Valbella Midtown

For the price the food is only okay. I was peeved that I was given some attitude when I asked to be able to use a table in a sea of empty tables for a few drinks before the rest of my party arrived. When you’re spending over 100 a person that shouldn’t even be an issue.

In the past, myself and several of my clients would frequent Valbella in Midtown quite often. However, recently there has been a change of General Managers, which is unfortunate. It’s not the same without Hadi, who was one of the main reasons we’d visit Valbella. He was always so welcoming, warm and made us feel at home. It’s just not the same and there’s really no reason to go anymore. Not going to be easy to find a new restaurant that brings that vibe that Hadi provided. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Can here only for cocktails. Too cold to sit outside, so we sat in the front at a high table by the bar. Restaurant looked nice enough to take the out of town Chicago residents I was hosting, or so I thought.
We all ordered cocktails and being in an Italian restaurant, I ordered an Aperol spritz. The bartender brought the drinks out and brought me an apple martini (???) We all laughed and I explained the recipe of my drink. She brought me out an Aperol spritz and it tasted OK.
I noticed my friend had a fruit fly in her wine! I called a waiter/​manager over who was unapologetic. I said «it clearly had wings and legs.» He acquiesced to bring her another AND THAT HAD A FRUIT FLY IN IT, TOO! I asked why they didn’t dump that bottle and open a fresh bottle? No answer. This was our second round of drinks at $ 18 each.
Nothing was comped for our trouble/​disgust. I was embarrassed and grossed out.

The food and service at Valbella’s Midtown was perfect. We dined on a Saturday night for our birthday dinner. The décor was a sterile, but it didn’t detract. from the experience. Our server was Florence and he was great. Very knowledgeable about the wine and the menu. I had the octopus salad appetizer and the veal entre. Both were excellent! I highly recommend this restaurant for your special occassion.

Best Italian food I’ve ever had. Service was amazing as well as all the dish. You have to try the watermelon salad. Lobster Ravioli was out of this world. Atmosphere and décor was modern and clean. Chef is really talented and everything was made from scratch. Definitely recommend it

Having been here for the first time tonite I didn’t know what to expect. I don’t come to New York often and I was hoping to go to a nice restaurant and have some good food. This restuarant far exceeded my expectations. Not only is the place beautiful but the service was amazing. I had the beet salad and for the main course the salmon. It was so delicious the food literally melted in my mouth. I will definitely go back next time I’m in New York

Valbella was recommended for my Valentines birthday. I’ve never had a good meal on my birthday, I’ve been to the finest restaurants only to be disappointed by the lack of taste and imagination and poor service on one of the most popular nights to eat out. I was very happy and surprised to have a wonderful experience. Starting out with the grilled Octopus, Fettuccine with truffles and then Stripped Bass. My husband enjoyed his short ribs and apps.
They have an excellent wine list and choose one of our favs La Spinetta Barbaresco 2010, chilled just right. I judge a restaurant by the temp of the bread and the red wine, a deal killer for me if the red is not slightly chilled like in Europe the way it’s supposed to be, not bath water temp. The staff was friendly, spot on without hovering. When we left the owner treated us to a bottle of Borolo! I guess he knew it was a special day. He made my birthday dinner to be the only one I will remember fondly and i will be back.

Disingenuous business practices. I spoke with the manager twice and he did not rectify the overcharge. They lack integrity. Sadly, they have lost our future business.

Ate there last week. Had a 10pm reservation– restaurant said they were open till midnight. Sat us at nice table for 2. From there went downhill. My wife used rest room which was filthy and not cleaned all night. The server rushed us to order. Branding was not whole fish but fillet which is never as fresh. Food was okay. At 10:45 they turned all the lights up to show they were closing and server hovered over us to rush us along. Very disappointing experience and would never return

This restaurant was located in an unassuming nook that we pass by all the time. The ambiance was beautiful. All white with purple LED lighting and a wall of wines that served as a functional wine cellar. The food was pretty good as well. We’d definitely go again.

Overpriced for what they offered. The thing that bothered me most is that we read the menu online and the meal I wanted wasn’t on the menu anymore. For prices such as these (40 – 50) per entrée I am surprised they do not keep their online information up to date. You also cannot get a bottle of wine for less than $ 75.00. The first wine we ordered they did not have and the first dish I ordered baby lamb chops they were out of. We were not off to a good start. Very odd because it was only 6 o’clock. The service was above and beyond, extremely attentive. But for me the food and the wine is most important. We won’t be going back. Surprising the restaurant was fairly empty for a Saturday night.

Incredible pork chop with spicy peppers. Great service all around. Beet salad was delicious. Decorum wasn’t my style but maybe I have no style anyway. Not overpriced either. Was expecting a much heftier bill.

The place is set back a little from the street. We walked by the place a couple of times. Came here on a Friday night, was not busy at all. Given how slow it was I would have expected excellent service. But service was just OK. I ordered the filet mignon. Quite possibly one of the worst filets I’ve had. Tough, no flavor. The one bright star and the reason for the two stars is for the sorbet. It was excellent. Everything else was forgettable. For the price so many better options out there.

Bland food and terrible service. Most of our group was vegetarian. When we asked our server if the chef could make a veggie pasta the answer was NO right away. The beet salad was unlike anything I have seen. Looked like it was out of a packet from a freezer. Prices are high for the mains but it’s to share.
The only thing good here is the wine list.
I don’t envision going there ever again so I’m keeping this short. If you want good Italian, go anywhere else.

A decent enough Italian spot in midtown. No real standouts on the menu but with a solid wine list and good executions on the entrees, this place is worth a visit if in the area.

I went to this restaurant for a business work dinner. They have great private rooms on the upstairs level for group/​business dinners. We had two different type of pasta and salad that were served for the whole group. One pasta had pancetta and a cream sauce (so delicious). We had a bunch on entrees to choose from. I got the veal medallions with truffle cream sauce and mashed potatoes and veggies. Really yummy and I could drink the truffle cream sauce it was soooo good. I wanted to lick my plate. For dessert I had the chocolate soufflé which was my first time having soufflé. I highly recommend this dessert. The staff were nice and very attentive. Not sure if this is a good date night place though

The food was good but not particularly memorable. The steak filet with peppercorn sauce was tasty but unremarkable. Pastas and apps were in the same boat. The plating presentation looked like airline food, albeit in first class.
The service was very, very friendly and helpful. The room is dreadful though. The purple and blue lights are straight out of the 80’s. The whole place has a «Less than Zero» vibe. I was expecting the Bangles to be playing on the in house speakers. I felt like I was eating in a windowless cube. I pity the fool sitting in the table beneath the stairs.
It’s OK in a pinch for a business dinner, but I’d prefer to try elsewhere next time.

I cam here for a business dinner. The restaurant is tucked inside so u wouldn’t notice it just walking down the block. Upscale décor and they had a few tables setup outside, we were upstairs in a private room which was cool — overlooks the main dining room. 15 of us ordered a variety of starters and entrees. I had their Burrata special and Veal chop as my main course, I was very pleased with my order. Looking around the room everyone’s food looked delicious and all had nice things to say at the end of the night. For dessert we each ordered an individual portion of «something» and shared a Napoleon which came highly recommended by our waiter. My ears perked up when I heard Grand Mernier soufflé was on their menu, but I must say the Napoleon beat the soufflé by far!
It’s not a cheap restaurant, best to come on a special occasion, on a date or in my case — when the boss is treating.

In previous review: «I think some people on Unilocal must be smoking crack to not rate this restaurant at least 4 stars.»
+1 here.
=This place is a 4-​star experience from every aspect at the bare minimum=
But I’m giving it 5 just to even out the average rating distribution. Seriously this place is good!
Imma keep it short, the food was extremely tasty and fresh (some of the best shrimps and sea bass I ever had); the service was impeccable, our server was extremely friendly, he gave us free desserts just for misinforming us about one particular dish. Yes the restaurant is not that grand and is lit in neon purple but who the f— gives a 1 star just because of that?
Hands down one of my most enjoyable Italian dinner experiences in the city.

Was invited for lunch through a client in Midtown today, Valbella is a high end business venue with good food. If I were to compare Valbella to a multiple of high end Italian restaurants they rate 3.5 stars.
The setting is very Milanese with a flair of NYC. The staff is very nice, helpful and knowledgable. One issue was understanding the waiter when he described today’s specials. The long and short of that was easy, we ordered from the main menu.
The Antipasto Freddo was good, very nice that the kitchen separated the one dish into two. The Parapdelle was nice, but a the bolognese sauce was a bit to creamy.
Espresso was ok, to hot not enough flavor which means the machine is set to high.