Locanda Verde

I approached Thursday night date night at Locanda Verde with skepticism, Robert DeNiro, a restaurateur?  Turns out this Goodfella also co-owns NYC's Nobu so I was clearly out of touch and proven oh so wrong by the amazing food that awaited me. The chef, Andrew Camellini was the head chef at Cafe Boulud, but exchanged the jacket required ambiance for a true neighborhood taverna that was both outstanding and affordable.  The restaurant itself is large to the point of cavernous, but was so jam packed that it felt just as cozy as a ten table cafe in the West Village.  We asked the waitress to bring us the most popular appetizers, main course, and dessert.  We ended up with sheep's milk ricotta crostini, lamb meatball sliders, gigantone with Sunday night ragu, and a pear crisp.  Each course was delectably delicious.  The lamb meatball sliders were topped with miniature pickles and homemade sauce that put ketchup to shame, and rank as the best sliders I have ever had.  Skipping dessert was not an option here with famed pastry chef Karen deMasco from Craft, and the pear crisp could have stood alone as a showstopper.  There is nothing better than a hyped restaurant that actually deserves the accolades and attention.  Pictures of my meatball sliders below.  Shania Twain was at the next table and thought I was taking pictures of her, but the real celebrity at Locanda that night was this meatball slider!