Becco opened its doors in 1993 by Lidia and Joe Bastianich. Today, the packed restaurant and long wait is a testament to the quality of food, exceptional service and unforgettable experience offered at Becco. Located on the popular restaurant row, the eatery draws in many theater lovers before and after the show as well as tourists. The one story restaurant offers limited outdoor seating, a bar with several tables, and a long dinning room with a front and back area divided by the kitchen. The bar section is ideal for people dining alone or on a business trip. Friendly bartenders and diners with a few drinks in them make it easy to strike up a conversation. The staff is so welcoming and friendly, the first time I walked into the bar at Becco, I felt like a regular.
Becco offers probably one of the best dinner deals in town with its pasta tasting menu. For less than $23, you get an assortment of cold appetizers, a salad and unlimited pasta tasting. On top of the tasting deal, there is a $25 wine list to encourage diners to pick the best wine to go with their meal instead of the least expensive wine on the list. Becco really has is all. A lively and cheerful ambiance, warm staff, good food and well priced drinks. What more can one ask for?
Here's a full run down of the $22.95/per person pasta tasting:
Complimentary bread
Let's not forge the bread basket.
Antipasto Misto
The pasta tasting started off with an assortment of seafood and grilled vegetables. Every ingredient tasted fresh and was allowed to shine in its natural form. There were no fancy sauces or special cookery. As you can probably tell, the portions were very generous.
Insalata Cesare
The salad was very simple and so good. The crisp romaine was slightly sweet and lightly dressed in a classic caesar dressing. The croutons were perfectly crunchy and airy. It was finished with a sprinkle of grated Grana Padano.
Once we got through the antipasto and salad, our waiter brought over a clean plate and informed us the pasta would be coming shortly. Within a minute of him leaving, a server came by with a giant bowl of pasta followed by another server and then another. Three different pastas are served every night and during our visit they made rigatoni with pesto, spaghetti with shrimp and ravioli. We sampled all three and the favorites were the rigatoni and ravioli. The pastas do loose a little something when large batches make their way out of the kitchen and get walked around the dining room, but part of the experience is seeing waiters hustling around the restaurant serving these pasta table side.
Becco NYC
355 West 46th Street
New York, NY 10036
Check out our visit to Del Posto, another Joe Bastianich restaurant in New York. And if you like Becco, check out this quick guide on Where to Eat In New York City.
This steak salad is super easy and quick to assemble. I love making this salad when we have left over steak from the night before. The salad has four main ingredients and most of it can be substituted. Baby kale or arugula work really well in this salad, but any salad greens can be used.
Dahl and Di Luca is located in West Sedona, right off highway 89A in a quieter part of town compared to the more touristy and crowded Uptown Sedona. We happened upon this place after passing by it several times while driving around town. The restaurant was also highly recommended by the concierge at our hotel. The front of the restaurant was a beautiful garden with vibrant flowers that evoke a relaxing and welcoming feel.
The dining room had an open layout and the decor gave off a warm yet classy feeling. A great place to go for a celebration or a casual date night. The menu had a good selection of items including gluten free pasta. Everything on the menu sounded great, so we decided to let our waitress guide us. Every item she recommended was delicious and we wished we had discovered the restaurant our first night so we could come back again to try more. A good reason to plan another trip to Sedona.
Warm Seafood Bruschetta
15
We started our meal with the warm seafood medley, which included chopped prawns and scallops cooked in a white wine sauce made with lemon and garlic. The sauce really brought out the sweetness of the seafood and the grilled ciabatta was the perfect vessel to soak up the sauce. A great start to our meal.
Pollo al Rosmarino
22.00
This dish is the restaurant's twist on the classic chicken marsala. The sauce is seasoned with rosemary, adding an aromatic flavor to the classic dish. The sauce was well balanced with just the right amount of acidity, light, but not watery with layers of flavors from the pancetta, mushroom, rosemary and white wine. The boneless chicken breast was tender and thin allowing the flavors of the sauce to penetrate the meat.
Maiale ai Ferri
29.00
This dish was highly recommended by our waitress and we could tell why after the first bite. The pork chops were grilled to perfection, slightly pink on the inside, and seasoned beautifully. It was tender, juicy and the charred flavor added a touch of smokiness to each bite.
Affogato
6
Affogato translates to "drowned" in Italian and that's exactly what happened to the hazelnut gelato. The espresso was poured over the two scoops of hazelnut gelato and created a creamy coffee beverage/float. The hazelnut added a nutty flavor to each sip and the bitterness from the espresso toned down the sweetness of the gelato making it the perfectly balance after dinner dessert.
Great service, wonderful atmosphere and delicious food, it's no wonder Dahl and De Luca is a favorite among locals and tourists.
Headed to Sedona? Check out things to do in Sedona.
Dahl and Di Luca
2321 Arizona 89A
Sedona, AZ 86336
