Reviews for Cucina 8 1/2 in New York, NY
My fiancé and I hosted our engagement dinner here at Cucina with family and friends. Everything was PERFECT! The staff were so... friendly and professional, the managers were super accommodating, the restaurant itself is beautiful, and the food was so tasty.My compliments to the chef! Joanne helped us plan this exciting event and Marco was such a huge help! Thank you Cucina for sucha beautiful evening. We will be returning soon. If I could give more than 5 stars, I would! Read more
My girlfriend and I stumbled upon this place randomly. The food was incredible. Everything is superior at Cucinas. I got the... spaghetti limone and I will never have pasta like that again in my life. My girlfriend got the chicken parm with spaghetti. Theatmosphere is so elegant and intimate. Read more
I thought long before deciding on how many stars I should give the restaurant...\n\nThere was a huge difference between 2 very... important items: The food and the service...\n\nLet\'s start with the service, if you can even call it that, as there wasabsolutely none.... Terrible terrible service.\nThe server did not know if they can make a pasta with a cream base or olive oilor butter... She had 0 knowledge of Italian food, except for what was on the menu, exactly as the menu says....\nIt took thekitchen about an hour and 15 minutes to get us the food... Half of our drinks didn\'t arrive until we had to remind the serverthat we ordered it...\nAnd on top of it all, they charge a fee of almost $6 for using a credit card as a payment method!!! Andwhen we asked the server if they actually charge it, she said no. It\'s later on appeared charged!!!\n\nSo that was one of theworst services I\'ve experienced in the past years....\n\nBUT\nThe food was just delightful.... When we eventually received it,it was made perfectly, with amazing tastes. No doubt one of the best Italian kitchens I\'ve ever visited....\nEvery single oneof the dishes, even the plane Margarita Pizza, was just a pleasure each bite.....\n\nSo, to conclude, I decided the quality ofthe food triumphed the terrible service experience...\nSo go there, without a doubt, just make sure you arrive with a lot ofpatience, self entertainment, and not starving.....\n\nBon appetit (I know it\'s French, but I have no idea what the Italianexpression is ????) Read more
I was there several times when it was a french restaurant, and now it was my first time after they became Italian. It did not... disappoint.\nThe place is tastefully designed (but they removed Matisse which was here before), not too crowded but not emptyeither (Wednesday evening), a pleasant bar scene.\nThe service was really amazing - Aida and Mike did a brilliant job navigatingour food and wine choices and were very much on point.\nThe food was really great: tuna tartar, Cesar salad (made in front ofyou), roasted bellpeppers and the homemade bread were awesome. Pasta di limone was delicious but on a richer side than iexpected, may be i will be back for it in winter.\nThe limonchella based cocktails was surprisingly refreshing without being toosweet. Overall, a great place to go for a dress up date or a business dinner. Read more
Came around 3 so the dining room was not open. Sat at the lounge. The food was really good- the NY strip was cooked at the... perfect temperature (I asked for medium so some pink inside) - very tender and juicy. Would definitely come again. Read more
Lovely upscale Italian restaurant. Walking in is a nice experience with the descent down a beautiful staircase. We had... incredible service and ate incredible food (I had the amatriciana). Perfectly al dente and flavorful. Plus, just look at thisdecanter! Where do you see that? It was a great and memorable dinner. Read more
Absolutely amazing service and delicious authentic Italian food! I loved how they freshly prepare and serve the food in front of... you. Makes it even more special! Read more
The environment is really nice. We ordered a few things:\nLamb pizza, the concept is really cool, but the meat was... dry.\nMeatballs were very good, the ricotta delicious.\nPasta was boring, the sauce flavor was the same as bought one, not onefresh.\nChicken Parmesan was the worst. Almost $40 for fried chicken stacked with a bought sauce.\nStaff was friendlythough.\nThey give a complementary Parmesan chips, which was spot one. And biscotti on the end. Read more