“Location, location and…?” - A Review of Nero D’Avola
BY CAROLYN ONOFREY
Nero D’ Avola
46 Gansevoort Street
Meatpacking District
212-675-5224/nerodavolanyc.com
I had wanted to try out Nero D’ Avola (AKA Nero) for a long time. I’m a little embarrassed to say, but I’m a Meatpacking lover and the location sold it for me. A few of my friends had also been there for various occasions and didn’t have anything bad to say about it, not to mention it was on the MTV show The City. Don’t get me wrong, none of these things made it a credible destination but I decided it would be a good place to take a friend of mine from Miami.
Orecchiette at Nero D’ Avola
We showed up without reservations and were seated next to the door. Not ideal, but there really wasn’t another seat in the house. The place was smaller than I had imagined, packed with twenty-somethings on dates, celebrating a birthday, etc., all dressed to the nines no doubt ready to hit up their favorite Meatpacking club after dinner. The vibe was young and fresh and was punctuated by exposed brick walls with a black and white film projected on one of them. The minimalist décor consisted of caged bottles of wine suspended on the walls between large windows, all highlighted by an industrial looking light. The tables and chairs were characterized by an Old World rustic Italian aesthetic. They were simple wood structures–just the way I like it. Even the waiters, dressed in skinny black ties and suspenders looked the part.
We sat down and ordered from the cocktail menu. Cocktails ranged from $11 – $13, each. It was what I would expect from a swanky place such as this one. I’m usually not a huge specialty cocktail person, but the concoction I ordered mixed with Tequila hit the spot. For dinner we ordered the Polipo (Portuguese gilled octopus with roasted potatoes, red onions, and capers)($15) to share and one pasta dish each. The Orecchiette ($13) struck my fancy with broccoli rabe and sweet Italian sausage. Our food came timely with the perfect amount of time between courses. The polipo was cooked well, tender with a bit of a crispy outside. While it didn’t really wow me, it was still an enjoyable dish, and a nice alternative to the ever-popular fried calamari. The main course pasta dish that I ordered left much to be desired. First off, the pasta was overcooked, a big no, no for an Italian restaurant. The sausage was lacking flavor and had an unpleasant texture with many hard bits scattered throughout.
Orecchiette at Nero D’ Avola
We decided not to stay for dessert, as Billy’s Bakery was just up the road, and who can pass up a Billy’s cupcake? Certainly not I.
My overall experience at Nero was not a bad one, but I would not recommend it before I went back again myself, if I go back at all. The service was forgettable and the food was too. Like most places in the Meatpacking District, pretty much the only thing Nero has going for it is its supreme people watching opportunities due to its location, location, location.
