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when it comes to an Italian restaurant you really have to aim for middle-of-the-road. it can’t be too nice. you want BIG plates of pasta and parm dust on everything and unlimited warm but not house-made bread. a waitress with really long coffin nails. photos of famous people on the walls and a group of questionable well-dressed men smoking outside. that’s where the real Italians go and that’s where you’ll have the best dining experience
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Bar Italia is a classic spot in the Soho neighborhood of London. The best for people watching and generally feeling like you’re in it. The patronage is diverse: bikers, tweedy intellectual families, Italians, women in white skinny jeans sitting on mens laps. Getting a table outside at night on a weekend can be difficult, but it is worth stalking the movements of whoever looks like they’re on their last sip of cappuccino. I’m not sure exactly what the history is, but you can just tell there’s history, which is a special thing in its own.
Mar 27, 2023
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and now for a less basic rec....
If you're willing to hop on the train to NJ, you are just a 30 minute ride (or 20 minute uber) away from some of the most authentic Italian food on this side of the Atlantic (and Hudson). The menus are seasonal and innovative, but my personal recommendation is to opt for the tasting menu, with dessert swapped for an affogato.
The first time I went, they won me over with a spring pesto flan, and the most recent time, heaps of complementary aged parm. Still BYOB for the time being, which brings the bill down to a price you won't believe you're getting farm-to-table food for.
Nov 14, 2023
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Nothing makes me feel more like a coastal elite than eating at a chain restaurant that‘s only other locations are in Rome, Florence, and Milan.
The last time I was there I came in sopping wet from a torrential rainstorm that accosted me on the way back from a screening of L’Atlante at the Anthology Film Archives.
The other patrons stared at me like I was a sad wet dog that sullied up their white shag rug at their Hamptons beach house.
Due to the quasi-European “cute“/claustrophobic design of the restaurant, the kind that only sufficiently thin (and dry) people can efficiently navigate through, I found myself literally dripping on the people dining below me while making my way to my seat.
During the meal a woman from LA repeatedly insisted that my friend and I had British accents after overhearing our conversation (we don’t).
The food was delicious, as always.
Aug 3, 2024
Top Recs from @emilie
Jan 24, 2024
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I'm like "c'est fullll beau tes cheveux!!!" (your hair is so nice) and she's like "j'allais justement te dire la même chose!!!!" (I was just about to tell you the same thing). classic moment. heart so full moment
Jan 27, 2024
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the kind of snack that makes me want to go “oh im so bad…. Get these away from me .. they’re too dangerous ….”
Feb 3, 2024