Ferdinando’s Focacceria

Great time. Great food! The rice balls rocked.

The vastedda was not worth getting because of the weird texture. The bread was amazing though.
The rice ball is excellent! We got it as an appetizer and shared it which was great
The parppadelle with zucchini, mushrooms, eggplant, and onions was the best dish we got. Absolutely delicious, definitely get it
The calamari ripieni is good, but not as good as the parppadelle.
Overall this place is a great deal, has been open for 100 years, great food and is a nice place to go out with friends in Carroll Gardens/​Cobble Hill

I really like Ferdinando’s Focacceria — an old-​school (since 1904!), warm, homey Brooklyn Italian restaurant. The atmosphere is relaxed, with the walls covered in pictures of celebrities and articles singing its praises. The service here is fast, the menu is extensive and VERY reasonably priced considering this is homemade delicious Italian fare. We started with the arancina special, a lightly fried rice ball filled with beef and peas, then doused in tomato sauce and ricotta. DELICIOUS! It was also not too huge, so it made for a good appetizer.
The entrees were all solid, but my favorite was the parppadelle with zucchini, mushrooms, eggplant, and onions. There was the ideal amount of olive oil, and the pasta was cooked just right, which is tricky for parppadelle. Tasty, refreshing, but filling. My friends ordered the Calamari Ripieni, linguini with calamari stuffed with bread crumbs, cheese, and egg, and the vastedda, a spleen and ricotta sandwich. The former was very good, albeit a little dry, and while the sandwiches bread and ricotta were EXCELLENT, the spleen felt a little flavorless. Maybe that’s how spleen is supposed to taste, but not my cup of tea.
Overall, this place is legendary for a reason — delicious Italian food for great prices. Will go back, and yet another reason why I love Carroll Gardens/​Cobble Hill!

The meatball hero was okay. There is an organ-​y flavor to it, perhaps they use liver in their mix. The bread really killed it for me too. Hard, cut the roof of my mouth kind of bread. Not a lot of sauce. Lackluster.
I have had the bolognese here, along with various other dishes — eggplant, stuffed artichoke, roasted peppers… It’s fine. Nothing spesh, just fine.
Also — things seem to come a la carte — like the rice ball (which really is delish BTW) but if you want sauce it’s an extra $ 1.50, fresh ricotta, $ 1.50 — same with the chick pea fritter — with all the fixins it quickly becomes spendy italian. if authentic italian is really really what you’re after (for when your jersey/​midwest or upstate family is in town) it could be worth hitting it up for the novelty of old long standing establishment in the nabe. coffee soda on tap.
No delivery, pick up only.

Being as I come from a Sicilian background this focacceria is near and dear to my heart. I was out with a friend (who is also of Sicilian decent) last night when we happened to see an open parking spot and jumped on the opportunity to go in for a bite. The last time before yesterday (11÷20÷15) that I was there had to be 10+ years ago when I would go regularly with my dad. Enough about my backstory — let’s get into why you should go here. This is the real deal — this is not an Italian restaurant that happens to serve Sicilian specialties. No, this is an authentic Sicilian focacceria — trinacria and all! We were in a bit of a hurry so we got two sandwiches, one to go, and split. The vastedda (veal spleen) here is a work of art — I don’t usually enjoy this because of the texture but I had some of my friend’s and it was excellent. I on the other hand had the panelle (smashed and fried chickpeas) special. You’re damn right putting ricotta and cheese on top of an item makes it special. I wish I realized sooner that they had Manhattan Special on tap — completely forgot. Next time! Do yourself a flavor favor and check this place out — you won’t regret it. Take a bite of the Sicilian culture — food, family, and friendship

This is what my nonna’s cooking would taste like if I had an Italian grandmother. I don’t, but my friend Tony does, and he said it was JUST LIKE eating at his nonna’s house! It is super old school, and everything we were served was DELICIOUS.
We originally came here for the Vastedda — spleen sandwiches (from Best Thing I Ever Ate), and we were advised that they can be an acquired taste. Whatevs, I eat everything from an animal, so I was down.
We ordered:
Burrata — YUM, with eggplant and tomato, it was the PERFECT juxtaposition of creamy, sweet, and slightly salty
Caponatina — eggplant salad — Tony said he used to eat this when he would come home from school! It’s cold served with a tomato-​y sauce/​dressing. Delicious and so flavorful
Tony and I split a Vestadda while our not-​as-​adventurous spouses ordered bolognese, and Arancina special. I also ordered the Panelle special.
The Vestadda — MMMMMMMMMMMMMM — it was AMAZING. Minerally like blood sausage but SO MUCH MORE than that. I could eat that all day. And it’s done with beautiful ricotta on some homemade bread. The bolognese and arancina was also RIDICULOUSLY good!!!
I would be here every week if possible! SO GOOD.

After coming home from Sicily I was in desperate need of some Sicilian cooking! I had been wanting to try Vestedda for the longest time and finally went for it! The panelle, rice balls and grilled octopus were all fantastic. Great neighborhood spot! And Manhattan Special on tap? Ok!

Awesome authentic Sicilian food in Brooklyn! And this place has to be doing something right since they have been around since 1904! Not a big fancy restaurant, more of a pizza parlor atmosphere, but really cool history inside. The food was fantastic, especially the marinara red sauce. The Eggplant Sicilian was great.

Old school. Wonderful. Lots of personality. Servers will get in your face with attitude if you deserve it, and otherwise treat you with utter respect for the customer. Came here with friends on one of their last nights in Brooklyn after living here for some 7 years. This place was one of the places they had to say goodbye to, and I can see why.
Had the pasta con sarne, a panelle sandwich, and shared a bottle of red. Amazing. I hope to come back here, often, too. The price ain’t bad for what you’re getting here, either.

Ferdinando’s is a true slice of ‘old school’ Brooklyn architecture and style — from the dark wood walls (proudly decorated with the odd crest of Sicily) and weathered photos to the tiny hexagon tiles patterning the floor. It’s also a Carroll Gardens/​Columbia Waterfront original, established in 1904. This isn’t a hipster place trying to recreate a bygone era… Ferdinando’s is the real deal. I expect the décor hasn’t changed much in the last 80 years. And there are folks on canes in the neighborhood who can tell you with nostalgia how they came here to order a Pannelle Sandwich after school before the wheel was invented.
The food here is — you guessed it — Italian. It’s also pretty good and the servings are generous. The signature item is their Panelle Sandwich but I’ve also tried their Arancina (rice ball) and Sausage Parm Sandwich — which are both good. You won’t need to order more than one Arancina as that monster is softball-​sized. Their sammies come in two sizes — the ‘roll’ for approximately $ 6.50 and the ‘hero’ for $ 10. The roll is big enough for most appetites, so it’s a good deal compared to several of the other restaurants in the ‘hood.
I have to give Ferdinando’s a special tip of the hat for two things… honesty and integrity. I called in an order once and asked for the Grilled Calamari. The owner talked me out of it, explaining that they didn’t have fresh calamari that day and he wouldn’t grill something that wasn’t up to scratch. I applaud that.
TIP: Bring cash as Ferdinando’s doesn’t take plastic.

Old school may be an understatement. We felt no air conditioning as we entered on a June day, but once we got past the entrance it felt comfortable enough.
Four of us for lunch, we shared a burrata and an arancino for our starter. The burrata was excellent, meltingly soft with a few slices of roasted eggplant and some giardiniera around it. The house rolls doubled as bread on the side. The arancino could have been warmer and crisper, but was certainly savory.
For main courses, we shared two panelles, an order of pasta con sarde and an order of broccoli rabe. We also split one vastedda. The vastedda gets the nod over the panelles, as the meat (stewed spleen) was tender and delicious, with a flavor similar to calves liver. The panelles were good, but I wouldn’t make a pilgrimage just for them. Pasta con sarde was really nice too, but I would have liked a bit more sardine. The broccoli rabe was on point, the bitterness gone, not too oily, just right.
We split two cannolis and they were crisp. The espresso that came with them was better than I expected, a good sized pull with nice crema, not the usual sour, bitter Italian restaurant espresso. Service was excellent.
A lot of fun. Grab a vastedda if you are in the area.

Since Unilocal aligns Ferdinando’s in a different neighborhood than spots across the street (and their Bookmark functionality is at the same low level as it has been since they were founded), I almost didn’t go, which would’ve been a damn shame. Old school spot with decades-​long regulars, and an unsurprising $ 20 cc minimum, so get the $ 6.50 panelle special from this spot from folks who founded it more than 110 years ago out of Pozzallo, Sicily.
«Inhale the same scent of warm bread and sweet garlic that locals have been enjoying inside Ferdinando’s Focacceria for more than 110 years. „Nothing’s changed,“ says Francesco („call me Frank, everyone does“) Buffa. „You make the food. People like the food. Why would you change?“ The restaurant is seriously old-​school, with brown walls covered in black-​and-​white photos, Sinatra on loop, and red sauce. It’s determinedly not fancy. Buffa has been in charge for almost half a century. „My father-​in-​law taught me the recipes,“ he says. „Everything comes under my nose.“ Hearty sandwiches made with freshly baked bread entice a lunchtime crowd, while at dinner those in the know order melt-​in-​the-​mouth meatballs, arancina blanketed in sweet tomato sauce, and a range of exceptional Sicilian specialties. Don’t miss the panelle, a fried chickpea pastry served with fresh ricotta, or the freshly made burrata, the perfect partner to smoky grilled eggplant. Pasta con sarde is a house favorite made with sardines, wild fennel, pine nuts, raisins, and a saffron sauce. Wine is „red or white. Imported. What do you like? I’ll get you a glass,“ says Buffa. Save room if you can for a house-​made cannoli — among the best in the city. This is a meal almost outside time, generous and warm, served the way it always has been, with passion and pride.»

Not my first time here but will be my last; waitress made us wait too long for a table & served the most pathetic stuffed artichoke ive ever seen.
Panelle was skimpy on the ricotta & the pasta con sardi was way over priced. Riceball special was nothing special either.
Joe’s of Ave U is much better.

Ferdinando’s is quite simply a comforting slice of neighbourhood goodness. This is the epitome of the local Italian eatery, with the slight twist of focusing primarily on Sicilian dishes.
The dining room, though generally dated in it’s décor and probably originating in the early post-​war years, is nevertheless clean and comfortable. The waitstaff are pleasant and always on top of their game.
The arancina are the size of a softball, yet surprisingly light, stuffed with a mix of mince and veggies, covered in tomato sauce, and topped with ricotta cheese.
The pasta con sardi — a sicilian classic of sardines and raisins in a rich brown sauce over bucatini is perfect of hot afternoons and cold nights alike. It does tend to be a bit light on the seasoning, but still potent with salty and sweet flavours.
Another Sicilian classic, the pasta al Forno is a hearty tomato and meat sauce made luxuriant with ricotta cheese. The meat could be a bit more up front in the sauce for texture’s sake, but the flavour is definitely present.
Fernando’s is not new American Italian cuisine. You’re not going to see the novel interpretations of food that are becoming popular elsewhere in Italian-​esque eateries catering to the Food Network set. What you get at Ferdinando’s is the type of place you bring the kids when you want a lot of food for a reasonable spend, or where you take your parents for a homey style no-​frill good cookin’ dinner.

Hands down, BEST, I repeat BEST, Italian food in Brooklyn. I went here for my boyfriend’s birthday dinner with a group of about 10 people and the restaurant was extremely accommodating. The waitress was fabulous, down to earth, and quite simply, just amazing dealing with 10 people chugging wine and stuffing their faces.
I tried alot of different food — panelle, mussels, clams, stuffed artichokes, pasta, eggplant and my entrée was either veal or pork stuffed with all this other goodness — and it was truly an amazing meal. Everything was delicious and people couldn’t stop raving about the food and service. I sent my mother there today with her friends to enjoy a real deal Italian lunch. GO HERE!!!

OK we keep coming back for more. Its simply amazing food… Today we had the pasta alla sarde. Our waiter told us it was «award-​winning» how could we say no. Im not a fan of sardines but these are not the flat kind that you get on top of a caesar salad that have the bones sticking out and look like a flat worm.
Amazing food as always. Bad idea to go for lunch, one tend to overeat and its hard to go back to work after such a splurge…

Ferdinando’s is everything you would expect from a Sicilian restaurant that’s been a neighborhood fixture in Caroll Gardens, Brooklyn for over 100 years. Now that’s impressive! You know this place is doing something very right if they have lasted that long.
I came here for the first time about 10 years ago and although I live on the other side of the borough, I return from time to time because the food is amazing and it is so worth the subway ride or drive.
One of my favorite dishes is the Panelle Special, which seems to be very popular among others too. The Panelle Special consists of fried chickpea fritters, fresh ricotta cheese, sharp cheese, on a warm sesame bun. The sandwich isn’t huge, but don’t let that fool you because it is very filling. I recently brought my husband here and he loved it too!
When you eat at Ferdinando’s, it is like home. It’s casual and laid-​back, adorned with vintage décor like their pressed tin roof, white tiled floors and family photos. It seems this place hasn’t changed much over the years, which is a rare quality with restaurants.
Absolutely delicious food with an old-​fashioned, friendly atmosphere. I would come here more often if I lived closer.

These are what rice balls are supposed to be! What’s not to love about this old school Sicilian/​Italian focacceria? The panelle, rice balls and vastedda are all delicious. I’m gonna sit down one say and just go to town on everything else on the menu. I’m not much in to Manhattan special but they do have it on tap! This place is a classic!

I came here twice and ordered the same appetizers and main course.
Stuffed clams and stuffed artichoke are absolutely lovely. They have excellent imported wine.
The Sicilian eggplant was very disappointing the second time around, and my pasta was overlooked — not al dente. Sauce wasn’t the same. The first time I ordered this, it was absolutely WONDERFUL. Also, the olive oil seems to be very different (watered down).

So I would have never heard of this place if it wasn’t for the show on The Travel Channel called Sausage Paradise.(Yes, I giggled in my head too) So the atmosphere is fantastic, it’s very old world Italian that’s been around for over 109 years, the floors and the ceiling are all original. Also, the celeb wall is a nice touch. The plates they serve desserts on kinda feels like it belongs to an old Italian grandmother. Also, I guess the front doors are 100 years old as well because these suckers were tiny. I felt like I was supposed to squeeze through sideways one butt check at a time. LOL Also, the waitress that has been there 7 years, she said she started a week after Pierce Brosnan visited, was such a sweetheart. She really made the experience better.
The food:
Table Bread– I know it so weird that I am commenting on the table bread but it really was exceptional. The bread is homemade and the flavored olive oil with herb and the chili flakes were fantastic.
Antipasto Rustico– it’s grilled eggplant, caponata, and sun dried tomatoes. This with the table bread was an excellent starter. The caponta was fantastic, I could eat that all day. The grilled eggplant and sun dried tomatoes were good, not great.
Arancina Special– This sucker is a huge rice ball. I got the special version that was the rice ball with chopped meat inside with ricotta and tomato sauce on top. The ricotta and tomato sauce are both excellent, they are both homemade and a must addition. This dish kinda has to be eaten hot, once it sits, it loses it’s umph. It’s a nice dish for the first few bites but it gets repetitive. It’s still a good dish to order.
Sausage Parm– this is what was featured on Sausage Paradise, it’s homemade sausage on a homemade roll. The flavor was excellent and the tomato sauce was very good. The dish was nice but too one note.
Panelle Special– chick pea squares with ricotta and grated cheese. The chick peas were a little oily but the ricotta and grated cheese made this dish from a good dish to a very good dish. It’s very straight forward flavors, nothing too explosive with flavor but I would recommend.
Vastedda– Sicilian specialty of spleen, ricotta and grated cheese. So I heard of this through various outlets and it’s considered a must try, it was featured by Scott Conant on Food Network’s Best Thing I Ever Ate. So, for me and me only, I couldn’t get through it. First mistake I made was smelling it, and it smells exactly how it taste. It has a very strong smell and taste of I guess, spleen. I gave it two bites because that’s how Andrew Zimmern dictates, if you don’t like it give it a second bite. On the second bite I realized I couldn’t eat it, the taste was too strong for me.
Cannoli– granted it was an excellent Cannoli with a great crunch from the shell and a fantastic cream center but for $ 7 I think it was over priced.