Pazza Notte Menu

Pazza Notte Restaurant Review:

Just when you thought Midtown was too corporate to be cool, along comes Pazza Notte. Unfortunately, the attempt at creating a hip downtown-like hangout misses the mark. The front clearly constitutes the primary dining area but the lighting is too bright; the music is a thundering dance club mix (not conducive to eating and plays too loudly for patrons to converse comfortably); and service is casual to the point of annoying---wine sometimes doesn't arrive till after the food and water isn't refilled. Fortunately, the food trumps the service and atmosphere. The goat cheese torte sits on a bed of frisée and crispy crackers make up the shell, which comes finished in a balsamic reduction and bits of crisp apple. The Italian mini-meatballs are light and flavorful, tasting of beef broth in a light tomato sauce. The pan-roasted halibut comes with roasted artichoke hearts and fingerling potatoes while a generous sirloin, cooked to perfection, is finished with a magical béarnaise sauce and comes with crispy pommes frites. The chef is truly talented, and it's a pity that the front of the house cannot live up to what comes out of the kitchen.