Tucked right by Penn Station, Bar Primi offers a vibrant Italian retreat with a cozy outdoor patio and a menu full of delicious pastas and inventive cocktails.
"They clearly know what they wanted to do in this kitchen: make excellent Italian (and Italian-American) food with a delicious twist here and surprise ingredient there. The result is a restaurant we would all like to have just around the corner. Great wine, a friendly service team and two floors of comfortable seating make it easy for guests to pile in, night after night." - Kevin Chau
"Bar Primi serves decent Italian food that is easy enough to like, and for a number of people in a number of situations, this restaurant will be pretty much perfect. If you’re catching a train at Penn Station directly across the street, catching a game at Madison Square Garden, or catching up with coworkers, this is a totally solid destination for pasta and cute cocktails. Expect to see as many business-casual Patagonia vests crowding the bar as you do Rangers jerseys, and—if the weather’s nice—a crowd gathered on the big outdoor patio. (If it’s a game day, the attentive, efficient servers may even ask if you have tickets when you arrive, to ensure they get you fed and out in time.)" - bryan kim, willa moore, kenny yang, neha talreja, molly fitzpatrick
"The under-construction area around Penn Station is slowly emerging from under scaffolding, and the sprawling patio at Bar Primi’s second location looks like a prime spot to grab a drink or a meal in the area. Inside, there’s an oval bar and luxe lighting. Expect pastas, $3 “hot knots” with Italian chili crisp, and burrata pockets." - will hartman
"The next time you need to eat meatballs outside with 99 of your friends, head to Bar Primi’s Penn District location. The Italian restaurant has a patio that seats 100, with its own bar and a fireplace, surrounded by loungey couches. It’s one of the few good outdoor dining options in the area, and a convenient option for dinner or drinks before a show at Madison Square Garden. It’s also not hard to get a last-minute table, even if you just want to pop by for some wine and Primi’s excellent tiramisu. Their original location in Bowery has some cute sidewalk seating as well. " - neha talreja, bryan kim, nikko duren, molly fitzpatrick
"This second outpost of Bar Primi (the original is in the East Village) serves decent Italian food that’s easy enough to like. But more importantly, this location could not be any closer to Penn Station without being inside it—unless they built an outdoor dining structure on the actual asphalt of West 33rd Street. That makes Bar Primi a very convenient place for a lot of people in a lot of situations: the neighborhood’s many corporate types, commuters, and the Madison Square Garden-bound alike. It's a casual after-work drinks spot in fancy Italian drag: warm lighting, long red leather banquettes, and indoor greenery that extends to the ceiling, not to mention a lovely patio. The large, horseshoe-shaped gold bar is crowded with groups of cheerful colleagues drinking cocktails served in drinkware that resembles sunflowers and peacocks. We wouldn’t go out of our way to dine here, but you can nevertheless have a satisfying meal—we like the spaghetti pomodoro. The space is large, but frequently packed, so it’s still a good idea to make a reservation. photo credit: Nick Johnson Food Rundown Spaghetti Pomodoro This slightly sweet, pale-pink pasta with al dente noodles is a great rendition of an artfully simple classic. Chitarra And Clams We’d skip this pasta. The sauce is nicely garlicky, but we wanted a lot more oomph from the clams themselves, which could’ve been sweeter. Sugar Snap Peas A good way to get something green on the table. Fresh, bright, and crisp-tender. Fried Tomato Rice Could use more seasoning, but these sort-of arancini are adorably served in paper wrappers like a carnival snack. The cheese inside is pleasurably gooey. Broccolini With Too Much Garlic They should rename this nicely charred side “Broccolini With An Appropriate Amount Of Garlic.” It’s definitely worth ordering. Triple Threat This cocktail is named for the three tequilas it contains (along with bright, slightly bitter cappelletti and pineapple), but that’s not what really matters here: Did we mention that they set it on fire? And that it’s served in a peacock mug? You’ll see a whole flock of them around the dining room." - Molly Fitzpatrick
