Gente

I have been eating at Gente regularly since I moved offices near Grand Central. I can honestly say this place has the best Italian food in the neighborhood - HANDS DOWN.

The price fixed lunch menu offers a wide variety of selections, but my favorite dish is definitely the unique Artichokes, which will keep you coming back for seconds!

Pros: Artichokes are to die for

Posted 03/24/09

The food is consistently excellent and I have been a customer for years and years. Jay always takes advantage of seasonal produce and will surprise you with a tasty treat. Super salads, perfect pizza, rapturous risoto.

Posted 03/16/08

great food great service this is my favert restaurant best pasta black white tagiolini thank gente staff

Posted 03/01/08

The food was excellent, better than lot restaurants, could hold its own against any Italian restaurant in Manhattan with a very good price, and the service oh god you cant imagine everybody is very friendly from the owner to the sweet busboy specially Nick the manager he is the best. I can?t wait to go back next week to have a lasagna or
Risotto seafood with my favorite cosmopolitan that they make .

Posted 10/11/07

A pleasant experience
Stopped by this restaurant having read favorable reviews on MenuPages. Restaurant appears closed from a distance at night, but the dim lighting adds a lovely atmosphere to this excellent restaurant. Anyone wanting a decent meal at a reasonable price cant really go wrong here. Staff are friendly and professional. Recommended.and i thank very mach this water sammy for great service

Posted 09/06/07

you have to go and se this restaurant is great i cant wait to go there an the best is this gentelman weter samy service exelent thank you sammy

Posted 08/16/07

Friends and I go here for lunch about once a month. We also go for dinner and business luncheons. Atmosphere, service, food and staff are fantastic. We are now friends with the staff which makes our experience even better. Brushetta is wonderful. The chicken piccata is in a light sauce with capers - fantastic. The Cosmopolitans are the best we've ever had. The atmosphere is romantic but is also great for a group of friends hanging out after work. Highly recommended.

Pros: Food, staff, atmoshphere. Great for people watching or romantic dinner.

Posted 07/03/07

I love going here at least once a week they have great pasta, and dont miss to ask for a bottle of wine its wonderfull..........I personaly recommend this italian restaurant to anybody who goes around the midd town in eastside..........

Posted 09/25/06

Wow i never eat pizza out in the restaurant but there were so many great choices in the menu and i was so hungry that i decided to order Pizza Con La Verdura---------the the vest vegetable pizza that i had so far..........i am looking faward to try other things in this restaurant i can imagine how great the pasta will be and other things as well............................so dont hesitate to go and try any thing in here it's nice and clean.

Pros: Great Food

Cons: it's not a big restaurnt

Posted 09/25/06

I just got back from lunch with three other colleagues. We were seated promplty as well we should have been, being as the place was practically empty. After 45 minutes our lunch came out. Two tiny, dry foccasia (sp?) sandwiches, one pasta "special" and one risotto special. Mine was the risotto, and it was actually pretty good. The pasta was eaten with a scowl. The sandwiches were left behind after even the extra cokes couldn't wash them down. Unfortunately those cokes (served in tiny wine glasses) cost $3 apiece, evidently no free refills. So $18 of soda later we left, very disappointed. If anyone had bothered to come by and asked if we enjoyed everything, they would have heard a resounding "no." But unfortunately they didn't ask.

Posted 08/21/06

Great Food, Great wine, Great Service; nothing is missing.
My wife and I have become regulars, we dine in twice a week
A Lasagna is the best i ever had
Worthed every penny you pay and nick the manager is the best.

Pros: GREAT, BEST ITALIAN, DELICIOUS

Posted 05/25/06

Nothing to say you have to go there and ask for risotto seafood and if you like to have a drink from the bar o my god ask for cosmapolitan the best ever

Posted 05/23/06

I took friends from out of town here for a quick dinner on a Saturday night. There was a huge party there, but we still had great service. The food was good and cheap! If you don't want to break the bank, this is a good place to go and the menu has a lot of favorites.

Posted 05/14/06

ive been here a few times for lunch and the food isnt great. they used to have grilled panini for under $9 at lunch which was great considering that its a sitdown restaurant with service, but i didnt see those options when i came here this week. the other day, i had the grilled tuna (~$16) which came grey and well-done (though i asked for rare) atop a pile of tasteless carrots and with a side of broccoli. some of my coworkers had the pastas (~$12) which they said was normal. the chicken cacciatore was pretty dry though it was in an oily sauce. i believe that desserts are outsourced to another bakery because the menu depicts pictures with the supplier name. service is average. theres really nothing to recommend about this restaurant, but its ok it youre looking for a lunch spot near grand central.

Pros: fast service, fairly inexpensive, comfortable seating

Cons: overcooked tuna, mediocre food, outsourced desserts

Posted 05/01/06

The food was cooked to perfection. The service was wonderful, and very personable. I was impressed with the amount of attention they gave us. I ordered a seafood pasta dish that was absolutely divine.

I highly recommend this place.

Pros: Food, Service, Ambiance

Cons: None

Posted 06/26/05

Was at Gente a little while back. Have only kind words to say about the place. It was a calm place with some of the great desserts around. Try the orange sorbet. Take friends there. It's a terrific place for groups to talk and eat a tasty meal.

Posted 06/23/05

A group of freinds and I went to Gente and really enjoyed it. The service was good, the food was excellent, and the ambience was very nice. Its well suited for a romantic date, I think, but was also good fun with a group of friends. I highly recommend it if you like authentic Italian cuisine!

Pros: Great food, Lovely ambience, Reasonable prices

Posted 06/22/05

I was pleasantly surprised to find such authentic Italian fare outside of Little Italy. As a vegetarian, there were many different options to choose from although I would personally recommend the eggplant parm. Great place for a date or with a group of friends!

Pros: Ambience, Food, Service

Posted 06/22/05

Went to Gente for dinner not too long ago. The decor was nice and comfortable. However, the food was decent but not worth talking about. My main problem with this place was the unprofessional service - a table of young women got the attention of the entire waitstaff while the rest of the restaurant was very painfully ignored.

Posted 06/03/05

GENTE Ristorante Italiano is an incredible Discover. 11 Wines by the glass a varied Assortment of beers and fabulous cocktails (like green apple martinis). The food is very authentic (I have been to Italy many times with my family.) one o our group was born in Italy and he said the lasagna was almost as good as his mothers
ROSA

Pros: Romantic

Posted 02/23/05

I recommend Gente to anyone looking for great pasta without breaking the bank. The staff is friendly and accomodating, and the desserts are very impressive. All in all, a great Italian experience.

Pros: pasta, service, desserts

Posted 02/07/05

Gente was the PERFECT place for our holiday office party. Jay (owner) is so easy to work with, completely flexible, and along with his staff can accomodate any of your needs. The intimate space is perfect for a private party because it enables you to have the whole restaurant to yourself. The food is great and the prices so reasonable...I can't imagine a better choice for a party!

Pros: Great service, Great party space, Great food

Posted 12/15/04

My friends and I take our moms out to dinner ever year for Christmas. This year we picked a Gente out of city search and just hoped for the best. It turned out to be our best outing ever. The food was delicious, the service was excellent, and the prices were cheap! The restaurant is cozy and great for group dinning!

I absolutely love this restaurant and will come back again and again!!!!

Pros: Inexpensive, Great Service , Wonderful Food

Posted 12/07/04

Gente is a rare find among NY restaurants. My wife and I had dinner there last week with two friends, simply because it was convenient to one of our workplaces. What a surprise! The food was among the best Italian any of us had ever had, with many unusual dishes. Be sure to try the Lugurian pasta and DO NOT MISS the Carciofi Judea, the absolute best version of this dish we have ever had. The prices were remarkably moderate, especially considering the quality of the food. Jay, the owner, is a born host and proudly recommended various dishes to us.

Pros: Great food, Great service, Moderate price

Cons: , None

Posted 05/31/04

My husband and I were in New York for the weekend and we found this restaurant on citysearch. Being from Italy, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the food was very authentic. The appetizers were so good that we had 3 different ones followed by some nice home made pasta. The biscotti with the coffee were superb and the service was very good well.

Pros: food, service, atmosphere

Posted 11/20/03

I recently had a baby shower at this restaurant, and i can't tell you how many compliments i received regarding how quaint and casual the place was, the great food, and the great service. It was the perfect place to host a small group of 30 people or so. Jay and his crew are very accomodating. I would indeed host my next gathering there again.

Pros: small group parties, food, service

Posted 03/09/03

Good food, very good service and not that expensive...not to mention it's not crowded so you can actually have a conversation.

Pros: not crowded

Posted 02/03/03

I have never ordered a bad item from this great little restaurant. The service is always great, and the owner walks around to make sure you enjoy. All I can say is they are fantastic.

Posted 01/08/03

I recently hosted a bridal shower at Paper Moon Milano Express. They did a great job setting up the room and serving great food and drinks. I let Jay pick the menu and he did an awesome job. The pasta was something I've never had before and it was outstanding! He also served great champagne with raspberries which was a big hit.

Posted 05/28/02