Monday, September 30, 2013

Nino's Positano

Upscale looking place in Midtown East

Let us see again--Definitely mixed, another one of these places that people seem to take to or they just don't at all


Nino's Positano

3.0 star rating
82 reviews Rating Details
Category: Italian  [Edit]
890 2nd Ave
(between 47th St & 48th St)
New York, NY 10017
Neighborhood: Midtown East
(212) 355-5540
Announcement
Get It While You Can! 4 Course Surf & Turf Dinner For Two & Bottle Of Wine with Live Entertainment $59.00.
Nearest Transit Station:
51 St. (4, 6, 6X)
Lexington Ave./53 St. (E, M)
Grand Central - 42 St. (7, 7X)
Hours:
Mon-Tue, Sun 12 pm - 10 pm
Wed-Thu 12 pm - 10:30 pm
Fri-Sat 12 pm - 11 pm
Attire:
Casual
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Price Range:
$$$
Good for Groups:
Yes
Good for Kids:
Yes
Takes Reservations:
Yes
Delivery:
Yes
Take-out:
Yes
Waiter Service:
Yes
Outdoor Seating:
Yes
Wi-Fi:
No
Good For:
Dinner
Alcohol:
Full Bar
Noise Level:
Average
Ambience:
Classy
Has TV:
No
Caters:
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible:
Yes

Review Highlights   What's this?

  • "Grilled Calamari with Arugula Cherry Tomatoes and Citrus Vinaigrette." In 7 reviews
  • "The wild mushroom ravioli was earthy and flavorful." In 3 reviews
  • "I never have room for dessert, but could not resist the tiramisu." In 8 reviews
Rating Distribution | Trend
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82 reviews in English

  • Review from

    • 17 friends
    • 89 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    5/15/2013
    Many other people comment on the outstanding service, and I wholeheartedly agree.  We came here on a Friday evening around 7:30pm after other dinner plans fell through.  Even though we didn't have a reservation, they sat us right away and treated us like royalty the entire evening.  It almost felt like a special occasion and we were the guests of honor.

    The ambiance was delightfully romantic.  There was a lovely female singer/pianist who sang (quiet) Italian music all night and it was a wonderful addition to the already romantic atmosphere.

    We almost always get a caprese salad when we eat Italian and theirs was very good.  For entrees, I had the gnocchi and my husband had the chicken marsala.  Both were excellent.  The food is slightly overpriced for what it is, but I would definitely return to the restaurant for the exceptional service, ambiance, and live music.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 5 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    4/14/2013
    I've now been here twice. The first time the food was excellent, service was great, and we had an overall great experience. However, the second time we went the food for the most part was enjoyable but while the staff was very nice, service was not great.  On the positive side it was a very enjoyable ambiance with a piano player playing throughout the meal and the asparagus with truffle oil was excellent. I also loved how they offer a whole wheat linguine option which I ended up ordering and it was definitely homemade and delicious. On the negative side, the waiter forgot one of our appetizers, the oysters were bad, and they overcooked both salmon dishes.

    My boyfriend still very much likes the restaurant so we might come back but I do not think it is some place I would go out of my way to return.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 37 reviews
    Fairfield, CT
    8/27/2013
    Violations recorded in the following area (s) and a Notice of Violation issued at the reinspection conducted on 07/17/2013.
    "Critical" violations are displayed in red.

    Violation points: 24

    Sanitary Violations
    1) Cold food item held above 41º F (smoked fish and reduced oxygen packaged foods above 38 ºF) except during necessary preparation.
    2) Food not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display or service.
    3) Sanitized equipment or utensil, including in-use food dispensing utensil, improperly used or stored.
    4) Wiping cloths soiled or not stored in sanitizing solution.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 11 reviews
    Venice, CA
    8/19/2013
    The wait staff and host seem clueless about how to treat guests from the minute they walk in the door. The atmosphere is very chaotic and unwelcoming. Food here is mediocre at best, and overpriced. Go somewhere else.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 2 reviews
    Monroe Township, NJ
    6/20/2013
    Delicious meal and great service.  Highly recommend the piZZAS!
  • Review from

    • 25 friends
    • 47 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    1/3/2013
    Came here for a date. The first awkward thing is they didn't have a wine list or drink menu. I asked for a bottle of Pinot noir and the waiter hinted it was expensive. So we ended up just having a glass of wine and a beer.

    We had a prosciutto pizza, which was yummy but not particularly flavorful. Then, we awkwardly got bread and olives after the pizza.

    For entrees, I had the gnocchi. They were very disappointing! Tasted like store bought packaged gnocchi. The BF had rigatoni, which was average.

    In general the restaurant has a nice ambiance but the bland food, overpriced-ness, and general awkwardness of service make it so I wouldn't return.
  • Review from

    • 128 friends
    • 45 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    10/12/2012
    This could be a fun lunch experience with the right Italian ;).

    I ordered gnocci and a beet salad. I was surprised the gnocci was so dry. It was disappointing--and I love gnocci!!! How could you do this to me? The beet salad was the highlight of the lunch because it helped to wash out the taste of my disappointment. Bleh.
  • Review from

    • 9 friends
    • 48 reviews
    San Francisco, CA
    10/25/2012
    Groupon was excellent. The location is great. Very pleased with dinner; the food and service!

    2 bottles of wine for a party of 4 is exactly the right attitude.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 3 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    7/26/2013
    I like this place for lunch and dinner but went by this afternoon to get gelatto.  As I arrived I noticed the guy licking his fingers and handling the scoops.  Yuk.  I kept going to find it elsewhere.  The server should start wearing gloves and practicing better hygiene.
  • Review from

    • 8 friends
    • 3 reviews
    Bronx, NY
    4/28/2013 1 check-in here
    We had dinner at this restaurant on a  Saturday night.   The services was phenomenal.   We were treated like guest of honor the whole time.   The food was amazing.   The entire experience was just great . Manager come by to make sure we enjoying everything  and I will definitely be back.
  • Review from

    • 40 friends
    • 26 reviews
    Long Island City, NY
    10/20/2012
    This place is terrible food wise.  Nothing special on the menu, same old stuff you can get from the next Italian place down the block and you're paying up for it.  Place is nice, but it seems too big, especially considering they don't have the clientele to fill it.  I had to go to Spasso in the west village to eat again to fulfill my craving for a decent Italian meal.  I wonder to myself what does a Slavic owner know about cooking an Italian meal.....?

    No wonder this place is going under, I knew I shouldn't have ate there....oh well....I'm off to Spassos in the West Village, now that place is awesome.
  • Review from

    • 6 friends
    • 19 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    4/14/2013
    Do not go here.  The food was awful and although the staff was friendly, they were unprofessional and forgot parts of our order.  My Salmon tasted like charcoal and my boyfriend's seafood risotto tasted absolutely horrendous.  The bathroom was disgusting and the food is extremely overpriced for what you get.  Overall, not a good experience.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 3 reviews
    New York, NY
    11/29/2012
    This restaurant is a good find if you're looking for a little more upscale casual Italian restaurant. I had a great food experience and was pleased with the service.

    I highly recommend the yellowfin tuna with garlic truffle oil and roasted vegetables. So delicious! I also tasted the chicken parmigiana, which was very tasty as well.

    The chocololate cake was okay (not very rich in taste)--the cappuccino was the perfect end to the meal!
  • Review from

    • 16 friends
    • 33 reviews
    New York, NY
    4/23/2012
    Everything looks nice (maybe a bit cheesy) until you mention the Travelzoo deal.

    Then the real menu goes away, and the special limited menu comes out.  And when they say no substitutions, they mean NO substitutions.  I'm a bit of a picky eater, but if there is any type of food I can usually find a number of things on the menu to choose it is at an Italian place.  Since I couldn't substitute sides, I was left with ordering Chicken Parm.  Instead of the spaghetti it comes with, I asked for ziti or some sort of other pasta (it was a third date - spaghetti is messy!) You would have thought I asked for fillet Mignon as a substitution for the federal case they made of that.  We asked one waiter to talk to the manager, and were told there was no manager.  Then we asked someone else, who said that the manager was busy.  I mean really, get your story straight!

    The food we finally ate wasn't bad by any means, but in a city with so many Italian restaurants, why not go to a place that seems to want you there...
  • Review from

    • 4 friends
    • 25 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    8/27/2012
    Ended up here one night due to a Groupon deal.  Of course, what they don't tell you at the time of purchase is that the menu for the deal is a "special" limited menu.  The options were ok, but nothing was really striking my fancy.  The Caprese salad was the worst Caprese I have ever had.  The Chicken Parm was right down there as well.  The sauce was watery and overall bland.  I barely ate any of the food, nibbled at it, felt disgusted and called it a day.  The meal to that point was bad enough that we opted to skip the coffee and desert.

    Spare yourself, there are far better options out there.
  • Review from

    • 36 friends
    • 20 reviews
    New York, NY
    9/11/2012
    Horrible! The food was flavorless and the service was bad. - worst Italian EVER!
    I think because this is a Groupon deal, I feel like all the food were pre-made. Dried, greasy and tasteless.
    Isn't the whole point of having a deal on Groupon to drive new potential customers. Oh my, it was waste of our $100, we could have gotten a better meal somewhere else.

    The Special Nino's Signature "off the menu" Surf and turf  dinner was more like, "Nino's getting rid of old steak and lobster supplies"  menu!

    Appetizers ( We knew that the main course will be bad as the grilled calamari was super tough to eat and the fresh mozzarella was not fresh and unripe tomatoes did not help)
    Grilled Calamari with Arugula Cherry Tomatoes and Citrus Vinaigrette
    Fresh Mozzarella, Basil and Farmhouse Tomatoes

    Main courses (Outrageous to how they can serve poor quality food like this)
    Nino's Signature "Off The Menu" Surf & Turf, Fresh Maine Lobster Tail And Prime Dry
    Aged Filet Mignon
    Chicken Parmegiana served with Spaghetti in a Fresh Tomato Sauce

    Homemade Dessert (Entenmann's cakes are superior compared to Nino's desserts)
    Tiramisu
    Cheesecake

    After disappointing meal, we left Nino, walked about a block away from the place when my husband realized that he left his cell phone, we when right back and they did not have the phone (hmm we know we left it there, don't you have camera to check". Of course the manager was not helpful...

    Not only we wasted $100 but also husband's biz smart phone....=/

    Spare yourself, there are far better options out there!
  • Review from

    • 5 friends
    • 3 reviews
    New York, NY
    3/26/2013
    I had a wonderful dinner here a few nights ago. I started off with the crabcakes. They were some of the finest I have ever had! I followed that with the pan seared Yellowfin Tuna...absolutely marvelous! I could not have asked for a better tuna preparation. The grilled polenta and broccoli rabe were excellent "contorni". I had a couple glasses of the pinot noir recommended by the waiter. Very nice and quite reasonably priced. I finished with the homemade Italian cheesecake...Divine! The atmosphere is quite stylish and sophisticated. The waiters were exceptional and not intrusive. What a wonderful meal and evening. I look forward to going back again very soon!
  • Review from

    • 144 friends
    • 180 reviews
    New York, NY
    4/1/2012
    So, the food here, for me, was pretty good! I had the house salad, chopped, and pasta bolognese and I can't complain. However, the service, took forever, and wasn't very attentive.

    With all the competition in the area, I wouldn't return. For the $$$$ the food/service did not suffice.
  • Review from

    New Orleans, LA
    12/14/2010
    I visited Nino's for a business lunch with a large group, and I can see why the reviews are pretty mixed. I don't have any real knocks against it, but it seemed very average to me.

    I will say that the service was very nice. They quickly adjusted the volume of the music after I complained that it was drowning out all of our oh-so-interesting conversation. The wait staff was on top of everything, quickly refilling drinks and bringing out the food pretty much all at the same time, even though there were about 15 of us.

    The atmosphere was fine, aside from the aforementioned blasting music. It had a bistro kind of feel, at least for lunch. The food was perfectly fine but not mind blowing in any way. The presentation was nice and the food had taste, but it was all very standard. Except for dessert.

    I ordered the cheesecake. I won't order cheesecake there again. It had a spongy consistency and a very tart, lemony flavor. It was very strange.

    But I still ate it. Who am I turn down free food?! It's just not in my nature.
  • Review from

    • 17 friends
    • 11 reviews
    New York, NY
    4/5/2010
    Nino's is a great place to have luch or have a business dinner!  it has a very ornate and classy decore.  professional staff.  This place is by far better than Lombardi's pizza across the board on every standard.  I ordered a pizza with pepperoni and sauage and it was superb!  great sauce and ingrediates. it has a flavor that popps in your mouth.

    My brother order the salmon with mash and green beans and it was an excellect choice.  They seasoned the salmon with spices that complimented the entree.

    Lastly, please try their ceasar salad!  one of the best i ever experienced.
    I will definitely return soon!

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