Torrisi Italian Specialties (NYC)

Joe, who has never steered me wrong when it comes to food, suggested we go to Torrisi for a last-minute dinner reunion. This place is an Italian deli during the day, but turns into a small, first-come-first-served dinner at night. At 6:15, we managed to snag the very last spot in the place--a three-person window booth, perfect our party!

Because I am quite possibly the worst decision-maker of all time (not that I make bad decisions, I just can't bring myself to make any in the first place), Torrisi's menu is perfect. Everything is already decided for you, with the exception of the entree, for which you have only two options. And the wine selection is also small, but clearly developed by someone who knows wine--even the one we chose, one of the cheapest on the menu, was delicious!

We started with four antipasti to share. First was a giant ball of house-made mozzarella with a few small garlic toasts. I'm not really a huge fan of mozzarella, but this was phenomenal. Very flavorful, not too airy or too gummy. The bread was a bit salty, but overall--YUM. The other apps were okay, but did not hold a candle to the cheese: a beet and apple salad with fried brussels sprouts leaves (decent), halibut dressed with balsamic (too fishy for me), and a pickled lamb tongue and celery salad with a black peppercorn vinaigrette that I thought was kind of slimy and not that good.

Next was the pasta course. With the exception of it also being over salted, it was pretty freaking amazing. I could have eaten a mixing bowl full of this, provided it came with a gallon of water. The pasta was PERFECTLY cooked, and the "dirty duck ragu" that topped it was tender and divine.

For my entree, I ordered the grilled pork chop with sauteed bell peppers. This was incredibly flavorful. Its only flaw was that the chop was very fatty. Pat ordered the skate with a tarragon, lemon and butter sauce, which was a bit buttery for his taste but cooked to perfection. I had no idea skate could be quite so tender and sweet.

To clean our palates, the waiter brought out tiny paper cups of lemon Italian ices, and our dessert was an assortment of bite-sized Italian petit-fours. These were all good, and generous considering there were six or seven different types (three of each so we didn't have to fight over them). Neither Joe nor Pat seemed wowed, but I was happy.

Honestly, I'm not a big Italian food eater, but this was some of the best Italian food I've eaten in a long time. As long as you're not watching your sodium and don't mind an early dinner (or a potentially long wait), this is a great, lesser-known dining option for a Big Apple visit! (portions x-posted to yelp.com)