Piccolo Cafe
“Paninis are really good too, and though I haven't tried the pastas, I'm curious to check them out.”
“Lunch or dinner after visiting the Morgan library.”
“I settled on a warm focaccia with arugula, truffle pate and prosciutto cotto and it was really tasty.”
Piccolo Cafe
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Good for Working: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
Rate and write a review Cancel reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
This place is about 2 blocks from my office. Nonetheless, in spite of a 15-30 minute delivery estimate, it took over an hour for my food to arrive. I called twice, and both times was told that my food would be there in three minutes.
Delivery inefficiencies aside, the food was also a disappointment. I'll start with the positives. The side of avocado was the best I've tasted since I left California. Perfectly rich and creamy. It's like they overnighted it straight from the farm. I know they didn't make the avocado, but I'll give them credit for picking a good source. The ravioli was decent Really big ravioli smothered in sauce, just how I like it. The sauce was meh, but not bad so I'll take it. The Brussels sprouts were plain, but again, not horrible.
The bread, however, was cold, stale, and tasteless. The worst part of my meal was the "tiramisu". I use quotation marks purposefully because whatever that cup of cream was, it was not tiramisu. At best, it was the jello no-bake version of tiramisu. Quite a shame.
There is literally no circumstance in which I would ever intentionally order from this place again. That said, if I were dragged to lunch there by others, I wouldn't put up too much of a fight.
The cafe is really intimate and small. The seats were placed very close to each other and the tables itself are kind of small. You would definitely have no problem hearing your friend. The food is decently priced and the portions are moderate. It's basically enough to fill you up.
They definitely need to improve on their service. We ordered the lobster spaghetti and the pumpkin gnocchi….except I can't review the pumpkin gnocchi because I never got the pumpkin gnocchi. The cashier who took our order must have placed the order for the regular gnocchi. I kind of wished we got a receipt so we could have caught that mistake. But we already waited ~15-20 minutes for the food, so I didn't want to complain since I was hungry. My friend is also pretty sure that he asked for a iced green tea too, but that didn't come out with our order so he ended up ordering another drink…
I was disappointed in the gnocchi dish just because my friend who has tried the pumpkin gnocchi dish before said it was way better (more creamy) than the regular gnocchi dish. The gnocchi was lighter than I expected, I was used to eating ones that was heavier and more potatoe-y. Plus a couple of my gnocchi were still kind of hard. But my friend really enjoyed his lobster spaghetti. & I like how each pasta dish comes with a small roll to sop up the sauce.
Also, they have a great deal for after 5pm! Any 2 dishes for $16 (I think). & ask for a student discount.
They're slow so order ahead!
The food is great, it's a perfect lunch option amongst the restaurant chains that take up midtown.
Coffee is awesome too.
The reason I knock off a star — the service had super long nails and weren't wearing gloves. They were handling food and then people's cash, etc. and it was a bit appalling considering germs etc. can easily get under long nails.
Very small cafe with limited seating and no bathroom on Madison. For $10, you can get almost anything on the menu. The pasta looks awesome. I had the #2 panini, which consists of bufala mozzarella, basil, tomato, and gaeta olives. It was very good. I like that it came with a small side salad of mixed greens and balsamic reduction. This place is a good option for a fresher meal on the go that won't break the bank. They serve a limited selection of beer and wine as well as coffee and espresso.
Awesome little Italian spot with great food! The only downside is the wait time and long lines, which only proves this place is good!
I met up with a friend here for a quick after-work dinner this past week, and I ended up selecting Piccolo mainly due to location, as well as a lack of other Italian restaurants in the immediate vicinity (it was cold out, so I had little interest in walking even a few blocks away). It definitely has more of a takeout vibe to it, but there are plenty of tightly-packed seats to sit down at and eat in-house as well. The display isn't great – the mushroom soup definitely looked amiss – but with pretty standard pasta options, there's little left to the imagination. While the gentleman at the front was nice enough, he wasn't really paying attention; he brought the entirely wrong soup out (minestrone instead of mushroom).
We ended up doing the post-5 PM combo (which the menu fails to inform you does not apply to the lobster dish – surprise), which meant we got 2 entrees for $16 – pretty solid. The minestrone, from the looks of it, did not seem that attractive – hardly any liquid in the so-called soup, and it definitely looked more like a pile of soggy veggies. I went with the fettuccine with bolognese sauce, and it was very average. The pasta was soggy and definitely a bit overdone, and the sauce itself did not stand out with any kind of flavor.
In short, while we did get filled up at a decent price, I would almost certainly try somewhere else in this part of town next time I eat dinner in this neighborhood. Average food with below-average service – one can do better.
Beware: a truffle omelette is actually eggs with a spread of disgusting truffle mousse and not fresh truffles. Inedible. Good hot chocolate but I wish they served it topped with whipped cream instead of a bunch of foam. My son enjoyed his croissant. When they say piccolo, they mean it…this place is tiny!
One of my favorite tiny restaurants in the area for a quick lunch or dinner. This place really knows what it is and does a good job in seeming like a well thought out space with every detail being intentional.
All Italian food with every kind of pasta dish you want, salads, soups, sides and dessert. Really a huge selection for a small space like this.
I immediately went for lasagna (it's one of those dishes that is rarely ever good at eateries but proves how competent the chef is if he/ she pulls it off).
Delicious. Actually one of the best I've had. Pasta cooked perfectly, meat is mixed with a proper amount of cheese, cheese melted on top layer, not too much sauce, served hot all the way through. For 10$ a really good portion and easily considered a "lunch" but I always get dessert anyway.
Grandmothers cake, essentially a standard cake with lemon filling layer, almond slices and powdered sugar on top. Seems to be cut with a hot knife as the sides where warm but the center was cool. Strange temperature difference in one slice but I think it made it even better, added a whole new dimension to the cake.
All in all for 15$ you get a well made lasagna good enough for a decent lunch and a delicious slice of cake.
Would recommend for a "better quality" lunchtime. Lunch or dinner after visiting the Morgan library. Quick bite on a date. Not so much a destination for anything.