You’re nicer than I am 
If I got food that was “lousy” and “bad,” it would have gone back. I hope all the rest of your dining experiences are superb!
Uh oh. Beef cheek and Mint Love Letter?
My friend went to this pop up. He said the pastas and the dessert were very good, but the meat and starter were just alright.
1 Like
I’ve been meaning to make those beef cheek raviolis for years. That makes me sad. Guess I better make 'em.
1 Like
Beef cheeks and goose liver. Actually wanted to go to Le Bernadin but could not get reservations for lunch nor dinner for Friday/Saturday. Having dinner at Spotted Pig this evening. Hopes it make up for last night’s dinner.
lol maybe aesthete was right and NY is over rated
The new energy in dining out seems to be stronger with the West Coast currently…
I was invited to go to this Babbo pop-up, but didn’t end up going.
Man, that’s a bummer. I have some very fond memories of those beef cheeks.
This is my experience at most Batali places, including Babbo. I usually just order a bunch of pastas and desserts.
I don’t know, though it may be the chef’s preference, that rule is not absolute…I ate at Babbo once with an friend whose family is from Sicily, where she has spent a bit of time, and she grew up working in her family’s restaurants, so she has strong opinions about everything, including food. She had a similar “debate” with the Babbo waitress, and it was not pretty.
Here is a quote from a Saveur article concerning the Sicilian preference for cheese with seafood…
“Carmelo Chiaramonte, a Sicilian seafood expert and the author of A Tutto Tonna (Bibliotheca Culinaria, 2006), a fascinating Italian cookbook
“Sicilian food is all about the sea and the land,” Carmelo said, pulling out fresh ricotta and bread he’d bought earlier. That Italian rule that says no cheese with fish? It doesn’t apply here. Here, Pecorino gets sprinkled into involtini of swordfish and ricotta gets stuffed into squid.”
1 Like
Awesome!
I like your name too.
Nothing like a bit of authenticity speaking to this presumed “truth” about seafood and cheese in the Italian lexicon.
“Red wine cannot be drunk with fish” is another supposed Italian “rule” (likely invented by white wine sales force).
Babbo in NYC has been disappointing for more than a decade.
And Mario did a pop-up when Nancy was still at Campanile and it sucked.
But he was so funny to talk with while he chain-smoked outside.
Ah ha! I was at Babbo way long ago, possibly 2000. I thought the food was good, but what I really remember was that the wine pours seemed skimpy for the price point, which just felt sad.
Thank you re the name, I have used that for a long time…
The way to do Babbo is sit at the bar, eat only pastas and desserts. Those are still good, everything else is less than meh.
2 Likes
Was about to argue … then realized it’s been slightly more than a decade since I was last at Babbo. 
I had a Spanish grenache blend w/ a crab spaghetti dish last night at Alimento and it was delicious.
I love all these food rules. Reminds me of all the unwritten rules in baseball. My kids were eating spaghetti and kim chee for dinner last night.
3 Likes
Have to say that pasta tasting menu at the bar this past May was pretty darned good. Dare I say, better than Osteria Mozza at the bar in 2017.
1 Like
i eat chili with some kim chee on the side, helps to cut the richness for me.