Welcoming, energetic, and delicious all around. We loved our table, the candlelit rooms, the decor, and the various Italian dinnerware settings, which make dining so festive. Except for one dish, everyone loved their dishes and wished we could've had the ability to have seconds ... boy were we stuffed, though. The lobster is slightly overpriced, so ask the MP before you settle on it. However, it was delicious, and I got to take leftovers home. Also - the monster-sized lobster they showed me as the "selection" was most definitely not the lobster cooked for me, so be aware (even the waiters chuckled at the truth with us), all around a worthwhile visit and not an overhyped place. We can't wait to return.

I had a great time dining here. We ate lunch here right when it opened and the service was very fast! The interior is very well decorated! We ordered everything family style. The Caesar salad was definitely worth the hype! It was tossed right in front of us and we had the anchovies on the side! The croutons are crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside-- a perfectly delicious combination!! The rigatoni alla vodka is delicious!!! The lobster ravioli and ragu was good as well.

This lives up to the hype. Service was fantastic. The mood was very old New York. Great vibes. The food hit. We got the baked clams, lobster ravioli, tortellini ragu and, of course, the spicy rigatoni. Everything was delicious, but the lobster ravioli might have been my favorite. That said the rigatoni was the best vodka sauce I've ever had. We also had the cheesecake for dessert which was outstanding. Other tables got the table side Caesar which looked perfectly fresh and crunchy. If Resy notify ever comes through again that will be part of the next order.

The elusive Carbone reservation! Our friend from out of town had gotten reservation for 4 at 5pm but her family wasn't able to attend with her. So we accompanied her. The doors open exactly at 5pm, they had a bouncer managing the queue to go in. I was annoyed when he let a family that arrived later than us and had a 5:15 reservation cut ahead of us. That party didn't confirm their reservation ahead of time and ended up creating bottle neck while they tried to sort out the situation. They should have had that party step aside so the rest of the parties that confirmed could be seated. Once we were inside, service was better. Our server kept our wine glasses full. Here's what we ordered. Spicy rigatoni - a little spicy but sour Angel hair - T bone Steak for 2 - has a nice char on it Octopus -delicious Calamari - Tiramisu - you could taste a light hint of ginger in it Apple cake I would say the dessert wines was my favorite, followed by the tiramisu. Ambiance is more loud and very intimate. So sometimes you had to yell to be heard. Was it worth the hype? The food was good but wasn't life changing for me to want to go again. Note: reservations are a must, they are always full. Saw a number of people trying to do walk in but were told it was full

My friend and I went for Mother's Day. I was a bit disappointed that our table was outside in one of the makeshift indoor/outdoor seating arrangements birthed as a result of COVID, BUT the ambiance in there was okay - nothing like the actual restaurant though. The menu's are huge - so fun. The waitstaff was so professional, welcoming and friendly. Complimentary appetizers were so yummy! I don't usually eat meat but that salami was top notch! The cauliflower, I need the recipe! For our meal we ordered the spicy rigatoni split into, and it was really really good, I wish I had a whole order. Meatballs were tender and juicy and the veal was delicious. The spicy broccoli rabe was yummy (we got the spice on the side and I loved it - not too spicy either). I wanted dessert but we were stuffed so opted not to order anything, but we were still presented with the yummiest Italian cookies I have ever had. Such a wonderful experience and memory for us! Thank you!

I've been wanting to try Carbone for months now, and my husband was able to get a reservation for us for the "Mother's Day Lunch," which includes a four-course lunch menu. The first course consisted of a bread basket, a chunk of parmesan, few slices of salami & cauliflower salad, which were complimentary, followed by a caesar salad, prosciutto & mozzarella, and tuna calabrese. Second course was our favorite, which consisted of their famous spicy rigatoni vodka and Mario's meatballs. Third course consisted of shrimp scampi, veal parmesan, and grilled asparagus. Last & fourth course consisted of rainbow cookies (comp), carrot cake w/ ginger ice cream, and lemon cheesecake. Honestly, the best food we had was probably the bread basket, rigatoni, meatballs, and veal parm. The rigatoni was spicy enough to get your taste buds flowing while the meatballs made you feel like you were in Italy- tender & tasty. The bread basket with plain sesame (my fave), garlic & tomato breads were all delicious, and the veal parm was cooked to perfection. Since our taste pallets were not used to the other food, I won't comment on those items, but just wanted to mention, the cauliflower salad was overly acidic from the vinaigrette and the caesar salad had dijon mustard dressing (not a fan)- the crutons in it were very salty. Everything else tasted fine. Service was impeccable from start to finish. Our water always remained full, the staff were friendly & attentive- they frequently checked on us to see if everything was okay, and we got new plates & untesils after every course. If you're lucky enough to get a reservation, you have to try their spicy rigatoni, meatballs & veal parm. This place lives up to the hype.

I had exceptionally high expectations for Carbone. After waiting for years and reading through an endless amount of reviews, I finally found myself walking in through Carbone's doors in New York. No review I had read could have prepared me for the actual dining experience. It was much more relaxed than I would have thought but also much more detailed. The service is more thought out than many other restaurants I have been to. Think wait staff folding your napkins every time you get up from your seat to use the restroom. You feel special here. For the food itself, the appetizers guise you through a culinary journey right through to the main courses. For our starter, we enjoyed the Carpaccio. I would come back ten more times just to order this dish. It is nutty and meaty but light in the most balanced of ways. I have never tried something quite like this dish. It is something I wish I could try for the first time over and over again. The spicy rigatoni vodka had a perfect chew to it and a perfect spice level. It lives up to the hype and is a must order. The veal parmesan is not talked about enough. The flavors and textures blended so well together and were topped with such a bold flavored cheese. It was an unexpected dish to stand out and something I would order over and over again. If you are in the city, dare to dabble into the hype of Carbone. Adventure out and try the dishes that are not so hyped as well, your taste buds will thank you!

The spicy rigatoni sauce wasn't really like any vodka sauce I've tasted before - it was sweet and spicy, had a good amount of red pepper/onion flavor, and was creamy but not overwhelming. I do get the hype! The veal parm was tasty and breaded perfectly but overpriced and not special imo. I liked the free apps. Wouldn't jump through hoops to come back here but I did enjoy my experience and would return if I could easily get a res.

You guys will likely never understand the sheer willpower and determination it took to not open this review with a Drake lyric, and I just want my pat on the back. Thank you. After loosely trying to get a res here for years, we finally got it. Shoutout to my girl Nicole K. on Yelp. She really the plug. I seen she always be in here and asked her how. She flexed up on me and said "You want one? I got you." DAMN, SHE'S LIKE THAT. Walking into Carbone, I actually felt like the MAN. Was the Drake line "Last table left in Carbone callin plays on a rotary phone," on repeat in my head while walking in? Yes. Yes it was. But it's lowkey been on repeat in my head since 2017 so whatever. But yeah, right upon entry, I got it. Vibes are IMMACULATE. I'm checking in at the host stand with a classy Italian dude in a beautiful navy blue pinstripe suit, Frank Sinatra playing through the speakers, a vintage Italian decor with low lit lighting, customers dressed to the nines, etc. Just everything you could want out of an experience like this. We sat down and I wasn't gonna drink, but that glass of Chianti Classico was looking at me soooooo crazy... I folded like a lawn chair ahahaa. As we were scanning the menu-PLOP! The waiter puts down a basket of bread, a plate of cold cuts, and some pickled cauliflower. This was lowkey a lot of food for just being on the house, I was JUICED. My roommate (Former USC Basketball Superstar) and I tore into this leaving no remnants of any food, we gettin our money's worth ahahahaa. We both ordered the Spicy Rigatoni and opted to split the meatballs. I almost went with the Lobster Ravioli, but idk. Maybe I'm CRAZY, but lobster just doesn't really do it for me like that. Y'all know Lobster used to be prison & peasant food? What a crazy come up Lobster had lmao. I'm tryna be like Lobster. The Spicy Rigatoni, as pictured on your friends instagram stories every time they go to Carbone, was delicious and worth every last bit of hype. The Carbone Spicy Rigatoni has to be the world's most photographed pasta. It's a top 10 plate of pasta I've ever had. Number 1 is easily the Penne Alla Vodka from Alla Vecchia Bettola in Florence, though. That's the LeBron of the pasta game. Oh you haven't been to Florence??? COULDN'T BE ME! After we demolished the meatballs, I noticed the veal parmesan getting delivered to the table next to us and got the worst FOMO you could ever imagine, as it looked unreal. I can only equate it to the level of FOMO when I was in high school and I saw my close friends all out at a party I wasn't invited to in the back of someone's snapchat story..... No? Just me? Oof. We were essentially the last table left in this place, with my roommate actually making some business calls on the rotary phone lol it was pretty cool... He does work at Bloomberg though, so.... I ordered a glass of Domina to go with me home. Typically restaurants that I have high expectations for let me down worse than Amazon's acquisition of Whole Foods, but Carbone exceeded them, and quite easily. They got 5 stars in the holy trinity of the food industry: Great food, great ambiance, and great service. It really is that simple at the end of the day. BELIEVE THE HYPE! IG @jnov_ Tiktok @jnov_reviews