Whose super-stylish restaurant is this anyway? With its rows of bottles bordering white-tiled walls, atmospheric lighting, Campari serving trays, and swinging salamis, this fun, funky trattoria off the lobby of the fab Maritime Hotel seems like some kind of bizarro-world McNally-Batali hybrid. The kookily clad crowd is a hoot, and the antipasti, wood-fired pizzas and chicken under a brick are meant to please, not astonish. — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld
Recommended Dishes
Tuna on white beans, $26; artichokes in white-truffle oil, $13; salmon tartare, $12; chicken under a brick, $21
Nice summer place to dine al fresco!
When ordering mineral water, just watch out! The waiter will serve you NYC tap water (filtered three times, apparently) with gas. We call that seltzer; they call it sparkling mineral water bottled at the source (stated on the bottle). NY tap waster, so strong you can smell the chlorine! Unbelievable! Just order a bottle of Chianti, unfiltered!
Back in April my husband and I ate at La Bottega. Although our meal order was taken quickly, no one brought us any water or asked us for our drink order.
My husband was ready to make a fuss but just then a man appeared from nowhere and asked if there was a problem. We explained and he swung into action. First of all he brought the water to us, took our order to the bar and for the rest of the night was much in evidence.
After commenting on his accent he told us his name is Adam and that he is from Australia. I don't know if it's the Australian way of doing things, but the entire evening he worked the floor, checking on every table to make sure everyone was happy. He served when it was really busy and chatted pleasantly with everyone. We found out later he is the General Manager!
I read a lot of adverse comments about the service at La Bottega. My advice is to phone ahead and ask if Adam is there and you'll have a fantastic experience.