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Categories: Italian, Sandwiches [Edit]
Neighborhood: West Village14th St-8th Ave (A, C, E, L)
Christopher St (1)
14th St-7th Aves (1, 2, 3, F, V, L)
"Thoroughly impressed! I came here for an office dinner with roughly 15 people, and the service was attentive from start to finish. When I…" read more »
Ok, sorry, but... the eggplant mozz appetizer. You'll never be the same; it will rock your Italian socks off.
It's also my favorite first date spot. So if you find yourself there with me, I hope you know what you're getting into.
Not sure if I had an off night but the food just wasn't that good at all. I went at 10pm
Insalata mista - tasteless
1st Main: pasta shells with meat sauce - the meat in the sauce was really dry.
2nd try: the eggplant appetizer that people rave about - could not cut the tomato and way too much garlic.
Service was good hence 2 stars. Won't be back.
My only problem with this place it was that it's REALLY hard to find, it's very hell hidden and that makes it so good. It's nicely done, not too flashy, it's kinda subtle, I like the way the staff talks to you and the restroom is very nice as well.
The food is very well balanced and in the end you can have fun there, it's so hard to find that you feel kind of exclusive.
I still love La Focaccia. I took my ex-boyfriend there for his birthday last night and it was absolutely wonderful.
La Focaccia is small and cozy, with big beautiful windows and a view that spills out into the West Village. The focaccia is truly lovely too, and is perfect to use as a sponge for the cheesy tomato-aubergine goodness of the Melanzane. Try the Grilled Portabello Mushrooms too.
Ben's a big fan of ravioli and his dish was perfectly cooked, filled with a freshing blend of spinach and ricotta. I am nut for gnocchi and the bowl I had from La Focaccia was so more-ish that I ate more that I really needed to, even eating the delicious tomato and basil sauce with ye more focaccia. I left feeling full and somewhat like a blimp.
I'll definitely go back, oh yes I will.
What a wonderful little spot. Situated in the West Village, La Focaccia does cozy Italian food… Read more »
Preface: I hate that I'm about to jump up a couple of spots on the loser graph.
Dear La Focaccia, thank you for saving my life. Love, Jayster.
Let me explain. I eat a meal every two or three hours every single day. Before our dinner at La Focaccia, K-Flex and I were having the best conversation we've ever had and during this time, we were so wrapped up in convo-time that I missed a meal. By the time we got dressed, took the worst cab since the Yelp event in the BK, and sat down at our table I felt as famished as I would be at sunset at the end of Yom Kippur. I was clearly out of it while we waited for the food to arrive. I was unusually quiet sitting at the table unable to process the conversation due to my hunger pains. According to the gf, I was so out of it that I was staring at literally nothing. Even though I don't doubt this, she was in no position to talk smack since she proved why they call her 'Grand Entrance Flexer' after she tripped and almost fell as we walked into the restaurant (Hey Karen, notice how there is an au in there making its pronunciation res-ter-uhnt). After two glasses of wine, which didn't make me feel rosie (you're (yes!) a dork Karen) despite the drinking on an empty stomach, and eating some bread, I was considering eating a piece of my arm just to save myself from passing out. Finally, our appetizers came. It seemed forever since we ordered them, but they actually came out pretty quickly. We ordered grilled vegetables and prosciutto and seasonal melon. They had a wide variety of vegetables on the plate, some I've never heard of, some I didn't know what they were after tasting them. Either way they were tasty and between eating some vegetables and melon, they barely made a dent in my stomach. At least I was somewhat able to contribute to the conversation now, although I don't think it mattered much since I couldn't stop laughing at The Faja repeatedly saying 'What about swine flu?' while nobody answered him at all.
You would think that when the food came that I was as happy as K-Flex was when she found out they were remaking Star Trek (you're (twice!) still a dork Karen). Truth be told, I was probably happier, if that's possible. I ordered the dish with the grilled shrimp, sea scallops, and calamari. This normally came with a side of veggies, but I substituted it with pasta. (When I asked the waitress if they had whole wheat pasta, she said "not tonight," so it sounds like that it is an option that you can get). Everything on my plate was amazing and totally delicious dance worthy. (Karen is a huge huge dork, if you can't tell.) Most importantly it was totally filling and I was able to come back to reality. The more I ate of this great meal the happier and more energetic I was able to feel. If you are an avid seafood fan I without question recommend this dish to you. Due to me being a fat ass and Karen being not only full, but incredibly sweet as well she kept putting some of her rigatoni on my plate which was pretty bombtastic or bomb diggity or whatever Karen (the biggest dork in the solar system) says. However, if you're torn between getting the Gnocchi or pasta, we all felt that the Erica (the dorkiest dork ever's stepsister) made the better choice about that. Last but not least, The Faja ordered the Chi-Chi chicken solely based on the fact it was fun to say (and you wonder where Dorky McDorkster gets it from). I know he thought it was average, but I thought it was pretty good.
The ambiance of La Focaccia is beautiful. It's exactly the type of restaurant that you want to go to in the Village on a warm spring/summer night. It's pretty decor on the walls compliments the lighting inside the restaurant. I def liked that they not only kept the door open, but that they also had all the windows open as well. I not only needed this fresh air to prevent me from passing out from starvation, but it just added to the allure of the evening and the perfect setting for a night out to a classy restaurant. Another major plus is that for an Italian restaurant in the Village, the prices are not expensive at all. They were extremely fair and reasonable. While La Focaccia isn't the best Italian food I've ever had it's definitely way above average, thus why it gets a four star review, and not a five. However, if you could Yelp superheroes, I would give La Focaccia five stars.
We were on our way to find Carrie's stoop but wanted to get something to eat and we stumbled across La Focaccia. The service here was great. The waiters were always quick to refill our waters. I love the bread/muffin mix, or whatever it is, they give you in the beginning. I was so glad the waiter refilled it when we finished it off in about 5 minutes. I got the grilled shrimp salad and it was really good. La Focaccia has a really good atmosphere and it's great for people watching.
Charming, sophisticated space in an equally sophisticated neighborhood. Their menu features a fine selection of light Italian dishes with a focus on natural ingredients and traditional flavors. La Focaccia is a tiny room fit for wine drinking, casual conversation or people watching through floor to ceiling windows. If you would rather eat their savory food in, then efficient take-out is available. The area itself reflects a heavily European influence that reminds New Yorkers of the all world appeal that the greatest city on earth makes available to residents and vistors alike.
One of my favorite restaurants of all time. I have been eating here since 2003. And even though I don't live in the city anymore I still make it back at least twice a year for the sausage and polenta.
I LOVE the atmosphere here especially on a cool clear night. They will open up all the windows and inside u'll feel nice and breezy. When i came to this joint it definitely signaled to me that i was in the west village as people were of an older classier age group... of course there were those ready to hit up the meatpacking too...
pastas here weren't very memorable but didn't mean it was bad... ordered the Linguini Nere Al Salmone and it was huge portion and a lil bit on the creamier side.
regardless great casual place to go and have good conversations and food!
I really love their linguini nere al salmon, a black pasta with tomato and salmon and CREME. Had great flavor. Wished however that the portion was bigger.
Bruschetta and mozzarella are very nice too.
Very small sq. footage restaurant but always packed. Dimly lit to create a romantic intimate affair. Love my waiters with their hot accents.
Con are the entrance is at the side of the restaurant via the kitchen and portion size could be bigger.
I will start off by saying that my experience here may be colored by the fact that I was there with a dear friend who had just received a phone call from a woman who was banging her boyfriend. My attention was not completely on the food.
That being said, we chose La Focaccia because my poor friend was devastated and I thought she needed some good wine and comfort food in a cozy setting. La Focaccia is one of those places I pass by all the time and have wanted to try forever, so in we went. It was a perfect choice for the circumstances.
We were greeted by a cheerful Italian waiter who did not shame me at all when I said, "Hi, I really don't know much about wine. Can you help me pick an inexpensive bottle with some spice and zing?" He did just that. Our $32 bottle of.....whatever the hell it was....was spicy and zingy. (see why I don't know anything about wine!? As much as I drink, I can never remember to write down the name of the bottles).
I started with an artichoke salad which was crisp and dressed with a lovely balance of lemon, olive oil and thick slices of parmesan....mmmmm. My entree, the spaghetti aglio olio was simple and tasty and way more than I could eat. My friend had a rigatoni with a hearty bolognese sauce that almost made her forget her broken heart for a moment.
They lose a star only for two reasons. One, we were seated by a window that left in a little too much cold air. And two, the focaccia served before the meal was dry and not so flavorful. I mean, c'mon, if your restaurant is named after something it should be outstanding.
Overall, very pleasant meal for under $100 including tip. I'll go again. Hopefully, under better circumstances.
Honestly, I didn't have quite as amazing an experience at it seems most other Yelp-ers have, but it just motivates me to go back and try again. I think i just didn't order quite right and that was my problem. This is an adorable, albeit teeny, restaurant which is intimate and dim, perfect for a date. I was there with a girlfriend, however, and we were dying for some good Italian food. We split the spinach salad with apples and gorgonzola cheese and I found this to be almost not edible. The dressing was soooo sour, I could eat a bite without making a really strange face. I must say, everything people were eating around us looked unbelievable so I would like to go back and give it one more shot. For my entree I got pasta shells with meat sauce because I saw someone eating it and was immediately jealous. It was good, solidly good, but just didn't knock my socks off. We left to go get dessert at Magnolia Bakery and that was it. So, as the reviews clearly demonstrate below, I need to return to La Focaccia, order more wisely, and keep an open mind.
Glorified Sandwich Shop with Outdoor Seating and Boring Food
Let me just start by saying that I sent back my greasy, flavorless, waste of $8 salad with nuts, green apples, and small little pieces of cheese... In theory it looked tasty on the menu but the execution was all wrong. After a salad like that I was less than compelled to further explore their menu.
My friend: "Do you have a pen?"
Waitress: "No."
My friend: " No you don't have a pen!?"
Waitress: (Looks completely serious and starts to walk away)
Both of us: (Shake our heads and stare at each other)
Me: "A pen" (makes writing motion)
Waitress: (with heavy accent) OHHH! A p-e-n ... Yes I have.
Wow and it took her about 15 minutes to even come ask us what we would like to drink and bring the menus. Should have cut our losses immediately and checked out another restaurant.
My friend had the bruschetta (which was cooked) and on a bed of spinach (honestly not very good) even the olives that came with the dish had strange flavor. If we wanted to be there for another 3 hours we would have waited for his prosciutto but it just wasn't worth the pain of watching this girl attempt to wait on our table. It's not like they were busy but it was apparent that this might be her first waitressing gig.
Yes you may be able to sit out side but it's not worth it. Even the model sitting next to us barely touched her food and paid the bill and left as soon as possible.
Date Rating: 4
Pick up Scale: 3
Strong Suggestions: Try something else or make sure you don't order the salad.
Went here yesterday with a friend for lunch and was quite satisfied. The place is very cute. It was about 1 PM and completely dead, only one other set of diners when we were there. I had the prosciutto and fontina cheese sandwhich on focaccia bread which came with a mixed greens salad and my friend had a crepe. I really liked my lunch and she liked hers as well. We shared the strawberries and chocolate for dessert. Very good, can't really go wrong with strawberries and chocolate.
Our waiter was friendly...I think he was Italian (maybe?) and there was a slight language barrier but wasn't a major problem. He was very good about refilling our water glasses. A little slow to bring the check at the end of our meal but we didn't mind since it was nice to relax in this quiet little place.
I would like to go back and try dinner some time.
P.S. I agree with the other reviews about the focaccia bread...it seemed like it was toasted and a bit harder than you'd expect, but it wasn't awful.
Love this place. Frankly, it's the last non-douchey place on the block!
Food is good, too -- delicious chicken milanese, penne pasta, and eggplant/mozzarella appetizer.
Great staple for dinner with friends; even nicer in the summer.
Such a cozy and delicious place to spend a Saturday night. We started out at Diablo and were encountered by an hour wait. Of course, as luck would have it, we spend the rest of that next hour getting rejected from subsequent West Village picks who also had one hour waits. I thought there was a recession...? But, anyway. We stumbled into this gem. I have been here before but forgot about the delicious food and great atmosphere - I won't again. The windows are huge and gives you a great feel for the neighborhood. I allow myself pasta once a month, and this was worth the check box. And the server, Yolanna, was beautiful and sweet. We all liked here. Great night out.
Not good!
It's a cute place and love eating outdoors in the W Village. But that's about all that is good here. Service is slow (not bad), just very slow and unattentive.
Food is just not done well. The bread is dry, the bruschetta is just average. The penne vodka was very good but the portion was small. The gnocchi was just plain awful and overcooked. The desserts (profiterole with vanilla gelato) and tiramisu were also mediocre.
There are way too many better Italian restaurants than this one. You also know it's not great when it was so easy to get a table at prime time on a Friday night with no reservations.
Don't bother.
Cozy little place in the West Village. I dropped in here one day for a very late brunch after an afternoon of shopping. The waitress politely let me know that I was coming in close to their closing hour so I ordered quickly. My meal was prepared quickly but I was never made to feel rushed. Reasonably priced and portions were perfect. Very nice atmosphere. I'd definitely return.
The low-carb craze hasn't stopped a loyal fan base from patronizing this warm and cozy West Village dining spot, easily identified by the inviting long-tapered candles flickering in its windows at night. In addition to the terrific titular bread, which comes with a variety of toppings, the limited menu offers basic Italian fare with some contemporary twists. Start with a salad of sharp goat cheese, roasted red peppers, and smoked Italian bacon on a bed of frisee, and follow it with herb ravioli in a creamy walnut sauce. The brick oven is responsible for tantalizing chicken, lamb, steak, and seafood entrees, most of them priced under $20. Service is outstanding, possibly because the owner is usually in the house, attentively catering to everyone's needs.
A group of friends and I stopped in last Saturday for an impromptu dinner, and we left completely satisfied, and sure that we had found a great new neighborhood stand-by. A bottle of wine, four tasty pastas and two desserts later, we were all so happy we stopped in here. Gnocchi with tomato sauce, black pasta (for which I forgot the name) and two ravioli specials were all 100% delicious. I'll be back very soon.
i don't know what the problem is with everyone - i read the reviews and almost didn't go - but this place is great. cozy, warm, welcoming...they customize plates for you (the waiter always says, "whatever you want, i make it happen", smile a lot, make you feel like you just ordered the special secret food...
good glass of wine, polenta and sausage was fantastic, very decent pasta...
...th th th that's all, folks.
UPDATE: i went back again with some other friends. i learned: not every dish is great. some are just ok. so here's the lowdown:
Killer good: polenta with anything. w/funghii, w/sausage (may not be on the menu but you can ask for it any time). pasta bolognese is rich. there is a montepulciano red wine by the glass that is great.
Not as great are the risotto or the penne a la vodka (a little bland).
The view with all the big glass storefront walls is wonderful.
I have been living in the West Village for 4 years now, and almost every day, I walk by La Focaccia, an Italian bistro nestled on a tiny side street in the heart of quaint, the place is always crowded. From the quick glances I have taken, the food always looks good, and Zagat praises it in their two sentence review. My time finally came, I had plans to meet my cousin for dinner in my neighborhood and the ever familiar question of 'where to eat' obviously arose. After we shot down a few places, we came together in agreement on La Foccacia; the menu looked great to her, and I had been teased long enough, I would eat there on Wednesday night.
I am a huge carboholic, so when Zagats gave the joint a shout-out on their bread, I was ecstatic. There is nothing like a good basket of bread before a meal!! Sadly, finding good bread at a restaurant is like finding money on the street, maybe only a few times a year. I have come to terms with this, and rely on bakeries and bagel shops when I need a fix.
Once you figure out how to get inside, the place is very pleasing and very pretty. Dimly lit, with candles on each table, it has that rustic Italian feel which is sure to make a meal more enjoyable. I wasn't overly impressed with the menu selection. There were only a few pasta dishes, none of which jumped out at me, prefaced by a tremendous amount of appetizers and salads; too many that I felt overwhelmed and bypassed that side of the menu completely. We started off with a nice bottle of wine, Berbera D'Alba, a spicy Italian red, and then it happened, they brought over the bread basket. It was focaccia, obviously, I got a whiff of the fresh rosemary sprinkled on top. It came served with the casual classic, olive oil with a balsamic blob in the middle. I broke off a piece and dipped in, to my surprise, I was answered with a dry, crunchy and crumbly response, it was everything that focaccia shouldn't be! I figured maybe we got a stale batch and asked the bus boy for another basket of bread, which I unfortunately never saw. Our pasta dishes came, and they were very good. Solid pasta, and at $22 and $17 they damn well should be! For dessert we shared fresh berries with cream and custard, it was good, no better than if I had gone to the store, bought berries, vanilla pudding packs and whipped cream and put it together in a bowl. I think this would be a hard one to mess up, maybe if it were sprinkled with salt and paprika? Still might be good.
Our waiter was very friendly and funny, even though I don't think the latter was intentional, and the service, besides the bread mishap was great. We sat at the table for almost 2 hours, catching up on cousin stuff and not once did we feel rushed. That was very refreshing, especially in a crowded restaurant. I probably wouldn't go back, because we live in NYC where great Italian is just too common. In the suburbs this might be my only hope, but it doesn't matter, the place has its following, and they're not going anywhere.
Great little restaurant on one of my favorite corners in the West Village. The prosciutto and melon was delicious, and the melon was amazingly fresh. The entrees were reasonable portions (not too big), and most of them were under $20. Overall a very pleasant evening with no pressure what so ever from the waiters, and a delicious strawberry dessert to top it off. Unfortunately, did not have time to tray the espresso, which is usually very important!
Had Sat brunch at this Italian place on the corner of Bank St and West 4th. Less crowded than the other brunch places on W 4th but we decided to give it a try. Their brunch menu consisted mostly of frittates and crepes... Came with "home-made goodies", which meant an assortment of rosemary bread, marble cake, pound cake. I got a huge frittate with a variety of vegetables... a decent $11 prix-fixe. Not the best the best but good.
3.25 stars.
Ordered the mixed appetizer platter for one person. It came with mozzarella, endive, proscuitto, melon, sweet red bell peppers, and pieces of grilled portabello mushrooms. Everything was fresh, but the endive had absolutely no taste, and the red bell peppers were also somewhat tasteless. I also wish I'd ordered for 2 people.
I also had their "insalata de mele" which was a spinach salad with walnuts, gorgonzola cheese, and slices of green apple. It also seemed very fresh, but I wasn't too impressed with the dressing (some sort of white vinegar dressing). But the walnuts, gorgonzola, and green apple all added a nice touch to the salad.
My friend's pasta was pretty tasty, I think she had the rigatoni with eggplant.
It's cool you can tailor the mixed appetizer platter for 1, 2, or 4 people.
Cute, small, dark, cozy restaurant, came here for a friend's bday dinner and we took up the entire back wall (there were about 16 of us). I'd come again, but just order something different.
I am amazed that this restaurant does not have all 5 star ratings! I travel quite a bit for work and am always looking for great restaurants. La Focaccia did not let me down. A friend and I stumbled across it one evening and were impressed by the atmosphere, service, wine list, and menu. The penne vodka is to die for. If you are looking for an authentic, quaint restaurant in the village - look no further!
I went to dinner at La Focaccia with a friend on Friday night. First off the acoustics are terrible - you really have to yell to hear the people you are with. Second, we were rushed out at the end of our meal. I understand it was Friday night and they needed the table but I literally caught the waiter and hostess shaking their heads at one another in frustration because we weren't moving fast enough for them. It was so obnoxious. Lastly, the food SUCKED. I don't usually resort to caps but these guys deserve it. The wine was blah, the apps were nothing special and the pasta dishes were terrible. I ordered the black linguini pasta with salmon in a cream sauce. It was so salty I couldn't eat it. My friends pasta was totally bland and uninteresting. The only good news is we got out of there for about 100 bucks. If you love Italian food then please skip this place. Go to John's on the east side instead.
Not impressed. Gummy, overcooked, over garliced (ok, i'm italian and I NEVER thought this was possible....read my Patsy's review and you'll understand) pasta. Gnocchi that hits your stomach like rocks. Chicken dish was overcooked, on the dry side and overseasoned. Pushy waitress who disappeared when it was time to get the bill and made us wait almost a half hour (hard to disappear b/c the place is so small). Overpriced for what you get. With all the good italian places in the city, why spend your $ here?
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