Sam Sifton Awards a Deuce to Cultishly Loved Torrisi

As mentioned last week, Sam Sifton has set his sights on the cultishly loved diminutive Nolita restaurant Torrisi Italian Specialties for his big review this week. And it's already up! As many predicted, he gave it a solid deuce. He calls it a restaurant that is "unlike any other in Manhattan":

At night, though, the room is transformed...the dishes are no longer humble. They are edible paintings, comestible short stories. It is strange and wonderful to eat them in the same place you were sitting before, eating a chicken parm...

...One night brought fusilli in an offal-rich duck ragù; another, a sweet ravioli with a tang of red wine vinegar and a low hum of salty chicken liver. The menu had it named for Caruso, the opera singer. You could have tasted it over the radio and wept.

Sifton says this cooking is more aggressively technical than Frankies, simpler than that of Michael White or Mark Ladner, and most reminiscent of Gabrielle Hamilton or the "early days" of David Chang. He notes, "It is not fine dining, but it sure is fine." Question: Will that prix fixe price go up tomorrow, or next week?
· Torrisi Italian Specialties [NYT]
· Lines Are About to Get Even Longer at Torrisi [~ENY~]
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Torrisi Italian Specialties

250 Mulberry Street, New York, NY 10012 (212) 965-0955 Visit Website

Torrisi Italian Specialties

250 Mulberry St., New York, NY