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“Asellina”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Italian	Gramercy	Moderate	Great

The Meatpacking District has its draws: The Highline, Jeffrey, DVF, and the Standard Grill come to mind -the neighborhood does tend to exude a certain aura of pretension. It's definitely not where you want to go out if you're looking to save some cash. Stop in at the Gansevoort, located near the corner of 9^th Avenue and Little West 12^th Street and you may find it hard to justify elbowing your way through the snooty model-types just to pay $20 for a cocktail.

So when the Gansevoort Hotel Group opened a second NYC location in Gramercy, the last thing I was expecting was an approachable neighborhood restaurant with cocktails under $15 a pop. But that's precisely what they did with Asellina, a 10,000-square foot Italian restaurant located in the new Gansevoort Park Hotel.

The restaurant, which I visited on a cold rainy night, was designed by iCrave, the design firm behind such hotspots as STK, Tenjune and Crobar. It's lit by a fireplace, and despite its football field size, it somehow feels warm and cozy; it's a place you'll want to stay a while. A beautiful bar made of dark wood runs the entire length of the front room and is surrounded by several matching tables. Off to the side of the bar is an intimate lounge that is the perfect spot to relax over cocktails ($14, a $6 savings over the MePa).

The atmosphere at Asellina is truly delightful, loud enough to feel the room's bustling energy, but quiet enough to carry on a conversation without shouting. Our waiter was a charmer with a thick Italian accent who never let our water glasses go empty and kept up a perfect pace for the entire meal. When a friend showed up to join us for dinner, he kindly moved us to a great low table in the corner of the restaurant that was surrounded by comfortable couches. This allowed us to sit back, relax and enjoy our evening as the food was promptly delivered to the table.

The kitchen is under the care of chef Marco Porceddu, who hails from Sardinia. He most recently worked in Las Vegas at Bella Luna, a place he opened after a stint with Steve Wynn. He's clearly one who wants to please every appetite. His dinner menu begins with Antipasti and Flatbreads, moves on to Pastas (Primi) and Entrées (Secondi); it offers enough variety for a meal of a little bite with a glass of wine or a multi-course feast. We went for the feast options, starting off with the Burrata cheese and stuffed cerignola oli ... [more, click below]

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Posted: May 2, 2011

Other restaurants in Gramercy :
+ Casa Mono/Bar Jamon   + Pure Food & Wine   + Parea   + Gramercy Tavern (Lunch)   + 15 East   + Tocqueville   + Irving Mill   + Bar Milano   + Irving Mill   + Maialino   + Asellina   + Corkbuzz Wine Studio   + Breads, by guest reviewer Tracy Weiss   

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