12.22.08
Review of Tré, Saturday September 2008
173 Ludlow St. Front #2 & Houston/Stanton Sts., 212-353-3353
Great for: nice simple Italian, quiet dates, large parties
My good friend J and I wanted to catch up over a quiet dinner on the LES. I was running late, of course, so J used that time to make friends with the very amiable owner. He told us what to order and I was happy we listened to him.
We started with the three stuzzichini (Italian tapas) for $16. The salsiccia (sausage) and broccoli rabe was good and spicy, though I tend not to enjoy rabe because of its bitterness. I liked the small sweet rice balls filled with sweet peas and mozzarella, possibly potatoes as well. The lamb meatballs are yummy and a bit on the heavy side. I also loved the abundance of salty tomato sauce that came with them.
J’s pappardelle with lamb ragù and smoked baked sheep ricotta was unfussy, simple and delicious. My skate (raza) in tarragon-lemongrass sauce with carrot ginger purée and lemon spinach was too large to finish, to my regret. The skate was a little salty; the rest perfect.
We had a glass of wine each, mine a white Vermentino and his a red Montepulciano. Our waiter was super friendly and the owner came by to check on us a few times. Apparently this is a great place for large parties, as we saw three of them. I thought it a bit odd that two of them were big tables of banker boys; this isn’t that kind of flashy place. The room itself is pretty, with minimal décor to clutter the long narrow space. I’m definitely coming back as soon as I cross a few more restaurants off my list.
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Our cost: $100 (2 glasses of wine)
Noise level: happy noisy
Chance of walking in: not too bad
