Review Celeste - New York City

Paul Lagunes

Celeste is the restaurant where my partner and I had our first date. It’s also the restaurant where, nearly three years later, we held our wedding reception. On both occasions, Celeste proved ideal — we were treated like we were returning to a dear friend’s home and we feasted to our hearts’ content. Carmine Mitroni, the owner, is an exceptional host. He is warm and genuine. When it came to our wedding reception, we trusted Carmine with all the details — from the wine selection to everything that made it onto the final menu. By the end of the night, our 60+ guests were delighted with the food, service, and ambiance at Celeste. Without exception, we were all amazed by the amount of delicious platters that Carmine and Celeste’s servers placed in front of us. Our guests with special dietary restrictions were taken care of in precisely the ways we requested. Those who asked for a non-alcoholic beverage, such as a Diet Coke, coffee, cappuccino, or double espresso got exactly what they wanted — plus a friendly smile from one of the servers. Then, when it came time to paying the bill, the price was right and there were no surprises. All told, my partner and I could not have found a better place for both our first date and our wedding reception. We have every reason to feel grateful. To Carmine and his team at Celeste we say, thank you.

H. Poyraz

Just the Italian restaurant I was looking for. When we came out of the museum, we saw what was around and we said let's go right away. The naturalness and experience of the decoration, the constant attention of the owner, the good job of the service personnel, and most importantly, the tastes of the food were great. Businesses that love to do their job immediately reveal themselves. I love restaurants with a stance. I hope it stays like this forever. Don't forget to take cash with you when you go. They warn you while you're already sitting because they don't accept credit cards.

Ali Rubenstein

I’ve been coming to Celeste with my family for nearly two decades. I have countless memories here sharing delicious meals with family and friends and it never gets old! The spinach salad is so simple yet so unbelievably good. The vermicelli and clams is the best I’ve ever had and Carmine always recommends the best bottle of wine. If you’re questioning whether to try this local hidden gem, make the reservation 100% and tell them the family from Connecticut sent you. Thank you Celeste for a short lifetime of wonderful meals and memories.

mark Krupkin

Went for diner with friends. The place is a gem. I can’t say enough how good everything we tried tasted. From sausage Gorgonzola pizza to home made gnocchi to vermicelli with clams was delicious. Just when I thought it couldn’t be any better came out smoked swordfish from Sardinia and 3 mushroom lasagna in béchamel. Oh my goodness , Heaven!!!!! We paired it with great bottle of white and red that the owner suggested to try with the dishes. Very good , wil come back and recommend👍👍💕💕🍷

Svetlana Shammasova

An absolute gem. Ingredients are picked fresh daily by the chef, the wines and desserts are shipped directly from Italy, all the flavors are exceptional. I’ve lived in NYC for 11 years and I’m grateful to have discovered this place.

Nora Sanpo

Chill and down to earth place with great food, friendly staff, and timely service. I especially recommend the clam vermicelli, aromatic with seafood flavors and fresh ingredients without overpowering butter flavor like many other clam vermicelli. The apple pie dessert was also wonderful in flavor and texture. Bouncy, sweet and soft apple with yogurt glaze that compliments it perfectly. Loved the Quattro stagioni pizza as well!

Ivette

I ordered their lasagna off the brunch menu and I must say; probably THE BEST lasagna I've had in my entire life! Very flavorful, rich and well seasoned. Service was amazing. Our server Stefano was very attentive as well as the owner and host of the restaurant. It's a quaint restaurant located on the Upper West Side. Bring cash as it is a cash only eatery.

Lynn B

I’ve been to Celeste many times. A cozy neighborhood favorite. The food and service are excellent. As someone who spends months in Tuscany, the authenticity and commitment to Tuscan and Sicilian fare has great appeal. A broad menu is offered here with many options of beef, veal, fish, seafood, fresh vegetable, salads, pastas and pizza. There is also a select small fried list a la Sicilian favorites. Everything is prepared with care. The list of ‘specials’ each evening are as long as the actual menu options because the owner and chefs are working with the freshest of ingredients. Celeste is an Upper West restaurant that is a neighborhood favorite and a ‘must’ for a visit. A note: cash only!

Ken Rubin

Fabulous west side Italian restaurant. Been coming for years and it’s always first rate. Food is consistently well prepared and specials change with the seasons. Had the day boat scallops tonight as an appetizer and reliable pasta with clams. Interesting wine list with several affordable choices-can’t beat the Barbera! Owner is always on sight and he circulates like your father might. Just fabulous s!

Fonto

Delicious food, wine, and dessert I would definitely recommend to anyone in the area or anyone visiting from out of town that would like some very amazing quality old fashioned Italian food with the atmosphere of an old school Italian restaurant! 5/5 stars and I’m coming back next week!

Diego Song

Cash only(!) restaurant with authentic Italian fare. They have specials that cover from pasta to meats, and also in-house made pasta that is served daily. Got one of each (ravioli special and tagliatelle with shrimp and cabbage), and they were wonderful. The pasta itself is fresh and the portions are generous to fill with a single plate ea. Maybe consider an appetizer if you crave an extra bite. For that, we got chicken liver, which was tender and also delicious. While we didn't get the chance to try their wines, I am willing to come back for a new experience and try basically all of their dishes. Thank you also Steffano for your humor and excellent and efficient service.

Jackie Kim

It was really busy when we first came in at 6:45pm, but service was really fast! We were in a bit of a rush to get to another place afterwards, but Stefano was very prompt and attentive. We got the calamari, vongole, and veal. Everything was really good, and it was a solid meal! Great for a date night :)

Samuel

Food is delicious the pizza thin crust simple but flavorful. Cash only, our waiter Steffano was very attentive and his recommendations on point.

Umit Turku Cakar

What an experience! What a pleasure! What a delight! One word... Amazing ! Food and service were spectacular.. I would recommend Celeste everyone. Many places to pick at Upper west side! and here is the right place. I checked Google and found Celeste. The food was so good, we had a pizza with gorgonzola and sausage, vongole spaghetti ,( my husband’s favorite) gnocchi with pesto sauce with Ligurian style , Sardinian smoked sort fish and the best of the best Lasagna with 4 types of mushrooms with béchamel sauce My God it was amazing! Also we paired all these meals with Montepulciano d’Abruzzo and Cabernet Sauvignon. Company and atmosphere was fun! service was very good. Owner Carmine was making sure that we were good and giving all the food instructions also he knows a lot about wines he even knows when the wines harvested. What a knowledge even In Michelin restaurant they don’t give these experiences! everybody in the place have had fun. My husband is Italian and we have these foods only in Italy we flew from Buffalo and came here to felt like we are in Italy. Briefly, Celeste is made us feel like in home. Far to go back to Italy bur definitely come back here. Thank you

Francis Hsueh

I really like this restaurant. Makes me feel like I’m experiencing a bit of Italy. The Tagliatelle bolognese is excellent and so is the octopus and the gnocchi al pesto. Also highly recommend the crustini.

Pavel Ilichev

Amazing place with cozy atmosphere, everything was very tasty, one of the best lasagna I have tasted. The owner is very attentive to detail and you can feel comfortable. Stunning waitress Julia was very nice and attentive.

Sofia Daboub

Had a delicious last minute dinner here on Saturday night. We walked in at around 7:30 with a party of 5 and were able to get seated immediately. This may be because the service is very quick so it seems they turn tables around fast. There were times that we felt rushed. That said, the staff was friendly and the food was very good. We particularly enjoyed the pizzas - the crust was perfection.

Matt Plociak

We have been frequent customers of Celeste over the years, but hadn’t been in about 9-12 months. We just went this evening and I must say the food was as good if not better than our meals when we’re were in Italy for 3 weeks in October of last year. You must try the specials menu (using the QR Code). Tonight we had the swordfish carpaccio excellent (sorry no photo of this one). I had the lasagna which was as good as any that I had in Northern Italy. My wife had the ravioli with burrata and Sicilian tomatoes and we finished with the blood orange sorbet with balsamic and strawberries. The flavors were so fantastic that it was one of my best meals in the past year or two… Cash only, but worth a visit and ask Carmine to recommend a wine you won’t be disappointed.