Bamonte's, Williamsburg Neighborhood Gem | Tasting Table NYC

In praise of Bamonte's, a Williamsburg survivor

Last month, Tasting Table asked readers for their favorite neighborhood gems. Now we're introducing the winning picks.

?On a not overly picturesque block of Williamsburg, there still stands a red-sauce Italian joint of the type where everyone knows everyone else and they all order the clams.

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The condo-quake of hipster revitalization feels miles away. A clogged artery of the BQE passes nearly overhead–though the restaurant was here before the highway.

Homemade agnolotti, a house speciality
Anthony Bamonte's grandfather Pasquale, recently arrived from a village near Salerno, opened the place in 1900. Back then, it was called Liberty Hall but walk in now past the cigarette machines and phone booths, through veal-pink light of the bar to the wood-paneled elegance of the dining room and it's easy to believe not much has changed here or maybe anywhere. There have been modern improvements, like a trendy open kitchen.

"We added that in 1950," Anthony says. "My uncle had an idea that people should see where their food came from."

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The chef enjoys his lunch | Baked clams
Bamonte's
is the kind of place where the tuxedoed waiters are hesitant to ask if you want to see a menu. They don't want to offend. Even for a newcomer, the menu offers little few surprises but lots of comfort: chicken rollatini, seafood fra diavolo, rigatoni with vodka sauce.

Anthony's daughters run the operation now, fourth-generation stewards of the family business and congenial hosts to an Italian-American diaspora loyal to the restaurant long after they've moved out of the neighborhood.

"We used to stay open until 4 a.m.," Anthony said on a recent chilly afternoon.

Pasta e fagioli | Long-time waiter Julio
"All around us we had the big movie houses, the RKO, the Meserole and the Republic where they ran burlesque shows. Everyone would go out to see a show and then come here for dinner."

Today a small crew of regulars–tracksuits, trainers, backslaps–had gathered for the Thursday special of pasta e fagioli. Talking to Anthony, it was easy to picture the dining room as it once was full to capacity, the social center of a much-changed neighborhood.

"Guys used to tell me it took them twenty minutes to get from the door to their table, they knew so many people along the way."

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Our other favorite Williamsburg Neighborhood Gems: Allswell, Saltie, Rye, Diner

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