I Cavallini

S Spencer Yen 11 reviews 28 June 2026

In the over-small-platification of restaurants and wine bars, some small plates restaurants can feel fragmented, like you’re listening to 4 different singles. But there’s a beauty to listening to an album start to finish, and an even richer experience to listen to that album on vinyl. Dining at I Cavallini was like listening to a perfect album on vinyl, no skips. The cadence was executed perfectly - tuna crostini out within 2 minutes of ordering, followed by the focaccia with the malloreddus… then a bit of a break before getting the grilled berkshire pork chop and snap peas. I Cavallini, and restaurants like it, give you the gift of an a la carte menu of singles, and assemble a cohesive album of a dinner. It’s spiritually closer to omakase than many of the new-age factory line, no kitchen needed, $95 omakase operations in New York City. My photos of the meal are terrible and borderline unusable, so apologies in advance for that - I hope to make up for that with some prose: 1. Spicy bluefin tuna crostini with date butter It feels like you see these premium mediocre raw tuna starters almost everywhere these days, but this one had a special touch - like how listening to a familiar song on a high end subwoofer brings out lows you’ve never heard before, the date butter brought out a richness to the typical crunch + tuna combo we’ve gotten all too used to. Date butter - 10/10! 2. Focaccia with whipped ricotta and leeks stufati About a 5 minute walk away from I Cavallini is the cult favorite Popup Bagels, not famous, but known, for its rip and dip approach to fresh bagels and shmears and butters. This focaccia with whipped ricotta and leeks stufati was the polished, evening cousin of a Popup salt bagel with scallion schmear. The leeks stufati made this dish whole — when you can get whipped ricotta and bread at any standard Italian restaurant in NYC (la pecora bianca cough), I was happy with that leeks rounded this dish out and kept the second track of this dinner on par with the date butter — 8/10. 3. Malloreddus with royal red shrimp, corn, and uni butter I have a confession to make. When I encounter a type of pasta that I don’t recognize, I usually try to order it for sake of exploration. But before I order it, I sneak out my phone to embarrassingly Google “how to pronounce [pasta]”. Years ago I ordered a Tagliatelle in Milan and said tag-lia-tell, and the server quickly corrected me: ah, yes, the tag-lia-tell-ay. So I told to server that we would do the mah-low-reh-deuce, and the server repeated back to me, mah-low-reh-deuce, great choice, and then the malloreddus appeared on our table with zero faux pas committed. The pasta was of course perfectly cooked with just the right amount of bite, with a consonance between the rich texture from the uni butter and the sweetness of the corn. I liked it, Jenn said it just tasted like luxury mac and cheese – 7/10. 4. Grilled berkshire pork chop with preserved cherry glaze I’m not even going to try to describe the dish, yes, rich, yes tender, yes even a generous portion size, you’ll just have to experience it. And if you’re actually going to go, you’re probably going to be disappointed because now you have high expectations and those invariably high expectations are hard to meet. So maybe you should actually get the lamb sausage and let that surprise you. 5. Tiramisu Imagine there’s a new promotion at Olive Garden where for dessert, they serve a special tiramisu. One server brings you the tiramisu, and another follows with a mascarpone machine: “Mascarpone?” “Yes please” “Just tell me when to stop” ... ... “Stop” There’s no live Olive Garden style mascapone machine at I Cavallini, but it’s what I like to imagine happens in the kitchen when they prepare the tiramisu. I Cavallini’s tiramisu is a mascarpone forward masterpiece. It has broken my scale, eleven out of ten. Thank you to the I Cavallini team for a wonderful and special meal, we’ll be back for that late tiramisu seating.

I Ilaria Capriglione 47 reviews · Local Guide 9 June 2026

Here’s the updated review with your addition woven in naturally: My husband and I celebrated his birthday at Cavallini and it was an absolutely wonderful evening from start to finish. The atmosphere is warm and inviting, the music sets just the right tone, and the attention to detail in the design makes the whole space feel truly special. We started with the focaccia with whipped ricotta and the fried asparagus with Calabrian chili, both fantastic. I also managed to order a half portion of the bluefin tuna crostini just for myself, which was a lovely touch since my husband is vegetarian. The staff were so accommodating throughout, and the snap pea salad was a unanimous hit at the table. For primi, we went all out and tried three dishes: the lemon pasta, the farfallone with Calabrian chili (with pancetta added on the side for me only, no problem at all for the kitchen), and the herb tortelli. Each one was genuinely delicious and showed real care in the cooking. All of it paired beautifully with a wonderful bottle of rosato that complemented every dish perfectly. What tied everything together was our server Farrah, who was attentive, warm, and had a great sense of humor that made the whole evening even more enjoyable. She really elevated the experience. We left feeling thoroughly looked after (and already thinking about our next visit).

L Lauren Molyneaux 62 reviews · Local Guide 31 May 2026

The kale burrata was one of the most spectacular flavor experiences I’ve ever had! The sea bream carpaccio and ricotta were also delicious. As a whole the meal was good but nothing outstanding compared to the hype it has.

E efraim selina 44 reviews · Local Guide 18 May 2026

one of the best pasta i’ve tried! sooo good! the pasta perfectly cooked, love the sauce, everything. my favorite was the farfallone with butter chili, it’s salty, spicy, savory, a must try!! 10/10 - the salad and the seabream is fresh!🥗 8/10 - the porkchop is huge and shareable portion, love the sauce is umami and sweet, must try:) 8/10 - mezze maniche ragu is also delicious! 9/10 loved the ambience and vibes in here, alive but not loud, definitely a must visit restaurant!❤️ overall 10/10!

R ReedH 747 reviews · Local Guide 16 May 2026

Four Horsemen is one of my favorite restaurants, so I’d been really looking forward to trying I Cavallini, and it definitely didn’t disappoint. Love the space, and we were seated at the bar, which made it fun interacting with the team throughout the night. We started with the whipped ricotta. It wasn’t the best version I’ve had—just a bit cold and thick for my taste—but things only went up from there. The pig’s head pasta was amazing: tender, flavorful, and with a great hit of black pepper. Then came the pork chop, which was honestly one of the best I’ve had in recent years. Perfectly cooked, and the cherry sauce paired with it beautifully. And then dessert. I’m all for going heavy on the mascarpone in a tiramisu, and this was one of the best I’ve had in the city.