I have been trying to make reservations for the Babbo Ristorante in NYC by phoning 212- 777-0303, as posted on their website.

I started calling non-stop from 10 am to 11:15 am this morning. The line is always busy.

Is there another contact anyone knows of to make a reservation?

The website says no email or fax reservations accepted.

J.

Is there someone on this board who lives or works in or near the West Village? Maybe such a person would be willing to just stop by and make a reservation for you in person.

If you are such a nice person, please PM chiaro di luna.

Ann

That would be great Annie!

Same thing this afternoon - busy signal for every phone call.

Maybe they have the phone off the line.

I suspect it's more the case that Batali is such a superstar TV chef, everybody traveling to NYC wants to eat at one of his restaurants.

You do know you can just walk in, right? They don't take reservations for the bar tables, and they serve a full menu there. You could end up with a long wait, but maybe not. The latter you dine, probably the easier, but I'm not sure. And of course there are always cancellations.

I don't know if they take reservations in person, though.

Trust me when I tell you that phone line rings off the hook the minute they start accepting reservations in the morning. Farinata is correct, you can just walk in. Though at midnight, they were still seating people, so I don't think later is always better (at least on weekends). Actually, you have the best shot when they first open, 5 - 5:30ish (though people do line up outside).

If you have your heart set on a Batali place, not necessarily Babbo and not necessarily dinner, you may have an easier time getting lunch reservations at Otto or Lupa.

Yes, as Kim says, those "hot" restaurant phone lines are busy, and tables get filled as soon as they start taking dinner reservations for that particular date. You have to REALLY want to eat there, so you can persist and finally get through.

And, as Kim suggests, why not try a different one of their restaurants?

Thanks everyone.

I started calling again at 5:30 and got through at 5:40 to a recording advertising other restaurants and then on to pressing 1 for reservations. Then the recording told me all lines were busy and hung up on me.

Well, atleast Bell Canada made money on my call.

I emailed the hotel concierge to ask them to make a reservation for me. I have not heard back.

My last attempt will be to call just before 10pm when they stop taking reservations.

We've been so disappointed in the past in NYC when we did not make reservations and have missed out on Babbos the last 3 trips.

Thanks again. J.

Just booked Lupa, online through Open Table for Sat. lunch instead of Babbo.

Thanks for the input.

I'm glad you were able to reserve at one of the Batali restaurants, June. Be sure to come back and tell us how it was! I'll be in New York at the end of August ... and am already thinking about where I want to eat.

Buon appetito, June!

quote:

Just booked Lupa, online through Open Table for Sat. lunch instead of Babbo.

June, I prefer Lupa to Babbo - and it's cheaper! I think you made the right decision. Have a terrific time.

Thanks for reply David. I'm looking forward to lunch at Lupa.

My husband heard about Babbo from his partner at work and has really wanted to go there. (By the way, Bleecker Street in Manhattan is named for his partner's family).

I just received a reply from the Waldorf's concierge and she is trying to get me a reservation at Babbo for Thurs. night. Sat. is fully booked.

So, we'll see.

J.

J,

Returned to town and saw your posting. I'm not clear if you were wanting reservations at Babbo for tonight or on an upcoming Sat.

If it's for another Sat., let me know and I'll stop by for you (I live in the neighborhood). Also let me know what the earliest and latest times you'd be ok with and what name I should hold the reservation.

gopika,
Thanks for your offer. I will hold off for now as,

I am waiting to hear back from my hotel's concierge re: Babbo for Thurs., July 31st. She told me two times were open for that date and she needs to confirm one of them.

Aug. 2nd, my first choice was completely booked.

Thanks again. J.

Well, we now have reservations for Babbo. Not the date and time we wanted, but we're happy to be going at all.

So, the concierge from our hotel was able to make the booking for us.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

I'll report back on Lupa & Babbo.

Excited to be going back to NYC again! J.

I've eaten at del Posto twice, which he co-owns with Lidia Bastianich and her son. We had an awesome time both times and got to meet Lidia on one of the visits.

Il Mulino was delicious too, an old fashioned kind of place.

June - Adam Roberts of Amateur Gourmet Blog fame wrote a post about Lupa this week.

Thanks Sophia1. I'm sure we're going to love the food at both Lupa & Babbo.

And Jerry thanks for the link. Amy also recommends the octopus....not for me, but my husband would probably enjoy it. Lupa gets a lot of great reviews.

I'm glad we had enough sense to book the restaurants in advance this trip! I was able to make 3 of the 4 reservations online through Open Table.
Babbo was the only one I had difficulty getting through to. Lucky I had the hotel's concierge to fall back on.

J.

Two related comments for anyone interested in Batali restaurants -
We didn't get to Lupa or Babbo, but we went to his Otto Enoteca/Pizzeria on 5th Ave. near Washington Square. The wood fired pizzas were great, but it in the evening it was so crowded and so very loud that we literally couldn't converse.

We also went to Po, which used to be owned by Mario. It's on Cornelia St. in Greenwich Village, not a big place. We sat by the window and had an absolutely divine dining experience. The food was incredible. It's well reviewed - we're not the only ones who loved it.

Linda

So June--
Did you eat at Babbo last night?

Details please.

jan

Jan, yes!

We thoroughly enjoyed Babbo. I have photos and am in the process of writing about it (you know where). I have announced it in the North America forum.

Even with the hassle we had for getting a reservation I am so glad we didn't give up.

And by the way, someone in my family phoned Babbo and got through on his first try to make his reservation last week.

Just to not keep you waiting - my DH's dessert was the semi fredo and mine was chocolate hazelnut cake. YUM!

quote:

Originally posted by David:

quote:

Just booked Lupa, online through Open Table for Sat. lunch instead of Babbo.

June, I prefer Lupa to Babbo - and it's cheaper! I think you made the right decision. Have a terrific time.

My friend Lisa and I had lunch at Lupa yesterday with David, and it was fabulous!

The food was so good ... We had several of the small plate starters: perfectly cooked asparagus slices tossed with pecorino, delicious roasted beets with pistachios, incredibly fresh tasting clams with fregole (tiny pasta cubes), and a roasted plum with mozzarella "salad."

Whenever I see "cacio e pepe" on a menu I have to order it - Lupa's was tasty! A little more peppery than I've had before, but very good.

It was a wonderful meal with great company ... can't wait to go back and do it again!

Colleen

.... which strengthened my conviction about how good Lupa is!

Linda, I LOVED Po!!! We went last November - they had a fixed price $50 dinner (at least 4 courses, or was it more like 6??) - DELISH! Even though Mario gave it up a while ago, it's a terrific restaurant and VERY reasonably priced, IMO. A little loud and close quarters, but nowhere near as loud as Otto, which was the single loudest restaurant experience I've ever had. Speaking of noise level, yesterday, Colleen, Lisa a