Paprika

Good not great.
Came here awhile back and decided to give Paprika a try. Read some great reviews about this place and for the most part we enjoyed our the dishes we ordered. It was empty the day we visited, which worked well for us since we weren’t in the mood to wait in a line at some of the restaurants nearby. Employees are friendly and helpful. The restaurant is neat and organized.
Complimentary bread was nice but a bit burnt. Everything was fresh, quality ingredients were used, and had a lovely consistency. As far as flavor, it wasn’t all that memorable. Nothing really stood out. Our favorite dish would probably be the Oxtail Ragu.
Overall, I’m glad we tried this place out while it was still open.

I truly wish I could give a higher rating. However, I am very disappointed with our visit.
I called a week ahead of time to schedule our group, of over 20 people, for a pre-​show dinner. The staff was great and followed up to confirm the day of.
A few of us arrived about a half hour before the rest of the group. Upon our arrival we were greeted by Antonio. Who also ended up being our waiter. He was friendly and made sure that we got settled comfortably.
We ordered some appetizers and began enjoying the food.
The rest of the group began trickling in at the designated time and this is where it kind of goes down hill.
Antonio began to get overwhelmed. It was clear that given the advance notice, there should have been additional staff called in to handle a large group such as ours.
The same goes for the kitchen. It took approximately 1.5 hours to get our food. We actually started getting worried because we had an 8pm show and it was cutting it pretty close.
Another reason for the low rating, the heat was virtually non-​existent and we were freezing our butts off. To add on to this, their coffee machine was broken and we couldn’t a cup to warm us up. To not have coffee/​espresso available at an Italian restaurant is really bad.
Because the kitchen was so overloaded, the food was hit or miss. There were complaints from the group on overcooked or undercooked food. It was so cold, our plates and utensils did not retain the heat of the food.
I gave a 2 star rating only because I was one of the lucky patrons who actually received a good batch of food. The Oxtail Ragu for me was wonderful. The oxtail was tender and the right amount of fattiness and I loved the fresh pasta. However, for my colleague who order the same it was a totally different experience.
I may come back to try the food again, during a warmer season. But I will never recommend this place as a venue for group dining.

I would say this restaurant is alright. The food was good! I had the Gnocchi di Patate, which was tasty but I wasn’t sure of what the extra ingredient was. My friend had the steak with mash potatoes and she wasn’t really full off of it. The waiter was friendly, and gave more bread, yes I love bread! Also, we tried red wine which I didn’t like but my friend loved it!

This wasn’t too bad. A friend and were running around St. marks looking for some food to eat after the place we planned for closed down. We were sat down quickly. The service was good and the wait for the food wasn’t long. The only thing is I asked for a medium well steak and they gave my a medium steak but they gave me a completely new plate and were apologetic. Quiet and casual ambience.
Out of 5
Food:3.75
Ambience:4
Noise level: quiet background music

My dude and I took his parents here on Christmas Eve be use we were parked nearby and it was open. I had dude go in and make sure there was a decent amount of time before close, as I’m not trying to be shitty all over anyone’s baby Jesus eve. We had an hour and a half. So I’ve cleared myself of any asshole responsibility.
So on the window outside it says free glass of prosecco w each entrée. So when they didn’t take a drink order, I was like, well I guess all they have is that free prosecco, whatever. Drink order was never taken. Prosecco never came.
ALSO, there was plenty of room next to us where waiter could speak to and make eye contact with all of us, but he stood directly behind be, making it awkward.
I’m not saying it’s because of my non white to their all white status, but I can’t help but wonder.
Anyway, long story short, I know, too late, waiter was rude the whole time. And I’m not all about that.
The food was good enough.
Oh we finally got the prosecco, but only because the credit card machine was down and to apologize for the inconvenience they gave us a drink… Like to be «nice»
I didn’t give them any sass because I’m a LADY.
UGH THEN I NOTICED THAT CAFE MOGADOR HAS A LOCATION ACROSS THE STREET. WE COULD HAVE GONE THERE!

My new favorite place in the city! Very nice and friendly atmosphere ! Food ! Omg! I can’t explain how delicious their food is! Must try!!!
Very good for company or romantic dinner!
Thank you Paprika!!!

This place would have received 4 stars if the service wasn’t so terrible.
I came on a Friday night. I stood there and was ignored.
I was ignored for 10 minutes. Maybe the staff wasn’t doing it on purpose, there were not enough staff members for sure. But come on, at least say hi and tell me I will wait.
After being delightfully ignore, someone finally told me I would have a table in 15min. So I waited, although wanted to walk out.
Finally got a table. Again, they ignored us. Didn’t bring us a menu until I asked for one.
I finally managed to order my pasta and went for the penne with lamb meatballs. The food was actually pretty good. I quite enjoyed the meatballs as well.
Get more waiters Paprika! Its such a waste to have good food but terrible service because you will be turning off clients like me.

My two friends and I came over on a Saturday evening. We walked in, waited a few minutes, and was finally seated at a table. Got our menus, but unable to order drinks or food for at least 20 minutes. There were only two people working everything, so we understood, but we had a bit of a tight schedule and was feeling anxious.
We finally had to raise a hand to get noticed. One friend ordered a pasta, I ordered the chicken, and the other friend ordered a meat entrée. Also ordered glasses of wine. After waiting another 15 minutes, everything came out hot and exactly how we ordered it. And absolutely delicious. My chicken was tender, the mushrooms and onions were caramelized perfectly and easily meshed with the chicken. The squash medley had just enough seasoning to compliment the chicken, and the small side salad that I got (instead of having any potatoes) was very fresh and had great plate presentation.
Price-​wise, it was okay. With all of the waiting, probably not really worth it, but the food was really good once it finally came out.

I hadn’t been to Paprika since their remodeling and I have to say I sort of preferred the old décor, which was dark but also warm and cozy and a had a nice big corner booth. That booth is gone and the walls are lined with hard wood tables, which are just not as comfortable as the cushy booths. It is much lighter now which I guess is nice, but I liked the dimly-​lit romantic ambience pre-​remodel.
The food, happily, is still quite delicious. Paprika makes all their own pasta and my favorite has always been the oxtail ragu on papardelle – it’s fabulous. This visit, though, I was too tempted by a special not to order it – spinach fettucini with three types of mushrooms and white truffle oil. It was pretty good but kind of light on the oil – I guess that made it healthier but I found it to be a little dry and wishes I’d ordered my standard. However, it was delicious enough that I finished the whole thing so really not that bad, and my boyfriend loved his seasonal gnocchi with squash and proscuitto. Also, the prices at Paprika are very reasonable given the level of service and quality of the food, and they have a nice selection of wine by the glass and bottle.

That we are struggling to remember the place as we’re trying to rate it is unfortunate — it does not really stick out from other Italian places we have been to.
We had the polppetine di agnello as appetizer followed by the pappardelle with oxtail and the linguini al nero. The pasta dishes were well executed but the appetizer was neither here nor there for us. We didn’t feel like staying for dessert and elected to leave to go somewhere else.
What we do recall well is the exemplary service — the restaurant was mostly empty on a weekend night which explains some of it.
Bottom line, if we’re in the area we may stop by but we won’t go out of our way or wait to be seated. This one is straight down the middle of the road.

A great spot for date night or a spot for a cozy comfortable dinner with a few friends. Make sure to call them for a reservation as this place fills up quickly. The person taking the call was very friendly and accommodating for my party of five. The handmade pappardelle with braised oxtail ragu is a must try here. Almost every table had at least one order of this dish. Table service was top notch and inviting.
Breakdown of what we ordered:
Lamb Meatballs with Brussels Sprouts, Potatoes, E.V.O.O. — ⁷⁄₁₀
Arugula Salad, Pears, Walnuts, Goat Cheese and Balsamic Vinegar — ⁷⁄₁₀
Handmade Pappardelle with Braised Oxtail Ragu — ¹⁰⁄₁₀
Will return for the pappardelle!

The restaurant has a nice vibe to it. I was greeted immediately and was able to be seated without a reservation. It was my little sister’s birthday and I wanted to treat her to good Italian food so I found this restaurant on Unilocal and tried it out.
The seating area was a little tight and I had to squeeze into my seat (which was near the window). I was given bread without a plate for the bread. I noticed others had a plate but we did not receive one. The guy sitting at the table next to me ordered the same thing I did and he received a larger portion than I did which annoyed me because the portion I received was fairly small. The food was tasty.

Paprika confirmed every reasons on why I don’t like Italian food. With graduation and wedding happening in a week where my extended and immediate families are slowly coming into the city, I made dinner reservation for a party of 6 for a reunion/​welcome meal.
Although I arrived 15 mins early by myself, I was allowed to be seated immediately. There were lots of empty tables even though it was a Friday prime dinner time. I should had taken it as a big hint that this place wasn’t the 4 stars rated it used to be. The menu was actually not too extensive but yet had a good number of attractive choices — we decided to start off with 2 appetizers (saffron risotto balls and avocado salad) and shared 7 entrees (squid ink linguine, mushroom gnocchi, lamb meatball penne, oxtail ragu pappardelle, lamb chops, halibut, and seabass).
The appetizers were served as soon as we submitted our order for the main entrees.
Saffron risotto balls — 3 per order? I swear I saw pictures there used to be 6. Although they were piping hot, crunchy, gooey, and yummy — definitely overpriced
Avocado salad — can’t really go wrong with with fresh avocado and green — simple and delish
And then it really went downhill from here. Every single pasta dishes we ordered were way overcooked — to a point where the pasta themselves had somewhat dissolved/​turned into a goo/​mush — the linguine, the penne, the pappardelle, and gnocchi were all stuck to one another in their own perspective dish. Aside from the fact the linguine was black, there was no trace in its taste that it was squid ink. The penne was nothing out of the ordinary. The pappardelle was limb and tasteless — why was the oxtail ragu so sour? The gnocchi was more like mashed potato — the cream sauce was clumping together too? And… I thought the pastas were their specialty dishes!
The halibut, seabass, and lamb chops were fine but again for $ 25 – 35 for each — I expected it to be at least memorable. Overall — with this level of quality and value, no wonder this place was empty. I honestly am embarrassed to have recommended this place for our welcome/​reunion dinner — A true Unilocal fail.

Paprika is one of the few restaurants I’ve given a 5 to. I still think it deserves it (though it’s maybe closer to a 4.5).
Tonight, we had:
Arancini rice balls, with saffron and mascarpone. So nice and creamy, and the outside is fried perfectly. Absolutely terrific with the creamy marinara sauce. I could eat like 10 of these (it only comes with three — sad face).
The grilled branzino. Great crispy skin, good sauce, great olives, capers, and tomatoes. A really flavorful dish, everything goes well together.
I also had the Spaten german beer. Meh, it didn’t really go with the food. But I’ve ever been a fan of whitebeers. A white wine would have been the better choice for what we ate — not the restaurant’s fault.
Paprika continues to impress. A slight bit crowded, though, as always.

Came here for my bd dinner. They can take large reservation!!! came her for party of 10.
What to order:
— oxtail ragu
— lobster mac & cheese
— appetizer meat platter
— salad
I brought 2 bottles of wine and it’s 14 dollars extra charge. it’s still reasonable.
Service was great and the food came out really fast. I can’t think of anything that wasn’t great. the price is really reasonable as well.
Lobster Mac. I ordered this and I was so full after eating the whole plate. perfect for bd dinner. load some carbs before you start drinking. They give you chunks of lobsters. not just tiny little one. so pretty worth it. it was so creamy and delicious. not the tiny macaroni that you cook by yourself.
Will be back! :D

Finally came back to Paprika for their dinner!
The food was indeed very enjoyable, and healthy!
To start, I got the arugula goat cheese salad with walnut and pears as appetizer, and then roasted chicken with shallot and potato as entrée. Both tasted amazing! Especially the chicken, the balance of the crusted skin and tenderness of the skin was just perfect. As bonus point, the complimentary bread with olives were tasty.
This cozy spot gets 3.5 star. The minus 1.5 star came from the slow and mediocre service and weird hypnotizing music they were playing…
Anyways, given they are pretty reasonably priced, I might come back and try their pasta dishes if in the mood next time.

Solid but not mind-​blowing Italian.
We started with the risotto arancini balls ($ 11) which were good but not the best I’ve had. The corn flavor was strong. I liked that but some might not. I feel like the appetizers are a little overpriced, they’re almost as much as the pastas.
My husband had the gnocchi with mushrooms and cream ($ 15). I loved this dish — the gnocchi were soft and pillowy and the cream sauce was a savory and a little bit more flavorful than a typical cream sauce. I had the spatzle with brussels sprouts, kale and fontina ($ 15). It was also good, but less exciting since I make pasta with roasted brussels sprouts at home a lot. The sauce on this pasta was also a little watery.
The service was good. The atmosphere is a little too «cozy» for me — tables are smushed together and if you’re a table of 2 you’ll likely effectively be at a table for 4 with two strangers. This seems to be very common in NY, maybe because space is at such a premium in the city, but I’m not a fan of it.

For starters, we had the caprese salad with pesto, the aranchini balls, and the bread basket. The bread basket was $ 3, and came with olives… weird that bread wasn’t complimentary especially since it (along with the olive oil) was nothing special at all.
I tried the pappardelle with braised oxtail ragu and it was really good! Pasta was cooked al dente and the oxtail was tender and flavorful. The service was nothing to complain about — we came in a party of 6 for a friend’s birthday and had a cake, which we weren’t charged plating fees for :)
The only thing that was terrible was the music — They just played awful covers of really good songs! Change your playlist!

Luck was on our side when we spontaneously decided to come to Paprika on a Friday evening without reservations. They have tight seatings but nothing that the boyfriend and I haven’t gone through before. Our waitress was very nice and attentive which is always a plus.
We ordered the Cutting Board of the night and Beef Carpaccio for appetizers. Both were delicious and they gave a generous amount of charcuterie; the carpaccio was the best, you couldn’t even tell you were eating raw beef.
We each had a plate of pasta. Let’s just say there was a lot of pasta in that plate. I had the spinach fettucine (a special of the night), tasted really healthy with some cherry tomatoes and brussel sprouts. The boyfriend had the Buckwheat Tagliatelle, really like the garlic in the sauce but it was tad bit on the salty side. You can’t just finish the dish in a continuous feeding, sips of wine helps you enjoy this dish a lot.
With just these dishes, we were stuff and couldn’t move onto dessert. Lovely spot for a date. Do try the Beef Carpaccio, it’s a dish done right.

Unilocal, you kinda failed me with this one.
So many rave reviews about this little place, it has to be something special, no… maybe my expectations were too high but nothing left me very impressed or eager to return.
We came here on a rainy night looking for some great pasta and some comfort food. paprika seemed like the perfect choice since i’ve been meaning to come here for ages. I really wanted that squid ink pasta!
The dishes are were decent portions for me but proved to be too small for my boyfriend, he left the resturant asking me if we could get dumplings from the place next door! YES, dumplings right after we had pasta!
As for the squid Ink dish, it was probably the best thing from the specials and we both agreed that it was tastier than the pappardelle with oxtail. The squid ink pasta is black as night and the little lobster chunks were perfectly cooked.
While i did like my pasat, its a bit saddening for me when nothing else on the regular menu catches my eye.
One thing i really like about parika is the fact that they bring you fresh bread, olives and olive oil for dipping as soon as you sit down. I love when places give you a little teaser right before your meal. Maybe i just really really love olives? It was a nice surprise to say the least!
I dont know if i love Paprika, its definitely cute for a date if you’re already in the area BUT there are so many places the the city that i’d rather pick for good food if given the option.