Piccolo Cafe - Amsterdam Ave - New York

Terrible service. Check your bill twice or three times. They calculated us twice tipping (one in the invoice and another in the credit card receipt). They calculated a regular coffee as cappuccino, a single tomato spaghetti as spaghetti with meatballs, $9 for two avocado slices on the side...etc. Very limited menu for brunch.

I have a last minute dinner reservation based on the reviews I read on Open Table. Unfortunately, my culinary experience was very different from previous reviewers. My family of 4 was lined into a small table, our ducks were slowly coming out; the table next to us sat later and received her food sooner than we did. The food was fair/good, but the portions seemed small, especially when plated in a large bowl. Service was dirty; had to request water several times. Has made takeout boxes available for residues. As already mentioned, dining room is very small. I'm sorry we're probably not coming back when we're in NYC Upper West.

I love coming to Piccolo. Gianluca is the most gracious host and the food is ALWAYS delicious (I have to go back to taste the dishes. Yes! Piccolo Cafe can successfully combine really good Homie food with an irresistible menu. You make UWS dinning experience even more desirable, DANK YOU.

While the food was tasty, I was surprised by the discrepancy between the menu provided by Open Table prior to dining, and the actual menu: not only were items missing--such as steak--but the actual price was much higher. For example, the shrimp and avocado salad was $10 on Open Table's Piccolo Cafe menu, and $17 at the restaurant. When we asked for a beer, the waiter said they were out. Later, after asking for cappuccino, he said there was no espresso. The service was lazy: no waiter checked to see if our dishes needed anything, and we had to wait quite a few minutes before parmesan was provided to top a pasta, or finally receiving the pepper I requested. Finally, the wine list was very limited.

This is my go to restaurant in the neighborhood. The food is always fresh and imaginative and the staff is friendly.