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Category: Italian
Neighborhood: Theater DistrictTimes Square-42nd St (1, 2, 3, S, 7, N, Q, R, W, A, C, E)
42nd St-5th Ave-6th Ave (7, B, D, F, V)
Mon. 11:30 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Tue. 11:30 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Wed. 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Thu-Fri. 11:30 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Sat. 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Sun. 11:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
"So you're at Jacob Javitz Center you have a group of people with you and you only have an hour or so away for a meal. THANK GOODNESS this…" read more »
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Go for a group dinner. We were 10 of us last night, but still could not finish the whole thing.
Cesar Salad:
Mixed Green Salad:
Both salad were seasoned well. I tasted savory flavor of olive which
made the salads a little more flavorful than other place's.
Marinara:
Simple tomato sauce but very tasty.
Oil & Garlic:
Good but not amazing. I've had better one.
Ravioli with Chese:
Easy to share: )
Italian Cheese Cake:
Soft and creamy. Yum.
Tiramisu:
Carmine's might be the orthodox recipe?
Boys said it's too sweet but girls loved it!
I came in at 8pm and out at around 10:30pm, so
the street was crowded with those musical people.
You should make a reservation at least 2 days in advance of your visit.
People thought this was:
I'm gonna say Carmine's is "very good". Not excellent. & certainly not exceptional.
It's a solid place to bring a group of buddies who like to eat alot. The portions are huge. One man cannot possibly do it alone.
What I do appreciate about Carmine's is that they are consistent and they keep it simple. Sometimes (doing) less is more. And that is the base for great italian cooking. Simple. Fresh. & lots of it.
There is only one problem with eating here ... All of my fav. Italian spots now suck.
This place is life freaking changing. More food then a human should be allowed to eat. Yelp did not let me down on this one.
I am close to tears and speechlessness because of this place.
If you are in NYC (times square) for any reason - go. That's it. Just go.
People thought this was:
Carmine's is really suited for large groups as all of their dishes are family style. But if there are two of you sit at the bar, get an appetizer or hot antipasto platter, a couple of cosmos and you are good to go, a great pre-show meal and a great place to chat up the other folks at the bar. Their cosmos THE best.
Portions are huge I suggest sharing
But the food is great
Bloody Mary is ok had better
Would go back for sure
But my waitress Emily was to busy on her iPhone to pay attention to our table but hey cant have it all
Ok, the Manhattan food snobs might call this a tourist trap, but there is no denying that this place puts out consistent, quality food night in and night out. I've not met a New Yorker that would turn down a dinner at Carmines. Great for larger groups e.g. 10 or more.
BAHHH .. TOURIST TRAP !! - Butttt ... its wonderful for large groups. Much like Tony's, but in a more accessible location in Times Square. A perfect target for those tourist who don't know what to do once they get out of Midtown. :)
The food is simply "okay". And thats it. It's family-style AKA made in bulk so you can't expect much for taste. But its a pretty good deal when your with a large group of people who don't want the typical nyc Italian restaurant price tag.
We had dinner at Carmine's one night and the wait was ridiculous. I told myself.. this better be good! So fortunately the food was pretty good but what surprised me were the servings -- they were HUGE! Good thing our waitress tipped us in advance so we ordered just enough for four peeps.
This place was fun and lively, but do expect to wait a bit to be seated.
One thing that bothered me a lot though were the menus. Menus on the wall? Really? I was squinting so hard trying to read the menu 15 feet from where I was seated.
People thought this was:
Best Italian food.
Not just here, but anywhere.
I count Italy.
Group events? This one's a no brainer--accommodating staff without the menu headaches. It's family style with each dish big enough for at least 5 hungry appetites to finish.
for our bday gathering of 14pp: Along with our 4 appetizer dishes, we had 2 angel hair and 2 penne alla vodka, 2 veal, cutlet parm, meatball (huge) and the end results after stuffing our face was 3 left over pasta dishes. Drinks and a couple of beers make it even more delightful =P
And we had the titanic to finish =D It was a perfect night and a great way to spend your 30th with a big group of friends!! Birthday boy was definitely impressed and thought it was the best birthday set up ever~
GREAT FOOD!! The service was pretty good considering how busy they were. You NEED to make reservations!! It is family serving style so it is A LOT of food and easy to over order but everything is wonderful!!
Tourist trap, yes. Some of the best chicken wings I have ever had? Totally. Worth the 2+ hour wait.
People thought this was:
I wish more places did family style. Went here for a friends birthday party and all I can say about the management is god bless them for their patience. We were there with one of my batshit insane friend was celebrating her 30th birthday and to say the least we were 'that table' in the restaurant. Food was very very good with even better service. They kept everyone happy and did a pretty good job with a wilder crowd. Portions were huge and the food cost was reasonable. The drinks were a little pricey for what they were.
Bottom Line: Perfect place to take a visiting family or a date. Presentation and professionalism was very good. Fun time and good atmosphere (especially for Times Square).
I agree with the previous poster who said this place was a tourist place. I ate here on my first night in New York and we were less than impressed. I will say that the food was delicious. It was just me and my boyfriend so it was too much food for us. The service was TERRIBLE. Our waitress left for 10 minute stretches at a time. The waitress of the next section over did the majority of our serving.
The table next to us was about to go to a show and they couldn't finish their Tiramisu so they gave it to us because there was almost half of the family-sized portion left. Our waitress was totally pissed and told us we were violating health codes. I'm sure we were. I also can see that she might think we would tip her less, but I was intending to compensate had she been half-way decent. Our drinks were empty the entire time. I had to get up and ask someone for the check. I had to get up and ask another person for a box. My boyfriend and I were actually done eating when she stopped by our table and said, "Oh! You got your food!". Uh, yeah. No thanks to you.
I was expecting a wait, so the 25 minute wait didn't bother me at all.
There are way better Italian restaurants in the city than this. Just sayin'
Pros: Cons:
* Large Portions - Don't go alone * Cliche Italian Food
* Price is normal for area * Hard to find parking
* STUFFED CLAMS! * Occasional Waiting list
* Great for picking up Tourists!
Summary:
Overall Good Food, Great atmosphere, Solid bar, and conveniently located if your a pedestrian.
VERDICT- 4/5 meatballs
People thought this was:
I would say that for this place you get pretty good quantity for what you paid for. We had the fried calamari and the days special with a couple of other dishes i forgot. For a big guy like me i was full pretty quick, it was loud but it is a nice place to go with ur friends for a birthday. It's family style so there is no individual chick parm so pick what you want to eat wisely. The chef added a lot of salt on our dishes which was a bit of a turn off, i had to drink a lot of water in the little 4 oz glasses we had to wash down the salt.
The place for a large/loud group - especially if some or all of the group is composed of visitors. The service is great and the food is pretty good for the theatre district.
Make reservations!
People thought this was:
Definitely a tourist spot...
Take that away and you have a really nice spot. We had a big party and tried ALOT of stuff. My favs were the shrimp parmigan, porterhouse contadina, ceasar salad, and the the chicken fricasse.
These dishes had tons of flavor and ad were enjoyable to eat.
Restaurants like these are the reason for Americans' chronic obesity. "Family size" portions should be renamed "army sized" due to the vast heapings of calamari and chicken parm that come out of the kitchen. The food is decent if you don't know any better - the butter and garlic sure make it taste good.
Served in such quantities, it's not the quality of the food but rather the location and history of the place that make it worth going to.
People thought this was:
Visited NY with some family. LOVE this place! The atmosphere was nice and classy. The family style was great. I'm in love with the kalamari. It was probably the best kalamari I have tried. The lasagna melted in my mouth. We ordered about 3 appetizers and 2 main courses and dessert of course. All satisfied my taste buds! The service was wonderful.. she happened to be a Californian native so she definitely took care of us.
When I go back to NY, I will definitely pay Carmine's another visit.
People thought this was:
Excellent food! Family style and a fun atmosphere. One of the handful of Italian meals I had in NY. I'm sure there are better there that are even less "commercial" and more "homey" but, hey, it wasn't Buca di Beppo (which I actually do enjoy also).
I had my wife's 30th surprise party here and was nervous about how it would all go down. All in the staff were super helpful and took care of me. The food kept coming and was amazing. No one really had room for dessert but we all managed to make it fit. The only downfall was the moron at the front. It was a surprise party so I walk up to the hostess who got it and asked a waiter to bring us to our table. The exchange went something like this:
Hostess: "Will you take the "Duffman" party of two to table 302?"
DumbassWaiter: "That must be a mistake."
Hostess: "Please take the Thomas PARTY OF TWO to table 302."
DumbassWaiter: "But table 302 is HUUUUUUGE????"
Hostess: "Just take them!"
DumbassWaiter: "You guys must be meeting some huge group."
So basically she knew prior to us getting to the table but other than that they were a fiver.
People thought this was:
Classic.
Great food and service. Tourist location but worth it.
After spending a day sightseeing Times Square my group and I decided to stop at Carmine's for a pre-broadway show dinner! Staff was very friendly and explained in detail that Carmine's is great for large groups!! The serving plates are family sized portions, which are made to be shared with a large group. She recommended the Four Pasta Plate. This plate was so filling and very delicious! I highly recommend this location and cannot wait to return to New York for a Times Square evening, plus a great dinner at Carmines.
The location was very busy, however the hostess and waitstaff were very attentive to our need to get to a Broadway show in a timely manner!! Thank you Carmine's !!
Being that we were staying near Broadway, we made our way to this restaurant, and had to wait a very long time for a table, but it was worth it. We were visiting with my boyfriend's parents who speak only Spanish, so normally he has to translate when we go out to dinner.
Our waiter began to explain the restaurant/menu to us, and noticed my boyfriend was translating for his parents. Without hesitation our waiter began to speak Spanish - which of course delighted them. Despite being (as they would call) "gringo," our waiter did an excellent job explaining the menu to them.
Yes the portion are ginormous, but everything we had was excellent. All around a great place for a tourist to check out and pig out.
People thought this was:
The portions are huge but people seem to equate that with quality and the food is missing that. The atmosphere is loud and our server was just overbearing at best. The bread was the best part of the meal and when our $30 lasagna plate came out I was underwhelmed. That is a ton of lasagna to be underwhelmed by.
On another embarrassing note, I walked into the bathroom and apparently was not quite paying much attention. After taking care of business I walked over to the sink, turned the water on, and motioned to my left for some soap. A soap like dispenser is sitting there but it's not soap! That would be full of mouthwash that I just smeared over my hands. The soap is in front of the sink up on the wall. *shrugs* I only tell you about my embarrassment in hopes to prevent your own, haha.
This is a place I would consider coming back to with a larger group but let me tell you, better Italian food can be found in New York with minimal effort.
Very good. I would go back in a NY minute. Staff was great, servings were huge. 2-4 could eat for $60. Stuffed mushrooms & trimisu were the best.
This place is good if you've got a lot of people to feed. We order it at work sometimes. I think the pasta's are good. I like the chicken parm. I think they have good appetizer foods as well. I've never eaten at the actually restaurant, but the quality of delivery is pretty good.
Went here before seeing a Broadway show, and I'll tell you that the food coma I got from this place during the show almost made me KO. The food here is exceptionally delicious and served in the most generous of portions. Everyone I was with enjoyed the family style platters that were easy to share, the quick and friendly service, and the quaint atmosphere.
The rigatoni and parmigiana were BOMB. They weren't too dry over overly saturated with marinara sauce. Even their basket of variety bread was good. This place easily beats out Buca di Beppo over here, which means it's pretty darn good. If I ever go back to New York, I'll be going out of my way to go here again.
This restaurant is a little pricey, but the food is excellent and the portions are very big. Atmosphere is very nice also.
How can a city like NY even have one of these? They are the mecca of Italian restaurants! Find a hole in the wall Italian place where it's fresher and you dont have to wait 2 freaking hours for poor service, expensive prices and so/so food...
This place does nothing wrong. The only reason I cannot give it five stars is that last night I ate at Tony's di Napoli nearby and ordered a practically identical meal... and the food was better (except for the bread at Carmines which was more variable and delicious)... and the price was better at Tony's.
The server here was friendly but overbearing. Nice guy, just a little over the top with his comments and "in your face" mannerisms... to the point where it felt like a forced act.
The ambiance in this place is great and the portions were a good size. I hate to be tooting this Tony's horn over and over but seriously, I left that place talking about the food, taking the leftovers home and anxious to hype them up on yelp. Carmines didnt do that for me but it is still a good spot to spend a couple hours with people you like to visit laugh and swap tales with.
Cin cin, Salute!
I think this will be my first 5 star review. Seriously that is how good this place is! Like for shizz guys the food is so good my mouth is salivating just thinking about it. The portions are HUMUNGO and the people are super nice. Oh and if you order an alcoholic beverage, be ready to be feeling pretty good cause they are huge as well. Worth every penny spent in my opinion. The staff is so nice too, if you're visiting, they are more than happy to tell you the spots to go or shows to see or even their life stories!
I think anyone who is visiting New York must go, I cannot stress this enough it was just so yummy!
People thought this was:
I don't think the food is worth a 2 hour wait- even if I didn't have to wait 2 hours to eat here. There's really nothing spectacular about the menu or anything offered. I think just because of the size and location- it really doesn't do much in regards to taste. I've dined here numerous times and each time is a pretty forgettable experience. Personally- if given the choice, I'd go across the street to Tony DiNapoli instead.
People thought this was:
Yes, I know there are probably better Italian food out there, and yes this place is swimming in tourist, and yes the wait can often be long. But heck I love this place! Love the family style, oh and the veal masala... mmmmm..... soooo good! The bartenders are great. They make the waiting period enjoyable. If you haven't tried the "panty remover" drink from the main bar, definitely ask for it next time you are there! The bartender that created the drink is such a sweetheart - my drink was on the house :)
People thought this was:
Gargantuous portions to feed your family. When they say family size - they're not kidding! It's crazy loud in this place which I find great for family gatherings with kids so your kids don't become outliers in the dining room. Reservations a must!
Prices here in NYC for Carmine's is a heck cheaper than in Atlantis, Bahamas. Food is delicious - favorites are penne vodka, pasta with garden vegetables and tiramisu.
Once again, I sauntered into Carmine's after a Friday night theatre jaunt, and POOF! we had a table right away. My poor friends who had luggage in tow had to drag it up the stairs -- suckers.
Our waiter was very accommodating, sat down at our table with us, which was kind of fun, and made his recommendations. We opted for a hugola gigantic spinach salad, cold antipasto, and stuffed mushrooms. That's three appetizers, which three of us could not finish. With drinks, we paid about $35 a couple, which is not too steep, especially with dynamite service and really great, consistent food.
It's very simple. You need good food with good service before or after the theatre. This is the… Read more »
Gigantic portions, B+ service, tons of options, excellent vibe, friendly folk, and convenient location--what's not to love?
Took a giant party here for a milestone birthday and were treated very well despite an insane crowd outside in Times Square.
Bartenders were absolute ninjas. I love watching people do their job exceptionally well, and these guys are a treat.
Best of: Stuffed mushrooms, bargain-basement wine that's still drinkable, insane portions, excellent catering manager, best bargain for a large group in the city.
Not so hot: guy-with-winelist caliber sommelier attempting to upsell.
I looked at more than thirty places to take a large crowd on a Saturday night; you could do a LOT worse than this.
Carmine's is overwhelming. The place is much bigger than I'd expect from a Time's Square location and when you walk in, you are immediately plunged in the oppressive humanity that is European tourists and large parties. *NOTE: BULLY THE HOSTESS INTO LETTING YOU MAKE RESERVATIONS. My host did and we thanked her profusely for it.*
The wait is long, but with large parties, it's unnoticeable. You munch on stale (EW) bread while you figure out what you want to eat. The restaurant is family style so a salad feeds 6-8 people, an appetizer gave everyone at our 15-person + table a bit to sample, and a meat dish fed 8 people easy. Pasta? Enough to feed a small army. Dessert? Huge (Recommended: chocolate torte. Intensely mouthgasmic.)
The food is good. It's well done, and there's generally a lot of wine to lubricate the entire evening. It's a GREAT venue for parties and large gatherings.
HOWEVER. It cost WAY more than I thought it would. I was expecting to cough up about $20. WRONG. It was more than twice that. The "family style" tricks you into thinking that it won't be that much, but once you add a $40 bottle of wine to the mix, all bets are off.
So as much as I'd love to come back, my wallet will thank me for staying away for a while, I think. At least until the next big party.
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