NYC Italian Eats: The New Guard

Babbo

Arguably one of the most coveted seats in town (well, besides Per Se, but downtown Italian is really much more fun). It's Batali's favorite child, and though some people love to hate, they're just jealous because they couldn't get a res. You probably know the drill: pastoral Greenwich Village side street, crowded front bar area, a well-trained staff, extremely loud music (often Led Zeppelin) and some of the best Italian food in New York. It's such an icon of high-end Italian that it's hard to believe it's only been open a decade. Oft-cited favorite dishes include the grilled octopus, the foie-gras or the beef-cheek ravioli, the rabbit, and the pork chop. Once you get in, it's really quite hard to go wrong.

Babbo
110 Waverly Place between Sixth Ave. and MacDougal St.
212-777-0303