Max

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51 Avenue B, New York, NY 10009-7441
New York, NY 10009

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(212) 539-0111
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Max - New York, NY
Reviews
( 25 )
( 35 )
( 6 )
( 9 )
( 15 )

Best

This little hole in the wall Italian restaurant is fantastic. A rustic, down-to-earth, no reservation needed home cooked place that serves phenomenal pasta. You need to come hun...

Worst

I've been hearing about this place for a while, but I don't know why. From start to finnish, every thing was OK, just OK. The service left a lot to be desired, to much ""beautiful...

Horrible experience 2/24/2006

The managers of this restaurant are very arrogant. We called for delivery and were told that we were in the delivery area. Then, we were passed onto another person to take our order. Even though we were in the delivery area, he decided that he didn't want to deliver to 14th and Avenue C, even though this is about 10 blocks away from the restaurant. There are many other restaurant which care about their customers and wlll go an extra mile, let alone 10 blocks, so why bother with this one? more
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Good food, horrible waiters..... 1/17/2006

I love the food at Max, but the wait service? Horrible. The waiters are clueless, they know it, and they don't care. People are still going to pack the place. The guys who bus the tables are great there, better than the waiters. I hope they're tipping them out well. Bar service is pretty good too. Lasagna is awesome, I think. If you can get past the crappy wait staff, Max is definitely good for some inexpensive, very good Italian food. Great sangria too! more
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Best Lasagna outside of Italy! Horrific Service! 11/13/2005

The lasagna is incredible--the best I've had outside of Italy. Actually anything with red sauce is incredible there, and almost all pastas are $9.95. The decided downfall is the authentically Continental service. I go to Max on a weekly basis, and always have to leave the table and walk over to our waitor to request more water, the check, etc. But if great, cheap Sicilian cuisine is what you're looking for, you won't find a better restaurant than Max! Pros: lasagna, 9.95 pastas, lamb ragu Cons: service, far from a subway, wait for table more
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tastey lasangagaga 10/31/2005

Weird about the other review. I got the lasanga and it was great. Very very hot. The appetizer of the balsamic vinegear with the shredded lettuce isn't work it and didn't have much taste to it. You get some big portions here. The sangria isn't worth the 26 buck a pitcher either now that I think about it. The service is bad here. The waiter came by once, to take our order and it took forever to get the dinner check from him. We could have probably just left and they wouldn't have known. Pros: Eat and Run! Cons: Tight Spaces more
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Can't be worst 10/18/2005

I am reading all the reviews, in here about MAX, and i ask my self who is writing these reviews, the owners may be, cause they all look the same, i cant belive this. I was in max last week and it was the last time for me. The service is the worst service you can get in the city, the waiters think they are doing a favor to you, and if you have a problem with your food or servivce as i did (cold lasagna), the manager, will come to you, and with just an avarage english, she will not give you any answer to your questions, and you will get free tiramisu. It happends to me 2 times, and i dont even eat dessert. Then the pasta is not home made, except for the gnochi. This is not an italian concept!!! Pros: DECORATION more
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I LOVE IT 8/31/2005

I went there last night with my boyfriend, and Max is one of those places that reminds me of why I love my neighborhood so much. It's cute, it's unpretentious and so very comforting and yummy. The place is very welcoming, the wait staff is nice and talk about great Italian comfort food! I am happy to know around the block I can sit, sip wine under dim lit candle lights, eat good pasta and feel at home at this wonderful little spot. I wil be going back a lot! Pros: price, food, location Cons: wait more
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Delicious! 8/27/2005

We go to Max's often, and the food is consistently deilicious! There is usually a wait, and the bar is small and crowded. But after you sit down, you realize it was well worth the wait! Don't forget to bring cash. Pros: Food, Inexpensive Cons: Cash Only, Crowded Bar more
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Great basic Italian food and wine! 8/26/2005

Although it's cash only, and deceptively small-looking from the outside, this long and well-tabled interior is comfortable with a sizable backyard behind the bar (back of the restaurant). Their wine selection is impressive for such a small place and their homemade sangria is very good. The food is above average basic Italian fare that is prepared as it should be, making me long for my grandmother's sunday dinners. It's three areas of seating provide spaces for groups, kids, couples, friends. Don't judge it from the outside, you'll be surprised how much space (although a bit narrow) it has to offer. The waitstaff is very nice and patient and will help you select a dish if you're unsure. Their daily specials are good as well as the desserts. Pros: Gnocchi, Wine, Ragu sauce Cons: Cash Only more
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Great place but a tad dissapointed 7/25/2005

Years ago, I had gone to the Max in bklyn and remember the food being out of this world. I went there last Sat and although the atmosphere was so great (sit in the garden), I was a tad disspointed with the food. My mixed salad was fine but had very little taste and my pasta with basil, sauce and eggplant was equally ok. The bread and dipping sauce were amazing and the sangria was really good. I will def come back though because it has such character - maybe I just ordered the wrong thing. more
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RAVIOLI !!! 7/18/2005

must try thier mushroom ravioli !!! i find myself going back there to have the bread with the tomatoe sauce and olives, i can eat the entire basket myself ! they have an extensive southern itailan wine menu. i love thier pastas, so VERY FRESH ! worth the wait. Pros: GREAT FOOD Cons: LONG WAIT, TOO DARK, BAD MUSIC more
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Great food and friendly service 7/17/2005

Great, in-expensive food. Outside seating. Friendly (and cute) waiters. Need I say more! Pros: Food, Outdoor seating, Price more
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Worth the wait 6/15/2005

Max is nondescript from the outside, but cozy once inside. The restaurant is small and doesn't take reservations, which means that it can be a wait for larger groups. Standing at the bar trying to keep your glass of wine from being jostled by passing waiters, you inhale the scents of the food and your stomach growls. You can only hope it's worth the wait -- and it is! I recommend the gnocchi, it's the best I've ever had. And the prices are so afforable you won't have to think twice about ordering extra sides. Pros: Delicious, Inexpensive, Cozy Cons: No reservations, Small space, Wait for big parties more
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better than mom's lasagne 6/14/2005

i love this place. the only cons are the wait and the wine menu. i think for the price of the food the wine is a little pricey but the lasagne is to die for! it's perfect. i am pretty sure the secret is the addition of bechamel sauce. it's the only place i prefer the lasagne to my sicilian mother's homemade lasagne. you often have to sit at a table with someone you didn't come with and there's no where to comfortably wait if you have to sometimes an excess of 45 minutes. it's worth it though. in the end. Pros: best lasagne ever Cons: wait, pricey wine, crowded more
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Best Lasgna in Town 4/12/2005

Great Italian food at reasonable prices. Can't go wrong on the lasagna. Great appetizers and sangria, too. Pros: Awesome food Cons: Crowded more
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Service is lacking 4/4/2005

While the quality of food is always the same --good rustic Italian food for affordable prices, but there are two big problems. The first is the music is ridiculously loud and suitable for a nightclub or the such, and even worse, the service can be very poor. The waiters spend a lot of time drinking their own glass of wine and not asking you if you want anything more. Seems to me that the cooks and busboys are the real waiters and workers in this joint. Pros: Affordable, Good Food, Consistant Quality Cons: Poor Service, Loud more
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Excellent 2/23/2005

Just came back from Max for the second time this week. Large portions, clean, good service, and reasonable priced food. Flavor in everything prepared. The individuals that I dined with loved the food as well. Pros: good service, lots of bread Cons: no credit card, music more
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excellent all around 1/31/2005

Just came back from a late dinner on a Monday night. Everything was excellent. The black ink pasta with shrimp is amazing. The spices are just right. The service was amazing as well....as always. Gotta love this place. more
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So Sad 11/1/2004

First time I was here was in the summer of 2001. It had a charm and sitting in the patio with the laundry made you feel like you were in that seen from 101 dalmations. Since then I have frequented ""Max"" but the charm has started to fade. I don't know if it's pricier than it used to be, or the lack of variety in the menu, or the consistently ooh so service. Guess the ""Tramp"" in me needs to be pampered. Pros: Patio Cons: , No spirits more
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what happened? 9/15/2004

a 40 minute wait at 9pm on a wednesday? cheesy novelty trance music drowning out your conversation? hostesses who could teach the boogeyman a thing or two about intimidation? max, you used to be full of east village grace. i still kinda like you. your food is yum. your patio is pretty. but please stop catering to the upper west siders who get their kicks slumming it below 14th street. thank you. Pros: food good more
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Great food! 7/28/2004

As with any trendy hipster restaurant, you need to pick the right night to go. The food is always excellent and service depends on how crowded it is that night. I've been a regular for three years now and have never been disappointed in the food. Pros: Cheap food more
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Menu for Max


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Editorial

  • Young, thickly-accented waiters work a narrow room of fewer than 30 seats. Occasionally, Italian hip-hop that sounds suspiciously similar to Public Enemy circa ""Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos""...

  • 10/6/2005 Provided by Citysearch
Additional information
  • Payments: Cash
  • Neighborhoods: Downtown, Alphabet City, East Village
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