#InauguralReview #IlMonello by #EdwardAvdyli and #SteveHaxhiaj 337 East 49th Street #Midtown #Manhattan
Owner Eddie Avdyli at Il Monello, his third restaurant ever on Whom You Know!
Seafood is delivered four times a week we are told and you can taste the freshness
It's not who you know, it's WHOM YOU KNOW and we have known of the immense talents of Eddie Avdyli for many years starting with the late (it has passed) Angus Club Steakhouse and also Tuscany Steakhouse, a past Peachy's Pick which we look forward to revisiting sometime. (...in fact she has met Harry in person since her last Tuscany visit and they discussed its merits! Yes Harry, you ought to go to Il Monello too...). Il Monello was impressive all around but what initially struck us as amazing was that they have MUSIC not NOISE unlike many of their competitors. We were absolutely thrilled to hear Surf City by Jan and Dean and Buddy Holly, among others. We kept looking for the Jukebox. The ambiance is spectacular and we were thrilled to meet the fabulous Don Bezahler and got the table next to him. He goes to Il Monello at least once a week, sometimes twice he tells us. We can see why. The taste levels here are just our cup of tea.
Il Monello has a storied history in Manhattan starting in 1974, predating the birth of Peachy and it went on until 2008. The stellar restaurateur we know and applaud, Steve Haxhiaj, was a busboy there! And he has brought it back and breathed new life into it with the talented Eddie! Executive Chef Jamie Chabla rounds out the team and Il Monello opened its doors at 337 East 49th Street on December 5, 2022. It's Northern Italian cuisine. We were also delighted to work with Gabriel Halilaj. Il Postino used to be in this space and we recently lauded Luigi and Maria Russo at their new location on East 61st.
There was never a second when our water glass was empty. The service at Il Monello is stratospherically fabulous. Obviously as we approach record heat levels you want to go to a place where they are on it in terms of this!
Yes Il Monello is beautiful.
We practically never order from the specials on our first visit ever, except for when we already know you and you say CRAB SALAD.
If you know Peachy, you know she is spectacularly crabby!!!
There is even a Crabby Peachy column.
Luxurious, delicious crab joins frisee (which is curled endive), tomato, red onion, and cucumber. If you are lucky it will be a special when you visit Eddie.
Yes, they listened and put the dressing on the side for the picky one.
We are always interested in eating anything that has the name of the restaurant in the name of the dish.
To that end, the Il Monello Salad is not to be ignored. Baby arugula, seared goat cheese, shaved pears, seedless grapes halved and extraordinarily divine toasted almond flakes grace this beauty. Lemon truffle dressing comes to the party!
If you are for some reason unfamiliar with our policies of never editing pictures, you should know that we do not. You absolutely wow us over with your superlative talent and kill it like Steve and Eddie or we do not publish. Peachy's pen would have run out of ink if she actually wrote the number of stars her stomach communicated to her brain, hand and pen. The Chilled lobster cocktail is divine with classic cocktail sauce and words do not do it justice. Of course there is a Lobster Peachy.
Obviously they give you the correct silverware, crackers and proper accompaniments.
This is not obvious at every restaurant, believe it or not.
Fresh seafood requires a seafood fork.
Also found under Chilled Seafood are the Oysters on the half shell. They're blue point from Long Island and arrive in style in half a dozen count.
Absolutely fresh, they sing a song of summer along with the amazing music.
We sipped a versatile Chianti with what we ate.
Eddie tells us his favorite menu item is the Linguini Vongole and once you taste it we believe you will also quite concur. Although also available in red, we are traditionalists and purists will order the white. Incredibly al dente, it is succulent with clams that will wow you.
The truth is it does look this phenomenal.
Also Il Monello has great lighting and better than many venues we have seen.
We won't repeat how Peachy possesses the philosophy instilled in her by adult family members when she was growing up that the lobster is her friend. You should be doing cartwheels (if you can do them) if you find out the Risotto of the Day is SAFFRON WITH LOBSTER. It doesn't get any better than this!!!! IT IS SIMPLY THE BEST. Italian aborio rice embellishes the superlative saffron and lovely lobster and you will be hooked.
Lobster Glamour Shots
No, it is is not available for autographs because it lived happily ever after in Peachy's stomach.
IT WAS RIDICULOUSLY DELICIOUS AND ONE OF THE BEST THINGS WE HAVE EATEN THIS SUMMER.
Anyone that knew Peachy as a student at Boston College knows she often had chicken parm from lower and loved it. Well the Pollo Parmigiana is Olympic Level Chicken Parm in comparison and it is the best rendition we have seen in 2023. Breaded with tomato sauce and mozzarella, it is intoxicatingly ridiculously delicious. On the lighter side is Sea Bass, another favorite of Eddie's and set apart by its crisp potato crust, a unique touch at Il Monello. Caper, lemon, heart of artichokes and asparagus round out this swimmer.
It would be a massive understatement to say Il Monello impressed us and we look forward to seeing what they do next.
