A Voce Columbus is the second outpost of this highly successful Italian restaurant in New York. Located on the third floor of the Time Warner Center (a luxury development on the Southwest corner of Central Park that also houses stellar restaurants like Per Se and Masa), the restaurant is casual yet elegant.
The original A Voce, a bustling space near Madison Square Park, has been open since 2006 and, although actually owned by British company MARC (which runs Umu and The Greenhouse restaurant in London), has found a firm place in fickle New Yorkers' hearts. This new spot offers the same pleasures plus great views of Central Park, so make sure you request a table with a view.
Chef Missy Robbins moved to New York from Spiaggia restaurant in Chicago, a dining spot that was a favorite of the Obamas. Tipped as a hot young chef to watch, Robbins has been impressing New York food critics with her deft touch with pasta and eye for subtle but inventive twists on old classics.
The menu starts with small plates like pickled fennel or roasted cippolini onions drizzled with sweet balsamic vinegar and an artful selection of salami sourced from both Italy and America (artisanal salami making is quite a fad in the US). While you're mulling the menu do not miss out on the house-made foccacia served with whipped ricotta drizzled with olive oil and a dusting of herbs — the bread is amazingly light, and daubed with cheese it's an ethereal pleasure.
A Voce's menu is largely ingredient-driven, so you'll find daily changing 'market' dishes plus a seasonal menu of starters, pastas and main dishes. Pastas are a surefire choice: tender ravioli stuffed with taleggio and drizzled with a delicate brown butter sauce and perfectly al dente spaghetti alla chitarra (with crab and sea urchin) are artfully handled. Chicken cooked under a brick is subtly spiced with chili and fennel, while a thick-cut pork chop is made even more formidable with a tower of abalone mushrooms and roasted lemon.
The wine list, overseen by Olivier Flosse (who worked at Manoir aux Quatre Saisons), is unsurprisingly strong on Italian and heavy-hitting American wines, but there are plenty of reasonably priced bottles on the menu. In fact, with plenty of dishes around $20, its stylish surroundings and views of Central Park, A Voce Columbus is an affordable luxury.
A Voce Columbus, 10 Columbus Circle, 3 rd Floor, Time Warner Center, New York (+ 1 212 823 2523; avocerestaurant.com)
