I've been dying to try Dell'Anima since I moved to the West Village, and finally stopped in for Valentine's Day. I was pleasantly surprised to enter a warm, intimate space after constantly hearing about its popularity and dodging crowds of people outside this place on my daily walk home. Though the name and menu give it an aura of sophistication and refinement, the small space and friendly service send the opposite message, which I consider a real plus. Staff is generous and friendly; when I began asking the bartender questions about the wines by the glass, he graciously offered me tastings of at least 5 different bottles. We were seated within 15 minutes of our reservation, and service was timely and accommodating despite the crowd.
I'm a huge crostini fan so quite the tough critic when it comes to judging a restaurant's crostini selection. Dell'Anima has 5 options to choose from - I did the 3 for $10 - and a unique way of serving. Rather than serving the crostini prepared, diners are given a bowl of warm, olive oil-drizzled bread alongside the various selected crostini toppings. The bread was a bit thicker than what I'm used to, but deliciously doughy and flavorful. Though I didn't mind the extra step of spreading my own toppings aboard the crostini, I much prefer being served an appetizer that requires nothing more than eating. The Octupus Passina Crostini was a bit on the fishier side, but very flavorful and textural. The Avocado Crostini was my favorite, and the Rapini-Pesto Crostini was delicious as well. Frankie's Spuntino in LES still takes the cake for best crostini in NYC.
The Endive Salad with Pecorino and Anchovy Dressing was actually the star of the night - crisp, perfectly chilled, and refreshing, it was the perfect compliment to the various olive-oil laden dishes. The Garganelli with Funghi Trifolati was deliciously flavorful, with no shortage of mushrooms, but it was a bit on the greasier side as non-tomato-based Italian pastas usually are. For my main, I ordered the Pollo "al Diavlo" - dark and light meat chicken with a spicy and overwhelmingly flavorful (in a good way) skin crust, accompanied by a well seasoned and generous side of broccoli rabe. The portions were overall very generous, but the food was just perfectly filling and surprisingly light. For dessert, I tried both the Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with Fior de Late gelato, as well as the housemade Mint Stracciatella Gelato - both were light and perfectly sweet.
Overall my experience at Dell'Anima was very positive - I love the warm, inviting vibe, and the food is affordable, simple, creative, and beautifully crafted. This place is perfect for a romantic date, a dinner solo at the bar, or a small (as in tiny) group. Book in advance for a good table.
Address: 38 8th Avenue @ Jane Street, New York, NY
Website: http://dellanima.com/index.html
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