Little Italy’s hidden gems

Is there more to Little Italy than crappy crowds and soulless sellouts? Turns out, yes—if you look well.

Little Italy is less Italian than a serving of General Tso's chicken is Chinese. Gone are the stoop-shouldered paisanos and slicked-hair Mafioso, replaced by tacky, Disneyfied hucksters swaddled in red-green-and-white T-shirts. Nowadays, it's easier to buy a "KISS ME I'M ITALIAN" tee than a plateful of tender ricotta ravioli. Where's the neighborhood's tasty soul?

But all is not lost. Peek beneath L.I.'s kitschy exterior and you'll uncover old-timers who care more about quality food than catering to cannoli-crazed tourists. On a sun-soaked Friday afternoon, we scoured Little Italy to find eats worth braving the cattle-car crowds. Little Italy is, we discovered, deliciously redeemable after all. —Joshua M. Bernstein

Photos by Jenene Chesbrough