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Home > Restaurants > Il Buco Alimentari e Vineria

All Reader Reviews of...

Il Buco Alimentari e Vineria

53 Great Jones St., New York, NY, 10012
nr. Bowery
212-837-2622

Avg. Rating

4
Food: 5
Service: 3
Décor: 5
"Not Recommended"

Average Reader Rating on a Scale of 10.

0% would go back.

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Astoundingly poor service

By daimler001 on 2/6/2013

  • Overall Rating: 4
  • Food: 4
  • Service: 3
  • Décor: 5
  • No, I would not go back!

First off, the cacio e pepe bucatini was terrific, but that was amongst the lone bright spots in a far-too-expensive-for-what-you-get meal. The razor clam ceviche was also rather enjoyable, but that was little comfort against the rest of the meal. The room is overlit and cold, which i'll overlook any day of the week for good food and good service. Not the case here, which is sad because Il Buco is such a gem. Our waiter was not only slow and uninformed about the menu, he basically moped his way through our incredibly long two-course meal. As a side note, the wine by the glass selection aims to be 'unique' and 'distinctive' but ended up seeming to me as a way to move plonk that no one has heard of at above-average prices. Sad outcome, because i so wanted this place to be a hit.

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5 out of 8 people found this review helpful.

Astoundingly poor service

By daimler001 on 2/6/2013

  • Overall Rating: 4
  • Food: 4
  • Service: 3
  • Décor: 5
  • No, I would not go back!

First off, the cacio e pepe bucatini was terrific, but that was amongst the lone bright spots in a far-too-expensive-for-what-you-get meal. The razor clam ceviche was also rather enjoyable, but that was little comfort against the rest of the meal. The room is overlit and cold, which i'll overlook any day of the week for good food and good service. Not the case here, which is sad because Il Buco is such a gem. Our waiter was not only slow and uninformed about the menu, he basically moped his way through our incredibly long two-course meal. As a side note, the wine by the glass selection aims to be 'unique' and 'distinctive' but ended up seeming to me as a way to move plonk that no one has heard of at above-average prices. Sad outcome, because i so wanted this place to be a hit.

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5 out of 8 people found this review helpful.

great food, awful service

By chalkywhite on 11/27/2012

  • Overall Rating: 6
  • Food: 8
  • Service: 2
  • Décor: 7
  • No, I would not go back!

you try a restaurant for the food, but you return for the service. i will not be returning. the food is great, really delicious. but the service was appalling. the waitress literally hovered over our table for our entire meal trying to hawk sides of polenta and pastas to share with the same grace as a beer and peanuts vendor at a ball park. of course the restaurant staff is there to sell food, but this b!tch was out of control, every 10 minutes...maybe you would all like some salads to share? maybe one of our antipaste? and then when the bill came, they charged for bread. (?!?!) i know some places do this, but it is one of the most low class moves a restaurant can make. you mean to tell me after spending a couple of hundred dollars on dinner, youre going to nickel and dime me for bread?!?! we paid the bill and as we were leaving, one of the hostess asked how was dinner. i told her the food was great, but this bread nonsense seems beneath a restaurant such as this. she explained that the bread was baked in house (!?!?!) i dont care if you bake the bread at your mothers house on the moon, charging for bread is a quick, low brow move that ensures i will not return.

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14 out of 23 people found this review helpful.

Shockingly Poor Service, Absurd Prices - Stunningly Overrated

By Version3 on 5/3/2012

  • Overall Rating: 3
  • Food: 4
  • Service: 1
  • Décor: 4
  • No, I would not go back!

Did all the big newspaper reviewers eat somewhere else? Was there some stealth mirror restaurant that was actually decent? Because this place is a disaster. First, the service is appalling. They appear to have just let their busboys function as waiters. Second, the food was fine, but the portions were tiny and the prices were ridiculous. Meats were grossly oversalted. Avoid this place - go to Inoteca or Blue Ribbon for better food and service without getting ripped off.

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21 out of 38 people found this review helpful.

Cute, Rustic Trattoria but This Aint Fine Dining

By thewiseking on 4/16/2012

  • Overall Rating: 4
  • Food: 4
  • Service: 4
  • Décor: 4
  • No, I would not go back!

In the mood for a casual sunday supper, Italian style so called to reserve at the Alimentari. Told there were no "two tops " and we would be placed at the end of a communal table where we could sit across from each other. Of course, there were plenty of two tops available and we were seated upstairs with the geriatric foodies who still read the Times, but ....whatever. Told to order the salumi but half of the items on the menu were not available at 6:30! Nice bread basket with oil, some fried artichokes, a few good glasses of red wine; italian and spanish, 1 salad and a couple of pastas; penne and a very basic cacio e pepe and a shared chocolate bicerin mousse. The bill was over 200 bucs for what amounted to cold antipasta and some spaghetti. The rookie out of towner who writes for the Times gave it 3 stars so of course it was packed. Boy did we feel foolish.

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10 out of 24 people found this review helpful.

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