Briciola

Well, were do I start.
My first time to Briciola was lunch with my boss. I was expecting the usual rushed lunch time meal. But no, this place was amazing. Home style Italian food, amazing ambience and the friendliest of staff.
I have been back many times now and have tried just about everything on the menu and it never fails to disappoint. This includes the wine list, Super Tucan red (cant remember the name) for under $ 40. What, that can’t be true? Yes it can and boy was it good. A great pairing with our Baby Roasted Artichokes in herb sauce with black olives, grilled lamb chops, grilled calamari, Gnocchi al Pesto and the Tagiatelle Alla Bolognese.
A special date night place, go to the theatre and then dinner afterwards. Romantic, great food and best of all, great prices. The space is a little small /​cozy but just adds to the vibe as does the authentic Italian /​European servers and manager.
I know, there are so many great places to eat at when in NYC but really, trust me when I say, this is a place not to be missed.

I simply cannot get over how cheap and delicious their menu is. If the restaurant itself wasn’t so tiny, it’d be 5 stars!
Squeezing in thru the bar area into the dining room was struggle city. Once seated at the long communal table, I could finally sit back and appreciate the rustic décor. It has a wine cellar vibe with dimly lit lights; its a cute romantic spot. You have to hang your coat up on the wall and pretty much hold onto your bags underneath the table (annoying), but the food was so good that I forgot all about my discomfort.
We started with the Crostini di Pulpo which was just perfect. The octopus was so tender and it paired really well with the salsa verde. I’d like to say I enjoyed the crostini but it scraped the roof of my mouth (we all know that feel). We tried 4 pastas but I can only recall 2 of them: Tagliatelle Bolognese & Garganelli Osso Bucco. They were both yummy but the bolognese reallyyy blew us away… WOW. Pretty sure they were heavy handed with the heavy cream in that dish but I ain’t complaining! My friend & I also split a bottle of cabernet so its safe to say that we walked out of there pleasantly full & buzzed. Service was pleasant, no complaints.
Will return again and again. See you soon, Briciola!

Such a cute little place! Very cozy, great wine list, the food was delicious. Tiny little gem! Had the clam linguini. At first glance, I couldn’t believe how TINY the space was, but once you settle in, it’s a unique vibe that I thoroughly enjoyed!

Came in late after watching Wicked. This was one of the few kitchens open. The seating is cute, but as people said in prior reviews, not good for big groups as there is only 1 communal table.
I ordered the octopus salad and sardines. Octopus was good, i didnt care for the sardines. Others ordered the lasagna, kale salad and steak. The only dish we thought was better than average was the steak.
Although dinner was okay, we heard the desserts were good — and they didn’t disappoint. We got the crème brûlée, chocolate lava cake, ricotta cheesecake and panna cotta. I thought all were very good however I’m a sucker for a good panna cotta and chcocate lava cake. I would come back for desserts.

A cozy little restaurant is a place to go for some pasta and wine — either by yourself or with a friend. For bigger groups I’d recommend to book in advance.
Prices are very reasonable for the high-​quality food they offer, and the staff made me feel very welcome and comfortable. I came by myself, so I ended up chatting with them. Very friendly and nice people.
The interior is nothing like I’ve seen before — the tiny space is split up in two with a bar on one side, and a long table on the other. Wood everywhere, big windows, good music.
I was craving gnocchi, as I told the guy who was taking my order — that day they had a truffle gnocchi special, so that’s what I went for, paired with a glass of dry, fresh white wine. The dish came with bread and olive oil dip — this little detail made me absolutely ecstatic.

You know you’ve been to too many wine bars when you start to notice menu design similarities.
So if you’re insane like me, you may also notice the wine menu at Briciola resembles the one at Aria in the West Village.
That’s because Briciola is owned by chef Roberta Passon, who also owns the Perry St. Aria, a second Aria, AND Cotenna.
Anyone who runs that many successful wine bars/​restaurants in this city must be doing something right. And it’s not difficult to see just how Passon is making it happen.
Like Aria on Perry St., Briciola is rustic, romantic, and delightful. The wine selection is strong and well-​priced, the servers are kind, and while I can’t vouch for the food here, I’m hopeful any wine bar with meat hanging from the ceiling serves good tapas.
I still prefer the Perry St. Aria because of that unbeatable West Village ambiance. But for a wine bar in the Theater District, Briciola is wonderful — and clearly a strong member of this Passon restaurant empire.

A small, cozy Italian restaurant with a delicious cuisine which I highly recommend. The Shrimp with artichokes (appetizer) and the shrimp pasta were so good ! Can’t wait to comeback again !

Bön restaurant italien ou nous sommes allé pour diner. Un gérant très aimable et une bonne musique d’ambiance. J’étais un peu surpris en entrant de né voir qu’une seule grosse table ou les gens sont tous assis côte à côte, mais finalement ce n’était pas gênant. Les plats étaient très variés et très bien préparés, le vin était délicieux. Une bonne adresse que je conseil vivement.

Per the recommendation of the bartender, I ordered the octopus salad. This isn’t your run-​of-​the-​mill marinated/​chilled dish; no, it was WARM octopus salad. The texture was heaven. the morsels were so large and inside was so fresh that one might mistake it for pork belly fat. The «salad» was served with sparse bits of greens and potato, which allowed the octopus to overpower its accouterments (as it should!).
Too bad this was my last night of my business trip! I was craving their lobster risotto and mushroom pasta as well!

This place has the most amazing tasting homemade pasta. I had doughy pasta with a red sauce and a glass of red wine. Every bite was better and better. I don’t usually finish a full pasta plate but had this gone down to the very last bite.

This is one of my favorite wine bars in the area. Skip the sister restaurant across the street, Briciola while smaller, offers up a better menu.
Order the mushroom bruschetta, goat cheese and tomato sauce, or the meatballs to start. Out of the pastas, spicy shrimp and papardelle ossobuco are both really good and filling.
Two appetizers and a pasta would be perfect for two. All the wines are pretty reasonable between 30 – 60 a bottle. Come here because you’re not in a rush and just want to enjoy the company you are with. You’ll also walk away with new friends at Briciola since the service is friendly and helpful.

Came here last weekend w/​my girlfriend as a walk in. We dined at the bar in the back by the kitchen. Place seems like a hidden gem. Very narrow place but towards the back there is also more seatings.
I have to admit I was kind of annoyed. Seating at the end of the bar where service area would go back and forth. I’m a lefty so every now and then service kept swooshing my arm and its like what the freak. I’m about to put food in my mouth and if I missed it it would have been all over my white top –_​– but whatever.
I thought the food was ok nothing really to rave about…
Ordered:
— Blue Point Oysters (it was sandy because they did not wash the shell thoroughly) I wouldn’t recommend ordering them. There was two pea crabs in two oysters. I found that to be kind of unappealing…
— Vongole Origante (Baked Clams)
— Cozze Marinate (Steamed Mussels)
— Ravioli Ricotta
— Bucatini Amiriciana (Pork Cheek Sauce, Grill Onions, Tomato Pasta)
Ambience was really chilled and relax. This would be a to go bar for a drink and maybe some dessert other than that ehh.
Tips:
Avoid the Sandy Blue Point Oysters & do not sit at the end of the bar by the kitchen if you are a left handed eater.
I wonder how are the cooks able to see in that dark small cornered kitchen. Their guide was candle lighting. I saw because I peaked and they use the same candle light setting at the bar in their little kitchen.

By far the BEST Italian food I’ve ever had.
Found this place on Unilocal and after reading such great reviews I decided to have lunch with a friend here. I arrived early and was disappointed by the size of the restaurant — it’s small with high chairs only. We decided to dine here anyway and I’m so happy we did. The food? Amazing!!! Prepared in a small open kitchen, everything was flavorful. I had rigatoni with shrimp, garlic and spinach for my entrée. Dates with Gorgonzola cheese for an appetizer as well as a small cheese plate (we shared). I can’t remember the name of the wine that I had but it was good — not sweet how I usually like it but they found something suitable. Cheesecake for dessert. Not huge portions which is why I was able to eat so much :-)
The staff? Awesome. Our waiter was attentive, provided great recommendations and made a bit of conversation with us. Most waitstaff forget about connecting with the customer but he did not.
I want to come back here to try everything on the menu. This place will be my new obsession.
Ha!