso was great and we enjoyed all the other dishes as well. The littlenecks on the half shell are fresh, clean, and ice-cold, and so are the ample martinis. Right at the northern end of Little Italy, on the corner of Mulberry and Broome, is Caffe Roma, with its tin-pressed ceiling thats been painted green, pendulum clock in the back, and cannolis with an extra kick of cinnamon. And theyve been doing so since the 1980s. The menu calls itself Neapolitan, but has a wider geographical span with dishes such as linguine with red clam sauce and Roman spiedini, as well as Italian-American hits like chicken giambotta and veal marsala. While Da Nico is classy, Criscitelli does not want to be seen as too stuffy. Youll often find owner James Bari seated outside this small eight-table restaurant which dates back to 1968. Pasquale Jones, a sequel to Ryan Hardy, Grant Reynolds and Robert Bohrs jaunty, wine-charged Soho spot Charlie Bird, is a touch warmer than its neo-Italian brethren like Caf Altro Paradiso. The host was rude and not at all considerate at even offering to have us wait or to see what he could do. Those are really the number-one attraction.. Thats the mark of Caff Palermo, owned by John Delutro, the self-crowned cannoli king. Delutro -- born and raised on Mulberry, he says -- set up shop in 1973, and is quick to reminisce about the Little Italy that used to be, when people sat together outside their buildings and everyone knew their neighbor. This is the hardest reservation to score in New York City, because regulars have. So take a tour of the dishes that made the citys food scene internationally known, and treat yourself to the delectable dishes of New Yorks oldest restaurants: Fraunces Tavern, dating back to 1762, is considered to be the oldest restaurant in the city. Theres no place quite as much fun asBamontes. Spanish Harlem -- El Barrio -- became home to one of the oldest pizza places in New York City (at one point it was the oldest running pizzeria) in 1933. Here are our recommended locations that you should check out in Little Italy: Take photos of the famous Audrey Hepburn Graffiti; Former Police HQ Building - This building used to house the police headquarters from 1909-1973 and is a true piece of NYC history; Gelso and Grand - This restaurant offers homemade pasta with a great ambiance. New York City's Little Italy is still as charming and rich in culture as it. Since 1905 Gennaro Lombardi crafted pizza in the United States using his bakers trade he learned from Naples. Something went wrong. Gluten-free diners and large groups are especially pandered to here, and the place has some pedigree: The pies were at least partly inspired by the super thin crusts at Joe & Pats in Staten Island, with a branch in the East Village. We were charged $11 for that! While Lower Manhattan's Little Italy is popular with tourists, true New Yorkers know that the 'real Little Italy' is in the Bronx (Credit: zodebala/Getty Images). | Site map | Accessibility Statement Websites for Restaurants by Flavor Plate. Ravioli, Tortellini, Agnolotti, Manicotti, and Cavatelli are some of the pasta choices you can choose from. Its an intimate setting, with an arrangement of black-and-white photos hanging on its clay-colored walls. Its impossible to go wrong with, say, tagliatelle and an eggy carbonara, or herbed four-cheese ravioli mantled with pesto. Just then, Joe walked by and said, If theyre not the nicest, you be the nicest. To use our mobile site, please enable JavaScript. The Bensonhurst native who played Bobby Bacala has his own table here, as does the late James Gandolfini. I had to walk over and lean down to her ear to hear what she was saying. Speaking of social, the neighborhoods narrow streets, red, white and green garland, and vintage-adjacent, Italinish storefronts are all very cinematic -- conjuring old-world charm and inspiring tens of thousands of Instagram posts under the most obvious possible hashtag alone. "Oldest restaurant in Little Italy- est. These days, Joe may be the face of Marios, but the boss is his daughter, Regina, who manages Marios three dining rooms on two floors. Flaky pastries like cream . Thanks for subscribing! The interior design is very clean, swoon-worthy songs by Sam Cooke and Ella Fitzgerald play over the speakers, and fresh pasta is made by hand every day. People come here for the seafood. "Buon Appetito is located in the heart of Little Italy, right on India Street." more. An irresistible entre is the casserole of baked cheese ravioli mantled in mozzarella and nicely browned, with an extra tableside sprinkle of parmesan cheese. Founded in 1902, it shows every year of its venerable age and is the setting for numerous TV episodes and films. The modern venture represents Italian food for the next generation, as owner Nick Boccio puts it. Right now, the space where the museum was, on the southwest corner of Grand and Mulberry, is an empty lot, but Dr. Scelsa hopes the revamped museum will debut in its brand-new building around the spring of 2020. Then, prepare to bid no grazie to the restaurant hawkers pitching prix fixe menus and free house chianti outside the penne alla vodka tourist traps. At one time, the restaurant consisted of four rooms, but is now down to one. I enjoyed this place and I'm glad I experienced it. Little Italy lives on not just in their memories, but in the very tangible monuments that one can still experience firsthand. With the fried calamari, youll have the option of mild, medium, or hot sauce. They can be charismatic, sure. Before too long, the enclave immortalized in The Sopranos, The Godfather, Martin Scorseses fever dreams, and mafia Wikipedia pages could get whacked for good. Buon Appetito. 3. Alleva Dairy's longtime 188 Grand St. home . By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. Italy's practically perfect food. The cozy annex is an ode to the Italian-American deli. The gamberi fra diavolo is popular as are the margherita and quattro formaggi pies. You didnt hear us say skip the veal, but anything emphasizing cheese makes better ordering. This restaurant has been in existence since 1902, which certainly speaks well of it. Speaking of pesto, if the gnocchi pesto is on the specials menu, you must try. You may also be interested in: The truth about the US' most iconic food What's left of New York's Dutch past? The latter is a plate of thin veal medallions and chopped asparagus in a medium-thick marsala sauce topped with shredded basil. Michaelsis a youngster in Italian-American restaurant years, having been founded in 1964 in Marine Park. Some customers have told me to get rid of them, [saying] theyre too dark, too old fashioned, said co-owner Regina Migliucci-Delfino, of the paintings made by her great-uncle, Ciro. Cybele Mayes-Osterman. All that technically remains of the old Little Italy, a section of New York City that once spanned a considerable number of square blocks and served as a mecca for thousands of Italians, is a row of restaurants, cafes, and shops on Mulberry. Subscribe for exclusive city guides, travel videos, trip giveaways and more! Umbertos roots reach back to 1972, when Ianniellos father first opened the restaurants doors. Baz Bagel and Restaurant 293 reviews Closed Now Caffe Palermo, home of Baby John, the self-proclaimed (and, ahem, trademarked) Cannoli King, is famous for a reason. There is some debate as to the actual age of the building itself. The menu is the perfect evocation of Italian-American cuisine, including a spaghetti with meat sauceand meatballs and a pork chop with sweet or hot peppers. Other time-capsule dishes at Marios include braciole (rolled beef) with peppers and escarole in broth, and tripe cooked with tomatoes and onions. Most shops are owned and operated by the third or fourth generations of the families who started them, and a handful have been sold to long-time employees who have kept things the same. Though Marios menu has evolved, pizza, made exactly as it was in 1919, has never left the menu a culinary artefact showing how the dish was introduced to Americans by immigrant chefs. T here are almost 75,000 pizzerias in the US, and the granddaddy of them all is Lombardi's, an unassuming place opened more than a century ago at 32 Spring Street, in New York's Little Italy . Truly, the fact that Fraunces Tavern still stands is a miracle of endurance. Please enter a valid email and try again. Mario always tried to discourage Joe from following him into the family business by giving him the worst jobs, like taking out the rubbish and cleaning out the grease traps. Celso is also the first person outside the Migliucci family to have the title of head chef in their 101-year history. mobile app. Based on the red doors and sign above the main entrance, one can be forgiven for thinking that this is just another of the two-dozen Italian restaurants along Mulberry Street. The cozy annex is an ode to the Italian-American deli. All the newcomers look at me like I dont belong there, Bari says in amused disbelief, as Frank Sinatra tunes permeate the restaurant. Il Mulino is a literal sellout after it was bought out and expanded nationwide, but the original Greenwich Village location, opened in 1981, is still worthy of a visit. Rubirosas crisp yet pliable pies have a delicate char and a small ring of cracker-like crust around the edges. Coated in olive oil, the thin crust provides a crunchy, blank canvas for the garlicky, parsley-flecked mollusks. Looking to experience the culinary side of New Yorks history? See our, By submitting your email, you agree to our, Where to Actually Eat Well in Manhattans Little Italy, Sign up for the Little Italy has been receding over the years, but it is still a cool place to see Italian American culture and food. Originally founded by Frank DeCarlo, he was replaced by chef Marc Forgione a few years ago, and theres a newer wine bar in the basement for more informal dining and drinking. Instead, he turned to us and said, "what do you expect me do, I have all these people" and would not speak to us again. These sauces cook for six hours and are mostly distinguishable from one another by the amount of Italian long hots and red pepper flakes. The restaurant soon grew into one of New Yorks most celebrated, attracting mayors, governors and celebrities like Joe DiMaggio, Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor. While many come to Little Italy for Parisi Bakerys stacked sandwiches or Di Palos cheeses, Caffe Roma, to us, is one of the neighborhoods most charming destinations. Youre going to want to recreate some of Little Italys goodies at home -- even if all youre capable of is putting together a charcuterie board. The waiter wasn't interested in us and looked like he didn't want to be bothered. Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! The waiters dress in dapper red jackets and black bowties at this 1973 Italian-American restaurant deep in the heart of Astoria. The half order of spaghetti consisted of a small bowl of noodles and a tiny dish of sauce. more, You seem to have JavaScript disabled. Both are made in-house. Little Italy. We have a full a la carte menu of mouthwatering dishes and desserts, as well as the family style dining that has made us famous for delicious and plentiful food. Rao's is the oldest restaurant on this list established in 1896 and without question the most exclusive. That makes it the oldest continuously family-owned Restaurant in Little Italy. A meal begins with a free plate of roasted green chile peppers, spicy as hell, and the menu concentrates on seafood, vegetables, and wonderful baked pastas. Do yourself a favor, and venture to the outer limits of the old neighborhood, where some of its best Italian restaurants still linger. Quoth former Times critic Frank Bruni: If youre after a certain kind of red-sauce outer-borough clich, its the best of the bunch Ive tried. Go for the pasta e fagioli, three-cheese ravioli, or veal chop Sorrento style with eggplant, prosciutto, and mozzarella. We made reservations at Angelo's for a party of 4 a week in advance and they just took our name, time and party size and hung up the phone. When they were finally driven out on November 25th of 1783, General George Clinton held an honorary banquet there for George Washington, whose tooth is now on display in the upstairs museum. Souvenir shops are as much a part of the scenery as the outdoor dining pods that have stayed in place since COVID. Discover the citys most unique and surprising places and events for the curious mind. Little Italy Restaurants. If you liked this story,sign up for the weekly bbc.com features newslettercalled "The Essential List". Ear Inn (1817) Tucked away on the far west side of Soho, you'd never guess the backstory of the Ear Inn. The Broken Meatball option is lazy-Sunday worthy, too, made with the same lush tomato base, a sprinkling of fresh basil, and chunks of, well, broken meatballs. Because what happens, happens.. Everything is hand-rolled, everythings handmade, everything is filled fresh. The hazelnut gelatohere is creamy and nutty, or choose from dozens of other flavors, all made in the back. 1. Where to Eat. For the linguine with white clam sauce, its unchopped little necks. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. When I asked Regina about her familys paintings of Naples adorning the dining room walls, she looked at the generations worth of yellow varnish that now coats them and said, Im pretty sure [Naples] doesnt look like that anymore.. From it fly chickens, whole fish, lamb merguez, and even a whole pig, which must be ordered in advance. The goal, obviously, is to help preserve Little Italys past, and keep that story alive into the future. Named after co-founder and Puglia native Lunella Russo, this is one of the few restaurants in Little Italy that opened after 2000. We uncover the best of the city and put it all in an email for you. On March 1, Alleva Dairy, the oldest cheese shop in . Website. Today, its incredible story is documented in the museum that stands just above the restaurant. Consider the clam pie, every bit as good as those at Frank Pepes in New Haven. The exterior is faced in rusticated stone, looking like some hilltop fortress, while the interior is more like a Frank Sinatra movie with the main room bedecked in chandeliers and paneled in warm woods. Where to Find the Iconic Pizzerias of New York City. 8. More recently, the restaurant has seen a resurgence in customers from the fashion crowd, who flock here ever since Vogue hosted a pre-Met Gala party in the space in spring 2018. We were seated in the back of the restaurant and were We made reservations at Angelo's for a party of 4 a week in advance and they just took our name, time and party size and hung up the phone. Awesome ( 58) $$$$. For dessert, the waiter wheels over a trolley of outsize desserts, though its perhaps better to opt for an espresso corrected with complimentary anisette. Lombardi is credited with developing New York Style pizza and making Lombardi's the first pizzeria in the United States. The price of the meal was expensive but again not overly ridiculous for NYC. The men were so loud and so noisy, we could not hear ourselves at all and whilst we debated whether we were going to sit down or not, a woman from a tiny table for 2, tucked between the 3 other tables, leaned across and shouted 'hopefully they will quieten down when the food arrives.' But its significance to American independence and history never wavered. Regardless of which you choose, the sauce will stick effortlessly to the rings and tentacles, giving you plenty of flavor. "Great Italian food in the oldest restaurant in Little Italy, NYC" Review of Casa D'Angelo 168 photos Casa D'Angelo 146 Mulberry St, Between Hester & Grand Sts, New York City, NY 10013-4708 (Little Italy) +1 212-804-8656 Website E-mail Improve this listing Get food delivered Order online Ranked #644 of 13,857 Restaurants in New York City The meatballs in meatball parm really melt in your mouth, and the eggplant version offers bottomless depths of flavor at this modern classic in the middle of old Little Italy. This is the kind of place where tourists mix with locals, and you can easily tell the former from the latter. My great-grandparents, also from Naples, owned a baccal (dried and salted cod) shop just a few doors down on Arthur Avenue from 1918 to 1980, and always said that Marios made the best pizza. The classic capozzelli was served until about 1980, when trends, and the area, changed. Besides the wayward cannonball, it has survived three different fires and a bombing in 1975 by a Puerto Rican paramilitary group, which killed four people inside. A couple of attractions missing from Mulberry Street are even set to reopen at some point. It is the original home of Vincent's Sauce. the menu reads as well-worn as the space, the food is. The gift shops Im not too crazy about, I think they take the Italian flavor away, she says. That heritage remains evident todayLittle Italy's streets are lined with restaurants serving Italian staples on red-and-white checkered tablecloths. The key is to order anything with clams in it. If youre counting carbs, you can swap the rice base for Asian greens and herbs. Gennaro Lombardi opened this pizzeria in 1905 (the original was further down Spring Street), using a coal oven to bake his large, profusely topped pies, leagues different from the tinier, barer, and damper pizzas back in Napoli. Boccio recommends the Sunday Sauce -- a tomato sauce loaded with short rib, sausage, and veal. Former cast member Steve Schirripia used to live on the buildings fourth floor. Aunt Jakes has retooled the idea of an Italian restaurant with a modern design and a menu centered on fresh pastas that allow the customer to mix and match a dozen noodle shapes and the same number of sauces. Now that shes in charge, Russo says she tries to distinguish her business by featuring live music on weekends and hosting gay pride events; she wants to hold onto some neighborhood traditions, but also update the idea of what a meal in this area can mean. Then in 1913, the couple moved to Manhattan with Giuseppes mother, Scolastica, and their 1-year-old son, named Mario after his grandfather. Marios is the oldest restaurant in one of the most intact Little Italys in the United States. THE SAUCE Some of the old establishments have survived.. Benito One is the definition of a New York City old-school Italian restaurant. Manned by San Francisco chef Tim Caspare, those roaring hearths produce one of the citys best pies: The clam pizza, a char-puffed beauty covered in briny littlenecks, wilted rapini and a delicate garlicky cream. America's First Family of Pizza Est. I had narrowed it down between Angelo's and Pellegrino's. Typical of NYC it is very cramped but again, its typical, if you want personal space don't be We had made a reservation for 4 guests at Angelo's but when we arrived, we were shown to a table at the very back of the restaurant, squeezed between two large stag groups. This is the rare Little Italy restaurant that doesnt also serve pizza, and offers a tad more elegance, which makes it a not-bad date spot though the over-the-top decor may disturb some. Forlinis has been open since 1943, mainly catering to the judge-and-jury crowd from the nearby courthouse as well as to Italian-American regulars.