Gabriele’s Italian Steakhouse Opens In Greenwich

The opening of Gabriele’s, a contemporary Italian steakhouse located on Church Street in Greenwich, is cause for celebration. I recently attended a press dinner at Gabriele’s, and came away extremely impressed.

When you visit Gabriele’s, you’re going to want to eat like there’s no tomorrow. It’s a good idea to wear loose-fitting jeans.

You can leave your car with the valets,

check out the posted menu, if you like,

and then head inside for a nice welcome from the hostesses,

where a tremendous floral display shields the main dining room.

For our meet-up, we took a sharp left into the vibrant bar area,

where we were greeted by Gabriele’s publicist, Linda Kavanagh.

There was a nice fire in the fireplace.

The handsome bar

was absolutely packed.

We bellied up to the bar

for unusual drinks like this Sazerac made with Jim Beam Red Stag bourbon and poire brandy, muddled sugar with orange-infused absinthe, and a dash of orange and lemon bitters, served chilled and neat.

Helpful staff like this fellow

brought us delicious hors d’oeuvre based on actual appetizers, like these irresistible miniature Sicilian meatballs,

these steak tartare crostini,

and these exceptional clams oreganato (of which I had many).

But the bar area was just the beginning. Next, we took a tour of the restaurant.

We checked out the private wine room with its onyx tabletop and walls lined with more than 2,000 bottles.

Here’s what that room looked like in use.

We even visited the rear of the restaurant, where an extraordinary vestibule suggested future banquets.

We admired the elaborate ceiling,

stairs,

and especially, floor, whose marble pattern suggested three-dimensional steps that of course weren’t there.

I really liked this whimsical, time-lapse photograph that appeared to be of a sophisticated, almost nude, woman who had finally found the dress she was looking for in a shop window.

After the tour, we gathered in the stately dining room at the table you can just glimpse on the left.

We were hosted by gracious owner Danny Gabriele

and joined by restaurant developer Jody Penette of cb5.

Another important part of the team was maître d’/manager Tony Capasso, formerly of Valbella.

Hey, wait a minute! I was flirting with Valerie!

The menu we were shown of the food that we would consume bordered on crazy,

but believe me, no one was complaining. Gabriele’s has a serious wine list,

and here are some of the wines we enjoyed throughout our meal,

culminating it this moscato d’asti.

But I’m sure that what you really want to see is the food! We began with one of the best stuffed breads I ever tasted—it was all I could do to hold myself to two slices.

After that came seafood towers with chilled lobster, king crab, shrimp, and oysters and clams on the half shell,

some of which are seen here close-up.

After that came a bowl of the sparklingly fresh house salad.

After the salad came small servings of three pastas. The first was a superior rigatoni with Italian sausage and meatballs,

the second chitarra pasta tossed with lobster, fresh cream and shaved white truffle,

and the third housemade spinach and ricotta ravioli with poached egg in a truffle butter sauce.

The entrées were equally ridiculous. We enjoyed pan-roasted chicken with potato and mushrooms,

slightly spicy lobster arrabiata,

and incredible rib-eye and porterhouse steaks.

The accompanying sauces included a housemade steak sauce, peppercorn sauce, tarragon aïoli and truffle butter.

We also had sides of baked stuffed potato,

creamed spinach,

and oven-roasted wild mushrooms.

Everything was as good as it looked!

Finally, it was time for dessert. There was no sign of let-up in the generous treatment we were receiving.

We had housemade peanut butter and jelly doughnuts,

coconut spice cake

with a coconut milkshake,

a brownie banana split with all of the fixings,

and my favorite, butter-browned French toast.

Afterward, we applauded talented executive chef Joe Giordano

as we sipped glasses of that moscato d’asti

and resolved to return to Gabriele’s at the first opportunity.

Gabriele’s Italian Steakhouse, 35 Church Street, Greenwich, 203-622-4223
www.gabrielsgreenwich.com