Chris of "Joe's Table for 2" was out on Long Island yesterday and visited La Famiglia in Babylon, NY.
Truly homemade Italian food is hard to find nowadays. By that, I mean the kind of restaurant where the owner goes out and buys all of their ingredients fresh everyday. I have eaten so much Italian food in my life, but this was one of the greatest dining experiences I've ever had.
The establishment is nice, cozy, quiet and clean. La Famiglia has a bar with a large television for the patrons to watch the Yankees game (This is New York by the way), as well as large and small tables to accommodate your party size. Speaking of accommodation, the service was extremely incredible. The waiters made sure that everyone at our 26 person table had all of their drinks filled and every need met. They knew the entire menu, front and back, and made sure that everyone's experience was the best possible.
For starters, we took in some Hot and Cold antipastos (pictured). With the cold coming with all of the classic meats and cheeses, the hot antipasto came with mussels, shrimp, fried calamari, clams casino and steamed mushrooms coated with breadcrumbs. I didn't know if we would be able to get to the main coarse, the appetizers were phenomenal!
For the main course, we took in some classic spaghetti and homemade meatballs, Homemade Braciole over rigatoni and Veal Rosario.
The spaghetti and meatballs were good. Well cooked pasta and the meatballs were nice and big. Easy to tell they were homemade.
The Braciole was excellent. It was cooked for many hours, making it so tender and juicy, complemented by a tasty red sauce. It's hard for me to describe it any more, it was that good!
Then I had my eyes focused on the Veal Rosario. Cooked veal with Prosciutto, roasted red peppers in a light, homemade brown sauce, topped with melted mozzarella. This dish is hands down, probably the greatest thing I had ever eaten at an Italian restaurant. The Veal was extremely tender and tasted so good. The sauce was creamy and delicious. The prosciutto was a great combination with the veal and the sauce. I love veal, and this dish was made to perfection. Compliments to the chef on a job well done!
I have never felt so stuffed before. I've eaten in plenty of Italian restaurants before, but La Famiglia dwarfs them all. This is spot on Italian cuisine! If getting there didn't include driving 3 hours and sitting on the Belt Parkway for over an hour in bumper to bumper traffic, I would drive up just to eat there more frequently. My first trip to Long Island was a great sightseeing trip, but I will always remember the fantastic dining experience I had here.
