Costata

Update, closed! Apparently I made it just before the knife, so to speak. Try the pasta and steak at Marea.

We came to dinner on Monday night with my husband the place is nice and the food is amazing. I would of gave it 5 stars but the service was little slow over all it was really nice place. Deff be back

PATSA!!! OMG! This place was so incredible from start to finish. Lobster amatricana, dry rub ribeye, affogato. Wine list ROCKS!!!

I’ve been here twice for dinner — once I sat upstairs (which is quieter and more romantic) and the second time we sat downstairs (more casual).
Because it was so memorable, I will start by talking about the service. I don’t know if downstairs was having a bad night, but the service was TERRIBLE! It was a Monday night and we had made a reservation, but still had to wait over 30 minutes to be seated. The bar area was full, so we awkwardly stood the entire time! We were not given/​offered water or given the option to order a drink while we wait. Obviously this was frustrating, and we were starving, so when we finally got seated, and it took the waiter 15 minutes to give us menus, then another 25 minutes to take our order (which both times we had to waive them down). At the end of the meal, when it was time to pay the bill, my husband just got up and brought it to the kitchen because we were so over it. To give a little more information, because we had waited so long to get seated, by the time we ordered, the restaurant was about half empty. By the time we paid, there was only one other table still seated in the entire downstairs. There was absolutely NO excuse for the incredibly horrendous service we received. My LAST comment about the service. We brought a really nice bottle of wine to dinner as we were celebrating our friends anniversary (we were a party of 4). At nicer restaurants, typically the open and pour the wine in front of you to ensure there is no shady business, I have ALWAYS experienced this, however, they took our bottle of wine elsewhere and we never saw them pour it. I don’t think they switched bottles or anything, but for a $$$$ restaurant, you need to know what you’re doing and how to serve your clientele. I felt like whomever was managing the staff needs to do a lot of training and work because it was terrible all around, not just for a $$$$ restaurant, but because it was a $$$$ restaurant they NEED to do better as no one knew what they were doing.
With that out of the way, the food was amazing. This is another Michael White Restaurant (whom I love) and the food was great.
Raw: Sea Scallop $ 21
Celery root, black truffle vinaigrette
Very fresh, amazing flavor, melts in your mouth delicious!
Appetizer: Octopus and Pork Belly $ 22
Braised gigante beans, savory cabbage ‘soffritto’
Octopus is one of my favorite things when cooked perfectly, and this was indeed cooked perfectly! Great flavor
Pasta: Fusilli $ 22
Alla convivio, pork shoulder ragu, pomodoro, robiolina
Amazing pasta, so fresh and perfectly cooked. Pork shoulder is tender.
Side: Crispy Red Bliss $ 9
Garlic, rosemary chili flake
Great side of potatoes to get with the steak. They’re little red potatoes that have been smashed, seasoned and fried, so much goodness!
Side: Creamed Spinach $ 9
Roasted garlic, crispy shallots
I would pick the crispy red bliss over this. It was okay, but nothing special or noteworthy about it — it’s creamed spinach!
Meat: Costata $ 126
A 40 day dry aged 44 oz Tomahawk Ribeye
This is a massive piece of meat that can easily feed 4 people, so if you order for two, you better be really hungry, or order it rare so you can eat it for left overs! Personally I am not a ribeye gal, I prefer my meat with zero fat — but the flavor was very good, and the meat was relatively tender. My husband love it!
Overall, CHEFS are amazing and killed it in the kitchen, Front of the house staff — needs to be more on top of it and learn what’s necessary and appropriate at a nice restaurant. When I go out for a fancy meal and pay a lot of money, I not only expect the food to be amazing, I also expect the service and my overall experience to be superb, so for that reason, I would NOT come back here again and I would not recommend this place to others. I think the food was great, but it’s New York, you can get great food elsewhere.

Went here for our 2 year anniversary, and I have to say we were totally blown away. Ordering a main dish was an easy decision, if you looked around, literally everyone had ordered the tomahawk ribeye. we also ordered oysters, cream spinach and potatoes as our sides, and the food was exceptional. I was pleased they had Green flash west coast in their beer selection, I have found at upscale places are often light on beer selection, and having a heavy IPA to compliment the meat was a real treat. A special thanks to Pamela and Chris for such wonderful service, everything was perfect and I would recommend this establishment very highly to anyone looking for a fine dining experience.

Perfect. I mean, it was just absolutely wonderful. Our tomahawk ribeye was perfect. The side were perfect. The service (by Chris) was perfect
Pasta (Fusilli) was delicious– the sauce is to die for. The drinks (CONQUISTADOR) was fantastic as well. Highly recommended.

First place to eat in NYC… EVER. Not the best. Staff seemed, well was unattentive on all occasions even when asking for napkins. They were just over it. Food was pretty good, lack of flavor on the octopus and pork belly, and a tad bit more acid on the scallop app was needed. The ribeye steak was decent. Should have took the recommendations to go to his sister restaurant Marea. Maybe that would have been better.

Just ate here with a client at the bar. Very cool restaurant and very well run.
Great wine list, great service. This place was TOP NOTCH, worth every penny.
My friend had the giant ribeye and it was to DIE FOR and I had the 10 oz filet, which was perfect as well. Maybe the best steaks I’ve ever had in NYC, and that’s really saying something!
Also try the pasta apps. They are great!
Can’t wait to go back…

Love the look of this restaurant. The steak is one of the best in the city, and speaking of the best, their Bartender Nakia is just awesome.

Took my hubby here for his birthday and was really disappointed. The ambiance and décor is somehow lacking, very hotel-​y if that makes sense. The waiter was nice but not very good with his explanations at all. The food for me also fell short especially since I have been to Marea and was expecting a similar experience since the prices are comparable… Really wish I had been to Marea instead. Started with the fluke crudo which was good but not great. I love fish (including all kinds of raw fish) but this one was just fishy tasting in a bad way. We then each got pasta although to me the pasta selections were not very inspiring… my hubby got the Ragu pasta which he raved about. I got the crab pasta which was too rich and although really good made me feel a bit nauseous. My hubby then got the petit filet which was good but not amazing he stated and I got the Branzino which was quite good. We ended the meal with a crème brûlée.
All in all a good experience but really disappointingly not blown away. Would not come back here

This is for lunch during restaurant week.
At 12:30, my friend and I arrived as the only guests dining at the restaurant. I was guessing maybe it’s because the location, but definitely a rare on a Friday.
We started off with the appetizers, and I was really looking forward to steak tartare. Surprisingly though, the heirloom tomatoes turned out much better, and as my friend described it was much like a deconstructed pizza — with Caramelized onions, pesto, and soft mozzarella. Just the appetizer alone was worth coming back for. The steak tartare was much better after I squeezed a slice of lemon on top. Something was missing, it was too rich and creamy without a bit of tartness to make it appetizing. I wanted to recommend that to the chef, but if you’re reading this in ordering the steak tartare, add the lemon.
The mains were also very good, although the skate dish was very salty, and not as well done as the previous skate I had at their sister restaurant Ai Fiori. The steak frites were definitely much better.
I think dessert was definitely my favorite part, though I could only had a bite of each, both were incredibly amazing. The Panna cotta with a bit of sorbet on top was just the right amount of sweetness and creamy, and the torta was fluffy, light, and the coconut flavor was perfect for the summer.
Walking in hungry, I did wish there were some bread served in the beginning of the meal, but it was overall still a very good meal, and I will definitely look forward to coming back before restaurant week is over.

** Restaurant Week Summer 2015 Review **
When my mom suggested visiting me for lunch during the work week, I quickly made reservations for Costata to try their new Restaurant Week menu. I had been to their RW lunch during the winter season, so I wanted to see what was new on the menu — as well as their new downstairs lunch room.
Costata’s RW lunch menu consists of three options for appetizer and entrees and two options for dessert. Both my mom and I ended up ordering the same exact thing.
For appetizers, we had the Heirloom Tomato Salad with stracciatella cheese, basil and pesto. I’m not normally a fan of tomatoes but I really liked this dish. The tomatoes were fresh and super sweet. The pesto and stracciatella cheese meshed well with the tomatoes and didn’t over power them at all. It’s a very refreshing dish — perfect for hot summer months!
For our mains, we had the Steak Frites with sirloin flap, French fries, arugula salad, and béarnaise. The sirloin is a smaller portion than I remember from last season but it was still enough to fill me up. The fries were nicely done and tasted great dipped in ketchup and béarnaise sauce.
The highlight of our meal, however, I think came at the end when dessert arrived. We both ordered the Torta Di Olo with pineapple, coconut mousse, and fior de latte gelato. The torta was so tasty — the pineapple and coconut was light and refreshing, which was perfect after a savory meal. The flavors were very subtle and just lightly tickled the taste buds.
Service was decent — I feel like if I didn’t have to be back at work, I’d appreciate the amount of space and time they gave us. However, since I had to be back within a reasonable amount of time, it felt like the dishes were coming out very slowly. Be sure to let the wait staff know if you’re on a time limit!

Michael White already has an extensive reign over New York City, and with Costata as the latest addition to his Altamarea empire, his successes were only solidified. There’s a little more nostalgia in the space than one would initially assume, as the restaurant is the formal predecessor of Fiamma, where Chef White started cooking over a decade back as a transplant from the Midwest. There’s something fitting about his purchase of the property and the transformation of it into White’s version of a modern Italian steakhouse.
We were led to the second floor, which holds the dimmed, regimented dining room. To call it romantic would be misleading, but there’s something reassuring about the neatly spaced, white-​tableclothed tables playing off the maroon-​hued walls and the selection of abstract pieces that hang above the seats. The menu is similarly predictable, with a tempting selection of appetizers, pastas, and proteins — at impressive prices, to be sure. After some hemming and hawing, we decided on three courses that were (mostly) of shareable nature.
To begin: the Octopus and Pork Belly. The dish was impressively presented, with a lengthy tentacle draped over a careful assembly of pork belly, roasted baby potatoes, and pork cracklings. The octopus was well done, with just the right tenacity in the bite and a slight char at the edges. I was won over even more by the pork belly (of course), which was still pull-​apart tender in the interior, but with a delightful crispness at the edges. The red onion gremolata was a smart contrast, a tart and aromatic bite against the other ingredients, and the roasted tomato «acqua pazza» at the bottom of the plate paired perfectly with the potatoes.
White’s pastas deserve their own essays, but the Fusilli alla Convivio was one of the more memorable ones I’ve had. The fusilli had just the right bite and texture to it, and the ragù, a blend of hearty pomodoro tomatoes and braised pork shoulder, exemplified how rich and robust a basic sauce could be. With a healthy scoop of Robiolina cheese on top, which offered a unique coolness and creaminess to each forkful, it made for a delicious, surprisingly balanced dish.
And the star of the show: the Costata, a 40 day dry-​aged Tomahawk Ribeye. The dish is, not surprisingly, intended for at least two people, and is one of the more impressively presented options on the menu. It’s theatrically served with the bone (although the meat has, thankfully, been sliced). It’s cooked to the perfect medium-​rare, and the edges of the meat are smoky and charred, expertly seasoned with ground pepper and rosemary salt. We opted for a béarnaise and salsa verde sauce to pair with it, but there’s really no need for any additional condiments or sides as the meat is outstanding by itself; tender, unctuous, and aromatic, it truly is a carnivore’s dream.
Costata is another strong addition to the Altamarea empire, and while it’s certainly more suitable for special occasions and celebrations, it still has a muted elegance that makes it a viable last-​minute alternative. Come hungry, and prepare your method of attack in advance — this is certainly a place where one’s eyes will be larger than the stomach.

Went there with 8 of us for a Wednesday night out after work celebration. The price tag is not conducive to a regular pop in but well worth a special trip.
It always puts me in the right frame of mind when the hostess, the waitstaff, the sommelier and even bussers all made us feel welcome and comfortable.
We shared several appetizers: oysters were fresh and briny, the lobster was a hit but my favorite was the grilled octopus — one of the best I’ve had anywhere.
We also shared two pastas — the pansotti was good but the fusilli was amazing — and the seafood risotto (perfect).
Four people shared two of the tomahawk ribeyes and were not disappointed; they tasted as good as they looked. The other four had the regular ribeye and strip steak — cooked exactly to order, with a nice char and simple salt finish. If you want something more to kick them up, they have several sauces to try (bordelaise the best IMO).
Don’t forget to try the french fries — I know, just french fries but they were top 3 fries I’ve ever had.
Desserts were fine but after a giant meal, not really necessary and not really a standout.
If I went back with four people, I think the perfect meal would be sharing two octopus, two fusilli, two risotto, the tomahawk and some fries :)

I tried this Michael white grp Italian for the first time.
We tried RW lunch
My beef steak was not good, the meat smelled too meaty and tasted weird.
But French fries was good.
For the Beets salad, every ingredients did not match well.
The best part was dessert, torts do mascarpone was really good.
Service was friendly, moderate.
But Server/​staff chatted to kill time since there were no other customers while we had lunch…
I felt a bit worried if this restaurant could survive for long in NYC…

Came here for dinner and was disappointing.
Pros:
— Great service — attentive waiters/​waitresses
— Ribeye — cooked very well! It was delicious and great that they brought over a small dish of sea salt (you could flavor it)
— Great décor
Cons:
— Raviolo — this dish was extremely salty, had to drink a lot of water to wash down the taste
— I know they’re known for their wine selection but can they have nonalcoholic drinks that is neither coffee or water?!
— It’s a bit ridiculous that we need to take an elevator to the bathroom

Costata is actually a very good restaurant. However, as a steakhouse, it falls a bit short. The décor of this village spot is very modern, though the layout is a bit silly with you having to take an elevator to get to the bathrooms.
The happy hour here is probably one of the best kept secrets, because who comes to a fancy restaurant for happy hour deals right? Decently priced drinks, and a small, solid selection of food.
As for steak, I split the restaurant’s namesake, the «Costata», a 44oz dry-​aged, bone-​in ribeye. For doneness, it was cooked just as ordered, medium rare. 40-​days of dry aging or not, I was a bit underwhelmed. It was very lean for a rib eye cut… thus, dryer and chewier than I prefer.
Everything else I had here was very good though. The gnochetti, not surprisingly from a Michael White restaurant, was cooked perfectly al dente. What really impressed was the perfect balance of flavoring in the sauce though. It was very light, no smothering, but just enough to complement the texture of the pasta. The fries were also very delightfully… fried. Crispy on the outside, very soft and forgiving on the inside.

First review for 2015! My husband was here for lunch with a couple of friends this past Wednesday, the last day of 2014, and got last minute reservations for 5 at 2:30pm.
They ordered 2 orders of the Costata, they came for the steak! The Costata serves 2 which comes with a piece of 48oz steak and 2 sides! In this case 4 sides, since they got 2 orders of steak, brussels sprouts, baby carrots, + 2 of the fries. They requested the meat cooked medium, one medium rare and that was exactly what they got. Seasoned well, served with rich bearnaise sauce.
They got an order of the Halibut soon after since the group did not feel like they were full, even though it was alot of food. Portion of the Halibut was a bit small, but fish tasted fresh, pan seared and cooked perfectly. The dish also came with brussel sprouts and arugula salad.
The bill came out to be roughly $ 350 including the bottle of red they shared. Everyone was satisfied and were happy to pay up.

I came here with my buddy to have a nice steak dinner.
So what did we have? The 44 Oz Tomahawk steak baby! and the Gnocchetti. Now here’s the thing… Gnocchetti is not gnochi. It’s a pasta — gnochi is potato dumplings. There’s the difference! And french fries.
Ok with that said — here’s what i liked about the restaurant. An awesome happy hour that won’t run your wallet into the ground. They have a very good beer and drink selection at reasonable prices, 5 for beers and 6 for wines and mixed drinks aren’t too bad either. The bar area is very pretty — so this is a good HH spot for a date. Do you need a reservation for the bar, i’m not sure — but the HH is till 7 pm.
The rest of the meal was good — the pasta came out first, it was very flavorful and creamy, albeit a little smaller than i expected. My buddy and i shared the pasta and shared the steak for 2. The steak we perfectly cooked, and seasoned well enough — but both him and I like our steak with a little more seasoning, so we were somewhat surprised when they brought coarse salt over without prompting.
The fries were good, very potato-​y and it retained it’s crispyness the entire meal through.
The only thing I can comment that i didn’t really care for was the bathroom being down in the basement and the only way to get down there was by the elevator.

RESTAURANT WEEK LUNCH REVIEW:
Drinks
–London Smash
–Royal Blush
Meal
–Beet Salad
–Tagliatelle
–Frutti
Fantastic service, mouthwatering meal, very professional scene, good for business lunches, overall great deal for restaurant week!