Gaetana's

Great Italian spot in the village. The service and food was excellent. I will be going back here again and again. more

I am very picky when it comes to linguine in white clam sauce so naturally that is my measure for a good italian restaurant. Two words, HOME RUN. Its the best! Not only is that dish great, but every other on the menu. The food is so fresh and so rich you will have to come back and try everything. Not only is the food great, but as soon as you walk in there you are greeted by Frank, who makes you feel as welcome as if you had just been invited to diner at his him with his large italian family. Thats how he treats everyone, like family. Go to Gaetana's, and you will be hooked for life! more

Great old school village place run by Frankie Sap, a great old school guy. Pros: food,wine,location,and of course Frank Cons: none more

I haven't been to this specific location since it was a bar called Two Potato a few years back. I ate there this past Sunday. I'm a big fan of Frutta di Mare [pasta w/ an assortment of seafood & marinara sauce for you NON- Italians]. I try this every time I go to an Italian restaurant for the first time - it's the test dish to see if I'll be coming back again. It was very good - the mussels were big & juicy; the cockatiel clams were tasty albeit tiny [like they should be I guess]; the shrimp were large & cooked just right [although they could have thrown in more than 3]; the calamari was tasty & cooked just right; the penne was cooked just the way I like it; & the sauce was good. I had the arugula salad as a starter - was fresh & tasty. The waitress was quick & I had a seat near the open window to do some people watching as I ate during this abnormally warm day in April. Washed it all down with a Peroni beer. The prices were ok - probably could be a little cheaper considering the fact that the portions were nice - but not family size. Overall, a pleasant experience. The only reason I'm giving it 4 stars & not 5 is that I've had better & have definitely had worse. I will definitely be going back to try some of their other dishes or maybe the brick oven pizza. Pros: Tasty Food; Friendly Waitress; Great Location more

In a word ~ Scrumptious! Everything that comes out of Gaetana's magical brick oven is hot, fluffy, crispy & dripping with tradition. With Frank on the juke box & Frankie running the show, this is the informal neighborhood place where you belong ~ Sister Michelle will help you avoid mortal sin by coaching you on the art sopping up the gravy with the bread - oh the bread! Servers Mikey & Richard will become instant pals & by the end of the meal, you're a regular. Great place to throw a party. Very reasonably priced ~ you can easily roll outta here for $35 ~ Best Italian in the Village! Pros: Great Food * Good Company * Fun * Relaxing * Nice Music * Friendly more

Some of the worst food I've ever had in New York. I eat and and cook frequently so food is something I can definitely opine on. For starters the service was probably some of the worst I've had in awhile. The waitress kept coming by every minute asking us if we were ready to order and by minute three she was annoyed and impatient that we haven't chosen anything. It was as if she was trying to get rid of us and there were plenty of empty tables - so it wasn't a question of accomodating other customers. It got to a point where we had to tell firmly and politely for her to come back in five minutes to which she huffed and clearly didn't like hearing. For an Italian restaurant, it's an ABOMINATION. This is food made without any love, care, or concern for quality of ingredients. NONE of the pastas are home made - everything comes out of a box. The lasagna bolognese was just awful -- it was bland, it had no depth of flavor, the pasta used was overcooked, the meat sauce was made without any herbs or spices and the presentation was deflating - I would not serve it like this at home, must less at a restaurant that dares to charge $16.95 (or something like it) for a piece of the worst lasagna I've ever had. Save your $ and go to Max's -- where while some of the food isn't amazing, the lasagna is fantastic. Also, Da Silvano is close by and albeit a little pricey - you will get stellar, beautiful food prepared with love. Cons: food, terrible service, gaudy decor, too noisy, too expensive given the quality more

I've lived in NYC in various locations for many years now, and I happened to be living 2 blocks from Gaetana's when it first opened. It didn't really seem like my kind of place at first, but after walking by it a few times I finally stopped in and happened to meet the illustrious owner, Frankie--who someone described below as being the ""waiter/owner"". It's true--Frankie works almost every night of the week because he is the heart and soul of this place and he is what keeps folks coming back. He even helped me when I moved out of the neighborhood and my movers left the job half done! Pros: Everything! Cons: Getting busier all the time more

I love the Pizza, I love the service. It's great for a first date and the location is perfect, close to all transportation. more

In NYC for trade show and went looking for a place to eat prior to parking the car for the show duration when we came upon Gaetana's. We got lucky with a parking spot on the same block and went in for dinner. We were seated promptly in the back and ordered a bottle of their Chianti recommendation which was both excellent and fairly priced. Started out with the Calamari which was excellent and a small pizza with roasted peppers which was also excellent. We shared the pasta special and an order of veal piccata both of which came out of the kitchen steaming hot and they were delicious. We had a side of Broc Rabe which was tender and crazy with garlic the way we like it. The owner stopped over to see how we were doing and introduced himself and provided some interesting background on the restaurant - his family have been in the home cooked Italian fare biz forever in New York City and counted Frank Sinatra and his entourage among their most loyal customers. For dessert we split a choc cake sitting in a pool of choc sauce and had a couple home made Lemonchello before heading off to our hotel. Casual, local, friendly, prompt service with good food and fair prices. Pros: Great pizza, solid casual dinning menu and friendly service - away from the ratrace of NYC Cons: If you are looking for fine Italian dining this isn't it - go uptown more

After trying restaurants all over the city, I have to say this was by far the worst food I've had. The ambience was great; the waitress was friendly and attentive; the bread was great. But the entrees? All four people at my table were disappointed. I got a chicken dish that was absolutely disgusting, served with a very small dish of congealed rice. Another person in my party got the penne a la vodka and couldn't even finish it. The other two said their dishes were average. I was very disappointed with how the food looked and how it tasted. I will not be going back to Gaetana's. Pros: Nice ambience, friendly waitstaff Cons: horrible food more

Get ready for some gushing -- I recently hosted my engagement party at Gaetana's and it was AMAZING. We had about 90 people and we kept it casual - buffet style, open bar, etc. The service was incredible. Between the owner Frankie, a true sweetheart, and the warm and welcoming waiters and bartenders, everything ran smoothly and the staff only added to the pleasant, laidback atmosphere of the party. Friends actually told me that it was by far the best engagement party they had ever been to, that the place was perfect, and the food great. Frankie himself kept coming around and just handing me little plates of food, or putting something to eat down in front of where I was sitting. I thought it was because he knew I'd be busy running around playing hostess, but friends told me later that he catered to everyone in that way, which I found very sweet. I really felt like all the staff went out of their way to accomodate my friends and family. People also LOVED the food, and told me they can't wait to come back for dinner. (I've been back since, and this all applies to a small sit -down dinner too - great service, great food). Compared with other restaurants I looked at in Manhattan, Gaetana's was also very inexpensive, and I truly could not have been happier with the way the party turned out. In addition to the food and the staff, the atmosphere of the restaurant itself is charming, and has that old world feel to it. I could go on and on, but I'll finish with this - if you are planning a private event, think of Gaetana's. Our party took place over 2 months ago, and friends of mine still bring it up and tell me how wonderful it was. I love love love this place, and i think you will too! more

We have been to this restaurant at least 5 times in the last two years, and that's saying a lot. Great service, excellent food (must try the seafood salad), and easy access to everywhere we want to be. If you want something quick and tasty, but with a great atmosphere to boot, this is the place. Very good dirty martinis. Pros: Service and great food Cons: can't find a ""con"" to enter! more

We ate here for the first time Sunday September 2, 2007. We picked it out based on ""reviews"" and got a discount through Restaurant dot com. Apparently a lot of people have lost their mind over on ""Menu Pages"" who gave positive reviews about this place. The place does have that ""old world"" Italian charm look to it. The ""waiter"" seems to be the owner also as he was the only person along with the busboy servicing all the tables in the place. The do have great music which is a mix of predominately jazz and adult contemporary. The portions are small to say the least. Do not be in a rush. The bread with the basil, salt, pepper and olive oil dip is outstanding, we went through two baskets - waiting on our dinner order of simple chicken parmigiana and seafood fra di avlo. I see why we are the FIRST and ONLY review on City Search of this place. If your in the neighborhood and want to have a drink and listen to jazz-good place and maybe their pizza is good-it looked good along with the fried calamari other than that I would be suspect of the entrees as a whole. Don't get me wrong the ""waiter/owner"" was a nice gentleman but he was doing everything, where are the waiters/waitresses???? It took A-W-H-I-L-E for our food to be served...Portions are SMALL compared to the price, it seems like all entrees are served on these oval dishes were everything is portioned to sit in the center of the dish. My wife does not want to go back there again for ""dinner""; if we do it would most likely ONLY be to try the pizza and the fried calamari. They also need to update their website. There are items that they serve that are not on any of the online menus. This really could have been a wonderful find in the West Village if a few changes were made. By the way the ""Italian cooks"" in the kitchen-were MEXICAN, as is MOST in ALL kitchens in New York City no matter what ethnic restaurant you go into, so don't be fooled or shocked! Pros: Bread and oil dip, ambiance, music Cons: SMALL portions, lack of timely service more