This is one of the best Italian spots on the upper west side! You can't go wrong with their pasta or pizza - every dish has an authentic flavor that you really only get at quaint, family-run spots like Celeste. The cheese and sauce on the pizza and pasta were super fresh and delicious! Highly recommend trying their dessert too - the Tiramisu is incredible They are usually quite busy and I'm glad they've started taking reservations as the wait times pre-pandemic used to be long. They also used to be cash only - not sure if that has changed in recent times. read more

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Freshly prepared, attentive service, not just the usual Italian menu. Simple setting. Go off-hours when possible. Window table is especially nice. Do not choose outdoor seating--Amsterdam Ave provides a cacophony of ambulance sirens and other traffic NOISE. read more

Celeste is the neighborhood gem that is my gut instinct reply if anyone mentions upper west side and Italian in the same "where should we eat tonight" query. Or just upper west side for that matter as an input. Family run, this place is truly an operation of love for their food and for their customers. The owner is quirky and fun and refuses to put cheese on seafood pasta in an adamant religion to Italian eating do's and donts. Order off their fresh pasta menu and you won't be disappointed, but I've found amazing meals in their specials of the day. Feeling pizza, but indecisive? Not to fear, 4 flavor pizza is here! (See pic for reference). Also... pro tip, if you were eyeing Jacobs pickles across the street and it has a 2 hr wait, this is most definitely a next best option. read more

Celeste - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

We had an absolutely wonderful time at Celeste! The food was delicious, the ambiance is lovely, and we really appreciated Anastasia's warm service. Highly recommend!!!! read more

Solid 3.5 stars for me. Cash only Italian restaurant W. 84th and Amsterdam. There's no sign for the restaurant so it was kind of hard to find it in the dark. Luckily my friend had been before. We arrived on a Tuesday evening around 5:30pm and there was no one there. When we left around 7, the place was filled and people were waiting for tables. The interior was small and cozy; cute decorations for the holidays. Tables are close together (like most restaurants in the city). We ordered 3 glasses of wine. Most were priced between $10-15. They brought us bread with olive oil. Bread was nothing special; didn't seem fresh to me. We ordered the artichoke salad for an app $16. The size was perfect to share for 2-3 people. I enjoyed the flavoring of the salad and liked the pairing of cheese that came with the dish. My friends ordered the rigatoni with meat sauce $17 and I ordered the special $20 which was long thin (not angel hair or spaghetti) pasta with mussels artichokes and sundries tomatoes with red sauce. Our order took about 15 min to arrive which I consider reasonable. My friends enjoyed their meals. I liked the pasta as you could tell it was fresh. It was not heavy like other pastas I've had in the area. My dish was a little salty for my liking but it could have been the mussels. Portion sizes were perfect; left you feeling full but not overly stuffed. I would recommend this place if you're looking for a cute cozy Italian place. It would be perfect for date night. It's one of the better Italian places on the upper west side (although I've had better in Manhattan/Westchester/CT). read more

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Too cramped and falling apart furniture. Staff and patrons literally having to climb over each other. Food is okay.

Anastasia at Celeste is a gem!! She made great recommendations for the wine and was fun to chat with. Best server of all time

Two out of three of us had arrived one with a broken foot and a knee scooter yet they refused to seat us even though the restaurant was empty.. They made me stand there and after 10 minutes we left. We will never come back.. read more

This food was delicious. The service was impeccable and Anastasia really made me feel like I was back in Italy! I highly recommend this restaurant for authentic and delicious Italian food and cocktails and the warmth of Napoli. read more

Adding my vote for the shrimp, cabbage, and pecorino pasta! Delivery was fast and prompt, and the pasta was still warm. I've not been to this location in person before, so I'm glad to have discovered this place during covid! read more

Celeste - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

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great food amazing service mariana is the best server in the world and she is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo nice!!!!! the ambience is great, having music, television and paintings read more

Such a beautiful night. The food was delicious and the pricing was very reasonable. Very intimate space and the owner is walking around talking to everyone and making sure everything is great. The fish and pizza were to die for and so were all the desserts (pistachio cake was unbelievable) and the gelato flown in from Italy. Highly recommend this spot. read more

Celeste - Pistachio filled cake - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

My dinner experience at Celeste was fantastic. The food is flavorful and the service is exceptional. In particular, Anastasia impressed me with her kindness and delightful aura. She went above and beyond to make sure our party had a great evening! I had the penne pomodoro and marinara pizza, two of their vegan items. Both of these dishes were flavorful and fresh. I really appreciate that they cater to a vegan diet - this isn't always the case at an Italian restaurant! read more

Grazie Carmine . Celeste is always great. One of the best spot in the UWS The taste and the quality of the food are real And the wine even better read more

the camera did not eat first here. i had an incredible experience. staff is lovely, ambience is cozy, food fresh and delicious. anastasia really outdid herself with her recommendations. come in is all that's left to say read more

Celeste - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

BEYOND RUDE STAFF called today and said "hey, hoping to make a reservation" the guy laughed at me and was like "uh well i'm going to need more information than that"... because i have literally hundreds of other options i hung up and they called back which i didn't answer but had a great voicemail of them literally talking crap!??? how is wanting to make a reservation a bad thing. i hope they go out of business. 100% go elsewhere like pappardella, parm, il violino, or cafe fiorella. read more

Just popped into Celeste on a cool weekend night. Good spritz on HH. Pizza was fresh and also on HH, Just the margarita. Ask for the specials, definitely sound appetising. Good COVID social distancing, felt safe and like the restaurant took appropriate precautions. read more

Celeste - Margherita - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

This place fell off. Not sure if it was the pandemic but I was not impressed. It has been on my "must visit places" for years and I was so excited to be here. Only to say I would've rather some Olive Garden bc at least there they have good bread lol. The caprese was a mess. The ravioli was just oily and the gnocchi was so undercooked and has raw pieces of potatoes on it. Oh, and the beer they served me? Warm at best. Smh. Save your time and money- go elsewhere. read more

Celeste - Ravioli Di Ricotta E Spinaci in Burro E Salvia and Gnocchi al Pesto - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

Went here for a family dinner 8 of us. Which usually means a good smattering of food on the table. We started off with appetizers family style - Indy pizza ( really good) muscles marinara excellent, Buratta phenomenal ( loved the heirloom tomatoes) Fried artichokes were a bit small but good. They do make you give your whole order at one time fyi. I had the veal medallions in a lemon caper sauce with roasted potatoes and sautéed spinach. Spinach and potatoes were great, one of the medallion s a bit chewy. We also had Two Momos ( ziti marinara with fresh ricotta chunks).Tasted great ( yea I sample everyone's). Also there were a few linguine Vongoles. Sauce was so very tasty. I'm missing one item just can't recall - oh well, a bit to much wine. They were somewhat busy throughout and service didn't suffer. Also, there cash only. But don't worry there's an ATM by the bathroom read more

Worst customer service I've ever had at a nyc restaurant. Guy in charge is world's most incompetent asshole. Food isn't even great to deal with the service. Don't recommend, go to another Italian place. read more

Great food, great service! Anastasia was the best! Highly recommend any of their pastas!

Good Italian food and very elegant decor. I luckily came here as a big group and was able to try many items on their menu. The truffle ravioli seemed to be the highlight of their menu, which was good but not over the top delicious. Good amount of truffle flavor without being too overbearing, I just wish the ravioli was stuffed a little more and had some protein. The majority of my group felt like it was on the smaller side. I had the Bolognese pasta. This one was a much larger portion but lacked the flavor. The sauce tasted slightly watered down. Still better than I could ever make but disappoints compared to the great options in NYC. The desserts were great though! Chocolate mousse and cheesecake were delicious. Very soft, didnt taste frozen then thawed, not too sweet. The atmosphere on a Thursday night was surprisingly loud and lively. Not what I expected but just a heads up if you're looking for a special, romantic ambiance. read more

Celeste - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

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Barely edible food and an incredibly inattentive manager. Pleasant staff serving the most flavorless food that makes the local pub look like it should have a Michelin star. Mussels appeared in a tasteless oily swamp. Grilled octopus salad was overwhelmed by anchovies. Fried calamari and "shrimps" was not only gramatically incorrect but also factually - as the order contained only 1 shrimp, as opposed to multiple shrimps! read more

Two words: horrific service. The manager was very rude from the moment we walked in and ended the night with an idiotic joke about how women don't listen (sorry i didn't hear you mumble "cash only.") Pasta is extremely mid to deal with service like that -- i will personally never go back! read more

Excellent small Italian place. We were eating something lite before a graduation. The margarita pizza was delicious, as were the scallops. The salads were also great. They are a cash only business. read more

Wow! The service and food is absolutely stellar. Best margherita pizza I have ever had. Bolognese was so good. Wine was recommended to us and delicious. Bread and oil was so freaking good. Great atmosphere and great times. I'm just visiting in LA but will be back anytime I come back to NYC. read more

Food was excellent, ordered a margherita pizza and the cheese was super melty. The service was also very kind and sweet. The ambience was nice and it had homey and family vibes. Overall a lovely place and we will be back. read more

We used to go to Celeste quite often before the pandemic, but we haven't been in a couple of years. I wanted to go back, so a couple of days ago, since my family was away, I decided to go back. I do not eat very large meals in the evening, so I ordered the Tagliatelle con Gamberi, Verza e Pecorino, which is egg noodles with shrimps, cabbage and sheep's cheese. I was interested in the homemade pasta and I love shrimp. I was there early in the evening, the restaurant was busy but not crowded and I had a comfortable table. Since there is now outdoor seating, the indoor seating has opened up a bit, and is far less crowded than it was pre-pandemic, when the tables were tightly packed together. This expansion does give the restaurant a much better feel. The food was good, if a bit salty for me, and the staff were all great, attentive and friendly. My server recommended a wine based on what I was looking for, and it was a Vermentino, and I liked it very much. Celeste has always had a cash only policy but I knew this so that was fine. So....why are there not more stars. Well, I quote from another review this restaurant has a terrible reputation for the owners/staff being rude. However, the staff was great and it was just the owner who insults customers. No difference this time either. " And it was the same for me. The manager ignored me though he chatted up a single male customer who came after me and sat at the table across from mine. One woman alone and one man alone, and what a difference gender made ! I really liked Celeste in the past, but I expect to be welcomed courteously and thanked for coming. The staff should be training the manager. read more

Fantastic food!! Maitre d' is great. Atmosphere is nuts and bolts in a cool cool way. This will be our go-to place for Italian food. read more

Anastasia was the best waitress ever! She was attentive, polite, hilarious - and made great suggestions. Such a privilege being served by her at such a lovely restaurant. 10/10 recommend :) read more

The food is mediocre for the price. The restaurant is very dirty and the service is terrible. Don't spend your money there. Street vendors foods are much tastier and cleaner! read more

Always 10/10- thank you! I love everything about this place. I always get the shrimp tagliatelle.

Food was overall delicious -- burrata was delicious; pesto gnocchi could have been a touch saltier but that was easily fixed by the salt on the counter. Service was fabulous -- someone was always stopping by to fill water, check in, or clear plates. read more

Amazing pasta and fresh mozzarella, always recommended to come! Extremely heated and cozy as well especially with recent weather.

The food was exceptional authentic Italian food. Small but cozy place. servers were attentive. Be prepared to wait, only means that the the dishes are that good. read more

Had a wonderful meal here and would highly recommend getting pizza with your meal The night we came in for dinner, we went straight for the good stuff. She got the spaghetti a la vongole and I got the bolognese. Both dishes were exceptional and to this day, I look forward to the next time I can have a bit of both dishes. The one thing I will say is when the table next to us got their pizza, we had an immense amount of FOMO since it looked like it would dip very well with the sauces left on our plates Overall a good experience and exceptional quality food Can't wait to come back read more

Went here based on the recommendations on yelp, and Celeste lived up to the stars! The service was great as well. We asked for a wine recommendation and the owner asked for our wine preference "red, medium bodied, earth tone, low acidity, 20~30 range" and promptly went to get us a bottle. We were a little concerned at first since he didnt tell us what is was before bringing it over, but it was delicious! As other reviewers said, the complimentary bread and olive oil was quite tasty and the entrees made with homemade pasta was good. We also had their endive salad which was crisp and crunchy. The absolute highlight of the night though, was the tiramisu. One bite, and both of us were in tiramisu heaven. The tiramisu was creamy with the rich espresso and chocolate taste, yet was light as a mousse. Other tiramisus I've had tend to be heavier and a few bites made you feel too sweet. This one was silky smooth and absolutely heavenly. As my friend aptly put it, "even if the rest of the meal was abysmal, the tiramisu alone was worth it." The price tag plus tip came to about $90 (wine was $30), not a bad price for a lovely Italian dining experience. The place is small and seating is close, so don't come here expecting a cozy quiet date night. It was fun to look over and ask how the other people liked their dishes though. Overall, this is definitely a recommended place to try out. read more

Celeste - Tiramisu - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

I was here today, I really enjoy the food, the atmosphere is Always calm and pleasant, the staff are very attentive especially Lino, they have the best Salmon ever, I been here sooo many times, definitely a place I recommend to eat delicious Italian food. read more

Celeste - Ippogloso con limóne a vapperi - Italian Near Me - New York, New York

I enjoy this cash only gem of a restaurant. Homemade pasta. The owner present, helpful, and attentive.

The food and service was great! The owner was super friendly and accommodating for our group of 27. I recommend the burratta, it was excellent. read more