01.03.09
Review of Il Bastardo, Saturday December 2008 brunch
191 7th Ave. & 21st/22nd Sts., 212-675-5980
Great for: minimuffins, alcoholic brunch, reliable food
My dear friend C was visiting from London and planned brunch with me and our other friend K. I was bored of not drinking – I went three months and lost about 1.5 inches in circumference! Although my mother has been force-feeding me over the holidays and I think I will need to stay on the wagon a while longer – and wanted to celebrate her brief return, so I got the $15 unlimited champagne too. It turned into a very not-sober, fun day.
First off they have cute little minimuffins with what looked like strawberry jam. They seem very popular with everyone (no bready things for me). My eggs Benedict with one crab cake was quite good. The eggs could have been a shade less cooked, though. And both could have been larger. C’s rigatoni with eggplant was tasty but also small. She ordered it expecting it to be enormous since she was really hungry; it was funny to find the one Italian restaurant in the city without huge pasta portions. K’s burger with bacon, on the other hand, was very large. She enjoyed it a lot.
I liked the pretty plating. We had mainly leisurely service except when our waiter was making sure we had enough champagne in our giant glasses. He even refilled me after we paid the check (it never hurts to smile sweetly). C, who used to live in the neighborhood, said she has always seen it totally packed and was surprised she could even get a reservation for brunch. I definitely want to try their dinner.
Rating: 7 / 10 (just brunch, pending dinner visit)
Our cost: $110 (3 brunches with $15 unlimited drinks)
Noise level: boisterous
Chance of walking in: not good, definitely reserve.
