Gran Morsi

I was in New York over the weekend and stumbled across Gran Morsi. What a great find! Had a great dining experience. My server, Douglas, was simply amazing. Very attentive to my needs, he was there before I had to ask for anything. He suggested the Pappardelle Bolognese and I was not disappointed! I will definitely be back on my next trip!

Pretentious olive garden, for the most bougie of the Tribeca-​sphere.
While the service was good, and a low lighting, quality atmosphere was provided, I found myself disappointed with the meal.
–Hanger steak– was soaked in marinade that over powered rather than complimented. The arugula salad had an interesting touch, as it contained a single strawberry slice, but coupled with the potato wedges this plate left a lot to be desired.
–Chicken parmigiana– in two words, nothing special. This is most likely the reason for it being one of the few choices on the menu with an actual adult sized portion. It and the spaghetti it comes with have no flare, or extraordinary flavor.
–The lemon goat cheese cake– Was a small disc, with a lesser circumference than a cupcake. Any taste resemblance to cheese cake was masked by lemon. There are so many places in New York that sell cheese cake for half the price and twice the size, not to mention places that keep the rich taste of cheese cake intact while adding new explorative flavors to the mix.
As seen in the fashion world, clothes of the same material and design can market at different prices based solely off of social perception. So while I do expect to pay higher prices in this part of the city, I wont act like this restaurant brings a new element to Italian cuisine.

I came here on Saturday night with a friend and we absolutely loved it! It’s a quaint and cozy restaurant. My friend had a glass of Malbec, I had a glass of Barolo which was one of the best I’ve had. I ordered the lobster parm because it was a unique dish and I was not
disappointed! The lobster melted in my mouth along with the perfect amount of mozzarella and sauce, as to not overwhelm the lobster. I will come back here just for this dish alone! Last, but certainly not least, the service was incredible! Josh was very friendly and continually stopping by to check on us throughout our meal. Josh was also very knowledgable with wines and helped lead me to an amazing Barolo, which I will certainly return for! Overall, the food, wine and service were all excellent and I will definitely be back!

Great dining experience, start to finish.
Atmosphere is very romantic and cozy and the service is exceptional.
The food:
–One of the best meatballs any of us have ever had, perfectly seasoned, and great to share.
–Gnocci was very well prepared
–Free range chicken was really good. Chicken was moist and had a ton of flavor, artichoke and carrots were a great side to the chicken.
–Goat cheese cake had a great texture and just the right amount of tart.
–Pasta dishes were all delicious
Great food, great wine and perfect service and atmosphere

Gran Morsi is honestly one of my favorite restaurants in the city. I cannot say enough about both the food and the service. I stopped in one day after work, attracted by the bright space and cute display up in the front. I was immediately greeted by warm smiles and super attentive (but never annoying) service.
I ordered the Yukon Gold Patata, Toscano Pizza, and Pinepaple Crostata for dessert. The patata dish was so satisfying and great for sharing. As for the pizza, it was such a light, delicious pizza with fresh eggs on top, caramelized onions, and arugula. Great for the summer. The dessert was the perfect end to the meal. I cannot wait to bring more friends and colleagues in so I can try more of the dishes. :)
Service was phenomenal. The dining room was full but I never felt like I was neglected or not taken care of. I was also impressed by the cocktail list (I had the refreshing limoncello margarita) as well as the wine list (which I’ll try next time).
Gran Morsi is definitely a must-​visit.

To describe my experience at Gran Morsi in one word it would be… sublime. Honestly, that doesn’t even do it justice. GM has turned into one of my favorite spots in Manhattan. One of the things I love about GM is that it has such a welcoming feel to it. You walk up to the restaurant and the display outside looks as if the angel Gabriel himself came and designed it, so it is truly heavenly.
The manager, Emeka, knows more about food and wine then any other restaurant I’ve been to combined, and he makes a personal effort to makes sure everyone feels comfortable and truly has an EXPERIENCE. He will help you choose your drink of choice and your food if you are a newbie like me, or he’ll talk and advise to the most comprehensive pallets if you are a connoisseur. Now… for the food!
To start, the cheesy bread that they put on the table is to die for! Throw a little marinara sauce on it and you might just spoil your whole dinner. My girlfriend and I were taking another couple out to dinner and Emeka helped us decide on the polpette meatballs as our appetizer and it did not disappoint. The meatballs were cooked perfectly, and combined with the san marzo tomatoes, started our night on the perfect tone. For the entrée, I went with the pappardelle bolognese, which was, and is, and forever will be, the most amazing bolognese to grace my tastebuds. The meat sauce comes so rich in flavor with healthy chunks of meat, but not overwhelming, and combined with the natural, homemade pappardelle, makes for a perfect couple. We also tried the eggplant parm, which made our guests feel like we had taken them to a michelin star restaurant (pictured above).
Needless to say our experience at Gran Morsi was amazing and we will continue dining here for years to come.

One of my favorite restaurants for a weekday dinner downtown. Décor is modern and cute with exposes brick walls, greenery accent walls, and bright sign with the name of the restaurant. It’s also a restaurant that serves all types of groups — intimate dates, girls night out, and large groups.
The food here is great, especially the Pappardelle Bolognese. I would recommend that you stick to the pasta rather than the pizza though. Pizza isn’t bad but it’s not notable.
The service here is what makes this place particularly amazing! The entire wait staff, hostess, and managers are all very attention. We especially really loved our server Zachary because he was funny and even took the time to take great photos of our group when we requested.
We requested a candle on the dessert and wow! They brought us a huge sparkler and really allowed us to have a great time. I will most definitely be returning here for other birthdays and special events with friends and family.

I really don’t get how they have 4.5 stars. Right when we walked in, we were confused as to how such a swank and pretty place could be so empty during prime time dinner hours.
Our server asked us if we wanted zucchini chips or focaccia bread for the table, and the way he said made us think it was complimentary (since bread for the table usually is), so I said both. He looked a little surprised, but obliged. Turns out they WEREN’T free, and ended up having $ 14 tacked onto our bill. FAIL.
My eggplant parm was alright, the spaghetti part of it being the saving grace. But my bf was appalled at his sheepsmilk ricotta ravioli. It came out in this pea purée-​like consistency with lima beans and even the inside filling was peas. It honestly looked gross, and he stopped eating it after a couple of bites.
It’s a no-​go for me.

I’d give the food a 4.5 star as it was delicious, well-​balanced, beautifully presented, and delicious. I very much enjoyed the burrata which came with crispy parmesan toasts, pesto and tomato dipping sauces. The negroni de trento was incredibly well-​balanced, light, refreshing, yet somehow rich, all at the same time. My asparagus, pea, and ricotta pasta was good, but not as flavorful as the orecchiette, lemon linguini, and spaghetti and meatballs my dining companions ordered. I also love the living wall of plants hanging at the back of the restaurant.
My only complaint was with the seemingly spacy service, which I’d give a 3 star. Our waiter acknowledged that our appetizers didn’t come out until about 45 minutes after we ordered, but didn’t send out bread until asked (and then charged us). After asking if we wanted pepper and parmesan with our pastas, and being assured that we did in fact want these, the waiters never came back — we had to flag someone down ten minutes later to get these. Nor did the waiters come back to take our drink orders after leaving us with the drink menus we had requested for a second round.

Decent Italian food for the price range.
I stopped by with two friends on a weekday evening, looking for a moderately priced place in the area. We shared the focaccia and the Spanish octopus to start, both of which I found decent but nothing remarkable. We also split the carne pizza and lemon linguine as entrees, the latter being pretty good but the former a bit too soggy in the middle. The food overall I found to be solid, but I’ve had better bread/​pizza in the city. It’s not a bad spot for groups of different sizes, although it does tend to be a bit on the louder end.

I had dinner plans on Wednesday night with my friend and we didn’t know where to go. We didn’t want to drop $ 50 per person and we also didn’t want to travel to a far away or inaccessible place only to determine that the wait is two hours long. What’s a New Yorker to do?
Enter Gran Morsi.
Gran Morsi is an adorable, affordable Italian restaurant on the edge of TriBeCa. It’s a quick walk from the ½/​3 and the 4÷5÷6. I made an 8pm reservation only a half hour beforehand, which is usually a scary sign, but the restaurant was about ¾ full when we arrived.
I beat my friend there and the super friendly hostess seated me anyway. The inside of the restaurant is cozy and is garden themed — very cute for a date: hint hint:.
I ordered the spaghetti pomodoro and he ordered the chicken parm. The portions were reasonable but not big. The spaghetti ($ 14) was cooked perfectly and the sauce was excellent (San Marzano tomatoes — fresh and rustic). The chicken parm ($ 23) looked good but I did not try it.
For dessert, we split the blood orange chocolate olive oil cake which was EXCELLENT. It’s a small chocolate cake, warm and soft in the middle, topped with gelato and chocolate shavings. On the side is an orange wedge with a crispy caramel coating and a sweet drizzle. Much heavier than L’Artusi’s, but also totally different in concept. Recommend.
Whole bill came to just over $ 50 (no drinks) and was well worth it. For the combination of food quality, service, and atmosphere, you can not do better.
Other notes:
–Service was attentive without being intrusive. Everyone was nice. On the way out, my friend said «I don’t think I’ve ever had so many people tell me to have a good night before. This is the friendliest restaurant I’ve ever been to».
–I would consider adding a fifth star if they started you with bread or if the portions were a tad bigger.
–If you go here expecting some sort of creative culinary wonder, like squid ink infused panna cotta with a chocolate waterfall coming out the side — you’re going to be disappointed. It’s straightforward, authentic Italian food. And it’s delicious. It doesn’t need extra bells and whistles and gimmicks.
Conclusion: If I check on OpenTable in a few months and there are still open reservations an hour — or even a day — in advance, I’m going to wonder where your tastebuds are. GO.

Amazing dinner! I arrived before the rest of my party, so I got a glass (maybe two) at the bar :) Happy hour red wine was delicious! We got the brussel sprouts, the meatballs & the sheepsmilk ricotta for apps! The bread they had (with dipping sauce) was freaking amazing & everyone was right those meatballs. Got the bucatini and chicken parm… I was in heaven! The chicken parm melted in my mouth and the red sauce on everything was delish! The service was awesome & it’s so close to my work I’ll def be going back.
It’s a small place and got busy so fast (even for Tuesday night)– def make a reservation. It has great ambience for after work drinks, date night or even a girls nights. The live plant wall on the back was pretty too. Can’t wait to go back and try another one of their pastas!

Maybe I caught Gran Morsi on a bad night? So many people seem to love this place! Aside from the décor, I wasn’t too impressed with anything about Gran Morsi. I’d definitely give it a solid 3.5 stars and really hope that I have a better experience the next time I return.
First of all, the chef BEAT BOBBY FLAY in a meatball challenge! Of course, I had to get them. I found it so odd that they only offer the meatballs as an app. My server recommended that I order spaghetti and meatball as an entrée even though it wasn’t officially on the menu. I totally regret it! My own mom makes meatballs that are wayyyy better than Gran Morsi. There’s no way that they serve the same recipe that beat Bobby. Or maybe the meatballs tasted slightly different because they were served on top of spaghetti? Doubt it, but I just don’t get why others are raving over them.
I usually stay away from ordering spaghetti because it’s typically mediocre no matter where you go. Should’ve have trusted my own instinct instead of listening to my sever. But on a positive note, the sauce was tasty so it was fine. I just wouldn’t order it again.
We started with the mushroom pizza and the sheeps milk ravioli entrée to share. The pizza was light and crunchy, but I wish the topping was a bit more flavorful. The ravioli was definitely the highlight of the night! If I could rewind, I would have ordered that as my entrée instead.
On to the service– I still don’t understand why the food took sooooo long. Four of us were dining in on a Wednesday night and it wasn’t even crowded. We felt like we were waiting a lifetime for the appetizers and entrees to arrive. And they don’t give you bread for the table which made the wait even worse. Even though the server was sweet, he didn’t check on us much at all.
I’m genuinely confused why my experience at Gran Morsi was so different than other people’s. And why does everyone love those meatballs so much?! I’m gonna give Gran Morsi the benefit of the doubt and just assume I caught them on a bad night. I’m looking forward to going back and giving it another try in the future, but I’m definitely in no rush to get back.

Came here for lunch during NYC restaurant week, which is $ 25 before tax. Note: Lunch and dinner menu are IDENTICAL by the way whereas Dinner is $ 38 :)
Food: ⁴⁄₅
Value: ⁴⁄₅
Service: ⁵⁄₅
Space: ⁴⁄₅
Décor: ⁵⁄₅
Service was great — A meatball jumped off and suicided on my black and white dress. The waiter immediately sent me some club soda as a quick remedy to remove the strong orangey stain. The food was a little slow for lunch hour, I wish it was quicker but the pace helped us enjoyed the meal more thoroughly. The interior space and decoration at Gran Morsi is fresh, clean, simple, and classy. Perfect for a casual date without being too heavily overdone and or dim. Our table was right next to a wall of cascading ivy vines with soft lights and slow dripping water; How scenic!
Appetizer:
So we heard that their meat balls won the challenge against Bobby Flay so naturally we all picked it for our appetizer. So glad we did! The portion was huge — 3 fat meat balls with plenty of sauce and a piece of toast (the toast tasted funky however) We expected something tiny, like all the other restaurant week participants, similar to a tasting menu, but I was half stuffed from just the appetizer.
Main:
My colleagues ordered the lamb shank, which they loved and couldn’t be happier. It looked very meaty and fresh still on the bone. I wasn’t a fan of lamb so I ended up with a sandwich /​flatbread kind of dish with plenty of french fries on the side. It was okay to be honest, both the fries and bread.
Dessert:
But O my … Dessert was so so amazing! I believe I got the panna cotta. I never had basil with my sweets now I just want more of it. The combination was spectacular — creamy, smooth, sweet, soft, and interesting.

Restaurant Week Winter 2016.
Atmosphere: Cute, dim, small, loud, nice date place minus the noise. Came here with a gal pal to catch up.
Food: For my app, got the meatballs. Very, VERY Flavorful and filling. The cheese is almost crispy which makes the consistency of the ingredients fun and different, and you can really taste the herbs and spices in the meatballs. For the main I got the Spaghetti Carbonara. Incredibly delicious, albeit a bit too creamy. The lamb was not too overwhelming in flavor and it blended with the sauce. For dessert, the Panna Cotta was super light, sweet, and the basil on top of it was an interesting touch that made the dessert taste even better (weird, right?). I liked everything. Everything was yum.
Service: Friendly. Two restaurant week orders and 3 glasses of wine later, we were in about $ 120, so this place is still pretty steep when it comes to cost. Either way, food/​ambiance/​everything was delicious and I’d highly recommend it.

Came here for Restaurant Week lunch with my coworkers and was excited to try the famous meatballs. But first, the service. The service was awful… Our waiter for some reason did not write down any of our orders. It’s understandable if it was a small party or you have superb memory that you can memorize a party of 5’s appetizers, entrees, and desserts, but if you can’t, why would you even try? That was so off putting because my group was engaging in a conversation and had to be interrupted not once, but three times because our waiter kept asking half of us what we ordered. over and over again. Not to mention, he still bought out the wrong dishes to everyone.
For the appetizer, definitely order the meatballs. They’re so delicious and moist. I looooved the tomato sauce it was bathing in. I used my meatballs and the crostini to wipe that plate clean LOL. However, after the meatballs, the rest of the dishes fell short. My entrée, the eggplant parm sandwich, was okay. I just wish the bread they used was less dense and was injected with flavor because the bread was bland. That was a shame because I love bread, especially focaccia bread. The sandwich also came with a huge portion of fries, which I loved. Make sure you ask for ketchup and be specific. We asked for ketchup and he only bought out one small ketchup cup. For dessert, I had the gelato. I guess the flavors change daily because other Unilocalers have mentioned flavors such as pistachio and mango. My options were vanilla, caramel, or raspberry. Sounds a bit boring right? This should have been my hint to order the panna cotta instead because the vanilla gelato was nothing special. It was probably frozen for a while as the gelato was very icy. Everyone else in my group ordered the panna cotta and loved it :(.
Unless you work by the area, I’d come for the meatballs. Just prepare to have at least 2 hours to dine here as the service is slow. But I don’t think the Restaurant Week menu was worth the price.

I am giving this five stars with a caveat that what I ordered was not the best combination of flavors, and really I would give this establishment 4 ½ stars for food, but I am rounding to five to be generous.
I ate here last night for restaurant week and ordered the polpette appetizers, eggplant parmesan, and panna cotta dessert. I would say the polpette was delicious, and certainly amongst the best meatballs I have had. I think everything about it was great — just the right amount of cheese and sauce, and great flavors to the meatballs. I would give the meatballs 4.75 stars.
I made the mistake of ordering eggplant parmesan as the entrée, but probably would have been better served ordering a lighter fish-​type entrée with this as my appetizer. Regardless — on its own — without thinking about the polpette — the eggplant parm was great. It was cheesy and delicious and rich and satisfying. However, it ultimately had similar flavors as the polpette meatballs, and thus, the distinct flavors were a bit lost. For my experience eating the eggplant parm, I would give this 4 stars. Anyone not eating the eggplant parm following the polpette would probably get an experience of 4.5 stars. I have had better eggplant parm, but this was a very good eggplant parm.
The dessert was a showstopper. The panna cotta was exceptional and for sure the best panna cotta I ever had. It was creamy and delicately flavored. I might go back to this establishment just to re-​order the panna cotta. The basil and strawberries were perfectly balanced in this dish and it was a harmony that was just perfect. I am still thinking about this panna cotta the next day. I give the panna cotta 5 stars+.
The service was perfectly fine and not exceptionally good or bad.
Overall I give the restaurant 4.5 stars and round up to five. If you go, definitely try the panna cotta!

I would come back just for these meatballs! I bookmarked this place right after watching the executive chef feature on an episode of «Beat Bobby Flay»… And I was impressed watching chef Kenneth Johnson cook against his first opponent before throwing down against Bobby Flay. When he remarkably beat his opponent, then versed against Bobby Flay, I was very amused at how calm he was while Bobby Flay was busting a sweat! Kenneth Johnson chose the signature dish to cook against Bobby Flay to be MEATBALLS… The man said he could make it with his eyes closed since he makes hundreds of these in a day. Anyways, he beat Bobby Flay and when I checked on Unilocal I noticed these were the same exact meatballs judging by the plating style! Fast forward through time a little and I noticed his restaurant Gran Morsi was participating for restaurant week.
APPETIZERS — the polpette meatballs are truly AWESOME… the crispy cheesy crostini you get, the tomato sauce, and the meatballs itself held up so well yet kind of just melts in your mouth. The calamari salad was light but also tasty as well.
ENTREES — we all got either the New Zealand lamb shank or porchetta panini. Both which were mediocre. My date & I was quite happy to see porchetta sandwich on the RW menu since we love porchetta so much. But this one was sooo poorly done. The porchetta was sliced too thinly like ham instead of traditional nice chunk of pork shreds or cubes. There was no crispy skin from this «porchetta». Let alone there was barely much of the porchetta meat in the focaccia bread. The breading was way too much, and focaccia bread is our favorite too. But this one wasn’t warm or even soft enough. I was expecting the calabrian chili aioli to be spreaded on the bread itself, but instead it was just mixed and rubbed all over the porchetta meat which masked what a beautifully «juicy seasoned» porchetta is suppose to be. The lamb shank was falling off the bone tender, and the dish in general was nice overall except for the extra gamy taste from the lamb itself.
DESSERTS — I wish I was able to try the other gelato flavors instead of getting the panna cotta because the pistachio gelato and mango sorbet was really fresh and yummy! The consistency of them was a little thick and creamy. Some sorbets tends to be too icy, but not this one!
The dining room is a very cute, clean and spacious. I really wanted to love this place, but perhaps the wrong entrees were on the restaurant week menu… So I do wanna come back to give them another chance and try their other appetizers and pastas since it sounds so delicious!

We came here during the holiday season when they have free dessert with 2 lunch plates. Food was amazingly good, I ordered black pasta with seafood and tomato sauce — it was the best pasta that I had had in a while !!! Noodles were cooked to perfection, sauce and seafood complimented each other very well.
The place is very nicely decorated with indoor wall of green plants, I personally think that it is very cool. My only complaint is that the place smelled horrible when we came in, dont get me wrong, it was not a nasty smell, it smell like clorox detergent. I first thought that I was paranoid/​too sensitive but eventually both my friend and I feel like something stick to back of our throat — I think that’s what happens when you breathe in too much cleaning chemical.

Everything here exemplifies what a 5 star Unilocal restaurant should be. Excellent food, excellent service, nice décor, interesting menu items, prices on par with food quality, and nice bar.
Came with my wife and another couple for dinner made with reservations for a Saturday. We had an early dinner, around 6 and it wasn’t busy, but around 7 pm onward restaurant filled up. So if coming in for a meal at that time, reservations is a must.
Here’s the savory dishes we all sampled family style: Broccoli rabe, polpetti meatballs, black linguine, burrata app, and Forrest mushroom pizza. I know his calling card is the polpetti meatballs, which by the way is one of the most delicious things I’ve ever eaten, but everything else was just as wonderfull! I’m salivating just writing this review!
For dessert we ordered the tiramisu parfait (hazelnut praline, marscapone, rum, cocoa nibs), goat cheese cheesecake, and cappuccino martini. Everything for the most part was good. My lesson learned is that goat cheese should not be made into a dessert. The gaminess of the milk gives it a weird taste. It wasn’t bad, just not the flavor i want in my dessert.
I can’t wait to come back to try more dishes! This place will not be a one and done for everyone who went that evening!