Caffe e Vino

I went to Caffe e Vino last Sunday before a movie at BAM. I had been there once before, a year or two ago, and enjoyed the mussels (no longer on the menu). This time I had the ravioli special, stuffed with cod and in a tomato sauce. I asked the waiter if the fish was fresh or salted, and he said it was fresh. No way. The stringy texture of reconstituted salt cod, which can be wonderful if prepared with care. The ravioli were undercooked, both the filling and the tomato sauce (straight from a Campbell’s Soup can?) were extremely bland. Foccacio was cold.
With a new chef and new kitchen staff, Caffe e Vino could be a nice neighborhood restaurant.

Delicious brunch here. Friendly service, lovely atmosphere, perfect neighborhood spot and it’s super close to BAM. Definitely will be back for dinner.

Excellent food and service. You eat like if you were in a northern Italian little town. Prices are reasonable. Good wine.

Small, cute little Italian restaurant. Atmosphere was very cozy. We were greeted immediately as we walked in and seated right after. The wait staff was very attentive and super friendly/​accommodating.
Growing up immersed in Italian culture and cuisine, my standards for Italian food are very high. With that being said, the food was excellent! Homemade pasta cooked to perfection– not over done or under cooked. We also shared the fried calamari and arugula salad as an appetizer.
Quote of the night: «Gnocchi were little tiny pillows of delightfulness.»

Wish we’d found this place sooner.
The décor is really cozy and intimate, i.e. you’re not rubbing elbows with strangers or overhearing awkward conversations on first dates — score!
The food was excellent — the handmade mushroom pappardelle was to die for. The service was great as well.
Would definitely recommend!

Food and service were both great. I will happily go back.
However, when I examined the bill at the end, a 20% gratuity had been added. I was only with 6 people so it’s not like we were a difficult large party where adding a tip would be standard practice.
No where on the menu did it say that a tip would be added nor did our waiter let us know. And on the leather bill holder was a post it that suggested tips should be paid in cash.
We loved everything about this place but were left with a very bad taste in our mouth.

This restaurant is so cute and the food is wonderful. The owner, Guisseppe, was so nice! Service was a smidge slow but we weren’t in any rush so it didn’t matter. Wine was delicious (in the sturdiest wine glasses I’ve seen in a while… bravo!) and all the pasta is made in house. The portions are perfect size and the pasta was cooked to perfection. The prosciutto bruchetta special was delightful as well. I’ll definitely be back!

Date night here in the summertime was truly utterly amazing with the fantastic service emblematic of old school Brooklyn Italian places of times past, kept alive. The menu is rich and changes over time so frequent diners won’t bore. The lamb over thin linguini is a clever dish. The bread beforehand is toasted right with real butter. There’s a deep wine menu with knowledgeable staff to help you pair it. The location just 3 mins East of the DeKalb Ave station is very convenient and safe across the street from a hospital entrance. We shall return in the winter for the warm interior design with exposed brick & plumbing.

PLOT: Family get together: local Brooklyn with out of town Texas visit
CAST: Father and son, mother and girlfriend
RATING: eh…
COMMENTS: It started off well, but in the end, either Café de Vino or Unilocal were misleading — we did not receive the 10% off Unilocal coupon since it was for their «wine selection» which apparently only applies if you order a bottle of wine. So — don’t come here if you thing you will get 10% odd your wine and you order it by the glass. And — always show your « Unilocal coupon» **First** before ordering — there’s always terms and conditions.

Service here is top notch– had dinner with a friend here the other week. The owner came up to us and formally introduced himself.
The service pretty much made up for the cold food. All of the dishes had the potential to be amazing but weren’t warm at all. Or they were oddly warm in the center but cold on the outter edges, leading me to believe that it was not fresh, or left out too long.
I would give this place a second chance solely because the customer service was so amazing and the attention to the individual was nice and very neighbor hood like!

The food was incredible but it was pricey. My boyfriend and I were the only customers
seated the entire time (it was a Monday night). If the prices were more reasonable, I would return more often. If money is no object, the food and ambiance are worth it.

FANTASTIC!!! Not to be missed. We sampled most of the appetizers and every single bite was astonishing. I had the special ravioli and refused to share. My crew had the fillet mignon special of the day and they practically licked their plate. My mother had the pork and was a happy happy camper.
For wine we had an exquisite bottle (ok we had 2) of rose. And finally, my favorite course, desserts:-) we tried the cheese cake, chocolate mousse, pear tart and panda cotta, all equally decadent.
I highly recommend this authentic Italian restaurant. Everything was superb, especially the service. Ask for owner Giuseppe, he’ll make you feel like a star:-)

Great neighborhood Italian standby, close to the new residential buildings around BAM, and never crowded, perfect for dropping in last minute without having to worry about waits or hassle, or cold nights in the middle of winter when walking down Dekalb is out of the question.
Fast, attentive service, excellent specials, meatballs are delicious, and the prices are very reasonable. It’s surprising that it’s not more crowded, actually– if this was in the WV or even Cobble Hill it would probably be full every night.

We have been here a few times as we live in the neighborhood and have been impressed each time with the quality of the food. Located on an unassuming block across from Brooklyn hospital, it looks like any other italian restaurant in the neighborhood. However, we’ve quickly discovered it’s much more than that! The food is fresh and made from scratch, the wine list is varied, and the restaurant is small but adorned nicely. As for favorites, the Fettucine with Veal Ragu is out of this world and is a must-​try! We’ve also enjoyed the Papperdelle Caffe Y Vino (has some mushrooms) and the salads have all been fresh and the perfect size to share. The staff is friendly but not overbearing and it’s definitely a slow moving vibe so be sure to come early if you have evening plans!
Tip:
–They accept Open Table reservations to plan to make one if you hope to not have to wait as it can fill up quickly!
–Take a stroll in Fort Greene park (a block away) after your filling meal!

Waiter at this restaurant was very disrespectful to my girlfriend. She had a simple question about a menu item, and he gave a snarky reply, AND didn’t know anything about the food.
Then, had the nerve to tell us that they were too busy to prepare take out food for us, and said the only option was to sit down. We work in the hospital across the street, were dressed in scrubs and white coat, and were obviously working a long night, and he turned down our business. Seriously rude!
Thumbs down x 100. Will be spreading the word around the 750 employee hospital that this place has terrible service.

This lovely gem of a restaurant has quickly become my favorite to frequent for dates with my guy. The food has consistently been superb as well as the wine selection. Always a joy to eat here and feel the love.

We had a reservation for 4. We were seated promptly. The bread and tomato flan came immediately. The bread was amazing, the tomato flan was just okay — I’d read reviews calling it otherworldly so I wanted to like it but it wasn’t on that level.
My son had the stuffed chicken, which he liked very much. I had the linguini with shrimp and that was perfect. My friend had a special of the day that he said was fantastic. My daughter had the spinach and ricotta ravioli which she said tasted like frozen ravioli (and indeed during the menu readings, our server did specifically point out which menu items were made in-​house, so it leads me to believe they could rely on frozen for some items). I took a taste of her ravioli — I agreed. It was tough and thick, not like the pasta the rest of us enjoyed.
We also ordered calamari and the gnocchi for the table to share as appetizers. Both were out of this world. OMG, that gnocchi — so soft and fluffy.
NOTE: there were other things we might have ordered, but there were a good 5 or 6 things on the menu that they’d run out of. To be fair, we were the last table of the night on a busy Sunday.
Desserts: After reading the great reviews about the cheesecake and the tiramisu, it was super disappointing that they were out of both. We settled for the panna cotta with balsamic reduction, which was fine, and cannoli, which was quite good.
The service was great, they were helpful when we needed to plug in a phone and didn’t have an outlet near us or the wall plug (we just had the USB cord).
The thing all the other reviewers say about the CASH ONLY :) note that arrives with the bill? They weren’t kidding. Apparently they do it every time, and every time, they tell you their machine is broken. Glad I’d read the reviews and brought enough cash.
In summation, the food was mostly fantastic, the service was excellent, next time we’re in Brooklyn we’re likely to go again (and bring cash).

Been here a few times since 2009 but more frequently now since I work in the hood.
It’s a nice ambiance to get away from work for lunch. The mushroom pappardelle had amazing flavor, I think about the dish often! Didn’t care much for the lamb ragu pasta, lacked finesse.
Calamari appetizer comes with fried zucchini also which was a nice addition.

I am so happy to have found this gem tucked away in an un-​assuming building across from my university! I came here during lunch time and ordered a vegetarian panino (be advised, as another Unilocaler commented, these are not the grill-​pressed paninis you get at chain delis, these are the real deal.) It came with buffalo mozerella, basil, broccoli, and other veggies on the side of an arugula and spinach salad. The sandwich was made on the spot (again, unlike your garden-​variety — pun — vegetable panini at delis that have been sitting out since who knows when…)
The panino was delicious, fresh, full of robust earthy flavor and completely satisfying. Service was outstanding and I felt as though I were dining in an expensive Village restaurant, for only a fraction of the price and minus the snootiness.
Being largely a wine bar (figuratively, this place is cozy in a lovely way) they offer an extensive wine collection. I opted out of this, having work and school remaining for the day I figured that would be a bad idea — but certainly it is on the menu for my next visit!

Caffe e Vino is a rustic, authentic, Italian restaurant in Fort Greene, and most likely going to become one of my new neighborhood staples. I came here for a Brooklyn restaurant week dinner with a friend. The dining room is charming, full of lovely details, and the servers are friendly, warm, and accommodating.
We ordered:
Foccacia and tomato flan (actually this is free, but its good enough to note)
Polenta with mushrooms
Yellow pepper soup
Stuffed chicken
Salmon alla Griglia
Everything was delicious. The tomato flan is creative and an execellent way to showcase the rustic bread. The polenta was amazing, with strong truffle flavors and a smooth consistency (but it is very filling!). The soup was tasty, but not as memorable as the polenta. And the mains were well executed, not overcooked, and a good portion size.
The price point is a little high for an average night out, but a great price point to bring your visiting relatives or a first date. The quality to value is good and I most definitely will be back!