#InauguralReview #Maruzzella Since 1988 by #NickLorusso and #RamiroPinos #1483FirstAvenue at #East77thStreet #UpperEastSide #Manhattan
Linguine alle Vongole Sings a Beautiful Song of Summer
It's not who you know, it's WHOM YOU KNOW and we are delighted to now know Puglia native Nick Lorusso, owner of Maruzzella since April 6, 1998. Lucky for you, Nick came to the USA in 1987. It had been in business for ten years prior, and today Ramiro Pinos is also an owner. Maruzzella is a female Italian first name, and Maruzzella has always been on the Upper East Side on the same block. It's also Italian escargot. There are 60 coveted seats here. We were graciously greeted with lemon wedges as we asked for with the water and bread and olive oil.
We applaud the depth of the salad section of the menu and have future salad ambitions at Maruzzella. Insalata di Rucola was flavorful and well cut, and they put the dressing on the side as we asked. Rucola means Arugula in Italian, and if you are a broccoli rabe enthusiast, you should know that it's spelled rabe is rape in the Italian language. Rucola salad rejoices with hearts of palm, roasted peppers, red onions and parmesan cheese to start off well. The appetizer section also possesses commanding choices, and the Gamberi All'Aglio e Olio were absolutely spot-on. The shrimp were ideally sauteed in oil, garlic and parsley and the zucchini highlight was also a winner. The menu is Northern Italian.
Of course, even better with cheese:
As this is our first visit ever, we wanted to stick with some staples that we order often at various places, and you can't get much more traditional than Spaghettini Con Polpettine. We did not see Lady and the Tramp...they hit the spot with 100 percent beef composition and the meat sauce is an 80/20 ratio of beef to pork. Anytime of year, this is sure to be a crowd pleaser. In summer particularly, Linguine with White Clam Sauce is strikingly delicious when you know where to get it and Maruzzella is where you should go! They also gave us the correct seafood fork. It was delicate, outstanding and super fresh and the best performer of the night.
Based on our first visit, we found the pasta to be the strongest section of the menu. Farfalle with Parma ham, garlic, butter, peas, arugula, plum tomatoes and slivers of parmesan were wondrously combined for a winning course formally titled: Farfalle Al Prosciutto di Parma. It was perfectly al dente and the bow ties dress it up and add fun to your dinner. We don't see bow ties often on our plate and it's a nice touch. Finally, the Pollo Al Carciofi E Pinoli was exquisite and confirmed that Maruzzella, though it has a history, is also a modern classic. Breast of chicken was brilliantly sauteed with artichokes and pinenuts in a gorgeous white wine sauce. The string beans are a side not to be ignored and they were among our favorites too, perfectly sauteed in garlic.
Maruzzella impressed us and we can't wait to see what they do next!
