July 8 (Bloomberg) -- The first gangster reference came after cocktails. I suppose it’s what you expect at a New York Italian joint owned by actor Robert De Niro.

We were dining at Locanda Verde in Tribeca’s Greenwich Hotel, which roughly translates as “green inn,” even though it’s brown and woodsy inside. Must sound better than “brown inn.”

In any case, we were inquiring about a peculiar menu item: Gabagoul. What the heck is that?

“Ever watch ‘The Sopranos’?” our waitress asked.

Got it. Gabagoul’s what Tony Soprano ordered from his local deli. I’d never seen it written out. That’s because gabagoul is common Italian-American slang for capicola, a chewy, dry-cured pork. It’s the same school of phonetics that brought us “manigott” (manicotti) and “ganool” (canoli).

At Locanda, you wrap the gabagoul around a knob of nutty, crumbly grana cheese. Then chew. And chew. It’s all the more enjoyable because you’re sitting outside, drinking prosecco, and watching the sunset over the Hudson.

Which means you’re looking at New Jersey, too.

De Niro has learned to take things a little less seriously this time. This place used to be Ago, an overpriced mockery of a restaurant where an Italian-accented waiter once insisted on splitting my flavorless, $42 veal chop tableside with a spoon. At Locanda, nothing’s over $25, and diners are allowed to split dishes themselves (with a knife).

No Foam

Chef Andrew Carmellini has chilled out too. He was sometimes a little too fancy for his own good at A Voce, his last posting, where I recall a poultry dish with some kind of silly foam.

At Locanda, we get to eat with our hands.

Take a piece of grilled bread and dunk it in insanely rich ricotta. Jalapenos inject a hint of heat into a crab canape. Stretch your mouth around the lamb sliders: juicy balls of musky meat sandwiched between parmesan-onion buns.

Bet you won’t find sliders in Sicily. Locanda feels less about regional Italian fare in the traditional sense and more about Italian-American fare in the modern sense, which is to say, with a smaller dose of red sauce.

“My Grandmother’s Ravioli” is slicked with San Marzano tomatoes. They have just enough sugar, just enough acid to cut through the beef, pork and veal-packed dumplings. Giant, toothsome noodles sop up an even piggier “Sunday Night Ragu,” a festival of fall-apart rib and shoulder meat.

Wet Noodle

Carmellini has a tendency to overcook pasta. Linguine with clams, tagliolini with porcini and maltagliati with pesto weren’t mushy, but none were firm, either.

Porchetta is cooked “just the way I like it,” says the menu, which means that he likes a pile of under-rendered fat flanking the texture-less meat. The remnants died in a doggie bag in my fridge.

A $38 chicken (for two) yielded tender flesh, soggy skin. For a more reliably crispy exterior, try the trout. For a pleasant whiff of the sea, clam liquor adds brininess to bass.

If the supper menu puts Locanda in the category of neighborhood hangout, the excellent desserts and breakfast make a case for destination dining. Remember, Locanda’s in a hotel and many tourists, unlike New Yorkers, insist on eating a full meal before noon.

Tea and Advil is enough for me. But I’ll gladly have the poached eggs here, which spill their yolks into cotechino hash and tomato hollandaise. Locanda should serve its airy, ethereal, lemon-ricotta-blueberry pancakes (topped with lemon curd) at dinner.

In the meantime, cope with a lemon tart in the evening, courtesy of ex-Craft pastry chef Karen DeMasco. This king of sweets is almost universally wrecked with too much sugar. DeMasco lets the sourness roar. Any sweetness is tamed further by tart buttermilk gelato. If Tony Soprano were real, he’d be even fatter thanks to Locanda.

Rating **

The Bloomberg Questions

Cost? Everything’s $25 or under.

Sound level? Bustling inside, quiet outside.

Date place? Yes.

Inside tip? Best table is outside overlooking the Hudson.

Special feature? Accommodative service. They held a table after my companions were an hour late.

Private room? Yes. Seats 20-60.

Will I be back? Especially for breakfast.

Locanda Verde is at 377 Greenwich St. at N. Moore. +1-212- 925-3797 or http://www.greenwichhotelny.com.

What the Stars Mean:


****         Incomparable food, service, ambience.
***          First-class of its kind.
**           Good, reliable.
*            Fair.
No stars     Poor.

(Ryan Sutton writes about New York City restaurants for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the writer of this column: Ryan Sutton in New York at rsutton1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 8, 2009 00:01 EDT