I love this place looks and mood. Wine is great, serve is great but foods are very salty to me and sometime they served not well done cooked pasta. it tastes like a non cooked rice. That's why I gave 3stars here. Ah....I almost forgot about a pizza. Pizza is very delicious!! I strongly recommended. read more

Great rustic italian restaurant. The vibe and food are fantastic, however, this isn't a 4 or 5 star place. The serivce is good, not great.

I came here for my birthday dinner and I was "peasantly" surprised of the many eye opening dishes this gem had to offer. The razor clams were the great but it was a little heavy handed on the breadcrumbs. The cuttlefish and octopus appetizers were very tender and flavorful! We ordered the special of the day which was the white truffle risotto. You can't go wrong with any dish topped with white truffles! The risotto was a little undercooked as I was able to split the rice with my fork and create a "crack" sound. Other than that the flavors were very savory and rich. Service was impeccable! read more

I had an extremely unpleasant experience with a haughty hostess who clearly doesn't have the slightest idea about hospitality. The pizza and desserts were great but other dishes were less than inspiring. I didn't expect to be treated like a peasant at Peasant. read more

Giving it two stars because we used to go to the wine bar downstairs all the time because of the amazing Ecuadorean manager--he created such a festive atmosphere--it was like a mini vacation every time. Now that he's not there I t's not the same anymore. We went upstairs for dinner-the food was still good but but the crowd was very boring. I really miss the atmosphere of the music and energy downstairs. Probably will not go back. read more

What a sexy vibe this place has. Flickering candles, exposed brick, cement floor...so alluring in its rustic setting. Open sunlit kitchen with a suckling pig turning on a spit in that beautiful wood burning oven. Saliva glands...commence drooling. I open the menu....look at all the delicious-sounding fare...how do I narrow all this fine Italian fare down to a precious few choices? I keep drooling...somebody get me a bib. I go with the baked sardines, the octopus in purgatory, and the wood grilled skate. The sardines were okay, baked with breadcrumbs and lemon..but the octopus...the dish that made me want to come here..that was good stuff. pretty much a baby octopus in a spicy flavorful broth. And when you guys get this dish, make sure and ask for more of that wonderful warm and crusty bread to sop up every last remnant of that broth. I never had skate before...and on its own I can see it being a rather bland fish. The addition of the lemon wine sauce with capers really added a wonderful flavor. Now I want to go back and try the rest of the menu. read more

Great Resturant in a great neighborhood. Most dishes are wood oven, rotisserie and grill cooked. I have been there several times and it never disappoints. Jose G was our server he had a great knowledge of the dishes and wine. If you are looking for a great authentic RusticItalian meal this is the place. read more

It's a good thing the menu is in Italian and the waiters have to read it to you because it's so dark -- you wouldn't be able to read it anyway. But if you closed your eyes and picked anything, chances are, you would be very happy. The food is amazing. Remember to call for reservations. read more

a go-to spot for me. decently priced, casual but chic atmosphere. the food is really pared down to its essential elements. fresh vegetables with olive oil and cheese. yum. my favorite dish is the polpi in purgatorio, partly for the name. read more

wow... i was utterly impressed with this cute italian hideaway.... love the contrast of the rustic / industrial decor. spectacular wine list. i had the fish and it was smitten. so so good. unfortunately, i had a doctor's appointment the next morning so couldn't really indulge because i didn't want to screw up my blood test... so i will definitely have to be "properly"! read more

Rustic, cute basement place tucked away. Was satisfied with what we ate and the service on Valentines Day

another mediocre trendy rustic italian restaurant. the decor is great, but the service is somewhat unfriendly. the food was: -great: white chocolate bread pudding! It was sweet, hot, and had great texture...the accompanying ice cream really made the dessert. -good: beet salad (good portion but a little too much oil), bocconchini (mozzerella balls with speck--kind of like a prosciutto/bacon crossover), and gnocchi with duck liver (a litttle too rich, but soft, fluffy gnocchi were good) -bad: pizza (flavorless--i could get better microwaved pizza). with a bottle of wine + tax + tip, it was $200--an okay price, but too much for a few pizzas and pastas. read more

Not at all what I pictured when I made my original reservation -- I imagined a cozy, romantic space, barely lit by the glow of a brick wood-burning stove... instead, the space is quite sizeable and the crowd is actually more family-oriented than coupled up. But luckily, the food at Peasant did not disappoint. The ricotta paired with the bread is heavenly. We started with the sarde al forno (sardines), which were grilled to perfection in a very light olive oil sauce. Then, we had the gnocchi with wild mushrooms. Unbelievable. Huge, pillowy gnocchi in a rich though not overbearing sauce. Heaven. For my main course, I ordered the grilled sea bass. This was single-handedly the best grilled fish I've had in the city. Cooked to perfection in the stove -- but really, the sauce was what set this dish apart. Lemon, olive oil, a hint of capers, thyme, rosemary... divine. I think the grilled sea bass is worth the visit alone. My date's suckling pig, on the other hand, was underwhelming. They have an extensive wine list that luckily included lambrusco -- my favorite! read more

pretty good italian food near little italy, which is a rarity. best thing about this joint is the ambiance inside - classy, albeit very loud. we had the baby pus and razor clam apps, neither of which were good. fresh ricotta was nice mains - i had a tasty wild boar papardelle ragu. pasta was fresh and well cooked, but the portion too small for the price (all portions too small for their price at peasant). wife had vongole which was fine but nothing special. mom's rabbit lasagna was too heavy and flavorless read more

Went last Friday night with friends and nothing on the menu appealed to me so I knew I was in for a long night. I love octopus but this apt was very rubbery and difficult to chew. It was not tender at all. So I tried to play it safe and ordered the flattened ribeye. It was huge and smelled fantastic. I had the first two bites and it was very good. It went downhill from there for the steak left on my plate was so tough I could not eat it. Our close friends brought us here and they love this place. I was very disappointed and would not return. read more

Amazing decor, fantastic drinks, reliable and creative food. Definitely an experience you can appreciate. Trendy neighborhood, interesting crowd. A must go! read more

I went the pasta and red wine route here and it was all good. the bread with the ricotta cheese to start was a nice changeup.

Peasant was fantastic. That's really all there is to say. Went on a weeknight, and the service was attentive, atmosphere was great, and the food...! We just ordered appetizers (pizza bianco, asparagus frittata, panzanella, and some cheese-based thing whose name I can't remember); all were spot-on. Well-seasoned, fresh, delicious. Will be coming back for sure! read more

One of my new favorite places yo eat in NYC. I have had suckling pig, sardines, pizza pianos, rabbit lasagna, bread pudding, and plenty of other dishes. (Not in one sitting...I'd be dead). But everything I have eaten has been amazing. The service is impeccable, and the atmosphere is casual and rustic. This is not your typical smothered red sauce italian joint...and that is a good thing. read more

I was looking for a good Italian restaurant in Nolita to take a Scottish colleague for dinner, and this was where we went. We were seated on the ground floor, and the ambiance was great. There were four of us and we ordered two pasta dishes and two meat dishes, and they were all amazing. I don't understand why some of the pasta dishes are priced higher than the meat dishes, but I think the prices are quite reasonable. The service by everyone else was great, but we thought that our main server was a bit odd. Long story short, when the bill came, she said "You know that the bill doesn't include tips, right? Some of you sound foreign so I just want to be sure, we typically tip at least 15% here." I thought it was fair for her to bring this up but I would much prefer it if she rephrased it a little nicer. My Scottish colleague thought that the server was rude, but I would go back to this restaurant for the food! read more

I've only been to the basement part and the cheese plate was really good. It can be loud at times but I really enjoyed it.

Absolutely fantastic. Sat up the back near the kitchen (I would kill to have a kitchen like that. Multiple people potentially), so we could see all the amazing food coming out. We shared a starter, salad, dessert & a bottle of wine between us, plus a main course each (my delicious osso bucco drove the price up a little) for just over $150. Not the cheapest night out but worth every penny- every bit of our meal was phenomenal. Service was attentive & friendly (which can be hard to find in NYC!), without being overbearing or in your face. We were even offered seconds on the delicious complimentary bread (served with a bowl of creamy ricotta, and a very tasty olive oil)! Our only (small) complaint would be that our table was RIGHT next to another couple's which made it feel a little like we were sharing their meal, but that's very much standard in NYC so can't really fault them on that. We'll definitely be visiting again. read more

I really wanted the food to be good at Peasant each of the 3 times I've gone, but it's just not. I've always gone here at the choice of a friend and I've experienced a halfway decent pasta, but a little undercooked (hard in a not-al-dente way), inedible, bad scallops, and meh salads and specials like the suckling pig. The food is just not good. Last time we went we sent back the scallops (they were so foul-tasting and dirty/gritty I was worried I was going to get sick) and they didn't take them off the bill. This place is cute but the food is bad. read more

I came here with my boyfriend for Valentine's day. The decor wasn't exactly what we were expecting. Since I heard they have a fire oven, I was expecting a smaller, cozier feel. The restaurant is rather large and feels industrial/cold. The server wasn't great and the food was slow in between the appetizer and pasta and meat dishes. However, all the food was delicious. We had the cured tuna appetizer, gnocci, pasta with wild boar ragu, and the suckling pig. They split the suckling pig entree into two separate plates, and we were pleasantly surprised by that. They closed the meal with a complimentary panna cotta. The desert was the least impressive, but it was free! I would definitely come back. read more

Peasant is alive with excitement over memorably great meals, with patrons to our left and right all raving about their dining experience. There are so many great dishes to choose from at Peasant! The skate I had last time still stands out in my mind as superb. My new favorites include the octopus (spicy) and also the razor clams appetizers ( plump, tender and tasty). Pasta was cooked to perfection, one with braised rabbit, the other with dried mullet roe, both winners! Suckling pig was sublime, the squab and vegetables beneath richly satisfying. Panacotta with cherries was a great finish and even the fresh fruit plate was exceptional! The greatness of Peasant doesn't stop at the food--the service is also top notch (attentive wait staff stabilized our wobbly table without prompting, folded napkins when we left the table, timed the presentation of the many dishes we ordered so the previous ones were removed and new plates and cutlery were in place before the next dish came. Our waiter Rocco was there to provide explanations of all of our dishes when they arrived, he was both friendly and professional and definitely enhanced the experience). Peasant has an unpretentious atmosphere with exceptional food and excellent service, high marks all around!! read more

One of my most memorable meals. You can't go wrong with any dish on the menu. I highly recommend getting one of the specials of the night. I shared the rabbit for two, and it was down right phenomenal. The menu seems geared towards the hearty meat dishes, but don't discount the seafood. The skate was some of the best fish I've ever tasted. read more

Lobster pasta and apple pie and I'm good. It's country style Italian so don't expect high ass class service. Would definitely go back.

Great date spot with a wine bar down stairs. Been here three times and the food was always very good. I'd recommend it especially for a date. read more

Really really wanted to love this restaurant, but just a few things were off. Loved the location and ambiance. The dining room was really lovely and warm, with a big open wood stove in back. The place was packed at 9 on a Friday night. Despite having a reservation and showing up right on time, we still had to wait another hour to be seated. In my mind, unacceptable. They did give us free drinks while we waited, but unfortunayely I was with a couple of older folk who reeeally start to get cranky when it's 10 PM and not only are they not in bed, they haven't even been seated yet....yikes. Once seated, the food was for the most part amazing. The fresh ricotta they served with the bread gratis at the beginning of the mean was divine. One of my fellow diners ordered the orrieccette with sausage and brocolli rabe...maybe one of the most flavorful delicious pasta dishes I've ever had. Flavors just exploded in your mouth. I unfortunately listened to Adam Platt (why??) and ordered the pizza bianci, which was bland and totally unremarkable. Service was OK, but their timing with presenting courses was a bit off...So overall, the experience was mixed. Would consider trying it again, but honestly, there are so many wonderful restaurants in this city, I'm going to say that this one is over-hyped read more

Excellent food, excellent service and prices to go along with it. It's a very nice place to go for a special occasion or a date as it could be romantic if it were not for the tables all crunched together like sardines in a can. If you are two and want privacy, this is definitely not the place but if you just want a good meal and good time then don't miss it! read more

So I couldn't decide between 3 or 4 stars. It definitely is a solid 3-3 1/2 but not sure I can make it 4 for a few reasons. Here are the things I liked: Hostess was very pleasant, the bartender was great, I really like the atmosphere both upstairs and down but go for down because it's more unique. The food was good but I thought the portions were a bit tiny. We ended up ordering a drink upstairs first and I had their riff on a Manhattan. The difference was that they use a marschino liqueur instead of sweet vermouth and they float a lemon peel. This made the drink much lighter and absolutely fabulous. We headed downstairs at 7 when they opened so we got 2 seats right at the bar. The bartender was very helpful with suggestions both wine and food wise. We started with the burrata with wood roasted tomatoes and this was very good. The burrata was creamy excellence. We also got the polpi in purgatorio which was baby octopus and chile peppers. This also was amazing but they serve most of their dishes in those small clay dishes that you get when you're at a tapas bar i.e. 2 bites maximum. The bread they serve is spot on, perfectly crunchy crust and we did end up eating a lot of that as like I said, the portions are small. I wanted to order a pizza but my date insisted on ordering the skate as he'd never had it. Razza con capperi, wood-baked skate with lemon, white wine and capers. Now to me this sounds like it would be a nice dish to share but again, they serve it in those little tapas dishes and it was just a few pieces of skate swimming in oil. Good, but not worth the price. The bartender was helpful but he did keep steering me towards $90 bottles of wine and I think I know my wine pretty well. I don't need to spend a bill on a good bottle. I went with the Carema and it was above average. After thinking back on my night I definitely am leaning more towards 3 stars but the service bumped it up. I might go back to sit downstairs at the bar and grab a pizza and a glass but that's about it. read more

meat. meat. meat. meat. meat. meat. Only one visit under my belt but all in I think that Peasant is a unique experience. We managed to consume 6 different kinds of meat throughout the meal, each one executed differently. I don't typically eat meat but was intrigued by all the preparations and impressed by the breadth of variety. Many were offal or rather heavy, but all delicious - not a place to watch your cholesterol. - rabbit livers and hearts over creamy polenta: exactly as it sounds. On the glutinous side and meant for adventurers / true 'peasant' dish. - tripe a la Romana: same as above; true peasant dish. great sauce, but the texture of tripe certainly isn't for everyone. - burrata w roasted tomatoes: classic. delicious. - goat's meat lasagna: not dry as sometimes happens with goat's meat. - venison chop: enormous. looked prehistoric. portion for 4. cooked to perfection for medium rare. - sliced lamb over polenta: - roasted sucking pig w rosemary and fingerling potatoes: soul-warming. I would say this is their signature dish since they have the pigs roasting on a spit in the back of the restaurant throughout service. super indulgent; heavy, but intentionally so. - applie pie w hazelnut gelato: they serve you an entire 6" pie. good thing there were three of us.. read more

Definitely one of my favorite restaurants in NY! Classy yet still makes you feel right at home. Great portions and moderately priced. The restaurant is quite big to accommodate large groups. Noise level is relatively low, so it's a great place to catch up with friends. Highly recommended! read more

We ordered the Cannolicchi, Polpi in Purgatorio, and the Pizza Margherita. The three dishes could not have been any better! I would most definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone that wants to dine in a restaurant that serves AUTHENTIC Italian Cuisine. read more

Excellent service, but tbh the food just was not that good for the price. For context, went on a bad date here, so my view may be biased, but hopefully not read more

The bartender pressured me for quicker turn over ...just chillen on my date..kept asking if I wanted another drink too many times and felt the pressure to get the check and leave..I won't go to this place again because of this ..it's also an American thing..this would never happen in much of Europe .. read more

What a disappointment. Had the gnocchi which was flat. the appetizers were small and unimaginative. The pizza was tasteless. The best part of the meal was the desserts. Would definitely not go back. read more

We were so excited to try this place. Made reservations days before online for 10:30pm (which was an option) it was perfect for us to have a late night dinner after the Broadway show we were going to. We got there 30mim early....so we decided to check out the wine bar downstairs first bc reviews online said it was cool. The hostess was no help at all when we arrived and we were confused about seating and the reservation. (They weren't busy at all) Anyways we made our way down to the Wine bar and it wasn't busy down there either. The bartender/server was not friendly at all. The bus boy was nice enough to greet us though. We finally got seated and after 15min of no one coming to the table we finally got to order our drinks and appetizer (which they were out of) so we ordered the baby octopus instead. It was chewy and not good. I have honestly never left a bad review in my entire life. I'm actually still sitting here at Peasant writing the review as the server is sitting at the table next to me just chatting it up with his friends or maybe customers that were just way more fun than us. Just finishing my wine before I leave. We planned on having dinner here but we are leaving and going somewhere else. The place itself is so cute and cozy. I am only giving it one star bc that is all it deserves. I really care about customer service (I'm in the customer service industry myself) and especially when I pay peasants prices. Our bill for 2 glasses of wine and one terrible appetizer was $50. I dnt have a problem paying that AT ALL with good service but in this case not so much. If you're considering coming here, do yourself a favor and go somewher read more

While visiting New York I searched Yelp for a restaurant near my hotel. I liked what I read and had a fabulous meal at Peasant. The hosts, waitress and busboys all provided amiable and outstanding service. The food was divine. I would definitely eat here again and recommend this restaurant. I had the cuddlefish appetizer and skate for an entree. The sauce on the cuddlefish was so good that I had to mop it up with bread. The skate came to the table hot out of the oven and absolutely delicious. Even the wine by the glass was excellent. Well priced for the quality too. read more

Abominable service. The maitre d' was rude, patronizing, and hostile. The waiter was slow and inattentive. They refused to let us order pizza and salads, saying we would have to leave unless we each ordered an entree. We were not being cheap--we each had several glasses of wine (and would have had more if we had been able to stay) and ordered the equivalent of a pizza each, plus several salads. Went to a bar around the corner and were treated much better. read more