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“Spigolo”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	New American	Upper West Side	Moderate	Great

I didn’t want to start this review of Spigolo, located on 81st and Second Avenue, with a discussion about the Upper East Side, but it seems I must. We had invited two friends to join us (me and my chef—the guy I have been dating—I am just going to call him my chef, if you don’t mind) for dinner up there, and the friends declined to join us because it was north of the line of demarcation—23rd Street—the barrier between acceptable dining destinations and absurd eating choices. Sure many of us have certain “feelings” about this northern (nose bleed) area of the city, including me. We may feel it has little to offer in terms of serious culinary value. But my friends missed out that night because all that is changing. Now the people who live up there get proximity to the park, incredible museums, and an amazing little gem of a restaurant to cherish and call their own. They have Spigolo. Real estate values must be going nuts in that zip code.

Spigolo, which means corner of the table in Italian, is the debut restaurant of an adorable husband and wife duo, Scott and Heather Fratangelo, and their partner Joseph D’Angelo, All three met while cooking in at Union Square Café. This little nook is their dream come true.

But nook it is. Spigolo is tiny, with about 35 seats, and it can get loud, so at times you may have to shout to be heard. Bring paper and pencil and you can pass notes. But it’s a sweet little room despite the roar. It is framed in exposed brick and lit with the soft sunny glow of contemporary wrought iron chandeliers. A glass rectangle in the back wall of the room allows you to peak into the bright silver kitchen and watch Scott and Joe at work. While you are dining, Heather, the pastry chef and front of the house manager, looks after you with the sincerity and kindness of someone who has never lived in New York City. She is a former nurse and the caretaking skills she learned in that honorable profession have transferred over well. She is a perfect hostess and quite a talented pastry chef as well. But first let’s talk about her hubby Scott’s food.

Scott’s easy going menu illustrates a strong love for Italy, and bears the signature style of some of the amazing kitchens he has worked in—Union Square (where he worked his way up from pasta station to sous chef), and Gramercy Tavern.

His braised octopus salad ($8) illustrates h ... [more, click below]

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Posted: August 29, 2005

Other restaurants in Upper West Side :
+ 'Cesca   + Asiate   + Blue Hill Stone Barns   + Per Se   + The Neptune Room   + Spigolo   + Telepan   + Aix Brasserie   + 'Cesca   + Bar Boulud   + Dovetail   + BarBao   + Dinosaur Bar-be-Que   + Kefi   + Bar Luna   + Ed's Chowder House   + Red Rooster, by Rachel Barbarotta   + Loi by Dara Pollak   

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