Da Claudio

Excellent Italian and American fare. I had the Steak with a balsamic reduction and roasted potatoes. I was in heaven! The steak was cooked perfectly and so savory and tender. The restaurant had this olive dip that they serve with your choice of bread which gives a nice touch and character to the restaurant. The restaurant is spacious and was bustling with a lot of people. The owner Claudio was there and was so friendly and kind. I love restaurants that the owner is actually working in the restaurant. This ensures quality food and service. If you’re in FiDi, I’d highly recommend it!

If you have been to Italy and have had real Italian food then Da Claudio will blow you away. Easily one of the top true Italian restaurants in the city.
It has now become a weekly go to spot.

Friendly staff had the Torta di Cioccolato e Ricotta $ 10.00 (Chocolate and ricotta cake with ricotta gelato.) Was fine but very small, especially the baby scoop of gelato. Great little salumeria near the entrance and a lot of space to roam.

A little pricey, but awesome food, service and drinks.
I know this is NYC, but we felt tables were too close to each other, it was almost like eating with strangers. Didn’t like that.
Nevertheless, I can’t stop thinking about the food, it was so good!!!

I had high hopes when I saw the reviews for this restaurant in the Financial District — it’s tough to find good food in my neighborhood and restaurants typically close on the weekends — but unfortunately both meals ended up being a let down. I’ve had a sit down meal in the restaurant and have ordered Seamless.
For our sit down meal, we ordered the gnocchi, uni pasta special, crudo, and fritto misto (mixed fried seafood including calamari, fish, and shrimp). All the dishes were pretty much a disappointment except for the fritto misto, which was delicious. Both pasta dishes were a bit bland, and the uni wasn’t that fresh. We were also provided bread (which was good) with an olive oil paste, which tasted a bit like plastic.
I decided to give this place another try to see if a different dish would be better. I ordered the lasagna via Seamless and it was just ok. What bothered me was the amount delivered — the takeout container was about ¹⁄₃ full and the amount of lasagna provided so small. I received several slices of bread, which ended up being more filling than the lasagna itself. If I’m going to be paying 20+ dollars for dinner, I expect a full dinner and not a smaller portion than what you would receive at the restaurant.

I had an okay experience here. We started with the octopus tentacle salad, which was decent. The spaghetti alle vongole (clams) was a little undercooked — probably trying to be al dente, but not quite there. We also had cocktails — my boyfriend’s was a complicated one that involved egg whites, and I had a fruity drink. Overall, nothing stood out to me. I’d say I prefer the Italian takeout place near my apartment.

Da Claudio
NY Manhattan FiDi
8pm Sunday 20^th December 2015
Four Stars
We enjoyed a reserved table for 12 in this small uncrowded Italian restaurant for Willie’s birthday. We drank a couple bottles of reasonably priced Chianti Classico. The service was bit slow but probably because of the size of our party. I ordered the Lamb Ragu ($ 21) with Garganelli instead of trofie. which had very little tomato in comparison to the ground lamb. It was quite flavorful and filling. The pasta was al dente and quite enjoyable. The place is a good value for Italian food.

Food wise, this place is pretty good. We ordered the short rib special and the paccheri pasta which were both very tasty dishes. The short rib was incredibly tender with strips of tender tendon running through the 1 inch thick piece of meat. It was served on a bed of farro along with roasted beets. The pasta was cooked al dente and was coated in an olive oil sauce with roasted Brussels sprouts and bacon.
So why 3 stars? First, I definitely felt that the pasta dish, while tasty, was missing a sweet flavor note. It was not interesting at all. Just… well done. Mostly, the 3 stars are for the fact that the service was terribly lacking. They took a while to give us the sparkling water we had ordered and the bread came very late. Additionally, one of the waiters dropped a knife on my shirt leaving a stain that I couldn’t get off…
Nothing was done about that by the way :(

Honestly, I am so glad to stumble upon this place by accident. Rarely would you find good Italian food in Fidi and I will no longer need to cross the bridge to visit Battery Park City now =)
The service was great here, went with no reservation, and was seated pretty much immediate even though the place was pretty packed on the night I went.
Drink menu seem pretty interesting and I tried the Valentina, defn worth the try if you don’t know what drink to order. Shared the Insalata Verde Del Mercato* with my friend, and ordered Spaghetti with baby octopus. Overall, great flavor. It was a bit salty for me personally, but my taste is a bit light – that means should be perfect for everyone else =)
Both me and my girlfriend finished our entrée, and was too full to order any desert. If you are looking for a good Italian place downtown, don’t forget to try this place! Would return for sure!

Not too much going on in lower Manhattan on a Sunday night, but we wanted to try something in the area after our visit to the Jewish Heritage Museum (Dear NYC ID free museum memberships, I love you). Enter Da Claudio with its 4.5 overall Unilocal rating, hayyy.
The space was larger, airier and more modern than I had expected. There’s one large room encompassing all of the tables, booths, the bar, and an open kitchen. I liked the vibe. We had several servers, so we were very well attended to, and everyone was super friendly. The owner even stopped by our table several times; at one point he even helped our leftovers get boxed up.
We ordered the pollo alla diavola (whole fried Amish chicken for two), which came with a side (we chose grilled veggies). The dish was basically fried chicken with a slightly spicy, savory yellow sauce on the side. I was expecting it to be a bit spicier, as ‘diavola’ usually signifies. Shockingly, my favorite part of this dish was actually the veggies, which had been grilled with a bit of oil and salt. The green beans, especially, were delicious with that little bit of charred flavor.
Side note about the Amish chicken: I wondered… Does Amish chicken cluck at the modern conveniences enjoyed by the urban chicken, raised on a rooftop in Brooklyn? Does he wear a straw hat on his little chicken head? Does Amish chicken go on rumspringa? I don’t have any answers, but regardless, please note that the chicken does not reheat particularly well.
The size of this would’ve been sufficient for a full meal, but we also had the gnocchi di melanzane (eggplant gnocchi) with asiago cheese and speck (a type of prosciutto — I didn’t know what that was). Yep, this dish was IT. Asiago cheese is awesome. But I would recommend getting it along with another dish and sharing the two, as it starts to seem quite rich by the final bites.
We had drinks, too. The cocktail menu was pretty darn inventive, so I decided to try one of those and settled on the «Punta Ristola», made of cognac, vanilla pumpkin purée, lemon, cinnamon oil, and egg white. Really enjoyed it, and appreciated that I could make out distinct flavors without feeling that they clashed. I also had a Moretti, an Italian beer, which wasn’t really my style.
A solid 3.5 stars rounded up.

Very impressed by this little Italian/​contemporary American place in the FiDi area. Service was very efficient and friendly. Food was absolutely delicious: I ordered the linguine nere (black linguine) with prawns in spicy tomato sauce. The linguine was just the right texture and its savoriness mixed with the sweet-​spicy background of the tomato sauce was perfect. I also really appreciated how the prawns were sliced open, making it super easy to extract the meat and not make a mess.
They also have a great selection of wine. I ordered a glass of Riesling from the «sweet and fruity» section-​it was marvelously crisp and refreshing!
Prices were also very reasonable for the quality of the food and the environment was relaxed yet classy. Definitely a winner! Great for lunch. Normally I’m stuffed after Italian but the food here is not too heavy so you won’t be in a coma post-​eating!

This is a go-​to Italian spot for us. If you’re in FiDi craving Italian, this is the spot. Food, service and pricing makes this spot hard to beat. I tried a lot of the other dishes, but usually stick with the following:
Appetizers: Insalata Verde Del Mercato
Entrees: Trofie with Lamb Ragu — just yummy. Honestly think this is the best our of the pasta choices.
Usually too full for dessert.

I stopped in twice on a recent visit to NY and loved the food. One night, I had the pasta fagioli soup, which was yummy, and one of the salad specials with grilled romaine — I didn’t love the salad but it was ok. The next trip, my friends and I had pasta dishes. We all cleaned our plates — I had the bucatini arrabbiata and it was very good. The actual pasta on all the dishes was delish. My friends had and really liked the spaghettini alle vongole with clams and spaghetti carbonara. Additionally he food prices were very reasonable. The one con was that service was slow.

Love this restaurant! Been here many times and the ambiance is great. The people who frequent this place are far from pretentious, which is nice. The staff is great and they’re very accommodating.
My only problem is that when it gets very busy, the waiting staff forgets to come by as often so if you’re in a hurry when it’s busy, it’s going to be frustrating.
Happy hour is great – good wine and some complimentary bites to go with it. Their menu is great and locally sourced so it changes often. Definitely try one of their homemade pastas, though, as those are always on the menu in some form.

Took my team to this place after a morning long intense meeting. It was perfect. From the outside, it looks like a no big deal ordinary store. But when you go inside, it still looks casual in the beginning, but as you observe further inside, it has a classy ambience. Service is quick and good. They were able to take my reservation way in advance (2 weeks) and adjust the timing a little bit. They were very nice, accommodating over the phone. The food was delicious. The pasta was al dente and fresh. Waiter/​service was great with what seemed to be the manager constantly checking on us. I really appreciated that.
One thing I’d like to comment was that the pasta was slightly salty. However, I did get carbonara, which is salty in itself due to the bacon, and I also like my food a bit bland. It’s not cheap either. Each pasta dish averages about $ 25; however, it was worth it! It’s a classy casual place due a good reason to come — if the good food is not a good enough reason.

Just arrived in NYC and starving. Staying in the financial district, I can’t usually find a decent place to dine downtown. But this time, I stumbled upon Da Claudio. A hidden gem. Nice open space with a view of the kitchen. Plenty of seats at the at bar. Score! I ordered the crudo antipasti — uni with egg yolk, yellow tail, and smoked salmon. Delicious! The house made nero linguine with prawns is a must have!

Went with a group dinner with my wife’s coworkers. It was okay and hit the spot, but nothing that wow’ed me. The lasagna was tasty, but maybe something else would have been better. The bread and the spread were delicious and the specialized drinks.

When you really wish Unilocal allowed half-​stars .
NOTE: I really want to give Da Claudio 4.5 because the service was lacking but I’d rather give them the benefit of the doubt in that the server may have been having an off day or something.
Rolled through Da Claudio during a recent trip to NYC and gave it a try because of the ratings and photos. I’m a sucker for photos.
THE SCENE: Beautiful. Tables for four surround the room, with a few high top tables in the mix. There is a wonderful bar, and booths also. Perfect for a date, first or anniversary, hanging with friends, or solo.
THE FOOD: Delightful. I ordered the butternut squash risotto, with a peach cocktail and a Riesling. The risotto was amazing and not even just because I love risotto. There was a delicate touch of butternut squash, but it wasn’t overwhelming. We also tried the potato ravioli which was extremely filling but lacked flavor. That’s okay though they’re potatoes let’s be reasonable.
THE SERVICE: Eh. Our server seemed annoyed when we requested more information about some of the dishes, and she didn’t really tend to us the way we could have been checked up on. Again, may have been an off day, but will likely go back anyway and just request a different server.
GENERALLY: Absofreakinglutely.

Had a wonderful dinner last night here. The reception was warm and the owner of the restaurant even took a pic with us.
Most importantly, food was really good. And made-​fresh. We ordered a prosciutto melon for antipasti, clams & mussels parsley risotto, wagyu beef lasagne and a cherry tomato homemade fettucini. Totally yummy!
Can’t stuff anymore desserts after that…

Not gonna lie but this restaurant had it all. Good food, good service, and great price!!! My bf came here on a Monday night for a casual dinner and found this place. Honestly I wasn’t expecting anything special but I was so wrong.
We ordered the soup of the day, the wagyu beef lasagna and alle vongole pasta. We didn’t know that the soup of the day was cold (so ask if you aren’t sure!) so we sheepishly had to ask the waiter to warm it up or else it was just repulsive to eat. As Asians, we rarely eat food cold so it wasn’t appetizing :(the waiter was more than happy to help us out and even apologized more than we did! He brought out bread for us with an olive oil spread and checked up on us a lot. Mr. Cook the waiter is THE BEST! Next up was the lasagna – honestly the best lasagna I’ve ever had!!! It’s not overly saucy like other lasagnas and focuses more on the meat than the tomato sauce. I loved how the pasta was cooked too. The vongole is a seafood-​type pasta with clams and that was very yummy as well. Loved the sauce and there’s a lot of clams :)
Such a great experience here! Was so pleasantly surprised and I definitely recommend this restaurant.