Pietro's

Pietro's
232 E 43rd St, New York, NY 10017
http://www.pietrosnyc.com/

This restaurant immediately has an old country, historic feel as soon as you walk in the door. It is very apparent as soon as you walk in the door that this restaurant has been around for generations.  Most of the servers seemed to be family.  While this is not necessarily bad, we found that service suffered and the general pace of the meal seemed to be slow.  This could however be the je ne sais quoi of the restaurant that has drawn people for generations.  The service should not be labeled bad persay, but just slow.  I got the feeling sitting there that people come here to relax and enjoy a 2-3 hour meal, and thus the pacing of the meal is not as important as the fellowship and leisurely approach to service.

Our Famous Chopped $15. Let's just say, the portions are generous.  A complete understatement.  A family could have been fed by that salad. This may be part of the reason service ran a bit leisurely for my taste. The portions are so large it will take an hour just to clear the salad course.

Minestrone Soup $9. Minestrone is a thick soup of Italian origin made with vegetables, often with the addition of pasta or rice. Common ingredients include beans, onions, celery, carrots, stock, and tomatoes.

 Veal Piccata $28. Piccata is a method of preparing food: meat is sliced, coated, sautéed and served in a sauce. The dish originated in Italy using veal.

Chicken Tetrazzini $26.  I would liken this to a casserole. This was by far the best dish here.  Tetrazzini is an American dish often made with diced poultry or seafood, mushrooms, and almonds in a butter/cream and parmesan sauce flavored with wine or sherry and stock vegetables such as onions, celery, and carrots.

Asparagus $9. Just a word of warning, since everything is a la carte, I thought I could order two sides.  It should be clear, the sides are family style.  This is not indicated on the menu so--caveat emptor!

Mashed Potatoes $8.  These seemingly ordinary mashed potatoes are of note because they were infused with finely ground thyme or rosemary--we weren't able to get a clear answer out of the servers, but it was definitely a unique twist to standard mashed potatoes.  I'd recommend getting them if you are there.  Again, they are family style, so don't go crazy with the sides like I did.

That about covers it.  They had a nice bar area (featured below).  I didn't try the desserts as I am dieting for a competition, but overall, I would go back.  The service could have been faster as I mentioned, but I think that was a stylistic choice designed to attract the type of clientele that want to come and sit at a restaurant--a dinner as the evening event.

Of Note:

Our booth was apparently owned/reserved by Robert N Fisch.  A quick google reveals: he is the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of rue21, Inc, a multi-national mens/womens clothing boutique. Apparently, he's a huge fan of Pietros.  We sat at his table.

The dining area. Decor could have used a redo.

A very well appointed bar area.

Just in case you have comments.