What can you say about a place that really has no bad seats? (More on that later.) Well, you could say it has no bad food either, which in this case is just as true. You’ll figure that out once you bite into Chef Saul Montiel’s delicious house-made pastas—perhaps the orecchiette with lobster, green peas and arugula—or a perfectly seared trout with fava beans, artichokes and escarole. Or even sooner, after ordering a plate of Italian appetizers to share—Roman deep-fried artichokes; a ricotta-and-egg-filled raviolo; and of course a selection of Italian salumi. (Go ahead, throw in a cheese plate, too.) The restaurant’s official name is Gusto Ristorante e Bar Americano, but you didn’t need to be reminded that everything here is Italian to the hilt—with a real emphasis on seafood—all neatly packaged in a glass-front jewel box right in the Village.

Carciofi alla giudea (deep-fried artichokes)
Raviolo al uova (raviolo filled with ricotta and egg)
Orecchiette con aragosta (with lobster)
Roasted branzino with grilled asparagus
Sicilian meatballs with pine nuts view full menu here

For starters, even the few freestanding upholstered chairs are paired with
banquettes—glorious dark-leather ones that scream Milan Furniture Fair. You need only pick the location: the front booths on a platform near the window; the ones that run opposite the bar; or the four jumbos in the cozy room in back, a quiet little clubhouse all its own, but hardly Siberia—banish that thought. And if you want to hide out, the Wine Room downstairs is very romantic and can seat parties of up to 16.

So what exactly is a bar americano, that staple of Grand Tour European hotels that always seem so Italian, French, English or German—anything but American? In fact, these spots sprang up in the ’20s to cater to the wealthy Americans who were flocking to Europe. The words bar americano signaled that favorite drinks from home—especially highballs, called “long drinks” in Europe—would be on hand after a hard day of sightseeing.

Mon.–Sun. 11 AM–12 midnight

$17 (tonnarelli with Pecorino Romano) to $34 (roasted rib eye)