For my first long form review (visit vs. quickie), I will be discussing a visit to Manzo in Manhattan. But before I get into it, a few comments on reviewing. Normally, restaurant reviewers visit a restaurant numerous times before reviewing it. This is the best way to gauge the food, service and ambiance, and control for one-time items. Given time and budget considerations, I will only be able to visit a restaurant once before reviewing it. That being said, my reviews will focus on the positive and will not dwell on the negative. Unless, there’s something very negative that happens…
So let’s begin; I am sure the format will evolve as I write (and eat).
Some people love Eataly. Some people hate Eataly. I tend to place myself closer to the love side of this continuum. For someone who likes top notch ingredients, incredible selection and “cool stuff”, Eataly is off the charts. The only problem with it is the overcrowding and its use as a tourist destination. Last time I was there to buy Guanciale for my Bucattini a L’Amatriciana, there was a family from Scandinavia taking a picture in front of the seafood display. They were empty-handed, so I assume they bought nothing. I guess there aren’t seafood displays in Oslo?
This leads perfectly to Manzo, which is right across from that seafood display. Manzo is the one restaurant in Eataly that is billed as a “more formal dining experience” and accepts reservations. It is sectioned off by a wall that is only high enough to cover the tables on the other side, with its bar exposed to the passerby.
I made a reservation for Manzo on Opentable.com for 9pm. J and I arrived at 9 but were asked to wait a few minutes as our table was prepared. The hostess was very nice but did ignore us for a bit to answer the phone before greeting us. These are always difficult situations to criticize someone for, but, nevertheless, it begins to chip away at the pleasure of the evening.
We waited about 10 minutes and then were seated. From here on in, service was very amiable, but at some points a little bumbling. This goes for our waitress, the sommelier (who is a young’un!) and the servers and bus boys. The waitress took a while to bring us our menus (we had to ask) and the sommelier asked us if we wanted something to drink but then forgot to bring us the two glasses of Roero Arneis we ordered.
The restaurant itself offers both modern Italian preparations as well as traditional beef dishes. It has a very large selection of steakhouse-type dishes on its menu. There were two tasting menu’s in addition to the a la carte menu; one was a winter menu and the other was a taste of Lazio. Both were about 7 courses and priced at $90. Given that it was late, we decided to order a la carte as opposed to picking the tasting menu. We also skipped the beef, which may have been a mistake since that is what Manzo's signature dishes seem to be.
I ordered the Fettucine with Tripe and Castelmagno to start (because I am adventurous!) and J ordered the Roasted Beets with Hazelnuts, Poppy Seeds & Smoked Ricotta. My pasta was very tasty, with the tripe tasting like, well like tripe! That sort of earthy, salty taste that pairs well with the red sauce in the fettucine. J’s beets were amazing. The sauce was a mixture of ricotta and mustard (perhaps a vinaigrette) that was multi-layered and delicious.
To go with our main, we ordered a 2001 Brunello Di Montalcino: La Togata. 2001 was supposed to be a great vintage for Brunello. The wine had a clean acidity that was bonded to fruit and made for a nice finish. J didn’t love it, but I thought it was very good. I could taste a little bit of age, and I enjoyed the steeliness that the acidity added to the fruit. The wine was $113 on the menu, but retails for about $50. That’s not too bad, and in general the wine list is pretty fair, with some selections in the $30ish range.
For our main, we ordered the Guinea Hen for Two with Black Truffles, Brussels Sprouts and Foie Gras Sugo. This was delicious. The hen had been deboned and presumably rolled into a brick (perhaps using meat glue) and then sliced in the round, so that it was plated as two large round medallions covered in truffles with the sprouts and the sugo. I thought the depth of taste to the hen was wondrous. The sprouts and the sugo were simple and tasty. The truffles may not have been of the highest quality (or at least I am assuming so since they were not shaved at the table) but the combination of flavors was quite a treat.
For dessert, we had a Sweet Potato Crostata, which wasn’t too sweet and probably just right for almost 11pm on a Friday after a long week. It was the least successful dish of the night, however. Not really gelling for me.
I capped the night off (as I usually do) with a $15 glass of Florio Marsala. This was definitely more expensive than it should have been, given that a bottle of Marsala really doesn’t cost much more than $20.
The prices at Manzo do seem a little out of joint for the experience: they are on the high side and, despite the smart sectioning, the restaurant is still just a walled in part of a fancy “food court.” However, the food itself was very, good and really makes up for everything else. I bet that when I go back and write a dining quickie, it will be more well-rounded praise for the restaurant.