Well worth the wait. We had been wanting to come here for some time and it lived up to the hype. We arrived at 6pm on a Friday night hoping to avoid queues, perfect timing as we were seated immediately. The staff were lovely, making us feel very welcome. The chef came out & chatted to us and told up about his favourite dishes which was a lovely surprise. The food was amazing. We all loved our dishes. I had the ravioli, al dente and the parcels just melted in our mouth. The best meal I've had during my 12 months living in New York!!
The best Italian restaurant in the city. Great location and the food is over the top. Highly recommend the linguine and vela chop. The cannoli's are outstanding as was our waiter who has been their 22 years. I will be back.
Been here twice - outstanding service; to die for food: fresh, hot, perfectly balanced taste and of course. - best family recipes; and an authentic old New York design with photos of famous people, athletes, politicians, singers, etc who dined here. Love chatting with Emilio - who always welcomes guests upfront!
No reservations - first come first serve!
Deborah Porter Pasqualone
+5
I do believe this was by far, the most authentic Italian, I’ve ever had. The pasta is homemade, the sauce is outstanding, and the wait staff is very attentive. I highly recommend.
When with my family for my sons
Graduation. Was looking for something new to us something
Good ... We looked at “ Ballato”
The food is unbelievably awesome
The service was also very good
Try the tripe / chicken parmigiana/
Clams / octopus was incredible as well all the food was so delicious
Had an awesome time there
Thank you Emilio and staff
My wife and I have been coming for nearly 30 years. Even through a change in ownership, the current owner, Emilio has kept the food consistently great.
It's got old world charm and the wait staff is always right there.
The food is prepared to perfection every time.
Unbelievable food. Amazing service. A very memorable experience. I found this place when I was searching for NYC Italian restaurants on YouTube. 5 stars is not enough.
My family and I were here from Atlanta and this was like no other Italian food we’d ever had. Their pasta was exceptional and don’t even get me started on the gravy. You can tell the ingredients are fresh and definitely prepared with lots of love. Wine and prosecco were amazing and the brothers who waited on us were extremely attentive and kind. If you’re ever in little Italy this is the place for authentic Italian!
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Decent experience with considerable waiting time… perhaps still good to try out this restaurant where many celebrities have been visited such as Barack Obama, Taylor Swift, Rihanna, etc.
Arriving at 5:20 PM on a Friday, my friend and I were met with a considerable line of 20+ people. While the staff diligently communicated the potential wait of one to two hours, we were seated at a table for two around 7:45 PM.
We tried crispy rosemary potatoes and zucchini fries for our appetizers, both appetizing choices. The chicken parmigiana stole the show, arriving as a generous portion adorned with flavorful tomato sauce, ample mozzarella, and parmigiana cheese - undeniably the highlight of our meal.
Regrettably, the white sauce clam spaghetti didn't quite meet my expectations, as it seemed overly greasy and the pasta itself lacked the freshness I anticipated. The pasta was slightly undercooked for my taste, resulting in a chewier texture than desired.
While the restaurant's ambiance and its celebrity clientele added an intriguing appeal, sharing portions for two proved a bit challenging. Overall, the service was commendable, and the food, although mixed in quality, had its highlights. However, considering the extensive wait time, I'm unsure if I would return due to the patience required for another lengthy queue.
It’s worth it. It’ll love it up to everything you’ve heard, every reel you’ve seen and every friend that’s raved about this spot, it’s just that good. Old school classic Italian done to perfection. Just know you’re in for a long wait if you don’t have some sort of connection to a reservation.
*The veal Milanese with vodka sauce is pricey but so delicous.
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This place is definitely an experience! I'm not a huge marinara fan, and my mom doesn't like tomato sauces. This was our first time being in an area to try authentic Italian food. They had specials, but we kept it simple. Two of us got the spaghetti and meatballs, and my mom got the pasta that had zucchini in it. Our plates were almost licked clean! We shared the charcuterie app and ate that clean, too. My only complaint and not really a complaint is that when we got the check, we were charged for two charcuterie apps. If we ordered it by accident, I had no problem paying it, I mean, we ate the whole thing. Turns out since it was 3 of us, they charge two charcuterie plates and made the plate a larger portion, so if it was 2 of us, it would have been 1. It would have been nice knowing only because we would have gotten two different appetizers. Either way, the food was great, the service was great, and the experience was great.
One thing I was fascinated by and enjoyed watching was that after they would let someone sit down, they locked the door. I'm assuming to keep people from walking in and crowding. It lets everyone in the restaurant enjoy the experience. It's a super small restaurant. We got there maybe 20 minutes after opening, and it was almost full. Considering people kept coming, I don't think one or two angry customers getting locked out will make a difference.
To be honest, I was pleasantly surprised by Ballato. When I researched this place a while back, I was looking forward to the food, the traditional New York Italian dishes, big portions, lots of sauce and cheese, and a great wine selection. Ballato met all of this on paper. The part that I was not to interested in, was the celebrity appeal and factor. So decided to go in off peak hours, about 3pm. This was a really good time, because you could tell it was more of the local crowd and not so much the tourist type. Despite having all of the celebrities framed around me on the walls, I still felt like I was in a mob movie. The food and wine was great, I definitely enjoyed the experience and I think anyone craving some Italian would be happy to dine here.
This is so much more than your “average suburban Italian spot” like some other reviews have suggested. Suburban Italian restaurants WISH.
Ok but for real the food, the vibe, the wine are all awesome. Get there before 5 to avoid a long wait. You won’t be sorry.
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Updated review: we had a fantastic experience this time around. Food was all delicious and service was great all around. Mushrooms are the best in town and pasta is always great here.
Cute old school Italian place with solid options. Tagliatelle and chicken parm were pretty good. Sautéed mushrooms appetizer was delicious, I could’ve ordered a second and finished it all myself.
We love this place but wasn’t as pleased with our experience this time. First, during our wait, 4 guys behind us were seated before we were. I thought ok maybe they’re waiting for a 2 top for us..nope, sat us at a 4 top but just sat the guys behind us first with no explanation as to why. Then, I ordered our bottle of wine and the waiter brought it over and only addressed my boyfriend about the bottle and only poured him a glass to taste (even though I ordered it and -love my boyfriend but- have a better wine palette than him). Not a big deal maybe, but just a little feedback for servers to please address us ladies. We make good money too! Otherwise, if you just care about the food, then it’s fabulous nonetheless so give it a go.
Absolutely love everything about this place. It couldn’t get any more Italian than this. First of all, I like how they didn’t have a reservation system, and everyone had to be in line to sit at the table. It was quite a wait, but fair. The entire ambience of the restaurant is very cozy, and felt like I was back in one of the restaurants in Italy. The food was amazing, the pasta was Al dente and the seasoning not overdone like most Italian restaurants in nyc. It was perfect. Will be returning here soon.
It was an entire experience, from the 2 hour wait for a coveted table, the icons lining the photo walls, to some of the best Italian food I’ve had. I would say go if you have the time or just cancel other plans which can’t be much better…
Very good veal parmigiana. Service was good. Bread was average. Overall was very good but would not return given 30 min wait on a Tuesday night at 9pm. You can find similar food without the fuss in Manhattan.
Cute homie feel, good restaurant wouldn’t wait hours in the rain for it. But overall pretty good food. Some of the dishes needed seasoning. Love the photos of the celebrities, but some didn’t know the name could’ve cleared some wall space. Apparently Taylor Swift went there recently, which was the main reason my dad was so appealed to this. But what is Taylor Swift really know about food? She’s the highest paid Pop artist but I’ve never heard anything about her taste in food. I mean she’s super skinny and she’s from Wisconsin I’m not convinced. But overall. If you’re looking for an Italian and it’s not raining and you’re willing to wait, I would attend but do not get the pork chop. It was not great just a meat pork chop. Thank you. (As written by my sister)
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