Carbone

Carbone at 181 Thompson Street in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, is a modern take on the mid-century Italian-American red-sauce restaurant, with theatrical service and a retro dining room. The cuisine centres on classic dishes such as pasta, veal and seafood, prepared with a high-end sensibility and often finished or presented at the table. The spicy rigatoni vodka is the emblematic dish and one of the most photographed plates in the city, and the veal parmesan and the Caesar salad, prepared tableside, are the other signatures. Other menu items include baked clams, lobster diavolo and a dessert cart. The dining room is glamorous and lively, with red banquettes, mid-century decor, tuxedo-style uniforms and a sound system playing period music, and the atmosphere is upbeat, sociable and quite loud. Guests generally dress smartly. The wine list leans toward Italian bottles and includes cocktails and classic martinis. Carbone is among the hardest reservations in New York City. Tables are released through Resy about thirty days ahead and typically vanish quickly, so visitors should plan to book the moment they open, and dates around weekends and holidays are hardest. Weekend lunch and cancellations offer alternative routes to a table, and the restaurant's website has the current booking method. Prices are at the high end, with pasta dishes costing around thirty to fifty dollars and a full dinner for two easily reaching several hundred dollars. The Thompson Street address puts the restaurant in the heart of the South Village, near Washington Square Park, Bleecker Street and MacDougal Street, so it suits a special-occasion meal within a broader evening in Greenwich Village.