An upscale Italian restaurant in Monte Carlo has expanded to the US. Rampoldi, from MC Hospitality Group the people behind Casa Limone in Midtown and Atlantic Grill is now open at 43 West 64th Street between Columbus Avenue and Central Park West. Founded in 1946, the Rampoldi in Monaco has been included in the Michelin Guide. This is Rampoldi’s first location in the US. Its dress code is “dinner-appropriate attire, sophisticated and chic.”
Under the helm of chef Antonio Salvatore, the new outpost will serve the same food Rampoldi has become known for in Europe, a cuisine that it calls “New Monegasque.” Monegasque cuisine is a mixture of Southern French and Italian food with a lot of luxury ingredients like caviar, foie gras, and truffles added for good measure, according to head chef Antonio Salvatore. It’s appropriate, given that Monaco, nicknamed a “Billionaire’s Playground” with the world’s highest average wealth per capita, is the richest nation in the world.
The interior of the New York restaurant was designed to match that of its European sister. “You’ll be able to find the recognizable and iconic marbles, the mirror arches, and the Murano-glass chandeliers,” states the restaurant’s website. That is, if you happen to have dined at this restaurant when you were in Monte Carlo. Custom furniture was imported from Milan, while rust-colored hand-cut Italian marble is used in the floors and walls and Murano glass chandeliers hang from the ceiling. One thing that’s special to New York? A triptych of Mona Lisa paintings that pay homage to Grace Kelly, the American actor and mother of the current prince of Monaco, Albert II, commissioned by Spanish artist and fashion designer Domingo Zapata, who is close friends with the owners.
The menu, which also appears to be the same at the two restaurants, features tartares (salmon, beef, crab); carpaccios (tuna, beef, octopus); three pizzas; pastas; seafood; and a generous list of main course meats. The wine list boasts 300 different labels, 70% of which is French and Italian, 20% from the U.S. (the Monaco location doesn’t carry any American wines), and 10% from various international wine regions.
Rampoldi New York is open Tuesday to Sunday from 5 to 10 p.m.