New York Eataly Unveils Its Newest Pop-Up Restaurant, Ristorante Toscano, Open Through March
If you're looking for a new spot to grab lunch and happen to be near Madison Square Park, we suggest Ristorante Toscano, which opened on February 29 and will be open weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. in Eataly's Scoula.
The menu highlights the rustic flavors of Tuscany with a focused menu that has emphasizes authenticity. Antipasti include zuppa del Frantoio (with kale, potato, winter squash, and fennel, finished with Tuscan olive oil); a mixed bean salad with escarole and radicchio; and a traditional Tuscan antipasto with wild boar sausage, housemade ricotta, and roasted mushrooms. The pasta offering is a traditional tagliatelle with wild boar ragu and a shaving of fresh pecorino; and the main dishes are roast chicken breast with lemon and sautéed broccoli, and calamari and market fish over chickpea stew. Sides on offer are seared mushrooms with arugula and herbs and roasted Brussels sprouts, and a traditional Pisan torta coi bischeri (dense chocolate cake with pine nuts, raisins, and candied fruit) is for dessert.
We had the opportunity to sample the menu and were very impressed with the offerings; the soup is rustic and hearty, the tagliatelle is simple and spot-on, the chicken breast was bursting with lemon and olive oil flavor and had a super-crispy skin.
The pop-up comes as part of an entire month devoted to Tuscan cuisine. Each of the emporium's restaurants will be featuring a Tuscan dish (mussels with Italian sausage and mortadella at Il Pesce, for example), Tuscan food items are being sold at special rates throughout the market, and on March 9 Eataly will be hosting a walk-around tasting to celebrate the release of the 20th vintage of the celebrated Super-Tuscan Luce.