The mind behind one of Greenwich Village’s favorite meat-free Italian restaurants is currently getting ready to launch a brand new project nearby.
Osteria 57 is a highly popular Italian restaurant from owner Emanuele Nigro and Chef Riccardo Orfino that has been operating successfully since opening up in the former Piadina space in 2017. As a pescetarian Italian concept, Osteria 57 serves exclusively vegetarian and fish dishes, emphasizing the freshness of the ingredients and the sustainability of the menu. Looking to strike the perfect balance between richness and acidity, Emanuele and Riccardo set out to establish a restaurant where “traditional Italian seafood dishes are executed with perfection,” and “north-Atlantic delicacies are paired with poetry.”
Now, Emanuele is getting ready to launch a brand new concept at 453 Sixth Avenue. Currently operating under the corporate name Masticabrodo LLC, the new restaurant’s official name is still yet to be determined. The project is envisioned as a multi-concept store that will encourage guests to pay special attention to the quality and the origins of the food they consume, and the team’s explicit goal is to “provide quality organic/local produce and products to the neighborhood, both as a grocery and specialty store.” Beyond the base store concept, the space will also operate as a cafe during the mornings and afternoons, where customers can enjoy both breakfast and lunch. In the evenings, the space will evolve into a combination wine bar and gourmet pizzeria, which, like Osteria 57, will serve neither cooked meat nor poultry.
The space at 453 Sixth Avenue was previously home to Sammy’s Noodle Shop & Grille, a beloved Chinese restaurant that operated on Sixth Avenue for over two decades before shutting down last April. The location is rather spacious and features 2,800 square feet of space on the ground floor, and 3,200 square feet of space in the basement, which is ideal for Nigro’s plan for a multi-concept restaurant and store. The restaurant concept is expected to be able to seat about 110 guests inside, while the store concept will occupy the space next door. The restaurant will also feature a tasting menu at one small counter of the premises, and the food purchase counter will be made available as counter seeing during the evenings when the space becomes a wine bar and pizzeria.
Emanuele is currently in the process of meeting with the community board to acquire a liquor license for his new concept. He is currently proposing operating hours of 8:00 AM – 10:00 PM on Sunday and Monday, 8:00 AM – 11:00 PM Tuesday through Thursday, and 8:00 AM – 12:00 AM on Friday and Saturday. For more information, you can follow Osteria 57 on Instagram for future updates as the story progresses.
