Eating at Don Angie. One of the Best Italian Restaurants in NYC. One Michelin Star

One of the best and most popular Italian restaurants in New York City is Don Angie. The establishment has earned a Michelin star and getting a reservation can be quite the challenge. I've been wanting to visit the restaurant for the last couple of years and now I finally had the opportunity. Today is a beautiful but unseasonably warm fall day here in New York City. Right now I'm across from Little Island and I'm eagerly awaiting my dinner for this evening. But first off, did you know a beach just opened in Manhattan? Yeah, it's crazy. I just took a walk there. It looks really nice, but I sure as hell don't want to be swimming in the Hudson River and I better make sure my tetanus shot is up to date before I even consider that. But anyways, back to tonight's dinner plans. I'll literally be going to one of New York City's most popular restaurants right now. It's called Don Angie. It's an Italian-American restaurant and they even have a Michelin star. Yeah, I'm trying to go to a lot of these Michelin star restaurants right now before the Michelin Guide makes their new star announcements on November 7th. I just hope none of the places I want to go to lose a star, so that's why I'm trying to hurry up with some of these restaurants. I mean, in the grand scheme of things, stars don't really influence my experience at a restaurant, but you know, I like counting stars. Anyways, Don Angie is very popular and as a result, getting a reservation is quite the challenge. Plus, they don't even offer reservations for single people like me. I don't like that, but I can understand that operating these restaurants costs a lot of money and filling every seat in a restaurant is imperative to actually making a return on one's investment. Although, if I was seated at a table for two people, I guarantee that the restaurant wouldn't be losing money on me because, well, I pretty much have the appetite of two people. Thankfully, I'm still able to dine at Don Angie because they have a bar that's open for walk-ins. My plan is I'm going to show up to the restaurant right when it opens so I can get one of the seats at the bar and hopefully enjoy a very good meal. Let's head to Don Angie. Don Angie is located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan. When I arrived to the restaurant, I was concerned there was already a good number of people waiting to get in. With a limited number of bar seats available, I was worried that I came too late. Not to mention the fact that I was starting to get annoyed people were saving spots in line for their friends who showed up later. To me, this was a serious breach of line ethics. If someone I knew came up to me and tried to weasel their way in in front of other people, I'd say tough luck, pal. End of the line. Although, who am I kidding? If for some miraculous reason, Margot Robbie or Paris Hilton wanted to join me, my ethics would go straight out the window. Anyways, luck was on my side that day. I was able to snag the very last seat at the bar. Don Angie is the product of husband and wife team Angie Rito and Scott Tessinelli. The two met at the now sadly closed Park Avenue Seasons. Angie went on to work at Truisi Italian Specialties, which was a springboard for the major food group, and Scott went on to become the executive chef at Quality Italian, where he collaborated with Angie to develop the restaurant's opening menu. The two came together again to operate a small restaurant called Dinner Table in the East Village, but their ultimate dream became a reality when they opened Don Angie in 2017. Almost instantly, the restaurant was a hit, garnering a two-star review from the New York Times and being named as one of Esquire's Best New Restaurants in America for 2018. Inside the space has a good look to it, and has a classic restaurant feel but with modern touches. However, it's not very big, although Don Angie does have outdoor seating that looks pretty nice, but with cold weather approaching, I feel like being inside is where you want to be. While the bar may open at 4.30, the kitchen doesn't open until 5, so I got a beverage in the meantime. Don Angie has a decent wine list, with most of the offerings coming from the various regions of Italy, but there are some American options. I opted for a glass of the 2018 Passo Piscato Chinere. It comes from a winery that is located on the slopes of Sicily's Mount Etna volcano. The wine was made primarily from Norello Mascalese grapes and had a decent black cherry and smoked taste to it. Even though there wouldn't be any food served until after 5, I was nevertheless able to peruse the menu and place my order. Don Angie serves modern Italian-American food. While Carbone may have made waves with the refined versions of Italian-American classics, Don Angie is far more contemporary in their approach. Global flavors are seen in a number of Don Angie's plates, like fried rice and mochi. To me, this is a natural evolution of Italian-American cuisine, since even American cooking has expanded to encapsulate the rich diversity of food in this country. As a result, there are a number of delicious looking options on Don Angie's menu. Perhaps the restaurant's most famous dish is their lasagna, which unfortunately is meant for two people. Although, even though I'm sure I could finish the entire dish myself, I wanted to try a variety of plates rather than just one large one. After placing my order, I still had some time to kill before the kitchen even opened, so I did some reading. My book was In the Weeds by Tom Vytel, who was a longtime director and producer who worked with Anthony Bourdain. As a huge Bourdain fan, I really enjoyed the book, as it offered an incredible glimpse of the legend and what it took to create his spectacular shows. However, it wasn't long after 5 that my first course was presented. I got the soppressine and smoked mussels, which contained peroni, pimenton, and cilantro maccio. It's a beautiful dish. In fact, most of Don Angie's food is very photogenic. Plus, I thought it was a fair-sized portion, especially when compared to the small offerings of Ristora, another NYC Michelin-starred Italian restaurant. The dish was so delicious. First off, the soppressine was perfectly cooked. In Italian, soppressine translates to little surprises, and I was definitely surprised with that plate of food. The combination of peroni, pimenton, and cilantro maccio resulted in pleasant flavors that I wasn't expecting. It was a little sweet and a bit herbal, but completely delicious. I also liked the addition of breadcrumbs, which added a nice textural component. Now, a lot of pastas served with mussels include the shells, which certainly makes for a nice appearance, but I loved how Don Angie did away with this. The plate still looked great, the mussels were tasty, and I didn't have to deal with the cumbersome experience of contending with a multitude of shells. All in all, the soppressine proved to be a phenomenal start to my dinner, but things only got better. I didn't have to wait long before my main course was presented, the chicken scarpariello with blackened sausage, capicolo, and anaheim chilies. The dish consisted of perfectly cooked, juicy chicken fused with a layer of sausage. It was fantastic, but it was the other flavors on the plate which really elevated the two meats. I loved the sauce with the anaheim chilies, it lent such a unique and delicious flavor to the dish. It had a good sweetness and a slight spice. The basil leaves were a nice touch as well, since they provided a wonderful herbal component. Texturally, the crispy and savory skin on the chicken was an absolute joy to eat. I've had various chicken scarpariello dishes before, but none of them tasted like Don Angie's offering. The dish was magnificent. It's a plate of food that would be great for sharing as well, since the meat is perfectly divided into four pieces. Although in this case, I was glad to be alone, since I sure as hell didn't want to share even a single crumb of this course, because it was just too good. In addition to my entree, I also ordered a side of the Japanese sweet potatoes with sumac and a creamy Italian dressing. Quite simply, I was blown away. It seems like a lot of restaurants have side dishes that are just afterthoughts, but not at Don Angie. While the potatoes are in a sense simple and straightforward, they're just so satisfying. It's the kind of food that when you take one bite, you're already thinking about the next. It's perfectly craveable. On the outside, the potatoes have a bit of a crisp, while the inside is nice and fluffy. The creamy Italian dressing, along with the sumac spice mixture were the perfect compliments, as they added a nice tang and a bit of sweetness. There was parmesan on the potatoes as well, which gave an even richer flavor, while the chives lent a nice visual appeal. Together with my chicken, I was thoroughly enjoying my dinner. I also have to say that the atmosphere at the bar was great. It was evident that everyone was there for the food and had an immense appreciation for it. When one goes to Don Angie, you know you're going someplace special. While I was eating, I even got to meet Scott Tassinelli, which was pretty neat and he seemed like a nice guy. Anyways, with both my entree and side finished, it was time for dessert. Don Angie's dessert menu contains a few different options, along with some after-dinner cocktails, coffee, and tea. I had to go with their tiramisu, which is one of my all-time favorite desserts. In addition, I was generously given one of their other offerings, the caramelized parasorbetto, plus the root beer amaro cocktail. With all that food in front of me, I was pretty happy and I couldn't wait to dive in. I started with the black cocoa tiramisu, which contained a masala caramel and crispy fruity. Visually, it's a sharp-looking dessert. I loved the presentation. It was clearly a tiramisu, but one that has been reworked into something new. My first bites were very satisfying, but it was obvious that I never had a tiramisu quite like Don Angie's. While a classic example of the dessert often has an emphasis on the espresso flavor, the one from Don Angie shifted that focus to the bittersweet cocoa as well as the caramel and I loved the taste. In addition, the crispy fruity lent a crunchy, textural component that I've never experienced in any other example of the dessert. It really was a refreshing take on the tiramisu, which is a dessert that I feel that many are just too afraid to alter. Next, I turned my attention to the parasorbetto, which proved to be another delicious treat. It was really refreshing, with a wonderfully balanced flavor. I loved the caramelized fruit, which were very tasty and added another dimension of texture. The sorbetto was indeed a solid dessert. In fact, it paired phenomenally well with my Root Beer Amaro drink. The after-dinner beverage consisted of sarsaparilla, sassafras, chinchona, and spices. I loved it. It did taste a bit like root beer, but without the carbonation and with a much stronger herbal flavor. If one was simply too full for a dessert, the Root Beer Amaro would definitely be a great alternative as it's still sweet and refreshing. Overall, I loved my dinner at Don Angie. It certainly lived up to the hype and is without a doubt one of the best and most exciting Italian restaurants in New York City. The food was immensely satisfying and showcased how Italian-American cuisine can be modernized. Service-wise, everything ran smoothly. My courses arrived at a good pace while my plates were cleared away promptly. All of the employees I talked to were very knowledgeable and friendly, and the restaurant had a nice, lively atmosphere. My bill came to $113.23, but with my tip, I spent just about $140, and it was well worth it. Ah, that was such a good meal. I loved every single thing I had. I really can't even think of any complaints with any dish. It was so good, so satisfying. It's such a great restaurant. You know, with a lot of food I can look at and pretty much guess how it's going to taste, but with Don Angie, every course, there was kind of an element of surprise to them with unexpected flavors and textures, which I just loved, and it made for such a fun eating experience. I'm trying to decide if I had a favorite dish, but I don't think I can make that decision because I just liked everything almost equally, and how could you compare a pasta to a chicken? They were just plain awesome. Even the side of the Japanese sweet potatoes blew me away, and I don't get that excited about sides, but that, that was really good. And as a whole, from the service to the atmosphere, Don Angie is a great restaurant. The staff was really nice. I also met a lot of great people at the bar tonight. It was just all around a great evening. Without a doubt, Don Angie is one of the best Italian restaurants in New York City. Getting a reservation is no doubt a challenge, but it's worth it, and if you can't do that, the bar is a great place to be. I simply cannot wait until the day I return to Don Angie, and the next time I'm there, I'm going to get that lasagna for two, and I'm going to crush it. And I really hope that day comes soon because, damn, that was such a good restaurant.