EXTRA VIRGIN – NYC
259 West 4th Street New York, NY 10014
Rating: 7.7
The true sign of a good dish is when you walk into a restaurant and it is on everyone’s table. This is entirely true of the meatballs at Extra Virgin in the West Village. Extra Virgin is a cute, homey little restaurant that has a few outdoor tables in the front, a cozy bar area and a few small tables in the main area. The lively banter makes it feel very comfortable and inviting and the waitresses leopard uniforms definitely spice things up a bit.
Each night of the week Extra Virgin offers a special Mediterranean inspired comfort food whether it is paella, spicy lamb tagine or Sunday night’s spaghetti and meatballs. Needless to say my roommate and I were hungry so we ordered up two full orders. This is my kind of dish. I love pasta but really don’t need that much of it and while the pasta is not homemade, the sauce most certainly is. Meatballs on the other hand I could eat all day. These balls probably weighed one pound each meaning that there is no way any one person can eat the two that come in a serving at once (that was for you Schwetty SNL fans out there!) The meat was slightly spicy I think because it was a mix of different meats and spicy sausage. The sauce was delicious and I was very happy they were served in their own little bathtub of tomatoes and cheese.
Enormous Meatballs
Spaghetti and Sauce
Going backwards here- luckily we were smart enough to start our meal with a couple of lighter salads because the main was so heavy. We had an artichoke salad with a poached egg and crispy pancetta chunks with some arugula and shaved Parmesan.
Artichoke Salad
We also had a light arugula salad with avocado and red onion.
Arugula Salad
To wash it all down we had a couple of the restaurant’s signature watermelon martinis. Now I understand that most men might feel squeamish about a pink drink out of a “girly” glass but all shame is thrown by the wayside here and literally everyone drinks them. What makes them so delicious is that they are a simple combination of fresh watermelon juice and vodka. A perfect summer cocktail.
Extra Virgin is perfect for a casual meal in a homey yet lively setting.
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