Babbo Ristorante

The branding and steak were great. The octopus was exquisite. The ambiance is perfect for date night.

Very friendly yet elegant place. Service is pleasant but not overwhelming. Even if you don’t eat bread, eat theirs! Octopus not to be missed if you eat them at all. Food is rich, kitchen is not afraid of salt but worth it as a splurge.

I had a great time last time I was at Babbo and thought I would have a similar experience last weekend. I had two friends visiting out of town and brought them in for one of my favorite Italian restaurants in the city. The food itself was good but the problem was the service. When the waiter came over to take our order, I asked if they have any specials thinking that last time I was here, our waiter explained the menu and specials of the day. He immediately squinted his eyes and condescendingly noted that “ we don’t do specials.” I was surprised and told him about my previous experience to explain why I asked. He still gave us that condescending look/tone and said “we’ve never had specials.” After this unpleasant conversation, he was mostly absent throughout our lunch. He nonetheless tried to sweet talk to us in the end when it’s about time for a check, trying to make up for the lack of service. All in all, my friends and I were extremely disappointed at Babbo, and I will not return since there are other great Italian places in Greenwich village (ie, Don angie, L’artusi, I sodi) with great food and much better service.

Very disappointing, starting with reservation. We were told no reservations available until 9:15. Walked into a restaurant with many empty tables.
The restaurant has only B rating from board of health. Lights were very low- restaurant tired looking. Music was too loud & inappropriate for venue- Rolling Stones & the Doors during dinner when you are being offered 200.00 bottles of wine. Food- the orrechetti w/sweet sausage- no sausage, minimal broccolini. Bolognese- no meat. Runny sauce. Inferior
Wine stewardess - excellent

We almost never get past the antipasti and pasta dishes because they are delicious and filling. And now that the Bastianich family has taken over, we are happy to eat here again.

Amazing food, service, ambiance.

Excellent service and food. Highly recommend.

Great food and service , it is very loud downstairs . Suggest for more privacy a table upstairs

Beautiful space that doesn’t overdo it. Hits on all the marks for a birthday or a romantic date. Beet and apricot appetizer was unique and delicious. Pumpkin Lune very tasty. The somellier was lovely, my only gripe was with the cocktails which seemed stuck in the 80s.

Love the pasta. This time instead of doing the overwhelming (but delicious) pasta tasting menu, I asked for the first dish on that menu to be served on its own. It was yummy... all three of us had pasta mains and practically swooned over the food. Service was attentive and charming as well. Love Babbo. Definitely where I would take friends who come to town and always where service is always a pleasure.

One of the most incredible dining experiences I ever had. Ambiance was beautiful, rock music in background. Food was outstanding from the duck egg ravioli to the mascarpone cheescake. 5 stars.

Wonderful Sunday night dinner. Table located in upstairs dining room which is much quieter than downstairs. Could not ask for better service. Thank-you Brandon and the rest of the team. Sommelier was extremely helpful. As always, food was incredible.
Will be back again soon.

Two of us split 3 special pasta dishes. Very accommodating as usual and perfectly timed.

Everything was delicious, especially the pasta.

I have been here only three times because it is so hard to score a reservation. The meal and service was excellent. I went with a friend and we shared an appetizer and also shared a pasta. We each had our own entree. The portions are big and we had no room for dessert. We shared the octopus and the papardelle bolognese. I had the duck and my friend had the pork chop. I definitely want to come back again.

The food and the service was excellent but the music was TOO LOUD. I like a lot the rock music but was difficult to talk and hear to us.

I’ve been downing at Babbo for more than 10 years and it is definitely taking a step down from where it was

The noise level was out of control which bothered me the most. It was hard to carry a conversation without leaning into the table. The second thing was we were a table of 4 people, one caucasian couple and one asian. Yes, the caucasian was a bit older than the asian, but the asian couple (we) made the reservation, ordered the wine, and paid for the dinner. However, the server would consistently address the caucasian couple, not us.

The restaurant seems to focus more on a high turnover rate versus making the visit special to the guest. The volume level of the rock music playing was quite high which we found strange for a one Michelin star rated restaurant. The antipasti arrived before our wine, virtually minutes after ordering. The quality and presentation of the food was good, but not special. We have dined in many Michelin star rated restaurants. This one did not impress.

I brought my wife here for her birthday and it was the best choice I could’ve made because the food was phenomenal. As a 2nd generation Italian, authentic Italian food is hard to come by, but Babbo was just that! It felt like a voyage to Italy without the plane ride! My wife orders the Black spagetti and Calamari Siciliana. I ordered the Fettucini and the Lamb chop, all was delicious! This will be a staple in our life for many years to come.

10 year wedding anniversary and we sat at the bar for a light late lunch. Beef cheeks ravioli was ballin

They don’t play classic rock since Batali was forced out. Replaced with cool jazz. Stupid move

We had the pasta tasting menu which was excellent but could have been a little less rich since there was so much food involved. Service was over the top excellent.

Have enjoyed Babbo for social dinners but this was my first working lunch there. It was a perfect place for a high level meeting - service was attentive but not intrusive, menu included yummy items perfect for lunch, decor is formal but not oppressive even during the day and the sound level/table spacing permitted quiet conversation. I look forward to returning.

Anniversary

One of the most delicious meals ever!!! Did the pasta and wine pairings!! Outstanding, phenomenal!!!!!!! Did not care how expensive it was will be back soon!!!!!!

Babbo is it!!!

As always, the dining was excellent.
Special kudos to Amanda (?) our wonderful bartender.
James was a very helpful server.

Very underwhelming experience for a place that’s so highly regarded. Ambiance was nice, until they turned the lights down so low I could barely see my plate. With the exception of the octopus, which was delicious, the food (beef cheek ravioli and black spaghetti) was mediocre at best. The pasta was crunchy - not al dente, but actually so undercooked that it was crunchy. The flavors were also bland in both dishes. Bread was also stale. Came here for a birthday and honestly really wish I hadn’t, huge let down of the night. The servers were nice, but this place should really invest in table scrapers rather than using a small spoon to fling crumbs on guests’ laps...

James, server was very friendly and knowledgable. It was a good experince. Took me long enough to actually go there. I would come back again!

As we read in past reviews, the food is outstanding but the service is meh. We found that to be very much the case. The waiter couldn’t have careless about us or making sure we were get everything we needed. He honestly made us feel like we were bothering him- which for the amount of money you’ll shell out for dinner here, is such a shame. Food was excellent & I would love to go back purely for that reason & nothing else.

The 7 course pasta tasting menu and the accompanying wine paring provide an excellent option to sample some of the best the restaurant has to offer. Unique creations with thoughtful pairings and informative and attentive service made for an outstanding dining experience.

We had an awesome time. The pasta tasting menu is worth it 100%.

The best. Bar none. Punch your grandma good. If you don’t like Babbo you’re a terrible person.

Even before my daughter started at NYU and her form was a 1 minute walk away Babbo was one of our family favorites. We love to order a few starters and at least 5 pastas to share followed by our own entree. Every bite is always amazing and worth it. The restaurant itself is a tiny bit dated and could use a tiny bit of freshening, but the food and service are spectacular! Unfortunately they do not have an updated computer system that would enable them to greet parties of 5 or more that have dropped a small fortune here many times before with a simple “welcome back”. I can’t imagine how frequently we would come if they did, so it’s probably better that they don’t haha!

From beginning to end, from the maitre d’ to the waitstaff, it was a highly enjoyable and exquisite dining experience!! Brian was our server and he was sublime! I can’t believe I waited this long to dine here! Better late than never! Will be back and not soon enough!

Excellent from the moment we walked inside.

I really enjoyed the food, however it took 30 minutes approximately for the waitress to come. We had to continuously ask foe her. The food was top notch and the Sommelier was knowledgeable, attentive and very professional.

Amazing food

The food was good and the staff was really good. The serving size was a little light for the price they charge. The drinks were also small. They did use Tito's for the vodka drinks, which was good. But they were small for $14. The food was just good and there were good recipe ideas but not up to the level of the price they charge. There are other restaurants nearby that the food is just as good or better and cheaper. This is the first time I wrote this about a restaurant and I have gone to a lot of top restaurants. It's not about the price but it's about the overcharge for the quality and amount.