The pasta is to die for.
Last week, “Bright Lights Big City” author Jay McInerney almost ignored a hospital’s call to go to the ER immediately, after a CAT scan looked worrisome. McInerney, who had undergone brain surgery two weeks prior, wondered if he couldn’t grab dinner first — he had an impossible-to-score reservation at buzzy Soho Italian restaurant Roscioli, an offshoot of a famous spot in Rome.
“I mean, come on, reservation at Roscioli,” McInerney told Page Six.
New Yorkers are risking their lives, begging, bribing and pleading to get a table at the Italian eatery. It opened in September with 40 seats — roughly half of which are set aside for walk-ins — downstairs for a la carte dining and another 40 seats upstairs where a $130 tasting menu is served. Reservations on the website Resy are snatched up nearly as soon as they go live, and wannabe diners start lining up around 4 p.m. each day to get on the walk-in list.
Quite simply, “Roscioli [is] a b—-h to get into,” McInerney said.
Even Claire Danes is getting turned away.
A Gen Z-aged host recently turned away the actress when tables were full — not knowing it was the actress.
“A server recognized her after the fact,” a member of Roscioli’s guest relations team told The Post.
It’s not uncommon for A-Listers to line up with the masses in hopes of getting a walk-in table.
“Nightly we have celebs walk in just to get an a la carte reservation,” a spokesperson for the restaurant told The Post. “We have had Academy Award Winners and current nominees, Sports stars, high ranking political figures, late night TV hosts and TV stars.”
Comedian Andrew Schulz, who has sold out shows at Madison Square Garden, had to use the luxury lifestyle concierge AMPM to get a reservation at Roscioli.
Those who aren’t famous are taking desperate measures.
Matt Rubin, 27, paid $250 for a table for three on the reservation-swapping platform Appointment Trader after struggling to score on Resy.
But, when he checked in at the restaurant they couldn’t find his name — he’d been scammed — and the hostess asked if they’d bought the reservation.
“They weren’t playing ball,” said Rubin who works in tech and lives in the West Village. “Then we pulled the begging card – ‘It’s my birthday;’ ‘We went to the one in Rome;’ ‘I came to the opening party.’”
They eventually found a table for him — four and a half hours later. Rubin and his friends enjoyed a trio of the classic Roman pastas Roscioli is known for – cacio e pepe, carbonara and rigatoni amatriciana — and said all the expense and effort was ultimately worth it.
“The pastas were exceptional,” he said.
Those who work at the restaurant say chowhounds are relentless. A guest relations member, who asked to remain anonymous, recalled a couple trying to buy their way in, asking: “What do all of these people have that I don’t?”
“[The man said], ‘What can I do to change your mind?’ And when I told them that unfortunately it wasn’t about changing my mind, just that we did not have any available tables the gentleman said, ‘Who would get a table right now? If Nelson Mandela walked in, would he get a table?”
Another diner emailed the restaurant pleading, “I would like to extend a token of gratitude by offering $100 in cash, Venmo or Zelle upon our arrival or now.”
Others have sent in confusing sob stories.
“We both recently lost our jobs a month ago and I didn’t think it would be possible to afford the soft opening or tasting menu – however, it’s his birthday tonight and I’ve saved up enough money to take him for the tasting menu,” read one email, which was shared with The Post.
Carrie, a 32-year-old Upper West Sider who declined to give her last name, found a clever work around. In January, she took one of the restaurant’s $90 wine classes, which included some “small bites.”
“We got to try the prosciutto. Pretty sure it was from a pig farm in Italy. Melted right in your mouth like butter,” she said of the class, which also included cacio e pepe pasta, alongside the tasting of Lambruscos.
“Couldn’t recommend it enough — even though I can’t get into the restaurant!” she said
Meanwhile, McInerney ultimately had to cancel his reservation after fighting over the phone with a physician’s assistant who told him he “could keel over in the restaurant for good” if he went to dinner.
But, his fame did help him eventually try some of Roscioli’s impeccably sourced meats and cheeses. The restaurant sent him a care package in the hospital.
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Jeanette Settembre
