Tarallucci e Vino

15 East 18th Street

(between Fifth Avenue and Broadway)

For a belated New Year celebration, a friend and I wanted to be adventurous, so we decided to try out Tarallucci e Vino, a restaurant neither of us had been.

Glad that we had made reservations, as the place was packed on a weekday night. Atmosphere was cute with dim lighting.

Please note that the above photo was taken at the end of the evening!

We started off sharing the rucola salad ($13) comprised of arugula, endive, shaved fennels, blood oranges, and toasted fennels. Love arugula!

I ordered the orecchiette pasta ($21), which came with crispy cauliflower, guanciale, and shallots. Really liked the nice crunchiness of the crispy cauliflower with the orecchiette.

My friend ordered the abruzzese duck ragu ($24).

 

Her one comment was that it wasn’t what she expected.

To accompany our meal, I ordered a glass of the Nero d’Avola ($11). I always order the Nero if I see that it’s offered. It has that smooth finish that I love.

My friend being in a somewhat celebratory mood went for their sparkling rosé ($13).

For dessert, we ordered the Torta al Cioccolato ($11) to share. It’s dark chocolate, mascarpone, nutella, and toasted hazelnuts.

Beautiful and richly decadent. Absolutely, the best part of the meal!

 

And it pairs deliciously with the Nero d’Avola.

 

Pros:

They had Nero d’Avola!

Cons:

Pricey.

Final Thoughts

Decent meal, but for the price and what was offered, I don’t consider it a must-return-to dining experience. May return, though, for dessert and coffee/wine!