Walking into Machiavelli is like walking into a Museum with “Renaissance” inspired murals, upholstered chairs and banquets, candelabras and a a live piano player on most nights.
A Northern Italian eatery owned by Nathalie de La Fontaine who lived in Northern Italy for several years and managed La Foccaccia in the West Village. Nathalie recently chose a new chef Gian Pietro Ferro, who was the executive chef at Osteria al Doge and head chef at Fiorello. His job was to revamp and revitalize the menu to celebrate the restaurant’s fifth anniversary.
Machiavelli’s menu focuses on pasta rolled by hand, pizzas, salads, and a variety of classic Italian dishes. We started our meal with the highly recommended “Sformato di Spinaci”. A flan made with fresh ricotta and spinach, topped with a classic fontina white truffle scented fondue cheese sauce.
The “Bruschetta” is made to order with traditional red and yellow tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, basil over Tuscan Bread.
My favorite was the “Carpachio di Manzo”, thin slices of seared rare beef, baby arugula, grand padding and truffle oil. I am very picky with my Carpachio ,so I was pleasantly surprised by the texture and the flavor.
The pasta course was the most anticipated since this is what Machiavelli prides itself on. The “Farfalle Neri al Salmone” with Canadian Salmon in a pink sauce was served al dente with large chunks of salmon.
The “Tagliatelle Al Ragu di Vitello”, egg pasta ribbons served with veal ragu is also a very popular choice.
Traditional Northern Italian Specialties include The “Pollo all Chichi”, breaded free- range Chicken Milanese served with baby arugula, onions and tomato, and my guests recommended “Costoletta d’Agnello alle erbe fresche”, Roasted Colorado Lamb Chops served with roasted potatoes and veggies.
The Pizzas at Machiavelli are made using the traditional Italian method with extra virgin olive oil, san marzano tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. They are very good sized portions and can be shared. Pictured above is our favorite the “Prosciutto di Parma”, tomato, mozzarella, tomatoes, arugula and prosciutto di Parma.
Dessert was a traditional and very tasty Tirimisu, However many options are available. The wine selection was plentiful with many choices, either by the glass or bottle along with well crafted cocktails.
Machiavelli 519 Columbus Ave. New York, NY 10024 (212) 724-2658 http://www.machiavellinyc.com
FashionsWeek: Beauty, Fashion, Travel, Tech & Dining By Maya Litovsky 