Netflix Is Taking Over Little Italy With Free Food to Promote ‘The Irishman’

Little Italy time warp

In a promotion for Netflix’s new Oscar bait film The Irishman, the studio is giving a stretch of NYC’s Little Italy a makeover this weekend, mocking it up like it’s 1975 and offering freebies from local restaurants. The mob film comes from Little Italy’s own Martin Scorcese, and to get more people to watch it — now in a limited theatrical run and on Netflix starting next week — the streaming platform is putting up 1975-era signs and cars from Canal Street to Spring Street, and funding promotions at spots like Parm and Ferrara Bakery. Free food and drinks will be available to visitors if they “tell ‘em Jimmy sent you”— that’s the codeword/promo code. It’s Friday, November 22, and Saturday, November 23, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The Little Italy stunt is the latest big-budget promotion from Netflix, which recently backed a “residency” for Noah Baumbach at the LES Metrograph theater. Observers suggest these moves are ways to curry favor with NYC academy voters ahead of possible Oscar nominations. Will a free parm tip the scales? More specials are available at Parisi Bakery, Sal’s Little Italy, Caffe Roma, Mulberry Wine & Liquor, Alleva Dairy, Di Palo’s Fine Foods, Caffe Palermo, and Manero’s Pizza.

Tom Colicchio’s menu at the Morgan Library & Museum

Chef Tom Colicchio’s new menu at the Morgan Library & Museum is up and running, following an announcement this summer. Dishes at the Morgan Café include chicken paillard and caramelized onion dip; at the more formal Morgan Dining room, a lunch prix fixe with items like grilled quail is available for $35. According to a Times article, Colicchio’s presence is part of a push from management company Restaurant Associates, which is trying to reestablish credibility by bringing in folks like Colicchio and inviting John Fraser to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for pop-ups.

In other news

— An illustrated ode to El Sabrosa, where lunch at a loading dock is an antidote to the horrors of Midtown.

— The Cookmobile, a cousin to the Bookmobile, teaches cooking to patrons of the Brooklyn Public Library.

— Upper West Side beer hotspot Beer Shop has closed after more than three years in the business.

— Seasonal reading