101 new NYC restaurants

Maialino

Just added!

Newly minted four-starer Danny Meyer is booked at the Gramercy Park Hotel with this highly anticipated Roman trattoria, which takes over the old Wakiya space. It's Meyer's first foray into Italian cuisine, and a particularly personal project: He once worked as a tour guide in Rome for his father's travel company. (Check out the quaint backstory on the restaurant's name. Awww.) At the helm is Gramercy Tavern vet Nick Anderer,  who describes Maialino as "very seasonal and heavily pasta-driven," with most of the pastas made in-house: spaghetti alla carbonara; malfatti with suckling-pig ragu. The overall feel of the menu is classic—think fritto misto. The elegant space (wood paneling, murals) was designed by starchitect David Rockwell (Adour) and features a private dining room that can seat up to 22 people. Maialino is also the first Danny Meyer restaurant to serve breakfast, starting in December. Just in case that coveted dinner reservation is weeee bit hard to come by.

Maialino
Gramercy Park Hotel
2 Lexington Ave. at 21st St.
212-777-2410)