I've wanted to come here for so long because the pictures on their website look amazinggg but sadly I was disappointed. I got the pesto with fusilli which was so underwhelming. The pesto itself was so bland I had to go back home and add seasoning. The only thing I did like here was the Oreo tiramisu. The normal tiramisu wasn't even good, only the Oreo one had some redeeming qualities. read more

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It was very cramped . It was also very hot .The service was OK . The worst part was the food . We ordered 3 different pasta dishes and all of them were swimming in sauce . I have never had pasta with that much sauce on it. It was a shame because the pasta itself was nicely cooked. I would not go back or recommend . read more

Cafe Luce has a very cozy ambiance. I had a late solo breakfast here and was seated at the window. The eggs benedict was served with potatoes and a salad and I devoured it. The eggs were poached perfectly. I also had a cafe which was tasty and strong (in a good way). The service was prompt and friendly. I would love to come back and try their lunch and dinner menus. read more

Cafe Luce - Eggs Benedict - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

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Cute little spot that's hidden. I was seated immediately at the bar. The staff is very helpful. The ambiance is cute and cozy. It's the perfect spot for an intimate dinner with a date or with a friend. The lighting is soft which makes it feel romantic. I started with the focaccia which is $3 extra. The bread comes hot and toasted. It tastes so fresh. It comes with an olive oil/vinegar dip. It was the perfect starter. The setting is very casual. They use paper napkins over cloth. The salad was fresh however it was soaked in dressing. It was big and it had cucumbers and olives which was great. My main dish was Limoncello with grilled chicken. The dish was very heavy with lemon flavor which the bartender warned me about. The flavor was overwhelming and I could barely finish half of it. The chicken was good and tasted fresh. The other element was the staff was arguing the whole time, quietly but essentially the duration of my dinner. It was happening in front of me as I ate and it honestly made the whole situation awkward. I am sure the other pasta dishes are good. The pasta was tasty and cooked perfectly. I would say that for the prices there are better options. I would like to come back and give it another try as the salad and bread were good and the spot is very cute. I give it a 3.5. read more

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I was less excited than I was the first time eating from here but thinking back I still like this place. After trying out the takeout last time I decided to dine in this time. I made a reservation for Sunday evening which I'm not sure if I even needed to (doesn't hurt I guess). Besides a large group of 10(?) people they only had a handful other customers. The left side and right side of the restaurant looks so different. I've only seen the right side in photos and when I picked up takeout. I like how it has a big window and light wood decor on the wall with benches. The left side is darker with a bar table and darker decor. They let us choose and we chose the brighter light wood side. Their tables are kinda small tbh. They started off by giving us bread (and seconds of it). I quite like the vinaigrette situation which encouraged me to eat more bread. Not particularly outstanding but at least it was soft. Salad For an appetizer I was debating between the tricolor salad and spinach salad. I like how spinach has walnuts and raisins but I was also curious about the radicchio and endive that I was unfamiliar with. Adventurous I went. They come in two sizes which is good letting you decide whether to have it as an appetizer or main. Their appetizer size was already plentiful especially at $10. I wasn't particularly fond of this salad and I found it to be under dressed. Not too long after eating this, I found a piece of hair. They were nice and replaced it as well as offered a complimentary dessert. Pasta Orchiette alla vodka $19 The server recommended orchiette instead of letting us go for the standard penne or rigatoni. Cute and I appreciate. Most importantly the orchiette had the chew of fresh pasta. The sauce was plentiful and clung well to the pasta but I found it to be too sweet. Perhaps they added too much cream or not enough salt or I should've added more parm. Linguine alfredo mushroom $19 This was more exciting than the alla vodka. The parm, butter, cream all came together well creating a savory umami filled sauce without feeling too heavy. Near the end of the meal the sauce did dry up a bit but that's not completely their fault. I like how the mushrooms were sauteed before getting combined with everything else. Nutella tiramisu The server recommended this and the pistachio layer cake. I chose this hoping it'd give me an energy boost after a full dinner. Turns out it couldn't. The coffee wasn't strong nor bitter. The cream was too soft for my liking. A third of the cake was nutella added on top. I'm okay with nutella but not at that quantity lol. Overall the dessert felt too heavy especially after the rest of the meal. Their prices are so reasonable for a cutesy sit down place in midtown. It's as casual and budget friendly as some ramen or southeast asian place but has the homey and intimate vibe for dates. I also super appreciate how they're not too dark or too loud. The server was also very friendly and checked in on us very frequently. I can't tell if they're always slow but it took over an hour for my pasta to arrive. I won't deny the possibility that it's due to my slow eating of 1.5 salads. I also like how their tap water doesn't taste hard, quite refreshing. This place isn't perfect but considering the decor, price, service, and actually tasting handmade, I still value them highly. I'm interested in trying other items but also miss the aglio e olio I had the first time. read more

Cafe Luce - Spaghetti aglio e olio - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

Selected this based upon the 5 star rating. The pros: it's charming with simple decor, the focus is on pasta and wine, what's not to love. The price point was good for NYC and the servers were friendly. The menu is simple, salads, fresh pasta (pick your cut and sauce) add a protein. We had 2 individual sized salads (tricolor and caprese), 2 pastas dishes and a bottle of wine. We found each dish to be bland. The mushroom ravioli with Cacio Pepe sauce portion was filling but the grilled chicken we added was dry. I'd recommend the location for its nice ambience and good quality food at a fair price but it really left us feeling that it was unremarkable. I really think it was a 3 but can't find a solid reason to avoid it. read more

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Walked in on a whim and had a great dinner of spaghetti with meatballs and a montepulciano. Service was very friendly, atmosphere was vibrant but not loud. Enjoyed the meal and would return. read more

Excellent food and service....and, one of the VERY few restaurants that knows how to prepare octopus carpaccio properly. It was EXCELLENT! read more

The food was phenomenal. It was as authentic Italian as you can get. The pasta is freshly made in house. The service was great, and the ambiance was quiet while the service was on point. If you want a great meal, come to Café Luce. You will not be disappointed! read more

Cafe Luce - Spaghetti Bolignese, Lasagna, Mushroom Alfredo Fettuccine. - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

Some of the best Italian I've had in a long time. Simon was an incredibly kind and knowledgeable server, who helped this quiet and cozy hole in the wall feel like home. read more

A charming and intimate pasta restaurant with exceptional food. The octopus bruschetta was outstanding, and the Caesar salad was very good. We ordered five different pasta dishes, one featuring real black truffles, and each was superb. The wines recommended by lovely Bruna were excellent. The deserts were delicious as well. We love this place for enjoying a relaxed evening over delicious pasta and wine. read more

Overall: LOVE this place. Decor, ambience, service, food, plating, and price make this a highly recommended spot for anything. Food: I ordered the limoncello with fettuccine and I basically felt like I was eating lemon fettuccine Alfredo. Would recommend if you're into lemon flavors! My friends ordered the alla vodka with orecchiette and the bolognese with rigatoni. Both were extremely hearty and packed with flavor. All the pasta is made in house fresh and cooked to perfect Al dente with extremely reasonable portions at this price point. Experience: once you walk into this (quite literally) hole in the wall place you won't be disappointed by the cutesy decor that makes you feel really homey. The pasta bowl designs make the pasta pop out and just beg to be eaten. Take your date here on a Friday night, bring a couple of friends, or even enjoy a meal by yourself as this place is a low key restaurant that packs a punch in quality. read more

Perfect for personal get togethers or a group of friends that love enjoying good wine and scrumptious bites that tease your taste buds for more! The staff have a wonderful balance of service of making sure your wine glass is not empty for long! I see many photo shoots in this amazing window! Come create your experience in this family's paradise of what meals are suppose to be like! read more

The pesto linguini had no flavor, not even salt could save it. The restaurant looks cute but sacrifices comfort as the booths were narrow and uncomfortable. Service was good, friendly staff. read more

The food was good.. large portions for pasta. The octopus grilled appetizer was great! read more

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I had high hopes based on all of the reviews but sorry to say I was seriously underwhelmed the pasta was good but not "good good" if you know what I mean. For a place that makes the pasta in house I was surprised to find it topped with that dry crumble of Parmesan, I mean why not compliment the dish with fresh Parmesan cheese? The focaccia was uneventful, almost felt microwaved- although the dip it comes with it pretty good. The staff is nice and attentive but it would hurt to have a more laid back approach to give you the feel of Italian dining where you eat slow and enjoy your meal. read more

Cafe Luce - Alfredo Mushroom - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

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They have delicious pasta and a cute ambiance. They have jazz brunches on the weekend. The only negative is that the seats feel a bit cramped. read more

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Honestly confused as to why the ratings are so high on yelp. The place was very cute ambiance wise, but the first thing I smelled when I sat down was cigarette smoke. It continued to carry in the bathroom too. As an Italian, I have high expectations for Italian restaurants, especially ones in NYC with this high of ratings. The pasta may have been the worst pasta I have had, and may be the worst food I have had in New York so far. It makes me sad to say because the service was pretty good but the plate of pasta I got was mainly chunky sauce (unsure if it was vegetables or what all was in there) and maybe 10 pieces of actual pasta. This was just a plate of red sauce. Nothing fancy. I would not go back and would not recommend if you like good italian food. Really unfortunate given the reviews I've seen raving about this place. read more

A hidden gem... cute, cozy, great ambiance, and the most amazing Italian sauces aroma when you walk in. Found this place on Yelp when looking for a place to meet up with family coming in from different locations in northern Jersey. (It was surprisingly easy to book a reservation for 6 people at a reasonable hour given how tough that is to do in NYC on a Friday evening... and They were beyond accommodating when a few members of our group got stuck in traffic... they sat & served as the members of our group arrived.) The food was amazing and the portions were generous. The service was outstanding. Recommend the fried burrata and the penne vodka. Thanks again Cafe Luce... read more

Cafe Luce - Penne vodka - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

I really enjoyed a quiet dinner here. The food was very good and the wait staff were very attentive. I got the carbonara with fettuccini and the Oreo tiramisu, both were good. I would recommend this restaurant and I plan on returning in the future. read more

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I went for lunch with my daughter on Tuesday. Everything was fabulous. The reason I'm writing this review is to tell you all about the outstanding welcome and service we got from the man who looked after us there. I mean, first class. Really lovely place. I highly recommend to everyone. read more

Cafe Luce - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

Came here of a seamless review, didn't look like much from outside but it is SO worth the visit!! The staff is so attentive and friendly, everything on the menu is amazing, I got the pollo capricciosa and the alla vodka with chicken cutlets- both perfect! Great date spot!! read more

Cafe Luce - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

Great new find!! Quaint and sweet place with love music. Attentive staff, delicious pasta. Check it out!!! read more

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For the price I feel the food could have been better, the gnocchi and fettuccine was literally drenched in olive oil. I wanted to really like this place but I feel like the food would have been amazing but just maybe use less olive oil. read more

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I ordered Caceo Pepe, and It came with pastas floating in Cheese and sauce. Didn't look like its picture at all.

Hidden within the block on the second floor, a narrow space with 2 rooms- good for dates or small groups - i was pleasantly surprised by Cafe Luce. The apps are a slow start but entrees pick up the pace with their homemade pasta, the true star being the gnocchi with pesto. The 6 of us did not do dessert but hopefully next time. read more

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Cute spot! Pretty empty on Sunday at around 1pm so came here for post church lunch with a large group of people. Cannot comment on the authenticity of the shakshuka and I think this was an Italian place anyways, but it was yum. Bread was kind of dry though. Our waitress was also very kind to split the check for all of us! read more

Cafe Luce - Shakshuka - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

Just objectively pretty bad food. The lasagna tasted frozen, and looked it too-- and for twenty something dollars, even with NY prices, decent lasagna is a low bar to set. read more

Our favorite Italian spot in NY. Don't blink or you'll miss it, but once you're inside trust me you won't miss anything... in fact you'll be licking your plate clean. Fantasies food and wonderful ambiance. read more

I stumbled upon your bar this evening with two friends. We came in and sat by the 4 top closest to the window. We ordered 3 glasses of house white wine. The server accidentally spilled the entire glass on me. My shirt, pants and brand new shoes were soaked in wine. It was a good thing that I had a second pair of shoes that I changed into. I understand that this was an accident. It happens. I was given a towel to dry off. What was disappointing was the reaction after. The server made no mention of restitution. I had to ask that the drinks be comped due to the inconvenience. The server came back out and said that only "my drink" was to be comped, per the manager. I looked at the server and said that all should be comped. I even told the server to feel my clothes to see how wet everything was. Finally, after the server conferred with the manager, our round of drinks were comped. My friends and I stayed for another round in the hopes that service would be better. Sadly, the manager did not even reach out to check on us paying clients. I work in customer service. Basic customer service etiquette states that the manager should've come out and speak to the client and address the issue. Unfortunately, besides practically asking to be compensated for my very wet clothes, the manager was nowhere to be found. This is such a miss by your establishment. Rest assured that I will not be returning and will make sure to share this abhorrent experience with everyone I know. Your customer service is absolutely abysmal. read more

Small hole in the wall restaurant but delicious homemade pasta dishes. Despite its size we didn't feel crowded. Service was good and congenial. Nice find! read more

I would never go there again. Service was rude and the Bolognese sauce was terrible- very little flavor and poor quality meat. The waitress was pushy (she didn't like it that we turned down the focaccia). When we asked for Parmesan to add some much-needed flavor, we got a shaker bottle of Kraft-style dehydrated cheese. We asked if we could have fresh Parmesan and she told us we would have to pay extra. And the menu was not cheap. I had a $21.00 glass of Barolo that was pretty good and the tre color salad was the only really outstanding item out of everything we ordered. The limoncello pasta was also not bad. Overall, not worth the price. read more

Enjoyed the food at the brunch. The jazz playing in the background set the mood for my visit. And the service was so personable like I was at home. Must visit again next time in NYC. read more

Cafe Luce - Italian Near Me - Manhattan, New York

Pasta is good, sauces are ok. Nothing special, nothing spectacular. Minimal bread but that ok since it's a mediocre fascia with no taste. No HH specials on wine. We were the Only people in the restaurant! Now I know why. Wish I could have this meal to do over somewhere else. Just ok when there's sooo many good options in nyc. If you're the ONLY people in the restaurant, I recommend they treat them with some family love. Extra bread, a free dessert, a conversation...anything to acknowledge that we are spending $160 in your weak restaurant when no one else is. It's your time to shine. read more

Came for brunch and was thrilled that they offered their lunch menu, not just brunch. We ordered the caesar salad, zucchini sticks and orecchiette with vodka sauce. We had read that the orecchiette was the pasta to order for this sauce and we are so happy we did. It was perfection... al dente and superb. The salad was dressed lightly upon our request and tasty. We expected the zucchini sticks to be cut shoestring style but they were more like mozzarella stick size... didn't matter because they were good. Service was great! We would definitely return. read more

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I had a great time dining here. I like how you get to choose your own special combination of house-made pasta and sauce. I enjoyed eating the bolognese sauce and would recommend it to anyone. I can't wait to go back! read more

Chicken parmigiana and spaghetti were both overcooked. Not worth the money. I can't speak on the other dishes, but I do not recommend the chicken parm. read more

Super cozy and cute. Attentive service and pretty good food too. Keep in mind how cozy it is, you may have the whole restaurant to yourself.

Originally found this place on Seated, and was excited to try it as a devoted pasta lover. The restaurant portion is a smaller area and may be really good for lunch. I unfortunately did not get a chance to see the back bar area that they recently added, but it seemed very cute and a somewhat different vibe. The pasta was very good and I would love to return in the future as well as order takeout or delivery. One star removed for limited drink options (mostly just wine) and the dining area maybe not being suited for a larger group. read more

Based on our takeout experience. The pasta here is delicious. We ordered the chicken parm and cacio e Pepe and both were delicious. Nothing was too salty or over seasoned. Just delicious pasta. We will order from here again when craving good pastas read more