Zio

I finally made it to Zio!  Zio lingered on my list for almost a year due to a few cancelled dinners.  But with a quadruple birthday dinner celebration, I had a hunch this one was on.  Zio first caught my eye because their wine list features one of my favorite Tuscan wineries, Boscarelli, which I have never found on a NYC wine menu before.

On a Thursday night, Zio's bar/lounge area was packed while the restaurant dining room was approximately half full.  Zio means "uncle" in Italian, which may explain why the owners went with a fun, modern decor, giving the Italian restaurant a trendier feel.  There are many large booths at Zio to accommodate groups and ample space in between the tables so the six of us had plenty of space and never felt crowded by other tables/diners.

The wines by the bottle at Zio are more impressive than the wines by the glass so try to go with someone that will share a bottle with you (or if you can finish the bottle by yourself, more power to you).  The bar serves fun, unique cocktails as well.

We definitely had a few service hiccups, giving the restaurant an authentic Italian feel (the service was very slow, when the maitre d checked on us I let him know and he apologized but surprisingly, he did not send over a gesture dessert or something of that nature for the extended delays).   The kitchen was slow and our dirty plates lingered on our table, but the fantastic primis and secondis more than made up for it.

What to Eat:

 Start with a primi of the Pappardelle.  The wide, paper thin, home made noodles are tossed in a savory lamb ragu.  The sauce had a generous amount of long, tender chunks of braised lamb.  I would go back for a few reasons but this dish is reason enough.








For my secondi, I ordered the Branzino, which was heavily marinated in olive oil.  I definitely recommend this entree but be warned, you will need to take out the bones.  The Branzino comes with broccoli rabe but I asked for the crispy artichokes instead.  The crispy artichokes were delicious!  Zio should offer them as a side dish.  If your entree does not come with them, ask for them as well.  A side note (pun intended): the roasted potatoes are fantastic as well and they are offered as a contorni.


None of the desserts grabbed me (the Semifreddo was good but nothing outstanding) but the bigger problem is the mischaracterization on the menu of the Crostada.  The menu offers a berry crostata but it was just a custard fruit tart.  That's like saying you offer a chocolate souffle and then serve a molten chocolate cake.  A crostata is supposed to be a baked fruit tart and so in my eyes, Zio's missed the mark on it's dessert.

Despite the service delays and lackluster dessert, I still loved Zio and look forward to my next plate of their Pappardelle.

Looking for a new spot for a date night or group dinner?  Check out Zio's large menu and delicious food,

Your foodie friend