Dorothy said it best, “There’s no place like home.” But, every once in a while, we find a place that makes us feel like we’ve clicked our ruby red slippers three times–even if it may be 5,000 miles away from Italy. Whether you’re an expat who’s homesick for the rhythm of the local bar, a local dreaming of that incredible pizza you had on holiday to Naples, or just a person curious about how far-reaching the Italian diaspora is, this is for you. We’ve put together what we think are some of the best places to get an authentic taste of Italy, abroad; first up, New York, a city close to our team’s hearts (fun fact: at some point, three of us have lived there). 

Italian culture is as much a part of New York City as the Empire State Building or the Statue of Liberty. New York boasts the largest population of Italians in the United States, and it’s easy to see the mark the Italian diaspora has left on the fabric of the city–New York pizza may be an entirely different breed than what we’ve got in Naples or Rome, but it certainly speaks for itself. Most of the city’s Italian immigrants came through Ellis Island at the turn of the 20th century; between 1900 and 1914, over 2 million Italians migrated here, most of them from Southern Italy. At this time, the South–particularly Campania, Puglia, Calabria, and Sicily–were extremely poverty stricken, and padroni (labor brokers) offered incentives for men from these regions to come over to the U.S. and work manual labor jobs, offering them room, board, and transit fare. To keep their local culture alive–not to mention, at this time most people spoke dialect–the new arrivals set up their lives in neighborhoods according to their home region. 

By 1930, 17% of New York’s population was Italian–their communities became even more tight-knit, and, as in the old country, congregating around food was a cornerstone of their lives and businesses. Today, you’ll still find restaurants and shops with strong cultural roots if you know where to look–which, insider’s tip, no longer includes the now-tourist-trap neighborhood of Little Italy. Plus, in the city that never sleeps, you’ll also find exciting reinterpretations of classic Italian dishes, and some of the world’s best chefs elevating a culinary heritage rooted in cucina povera to new and prestigious heights. 

*Here, we’re not focusing on Italian American cuisine–the stuff of garlic knots, Sunday gravy, chicken parmesan, checkered tablecloths, and Frank Sinatra–which has become a codified gastronomic tradition in its own right. An article that does justice to this red-sauced fare is a story for another day. 

RESTAURANTS

Via Carota – Inspired by the Tuscan village Sodi grew up in, this warm osteria from industry baddies Rita Sodi and Jodi Williams is one of the West Village’s hottest destinations. Notorious for more than a few major celebrity sightings, the menu focuses on top quality produce and care for ingredients that make the rustic dishes shine. Their “verdure” section is the stuff of legends, with the likes of spring peas with prosciutto and robiola and grilled mushrooms with smoked scamorza. Via Carota has been a true snapshot of classic Italian–and Tuscan–cuisine since its opening.

Must Order: Castelfranco salad, svizzerina, leeks with sheep cheese, tortelli with smoked ricotta, carciofi, cacio e pepe, carrots, zabaione with frutti di bosco, olive oil cake

Rezdôra – This Michelin-starred restaurant, tucked down a few stairs on 20th street, pays homage to hearty, flavorful, stuffed-pasta-driven Emilia-Romagnan cuisine. Head chef Stefano Secchi, who trained under Massimo Bottura at Osteria Francescana, creates a top-notch menu of luscious handmade pastas, rich meaty mains, and Northern Italian wines. Despite the high rating, it’s quite unfussy, and the food and vibe are on par with our favorite trattorie in Bologna, Modena, and Parma. 

Must Order: Anolini di parma, gramigna giallo e verde, uovo raviolo di nino bergese, gnocco fritto, cacio e pepe in Emilia salad, ragù di anatra

Misi – Missy Robbins’ eponymous spot in South Williamsburg is simplicity at its finest, from the clean, windowed dining room to the perfectly executed dishes. Here, the menu celebrates what Italian cuisine does best: veg-forward antipasti and homemade pastas, with an excellent wine list. We prefer to go with people who like to share, since it’s the kind of place where we want to try a bite of everything.

Must Order: Carciofi, zucchini, radicchio, mezze rigatoni with 30 clove pomodoro,  bucatini ‘nduja, fettuccine with buffalo butter and parmigiano, pistachio gelato 

Lilia – Another from Missy Robbins (she’s great what can we say), Lilia is the spot that put her on the map. The menu is a true ode to Italy, though inside is hipper than any of the restaurants you’ll typically find in the boot. Come for the fire-grilled seafood, handmade pastas, and a strong aperitivo game, and stay for dessert: we can’t stop thinking about the “Italian Job” sundae, made with homemade vanilla soft serve gelato, pollen, fennel, honey, and olive oil.

Must Order: Sheep’s milk cheese agnolotti, rigatoni diavola, clams, scallops, and the Italian Job

I Sodi –  Rita Sodi opened this restaurant before any of her other heavy hitters, cooking the type of food she grew up preparing and eating with her family on their farm north of Florence. Everything here is extraordinary, from the million-layered lasagna and simple tagliatelle limone to her veggies and tagliere. You can usually snag a walk-in bar seat, but if you manage to get a resy, opt for outside seating in their garden in the warmer months.

Must Order: Paccheri strascicati, lasagna, carciofi fritti, piselli

Malatesta Trattoria – A casual, convivial spot in the West Village, this lively trattoria, with inspiration from Emilia-Romagna, has warm wood interiors and terrace dining that spills out into the street. Homemade pastas, piadine, and a few simple antipasti make up the short but sweet menu, perfect for a simple no frills dinner any night of the week. 

Must Order: Spaghetti alla chitarra, piadina prosciutto e mozzarella

Roman’s – While their dishes may not be traditional Italian (they describe their menu as “spirited Italian-influenced”), their ethos certainly is. Roman’s in Brooklyn puts producers, locality, and sustainability front and center, constantly changing their dishes and highlighting tradition-based artisans. On the short menu they break into First, Second, Third, and Dessert categories, you’ll find typical Italian ingredients like Castelvetrano olives, pecorino, white beans, tuna, and escarole turned into elevated dishes that match the seasons.  

Must Order: The menu changes constantly, but it’s hard to go wrong. Past favorites include fava bean puree, frittata with tomato and basil, and spaghetti con pomodorini gialli e collatura di alici 

Sant Ambroeus West Village & Madison Ave – When we are in need of a true espresso, cornetto, or paninetto all’olio, there’s one place that will suffice: Sant Ambroeus, either in the West Village or on Madison Ave. The Manhattan counterparts to the Milanese brand, these cafes look, sound, and taste like we’re at a bustling bar in Milan, providing the perfect slice of home amidst a sea of venti-sized coffees. If you’re in the mood for something a little more filling, their spaghetti aglio olio, arrabbiata, and vongole are exactly like you taste in Italy. 

Must Order: Paninetto all’olio con il prosciutto, toast classico, spaghetti all’arrabbiata, costoletta alla milanese

Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria – This outpost of Il Buco in Noho is part dining room, part grocer, part food lab. They make their own bread, pastries, and charcuterie, and the shelves in the front are lined with Italian imported and local goods; next door, pop into Il Buco Vita, their homeware and lifestyle outpost, with niche Italian products like the candles of the Cereria Medievale di Bevagna. It’s a cozy, casual spot for lunch or dinner any time of the year, and we love that the menu isn’t afraid to add some oomph to the classics with unique spices, flavors, and techniques.

Must Order: Branzino, bucatini cacio e pepe, spaghetti con bottarga 

Altro Paradiso – Blissfully off the over-trodden pedestrian streets of SoHo, this refined restaurant from acclaimed chef Ignacio Mattos stays true to its uncomplicated Italian roots. In a space that’s delightfully airy and almost Danish-feeling, the menu here features pared-down dishes that let high-quality ingredients shine–think mozzarella with figs, tuna with potatoes, and a killer spaghetti pomodoro. 

Must Order: Fennel salad, spaghetti pomodoro, cacio e pepe

Fiaschetteria Pistoia – You’ll find truly classic dishes and ingredients like tonno del Chianti, guancia, and aglione on their Tuscan-focused menu. At tiny wooden tables with rustic decor and imported wine, dining here really feels like home to our Florence-based team. With locations in both the East and West Villages (as well as Amsterdam and Pistoia), don’t sleep on their specials, and be sure to peek in the window to see them making the pasta from scratch. 

Must Order: Carpaccio di carciofi, prosciutto San Daniele, spaghetti con pommarola, maccheroni all’anatra, braciole rifatte

Roscioli – A true Roman export, Roscioli’s Soho location keeps the integrity of its original Campo dei Fiori original alive, but with a bit of NYC flair. Upstairs, sample tagliere of thoughtfully-chosen cheeses and charcuterie, antipasti, and, of course, wine, while downstairs a prix-fixe wine and tasting menu is a more upscale choice. 

Must Order: As in Rome, their carbonara (made with crispy on the outside, melt in your mouth on the inside, guanciale) is some of the best in the biz

Trapizzino – Rome’s longtime favorite street food (read: drunk food), Trapizzino’s first location outside Italy is in the East Village. Expect the same super-stuffed, paper-wrapped, fluffy-but-crunchy sandwiches and suppli that you’d find in Trastevere, though this location also features a few pastas and some surprisingly great, veggie-based antipasti. 

Salvo’s Cucina Casalinga – Salvo’s is a lunch delivery service with an array of quintessentially Italian panini combinations featuring imported, flavor-packed ingredients that was opened almost accidentally by Salvatore La Rosa, who realized his followers wanted to try some of the sandwiches he was making for his Italian parents. The menu changes weekly, with most sandwiches featuring only three ingredients. Salvatore makes and delivers them the Italian way: with his mom, and on his moped.  

Felice 56 – The first location of this now-renowned Italian restaurant, part of the Sant Ambroeus group, is well worth the trip uptown. Owned by the Florentine winemaking family Giustiniani, Felice truly honors Italian cuisine—with a few rule-breaking exceptions that are worth ordering, like their fantastic take on carbonara that’s controversially made with bacon instead of guanciale. The restaurant also highlights the Tuscan wine and spritz landscape, favoring small local producers such as Winestillery for their gin selection.

PIZZA

Una Pizza Napoletana – Una does what it says on the tin: serves great quality, made-with-care Napolitan-style pizzas. Naturally leavened, wood-fired dough, and classic toppings make their pies taste as if you were in Naples–even if you may be on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. A concise list of antipasti, gelatos, and sorbets round out the picture. (Plus, they just earned the number one spot on the 50 Top Pizzas in the World for 2024.) 

Must Order: Margherita, and the daily-changing special pizza 

Razza – This wood-fired spot deserves a trip across the Hudson to Jersey City for its perfect crust and toppings. Crackly, salty, sturdy dough is accompanied by gooey cheese, sweet tomatoes, and the likes of spinach, asparagus, potatoes, zucchini, corn, and mushrooms, depending on the season. Everything–veggies, meat, cheese–that can be sourced from nearby small New Jersey farms is, with chef and owner Dan Richer notoriously even tracking local water buffalo communities for upwards of three years until they could make him mozzarella. 

Must Order: Burrata pizza, santo pizza, any of the seasonal pies

BAKERIES

Sullivan Street Bakery – Italian bakeries are community institutions, and that’s what Sullivan Street’s goal was, too. With two locations in the city (Chelsea and Hell’s Kitchen), their handmade, beautifully leavened breads are even better than some we find in Italy (no pane Toscano here!). Their dimpled focaccias, sometimes turned into simple stuffed panini, are perfect recreations of the stuff owner Jim Lahey–who received a James Beard award for Outstanding Baker–fell in love with while traveling Italy.

Bread & Salt – Another spot worth trekking to Jersey for, this Jersey City bakery captures quintessential italianità, from their minimal hours to their produce–including barattiere–and an ever-changing menu of prepared foods that’s entirely up to the whims of the kitchen. Focaccia, bread loaves, friselle, taralli, torte, pasticcerie are always on offer next to sandwiches stuffed with the likes of beef tongue, carne alla Genovese, sautéed dandelion greens, Atlantic mackerel, and spicy baccalà.

Grandaisy Bakery – Unpretentious, delicious classics are on the menu here–just like a good Italian panificio should have. Though everything at this Tribeca bakery is great, what we really come for is the Roman-style pizza rossa al taglio, which is the closest version we can find to those in the Eternal City’s forni. 

BARS

Bar Pisellino – This corner cafe by power couple Rita Sodi and Jodi Williams on Grove St and 7th Ave is one of the closest in the city to a classic Italian baretto. Come in anytime for strong espresso and classic bar fare like bomboloni alla crema, panini farciti, and spuntini, but it’s really a favorite for aperitivo, with perfect salty snacks to accompany the exquisite slew of cocktails, including a great negroni. The tiny, two-person tables make for an especially cozy date night.

Caffè Dante – A Greenwich Village mainstay that’s over 100 years old (you don’t see that much outside Italy!), Dante, and its twin in the West Village, is the spot to go for Italy-style aperitivo. Martinis, hefty green olives, and Negronis (courtesy of a full-fledged Negroni menu) are always flowing here, and the sage-green spot even earned itself the accolade of World’s Best Bar in 2019 by 50 Best. A simple a la carte menu can easily turn aperitivo into dinner.

Bar Enzo – If you open a certain door in Long Island City, you might think you’ve entered a 1960s Italian-American home rather than a bar. That’s exactly the point, for the newly opened Bar Enzo was designed exactly like owner and Queens native Joe Schinco’s (relative of Italy Segreta contributor Nico Schinco) Sicilian grandparents’ home–black and white family photos line the hallway and the wallpaper is a hand drawn replica of that in his grandparents’ home. Drinks here too are deeply familial, featuring Italianized versions of the classics, with negroni specials and a slew of amaro-based libations.

GROCERIES

MISIPASTA – Missy Robbins’ latest venture, this deli/grocer churns out handmade pastas and sauces along with a curated selection of imported preserves, oils, and dried goods in a Williamsburg spot that looks undeniably Italian. We can’t resist a quick sit at the bar or outside garden for aperitivo and a tight, flavorful menu, but our favorite reason to stop by? You can find our very own Quotidianno on their shelves! 

Rafetto’s – In the heart of Greenwich village, this iconic, old-school place has been a staple for homemade pasta since its opening in 1906. Their fresh pasta, which comes in a variety of flavors, is cut to order, with eight different size options. They also have a smattering of stuffed pastas; the gorgonzola and walnut ravioli is especially good. 

Di Palo’s Fine Foods – Run by the fourth generation of the Italian family that first opened this Little Italy deli, Lou di Palo still travels to Italy every year to source the best meats and cheeses. It’s one of the last remaining authentic spots in this neighborhood, and their prosciutto is the city’s best. 

Buon’Italia – It is, in fact, all things good and Italy at this gourmet grocers in the always-bustling Chelsea Market. Though the price tag can run quite high, you can probably find any Italian ingredient you’re looking for here. If you get peckish while shopping, you can also grab a quick dish of pasta from their small kitchen.

Sogno Toscano – An unfussy cafe and mini grocer featuring all imported, premier Italian products thanks to their own distribution company, with outposts in Chelsea and the West Village. Stop by to pick up some staples for the week or meet a friend for a great schiacciate and wine; their outdoor seating is particularly nice in the cooler months.

EATALY – If there’s one place we can always count on to have the Italian ingredients, housewares, and prepared foods that remind us of home, it’s EATALY. This Whole-Foods-style supermarket with a high-end food court was first opened in collaboration with Slow Food in Turin, and now boasts over 40 locations worldwide. A quick caffe, hard-to-find bottle of Vermentino, and some true Bolognese tortellini–all are certainly within reach here.

GELATO

Gelateria Gentile – Originating in Bari in 1880 but now found in Williamsburg, the West Village, Union Square, and Nolita, Gelateria Gentile is popular for good reason. Their handmade gelato–we’re especially obsessed with the pistachio–is as creamy and rich as the stuff you find in Italy. You can get your scoops in a cone, cup, or the southern Italian way, inside a brioche, and pick up a few seasonal pastries to go with it.

Il Laboratorio del Gelato – With its gleaming white walls and stainless steel test kitchen, this place on the Lower East Side really does feel like a lab–one that specializes in recreating Italian flavors abroad. Here, it’s all about innovative, “chef-driven” creations like cheddar cheese, chocolate with thai chili, and vanilla saffron, though the classics–yogurt, hazelnut, chocolate, lemon–are also knockouts.