Very nice restaurant, excellent service. There are a lot of nice touches at this restaurant; the food was excellent.

A bit too noisy of a dining room; other than that, perfect.    [25 Feb 2002 18:52:17]

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Recommended Dishes: filet mignon stuffed w/ Mozzarella, prosciutto and spinach

     ­Anonymous   

Marcello's Steaming Past All The Rest
Tonight, I, along with my dining companion (a.k.a. my wife) ate at Marcello's, a Northern Italian Restaurant across from the Ridgewood Train Station. This quaint eatery offers a nice variety of chops, seafood, and pasta dishes.

The operative word here is "quaint". Marcello's is a little on the small side. In fact a seating capacity sign on the wall read a total capacity of 265. This sign perplexed us. We didn't think it was possible to accommodate so many patrons. We were very tempted to explore every nook and cranny of this place in search of a passageway or hidden doorway that would lead us into a grand ballroom where 265 people would be gallivanting about the room. I found the confined space difficult when I attempted to navigate through countless members of the waitstaff. I had to dodge one who was clearing a table, one who was setting a table, and another who was taking an order ("Hey watch out for that dirty dish bucket coming screaming at your face"). All this just to get to the bathroom. A bathroom, which was located in the rear of the restaurant, behind the hostess stand, through a narrow hallway, down a flight of stairs, and around a corner. The entire venture took almost 10 minutes, but it was well worth the time when I finally got down to the task at hand, eating some good food.

We indulged our appetites with the complimentary appetizer consisting of a soft piece of Pumpernickel bread topped with a small piece of shrimp. This light fare excited our palates for the delicious courses to come.

For the salad, we ordered the Caesar Calabrese. The salad was comprised of Romaine Lettuce, roasted red pepper, fresh mozzarella, croutons, Parmesan cheese and was coated with the perfect amount of Caesar style dressing (in other words, it wasn't too soggy). When selecting entrees we felt we should choose items that encompassed the type of flavors this restaurant prides itself on. I tried the Chicken Tre-Funghi, a generous portion of two chicken breasts smothered in mixed mushrooms and covered with a Marsala-like brandy wine sauce. The chicken was accompanied by al dente broccoli spears and whipped mashed potatoes.

My bride dined on the Black Linguini, a compilation of shrimp, crabmeat, and asparagus under a zesty Vodka sauce. Don't ask us how they made the linguini black, we have been scratching our heads over that one for some time now. Whatever it was, it tasted great. With my stomach being more than satisfied I skipped the dessert, but the little lady enjoyed the light and fluffy Napoleon. This crispy-crusted cake was filled with a perfect combination of cream and fresh cut strawberries. It was a great ending to a nice night out on the town.

Note: Marcello's lacks a liquor license so you will need to bring your own.

4 out of 5 stars
Reviewed: 2/14/02    [26 Jun 2002 13:58:26]

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     ­The Man, The Myth, TapItorScrapIt.com   tapitorscrapit at hotmail dot com

Great place, great food, and excellent service
I have eaten there three times now. I travel from NYC to Ridgewood just for the dining experience. The food is great, the service is excellent, and the prices are incredible. No complaints at all. Shame on you if you don't take advantage of the BYOB system!    [28 Aug 2007 16:52:55]

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Recommended Dishes: ALL

     ­Dago, Manhattan