One of my earliest memories of eating in the East Village was eating at Max and remembering how amazing the food was. It was a long standing staple of the area until it recently closed and luckily for me has re-opened in Williamsburg. I remember it being homey but satisfying comfort Italian food - not the snazzy high brow kind you find at L'Artusi or Scarpetta (which by the way, I both enjoyed as well). It looks like they kept the spirit of the old place alive because I really enjoyed the food at Max and it still had this comforting feel to the food.
The menu is fairly standard and basic - Paige and I started with the caprese salad ($11) and then we were both torn between 2 different pasta dishes, so we decided to split the spaghetti alla chitarra ($14) and the spaghetti del marinaio ($14). As you can see from the prices, they are probably half the price of the pastas that you'd find else where but they were probably twice the amount of food and just as good. But I'm jumping ahead of myself. The caprese was actually just ok - it was four small lumps of fresh mozzarella but the plum tomatoes they served with it weren't all the juicy and they could have used more olive oil and salt to the whole dish. So my initial impression of the place was a bit eh. But then the pasta came out and my entire mind changed. First, the size of the pasta was out of control. One bowl is actually probably enough for 2 people, so the fact that we got 2 bowls was a bit overkill. Plus they really pack in the amount of pasta in each bowl - they were full and brimming to the top with yummy goodness in them. I tried the spaghetti alla chitarra first - which was spaghetti with lamb ragu and pecorino. The pasta was thick and a bit on the chewy side but I really didn't mind that at all. The ragu was good but heavy and I should note that there was a bunch of actual ragu but not a whole lot of actual sauce. It was much more of a meaty thick sauce which is probably why I found the dish so filling. Next I tried the spaghetti de marinaio - which is spaghetti made with squid ink and then topped with spicy tomato sauce and shrimp. I was impressed with how many pieces of shrimp were served with this dish and they were of fairly decent and healthy size. I was also a huge fan of this dish and really enjoyed the combination of the spicy tomato sauce with the squid ink pasta.
Just when I thought I couldn't eat anymore, Paige and I decided that we had to get the tiramisu ($8) since Paige was on a mission to survey as many different tiramisu dishes as possible. This one was served in a glass sundae cup instead of in a square but that didn't matter. It was sweet, creamy and delicious. It was the perfect way to end a great Italian meal. I'm so excited that this place is in my 'hood and I hope to be a regular there in the future. Total bill: $60/pp with tax, tip and lots of wine
Photo Credit: bedfordandbowery.com
No comments:
Post a Comment