This is an absolutely wonderful restaurant in New Paltz, NY. I've been here 3 or 4 times and never been disappointed. Creative, inventive, seasonal dishes and wonderful service. Anything on the menu is worth trying. Great selection of wines, beers and cool cocktails too. This is by far the best restaurant in New Paltz and I think I've tried them all. Very professional. Not to be missed!
Review Source:If I could do 2.5 stars I would. Â This is my second visit here. Â The first visit was when they first opened and we had a decent experience, sans the kale that was so gritty I couldn't eat it. Â But I enjoyed the porchetta, and since there are always growing pains with a new place, we decided to try a return visit.
This time we just stopped in for a glass of wine and a nosh before our dinner plans at the fabulous Italian trattoria about four doors up the street.
The bartender was very kind to let us try a bit of a new wine they had gotten in, and it was very good. Â The glasses of wine that we had were good, so no complaints there. I'm a huge fan of a good wine bar, and the good ones have bartenders that know alot about wine and love to share thier knowledge. Â This didn't seem like such a place. Â
We ordered the herb fries, which were a large sized portion for sharing, and very tasty. Â Lots of sage and rosemary. The aioli wasn't really aioli. It was bland mayo with a little bit of a garlic flavor.
It's not that there is anything wrong with the place, but I don't find enough right with the place to become a regular. Â Like others have said - I don't think they know what they want to be. Â It looks like a restaurant and the menu is extensive enough to be a restaurant, yet they market themselves as a wine bar. Â And there is just something lacking in the atmosphere. Â I just don't get a warm, convivial vibe here.
And I must say it's also bit of a turn off to see the owner responding so negatively and snarky to some of the other diner's reviews and comments on here. Â That speaks volumes to me. Â
There are much better places in the area, but if you're craving porchetta, then come for that.
I've been here on two separate occasions. The first time was with my roommate  (we're seniors at the university). We were looking for something low-key so we could catch up with each other, and this was a good choice for that.
She ordered a red wine, myself a white (I can't recall which ones as this was a few weeks back) and we each ordered a plate of the eggplant caponata to munch on. The wines were served promptly and the food arrived about 15 seconds after we began wondering where it was (we love food, so that wasn't exactly a long time)
Our waitress did check in with us to make she everything was okay, which I always appreciate. The food was very good, although the eggplant chunks were a little large and a tad awkward at first, but nothing that ruined our experience.
Getting the check did take longer than expected, but I got the feeling this us the kind of place that prefers its customers to linger. I found this to be a pleasant alternative to the 35 minute turn times in most restaurants
The second time was for dinner with my mother and my boyfriend. I once again ordered the caponata appetizer, which was fine except for this time the toast was a bit burnt. My mother had ordered a mushroom special for an appetizer which was overall delicious albeit a bit heavy on the garlic. My boyfriend had gotten a different type of caponata, which he wasn't too fond of because it had an olive base that was a bit too heavy for him. I enjoyed it so we ended up trading.
The baked macaroni and cheese was awesome. Very filling. The pork special both of my accompaniments had ordered, unfortunately, was very dry around the edges to the point where they couldn't eat a large part of the pork chop. The sides were great and the middle of the meat was delicous, however.
Overall, I'd say give it a try, because the wine selection is amazing and the servers are very knowledgeable, but this place would be better for appetizers or dessert than an entire evening.
UPDATE:
Here is the most recent private message I received from the owner regarding my review:
Darrin S. has sent you a message on Yelp:
"Nicole, I have never fabricated nor solicited a review on yelp or on any other website. Â I have, however, received several reviews from people who all use the same words and phrases. Â Suspicious... isn't it?"
I wish the owner of this establishment would stop picking private fights with reviewers who have left critical comments. As long as he continues to focus his energy on that and on believing there is some conspiracy against him, nothing will improve for him. This is just petty and ridiculous.
Original Review:
Went here a few months ago, and it was a bad experience. I was excited to try the new restaurant in town, but the food was ...Meh... The service was excruciatingly slow...we could hardly get anyone's attention even though there were only a few other tables occupied. I had the porchetta sandwich. It was served as just the meat on a dry roll...just boring and bland! Afterwards I was curious if my experience was an anomaly, or if things were getting better at Il Gallo Giallo once they were on their feet, so I have been following their Yelp page. What I have seen has completely turned me off to giving this place a second chance. To any critical review the owner has replied with condescending remarks and snarky comebacks. Just shameful. For anyone considering this place, I would recommend they go to A Tavola instead, it's just a few doors down.
I feel so blessed to have this wine bar in the area. Â The sign is clearly marked wine bar, but I might go as far as to put it in a Cafe category. Â That being said, the menu is ample enough to satisfy with many choices for appetizers, burgers, and even one entree special that changes daily. Â The daily entree is way down at the bottom of the menu, and I didn't even see it the first time I went.
The atmosphere is comfortable and refined, but casual and not at all stuffy. Â In the front is a traditional bar with bar stool seats, and there are tables and chairs in the middle with plenty of space. Â There is a nice cozy area towards the back, set off to the side, with comfy chairs and couches. Â If you are looking to lounge around while sipping on some wine or maybe snuggle up with a date then this is the area to be in.
I've been here three times now and each time I discovered something new, and I can't wait to go back again. Â On my first visit I ordered a red wine from Italy. Â I can't recall the name but it was amazing. Â I'm quite picky when it comes to wines. Â I like Cab-sauvs generally and dry wines but they must still have the essence of fruit which is why I think I'm so picky with wine. Â It has to be dry and fruity but not sweet. Â I didn't recognize the name and that's why I couldn't remember it. Â As I will later find out, it was the Farraiola Super Tuscan, but pretty much any wine you order will be excellent as was my experience all three times I went! Â I had the salumi platter with different types of cured meats which was excellent as well and a bit of a special treat for this Italian.
One time I had the ravioli appetizer which is out of this world and melt in your mouth good! Â I wish they offered this in a meal portion as I could easily eat two or three of the appetizer sizes. Â This is unlike any ravioli I am familiar with, you just have to try it! Â I had an excellent burger which I later found out is made with local grass fed beef. Â And, the third time I went, I had the daily entree on a Sunday night which is lasagna. Â It was excellent, with very good sauce, and an ample portion.
I've never been to Italy but if I had to guess then I would imagine this to be what a wine bar in Italy is like. Â The service was excellent and not at all intrusive. Â Highly recommended!
In a nutshell: Great flavors and attention to detail, and while the portions might be on the smaller side in regards to price, they were consistent with the level of quality of the ingredients. The feel was more of a tapas bar, instead of a family style Italian restaurant which I feel may have been the expectations of the reviewers who complained.
I just dined at this restaurant, and while looking online for a menu I almost did not due to the unfavorable reviews posted here on yelp. I am glad I went, and felt that I needed to give a review of my experience as it is not consistent with the other reviews so far on yelp.
I had the Porchetta sandwich (14 dollars), with the polenta side (6?), both of which were delicious and left me well fed (I am 6'4", to give some context). My co-diner got a burger (16 dollars) which came with herbed fries and aioli, and got a side of mixed greens (6). That meal was certainly pushing it price-wise (especially with the greens), but a great redeeming factor were the fries oddly enough, sage was lightly fried with them giving a wonderful taste.
Dessert was delicious, but on the smaller side, 7 dollars was the average price.
Cocktails were superb.
Delicious and great quality, but a bit on the pricey side, still well worth going.
Well, if I had read the reviews before we went to Il Gallo I would not have gone. Â It looked nice from the street (we were going to go somewhere else) so we went in.
In their defense, the owner may be reading these reviews, and seems to be responding to what people are writing, so whatever you write doesn't just disappear into cyberspace. Â Several people mentioned bad service. Â I went with a party of 4 and the service was very good. Â It was a slightly older woman (not in her twenties, in other words) and she was very attentive and caring and seemed genuinely interested in our experience there. Â For me, she was the best part of the evening. Â So, during our Thursday evening, with our group, the service was fine which means the owner is working to improve things.
When the entrees were brought in, we were all startled at the small size of the portions. Â These were appetizer-sized portions, not entree-sized portions. Â I was actually going to say "Did you bring us appetizers by mistake?" but chose to go with the flow. Â And this is alla carte, which means a salad is purchased separately. Â So....salad = $9, entree = $10. Â Total = $19 Â In another Italian restaurant $19 would have gotten me quite a bit more. Â This is the first time my salad was larger than my entree. Â The salad was actually very good...root vegetables with a vinagrette. Â I got the cheapest entree on the menu - garlic, olive oil, pepper, parmesan on angel hair pasta. Â I've made this dish many times myself so know it intimately. Â At home I usually don't use freshly grated parmesan, so I like to taste it in restaurants where I know they do. Â I finished my entree in about 5 or 6 bites. Â It was very good, but I wanted a serving 3 times the size that was brought to me. Â To me, being penny-wise but pound-foolish seems silly when trying to attract customers.
My girlfriend got sweet potato ravioli, which was also delicious, 6 or 7 small ravioli arranged horizontally on a small, rectangular plate. Â I felt guilty trying one of them because it meant depriving her of 15% of her meal. Â The lady across from me had shrimp over pasta and it was odd seeing the shrimp lined up actually hiding the pasta because there was so little of it.
When I go to an Italian restaurant, I go with the expectation of a heaping bowl of pasta, fresh salad, and bread. Â Bread was also alla carte, $4 I think. Â If you're on a diet and working to lose weight, this is a good place for you. Â I was pleased about the service and I liked the civilized, casually elegant decor. Â But I won't be going back because the servings are too small. Â However, if I read in future reviews that entree servings are generous, then I may change my mind.
Il Gallo Giallo has an identity crisis, from the decor to the menu. What do they want to be? The cacio e pepe spaghetti dish was excellent, but the portion size ridiculously small. Same for the gnocchi. This would be ok if they offered a full Italian menu, but this is not the case: only appetizers, pasta and panini (for dinner?). So, what do you want to be, Gallo Giallo? A restaurant or a wine bar? Make up your mind because your clients are noticing... Many tables were empty.
Review Source:In Vino Veritas, or so it is said...and I'm sad to say that my experience at this restaurant was poor from start to finish.
My BF are frequent visitors to New Paltz, and were excited to try a new restaurant in town. We walked into the restaurant at 9:45 to find the dining room empty except one table with a large group.
After being seated, the owner greeted us and explained a few of the menu items. He strongly recommended the Porchetta and the Pasta of the Day - a beef braised in Barolo - which, he shared with us was not actually braised in Barolo, but in similar wine from the region, made with the same grapes, but not technically a Barolo, as stated on the menu. He mentioned that if it was actually braised in Barolo, he would have to "jack up the price" to cover the difference in the cost. After he left us, we waited about 5 minutes before our waitress greeted us, and took our drink and meal orders. We waited 10 minutes for our drinks to arrive, which was odd because there was only one person seated at the bar and the bartender was engrossed in a conversation with this person. Â After the 10 minutes elapsed, our waitress stepped behind the bar and retrieved our drinks herself. Sadly, our drinks were the best part of our meal.
Our appetizers arrived about 25 minutes after we ordered them. Our marinated olive appetizer was unremarkable. Â Our sausage and polenta appetizer was awful. The sausage was bland and somewhat undercooked. Â The polenta was was runny, lumpy, and unseasoned.
Our entrees arrived nearly an hour after we sat down, and things truly took a turn for the worse. Â I ordered the pasta special, and I had requested no cheese be added to my meal. When our waitress delivered our meals, I noticed the cheese, and commented to the waitress that I had requested no cheese. Â She noted that she had instructed the kitchen to omit the cheese - but she brought the entree out to me anyway. She took it back to the kitchen to get me a new one - or so I thought. Instead, my entree was returned to the table without cheese - but a noticeably smaller portion - I am assuming they simply removed the part with the cheese on it, and sent the remainder of the dish back out to me. Â
My BF's porchetta was so dry he could barely cut the pork loin portion of it with his knife. Â It was served with sauteed kale - the kale had not been washed at all, or was not washed thoroughly, because it was so gritty it was like eating sand. Â
When our waitress asked us how our entrees were my BF indicated his displeasure with his meal. Â Our waitress handled it professionally, and offered to get him another entree. Â We decided to skip that, and have an espresso and call it a night.
Our waitress and the owner both apologized about our dining experience, and the  porchetta entree was removed from our bill, and our espressos were comped.  While we were drinking our espressos, we noticed at first our waitress speaking to the chef near the kitchen and pointing us out to him, and then to make matters worse, the chef entered the dining room, and had a conversation with the owner at the beverage station directly behind our table. During this conversation, it appeared that the owner was speaking to the chef about our dining experience and motioning in our direction.  It was so uncomfortable for us to sit there and try to enjoy the last minutes of our time there while the chef seemed to be getting a teachable moment from the owner regarding our meal right in front of us. Â
The most disappointing thing about this whole experience to me was that the restaurant was empty with the exception of the one other table with a large group. Â I can see slow service and/or mistakes being made during a busy night, but this was not the case. Â
A few other things that detracted from our dining experience - No bread was served with our meal (in an Italian restaurant?), there was a hodgepodge of decor and old dish cloths were used as napkins.
Thanks for reading - Ciao for now!
Walked in at 9:50 on a Saturday night. The place was empty except for a party of 11 LOUD and annoying diners. One lady in particular made me cringe every time she opened her big fat mouth. We ordered at 10, first toast at 10:12. The bartender was too busy talking to the one person at the bar to pour a glass of wine and open a bottle of beer. Apps arrived at 10:28. We ordered the Sausage w/Polenta and Mixed Olives. The sausage was cheap and tasted and looked like store bought sausage. The polenta was terrible! Dinner, pffft! My gf ordered the pasta special(braised beef w/fettuccine), and specifically asked for NO cheese, yet the waiter brought over the plate with cheese. She said she told the kitchen no cheese...well then why did you bring out the plate out with cheese? I ordered the porchetta based on the owner's recommendation. Damn was I sorry I did. The pork loin was so dry I could barely chew it, I wanted to spit it out. The kale was NOT clean at all. Every mouthful was like chewing sand. Down right disgusting! The white beans were meh, so so. Our waitress came to ask how everything was and I told her I wasn't happy. She offered me another dish, but at that point I was so turned off I wanted to run out of there. Plus I was so miserable hearing this party of 11 literally screaming so loud at each other that I purposely yelled as loud, if not louder, NO ONE noticed. The waitress was very apologetic and the owner came over to do damage control as well. The porchetta was taken off the bill, and they gave us complimentary double espressos. What really made our experience even worse was when the owner was talking to the chef right out in the dining room, gesturing toward us like we were the bad ones. If I wanted to be sIngled out or wanted to personally complain to the chef I'd just go next door to the bar where they hang out.
I honestly walked in here wanting to like this place(for several reasons), but it just didn't happen.
I was very excited to see a new wine bar in New Paltz. Â Something that, in my opinion, had been lacking in town. Â I've been to Il Gallo Giallo twice. Â The first time I sat at the bar and had a fine experience, getting a flight of whites and a couple of small plates, I was satisfied enough to want to come back a second time and for a sit down meal. Â We arrived around 8 pm on a Sunday night. Â It was not crowded. Â Within 10 minutes we had ordered some wine, a charcuterie platter for a starter, as well as our meals -- the porchetta sandwich and a burger. Â It took 45 minutes for the cold cuts to get from the kitchen to us. Â We also sat for long stretches with no wine...piling our glasses at the end of the table, waiting for the waiter to even look outside. Â The owner even walked by. Â When the "main" courses finally arrived, well over an hour after we had sat down, we were very disappointed. Â The burger meat was fine, as was the pork on the porchetta sandwich, but the presentation abysmal. Â I'm all for minimalist cooking, but, there was absolutely nothing on these sandwiches other than meat and dry ciabatta bread with fries and pickled carrots on the side. Â Why this took well over an hour to come out of the kitchen is beyond me. Â Getting the check took another 15 minutes. Â It got to the point where I just handed over my credit card to the waiter, bill unseen, because it was taking so long. Â Mind you, the restaurant had maybe a half dozen other patrons at this time.
I'd like to note that of the three reviews that are posted here, which are all gushing 5 star reviews, two of them have been posted by people who have just joined Yelp two days ago. Â The most recent two have only one review to their name, which is for Il Gallo Giallo, the other Yelper just has one other review. Â The two newest 5 star reviews refer to the owner by name. Â I'll let you draw your own conclusions from this. Â
I really wanted to like this place. Â As a village resident I'm always excited about new bars and restaurants opening in town, as I spend a good amount of my time and money at them. Â Maybe things will change. Â I'll give it a year and see if they're still around.
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