domenica

i came here as part of a 14-person bachelorette group. the wait staff was extremely kind and patient with us, and the food was amazing! the half-price happy hour was just an added bonus!! great place--highly recommended!!

you can always count on a good meal! we started with cold heirloom tomato soup with crabmeat and avocado, delicious if you like cold soup. very refreshing. the roasted cauliflower is a must have. the creamed feta sauce makes the cauliflower. since we were eating late decided just to order pizza. wild mushroom pizza and pork & jalapeño. the pork one was better, however crust amazing. love thin wood fired pizza. even put some of the leftover feta sauce on the pizza. yes we left with the recipe for that.

smells heavenly upon entry! loud but friendly atmosphere. helpful waiter. fresh bread promptly brought to the table was old world classic italian bread. yum! roasted cauliflower with sea salt & whipped feta. margherita pizzi, white pizza, garganelli (okra caponata and goat cheese pasta dish. all dishes very nice. enjoyable evening.

definitely get the pizza. if you come for happy hour (2-5 i believe) the pizza is half off. also the cauliflower head was huge and good. definitely a more than two people appetizer.

we were visiting new orleans from dubai, and we were staying at the ritz carlton hotel. we looked on zomato for good restaurants and the first thing that came up was domenica. we asked the concierge for a good , slightly casual italian restaurant, and he had said domenica. it is only a 1 min walk from my hotel. we went in, it was crowded, but after 2 mins of waiting, we got a table.
i ordered a margherita pizza , and my mother ordered a beef lasagne. it was heaven. everything was outstanding, despite tr crowd, the service was very very fast! affordable! and the chocolate pudding was to die for!!!!!

meh. so and i ate here late because we couldn't get a table anywhere else. service was average as was the pizza. nothing to write home about.

i must confess something...i'm a bit of a novice when it comes to fine dining. my family is middle-class and therefore i've never really been exposed to restaurant menus devoid of prices, multi-page wine lists, etc. so when i made reservations for domenica this past sunday, i didn't know what to expect. and for those of you who don't consider this true "fine dining", then excuse me while you resume polishing your monocle and adjusting your top hat.

domenica is located next door to the roosevelt hotel, just around the corner from the hustle and bustle of canal street. as soon as you walk through the glass doors you know you're in for a treat. the high ceilings and wide-open space is conducive for individuals who don't particularly prefer to be crammed together like sardines while dining out. the lengthy bar on the left-hand side of the restaurant is quite impressive and remained busy throughout our meal.

i made sure to capitalize on the 2-5 happy hour deal which domenica offers (half-off on all pizzas and half-off on all alcoholic beverages) so we arrived shortly after 4 o'clock. we were immediately seated and realized that we were one of the few tables dining at that particular hour. this made for a particularly intimate and enjoyable meal, though i can't speak for how the restaurant compares during its peak hours.

we were immediately provided with an order of bread and a bottle of olive oil for dipping. the olive oil contained traces of what tasted like red pepper, but it might have had a touch more of an additional spice. the bread was fresh, fluffy, and the perfect way to start an italian meal. speaking of italian, my girlfriend, who studied in italy and minored in italian in college, could not stop complimenting the authenticity of the menu's arrangement (i.e. classification of dishes, separating wines based on region of origin, etc.). 

our server quickly attended to us and we put in a request for the roasted cauliflower which so many people seem to rave about. the cauliflower arrived shortly after and was quite a surprise for the both of us. we were served an entire head of cauliflower, rather than what i assumed would be a few pieces. if you are dining out with a large party then this dish is a perfect appetizer to rev up the metabolism. the cauliflower was adorned with sea salt and was accompanied by a plate of whipped feta. the feta was one of the richest-tasting things i have ever tasted. while i might not agree that this is an "essential new orleans dish" like some publications and websites have asserted, i will admit that john besh and his team managed to do more with the relatively unheralded cauliflower than just about anyone around.

the next dish was the squid tagliolini topped with blue crab and herbs. it was absolutely fantastic. the rich butter sauce can be a bit overpowering, especially if you have spent the entire day eating (guilty), but its richness is well-suited for any pasta lover.

finally, we ordered a half smoked pork and a half prosciutto pizza. the smoked pork half came with a white sauce while the prosciutto half was covered in a red sauce. both halves were very tasty and i can only imagine what my impression would have been if a) i had not eaten so much prior to the pizza's arrival and b) i had not already indulged in the rich whipped feta and tagliolini. the thin crust is as italian as it gets and the toppings are just subtle enough not to overpower your taste buds. my girlfriend was enamored with the prosciutto and i found the smoked pork to be quite tasty. 

throw in a glass of penot grigio and our bill came out to $56. considering how much food we had remaining and how full we were, i'd say the bill wasn't very steep at all.

the service throughout the entire meal was top notch. domenica really knows how to assemble a good crew. if you are in the cbd or on the edge of the french quarter, stop in if you have the time. there are plenty of drinks to choose from, affordable and delicious pizza options, and an upscale environment that is perfect for a special occasion. 

taste: 9.5/10

cost: 5/10; 9/10 (if you partake in the happy hour and order a pizza)

dining area/decor: 10/10

customer service: 10/10

location: 7/10

crispy sweetbreads. out of this world good!

-----02 apr, 2015-----

prosciutto pizza. amazing every time.

tried the roasted cauliflower this time and we have always read that it was the thing to get when you go to domenica, but other things on the menu always sounded a bit better. we were glad that we tried it this visit. the entire cauliflower was edible, including the stems and even they were delicious.  the whipped feta dip was the perfect complement. we managed to eat it all, in spite of the pizza and arugula and beet salad my wife brought to lunch. i did not think much of the salad, but i am not a fan of beets. it was beautiful and i am sure a "beet lover or liker" would have thought it was good. the pizza doesn't need any comment. it is always good, i would eat my shoe on their pizza.

very good food, excellent service. had dinner with a friend and both of us really enjoyed our meals. thought the food was excellent. even better was the service. don't think i have ever had service better.

pizza that's more than pizza. grade: b+

if this is what john besh’s organization can do with a pizza, i have to try the rest. the margherita is wonderful – sweet tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil, and the perfect crust. almost as good as lombardi’s in new york. absolutely loved it.

we waited 10 minutes. it was well worth the shirt wait. outstanding customer service in seating us, yet bland table service. great pizza and the arugula salad and baby greens salad was exceptional. the roasted eggplant pizza was incredible.

we had domenica on our radar but were on the fence about coming here because we had so many other places to try.  our friend recommended only coming here for happy hour (2pm-5pm) since all their pizzas are 50% off! we’re in! we ordered: margherita pizza – tomato, basil, fresh mozzarella tutto carne pizza – bacon, fennel sausage, salumi, prosciutto cutto all wines by the glass, beers and certain cocktails are also half-priced. pizzas are pretty big and with 50% off, they run about $6-8! we ordered two for the four of us and it was plenty!  awesome deal, right? the pizzas are tasty!  the crust could be a little crispier but still good.  we liked the marg but liked the fennel sausage even more! atmosphere:  beautiful, modern space.  high ceilings, dark accents with great light fixtures. service:  our waitress was great! extremely friendly and helpful! overall:   come here for happy hour and eat a ton of pizza and drink a lot of bellinis!

"good" pizza... decent prices.. the only gripe i have is they recently changed their happy hour from 3pm-6pm... who goes to hh at 3pm?! oh, and really good mango bellinis. i'd stay away from the prosciutto pizza... it was rather dry.

mixed feelings about great food...... i really like the food here. it is one of those understated restaurants where the menu sounds almost too simple and plain yet the food is flavorful and exciting when it hits your table. my problem is more with the management. i have probably eaten at this restaurant at least 20 times in the past 5 years. the reservations are tedious and unprofessional, and a big turn-off. i would have probably eaten here 20 more times if the maitre d' or lack there of (hostess) had a clue. if you go on open table, the restaurant often looks booked with openings at 5:30 and 9:00pm with nothing in between. i recently noticed at 5:55 in the evening, 6:15 was available. i was 15 minutes away, but i had to get my wife out of the hotel room so i knew it would be difficult. i called domenica and as always a 20 year old clueless hostess answers. i asked what was available, and she said nothing, and there is 30 minute wait which would grow as the evening progresses. i said i see on open table 6:15 is available, but i may be a few minutes late. she doesn't know how long she could hold the table if i book it, and i said well how many tables do you book and how many are open seating? the question went over her head. i said i am booking it c u soon. we almost sprint down to the restaurant and realize when we get there that the place is half empty. it's like they are trying to pretend they are busier than they are at the expense of the customer.

in my 5 years of frequenting domenica, a manager has never come buy to great me or even pretend i am a somewhat regular customer. it's such an amateur setting, that it just turns me off. i gave it a thumbs up for the food, but this place would be outstanding with a maitre d'. it's almost insulting dealing with reservations, and it keeps me from going back often. the sazerac is one of my favorite bars and i pass by domenica often wondering how much money they are flushing down the toilet as the restaurant sits half empty. chef alon shaya's genius is being wasted. please hire a manager that wants to make the customer feel special, and you will have a winner.

steamed clam pizza and lasagna bolognese. haute to hearty and well priced for quality.