In true hispanic form, celebrate with food!!

Yesterday was my 27th birthday. My family and I went out to dinner to celebrate yet another year in my life. I must share the name of the restaurant; it's an Italian restaurant called Bar Stuzzichini, located in the Flatiron District in New York City. The price is moderate and the plates are small but fulfilling.

We started off with the most delightful appetizer. It's bread topped with Ricotta with saffron and honey; it's like an explosion of flavor in a bite size. Our waitress' recommendations turned out to be very good. I ordered the Tagliolini with Pistachio and Lemon for my main course. When you first read through the menu, you think this item is going to have whole pistachio nuts, but it had just the right amount of lemon flavor and the pistachios were grounded into the creamy sauce. Our waitress highly recommended the Gnocchi all' Amatricianna-Guanciale, tomato, onion and chilli, that is what my nephew had (and I must say it was the best dish on the table). It's a spicy dish, but it's not that spicy if I was able to have some.

For dessert we ordered the Torta Caprese. It's a delicious chocolate hazelnut cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side. The top of the cake is firm sprinkled with some powdered sugar and the rest of the cake is moist. This is an excellent choice for chocolate lovers! My nephew did the cutest thing during dessert. He asked the waitress to bring out a candle on the piece of cake, and then sang Happy Birthday to me! (mind you he is ten years old) My mother, aunt and myself enjoyed a bottle of Lambrusco Rosato. It's a really good wine for the summer, it's gently sparkling, chilled, and low in alcohol.

Our waitress was great. She was friendly and attentive, and patiently waited for us to make up our minds about everything; answering all of our questions about the dishes. The place itself is decorated nicely too. It’s a great space with a lot of room. My mom and aunt really liked the lightbulb chandeliers and the pictures of graffiti.

Bar Stuzzichini is devoted to delivering a memorable experience; one that transports you overseas to a place that embodies family, friends and good food. They are certainly achieving their goal!! I hope we can go back soon.