For over a year and a half, I heard my colleagues and friends rave about L’Artusi, so when I had the opportunity to go there this past spring, I was thrilled. L’Artusi is one of few Italian restaurants whose menu is HUGELY nobread accommodating. When I checked the menu out for the first time, I was excited to see that I could eat essentially everything under the Crudo, Verdura, Pesce, and Carne categories, and that the only section I may not be able to enjoy was the Pasta section (assumed)…
After grabbing a drink at the bar (and making friends with the bartender), my friends and I sat at our table and decided to order a bunch of items for the table. Dayboat scallops, roasted beets, roasted mushrooms, branzino, and charred octopus were all nobread approved and orders I could indulge in. We also ordered the orecchiette and tagliatelle for my bread eating friends. If only it wasn’t SO hard for me to speak up at restaurants! Had I told my waitress I was gluten free, I would have learned that they DO serve gluten free pasta, and I,too, would have been able to enjoy these pastas that looked SO good.
So was the food all it was hyped up to be? Without question. I know I’m eating at one of NYC’s best restaurants when I am willing to eat one of my least favorite foods: mushrooms. I really didn’t want to try it, but all week I had been told HOW amazing the roasted mushrooms are, and when they were placed RIGHT in front of me, I knew I had to have at least one bite. They were amazing. Everything we ordered was delicious; the foods were rich and very nobread friendly. I was also told that L’Artusi is the home of the best brussels sprouts in NYC; unfortunately, the sprouts were out of season and not on the menu! I did however order the cauliflower which was perfectly roasted with anchovy, pine nuts, and olives; this was incredible, too. I will without a doubt be back!