First Look: Spadaro
The line out the door at Spadaro, the new Italian restaurant in New Rochelle, seems to be typical. There are only 36 seats and people are dying to try it. I went last Friday night.
There’s no menu. Rina Spadaro and her sister Rosa wait and bus the tables and tell you what’s available from the kitchen that day.
Rina and her hubsand Antonio — who is from Rome — opened the restaurant a couple of months ago and it has been both praised and panned on Chowhound.com. Here’s one thread. Here’s another (on that one, chowhound founder Jim Leff didn’t have a great experience).
Rosa encourages you to order Italian-style, by courses: antipasti, pasta, meat or fish and contorni (sides). I think that’s what has so enamored some online reviewers, who are calling the experience “authentic.”
First-course choices include fried artichokes and mozzarella with arugula. There are also pastas—the signature is fettucine with proscuitto, mushroom, Parmesan, egg and black pepper—and there are a surprisingly huge variety of meats (filet, lamb, baby lamb, pork) and fish (swordfish, shrimp, branzino), all simply grilled and served without flourish.
Rosa warned me the antipasti ($19.95) was huge, but I still wasn’t prepapared for the flurry of plates, one item per plate. We had to consolidate the dishes and stack the plates to make room.
Prosciutto (delicious) and asparagus (overcooked and slimy on top, woody and stringy on the bottom):
Cheese (the one with the black peppercorns was terrific) and salami — one moist and fresh and one dry and aged.
Beans and pork. Spicy.
Roasted peppers (OK):
Caponata (quite a mess and the flavors were muddled by that):
Olives (dry but good) and eggplant (cold):
There was also a bowl of mussels and clams, but it smelled off so I didn’t eat it. A few of the shells were broken, too.
There isn’t much room between tables.
Be prepared to get jostled. It can add to the fun of the evening, or get annoying, depending on your mood. We got to know our neighbors, a nice couple from Greenwich with two well-behaved boys, and we offered them some wine. They offered us a grilled jumbo shrimp. It tasted of bleach and burned my mouth. (Restaurants sometimes use bleach to kill bacteria.)
I was beginning to become quite charmed by Rosa, so I was a little disappointed when she had promised the meat in parpardelle alla chinghale (wild boar, it was $24.95) was to be shredded in the sauce. Instead, it was chunks.
And unfortunately they were overcooked. This is a dish that usually makes me swoon, but was lacking something this time.
I liked the chunks of meat in bucatini all’amatriciana ($9.95), but that’s because the meat was guiancale, which is pig jowl and an authentic (and hard to find) ingredient. It was smoky and porky and I enjoyed it.
There’s a window into the kitchen.
See the frames along the wall on the right? They’re showing photos and press clippings from the restaurant that Antonio and Rina used to own in Rome, also called Spardaro.
Rina told me that Antonio’s father’s dream was to come to New York and open a restaurant. Antonio came along, and he was working as a private chef in New York City when he met Rina. For 10 days, Rina says, he cooked for Sylvester Stallone. But Antonio didn’t like the work, and so he and Rina packed up and moved back to Rome, where they lived for 20 years.
They took over a restaurant that had been there since 1959 — one that had been popular with politicans. (Rina says “Where in the World Is Matt Lauer” once paid a visit, but I can’t find anything about that online.)
After a while, the place got to be too much stress, she said. They were looking to open a smaller place in New York — a place where they could serve “real authentic, family-style, like in Italy.â€
Rosa, Rina’s sister, lives in New Rochelle, so they came here. They were looking around for a place to open a restaurant when they stumbled upon the location, in a strip mall heading north out of town on Main Street in New Rochelle.
Rosa says there is no freezer and Antonio’s philosophy is to cook what inspires him. She says they use only authentic ingredients (like that guanciale) and they’re offering Americans an education on how Italians really eat. “We don’t mix our meats with pastas or the side order,” she says. “We don’t do veal parm, chicken parm, meatballs. We do what the real Italians eat. This is not high cuisine, it’s home cooking in an Italian restaurant. And it’s all run by family.”
And it feels that way, too — Rosa was truly warm and genuine. She made up for the hostile reception I got when I came in about 15 minutes late (I called — there was a ton of traffic on the Hutch) and my friends bailed on me, so we were two instead of four. I was truly apologetic, but was scolded quite harshly, even though 15 minutes later all the tables were filled and there was a line out the door.
It was Rosa’s kind gestures and good guidance that made me feel more comfortable. She apologized every single time she knocked my elbow as she breezed by.
It was also thanks to Rosa that I had the best dish of the night. After the mussels and the shrimp, I was pretty nervous about seafood. But Rosa had emphatically endorsed the swordfish ($27.95) — a dish I normally don’t order because it’s overfished.
It was lovely. Bright, fork-tender and topped with a lovely gremolata, a mixture of parsely, lemon and garlic.
Rosa also recommended the mixed salad. ($10.95). It was fine, but nothing special, and huge. (So was the bucatini… it and this salad could easily feed a family of four.)
Rosa also recommended the “baby lamb,” ($34.95) which I took to mean we’d be gettting tiny lamb chops. (Sorry for the dark photo.)
The flavor was nice — not too gamy and cooked delicately — but there was a lot of bone to pick through. I thought the price was a little high for that.
We ended with ricotta cheesecake ($6.95), which Rosa said they get from Italy. It survived the voyage nicely. It was light and airy.
I respect what Spadaro is trying to do: Cooking from the heart and running a family-run place where the (non)menu is distinctly Italian. The room — though cramped and loud — encourages camaraderie. But if you’re cooking without a menu, why offer so many chocies? Without a freezer, some things are bound to go bad (like seafood). And if you’re working with family, everyone should be as kind to the guests as Rosa is. I’ve come away with mixed feelings, which seems to echo both the rants and raves on Chowhound.
Spadaro, 211 E. Main St., New Rochelle. 914-235-4595.
Photo Caption: 18spadaro002.JPG
Liz:
Glad you finally made it to Spadaros. As I had mentioned, it has it pluses and minuses. I really don’t think they expected to get so popular so quickly. Hopefully they will be able to work out the kinks. Also they are hoping to take over the space next door to expand the restaurant. They need more help. It is a more pleasant dining experience early in the week and early in evening. Unfortunately not every one (including myself) likes to eat dinner at 6:00.
K
Liz,
You should try Avellino’s. It’s another newbie to New Ro (they’re sprouting up everywhere on North Avenue!). It’s really terrific. It’s on North Ave a little past Main Street towards Pelham Road.
i went to Spadaros on saturday.I decided to eat at 6pm because i heard anything later and service could be a problem.Im a little rigid on service!!:).We arrived at 10 to 6 which is very lucky because it seemed they were just about to send a search party out for us(seating as noted is limited).We went with the antipasto which was fine nothing over the moon but servicable.We then had some pasta and fish dishes with mixed results around the table.I would say generally an A for effort a B for results.In conclusion im came away thinking id definately return but id be alot smarter about what i order(VEAL CHOP!!!!!)
Reading the comments on Spadaro gives me the nostalgie of my favourite restaurant here in Montecelio Rome,for what I see he is doing a good job in New Rochelle,congratulation to Antonio and Rina and to all of you having the restaurant near by. Isn’t great his Antipasto Spadaro, I tell you something ask him to prepaire the Stinco in Barolo wine, it’s something out of this world.
BUON APPETITO da LUCA-ROMEGUIDEDTOURS-
Un grandissimo “in bocca al lupo” alla spledida famiglia Spadaro, come si dice lì, for your businnes…...dalle foto sembra davvero nice ma non avevo dubbi….....”la classe non è water!!!!!!! Mariuccio Montecelio
Liz,
I went to a great restaurant the other day. Avellino’s Ristorante & Pizzeria on North Avenue in New Rochelle. They have a beautiful french doors that opened up to the sidewalk. The owner told me they are planning sidewalk seating soon. The food was phenomenal!!! Its past main street towards Pelham Road.
Thanks Elizabeth. I’m heading to New Ro today so maybe I’ll give it a shot!
I saw a few people commenting on Avellino Ristorante. I tried it out and was very disappointed. They were out of numerous things on the menu and the flamboyant waiter they had was nice however clueless. I was not impressed.
da giorgio quaker ridge is the best new spot in new ro anybody try that yet
liz jhonson go check out da giorgio the chef is young and energetic also cooked in italy for two years excellent food
siete veramente forti!!!
non avevo dubbi ma il bello deve ancora venire.
La classe non è acqua e adesso se ne accorgeranno in tanti.
un mondo di auguri. Roberto e Francesca
I went to Avellino and was very impressed with the food and presentation. I would definetely not go to another resturant as long a I dine out. This was the place for me and my family. I did go 2 weeks ago and found that there was a 30 minute wait to get a table so we sat by the bar and waited. The owner was so nice that he bought us a round of drinks while we waited. Definetly 5 stars!
I also read an article while I was there. They got 4.5 out of 5 stars in a magazine called IN TOWN magazine.
Also, they were voted the best pizza in New Rochelle.
Great Experience!
Ciao Antonio e ciao Rina, volevo farvi i miei complimenti per il vostro favoloso locale di New York. Sono contento di avervi ritrovato sul web e avendo dato uno sguardo a queste belle immagini caratteristiche del buon gusto sulla nostra cucina rinomata, io vi faccio i miei complimenti e vi mando un saluto affettuoso e bacioni. Salutatemi Antony, ciaooooooooooo! P.S: Carlo da Guidonia,ho lavorato gia’ da voi in passato.
CARISSIMI ANTONIO E RINA UN GRANDE ABBRACCIO DA ROBERTO E OLGA. GUARDANDO LE IMMAGINI DEL VOSTRO SITO NON AVEVAMO DUBBI SIETE GRANDISSIMIIIIII. SPERO NON LONTANO DI POTERVI VENIRE A TROVARE. SE AVETE PROBLEMI CON LA TELEVISIONE OPPURE L’ANTENNA VENGO PRIMA. TANTI CARISSIMI AUGURI E BACI AI RAGAZZI
Awful. Atrocious service. Did not explain antipasti course and quickly brought out overcooked green beans amongst other things without explaining how the restaurant works. Opened bottle of wine not in front of orderer. Service is atrocious food mediocre at best. Would not return.
Carissimi Antonio e Rina, che gioia!
Finalmente siamo riusciti a trovarVi! Ci mancate, credete, con tutto il cuore, ci mancate!
Ci manca la vostra deliziosa amicizia, la vostra spledida cucina, il Vostro sorriso, la Vostra familiare accoglienza, tutto ci manca di Voi!
Raramente , io e Luciana, andiamo a trascorrere qualche momento nel Ristorante che ERA SPADARO ed oggi altro non è che un ambiente freddo e privo di amicizia!
E’ mio desiderio rivederVi e poter ancora gustare un attimo della Vostra amicizia. Quanto prima Vi farò visita per potervI riabbracciare come sempre.
Gradirei ricevere il vostro numero di cellulare per contattarVi.
Un bacione
SERGIO e LUCIANA BETTARELLI
Un caro ed affettuoso abbraccio a tutti Voi
SERGIO E LUCIANA BETTARELLI
Roma – Tel. +39 062410896 – +39 062416904 – +39 06 24597445 – Mobil: +39 337770230 – +39 3486976909
ANTONIO, SONO RIUSCITO A TROVARE IL TUO SITO DEL TUO NUOVO LOCALE DI NEW YORK E SONO MOLTO FELICE PER TE E I TUOI CARI, MA SONO MOLTO DISPIACIUTO PER LA MANCANZA DELLA TUA CUCINA A MONTECELIO, NON E’ PIU’ LO STESSO, AD AGOSTO VENGONO A NEW YORK I MIEI FIGLI E LI MANDERO’ SICURAMENTE A CENA DA TE PER PORTARTI ANCHE I MIEI AFFETTUOSI SALUTI, SPERO ARDENTEMENTE DI POTER VENIRE ANCHE IO A TROVARTI DI PERSONA, NEL FRATTEMPO TI INVIO UN GRANDISSIMO ABBRACCIO A TE E ALLA TUA FAMIGLIA. SE PUOI FAMMI AVERE UN RECAPITO TELEFONICO PER POTERTI SENTIRE DI PERSONA GRAZIE. DOMENICO ROCCHI