I thought I had made reservations for the original Il Buco. At first I was disappointed to find out that I had reserved at Alimentari. However, by evening's end, I was quite delighted, as was my dinner companion. The food is excellent. The room is quite welcoming, with the possible exception of the three tables up front, which seem to be a bit less than prime. The wine list has been carefully chosen, and offers some unusual options, perfect for the adventuresome guest. The waiter was quite knowledgeable, and the service overall was excellent. There was one minor glitch, when our main course was not fired in time, but the chef or expeditor caught it and sent out an app to tide us over. Only complaint was that the tomato in that app was not quite up to par, given that it's August. Overall, a wonderful restaurant, and one that I would happily visit again.

From start to finish, a delight. Staff was attentive and friendly. Food and wine were exceptional. I can't wait to get back to NYC to visit Il Buco again!

This is my hands-down favorite place to bring out of towners! Delicious and delightful every time.

The antipasti are really amazing, next time I will rather go for more of those and maybe just those!

One dish was too salty even after being replaced...

This place never fails to impress! Either with my family or business associates, this is my go to place in the city! If you have never been here...a tip...start with the olive oil tasting followed up with a meat and cheese assortment. Then order a dish of any of the pastas, my favorite is the caciao e pepe, and a short rib for the table to share! That will be a perfect meal! And the wine list is pretty spectacular with hundreds of exceptional Italian reds to choose from. I could go on but you get the point.

flawless !!flawless flawless flawless flawless
and delicious

Food is poor and pricy, service is very slow. Won't recommend it

Great service. Food was fresh but extremely uneventful in flavor. Alcohol ridiculously overpriced

I love this restaurant - it’s noisy which is ok on a fun evening. We sat upstairs where the tables are very wide so we couldn’t talk to our friends oposite as it was too loud.
The waitress couldn’t hear our friends on the oposite side of the table and had to go back and forth to take our order.
Otherwise it was great👍

Excellent food in an inviting warm atmosphere. The pork with cherries was a standout as was the octopus.

This restaurant is creative - fun vibe and delicious food. I love this restaurant - Food is fab - service top notch.

If the food is fantastic, does that give the restaurant permission to let almost everything else be bad? The strengths of this place are superb ingredients and preparation: every dish approaches 11 on a scale from 1 to 10. This is undermined by one big problem: too many seats. Communal tables and bar seating do not have to resemble mealtime in economy class, with everyone cramping up to avoid banging their neighbor's elbows. The serving staff also need to notice when diners have poached adjacent place settings to deposit used dishes -- because when someone (me and my companion) arrives to occupy those places, it's no fun to find our placemats grease-stained by someone else's food. And we don't like having to yell to be heard, or to find we can hear the people next to us more easily than we can hear each other. Noise doesn't add to conviviality -- the noise problem has many solutions but none seemed to be in use here. Adding a bit more space would also make it easier for diners to adjust their barstools; wedged in so tight, we had to grab the edge of the counter and wiggle the stools forward and back like caterpillars. It was all so annoying, and so clearly aimed at maximizing the nightly revenue, it undercut our enjoyment of the food. Yes, restaurants are a low-margin business, but by stuffing the room with too many seats this place is not thinking about how many repeat customers it's losing. I'm one of them.

Overall a disappointment perhaps because I had such a wonderful meal at Il Buco. Portions were small and uninspired
I tryed to find out what your corkage fee was before buying a bottle of burgundy I couldn’t get through so I took a chance and brought a bottle
After being seated I asked and was told corkage fee was between $35 and $50 a bottle and was charged $50
So a bad experience and a waste of time

This was the first Italian restaurant that I have ever been to that charged $2 PER PERSON for bread. I chose this restaurant for Restaurant Week lunch. Very disappointed that they only offered two courses. That too was a first.

The food and drinks are amazing. I had a cucumber spritz that was really wonderful. I had the price fix and it was really good...scallops, pasta, and olive oil cake....just terrific.

This place never fails. It has an informal atmosphere. You can watch the chefs cook or sit at a table. Authentic cuisine- including a great cacio and pepe. Highly recommend this restaurant.

The food was seasonal and delicious. My friend and I ordered from the Restaurant week menu and we were both very satisfied with our dishes. The atmosphere was rustic and friendly. I would definitely go here again.

Lovely restaurant. Food is wonderful.Good menu,lot's of options.We went Restaurant week and it was perfect,it is basically communal tables but were were given a private table at our request.Very enjoyable

Bellissima!
I just love this little oasis in the neighborhood!
Thank you!!!!!

Oustanding food, excellent service, and vibrant (read: deafening) atmosphere. An exceptional
Meal for a boisterous group!

Great place. A little noisy, but once you settle in it’s ok. Terrific food and good service all around.

Excellent experience from arrival to departure. Charming waitress and waiters. Excellent food with a cool but welcoming ambiance. Not as loud this evening as normal as it was not as crowded as other times I’ve been there although it was buzzing be fore we left. Spent a long time eating and catching up with my friend and no pressure on us at all to hurry at any point.
Recommend.

Delicious!

What a treat. We were visiting NYC and looked this up through open table. We thought everyone was so nice and the food was wonderful. If we lived there we’d definitely be regulars

日本から2回目の食事です。
それくらいカジュアルだけど本格的で、美味しい料理でした。
雰囲気もとても良く、エリアにマッチしています。

One of my favorites!!!
Continues to be a great dining experience!!!

Great place, with amazing service and fantastic food! Just splendid!

Date night while on Vacation

I was very disappointed. We arrived for lunch on a Monday to celebrate my daughters Birthday(party of 3). We told the server it was her birthday. The restaurant was quite empty. They placed us at a community table. There were plenty of tables open that never filled while we were there.

The server was indifferent to us. Made it a bit uncomfortable.

The guests next to us (party of 3) ordered after us and received their entrees before us.

Server was very off. We waited a very long time for our entrees. Our server was folding napkins next to us and was difficult to get her attention.

Food was ok.

It took so long to dine that we didn’t order desert. We were suprised no one even offered as much as a birthday biscotti for my daughter.

So disappointed as we have been meaning to try out this place and we are New Yorkers.

My husband and I love the Cacio and Pepe as well as many of the other regular items -like the olive oil tasting and the branzino. So although it wasn’t a “ special occasion”— dining here is always “ special”!

I USED to love ILBA, but the last 3 visits within 9mos, crammed seating - less than 5 inches from neighobors, rushed /pushy service and delayed (well produced) food. A little better at lunch but dinner anytime has disappointed - focus on QUALITY instead of quantity and treat your clientele better.

The lunch special for $29 was a great bargain. All three courses were great. the only downside is there aren't many choices for the lunch special. BUT, if you like what they are serving it is a great value. The two of us were very happy with all three courses.

Ordered the branzini which was very good. However, charging for bread was a bit tacky with the high priced menu. Will not go back.

Absolutely amazing! The atmosphere was lovely and the food delicious!! I would definitely recommend it!

Great and really nice staff! Delicious food!

il buco alimentari is friendly given its high level of cuisine and has a cozy/rustic/modern atmosphere/decor. it offers spot-on italian food (the cacio e pepe is a complete treat, as is any salad with anchovy dressing AND the bread service) and really fun italian wines that the waitstaff can pair perfectly with your courses. oh, and don't forget the 3 kinds of spritzes and the ridiculously good negroni cocktail. for my 5 year old, the chef was able to whip up a simple spaghetti, which was also delicious and cooked perfectly. highly recommended.

Consistently excellent, lively but relaxed, with efficient and amiable service.

Great Food and service

To begin: know that if you order a cocktail, you will be served half a coupe at $15. Know also to avoid the octopus appetizer: not good. Again, know that the cacao e pepe is good but served cool and finally do not order the neri: not good. Our third and final time.