Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Mario Batali is a Pasta Magician

Babbo does lunch, I recently found out.

And the pasta is as dreamy as ever.  A semolina symphony in your mouth, right in the middle of the work day!

We had a classic - the pappardelle bolognese, and a house specialty - the beef cheek ravioli.


The true sign of a great restaurant is whether they can nail (or convincingly reinvent) an adored classic, and innovate enough to offer diners something surprising and unusual. Both dishes demonstrated this impressive range.

No surprise I suppose. I've already expressed my adoration for Batali and this particular jewel in the Batali-Bastianich restaurant crown before

The real star of the show, though, may very well have been thanks to pastry chef Gina DePalma - her pistachio and chocolate semifreddo is something truly special. Order it and two spoons.

Of course, the entire bottle of Bastianich 2010 Friuli that we had alongside our meal made it that much easier to enjoy everything ;o)

Babbo
110 Waverly Place 
New York, NY 10011 
212.777.3365