San Gennaro Trattoria Restaurant Bar

We had a party of 7 that was seated fairly quickly. 3 of the 7 in our party were children. Our waiter went out of his way to make sure everyone was having a good time. He even gave us a free dessert for a birthday we were celebrating. Our birthday girl felt very special when they turned down the lights, turned up the volume and used tambourines to sing. Also, not to mention the food and drinks were awesome and we were appreciative of the kindness we received from the staff.

Nice restaurant on The Ave. Nudi pasta is the special dish here. Definitely worth a try.

Ribeye steak and salad was ok.

Cannoli donuts were good - mix of a churro / donut with a dab of cannoli cream on top.

Service was fine - we were in a bit of a rush to get to The Stadium, and she made it happen.

YUM! Cozy Italian restaurant on Arthur Ave. My family came here after the Bronx Botanical Gardens. They were very nice when I called to move our reservation for 6 earlier. We split a bottle of wine and started with calamari fritti. Our server was friendly and attentive. They had a Buffalo mozzarella special app that was so delicious. We finished all of our pasta dishes. I had the recommended nudi which was like a larger gnocchi with cheese sauce. Great atmosphere, food and service!

One of my college friends lives in Albany and we periodically take day trips to see each other and catch up. This past go-around, she came down to see me so we made plans to visit the Bronx Zoo and grab lunch on Arthur Ave. I have a few tried and true go-tos in the area, but I was looking to try somewhere new to change things up a bit. I had never heard of San Gennaro before my inquiry, and since the reviews and pictures looked good I thought it would be a great place to try out.

San Gennaro is located right on Arthur Ave in the heart of the action. It's not a large restaurant, but the front windows open up and make the dining room contiguous with the outdoor space; additionally, there are tables on the street in a covered area which I assume was left over from COVID times. The decor was just enough - a neutral/bright color scheme and pictures on the walls that added to the Italian aesthetic.

The menu was mainly separated into apps, salad, soup, risotto, polenta, pasta and mains; they also had a large selection of specials. Our server mentioned that they had a mozzarella app on the specials that was imported from Italy - that's all he needed to say so we ordered that. The app was really good - the cheese was delicious, and it was paired with soft flatbread, arugula, and tomato which really added to the freshness. We also shared the fried artichoke hearts; these were pretty good - the hearts almost looked like chicken drumsticks and were soft enough to eat with a fork and knife.

For my main I had the pollo San Gennaro which was chicken breast paired with prosciutto, spinach, and mozzarella in a light brown gravy. The dish was pretty good - all of the flavors worked well and were paired with well seasoned roasted vegetables on the side. The chicken could have been a little more tender, and there were mostly winter vegetables in the mix - I would like to have seen some more green. We also ordered sparkling water and were served seltzer out of the fountain - no big deal but I was a little surprised they didn't serve bottled mineral water.

Service was great - everyone was really friendly and made us feel welcome as soon as we walked in. Overall, I had a fine experience at San Gennaro - the food wasn't best I've had, and the presentation leaves something to be desired. However, it's far from the worst and the service was great. While this hasn't turned into my favorite on Arthur Ave, it shouldn't be counted out.

Update Review: 5/2023
Called to place an order for pick up and was told they were too busy. TOO BUSY TO TAKE AN ORDER?

I tried to give this place another chance but the service here is unprofessional, disturbing and down right WRONG.

Home made pasta, regular and gluten free. Waitstaff was exceptionally attentive to dietary issues. Family friendly for group of 7. 2 children.

We are huge fans of Italian restaurants along Arthur Avenue and we will surely return to San Gennaro Trattoria over and over again. The food was top notch, fresh, delicious. Friendly and professional service, charming ambiance. Pasta cooked perfectly and whole branzino probably the best we've ever tasted. We look forward to returning and enjoying many more meals at San Gennaro and will recommend this restaurant to friends and family.

The food is delicious they have a set menu, the service was outstanding and the ambiance was romantic !

The good:
I tried the meatballs, pizza fritto (kind of like a calzone), beet linguine, mushroom papardelle, nude pasta and gnocchi. I liked the saltiness of the gnocchi. There's indoor, covered outdoor and covered parklet seating. For dessert I had the limoncello cake and pistachio gelato truffle. It reminded of of tres leches and tasted delicious, fresh and moist. I came here because my brother's gf frequents this place and recommended it. The chewiness of the gnocchi and nude pasta was great. The dishes came out in a timely manner. The server was friendly and attentive. The restaurant felt authentically Italian.

The bad:
The space is a little tight if you have a stroller and need a high chair. The meatballs and pizza fritto were just ok. The fritto was a bit dry. I wasn't as blown away by the nudi as I was with the gnocchi. I thought the gnocchi tasted better but the nudi was definitely more visually interesting.

The interesting:
They're closed Tuesdays.

We were planning a day in NY and looked into places to eat in "Little Italy" in the Bronx after a day at the Orchid Show at the Botanical Garden. I LOVE artichokes so found a few restaurants that had them on the menu and lucky us, we picked this one! First of all, if you have never been on Arthur Avenue, WOW. I felt like I was back in Italy. Every other store space was a bakery, a pork store, bread bakery, Italian Restaurant. Older Italian men wearing Italian flag attire, drinking espresso at small outdoor tables on the street, smoking big cigars like my family used to. Amazing experience and one that I remembered in the 70's and 80's in Little Italy in the Village. I digress, but it really led up to the experience at San Gennaro. We walked in and the place was super adorable. Rustic and casual interior with white table cloths and a good amount of 2 person tables adorned with a lovely small floral arrangement and a candle. Great place for casual OR romantic dining! We were warmly greeted and seated, ordered the Carcioffi Fritti (Fried Artichoke) and it was AMAZING! They came out in quarters, nicely breaded and fried with a lovely bit of light sauce and grated parmesan drizzled on top. My wife ordered the Parmigiana de Pollo and it was nice and thin and the size of a personal pizza! Moist, not dry, the breading was very much like the artichoke (wonderfully flavored, perfectly prepared) and the sides were pasta with a really good red sauce and fresh mixed vegetables (potato, snap pea, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini) that was perfectly roasted and flavorful.....so good! I had the Penne in Salsa Rosa (Penne Vodka) and it was the most flavorful Vodka Sauce that I have ever had. Light cream but the prosciutto really added a nice depth to the sauce that was a nice touch and "meaty" flavor. We were so full, we took half of our portions home to enjoy another meal so did not have room for dessert or coffee but dinner was fantastic and I would highly recommend for the atmosphere, ambiance, server attention and attention to detail in the preparation and presentation of the food.