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A decade after he shuttered his three West Village dining rooms—Perilla, Kin Shop and The Marrow—and took a temporary leave from the New York food scene, Harold Dieterle is back with a brand-new restaurant concept: a Southern Italian stunner called Il Totano, with a focus on aged seafood and "a stylish Sicilian sensibility."
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Best known as the first-ever winner of Bravo's long-running cooking competition Top Chef, Dieterle debuted the new eatery in—where else?—the West Village earlier this week, at 154 West 13th Street by 7th Avenue.
Despite its downtown NYC surroundings, you'd be forgiven for thinking you stumbled upon the Italian coast, given the menu featuring dishes like dry-aged bluefin tuna with fried capers and fig leaf oil; a grilled branzino with blistered Sicilian green beans; a crispy pork-chop cotoletta with white anchovies and Calabrian chili dressing; and a "fake" affogato, made with fior di latte ice cream and Manhattan Special espresso soda. There will also be a new version of the chef's famed spicy duck meatballs, here served with mint cavatelli, water spinach, and quail eggs.
Overseen by interior designer Sasha Bikoff, the digs also give off la dolce vita vibes: taking a page from the Italian fashion brand Marni, the walls are dressed up in bold, blue-and-white hand-painted wallpaper, made even more nautical when paired with a dark walnut bar (to "evoke a sleek Riva boat zipping through the Amalfi Coast," naturally). Speaking of the bar, there are also several Southern Italian-inspired tipples to enjoy, including the Bitter Giuseppe (Chaparral liqueur, orange, and grapefruit) and the Capri (Probitas rum, Blackpool Spiced Rum, J.M. Creole Shrubb, Orchard Amaro, lemon and mint).
Il Totano will be open for dinner Sundays to Thursdays from 5pm to 10pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 5pm until 11pm. Check out the space and some of the food-and-drink offerings below:
