On a chilly and damp day in late January, a group of New Yorkers descend into Roscioli NYC’s wine cellar and find their seats at a long communal table, or at the handful of two- and four-tops. There’s a half-wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese on display and a man in chef’s whites standing before a sloped brick wall. Soon, Roscioli NYC co-owner Alessandro Pepe appears and introduces Daniele Morandi, a chef from the revered Modena salumeria and restaurant Hosteria Giusti, who will lead the first-ever pasta class in the charming cellar.
Over the next two hours, the space takes on the feel of an exclusive private club, as the guests sip Lambrusco and watch and listen as Morandi rolls out fresh dough, assembling a lasagna Bolognese. Plates of delicious prosciutto and culatello from Morandi’s salumeria appear. Then comes the plated lasagna, eliciting a hush in the cellar. Eventually, staff distribute cutting boards with the equipment and ingredients to make tortelloni, the classic stuffed pasta from Emilia-Romagna. Guests pipe a cheese filling and try their hands at rolling the tortelloni, bringing a hands-on feel to the class. Professor Morandi nods approvingly at their work.
As a send-off when the class sadly ended, each guest was presented with a small box of the pasta they’d made (along with some extras from Morandi) to cook at home.
If this is the first pasta class at Roscioli NYC, I can’t wait to see what comes next, I remember thinking. As it turns out, Pepe and his team, which includes Roscioli NYC co-owner Ariel Arce, were just getting started that day in January. Their extension of Rome business such as Rimessa Roscioli, described as a “multi-experience wine bar and full restaurant,” has begun to take on a similar scope. There’s the wine club, a prix-fixe wine pairing dinner each night in the lower level, and an à la carte menu with wines as well as an alimentari on the street level. And then there’s the special events.
Since the Hosteria Giusti visit, which included a one-night-only dinner and wine pairing featuring rare Balsamic vinegars from Acetaia Sereni, as well as the pasta class, Roscioli NYC has revved up its events calendar with wine classes, cheese classes, wine dinners, and more visits from A-List Italian chefs.
On Sunday, March 24, Marco Battaglino from Osteria Battaglino in Cuneo, a city in Piedmont, will hold the next pasta class (sorry, it’s probably sold out by the time you’re reading this). Appetito has learned that Marzapane, the acclaimed Rome restaurant, is on the list of April guest appearances, though there’s no mention of it yet on Roscioli’s Resy page.
Which brings us to the challenge of getting into Roscioli NYC, for dinner, or for any of these special events. Simply put, it’s tough. The New York Post recently recounted ways that New Yorkers are angling to get in to experience the Roman pastas, perfectly curated wines, and irresistible ambience. The restaurant has two separate Resy pages, for the A La Carte and Tasting Menu sections, and each page lists upcoming special events, with small ticket icons on the calendar denoting a special event. Reservations go quickly; the best advice I can give, if you want to experience an extremely special event like the one I attended, is to check both Resy pages early and often. I'd also suggest signing up for Roscioli's email updates. Buona Fortuna.
