Yes, Torrisi Italian Specialities is an idiosyncratic oasis of Italian food in a sea of sameness. And yes, their prix-fixe dinner is worth ditching work at 4 p.m. to get your name on the list. But sometimes you don't need a culinary tour-du-force as much as a mozzarella bear hug. Parm, the new venture from the owners of Torrisi (it's right next door) serves Italian soul food good enough to forsake Sunday family dinner for. more ›

This week Sam Sifton at the Times files a two star rave on Torrisi Italian Specialties, a little $50 prix fixe Italian-American joint that recently received a rave from New York, as well. "During the day, Torrisi is a sandwich shop modeled on those of the neighborhood old school," writes Sifton. "You can get a good chicken parm or an excellent turkey hero there, some flavorful contorni, a can of beer, a small bottle of Coke. The dishes are all smart upgrades on classics, beautifully cooked, humble Italian-American lunch fare for an era that respects the form. At night, though, the room is transformed into a restaurant of around 20 seats, in which artists make work and customers consume it." more ›

The NY Times reports that Michael Ronis, the chef who helped develop the Carmine's concept, died at age 60 last week from brain cancer. "Carmine’s was the brainchild of Arthur Cutler, who asked Mr. Ronis, who had previously worked with him, to come up with a menu and concept reminiscent of Dominick’s, a famed Italian restaurant in the Bronx. The idea they reached was to serve every meal in the style of an Italian wedding feast, offering piles of spaghetti and meatballs and other Italian-American standards in a nostalgic environment...[the] first location opened in 1990 on Broadway near 91st Street, and its medium-budget fare struck a responsive chord during a lingering recession." more ›

Missy Robbins took over as executive chef at A Voce last September with her style of cooking that's both neatly composed and rustic Italian. In one appetizer, for example, huge rectangular planks of seared trumpet royal mushrooms are gently set on a cloudlike hazelnut fonduta and simply garnished with greens and truffles. It may look like a salad on the plate, but served with a glass of red wine, it eats like a steak dinner. At her last chef gig—Spiaggia in Chicago—Robbins attracted the attention of Barack and Michelle Obama, who were regulars. And in today's New York Times, Frank Bruni does a little hail-to-the-chef thing: “As we all wonder whether our new president has the requisite judgment to steer us away from economic catastrophe,” he writes, “we can take some comfort from this: he has the requisite judgment to appreciate Missy Robbins.” more ›